A factbox on Barcelona and Argentina forward Lionel Messi
Miguel Herrera, Mexico's national soccer team coach, was fired on Tuesday, a day after he allegedly punched a reporter who had criticized his team's performance in the recent Copa America and Gold Cup tournaments.
Chapecoense goalkeeper Danilo, who was killed in the Colombian air crash last month, was posthumously named Brazil's Player of the Year after a vote by fans.
Real Madrid will sack Santiago Solari and reappoint former coach Zinedine Zidane on Monday, according to multiple Spanish media reports.
Chile coach Juan Antonio Pizzi took great pride in steering his country to victory in Sunday's Copa America final against a team he believes to be the best side in the world with the best player in history.
Brazil midfielder Fred, no relation to the veteran striker of the same name who used to play for the same country, has been suspended from South American football for a year for failing a drugs test.
High on confidence after a successful Copa America campaign, Venezuela coach Cecar Farias is determined to break his side's jinx of being the only Latin American nation yet to qualify for the football World Cup by making the cut for the 2014 edition in neighbouring Brazil.
And, since, pictures speak more than words, Rediff.com brings you images from these sporting events and others that made headlines in the week gone by.
The US men's national soccer team will play their first friendly against Cuba in 69 years when they meet in Havana's Estadio Pedro Marrero on October 7, US Soccer said on Thursday.
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.
Brazil will not release Robinho to play for Real Madrid in Sunday's Spanish League decider but have asked him instead to join their Copa America training camp immediately.
Chile defender Gonzalo Jara's ban for provoking Edinson Cavani has been cut from three games to two, the governing body of South American football has said.
Brazil fought back from a goal down to score three times in the second half and record a 3-1 win over Venezuela that maintained their 100 percent record in qualifying matches for the 2022 World Cup.
Luis Suarez scored an equaliser and was just wide with what could have been a spectacular winner as Uruguay were held to a 3-3 draw by Costa Rica in a friendly.
The midfielder froze on the big occasion once again as Argentina were muscled out by the ruthless, physical Brazilians.
After an even first 45 minutes, strikes from Pablo Sarabia and Wissam Ben Yedder stunned the Catalans and left them needing a second-leg comeback at the Nou Camp for the second consecutive round in the competition.
Lionel Messi is still the best player in the world despite never winning a major international trophy for Argentina, former Barcelona team mate and Brazil great Ronaldinho said on Sunday. The 29-year-old Messi, who retired from internationals last month after Argentina lost to Chile in the Copa America final, is his country's top scorer with 55 goals. The five times World Player of the Year has played in three Copa America finals and the 2014 World Cup final, but lost them all.
River Plate battled back to beat arch Argentine rivals Boca Juniors 3-1 in extra-time in an unforgettable and unique Copa Libertadores final second leg, played in Madrid after violence had seen the original game postponed.
Infantino warns against re-starting football too early.
Queens Park Rangers striker Eduardo Vargas will be out of action for six weeks due to a knee ligament injury, the player's agent said on Monday.
Madrid went into halftime with a three-goal lead after Marco Asensio scored twice in three minutes and debutant Javi Sanchez also got on the scoresheet late in the half.
Brazil have shown all the signs they can rule the world yet again in Russia but they must make their excellent preparations count in their World Cup Group E opener against a resilient Switzerland side on Sunday in Rostov.
The Euro 2020 soccer Championship, trumpeted as a continent-wide feast of football from Dublin to Baku to mark UEFA's 60th anniversary, was postponed for a year on Tuesday as the coronavirus pandemic claimed its biggest sporting casualty yet. Europe's flagship tournament, staged every four years and second only to FIFA's World Cup in terms of prestige in soccer, will now be staged from June 11 to July 12, 2021.
Madrid recovered from an early goal by Anthony Lozano to take a 2-1 halftime lead thanks to a Lucas Vazquez strike and a cheeky 'Panenka' penalty from captain Ramos but were pegged back by Alex Granell's penalty midway through the second half.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Argentina president Mauricio Macri has personally contacted star striker Lionel Messi and urged him not to call it quits to the national team.
The win took Barca to the top of the standings on 68 points although Real Madrid, on 65, will reclaim their lead due to their superior head-to-head record if they beat Real Mallorca at home on Wednesday.
First meets second as Barcelona host Atletico Madrid on Saturday looking to tighten their grip on the La Liga title race. The sides are level on 48 points at the top of the table, but Barca have a game in hand on Atletico and can take a huge step towards a fifth title in seven years with an eighth consecutive win in all competitions. Indeed, Luis Enrique's men remain on course for a repeat of the treble of La Liga, Champions League and Copa del Rey they won last season after progressing to the semi-finals of the Cup with a come from behind 3-1 win over Athletic Bilbao in midweek. Yet, the European champions have been far from their best in the past week as they were outplayed by Malaga and Bilbao in the first-half before being salvaged by individual moments of magic after the break. "We are aware of the errors we need to correct," said Luis Suarez after taking his tally for the season already to 30 with the equalizer against Bilbao.
Lionel Messi said on Wednesday he was delighted to have signed for French club Paris St Germain and that he is ready to help the team clinch their first ever Champions League title.
Images from the football matches played across Europe on Wednesday.
Barcelona's star striker Lionel Messi has backed Atletico Madrid to seal this year's Champions League title, saying his team don't want to see Real Madrid claim the trophy.
A World Cup qualifier between Argentina and Brazil was suspended amid farcical scenes on Sunday after Brazilian health authorities accused a number of Premier League players of violating the country's COVID-19 quarantine rules.
Brazilian football legend Ronaldinho denied reports that he is about to marry two women at the same time in August.
Real will meet the winners of Thursday's semi between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in Sunday's showpiece at the King Abdullah Sport City Stadium in Jeddah.
Argentina's new coach Edgardo Bauza has set his mind to wooing Lionel Messi back from international retirement as he ponders his squad for next month's South American 2018 World Cup qualifiers. Bauza was named on Monday to replace Gerardo Martino, who resigned a month ago after steering Messi's side to two successive Copa America finals which ended in penalty shootout defeats to Chile.
The IOC has remained committed to staging the Tokyo Games as planned from July 24-Aug. 9, saying on Tuesday after a meeting with international sports federations that measures against the virus were delivering results.
The PSL had entered the knockout stages and semifinal matches were due to be played on Tuesday in Lahore and final on Wednesday. The PCB had already shortened the league by four days considering the worsening scenario around the coronavirus.
The men's T20 World Cup is slated to begin with the pre-qualifiers from October 18-23 followed by the main 12-team competition from October 24. Cricket Australia is planning to host the men's T20 World Cup as per schedule
The Australian government had announced that anyone arriving in the country from overseas will be forced to self-isolate for 14 days starting Sunday midnight (March 15) in a bid to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. However, a lot of citizens are confused regarding the working of the precaution.
Packed soccer schedule is a major problem as players will struggle to deliver their best
