Napoli triumphs in penalty shootout to reach Italian Cup quarterfinals; Inter also advances

MILAN (AP) — Napoli advanced to the quarterfinals of the Italian Cup by winning a lengthy penalty shootout against Cagliari following a 1-1 draw in regular time Wednesday.

Antonio Conte’s team eventually prevailed 9-8 on penalties with Mattia Felici hitting the crossbar with his spot kick for Cagliari and Zito Luvumbo having his saved by Napoli goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic.

David Neres could have secured the win for Napoli with his team’s fifth penalty, after Felici’s miss, but his spot kick was saved by Elia Caprile. Instead it was Alessandro Buongiorno who sealed the victory after even Milinkovic-Savic had taken — and scored — a spot kick.

The match had finished 1-1 after Lorenzo Lucca’s first-half header for Napoli was canceled out by Sebastiano Esposito in the 67th minute, following an accidental assist by home midfielder Scott McTominay.

Napoli will play either Fiorentina or Como in the quarterfinals.

Inter moved into the last eight with a crushing 5-1 victory over Venezia — the only Serie B team left in the competition.

Both Napoli and Inter heavily rotated their squads, with both teams also involved in the Serie A title race and in the Champions League.

Andy Diouf was given his first start and set Inter on the way with his first goal for the Nerazzurri in the 18th minute. Pio Esposito doubled Inter's tally just two minutes later before a double from Marcus Thuram all but secured the victory.

Richie Sagrado netted a consolation for Venezia but Ange-Yoan Bonny restored the four-goal advantage.

Inter will next play either Roma or Torino.

Atalanta set up an Italian Cup quarterfinal match against Juventus with a 4-0 win over 10-man Genoa.

It was Daniele De Rossi ’s first defeat as Genoa coach after taking charge at the beginning of last month.

Berat Djimsiti headed in a cross to give Atalanta the lead in the 19th minute and Genoa’s task became more difficult when teenager Seydou Fini was sent off in the 36th for bringing down Raoul Bellanova when he was through on goal.

Marten de Roon doubled Atalanta’s lead early in the second half with a powerful, swerving shot from outside the area and Mario Pasalic slid in to fire home the third late on.

The 17-year-old Honest Ahanor — who joined Atalanta from Genoa in July — scored his first senior goal in stoppage time.

Juventus beat Udinese in their round of 16 match on Tuesday.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Atalanta's Marten de Roon scores his side's second goal during the Italian Cup soccer match between Atalanta and Genoa in Bergamo, Italy, Wednesday Dec. 3, 2025. (Spada/LaPresse via AP)

Inter Milan's Marcus Thuram, 2nd left, scores his side's third goal during the Italian soccer cup round of sixteen match between Inter Milan and Venezia, at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Dec.3, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Inter Milan's Andy Diouf celebrates his side's opening goal during the Italian soccer cup round of sixteen match between Inter Milan and Venezia, at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Dec.3, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Napoli's head coach Antonio Conte reacts during the round of 16 Italian Cup soccer match between Napoli and Cagliari, in Naples, southern Italy, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

Napoli's Alessandro Buongiorno, top, celebrates after scoring during the round of sixteen Italian Cup soccer match between Napoli and Cagliari in Naples, Italy, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

The U.S. Hockey League is making expansion plans with a focus on adding teams in California, Nevada and Arizona.

The league on Thursday announced it has a memorandum of understanding with a group of stakeholders to add teams in the region. It’s unclear how many franchises the current 16-team Tier 1 junior hockey league will add and when, with more details to be revealed on June 24, the USHL said.

The agreement was made in partnership with USA Hockey and the NHL. The USHL last expanded in 2014, with the addition of the Madison Capitols in Wisconsin.

A move into the desert and California would vastly expand the footprint of a league that features teams spread across the Midwest — from the Dakotas to Ohio. And it would open the league to a growing market of fans and players.

“The expansion is about more than adding teams. It is about expanding opportunity,” commissioner Glenn Hefferan said.

The USHL is nation’s top developmental junior league, and produced 21 players who were members of the U.S. men’s gold medal-winning team at the Milan Cortina Games.

“We couldn’t be more excited about the expansion into the west of the USHL,” Los Angeles Kings president Luc Robitaille said. “This has been a group effort by multiple parties all with the shared goal of combining our influence to ultimately grow the game of hockey.”

The league’s plan to expand also comes at a time when the junior landscape in North America has shifted in the wake of the NCAA allowing Canadian Hockey League players to compete at U.S. colleges for the first time last season.

The rule change has led to the USHL and CHL competing for talent. Previously, Canadians had to choose to play in the USHL to maintain their college eligibility.

The 61-team CHL — which oversees three leagues — has also discussed expansion plans, including increasing its eight-team presence in the U.S.

AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

FILE - Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau's family watches a #13 banner being raised during a ceremony before the start of an NHL hockey game between the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Florida Panthers. Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete, File)