Afternoon Ticker: RSL in talks to sell minority stake in club, Germany-Chile friendly called off and more

By TRAVIS CLARK

In the midst of a playoff run, and one win from a spot in MLS Cup, Real Salt Lake is reportedly close to seeing a new minority owner buying into the club.

According to the Deseret News, RSL owner Dave Checketts is in the latter stages of negotiations with Utah real estate developer Dell Loy Hansen to sell Hansen a 49 percent stake in the club. Hansen wants to expand the RSL brand using the properties he already owns in the area.

The deal has yet to be confirmed, and would require approval from the lending parties involved and MLS. No word on the value of the club at the time -- though estimations on MLS clubs generally hover in the $40 million range, and the construction cost of Rio Tinto was $110 million. Reports that Checketts is selling a minority stake in the club to help fuel his rumored bid to buy the St. Louis Rams were denied.

Here's a look at some other stories around the world:

Saturday's German-Chile friendly canceled. The ripple effect of Robert Enke's tragic death on Tuesday is only beginning to resonate around the globe. With former clubs like Barcelona and Tenerife already making plans to honor Enke, it's fitting that the German federation would cancel Saturday's friendly with Chile.

Richard Dunne criticizes France head Coach Raymond Domenech. Aston Villa and Ireland defender Richard Dunne decided that now would be a good time to hit out at Domenech. France, who have underachieved since the enigmatic Frenchman lucked his way to the 2006 World Cup final, face the Irish in a two-legged playoff starting Saturday.

"Every time a tournament comes round, they [France] have all these world-class players and then a man who seems intent on messing them up," Dunne told The Guardian. "Over the last World Cups and European Championships, things have not run smoothly for France; they've always got through but maybe it's time that we put a stop to that. And we know that if we can get in front, they probably have not got the man at the top to pull them back around."

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What do you think of RSL's potential sale? Will it have any impact on Saturday's match? Glad that Germany's friendly was canceled? Surprised to see Richard Dunne trashing Domenech?

Share your thoughts below.