Brazil lived up to expectations by smashing Bolivia 5-1 at home in their 2026 World Cup qualifiers opener on Friday.
Indian Super League side FC Goa was drawn along with superstar footballer Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr of Saudi Arabia in Group D of the AFC Champions League 2.
Neymar's involvement in matches on Indian turf is eagerly anticipated, though exact dates remain pending the final match schedule release.
Mumbai City made their debut in the competition last year but were eliminated in the group phase, twice losing heavily to Saudi side Al-Shabab.
Neymar scored in extra time against Croatia
Brazilian striker Neymar should be fine to continue in the World Cup despite limping off with a swollen ankle during his team's 2-0 victory over Serbia on Thursday, coach Tite said.
Neymar injured as Brazil lose 2-0 in Uruguay
Messi announced to take his talents to South Beach after his contract with PSG expires at the end of this month.
The 33-year-old centre back Lovren has faced Neymar on three occasions and lost every time, with the unstoppable Brazilian scoring four goals against him.
One could argue that his relationship with the World Cup over the last 12 years reflects his entire career -- a tale of hope, disappointment, controversy, pain and underachievement.
Neymar joined the group later than the rest of the players due to a flight issue from France,
The French and English sides, two of European football's most powerful and richest clubs, will compete for the honour of being the first champions of FIFA's expanded competition, created with the promise of revolutionising club football and as a glittering curtain-raiser for the 2026 World Cup in North America.
A court document released in July, alleges that Barcelona initiated negotiations in 2011 with the player, paying him 40 million euros to ensure his move when his contract with Santos expired in 2014 and thereby preventing other clubs from signing him.
FIFA tweeted a picture of the cutouts, saying 'World Cup fever has hit Kerala'.
Brazil's Neymar said on Friday he was unsure if he would play again for the national team after their heartbreaking World Cup quarter-final defeat to Croatia on penalties.
"They will miss the next game for sure and we will be cautious as they will undergo treatment in order to try to get them in shape so they can play again in the World Cup."
PSG's Neymar to undergo ankle surgery, ruled out for rest of season
"Neymar and Messi are unique: they see and do things nobody else sees or can do. A great player must know and understand who he plays with, your teammates enrich your qualities."
Barcelona said at the time of Neymar's move that the transfer figure was 57.1 million euros, of which 40 million was paid to Neymar's family. DIS received a 40 per cent share of the remaining 17.1 million that was paid to Santos.
The team may be able to rely on Real Madrid's young trio of Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo and Eder Militao and Premier League rising stars Bruno Guimaraes, Antony and Gabriel Martinelli, among others.
Neymar and Marquinhos arrived late for the first day of World Cup training on Monday due to problems with their flight from Paris to Turin where Brazil are holding a five-day camp before flying to Doha.
Mumbai City FC lost 2-0 to Iranian Club Nassaji Mazandaran in their first AFC Champions League group stage game at home.
Lionel Messi was not included in Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni's squad for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Brazil
Neymar's spokeswoman said the athlete would vigorously defend himself if any claim is presented, describing the allegations as baseless and adding that the endorsement deal ended for commercial reasons.
Brazil striker Neymar said he had feared the World Cup might be over for him after hobbling off in his first match in Qatar with a heavily swollen ankle.
Vinicius Jr showed why he is one of world's top rising stars,
"We, those who play in the back end, often joke that we feel sorry for our rivals because we can replace Raphinha for Antony, Richalison for Gabriel Jesus. We have Rodrygo, Gabriel Martinelli."
The Qatari-owned French club have never won the Champions League despite massive spending down the years on the likes of Kylian Mbappe and South American duo Lionel Messi and Neymar.
He still faces a separate inquiry into whether he committed a crime by posting intimate pictures online.
Brazilian soccer player Neymar hit back at sportswear maker Nike Inc on Friday, saying the company's statement that it terminated an endorsement deal because he refused to cooperate with an investigation into the alleged sexual assault of a Nike employee was "an absurd lie".
'It could have been worse, but once again God spared me something more serious.'
Zero women cracked the list of the world's 100 highest-paid athletes released on Wednesday by Sportico.
Losing is part of the sport, a dejected Neymar said after Paris Saint Germain lost the Champions League final to Bayern Munich, in Lisbon.
'Neymar continues to do his daily workout, to prevent injury and maintain his fitness, with his coach Ricardo Rosa. (He is) looking forward to the end of this sad moment for humanity and the return to work that will follow.'
Authorities said they had received several complaints about the event, which Brazilian media reported was being held at Neymar's luxury condominium in Mangaratiba,
Brazilian football star Neymar shared a photograph of himself smiling in a wheelchair on Twitter that is causing quite a stir.
Paris St Germain and Brazil forward Neymar has been ordered to pay his former club Barcelona 6.7 million euros ($7.51 million) after losing a lawsuit over an unpaid bonus, the Spanish champions said in a statement on Friday. Neymar moved from Barca to PSG for a world record fee of 222 million euros in 2017 but took the La Liga side to court over the terms of the last contract he signed with them a year earlier, claiming he was entitled to 43.6 million euros.
Neymar, 28, one of five players sent off during the match at the Parc des Princes, informed the fourth official he had heard a racist comment while walking off the pitch.
Paris St Germain forward Neymar has said he was the target of a racist slur during the French champions' 1-0 defeat by Olympique Marseille on Sunday.
"It is a story that I wanted to tell in my own words, about what happened. I feel it is the biggest story of my career and I thought that I held it for too long by myself and that I needed to share it with other people. The moment was now and (being in) Madrid, on the eve of El Clasico on Sunday, was the perfect occasion to make it happen," the former striker said.
