The St. Louis Blues' Stanley Cup championship run had a ubiquitous soundtrack to it: Laura Branigan's 1982 disco classic "Gloria," which became the team's postgame victory song, while "Play Gloria!" became a rallying cry found on T-shirts, hats and other trinkets sold inside and outside the arena during the postseason.

The Philadelphia bar that inspired the Blues' "Gloria" craze believes it's only fair that it share in the profits from those items.

The Jacks NYB, a bar in South Philadelphia, filed a trademark application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for "Play Gloria" on May 8 that covered usage on T-shirts, then a second one for "Play Gloria!" on June 1 that covered an assortment of items from hats and shirts to blankets and beverage cans.

The bar's legal representation has contacted St. Louis companies, including the Blues themselves, about sharing in the profits made from the sales of "Play Gloria" merchandise. In some cases, that has meant cease and desist letters. The Blues have not been sent one.

"There are companies out there making enormous profits, potentially, off of a brand that The Jacks undoubtedly created, fostered and supported," said Rob McKinley of Lauletta Birnbaum LLC, an attorney specializing in intellectual property who is representing the bar. "Our conversations with the Blues have been friendly and open."

The Blues were selling "Play Gloria" shirts in their arena store during the playoffs, but as of Friday had only shirts that read "Gloria Gloria" for sale on their official online store.

The 1980s pop classic "Gloria" has been the St. Louis Blues' victory anthem this season. Here's the new "Play Gloria" shirt design debuting at Game 3 between the Blues and Sharks. https://t.co/OJR5Wu5hWy pic.twitter.com/OQc5DFNO4z

— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) May 15, 2019

Mike Caruso, vice president of media and brand communications for the Blues, told ESPN that the action by The Jacks "has nothing to do with us, so no comment from us. But we heard that it's dead. The folks from the bar never followed up."

The Blues were inspired to adopt "Gloria" as their victory song after watching an Eagles NFC wild-card game against the Chicago Bears at Jacks NYB on Jan. 6.

"We got together with some friends and watched the game with a bunch of Philly guys who grew up there," Blues defenseman Joel Edmundson told StLouisBlues.com. "They had a DJ in the bar and whenever there was a commercial break, they would crank the tunes and all these guys from Philly would get up and start dancing around. They played this song 'Gloria' a couple of times, and this one guy looked at the DJ and said 'keep playing Gloria!', so they kept playing it. Everyone would get up and start singing and dancing. We just sat back and watched it happen. Right there we decided we should play the song after our wins."

McKinley said that origin story, and the subsequent "where it all began" coverage of the bar in St. Louis media and on NBC, bolsters the bar's trademark claim.

"The minute you start saying it is the minute you start to acquire trademark rights. You can establish the rights later. You have to prove the first use of it," he told ESPN on Friday. "I've been doing this for over 20 years. One of the things you have to establish under common-law trademark rights is you have to establish that you own the trademark. That's easy in this case."

From the land of unofficially licensed merch pic.twitter.com/ay3uNCXSWk

— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) June 1, 2019

McKinley disputed reports out of St. Louis that the bar has taken legal action.

"They didn't file any lawsuits against anyone. It's simply a business situation, where a company creates a valuable piece of intellectual property and wants to profit from it," he said. "We didn't try to sue the Blues. That's patently false."

According to Missouri Lawyers Weekly, which first reported on the letters from The Jacks NYB, a company called Arch Apparel initially stopped production on "Play Gloria" gear but then started selling it again after consulting with its legal representation.

On Friday, The Jacks NYB put out a statement on its Facebook page emphatically denying it has "threatened to sue the St. Louis Blues ever" while defending its trademark dispute with Arch Apparel in particular.

"Here's the truth. When we found out that other companies were using our PLAY GLORIA trademark to make money off of it, we reached out to them to try to make a deal with them. If they are going to profit from it, why shouldn't we get a small piece of the pie. Wouldn't you? Why should they keep all of the profits? In the case of Arch Apparel, rather than talk to us, they completely ignored us, then went on to make hundreds of THOUSANDS of dollars off of our #PlayGloria Trademark when fully knowing we owned the rights since our first letter in May," the bar said in the statement.

McKinley said there's been an "us against them" spin out of St. Louis regarding the trademark dispute.

"They look at the company as some out-of-own bar trying to sue a local St. Louis business. Why isn't the spin that those companies pay some fair amount of their profits to make more profits?" he said.

"To put things in context: If the St. Louis Blues owned the 'Play Gloria' trademark, and they sent cease and desist letters to unauthorized users of it, would we even be having this conversation? Unquestionably no. The St. Louis Blues, Anheuser-Busch, the NHL ... they respect the intellectual property rights of others."

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has left the club's preseason training camp in Montreal due to personal reasons.

The 12-time European champions are in Canada as they prepare for their opening International Champions Cup match against Bayern Munich, which will take place in Houston on Saturday July 20.

- When does the 2019-20 La Liga season start?

"Our manager, Zinedine Zidane, will leave the preseason training camp in Montreal for personal reasons," a club statement read. "Until his return, the sessions will be taken by his assistant, David Bettoni."

Zidane returned to the Spanish capital in March following the sacking of Santiago Solari, as the club's third manager in a troubled campaign, which saw them fail to challenge in the league, Champions League and Copa del Rey.

And, following a busy summer which has seen the club sign Eder Militao, Rodrygo, Luka Jovic, Eden Hazard and Ferland Mendy, Madrid will be expecting to pose a much stronger challenge next season.

Three days after their clash with Bayern, Madrid travel to Maryland to face Arsenal before ending with a clash against Atletico Madrid on July 26 in New Jersey.

Madrid begin their domestic season on August 17 with a trip to Celta Vigo.

As expected, there was a delivery at number 10 Calle Hernandez today. Just after 1 on Friday afternoon, a car pulled up outside the offices of La Liga in north-eastern Madrid -- a smart, seemingly ever-expanding building that stands above the A2 motorway heading from the capital to Catalonia -- and a man got out carrying €120m. His name is Sevan Karian, he greeted two other men, headed inside and left. Soon after, there was an announcement: At long last, Antoine Griezmann is officially a Barcelona player.

A year on from the broadcasting of a documentary called "The Decision," in which Griezmann agonised over whether to stay at Atletico Madrid or join Barcelona, only to turn down the Camp Nou club, Griezmann is heading to Catalonia after all. Within months, he regretted that decision and has reversed it.

Barcelona had hoped to negotiate Griezmann's transfer, to pay the money in instalments, but in the end, they have had to pay the buyout clause. They were always likely to: Indeed, the buyout clause is the mechanism that has made all this possible; just as last year his clause temporarily fell to an eminently payable €100m, this year it dropped from €200m to €120m on July 1. It was an open invitation, and Barcelona accepted it.

Paying it took a while, which was pretty silly, as they had known they were going to do this for months and had always known that July 1 was the date. Barcelona had to gather up the money, get it signed off, prepare the paperwork and then help Griezmann do the delivery -- it is officially the player who buys himself out -- but it is done. Griezmann should be able to join the other Barcelona internationals in preseason training on Monday. Before that, there will be photos, thumbs up and a few words. A presentation is penned in, but they're not sure when.

And then it will be on with work.

Which takes them to the next target: another man who turned them down a couple of seasons ago. Turned them upside-down, more like.

With Griezmann done, there are six long weeks ahead in the transfer window that might, just might, end with Neymar heading back to the Camp Nou. Which for now means: nothing.

Sit.

Wait.

Watch.

Think a bit, too. And there is a lot to think about.

Think back to 2017, and the last time a massive signing went the buy-out route; to the comedy scene of a lawyer in a bowtie and a straw hat travelling around Spain trying to give away €220m -- he went to Barcelona's offices before he went to the league's, but they refused to see him -- to release Neymar from the Camp Nou. Think back to the Barcelona director claiming to be "200% sure" Neymar was staying. To Gerard Pique, the same Pique who (rightly) enjoys pointing out how the media publishes fake news, announcing: "He stays." Only for Neymar to go.

Think about the damage it did. It was a lot. They're still due their day in court, for a start: Neymar vs. Barcelona (Neymar has taken his former club to court regarding the non-payment of a loyalty bonus). Their forward line was split days before the season started. It's easy to forget the mess that manager Ernesto Valverde inherited. And that's just the short term: Barcelona's succession plan, well, that was gone too. In pieces. Neymar was Messi's partner, but also his successor. Barcelona looked weak and really rather silly. They reacted by throwing money around. Time will tell, but so far it doesn't look that well spent.

But Barcelona overcame losing Neymar. Well, sort of. Two league titles, a combined 30-plus points ahead of Madrid, were tempered by two successive Champions League disasters that weigh heavily on their thinking.

Now Neymar, too, has changed his mind. He wants to come back; he regrets what he did and wants to reverse it. His best mates, Messi and Luis Suarez, would like him to return.

And it turns out that Paris Saint Germain aren't that keen on him anymore. They're talking like it was nothing to do with them. "No one obliged him to come," president Sheik Al Khelaifi said, which was true. "We didn't push him to," which wasn't quite so true. PSG have talked about "commitment" to the "project," about how they don't want "star behaviour," which was pretty much what their project of signing big stars like Neymar guaranteed. For the first time, they're talking about a player, the player, being able to go.

In fact, they seem to be trying to force it. Neymar didn't show for training, PSG said. And it is the "PSG said" part of that phrase that matters most. In a statement, Neymar's father responded by saying: No, he wasn't due to train until next week, and PSG knew that. This is out in the open, and a split shared is a split deepened. In all probability, this was a hand played.

PSG sporting director Leonardo's words the other day read like an invitation for Barcelona to come and get Neymar at the same time as an expression of his doubt that they can, a doubt which is entirely legitimate. Barcelona don't really have the money for this. They do, though, have doubts of their own. They didn't plan for this; this is an opportunity that arose. But it is one that brings its own problems, they know.

Think back, again, to everything that happened. Some people have been reluctant to welcome Griezmann back after everything he did to Barcelona, after what happened last year. And what he did was far, far less than what Neymar did. Yet there's an excitement about Neymar, that attraction, a frisson. There's also a concern. And an awareness of the cost. Of how difficult it is to make happen. If paying for Griezmann was hard, imagine how hard Neymar is. The club is in debt to the tune of €157m on the league's preferred measurement. (The total is over €500m.)

Yet it is also true that on this issue, Barcelona feel like they are in a strong position for once: PSG and Neymar have exposed themselves. Barcelona have exposed them, in fact: It was Barcelona who publicly said Neymar wants to come back. They have not said, however, that they want him back.

But they do. It's attractive, this idea. It's also a little mad. How do you make it happen? What damage does it do? Can you sign the same player who walked out on you and do it two years later, when most would say that his level has dropped? You lose the "second best player in the world" during his peak and then bring him back when he's past it? Do you have to get rid of the two players you signed to replace him? When you've been busy saying one of them, Dembele, is better than Neymar anyway. What does that say about your strategy? And what about the guy you've just signed for €120m?

In short: Is Neymar worth it?

Some think not.

Many people seem reluctant to recognise that Neymar is a superb footballer. Or they think he comes with too much baggage. Others hope that, in fact, these two years could have been corrective, a lesson learnt. There's pride too: Barcelona want an apology, they want legal actions dropped, along with his salary, they want commitment. They were hurt by Neymar's departure. There'd be some shame in welcoming him back, a loss of face. They do not forget, still less forgive. Few players have cost Barcelona what Neymar has.

Imagine if this was a fantastically elaborate, Machiavellian plan to extract the coldest revenge? PSG and Neymar made to pay, left exposed and broken. Deliciously dastardly.

There are many flaws with that theory, not least the fact that this was not planned at all. One day the opportunity was there: Neymar was no longer impossible. And for all those problems, Barcelona couldn't help feel the excitement. Imagine if they really could do this. If they could let it all go, pretend that none of this happened, magic these two years away, and put him back in. With Griezmann as well this time. And Dembele? Imagine that. Try not to get excited.

It's mad, but it might just work.

It also might not.

And it might not happen. If it doesn't, Barcelona probably don't lose anything. PSG and Neymar, though, do. There will be some explaining to do, some making up. But then things can be explained the way things often are. "You say one thing, and the next day it's another," Leonardo said. "It's incredible, but that's the way it is."

MLS teams are returning to full strength following the conclusions of the Gold Cup and Copa America, and a pair of matches on ESPN this weekend should provide plenty of entertainment, with the Seattle Sounders hosting Atlanta United, and D.C. United facing the New England Revolution. Also, north of the border, rivals Toronto FC and the Montreal Impact will clash for the first time this season.

Superstar showdown in Seattle

Transfer rumors always add an extra layer of intrigue to proceedings, and we'll have plenty of that when the Seattle Sounders host Atlanta United on Sunday (3:55 p.m. ET, ESPN).

For about the millionth time since he arrived in Seattle, midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro has been linked with a move back to Boca Juniors following his comments in an interview in which he expressed his affinity for the Argentine club where he played prior to joining Seattle.

It may be that one day Lodeiro will end up back in the Bombonera, but for now the sense is that his near-term future is in Seattle. He's under contract until 2021 and is the cog in Seattle's attacking wheel. Still, the talk will remain as long as Lodeiro expresses his affection for Boca.

The love for a former Argentine club is a trait shared by ex-River Plate man Gonzalo "Pity" Martinez of Atlanta United. Since arriving in Georgia from River after winning the 2018 Copa Libertadores in epic fashion, Martinez has struggled in his new digs, with just a goal and four assists.

That has prompted its own share of transfer speculation, with TyC Sports of Argentina claiming that Atlanta wanted to loan out Martinez, a report that Atlanta boss Frank de Boer quickly dismissed.

Anyone who watched Martinez at River knows his creative capabilities, and it's worth remembering that his adjustment at River in 2015 took time as well. Perhaps Atlanta won't see the best of Pity until 2020, however they could certainly use a glimpse or two in the Pacific Northwest.

- MLS Shopping List: Who needs what this summer?
- MLS Confidential: Our annual anonymous player survey

Revs get a big summer Bou-st

The summer transfer window is just a few days old but the New England Revolution have landed a haymaker with the signing of Gustavo Bou.

The Argentine is a proven goal scorer wherever he has played. The fact that he had 10 goals in the Liga MX Clausura with Tijuana suggests he could be even more prolific in MLS. If Brian Fernandez's early success with the Portland Timbers after a good season at Necaxa is a hint of things to come, Revs fans can feel optimistic.

The combination of Bou and Gil could turn New England into a force to be reckoned with this fall.

It remains to be seen if Bou will debut on Friday night at D.C. United (7 p.m. ET, ESPN), but those in the nation's capital know all too well the impact that a big summer signing can make after Wayne Rooney's stateside arrival a year ago. Unfortunately for Rooney, partner in crime Luciano Acosta will be missing due to suspension, giving a New England team with a spring in its step all the more motivation.

New arrivals in Canada

Saturday's Canadian Classique between the Montreal Impact and Toronto FC (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+) arrives at an interesting moment for both teams.

To continue the transfer theme, Ignacio Piatti is another player who has constantly been linked with a move back to his native Argentina, but Impact president Kevin Gilmore made it clear that Piatti won't be leaving anytime soon.

That will be a relief to the Impact faithful, but the wait continues for Piatti to return from an injury that will keep him out until summer's end. The Argentine danger man has played just five matches this season, yet manager Remi Garde somehow has the Impact sitting fourth in the East.

On the other side, TFC boss Greg Vanney has been missing many of his key pieces due to international duty, but Jozy Altidore and Michael Bradley are back in the fold, while new arrivals Omar Gonzalez and Erickson Gallardo should give Toronto a good shot in the arm. With Toronto teetering on the playoff line, Vanney needs contributions from those four to become a contender.

It was a delivery that not only claimed Australia's fifth wicket, but confirmed the sense that England were on their way to the World Cup final. Adil Rashid's googly to trap Marcus Stoinis lbw was a fine example of England's legspinner going about his craft as well as an indication that he is getting "back to my best" after a shoulder injury that hampered his performance earlier in the tournament.

Rashid has been managing a problem with his right shoulder that required an injection and limited his ability to deliver his variations. The dismissal of Stoinis was his first wicket from a googly at this World Cup, and he followed up later in the innings by also removing Pat Cummins with the delivery on the way to figures of 3 for 54.

He admitted afterwards that he had been searching to "find that snap" with his wrong'un again after recovering from the injury.

ALSO READ: England 'won't listen to favourites chat' - Bayliss

"Probably not bowled them as much," he said. "The main reason was because of my shoulder because I've got a bit of a shoulder problem. But I knew that [the googly] is a big weapon for me, that's one of my big weapons, my variations, looking to create stuff. My shoulder had that little bit of problem and I know I still had to bowl it even if I was in a bit of a pain. Knowing that's my strength, that's why I get wickets. Today and the previous two days of practice I've done was for that as well.

"It's been good for a while. But in terms of variations, googlies and stuff, it's been a bit different to what it was pre-shoulder problem. Before the shoulder [injury], I was confident bowling everything. Once you have a niggle it becomes a bit harder with the rotation - the arm gets a bit lower and you don't find that snap. The previous two net sessions I've done it's come out well."

While he said he had been forced to deliver his googly differently for a while, Rashid was hopeful that problem had now been resolved and said that the dismissal of Stoinis provided further encouragement.

"It has been [different]. But now I can get it back to my best. That would come by maybe having that confidence to do it regardless of whatever happens and knowing that I need to do it because that's my best strength.

"It was nice to make a batsman go for a cut on the back foot and spinning it back in that he doesn't pick, that's a nice feeling as any spinner that bowls a variation [knows], that a batsman doesn't pick and gets a wicket. That just gives me more confidence to make sure I keep sticking to my strengths, don't go away from that regardless of how I feel, knowing if I stick to that things will happen."

Rashid's performance also included breaking Australia's fourth-wicket partnership, having Alex Carey caught on the midwicket boundary, before he struck against Stoinis three balls later. He now has 11 World Cup wickets at 44.27, but those figures could have been better had other chances stuck - notably the drop of Mohammad Hafeez at Trent Bridge and a missed stumping against Usman Khawaja at Lord's - and Rashid suggested he was happy with his bowling.

"I reckon there's been a few times I've bowled better but not got the rewards. But that happens in cricket, sometimes you bowl well and don't get wickets. You don't bowl as well, you get wickets. That's cricket and that happens to everybody. For me personally, I want to keep striving, keep looking to work hard and keeping looking to deliver my skills and be confident in that."

Having become a central figure in the first England team to reach a World Cup final since 1992, Rashid was quick to praise Eoin Morgan as "100%" the best captain he had played under.

"100%, Morgs. He knows my game now inside out. Been with him for four years, through good times and not so good times. He knows my strengths, what I'm capable of and vice-versa as well.

"Me and him have that communication. We have that trust as well. If he senses a feel, we'll go by it. If I sense a feel, we'll go by it - what plans we want or how we should bowl. It's very easy like that. We're easygoing like that. I 100% trust him in decisions he makes."

As for their progress to the final against New Zealand at Lord's on Sunday, Rashid said the realisation was beginning to dawn that they could become the first England team to lift the trophy.

"At the beginning of the tournament I couldn't believe it. It's been a good journey in the World Cup. The ups, the downs as well. Some interesting times. We've played good cricket the past three games and now to be in a position where we can win it, it's a good feeling."