Brazil began deploying 30,000 troops on Saturday to patrol its borders and beef up security for the World Cup soccer tournament that will kick off in 12 Brazilian cities next month, the Defense Ministry said.
Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are among the world's top players calling for the Davis Cup to return to its traditional home-and-away format and be staged over two years, a proposal backed by ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi.
Brazil were humiliated 4-1 by bitter rivals Argentina in South American World Cup qualifiers on Tuesday as the pressure mounted on manager Dorival Jr after his side were comprehensively outplayed and fortunate not to lose by more.
With just 500 days to go until the 2014 World Cup kicks off in Brazil, soccer's world governing body FIFA warned that the hosts cannot afford any further delays in getting their venues ready.
Eight stadiums in Doha will host 64 matches at the World Cup.
Photos of the World Cup match between Cameroon and Brazil being played in Brasilia
Hitesh, Sakshi assure India two more medals at World Boxing Cup
"I don't see it as pressure, a team like Brazil is always a contender for the World Cup or any other title that they play for. The demand of the fans is normal because we are a high-quality team, with big names,"
Franz Beckenbauer who captained the team to World Cup victory in 1974 then won the tournament again as manager in 1990, has died at the age of 78, German news agency DPA reported on Monday.
FIFA boss Infantino urges World Cup ceasefire in Ukraine
Now facing Chile in the first game of the tournament's knockout round, Brazil will be encouraged by recent history. They easily knocked out Chile at the same stage in the last two World Cups "La Roja" (The Red) featured in, 1998 and 2010.
Brazil failed to win for the first time in 11 games with their own lacklustre midfield as much to blame for the 0-0 draw with Mexico as the inspired goalkeeping performance of Guillermo Ochoa.
Brazil has promised it can meet the huge costs of staging the 2014 World Cup and that the legacy of improved public services and foreign investment will justify the expenses involved.
The World Cup is around the corner and millions of fans are putting down their iPads to collect and trade soccer stickers, a decades-old hobby that has defied the digital age.
Brazil and Argentina have ousted Spain as the top picks for World Cup champions, according to a global field of 100 football fan economists polled by Reuters.
At the last two World Cups, Brazil have veered away from the great, attacking traditions that used to make them the team that everyone wanted to watch.
In the women's competition, Minakshi began her campaign with a clean 5-0 win over Australia's Madeleine Bowen in the light flyweight division, while Muskan edged England's Kerry Davis 3-2 in a closely contested middleweight category bout.
Valencia, who was taken off for the last 15 minutes of Sunday's Group A game, has had a decade-long career in the Ecuador side, starting off as a winger but being converted to a striker in the qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup.
England, who are gunning for their second World Cup title, have the most valuable squad in Qatar with Jude Bellingham topping a list of over 800 players.
Brazil has moved closer to overturning a ban on alcoholic drinks at sports venues, drafting a bill that would allow for their sale at 2014 World Cup matches out of deference to world soccer's governing body FIFA.
The victory lifted Brazil to second in South American qualifying with 21 points, four behind leaders Argentina and one ahead of Uruguay in third, both of whom have a game in hand and will clash on Friday.
When Brazil chose 12 cities to host the 2014 World Cup, the one stadium everyone thought would be finished on time was the Arena da Baixada in Curitiba.
Shooter Dhanush Srikanth continued to excel and evolve on the global stage, winning the men's 10m air rifle gold medal to open India's account in the Deaflympics in Tokyo on Sunday.
Hosts Brazil aim to become the first team to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup on Saturday by maintaining their superb recent record against opponents Chile.
Luca Zidane, son of French World Cup-winner Zinedine, said his grandfather had supported him in switching international allegiance to Algeria, after playing for France at junior level.
Richarlison is a rarity among the overindulged footballing elite. In a World Cup which has been overshadowed by social issues, Brazil's latest football sensation is championing more than just one cause, observes Deepti Patwardhan.
'We had a fantastic goalkeeper today, Livakovic, he was great, he was insurmountable, he defended the penalties in a very strong, stable manner.'
Mass protests against inequality are unlikely to disrupt the World Cup in Brazil, the country's sports minister Aldo Rebelo said on Monday.
World Cup winner Argentina topped the FIFA rankings on Thursday for the first time in six years.
The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) has asked FIFA why the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) was not used to review two key decisions they believe hindered their side during Sunday's 1-1 draw with Switzerland.
After years of construction delays and budget overruns, the World Cup kicks off in Brazil on Thursday under a cloud of discontent at home even as happy foreign fans pour in for the tournament.
The year began on an unusually dull note with boxers absent from most international competition in the aftermath of a medal-less Olympic campaign.
England's failure at the first hurdle at the Brazil World Cup caused heartache to captain Steven Gerrard.
Werder Bremen's Niclas Fuellkrug made his Germany debut at the age of 29 this week, scoring the winner in their warmup match against Oman on Wednesday after coming on as a substitute.
"We are also a country that has a chance to become world champions because I hope we are the best team."
Shot-stoppers who turned into showstoppers during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
World Cup sidelights: All the fun news from Brazil right here...
Sarina Bolden headed the winner as the Philippines spoiled co-hosts New Zealand's party
