Michael Ballack will resume his duties as Germany captain when he returns to the national team after an injury layoff, winning a tug-of-war against Philipp Lahm who replaced him at the World Cup in South Africa.
Here are five talking points from the weekend in La Liga.
Here are five talking points from the weekend in La Liga:
Victory meant Nadal set the record for the longest Davis Cup winning streak in combined singles and doubles rubbers with 23 matches in a row.
He leads the men's seedings ahead of defending champ Roger Federer, with Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov seeded third.
Jose Mourinho's reshaped Manchester United destroyed Premier League champions Leicester City 4-1 with a performance that thrilled Old Trafford on Saturday and justified his decision to leave out Wayne Rooney. The shake-up seemed to liberate Paul Pogba who led the way with a polished display, heading his first goal for the club on 42 minutes and starting the clever move that led to Juan Mata firing home United's second after 37 minutes.
India's Rohan Bopanna and his Pakistani partner Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi crashed out in straight sets from the doubles quarter-final of the Wimbledon in London.
Lionel Messi became the first player to win 10 La Liga crowns with Barcelona and only the third player from any club to do so.
Third seeds Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi saved a match point en route to a hard-fought three-set win over Oliver Marach and Janko Tipsarevic to book a berth in the final of the Sony Ericsson Open tennis tournament in Miami.
Latvian Ernests Gulbis, a projected third-round opponent for world number one Rafael Nadal, has withdrawn from Wimbledon because of a hamstring injury, tournament organisers said on Sunday.
Doubles specialists Michael Llodra and Julien Benneteau combined to fire France into the quarter-finals of the Davis Cup Saturday with a battling four-set win over Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber and Christopher Kas in Toulon. The victory gave the nine-times winners an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the best-of-five tie and set up a last-eight clash against champions Spain or Switzerland in July.
FIFA presidential candidate Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of Jordan's request for Friday's election to be postponed because of an issue with the voting booths has been rejected by sport's highest tribunal.
Captain Steven Gerrard's 87th minute goal turned out to be a late winner for Liverpool as they inched closer to the top four in the English Premier League table after a 2-1 win over Queens Park Rangers.
Brazil scored three superbly-taken goals, including a stunning Neymar effort, to beat feisty Austria 3-0 in sweltering conditions on Sunday and put the finishing touches to their impressive World Cup preparation.
Rafael Nadal zipped around Court Philippe Chatrier as though he had rockets in his heels on Wednesday during a straight sets quarter-final win over Nicolas Almagro but he was still not quick enough for the umpire.
Several buildings across the world lit up bright green on Thursday night in support of the Paris climate accord.
The win makes her the oldest woman to reach the third round at the French Open since Billie-Jean King in 1982.
Play on Court Philippe Chatrier will have a familiar feel on Thursday with Rafa Nadal and Justine Henin, holders of eight French Open singles crowns, bidding to move into the third round.
Barcelona snapped a four-match winless run in La Liga with a 4-2 home victory over title rivals Sevilla on Saturday to reclaim top spot but the triumph was marred by talisman Lionel Messi fracturing his arm and being ruled out for three weeks.
IMAGES from football matches played in the Spain, Germany and Portugal on Wednesday.
Spain's Garbine Muguruza insists she is enjoying herself at the French Open even if she doesn't look it, but don't expect her to smile too much until she gets her hands on the Suzanne Lenglen trophy for the second time in three years.
Roger Federer bounced back to form with a quick-fire win over Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan on Tuesday as he began his bid for a seventh title at his hometown tournament in Basel.
Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich survived several first-half scares in a 1-1 home draw with midtable Schalke 04 on Saturday as Philipp Lahm made his 500th appearance for the Bavarian club.
How the xXx: The Return of the Xander Cage actress served up pure glamour during the movie promotions.
The draw means second-placed Atletico Madrid could close the 12-point gap with Barcelona, who are on 74 points, if they beat Celta Vigo later on Saturday.
Lionel Messi lifted Barcelona out of their recent slump with two goals in a vintage display as his side survived a tenacious Tottenham Hotspur fightback to claim a 4-2 victory in Champions League Group B on Wednesday.
As Barbie is set to turn 60 on March 9, we take a trip down memory lane and look at some interesting creations.
Real Madrid's Welsh winger Gareth Bale has joined Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in the race for FIFA's Ballon d'Or award.
Outgoing FIFA President Sepp Blatter said a Swiss criminal investigation against him was 'not correct' and defended his decision not to step down sooner as head of the world soccer body, according to a German magazine.
Michael Ballack hit back at Philipp Lahm's wish to stay as German captain after his stint in charge during the World Cup when regular skipper Ballack was ruled out with injury.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored the 750th goal of his remarkable career in a 3-0 win over Dynamo Kyiv on Wednesday
Bayern Munich midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger is doubtful for their Super Cup game against Chelsea on Friday in Prague after straining his ankle in a 1-1 Bundesliga draw at Freiburg on Tuesday.
Catalans will have to cope without their inspirational captain Andres Iniesta, the man who has pedigree when it comes to beating the Blues.
Embattled FIFA President Sepp Blatter said on Thursday the corruption scandal surrounding the world soccer body had brought shame and humiliation to football.
Ten minutes of brilliance kept Roger Federer on course for a final clash with Lleyton Hewitt at the Halle Open grasscourt event in Germany on Friday. Federer, demoted to world number two by Rafael Nadal on Monday, beat Philipp Kohlschreiber 7-5, 6-3 in his quarter-final while Hewitt also knocked out a home hope when he defeated Andreas Beck 7-6, 6-1.
The brain may be sharp as ever, but the legs seem heavier, the pace worryingly slower. He's still only 32, but the strain of a decade-and-a-half of paranormal activity on the pitch may just be piling up.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp could enter the transfer market after Philippe Coutinho and Dejan Lovren suffered hamstring pulls to deepen the club's injury crisis, British media reported.
It's French Open time! The tennis world's only clay court Grand Slam begins on Sunday and the best of the best will battle it out.
Bayern Munich imposed a club record fine on defender Philipp Lahm and also fined striker Luca Toni on Monday for disciplinary violations before and during the Bundesliga match against Schalke 04 on Saturday.
Rafa Nadal reclaimed his French Open crown in emphatic style on Sunday when he battered Sweden's Robin Soderling 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 to win the title for the fifth time in six years.
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