Sporting world lost some of its favourite stars this year.
Lionel Messi will play against Greece in an Argentina team full of changes for their final World Cup Group B match on Tuesday, coach Diego Maradona said.
Tens of thousands turned out to pay their final respects to the football legend, who died last week after losing a battle with alcoholism.
Brazil's 1970 World Cup winning team have been voted the best of all time in a global poll of experts conducted by World Soccer magazine.
Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri said having Eden Hazard in such unstoppable form makes winning "easy" but appears almost resigned to losing him.
Lionel Messi scored a goal reminiscent of Diego Maradona's famous strike for Argentina against England in the 1986 World Cup as Barcelona romped to a 5-2 win over Getafe in their King's Cup semi-final first leg on Wednesday.
'I understood that if I dedicated myself solely to coaching, I could get much better at it'
In the streets of the capital, revellers partied early into the hours of Monday. Fans climbed onto bus stops and lamp-posts, blared horns, banged drums and set off fireworks into the night sky. Some even climbed the tall Obelisco monument.
"The people who have seen Pele, Alfredo Di Stefano or Diego Maradona. The opinions are sentimental, but the other side, if he (Messi) wouldn't have won the World Cup, the opinion and my opinion wouldn't change."
Argentine legend Diego Maradona will kick off a football conclave on October 3 in the presence of a galaxy of current and former Indian stars like Bhaichung Bhutia, Sunil Chhetri and I M Vijayan.
Such is Argentina's passion for soccer, that the World Cup remains a priority for some, despite a sluggish economy, painful inflation estimated to hit 100% this year and currency controls that push up the price of travelling overseas.
The comparison with Maradona for the title of the greatest Argentine player of all time cannot be complete without a world title, which the late Maradona won almost single-handedly 36 years ago.
As the nation mourns the music icon, Namrata Thakker looks at Bappida's amazing life.
The Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) will extend an invitation to Argentine legend Diego Maradona to visit the strife-torn nation and help it in raising the standard of the sport.
The retired 43-year-old star has lived in Cuba for four years recovering from drug abuse.
Soccer legend Diego Armando Maradona on Saturday said he was surprised by the response of the crazy fans who thronged in thousands to have a glimpse of him as he laid the foundation stone of a football school at Maheshtala in South 24 Parganas district. Blowing kisses in the air and waving to the crowd, the 48-year-old Argentine, dressed in a grey shirt and matching trouser, said he had not anticipated that his two-day visit would evoke such a huge response.
Many flocked to Buenos Aires's tattoo parlors to commission designs depicting Lionel Messi.
A sense of euphoria was in the air in the country, particularly in the Buenos Aires neighborhood of Palermo, where thousands of jubilant fans crowded to watch the match on a giant screen in the park.
Wearing his infectious goofy grin, 'Samba Magician' Ronaldinho cast a spell on the football-crazy denizens of Kolkata as his arrival for a two-day visit in Kolkata ushered in an early onset of the Durga Puja festival.
New Jersey awarded 2026 World Cup final, Mexico gets opener
Carlos Tevez was officially unveiled as a Boca Juniors player in a 6.5 million euros ($7.15 million) transfer from Juventus.
For Argentina players and captain Messi, who netted twice in the 120 minutes before also scoring in the shoot-out, it was the biggest title of their careers.
Argentina and Australia have only two full days to rest, a factor Argentine manager Lionel Scaloni called 'madness'.
Fans crowded into plazas to watch the game on giant screens, cheering when Messi scored the opening goal -- a penalty -- but groaning and slowly going silent as Saudi Arabia pulled two quick goals back in the second half.
Major world record deals are here.
The Argentina captain turns 31 in a few days and may be playing his last World Cup. He would need to win it to rival fellow great Diego Maradona for the eternal love of his compatriots.
Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez was at a loss to explain how Luis Suarez missed three golden chances in his side's 1-0 win over Egypt in their opening World Cup Group A game but refused to blame his leading striker.
Raucous home support for holders Argentina did not make up for the absence of Juan Martin del Potro and Federico Delbonis on Friday as they fell 2-0 behind to Italy in the first round of the Davis Cup.
Former Real Madrid striker Predrag Mijatovic criticised Gareth Bale for lacking leadership qualities
The friendly between Netherlands and France on Friday will be halted for a minute's silence in the 14th minute in a tribute to Johan Cruyff.
Napoli forward Lukaku, who has battled to regain match fitness after joining the club in late August, delivered an impressive performance with one goal and two assists.
But after an exceptional transfer window and with Luciano Spalletti at the helm, Napoli dominated the title race while their main rivals all suffered slumps during the season.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Here is what you need to know about their route to the final
'To all of these heroic people: football thanks you, football remembers you and football supports you'
Franz Beckenbauer was for decades synonymous with Germany's success on the pitch, as player and then coach.
Argentina are on a 36-match unbeaten run with top scorer and captain Messi playing his fifth and last World Cup in search of the elusive honour
In the third-tier Europa Conference League, English Premier League club Leicester City will face Danish side Randers and Scottish club Celtic will take on Norwegian champions Bodo/Glimt in the knockout playoff round.
