Indian fans wait for Messi's '2011 Tendulkar moment'
Maradona was worshipped like a god for his genius with the ball.
A summary of Thursday's South American World Cup qualifiers.
20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer returned from more than a year away for a last dance in tandem with great rival Rafael Nadal on a gripping and memorable finale by the Thames in front of a 17,500 sell-out crowd at London's O2 Arena on Friday.
Sunil Chhetri, playing in his 121st international in the SAFF Championship, struck in the 27th minute to place himself just a goal shy of legendary Brazillian Pele (77 goals from 92 matches).
Richarlison is a rarity among the overindulged footballing elite. In a World Cup which has been overshadowed by social issues, Brazil's latest football sensation is championing more than just one cause, observes Deepti Patwardhan.
Football legend Pele tells defending Indian Super League champions Atletico de Kolkata to always respect the opponent.
They would take part in a special match between a World X1 and African X1 in Cape Town, the proceeds of which will go to charity.
Brazil's former star striker and World Cup winner Rivaldo will grace the finals of the Subroto Cup International Football Tournament beginning September 14, exactly a year after the legendary Pele's visit to the country for the school tournament. The 44-year-old former Barcelona and Milan star is expected to make an appearance for the U-17 junior boys final at the Ambedkar Stadium on October 22.
Legendary Argentine World Cup winner Diego Maradona died following a heart attack on Wednesday, aged 60.
Neymar overtook Ronaldo and moved into second place behind Pele on Brazil's all-time goalscoring list after notching a hat-trick in a 4-2 victory over Peru on Tuesday in a World Cup qualifier.
Images from the glitzy evening of the 2014 FIFA World Cup draw.
Reactions to the death of Argentine football legend Diego Maradona, who died on Wednesday.
India's top men's player Saurav Ghosal had a comfortable opener against Australian Steven Finitsis in the PSA World Squash Championship in Doha on Saturday.
Lionel Messi insisted his fifth-place finish in Monday's Ballon d'Or awards was not a motivating factor behind his sensational performance in Barcelona's 4-0 thrashing of local rivals Espanyol in La Liga on Saturday.
Messi has spoken at length about the dream of winning a title with Argentina and his compatriots know how much an international trophy means to him.
Neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque, psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, psychologists Carlos Diaz, Dahiana Madrid and Ricardo Almiron, doctor Nancy Forlini and nurse coordinator Mariano Perroni were last week charged with involuntary manslaughter.
Brazilian great Pele is not the only football star scheduled to touch down in Kolkata with Indian Super League team Atletico de Kolkata co-owner Sourav Ganguly claiming that England superstar Wayne Rooney would also be visiting the city later this year.
The Barcelona striker has won the FIFA World Player of the Year a record six times and is widely considered one of the greatest players ever to play the game, alongside Pele and countryman Diego Maradona. But his inability to win an international title with Argentina always left an asterisk beside his name on the all-time greats list.
Brazil were winning 3-1 and the 1970 World Cup final against Italy was over as a contest when Carlos Alberto looked up to see the whole of the right wing open to him and started to motor. There were four minutes left on the clock at the Aztec stadium and Brazil's captain really just wanted the game to end. His team mates felt the same way and were knocking the ball about nonchalantly when the marauding full back spotted the chance of a fourth goal, even from way back in his own half.
Messi doesn't need to win a World Cup to prove his greatness, feels iconic former Argentine striker Hernan Crespo.
Ronaldo's career tally includes goals for four top-flight clubs
World soccer great Diego Armando Maradona, who died on Wednesday less than a month after his 60th birthday, was worshipped like a god for his genius with the ball, but his demons almost destroyed him.
'Before Maradona and the 1986 World Cup people were mostly fans of Brazil, but Maradona after the 1986 World Cup divided Kolkata in two halves.'
'To all of these heroic people: football thanks you, football remembers you and football supports you'
'Fiqui tranquilo' is the Brazilian mantra that I have learnt living here: 'Keep cool' is its colloquial translation to do justice to the spirit of Brazil.' B S Prakash bids goodbye to Brazil after a four-year stint as India's ambassador.
Cristiano Ronaldo was overcome with emotion after being voted the world's best player for 2013 on Monday, ending his great rival Lionel Messi's dominance of the award.
"I don't need to prove anything else. What else can I do to prove to the world? I am the greatest" Bolt told reporters.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief at the passing away of the Argentine legend.
Football icon Diego Maradona has claimed that current Argentina skipper Lionel Messi does not have the character to be a leader.
Having endured a topsy-turvy start to their campaign before a fine turnaround, seven-time champions India start as title favourites when they take on first-time finalists Nepal in the summit clash of the SAFF Championships, in Male, on Saturday.
A fearless competitor who used brain and brawn in equal measure, Subhas Bhowmick was one of the most fascinating characters in Indian football through the 1970s with his muscular built and equally expressive carefree opinions.
Brazil's 1970 World Cup winners contained more gifted individuals than Spain's current all-conquering national side, the Brazilian side's greatest player Pele said on Wednesday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Kolkata's dream date with Pele and other former World Cup stars on January 23 was put off because of 'unavoidable circumstances', the organisers said on Sunday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Tim Cahill would love nothing better than to join the select company of Pele, Uwe Seeler and Miroslav Klose by finding the net in a fourth World Cup over the next few weeks but first the Australian actually needs to get on the pitch.
Inspired by the presence of Brazilian great Pele, defending champions Atletico de Kolkata climbed to the top of the table with a 2-1 win over last year's runners-up Kerala Blasters in their first home match of the Indian Super League.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Carlos Alberto, who scored one of the greatest goals in World Cup history while captaining Brazil to glory in the 1970 final against Italy, has died aged 72 following a heart attack. The marauding right back scored his team's fourth goal in a 4-1 win over Italy in Mexico's Azteca Stadium, a thumping drive that ended a move involving eight players, before hoisting the Jules Rimet trophy as Brazil won the title for the third time. "I am saddened by the death of my friend and brother Carlos Alberto, our beloved Captain, and I remember the times that we were together at Santos, Brazil and the (New York) Cosmos, where we formed a winning partnership," Pele said in one of the many tributes from former greats.
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