An 88th-minute goal by substitute Jesus Navas gave Spain a 1-0 victory over Croatia that sent them into the Euro 2012 quarter-finals as Group C winners on Monday.
Croatia captain Darijo Srna still feels the pain of losing on penalties to Turkey at the 2008 European Championship, but refused to talk of revenge ahead of another meeting between the teams at Euro 2016 on Sunday. Croatia exorcised some of their demons by beating Turkey 3-0 on aggregate in a playoff to reach Euro 2012. But Sunday will be the first time the sides have met at a major tournament since that quarter-final in Vienna eight years ago when Semih Senturk's 122nd-minute strike cancelled out Ivan Klasnic's opener three minutes earlier to send the tie to penalties.
Both the nations are already looking ahead to their final group games.
Croatia needed a touch of Luka Modric magic to beat Turkey 1-0 in their Euro 2016 Group D opener on Sunday, gaining a measure of revenge after their bitter quarter-final elimination by the same opponents at Euro 2008.
Umesh Choudhary was penalised two points for 'reporting late' to the preparation arena ahead of the 10m finals, which cost him the gold medal in the eight-shooter final.
Ivo Karlovic and Marin Cilic won five-set marathons at home to put Croatia 2-0 ahead of 32-time champions United States, while Israel stunned favoured Russia to also lead 2-0 in the Davis Cup quarter-finals on Friday. Champions Spain were held to 1-1 by Germany in Marbella, and the Czech Republic and Argentina were tied after the opening two singles in their best of five tie.
Mario Mandzukic scored his third goal of Euro 2012 as Croatia came from behind to draw 1-1 with Italy and strengthen their position in a tough Group C on Thursday.
Marin Cilic sent Croatia into the Davis Cup final with a 6-3, 6-2, 7-5 victory against Richard Gasquet on Sunday that gave the hosts a 3-1 win over France.
Romelu Lukaku scored twice to earn Belgium a 2-1 victory over Switzerland in the Nations League on Friday, lifting the mood in the country after a week marred by match-fixing allegations.
On India, while appreciating the measures adopted by it to address discrimination, the Committee expressed concern about alleged discrimination and violence against minority groups, including religious minorities, such as Muslims, Christians, and Sikhs, "scheduled castes" and "scheduled tribes", and LGBTI people.
A European nation is set to win the World Cup for the fourth time in a row this Sunday and in doing so confirm an unprecedented dominance for the Old World over their once mighty rivals in South America.
Spain and England have experienced very different journeys to Sunday's Euro 2024 final. We look at their path to Berlin below.
Croatia stayed on course to reach the 2018 World Cup after two superb strikes by midfielder Marcelo Brozovic gave them a 2-0 home win over Iceland in a Group I qualifier played behind closed doors in Zagreb on Saturday.
Hosts Russia have exceeded expectations after advancing to the World Cup quarter-finals with a win on penalties over Spain but they will need more firepower if they are to give Croatia a run for their money on Saturday.
England hope to put behind their gloomy recent experiences against Croatia when they travel to Zagreb on Wednesday for an early key World Cup qualifier. Croatia beat England twice in the Euro 2008 qualifiers, costing them a place in June's finals in Switzerland and Austria and coach Steve McLaren his job.
Serge Gnabry continued his impressive scoring run for Germany, netting in second-half stoppage time for his ninth goal in his 10th international, completing Germany's eighth consecutive win over Northern Ireland.
The former Barcelona forward, key to his country's hopes in Russia, came on as a halftime substitute and provided the moment of inspiration for win the game in the 69th minute.
Croatia gave themselves a fighting chance of reaching the World Cup knock-out phase when they thrashed a toothless Cameroon 4-0 on Wednesday.
It ended a woeful few days for reigning champions Croatia. They left with two losses.
Croatia's soccer federation has been handed a suspended ban from selling tickets to hooligans and given a 100,000 euros ($113,190.00) fine after their team's supporters caused crowd trouble at Euro 2016, UEFA said on Monday.
"That is why we should see this match (against Egypt) mainly as a wake-up call. It was also useful in giving some players much-needed minutes."
The Asian Football Confederation tweeted, "94 International Goals. Carried the hopes of a nation! Thank You Asian Football Icon, Sunil Chhetri."
China delivered their best performance at a Summer Olympics since the 2008 Games on home soil
A Russian billionaire has offered incentives to Croatia for beating England in their final Euro 2008 Group E qualifier.
Croatia captain Darijo Srna says he is ready to play against the Czech Republic at Euro 2016 on Friday following the death of his father. Srna's father passed away during Croatia's opening 1-0 Group D win over Turkey on Sunday and the right back rejoined the squad after travelling home for Monday's funeral. "It is a very difficult moment for me and my family and after talking to them, I decided to return to France," he told a news conference on Thursday ahead of the match in St Etienne.
Portugal will benefit from the wealth of experience veteran Cristiano Ronaldo brings to their squad, manager Roberto Martinez said ahead of this month's European Championship in Germany.
El Salvador's Marcelo Arevalo and his Croatian partner Mate Pavic beat Italians Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori 7-5 6-3 in the final.
Davis Cup holders Britain edged into a 2-1 lead in Serbia after Jamie Murray and Dominic Inglot won Saturday's doubles.
31-year-old Dada Prso remains the bedrock of Croatia's hopes
'There are a number of things we still have to improve because we thought we were better than we were in too many situations.'
Photos of the World Cup game between Mexico and Croatia
Several players across the continent are poised to make a name for themselves on the international stage.
A collection of stunning pictures from the Paris 2024 Games
Riccardo Calafiori's second-half own goal earned dominant Spain a 1-0 victory over defending champions Italy on Thursday to qualify for the last 16 of Euro 2024 as Group B winners.
Ivan Ljubicic salvaged the opening day of Croatia's Davis Cup semi-final against Russia, winning a pulsating five-set duel with Mikhail Youzhny to level the tie 1-1.
Sachin Khilari's silver is the 11th medal from athletics at the Paralympics.
Germany expects 2.7 million people to attend matches in stadiums across the country and some 12 million in its fan zones for outdoor viewing, including on a long stretch of turf laid out in front of Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.
Croatia's Football Federation was charged by UEFA on Saturday for racist chants by the national team's fans and the displaying of racist symbols in the Euro 2012 Group C game against Italy on Thursday, UEFA said.
Here is a quick guide to the eight games which get underway on Saturday.
