Tottenham were booed off at the final whistle as defeat left them in fifth place
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Iceland's run to the quarter-finals of Euro 2016 showed that a Nordic island known for its volcanoes and pioneering geothermal power has the potential to generate plenty of its own talented footballers too.
Ireland crashed out of the men's hockey World Cup after losing 2-3 to England
Europe's top teams took important steps towards next year's World Cup finals in Brazil with qualifying victories on Tuesday, notably world champions Spain who scored a hugely significant 1-0 win over France in Paris.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
World champion P V Sindhu was on Friday ousted from the All England Championship after being outplayed by a determined Nozomi Okuhara of Japan, who rallied her way to a thrilling three-game win in the quarter-final of the women's singles in Birmingham. Sindhu's defeat ended India's campaign at the Super 1000 tournament.
Football fans have opened up a new sporting crisis for Russia.
Playmaker Wesley Sneijder is relishing being back in the international fold and helping the Netherlands take another step towards World Cup qualification when they host Estonia on Friday.
Michael Owen must prove he can still cut it at the highest level if he is to force his way back into World Cup contention, England manager Fabio Capello has told the Manchester United striker.
Traditional rivals Germany and Netherlands will lock horns in a tough group at the 2012 European soccer championship while co-hosts Poland will be hoping that history does not repeat itself when Greece provide the opposition on the opening day next June.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Former France winger David Ginola will announce on Friday that he is entering the race to become president of world soccer's governing body FIFA, The Sun reported on Thursday.
It will have made uneasy viewing for coach Jorge Sampaoli and emphasised more than ever how reliant his side are on their talisman Messi, who has been struggling with a muscle problem.
Argentina's Leandro Cufre and Maxi Rodriguez were also banned and fined for the brawl after the Germany game.
'It's a problem not just in football -- it's a problem in society, but football now is at the forefront of everybody's minds in terms of, we've got the power to do something about it'
'This is a miracle. Only great teams can be as brave as we were and fight back from a goal down against teams like England'
Jonny Wilkinson said his cool exterior belied big-match nerves as he kicked England to victory in the World Cup semi-final against France.
The main conundrum for Spain coach Vicente del Bosque ahead of Friday's World Cup Group I qualifier at home to minnows Finland is who to deploy in place of Xavi should the injured Barcelona playmaker be ruled out as expected.
Yuvraj Singh showed why he is regarded as India's biggest match-winner as he blasted an unbeaten 77 to propel India to a six-wicket victory over Australia in a high-scoring one-off T20, in Rajkot, on Thursday.
Earlier, the women's doubles pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and N Sikki Reddy suffered their second successive loss in the event, going down fighting 19-21, 20-22 to Bulgaria's Gabriela Stoeva and Stefani Stoeva to bow out of contention.
When Michel Platini revamped the European Championship, turning the finals from a tough, lean 16-team tournament in 2012 into a flabby, 'roll up, anybody's welcome' 24-side affair in 2016, it was not surprising he ran into a blizzard of rebukes.
Bethany England's early rocket proved enough for Chelsea as they beat newcomers Tottenham Hotspur 1-0.
Lionel Messi produced another brilliant performance to lead Argentina to a 3-0 win over Venezuela in World Cup qualifying on Friday, but Colombia kept up the chase on the group leaders with a 5-0 demolition of Bolivia.
Adidas stopped short on Thursday of ending its sponsorship deal with Uruguay's Luis Suarez after FIFA banned him for nine matches for biting an Italy defender, but the German sportswear firm said it would not use him in any further World Cup marketing.
David Beckham could win his 100th international cap against France next Wednesday after he was recalled to the England squad on Thursday.
Hosts Russia will kick off next year's World Cup finals versus Saudi Arabia in Moscow and defending champions Germany will start against Mexico after Friday's draw threw up some mouthwatering clashes.
World champions Spain returned to the top of the FIFA rankings on Wednesday while Brazil dropped to third place and Italy slumped to 11th. World Cup finalists the Netherlands also leapfrogged Brazil for second, a rise of two places, while England surprisingly moved up a rung to seventh despite a disappointing tournament in South Africa.
England's Liverpool FC and Spanish champions Real Madrid will face off in the final in Paris.
Images from football friendlies played on Wednesday.
Lionel Messi scored and missed a penalty in Argentina's 3-1 win in Germany and Belgium stunned Netherlands 4-2 as a flurry of new coaches and debutants cut their international teeth in friendlies on Wednesday.
Cristiano Ronaldo-led Euro 2016 champions, Portugal inched closer to the top-five after climbing two places to 6th in the FIFA world rankings released on Thursday.
Rugby: Blues players sent home due to COVID-19 lockdown, still hoping to play last game.
The European Championship is well and truly up for grabs as the tournament enters the knockouts after a compelling group stage in which some top nations fell short of expectations while two fallen powers staged a resurgence.
David Beckham, who is set to win his 100th England cap, said he wanted he to carry on and not stop at the milestone.
Portugal play surprise package Morocco in the quarter-finals on Saturday and a visibly frustrated Santos took great pains to explain what happened behind the scenes to put the issue to bed.
