Soccer on TV: Lionel Messi is willing Barcelona to big wins in the La Liga title race

Friday, 2 p.m. (NBCSports.com, atafootball.com)

The race for the FA Women’s Super League title is going to be intense, but the race for third place could be even more fascinating. Because the Champions League is expanding next year to include three English teams instead of two, third-place United and fourth-place Arsenal have something big to chase.

For the Red Devils, it would be the club’s first ever Champions League berth. And because of the global impact of Manchester United’s name, it would be a big deal to have the team on Europe’s biggest club women’s soccer stage.

United enters with a six-point lead, but a slew of injury absences including stars Tobin Heath and Alessia Russo. Arsenal, led by Vivianne Miedema, has a game in hand on United, so a win here would put the resulting three-point gap very much in reach.

Friday, 3:45 p.m. (ESPN+)

Former Union centerback Mark McKenzie was a surprising omission from the U.S. men’s national team squad for the friendlies in Europe later this month. We might get to see him here as Genk pushes to regain second place after recently falling into third.

» READ MORE: Anthony Fontana will be the Union’s top playmaker to start the season

Friday, 6 p.m. (FS1, TUDN)

The two teams most likely to qualify for the Olympics out of Concacaf’s men’s tournament are the U.S. and Mexico, which are in the same group. But Canada is a team with talent that could pull off an upset. Notable players include Tajon Buchanan (New England Revolution), Theo Bair (Vancouver Whitecaps) and Ballou Jean-Yves Tabla (Club de Foot Montréal).

Saturday, 10:30 a.m. (ESPN+)

Stuttgart’s New Jersey-born manager Pellegrino Matarazzo is having a fine season at the helm, guiding the team into eighth place in the Bundesliga. Now he faces his biggest test of the campaign, trying to stop first-place Bayern from running away with the title again.

» READ MORE: This weekend's Bundesliga schedule

Saturday, 11 a.m. (ESPN+)

Barnsley’s American striker Daryl Dike, on loan from Orlando City, has been tearing it up in England’s second division. He has five goals in 11 games abroad, including two Wednesday in a 3-1 win at Wycombe.

Saturday, 1:30 p.m. (ESPN+)

The FA Cup quarterfinals are this weekend. Downingtown’s Zack Steffen has started every game in Man City’s run so far. If he gets another, he’ll get a good test from an Everton team led by 14-goal scorer Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

The other big-time clash in the quarters is Leicester City vs. Manchester United, Sunday at 12:45 p.m. (ESPN+).

» READ MORE: The rest of this weekend's FA Cup schedule

Sunday, 8 a.m. (ESPN+)

Rangers head across Glasgow to Celtic Park for the first Old Firm matchup since ending Celtic’s nine-year run of Scottish Premier League championships. Manager Steven Gerrard’s club clinched the title on March 7, and the lead in the standings is now 20 points.

Sunday, 4 p.m. (beIN Sports, beIN Sports Español)

Whether or not Barcelona ends up coming from behind to win La Liga, take the time to admire how spectacularly Lionel Messi has been playing lately. He has 17 goals and five assists in 17 games across all competitions since the start of 2021, and many of them have been sensational. When beIN’s legendary color analyst Ray Hudson shouts “Look out!” as a Barcelona breakaway starts, believe him.

» READ MORE: This weekend's La Liga schedule

Sunday, 4 p.m. (beIN Sports Connect)

This is a big game in France’s Ligue 1 title race. The teams are tied for second place with 60 points each, one game back of leader Lille. Lyon’s Memphis Depay has 15 goals and 9 assists in 30 games this season, while PSG’s Kylian Mbappé has piled up 28 goals and 9 assists in 35 games.

Sunday 7 p.m. (FS1, TUDN)

The U.S. under-23 men didn’t look great in Thursday’s 1-0 win over Costa Rica that kicked off Concacaf’s Olympic qualifying tournament. But the result mattered more than anything else, and another win here should clinch a berth in the semifinals.

» READ MORE: Concacaf plans to launch a women’s soccer Champions League after the 2023 World Cup