A superb second-half strike from Adnan Januzaj gave Belgium a 1-0 win over England on Thursday to see them top World Cup Group G with a perfect record and consign England to second place, with both sides already assured of going through to the last 16.
The footballers heading to Carnival capital will hope to make fate walk their path. But there are some big names who couldn't make the big trip for some reason or the other. Rediff.com presents the top 16 players you won't be seeing in Brazil.
Argentina's injured captain Lionel Messi has been named in a squad missing the suspended Javier Mascherano and Gonzalo Higuain for next month's World Cup qualifier against South America's bottom side Paraguay.
Germany's surprise loss to Mexico could create a strange situation in Group G where England and Belgium may face a theoretically easier path to the last four if they finish second rather than top of the standings.
New Zealand are placed in Group B along with Turkey, Paraguay and Mali.
Although they registered contrasting wins, Serbian tennis stars Novak Djokovic and Jelena Jankovic marked a good day for Serbs at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells on Tuesday.
Gold has been a valuable and highly sought-after precious metal for coinage, jewellery, and other arts since long before the beginning of recorded history.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
India's hopes in the Under-18 Open brightened as R Praggnanandhaa outclassed compatriot P Iniyan in the highly-anticipated battle between two Indian Grand Masters in the World Youth Chess Championship, in Mumbai.
India's Saurav Ghosal upset world number 8 Miguel Rodriguez of Colombia to advance to the quarter-finals of the PSA China Open in Shanghai.
United States coach Jurgen Klinsmann has turned to experience for next month's Copa America Centenario on home soil, but said he had to make some "very close, tight decisions" before announcing his 23-player squad on Saturday.
Germany put the finishing touches to their World Cup preparations by beating Colombia 3-0 on Friday.
The plane carrying Chapecoense to the Copa Sudamericana final, first leg against Atletico Nacional crashed into mountains outside Medellin, Colombia on November 28 after running out of fuel, killing 71 of the 77 people on board
Mark, who said he had always wanted to travel the world, pitched the idea of doing so to his new wife in the shape of a 365-day honeymoon -- and after a year of convincing, she agreed.
New Delhi is the only Asian city listed.
Images from the FIFA World Cup qualifiers matches.
When Barcelona lost to Chelsea in pre season friendly, Neymar was busy holidaying in Ibiza, Spain.
Media reports suggest Sevilla's Argentine coach Jorge Sampaoli, who has never disguised his ambition to take charge of the national team and steered neighbouring Chile to the Copa America title in 2015, will step into the vacancy.
Manchester Utd's Fred receives racist abuse after defeat by Liverpool.
Seat swap may have saved Chapecoense player's life in plane crash
The world's most-talented young players gave India a memorable show of high quality football on the field as the country showcased its organizational skills in a near-flawless and record-breaking FIFA Under-17 World Cup across six cities, which culminated with England clinching the title in Kolkata on Saturday.
Brazil beat Chile 2-1 to qualify for the world youth championship and Argentina joined them after holding hosts Colombia 1-1.
The 16-year-old backed his aggressive backhand throughout the contest and went on to win 17 of his 23 points at the net to seal victory in 61 minutes.
Analysis of the eight groups for the 2018 FIFA World Cup to be held in Russia.
The Slovenian played it safe on the last climb of the day but it was enough for him to move to the top of the standings in a ninth stage won by Tour debutant Pogacar.
Messi doesn't need to win a World Cup to prove his greatness, feels iconic former Argentine striker Hernan Crespo.
Gabriel got the winning kick for Brazil after Gustavo Gomez and Derlis Gonzalez missed for the visitors. Roberto Firmino pulled his spot kick wide for the hosts.
They can if they beat Paraguay and the world champions lose to Chile in Sunday's South American World Cup qualifiers.\n\n
Argentina, who would have made sure of their place in Germany if they had won, lost 0-2.
England finished second in the group to land a potentially easier route through the tournament.
The Indian football team jumped four places to be at 148th spot in the latest FIFA rankings released today, on the back of an impressive 4-1 win over higher-ranked Puerto Rico in Mumbai last week.
Lionel Messi, having reversed his decision to quit international soccer with a view to playing at another World Cup, could miss out on Russia 2018 if Argentina continue their downward spiral. Argentina played poorly in their last three qualifiers without the injured Messi and languish in fifth place in the South American group with Paraguay and Chile hot on their tails. Only four countries are guaranteed a place at the finals.
Parliamentary panel seeks changes in crude import norms.
JetBlue Airways is ranked as the world's best budget airline.
The points table of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
'Clearly, Washington has all but given up hope following US Acting Assistant Secretary of State Alice Wells's stormy visit to Colombo last month where she read the riot act to Sri Lankan leaders to sign the pending status of forces agreement allowing American troops to use Sri Lanka as a hub for operations in the Indian Ocean,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Pospisil and Shapovalov joined forces in the deciding doubles rubber against Jordan Thompson and John Peers, winning 6-4, 6-4 in front of several hundred delirious Canadian fans.
From the debate-arousing introduction of VAR to maximum number of Penalties to the superb Ronaldo, here are the A to Z of the ongoing 2018 World Cup
Striker Luis Suarez scored twice as 2010 World Cup semi-finalists Uruguay beat Peru 2-1 on Friday to improve their chances of reaching the Brazil finals next year.
