Just a few days back it seemed like Qatar, which has strict controls on alcohol, would relax their laws for the football extravaganza as consuming alcohol in public places is illegal in the Gulf country.
Mexico will bid to host the 2026 World Cup, the country's soccer chief Justino Compean said on Thursday.
Rediff.com's Norma Godinho captures classic moments from the planet's greatest sports competition: The FIFA World Cup.
India, the eight-time Olympic champions, won their only World Cup in Kuala Lumpur in 1975 defeating Pakistan 2-1 with Surjit Singh Randhawa and Ashok Kumar netting the goals.
Morocco are happy to sit back and look to punish opponents on the counter-attack using the speed and skill of Hakim Ziyech
Two of the most intimidating strikers in world football, Argentina's 35-year-old Lionel Messi and Poland's 34-year-old Robert Lewandowski, line up against each other on Wednesday with a last 16 place at stake in the World Cup.
IMAGES from the FIFA World Cup F Group F match played between Morocco and Canada on Thursday.
Lionel Messi's passionate performances at the Qatar World Cup are earning him oodles of love from Argentines, but their old favouritism for Diego Maradona may resurface unless he brings home the trophy on his final attempt.
The triumph also took Germany to the top of FIH world rankings from the pre-tournament fourth place.
European countries will be able to bid to host the 2026 World Cup only if none of the eligible candidates are good enough, soccer's governing body said on Friday.
Davies's poor spot-kick was saved low to his right by goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and Canada wasted numerous other opportunities to open the scoring.
A third place finish at the World Cup on Saturday leaves a strong legacy for Belgian football, coach Roberto Martinez said
With six titles -- four more than Pakistan -- and unmatched consistency, Sri Lanka has quietly been the tournament's second-most dominant force.
Australia beat Spain to enter World Cup last four for 12th time on the trot
Here is an overview of the teams that have been eliminated
As he is laid to rest, Indian cricket bids farewell to one of its greatest administrators -- a visionary who understood that breaking monopolies and building stadiums were about the same thing: Giving millions of cricket-loving Indians the infrastructure worthy of their passion.
Eight years is a long time in the life of an athlete. But just like Messi, Di Maria has preserved and persisted towards his childhood dream, points out Deepti Patwardhan.
IMAGES from the FIFA World Cup semi-final between Argentina and Croatia played at Lusail Stadium on Tuesday.
Messi memes quickly sprung up on the internet.
With Argentina looking dysfunctional and under-performing throughout the qualifiers, Messi's dream of matching Maradona in Russia always looked a tall order.
A brief history of previous World Cup semi-final appearances by England and Croatia, ahead of their last four match at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium on Wednesday.
Diego Maradona will root for his beloved Argentina from his hotel when they play Nigeria on Wednesday, opting to skip the stadium after the country's Football Association president suggested he had jinxed the team against Iran.
Japan soccer great Kazuyoshi Miura, 58, said on Friday he had all but given up on a return to the J-League before signing for Fukushima United, adding that he hopes to contribute with goals and assists in the latest chapter of his age-defying career.
Neymar, who has scored twice so far to help Brazil into the World Cup quarter-finals in Russia where they will face Belgium on Friday, has been sharply criticised for a string of exaggerated reactions when clashing with an opponent.
The Argentine forward's glittering resume has one major omission -- a World Cup winner's medal.
Brazil, the only bidding country, were named as the host nation of the 2014 World Cup finals by FIFA, world soccer's governing body, on Tuesday.
Messi's image is everywhere, adorning the sides of buildings.
While Canada celebrated, Mexico and the United States will have to wait to learn their fate
The stability and pragmatism of Carlos Queiroz's seven-year reign has firmly established Iran's as Asia's number one team, but the nation will go to the World Cup hoping to advance for the first time to the knockout phase.
In the week of his 31st birthday, Messi was again a largely anonymous figure as they lost 4-3 to France in a thrilling last-16 match in Kazan.
Spain have been fined 10,000 Swiss francs ($9,363) and the Netherlands 15,000 Swiss francs ($14,040) for the behaviour of their players in last month's World Cup final, FIFA said on Tuesday.
France may have been knocked out of yet another World Cup by nemesis Germany on Friday but restoring their image and rebuilding expectations ahead of Euro 2016 were even more important after their debacle in South Africa four years ago.
This is the first Golden Ball to go for auction and while the value is still to be confirmed, the auction house expects it to fetch millions on June 6.
Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira believes hosts Germany rather than his own team are favourites to win the World Cup.
"I think Germany and Italy are just as much favourites as we are," said the Brazil coach.
A dominant India scored twice in the first and fourth quarters to beat South Africa 5-2 in a classification match and finish joint ninth in the FIH Men's World Cup.
The favourites to win next year's World Cup in Russia were given navigable paths to the last 16 with the coaches of Germany, Brazil, Argentina and Spain having reason to feel reasonably optimistic after Friday's draw.
Although he did not put up a scintillating display in midfield, Pogba powered into the box after a couple of one-twos and scored with a slightly deflected lob to earn Les Bleus all three points.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
This is the first-ever India vs Pakistan final across 17 editions of the Men's Asia Cup since the tournament's inception in 1984.
