Croatia needed a touch of Luka Modric magic to beat Turkey 1-0 in their Euro 2016 Group D opener on Sunday, gaining a measure of revenge after their bitter quarter-final elimination by the same opponents at Euro 2008.
Ivo Karlovic and Marin Cilic won five-set marathons at home to put Croatia 2-0 ahead of 32-time champions United States, while Israel stunned favoured Russia to also lead 2-0 in the Davis Cup quarter-finals on Friday. Champions Spain were held to 1-1 by Germany in Marbella, and the Czech Republic and Argentina were tied after the opening two singles in their best of five tie.
Ramita Jindal ended seventh in the final of the 10m air rifle women's competition.
Mario Mandzukic scored his third goal of Euro 2012 as Croatia came from behind to draw 1-1 with Italy and strengthen their position in a tough Group C on Thursday.
Marin Cilic sent Croatia into the Davis Cup final with a 6-3, 6-2, 7-5 victory against Richard Gasquet on Sunday that gave the hosts a 3-1 win over France.
Romelu Lukaku scored twice to earn Belgium a 2-1 victory over Switzerland in the Nations League on Friday, lifting the mood in the country after a week marred by match-fixing allegations.
A European nation is set to win the World Cup for the fourth time in a row this Sunday and in doing so confirm an unprecedented dominance for the Old World over their once mighty rivals in South America.
Indian tennis star Sumit Nagal continued his fine form as he entered the quarterfinal of the ongoing Perugia Challenger.
England hope to put behind their gloomy recent experiences against Croatia when they travel to Zagreb on Wednesday for an early key World Cup qualifier. Croatia beat England twice in the Euro 2008 qualifiers, costing them a place in June's finals in Switzerland and Austria and coach Steve McLaren his job.
Croatia stayed on course to reach the 2018 World Cup after two superb strikes by midfielder Marcelo Brozovic gave them a 2-0 home win over Iceland in a Group I qualifier played behind closed doors in Zagreb on Saturday.
Hosts Russia have exceeded expectations after advancing to the World Cup quarter-finals with a win on penalties over Spain but they will need more firepower if they are to give Croatia a run for their money on Saturday.
Croatia gave themselves a fighting chance of reaching the World Cup knock-out phase when they thrashed a toothless Cameroon 4-0 on Wednesday.
Serge Gnabry continued his impressive scoring run for Germany, netting in second-half stoppage time for his ninth goal in his 10th international, completing Germany's eighth consecutive win over Northern Ireland.
The former Barcelona forward, key to his country's hopes in Russia, came on as a halftime substitute and provided the moment of inspiration for win the game in the 69th minute.
Croatia's soccer federation has been handed a suspended ban from selling tickets to hooligans and given a 100,000 euros ($113,190.00) fine after their team's supporters caused crowd trouble at Euro 2016, UEFA said on Monday.
It ended a woeful few days for reigning champions Croatia. They left with two losses.
A Russian billionaire has offered incentives to Croatia for beating England in their final Euro 2008 Group E qualifier.
Brazil had failed to impress at the Copa, drawing twice in the group stage while beating only Paraguay.
Croatia captain Darijo Srna says he is ready to play against the Czech Republic at Euro 2016 on Friday following the death of his father. Srna's father passed away during Croatia's opening 1-0 Group D win over Turkey on Sunday and the right back rejoined the squad after travelling home for Monday's funeral. "It is a very difficult moment for me and my family and after talking to them, I decided to return to France," he told a news conference on Thursday ahead of the match in St Etienne.
The medals tally at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.
"That is why we should see this match (against Egypt) mainly as a wake-up call. It was also useful in giving some players much-needed minutes."
31-year-old Dada Prso remains the bedrock of Croatia's hopes
Umesh Choudhary was penalised two points for 'reporting late' to the preparation arena ahead of the 10m finals, which cost him the gold medal in the eight-shooter final.
Davis Cup holders Britain edged into a 2-1 lead in Serbia after Jamie Murray and Dominic Inglot won Saturday's doubles.
On India, while appreciating the measures adopted by it to address discrimination, the Committee expressed concern about alleged discrimination and violence against minority groups, including religious minorities, such as Muslims, Christians, and Sikhs, "scheduled castes" and "scheduled tribes", and LGBTI people.
Spain and England have experienced very different journeys to Sunday's Euro 2024 final. We look at their path to Berlin below.
Photos of the World Cup game between Mexico and Croatia
The Asian Football Confederation tweeted, "94 International Goals. Carried the hopes of a nation! Thank You Asian Football Icon, Sunil Chhetri."
Ivan Ljubicic salvaged the opening day of Croatia's Davis Cup semi-final against Russia, winning a pulsating five-set duel with Mikhail Youzhny to level the tie 1-1.
China delivered their best performance at a Summer Olympics since the 2008 Games on home soil
Portugal will benefit from the wealth of experience veteran Cristiano Ronaldo brings to their squad, manager Roberto Martinez said ahead of this month's European Championship in Germany.
Croatia's Football Federation was charged by UEFA on Saturday for racist chants by the national team's fans and the displaying of racist symbols in the Euro 2012 Group C game against Italy on Thursday, UEFA said.
The Football Association said it would complain to world governing body FIFA after England players were racially abused by Croatia fans during their 4-1 victory in a World Cup qualifier in Zagreb on Wednesday.
El Salvador's Marcelo Arevalo and his Croatian partner Mate Pavic beat Italians Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori 7-5 6-3 in the final.
Turkey beat Croatia 3-1 on penalties after their Euro 2008 quarter-final finished 1-1 following extra-time on Friday. They will meet Germany, who beat Portugal 3-2 on Thursday, in the first semi in Basel on Wednesday.
Turkey showed their battling qualities in the group stages, rallying from 1-0 down to defeat Switzerland 2-1 and scoring three times in the last 15 minutes against Czech Republic to snatch a thrilling 3-2 win.
It will be more of a shock if the 1998 World Cup semi-finalists do not progress against a battered, bruised but not yet broken Turkish side in the quarter-final of Euro 2008.
'There are a number of things we still have to improve because we thought we were better than we were in too many situations.'
David Beckham and goalkeeper Paul Robinson have been dropped for England's Euro 2008 qualifier against Croatia.
