Seasonal cheer has been scarce for Louis van Gaal after a six-match winless sequence for his Manchester United side intensified rumours that he will be sacked and Stoke City are unlikely to be offering any solace on Saturday.
London clubs' erratic start to the Premier League season improved with victories for Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal on Saturday but Manchester sides continued to make the running, with City and United the top two.
If you can name it, someone collects it. Here's a gallery of collectors and their (unusual) obsessions.
Under-fire captain Alastair Cook at last found his form but fell for 95 as he and century-maker Gary Ballance put England in control at the end of the first day of the third Test against India on Sunday.
Leaders from 70 countries, including United States President Barack Obama and Arab politicians, gathered in Jerusalem on Friday to bid farewell to one of the last leaders of Israel's founding generation and Nobel Peace Prize winner Shimon Peres as his funeral began amid unprecedented security.
United down Newcastle after Saints stun Chelsea on a dramatic night in the English Premier League.
Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods dominated the build-up to this week's Masters but it was exciting American Jordan Spieth who produced the fireworks in a gripping opening round at Augusta National on Thursday.
From a bloodied face of Spanish club Atletico's Madrid's Mario Mandzukic, to Australia's ICC World Cup triumph, Sania Mirza's fabulous run and more scintillating moments are frozen in time in this beautiful photo-feature.
FIFA presidential candidate Luis Figo will hope to convince delegates at this week's Asian Football Confederation Congress that a vote for him would boost the region's chances of more places in future World Cup finals.
Martin Scorsese's The Wolf Of Wall Street could set a bad precedent, feels Aseem Chhabra.
Ryan 'Ryno' Harris made a crucial contribution to Australian cricket at a critical time.
'I am only saying that whoever between me and Narsingh is better, should represent the country at the Olympics' 'Trails took place in the past, before the 1992 and 1996 Olympics. Last time, there was no competition, thus the trails did not take place. There was no one to challenge me in my weight category last time. But this time, the situation is different'
Leicester City stumbled on their march towards the Premier League title when they drew 2-2 with West Ham United and had goalscorer Jamie Vardy sent off at the King Power Stadium on Sunday.
Captain Cook also hits form, strikes 125-run opening partnership with Trott -- England's first century opening stand since March 2013.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
A floundering England will be looking to avoid a potential banana skin when they take on minnows Scotland in a crucial Pool A cricket World Cup match at the Hagley Oval, in Christchurch on Monday.
Liverpool, level on points with Manchester United, can add to the pressure if they take three points at West Ham United in Saturday's lunchtime kickoff.
Arsenal suffered another painful Premier League defeat as Swansea City capitalised on some glaring errors to win 3-1 on Tuesday, boosting their survival hopes and denting the visitors' top four chances.
The public has a "full right to know" the contents of the ethics investigation into the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, FIFA executive committee member Prince Ali bin Al Hussein of Jordan said.
Here's capturing the car's 80-year-old legacy, and popularity, in photographs.
Watch the trailers and predict the winner at the end.
Sergio Aguero struck twice as Manchester City came from behind to beat Burnley 2-1 at Turf Moor in the Premier League on Saturday.
Chelsea found no chink in Everton's defensive armour as the Premier League champions were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw at Goodison Park on Saturday.
The best in international photojournalism was recently announced by World Press Photo's Annual Photo Contest. Despite fierce competition, the jury was forced to select just a handful of images from more than 73,044 photos by 4,548 photographers across 125 different countries. This year's grand prize was awarded to Venezuelan photographer Ronaldo Schemidt, earning him the title of Press Photographer of the Year. Here are some of the winners.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Sunday
Former England Test captain Sir Ian Botham has backed Ashes heroes England to win 5-0 in the return series in Australia as he believes that England has the players to win again, especially a match-winning bowling attack.
Luis Figo was one of the most talented, successful and exciting players of his generation, leading Portugal to a series of impressive performances which put many bigger countries to shame.
Jamie Vardy sent a screaming reminder that leaders Leicester City are in the Premier league title race for the long haul with a sensational strike in a 2-0 win over Liverpool on Tuesday.
Manchester City went 11 points clear with a record 14th consecutive Premier League win in an entertaining derby against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
IMAGES from the Euro 2020 qualifiers
Croatian Cilic, who lost last year's final to Roger Federer, underlined his credentials for another Grand Slam title bid to add to his U.S. Open triumph in 2014.
India gained the much-needed boost ahead of their ICC World T20 opener against Pakistan when they comfortably defeated England by 20 runs in their second and final warm-up game in Mirpur on Wednesday.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer continued his dream start as Manchester United caretaker manager with a 3-1 Premier League win over Huddersfield on his Old Trafford debut in the dugout on Wednesday.
Queens Park Rangers bowed out of the Premier League with a whimper after Manchester City's Sergio Aguero scored a hat-trick to lead his side to a crushing 6-0 victory over the London club on Sunday.
Michael Knights, a Boston-based Lafer Fellow of The Washington Institute who specialised in the military and security affairs of Iraq, Iran, and the Persian Gulf, spoke to Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa about power of the ISIS and the reasons behind its growth
Unless the world of soccer shifts on its axis at the end of this month, Sepp Blatter will be re-elected as FIFA president.
Roy Hodgson has given himself the option to give England a youthful, fresh edge at the World Cup after including Ross Barkley, Raheem Sterling, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Luke Shaw and Adam Lallana in his provisional squad on Monday. There were no real surprises as the irresistible late-season form of Everton's attacking midfielder Barkley and Liverpool wide man Sterling made their inclusion an easy choice for Hodgson despite having only five caps between them.
The Rafael Nadal Tennis Academy, which opened last autumn on the Spanish island of Mallorca, is charging kids 56,000 euros ($62,000) a year for tennis lessons and school.
A quick look at the Oscar 2016 nominations.
Under-pressure Everton manager Roberto Martinez enjoyed some respite as his struggling side won for the first time in eight league matches.
