When UEFA decided eight years ago to expand the European Championship from 16 to 24 teams, its then president Michel Platini promised the standard of the tournament would not drop.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique is head strong but it appears as though he may be fighting a losing battle with the four times World Player of the Year.
Antoine Griezmann and Yannick Carrasco each conjured moments of magic as Atletico Madrid recaptured top spot in La Liga from Barcelona with a hard-fought 2-0 victory at Celta Vigo on Sunday.
A summary of Tuesday's qualification matches next year's FIFA World Cup.
Delhi Dynamos unveiled Brazilian World Cup winner Roberto its marquee manager-cum-player for the second season of the Indian Super League. Manu Shankar/Rediff.com reports
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
New Zealand are placed in Group B along with Turkey, Paraguay and Mali.
Brazil held 10 presumed Islamist militants in isolation cells at a maximum security jail on Friday as police combed their computers and mobile phones for information about possible threats to next month's Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Real Madrid's hopes of overhauling La Liga leaders Barcelona suffered a stinging blow when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home to Valencia.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic bagging four goals, while Juventus and Bayern Munich preserved their leads and FA Cup holders Arsenal were dumped out of the competition.
The sale came when Mallya was trapped in a sea of debt, mainly as a result of the losses his now grounded carrier, Kingfisher Airlines, had been piling.
One of the most disappointing aspects of Barcelona's failure to win major silverware last season was the lack of on-field chemistry between Lionel Messi and Neymar.
Five players to watch during the 2016 Major League Soccer season, which opens on Sunday.
Mexico have confirmed Miguel 'Piojo' Herrera will coach the national squad at the World Cup finals in Brazil next year.
Fiorentina tore apart Italian rivals AS Roma to reach the Europa League quarter-finals with a 3-0 win that left their opponents' season in tatters and under-fire coach Rudi Garcia tottering on the brink of the sack.
From heroes to zeros and back again, Leicester City's remarkable rollercoaster ride took another twist as a superb 2-0 victory over Sevilla put them in the quarter-finals of the Champions League on Tuesday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Barca dominated possession and Luis Suarez had several early chances but it was Villarreal who took the lead with Denis Cheryshev redirecting a Mario Gaspar shot past keeper Claudio Bravo on the half hour.
The football fans in Kochi will get a chance to witness a fascinating contest between Brazilian attacking flare and Spanish 'tiki-taka' possession football in what could be a final before the final of this tournament.
Lionel Messi has been included in Barcelona's squad for Wednesday's Spanish Super Cup second leg at home to Atletico Madrid after recovering from a thigh problem sustained in last week's 1-1 first-leg draw at the Calderon.
Facebook Inc Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg launched a free Internet application in Colombia on Wednesday as part of a drive to bring developing markets online, but remained mute on when and if the company would look to move into China.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Sunday
Delhi Dynamos extended their dismal run in the Hero Indian Super League as they lost by a solitary goal to Kerala Blaster to remain at the bottom of the table and put themselves in a difficult position to qualify for the semi-finals in New Delhi.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Celta Vigo thrashed Barcelona 4-1 on Wednesday with Iago Aspas hitting a double.
Loan defaults and restructuring to limit profits.
Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright has launched a scathing attack on the club's manager Arsene Wenger, saying he could not make a case for the Frenchman to extend his reign beyond this season.
As rural demand tapers, companies are back at the drawing board, firming up plans to beat the unexpected slowdown in sales.
The news of the week gone by that shaped the world
Midfielder Andre broke the deadlock for the Euro 2016 finalists in difficult, wet conditions just after the half hour and Nani, celebrating his 29th birthday, scored direct from a free kick in the 89th minute.
Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo won the FIFA Ballon d'Or award for the second year running and the third overall on Monday after a prolific, trophy-filled year with Real Madrid.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Mumbai City FC and FC Goa played out an action-packed goalless draw in the Hero Indian Super League clash after both the teams failed to score on many occasions at the D Y Patil Stadium on Monday.
In an exclusive chat, Del Piero tells Rediff.com's Laxmi Negi of his urge to entertain fans and his interest in understanding India and its culture.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored two stunning goals and took his international tally to 70 as he led Portugal to an emphatic 3-0 win over Hungary in a World Cup qualifier on Saturday.
La Liga champions Real Madrid beat Getafe 3-1 on Saturday with a goal from Gareth Bale and two strikes from Cristiano Ronaldo to go 12 points behind leaders Barcelona and warm up for next week's Champions League game at Paris St Germain.
Switzerland struck twice in quick succession to stun Euro 2016 champions Portugal 2-0 in a World Cup qualifier on Tuesday and hand them a first competitive defeat in two years under coach Fernando Santos.
World champions Germany drew 1-1 with Spain in a high tempo friendly on Friday as they launched their preparations for a title defence in Russia while their opponents had striker Diego Costa making his long-awaited comeback as a substitute.
Argentina remain winless in South American qualifying for the 2018 World Cup after struggling to a 0-0 in Paraguay on Tuesday, while Uruguay and Ecuador both made it two wins from two games to top the group.
