Five-times winners Liverpool were knocked out of the Champions League in the group stages despite a 1-0 win at Debrecen on Tuesday while Fiorentina and Arsenal qualified for the last 16.
Australian vice-captain Michael Clarke has opted out of the New South Wales (NSW) squad for the inaugural Champions League Twenty20 tournament in India next month citing heavy workload with the national team.
The ECB said none of their Test players will take part in the tournament. Which means the likes of Kevin Pietersen, Andrew Flintoff, Monty Panesar and Paul Collingwood will not figure in the Champions League.
Australian Dirk Nannes will represent his 'away' team Delhi Daredevils in the inaugural Champions League Twenty20, a move that would cost the Indian Premier League side USD 200,000.
Real Madrid scored seconds from time to force a 2-2 draw at AC Milan, secure a place in the last 16 of the Champions League and leave coach Jose Mourinho with a smile on his face on his return to the San Siro on Wednesday. Real went through to the knockout stage along with Bayern Munich and Chelsea, although Arsenal, who could also have qualified with two matches to spare, lost 2-1 at Shakhtar Donetsk and will have to wait.
Tensions within Real Madrid's squad have escalated, with a dressing room fight between Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni resulting in Valverde being hospitalised.
Some media commentators in England have called for the all-English final to be moved to the UK.
"If they don't get VAR in the Champions League, it is an absolute joke."
Borussia Moenchengladbach's hopes of qualifying for the Champions League for the first time were hit by a 3-1 home defeat by Dynamo Kiev in the first leg of their playoff tie.
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah is willing to put his Champions League ambitions on the back-burner to help the Merseyside club claim their first English league crown in 29 years, the Egyptian forward has said.
Manchester City's barnstorming start to the English soccer season, producing five straight wins, is in danger of becoming a fading memory after consecutive defeats by West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur allowed Manchester United to knock them off the top of the table.
France's march into the World Cup last 16 has been built on an attacking force so relentless that comparisons with some of the greatest forward lines in football history are no longer sounding premature.
Magnus Carlsen's popularity remains undiminished in Norway, with many believing he is unbeatable on home turf, even as he hints at moving away from classical chess.
Indian women's cricket ecosystem will have to develop more fast bowlers and wrist spinners through the Women's Premier League (WPL) in order to garner success in the shortest format on global stage, said former West Indies pacer Ian Bishop on Monday.
Four teams, including UP Prometheans and Rajasthan Regals, are in contention to reach the finals of the DP World PGTI's 72 The League after the fourth round at the Classic Golf & Country Club. The final round promises intense competition as teams vie for the top two spots.
It would be a big surprise if Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola strays from the club's traditional, offensive 4-3-3. Manchester United are less tied to a set formation. Manager Alex Ferguson has frequently used the 4-3-3 to good effect, but if he decides to field Ji-sung on the right he may opt for a 4-4-2.
Manchester City will attempt to overturn their two-year UEFA ban from European football when a three-day hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland begins on Monday. European soccer's governing body UEFA ruled in February that City had committed serious breaches of Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations and failed to cooperate with its investigation, handing them a ban and a 30 million euro (24.9 million pounds) fine.
Chelsea's World Cup winning coach Luiz Felipe Scolari becomes the latest to try to guide the rich London club to European club football's big prize on Tuesday when the Champions League groups stages kick off.
Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo may return after injury for Manchester United when the English champions begin their Champions League defence in their opening Group E encounter against Villarreal on Wednesday.
A champions' mentality, a new generation of fearless players are some of the qualities that will have Saudi Arabia wary of the former champions in their upcoming Group H match on Sunday.
Tottenham Hotspur have reached agreement with the FA to host Champions League games at Wembley next season with an option to use the national stadium for all matches in the 2017-18 campaign while they are building a new ground. "Having Tottenham at Wembley for big European nights next season is a welcome opportunity for us to further the stadium's position as a world-class venue," FA chief executive Martin Glenn said in a joint statement with Spurs on Saturday. Tottenham are redeveloping White Hart Lane by building a 400 million pounds ($584.92 million) 61,000-seater stadium next to their existing ground and will have a reduced capacity next term as a result. They will use Wembley to meet UEFA requirements. "Given the current reduction in capacity at White Hart Lane for next season and the ticketing requirements for (the) Champions League, playing at Wembley will mean that we can continue to accommodate all of our existing season ticket holders," Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy said.
Spain became the first country to have five teams in the Champions League group stage in one season after Valencia squeezed past Monaco .
United suffered a shock exit in the last 16 with a 2-1 defeat by Sevilla after substitute Wissam Ben Yedder struck twice at Old Trafford. The Spaniards sealed a 2-1 aggregate victory having drawn the first leg 0-0 in Spain.
Photos from the UEFA Champions League last 16 first leg-matches played on Wednesday
Manchester City coach Manuel Pellegrini said his side did not deserve to be eliminated from the Champions League despite having only one effort on target in their 1-0 semi-final, second leg defeat to Real Madrid.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru put on a complete performance to beat Gujarat Titans by 5 wickets and defend their Indian Premier League title on Sunday.
Wayne Rooney scored twice again as Manchester United cruised into the quarter-finals of the Champions League after a 4-0 win over a feeble AC Milan sent them through 7-2 on aggregate on Wednesday.
Manchester United pull off one of the greatest comebacks in Champions League history.
Porto have been excluded from next season's Champions League by European soccer's governing body UEFA over the alleged bribery of referees in the 2003-04 season, the Portuguese club said in a statement on Wednesday. Porto said it would try to overturn the decision through the UEFA appeals body. The club gave no further details and its officials were not immediately available to comment.
Amitabh Bachchan has been signed on as the brand ambassador for the second edition of the Champions League Twenty20, to be held in South Africa from September 10.
UP Prometheans and Rajasthan Regals have secured their places in the final of the DP World PGTI 72 The League, setting the stage for a thrilling showdown at the Qutab Golf Course.
Napoli qualified for the Champions League group stage by winning 3-0 at Bologna on Wednesday and two goals from Mario Balotelli kept AC Milan on course for the qualifying round with a 4-0 victory at Pescara.
'Being back in the Champions League is going back to the natural habitat. Manchester United (have been there) season after season'
Thibaut Courtois reckons Chelsea are capable of achieving what the Belgium keeper came agonisingly close to doing at Atletico Madrid last season - winning a European and domestic double.
Chelsea and Real Madrid moved into the last eight of the Champions League with minimum of fuss on Wednesday. The former drew 0-0 at home with a battling FC Copenhagen to complete a 2-0 aggregate victory, while the Spanish giants ended a six-year Champions League jinx, crushing Olympique Lyon 3-0 to advance to the quarter-finals for the first time since 2004.
Paris St Germain are stronger than last season and he is in the best shape of his life, yet Zlatan Ibrahimovic says experienced Chelsea are the hot favourites in the Champions League quarter-final against the French champions.
Qatar take on Switzerland in their World Cup opener on Saturday eager to shake off the pressure of expectation, coming in as back-to-back Asian champions with an urgent need to make amends for a dismal debut as hosts of the 2022 tournament.
Germany midfielder Toni Kroos has eased Real Madrid's injury concerns and could be fit to play in their Champions League match at Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, coach Zinedine Zidane said.
