The new pope, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, is not above the passion his countrymen share for soccer and is an avid a fan of San Lorenzo, one of Argentina's top clubs.
Real Madrid won the Club World Cup for the first time by beating San Lorenzo 2-0 on Saturday with goals from Sergio Ramos and Gareth Bale after being forced into a scrap by the feisty South Americans.
Neymar has suffered a minor calf injury but is expected to recover in time to join Brazil's camp next week ahead of the World Cup starting on June 11 in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
Argentina-born Pope Francis, who died on Monday, is being honoured at his local hometown soccer club in Buenos Aires, San Lorenzo de Almagro, where the football-loving head of the Roman Catholic Church remained a member during his 12-year papacy.
Inter Milan delivered a dominant performance against AS Roma, winning 5-2 and extending their lead in Serie A. Marcus Thuram and Lautaro Martinez were instrumental in the victory.
Born in Buenos Aires in 1936, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church died on Monday aged 88.
Dramatic night in the Champions League playoffs as goals, shocks and dominant performances decided the final places in the last 16.
Bayern Munich, helped by two record-breaking VfL Wolfsburg own goals and two from man-of-the-match Michael Olise, demolished the visitors 8-1 in the Bundesliga on Sunday.
MotoGP world champion Jorge Lorenzo won the San Marino Grand Prix for Yamaha on Sunday but Marc Marquez extended his overall lead to 34 points after finishing second.
The earthquake has also damaged culturally important sites such as churches and cemeteries, leaving Virgin Mary statues and coffins in the rubble.
Barcelona dropped their first points in LaLiga this season as Rayo Vallecano fought back to secure a 1-1 draw at home to the champions.
Boca Juniors won the Argentine Apertura championship on Tuesday, finishing top of a three-way play-off by the slimmest of margins after losing 1-0 to rank outsiders Tigre in the final match.
The Argentine Apertura championship ended in a three-way tie on Sunday as leading trio San Lorenzo, Boca Juniors and Tigre all won their final games to finish level on points at the top and force a playoff. Goal difference is not used to decide the title and a three-way playoff will be held, the first in the tournament's history, with matches on Dec. 17, 20 and 23.
According to reports, the mayor of Altopascio, Sara D'Ambrosio, wrote on Facebook that the table was designed to be inclusive and work well for people with physical disabilities to encourage their participation in sport.
Defending champions Inter Milan secured a 2-1 home win against Udinese in Serie A on Sunday with first-half goals from Marko Arnautovic and Davide Frattesi.
Lionel Messi is back in the Argentina squad for next month's World Cup qualifiers against Brazil and Colombia after missing the last three due to injury in which his team have dropped seven points. Messi was named on Friday in coach Edgardo Bauza's 26-man squad and will captain Argentina away to arch-rivals Brazil in Belo Horizonte on Nov. 10 and at home against Colombia in San Juan five days later. Argentina have slipped down the South American group standings to fifth after a shock 1-0 home defeat by Paraguay and 2-2 draws with Peru and Venezuela, all without Messi.
San Marino rider Alex de Angelis was airlifted to hospital after a heavy crash during final practice at the Japanese MotoGP on Saturday before a dramatic qualifying session saw Jorge Lorenzo grab pole from title rival Valentino Rossi.
Bayern Munich must learn their lessons from a 2-0 Champions League defeat by Arsenal that saw the Germans advance to the last eight but fall well short of their own expectations, Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes said on Wednesday.
Brazilian football star Ronaldinho, who widely considered a footballing deity during his playing days, met Pope Francis at the Vatican on Wednesday.
A round-up of Saturday's action in LaLiga, Ligue 1 and Serie A
The Argentine championship is set for a dramatic finale on Sunday as four teams go into the final round of games with a chance of winning the Apertura title. Boca Juniors, San Lorenzo and upstarts Tigre are level on 36 points from 18 games while Lanus are two points behind.
Gimnasia-La Plata midfielder Esteban Gonzalez became the second Argentine footballer to fail a doping test in as many days.
Argentina, still reeling from the shock resignations of captain Lionel Messi and coach Gerardo Martino, have chosen Edgardo Bauza as their new coach, the Argentine FA said on Monday.
Pope Francis is known to be a football fan, and he is also a club member of Buenos Aires side San Lorenzo.
Valentino Rossi won the San Marino MotoGP on Sunday to move a step closer to the world title after Australian world champion Casey Stoner crashed out of the race early on. The Italian's Yamaha mate Jorge Lorenzo was second, just over three seconds behind the winner, and Toni Elias of Spain finished third on his Ducati.
Colombia striker Teofilo Gutierrez has been voted South America's footballer of the year and their Argentine coach Jose Pekerman the best coach for the third time in a row.
Zheng Qinwen saw off a spirited challenge from Diana Shnaider to secure a hard-fought 7-6(5), 6-3 win in their Pan Pacific Open semi-final on Saturday and set up a title clash against American Sofia Kenin.
Pope Francis is a lifelong fan of the Buenos Aires San Lorenzo soccer team.
Carlos Tevez was officially unveiled as a Boca Juniors player in a 6.5 million euros ($7.15 million) transfer from Juventus.
Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero has been left out of the Argentina squad for the crucial World Cup qualifier clash against Brazil to be held at the Mineirao Stadium later this evening. The 28-year-old has been struggling with form in his recent international appearances including missing a penalty for Argentina during their 0-1 defeat at the hands of Paraguay in their last outing.
In-form Luciano Vietto hit two second half goals as Villarreal, down to 10 men for the final 10 minutes, cruised to a 3-0 home victory over Deportivo La Coruna to go fifth in La Liga.
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.
Lionel Messi scored twice and Luis Suarez struck his first La Liga goal as Barcelona crushed struggling Cordoba 5-0 on Saturday.
Most of the deaths are related to fights between the barras bravas, Argentina's hooligan firms.
Higuain had a disappointing Copa America tournament in July, scoring two goals during the competition and missing his spot kick as Argentina lost on penalties to Chile in the final.
Carlos Tevez scored his first goal for Boca Juniors at La Bombonera in more than a decade but it was not enough to prevent his side from crashing to a shock 4-3 defeat to Union in the Argentine championship on Sunday.
Carlos Tevez scored twice for Boca Juniors on Saturday but the main talking point from their 3-1 win over Argentinos Juniors in a stormy Argentine league game was his studs-up challenge that left defender Ezequiel Ham with a broken ankle.
A summary of Saturday's action in the 2024 UEFA European Football Championship qualifiers.
Legendary Argentine World Cup winner Diego Maradona died following a heart attack on Wednesday, aged 60.
The soccer world was in mourning on Tuesday as clubs, players and fans from around the globe sent tributes and support to Brazilian side Chapecoense following a deadly air crash in Colombia that killed 76 people, including several players.
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