Germany were the better team in their 2-0 loss to France in the Euro 2016 semi-finals on Thursday, coach Joachim Loew said as he cursed his team's bad luck for costing them a place in the final.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic struck a last-minute winner to put Paris St Germain in the French League Cup final with a 2-1 win at Nantes on Tuesday having opened the scoring as they boosted their hopes of a maiden domestic double.
The fate of Sunday's intriguing European Championship final between France and Portugal weighs largely on two men wearing the number seven shirt, one already at the top of the game and the other one getting there fast.
Lionel Messi fittingly sealed Barcelona's 26th La Liga title on Saturday by coming off the bench to score the goal in a 1-0 win over Levante in front of a jubilant Nou Camp crowd, who celebrated a remarkable eighth league crown in 11 years.
A sloppy Real Madrid were held 0-0 at home to Real Betis on Saturday in a further blow to their hopes of retaining the La Liga title.
Cristiano Ronaldo wept tears of despair then tears of joy as Portugal stunned host France to lift the 2016 Euro Title in Paris. The Portuguese talisman has won everything at club level with Manchester United and Real Madrid. But Ronaldo has now become a true great after leading his country to European glory- Portugal's first major football title. Ronaldo tried to fight through pain due to a knee injury that he had suffered during the match but the knee injury took it's toll on him as Portugal lost their captain, who had to be carried off on a stretcher.
Holders Barcelona will play Premier League leaders Arsenal in the last 16 of the Champions League, 10 years after the sides faced each other in the final, following Monday's draw for the first knockout stage.
Last year's finalists Juventus will face-off against Bundesliga champs Bayern.
A soccer friendly between Belgium and Spain scheduled for Brussels on Tuesday has been postponed for security reasons after the Paris attacks, the Belgian soccer federation said in a statement.
Bigger than ever, the European Championship kicks off in Paris next month with a four-week feast of football that promises to elevate the game above the corruption scandals and security fears that have overshadowed its build-up.
Portugal entered the Euro 2016 quarter-final after defeating Poland 5-3 on penalties in Marseille on Thursday.
Bigger than ever, the European Championship kicks off in Paris on Friday with a four-week feast of football that promises to elevate the game above the corruption scandals and security fears that have overshadowed its build-up. All eyes will be on hosts France when they get the ball rolling against Romania in the Stade de France -- 210 days after suicide bombers at the same venue triggered a night of horror across the capital which killed 130 people.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Centre forward Eder, who scored the winning goal in the Euro 2016 final against France, was among 10 players from that squad omitted from Santos's list. Other unlucky players included midfielders Andre Gomes and Renato Sanches, forward Nani and defender Eliseu.
Iceland joint-coach Heimir Hallgrimsson likened his team to an army on Sunday heading for a "win-win" second-round battle with England at Euro 2016. Iceland are the smallest country at the tournament with a population of just 332,000, the size of a city such as Leicester whose club won the English Premier League title this season.
Poland midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak has signed a five-year contract with Paris St Germain, the French champions said in a statement on Sunday.
Sweden captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic has remained tight-lipped about his future at club and international level, telling reporters on Wednesday that he would let them know his plans when he was good and ready. Rumours linking the 34-year-old free agent to Manchester United and Malmo, as well as speculation that he would announce the end to his international career, have gathered steam but a relaxed Ibrahimovic opted to avoid discussing his future. "I want you to still write a lot of stories, so I get excited when I see them, because I want to see who is making up the best story," he told reporters at Sweden's training camp, where the side are preparing for the Euro 2016 finals in France. "When I'm tired of it, I'll let you know where I will go." The striker did manage to refute a suggestion that he might play half a season for Swedish league leaders and his first club Malmo before joining another side at the beginning of 2017. "I'm still not interested in the Allsvenskan (Swedish league). I'm too good for the Allsvenskan," he stated, without giving any more hints about his next destination after he completed four trophy-laden seasons with French champions Paris St Germain last month.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Manchester City look to take an important step in their transformation into one of the world's leading clubs on Tuesday by reaching the Champions League semi-finals for the first time.
Olympique de Marseille were the fall guys on a hectic opening night of Europa League group stage action as German club Eintracht Frankfurt returned from the south of France with a surprise 2-1 victory on Thursday.
The French envoy was notified about "discrimination" towards Russian citizens, it said, adding that "further fanning of anti-Russian sentiments" could damage relations between France and Russia.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
The 28-year-old is believed to be linked to thwarted attacks on a high-speed train from Amsterdam bound for Paris in August, as well as a planned attack on a Parisian church.
Iceland do not fear facing England at Euro 2016 joint coach Heimir Hallgrimsson said on Wednesday after his indefatigable players beat Austria 2-1 to book a place in the last 16.
Sweden beat Italy 1-0 to gain the upperhand after their World Cup playoff first leg on a chilly night, while a young England side held Germany goalless and Belgium drew 3-3 with Mexico despite Romelu Lukaku's double but France eased to a 2-0 victory against Wales.
Austria coach Marcel Koller is determined to make sure his team do not get swept away on a tide of national euphoria on the eve of a rare appearance at a major tournament.
Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is ready to play the mentor's role irrespective of who leads the team in their Euro 2016 opener against Ukraine on Sunday.
A summary of Tuesday's qualification matches next year's FIFA World Cup.
France midfielder Dimitri Payet scored the winner after setting up the equaliser in a 2-1 victory over Sweden in a top-of-the-table clash as they opened up a three-point lead in World Cup qualifying Group A at the Stade de France on Friday.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic bagged a hat trick as Paris St Germain geared up for their Champions League clash against Manchester City with a convincing 4-1 Ligue 1 home win over Nice on Saturday. Ibrahimovic scored twice in the first half and once in the second, while David Luiz added a third in the second half after Hatem Ben Arfa had pulled one back for the visitors early on. PSG, who were crowned champions last month, have 80 points and with six games left lead second-placed Monaco, who lost 2-1 at home to Girondins de Bordeaux on Friday, by 25 points. Nice, who had a chance to reduce the gap with Monaco to two points, lag in third place five points behind the principality side. They will be leap-frogged by Olympique Lyonnais (49) if they beat Lorient away on Sunday.
Like an ailing heavyweight, Spain and their hopes of a third straight European title ended in a tame surrender as their 2-0 defeat by Italy represented the definitive end to a golden era in their footballing history. A first-half effort from defender Giorgio Chiellini and a stoppage-time goal by striker Graziano Pelle sent the Azzurri into the quarter-finals at Euro 2016 and left Spain to mull over a second successive failure on the international stage.
Police have found the DNA of a newly-identified suspect on explosives used in last year's Paris attacks, a French source said on Monday.
Russian hooligans prepared for "ultra-rapid, ultra-violent action" were involved in the worst of the fighting that hit Marseille at the start of the Euro 2016 soccer tournament, the French city's chief prosecutor said on Monday.
Paris bid leaders said almost all the city's proposed venues were already built or would be temporary facilities as the French capital on Wednesday unveiled plans to host the 2024 Summer Olympics.
A "Peace for Paris" symbol, combining the city's beloved Eiffel Tower with the peace sign of the Sixties, has gone viral following the Paris terror attacks.
Nchout sends Cameroon through with last kick of game
Lionel Messi was at the top of his game as Barcelona earned a 3-2 win at Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday to move up to third in La Liga.
Euro 2016's round of 16 gets under way on Saturday after the completion of the group stages. With shocks aplenty, we saw some major upsets and heartbreaks in the preliminary round. Aruneel Sadadekar/Rediff.com takes a look at the top five disappointments of Euro 2016 so far...
European soccer's governing body warned the English and Russian football associations on Sunday that if fan violence continued their teams could be disqualified from the Euro 2016 tournament.
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