'Four years ago, there were goalkeepers that could not deal with the ball just under the bar and now we've got a whole generation of very athletic goalkeepers, who don't let in that kind of ball.'
FIFA unveiled the official ball for next year's World Cup on Friday, with the makers billing it as the first perfectly round ball and the most accurate yet. Aerodynamic bumps on the ball would allow for stable flight and grip under all conditions, makers adidas said at the launch in Cape Town.
Italy beat Israel 3-0 at home on Tuesday thanks to a Mateo Retegui double and a late goal from Gianluca Mancini.
FIFA are launching an 18-month campaign to ensure the world's top referees are fully prepared for the finals in Germany.
Finds no cause to block Russia and Qatar World Cups
The World Cup could be targeted again next year for demonstrations in Brazil against graft and poor public services but FIFA should not be held responsible or made a scapegoat, general secretary Jerome Valcke warned on Tuesday.
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.
Brazil firmed up to 3-1 favourites to win the World Cup for the sixth time after goals from Neymar and Roberto Firmino secured a 2-0 win over Mexico and a place in the quarter-finals on Monday.
FIFA should re-run the vote which elected Qatar as 2022 World Cup hosts and choose a venue which "respects workers" the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) said on Friday.
Fans have bought 804,186 tickets for matches at the World Cup in Qatar
FIFA's executive committee approved a package of planned reforms on Thursday aimed at cleaning up soccer's scandal-plagued world governing body, proposing integrity checks and term limits for senior officials and a new separation of policy and management positions.
Football runs through the veins of every Kolkatan. And their love for the game was on show when Germany took on Argentina in the FIFA World Cup final on Sunday.
Qatar has tried to make itself more attractive to tourists and launched a "Summer in Qatar" initiative this year to try to attract visitors during the brutally hot months of June, July and August.
A Croatian victory would be a huge upset, with France firm favourites to win the World Cup for a second time.
Brazil's Ronaldo has set himself the goals for 2010 of helping Corinthians win the South American Libertadores Cup and making it to his fifth World Cup.
A foul on Cristiano Ronaldo during Portugal's Group B clash against Iran on Monday resulted in a record 19th penalty at the World Cup.
World Cup organisers have gone to great lengths to keep unaffiliated firms out of sight, such as concealing the brand names on the front and back of LG television monitors in the press facilities with black tape.
Fans attending the World Cup in Qatar must show proof of a negative COVID-19 test regardless of their vaccination status, organisers said in a statement on Thursday.
Just four days before the draw for the 2014 World Cup, FIFA faced yet another embarrassment when a Sao Paulo prosecutor opened an investigation into possible racism by soccer's world governing body.
Proud Morocco want to build African legacy after World Cup run, says Regragui
An RFEF spokesperson told Reuters that Carmona's father had been fighting a long illness and passed away on Friday.
Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar found himself in a slightly different territory as he pitched for football, saying that with the 2017 Under-17 World Cup coming to the country, qualifying for the 2022 senior main event is a realistic target.
FIFA on Thursday announced that tickets for the 2010 World Cup to be played at Soccer city on Sunday has been sold out.
The 2026 soccer World Cup could be split between up to four countries, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Thursday, announcing the organisation would encourage applications to co-host the tournament.
Indian football remained in a state of terminal decline after experiencing arguably its darkest phase in a year marked by severe administrative crisis, court hearings, financial issues, absence of domestic leagues, and a steep decline in performance of the senior men's team.
Tickets for the World Cup semi-finals and final, as well as two of England's first round matches in South Africa, have sold out, FIFA said on Friday. FIFA said there were no more tickets for England's matches against the United States in Rustenburg on June 12 and Slovenia in Port Elizabeth on June 23.
Burglars made off with seven replicas of the golden World Cup trophy after breaking into FIFA's offices in South Africa, police said on Tuesday.
The Colombian football team returned home to an incredible welcome as thousands of fans turned out to celebrate the South American nation making history for reaching last eight of the FIFA World Cup for the first time.
The match will take place between November 10 and 18, and is likely to be played Kochi.
World Cup final referee Howard Webb has been included among the 25 who were named by FIFA on Wednesday for this year's tournament in Brazil.
Every four years, FIFA World Cup puts an international spotlight on world football. For advertising firm J Walter Thompson London and its client - United Kingdom's National Centre for Domestic Violence, this presented an opportunity to shed some light on a particularly nasty side-effect of fervent sports fandom: domestic violence.
The new format will be made up of 16 groups of three teams.
Postal service worker Kristbjorn Hilmir Kjartansson and his friend Gretar Jonsson, a film student, took 14 days to make the trip from Reykjavik to Volgograd.
If you have watched the matches closely enough, it's difficult to miss the white-on-red logos of Mahindra Satyam in the soccer stadia across South Africa.
A senior member of Islamic militant group told U.S. authorities that the group had drawn up a plan to launch attacks in Japan during the 2002 event.
Guwahati became the fifth Indian city to be ratified as a venue for next year's Under-17 football World Cup after a FIFA inspection team gave its thumbs up to the venue's preparedness and facilities.
Midfielder Amarjit Singh has been unanimously elected as the captain of Indian team for the upcoming FIFA Under-17 World Cup to be held next month.
The World Anti-Doping Agency banned Russia from the world's top sporting events for four years, a period that includes the next summer and winter Olympics and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, for tampering with doping-related laboratory data. The sanctions against Russia, the host of last year's soccer World Cup, also bar it from hosting major sporting events for a four-year period or applying to host new events in that period.
US authorities are investigating corruption at FIFA, soccer's global governing body, while Swiss prosecutors have announced their own criminal inquiry into the 2018 and 2022 bids awarded, respectively, to Russia and Qatar.
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