IMAGES from the FIFA World Cup Group C match played between Poland and Saudi Arabia at Education City Stadium on Saturday.
Italy beat Israel 3-0 at home on Tuesday thanks to a Mateo Retegui double and a late goal from Gianluca Mancini.
Meg Lanning's Australia, long the benchmark in women's cricket, will bid for a record-extending fifth T20 World Cup title after a rocky ride to their sixth final. Harmanpreet Kaur-captained India arrive at the MCG undefeated and without having bowled a ball in the rained-out semi-final against England.
New Jersey awarded 2026 World Cup final, Mexico gets opener
Nelson Mandela, 91-year-old former South African president, firmly intends to make a brief appearance at Friday's World Cup opening match, organisers and his family said on Thursday. But World Cup chief Danny Jordaan told reporters the decision on whether Mandela will appear at Soccer City for South Africa's encounter with Mexico would be determined on the day.
Javier Aguirre ended his second stint as Mexico coach on Wednesday, resigning three days after his team were beaten 3-1 by Argentina in the second round of the World Cup in South Africa.
European champions Portugal spurned a two-goal lead against Tunisia, stumbling to a 2-2 draw, as France, one of the World Cup favourites, flexed their muscles with a comfortable 2-0 win over Ireland in warm-up friendlies on Monday.
Athens Olympics silver medallist Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore and Ronjan Sodhi will spearhead Indian challenge at the ISSF Shotgun World Cups in Mexico and United Arab Emirates in March and April.
World Cup sidelights: All the news from Brazil right here...
The three-nation United States-led bid to host the 2026 World Cup outscored its rival Morocco as both passed an inspection of their facilities and infrastructure, global soccer body FIFA said on Friday.
The setting is unique but a succession of pre-tournament injuries and the lessons of past World Cups outside Europe suggest the football at Africa's first finals will resonate to familiar Latin rhythms.
The favourites to win next year's World Cup in Russia were given navigable paths to the last 16 with the coaches of Germany, Brazil, Argentina and Spain having reason to feel reasonably optimistic after Friday's draw.
South Africa and Mexico are likely to go on the attack in the opening game of the World Cup on Friday, hopefully ending a run of cagey and often dour starts to the finals. Against a backdrop of fevered enthusiasm and the deafening noise of vuvuzelas at Johannesburg's cavernous Soccer City, an entertaining tone for the tournament is likely to be set by two teams who are much better going forward than defending.
England beat Nigeria 2-1 in a friendly on Saturday that provided some clues as to how coach Gareth Southgate will line up his still experimental side when the World Cup gets underway in two weeks' time.
The draw for the eight groups for the final round of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which will be played from June 12 to July 13 in Brazil, was just held in Costa do Saupe near Salvador de Bahia.
India have so far won three gold medals with compound archer Abhishek Verma opening the tally by winning the individual event on Saturday.
Neuer made the squad despite playing in just one official game, a friendly against Austria on Friday, since breaking a bone in his foot in September but talented 22-year-old Sane was the biggest name to miss out.
Mbappe and Benzema inspire France to 2-0 win against Finland
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Hundreds of visiting supporters have been queuing up to visit Josef Stalin's bunker - chambers dug out underneath the southwestern city to protect the Soviet leader from a Nazi German assault that never came.
This is the first Golden Ball to go for auction and while the value is still to be confirmed, the auction house expects it to fetch millions on June 6.
The once inconceivable notion of a World Cup played on African soil, in ultra-modern stadiums beamed live to soccer fans in all corners of the globe will become a reality on Friday.
Lionel Messi drew vast crowds and showed flashes of his brilliance when his Inter Miami side were held to a goalless draw by African giants Al-Ahly as the revamped Club World Cup got off to a festive start on Saturday.
Morocco has lodged a last-minute bid to host the 2026 soccer World Cup and will compete against a three-way bid from the United States, Mexico and Canada.
FIFA slapped the Mexicans with a CHF 10,000 fine for what it called "discriminatory and insulting chants" during their surprise 1-0 win over Germany on Sunday.
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.
"He has been sprinting and the knee is absolutely no issue for the World Cup. We still have a bit of time and it is nothing dramatic."
Max Verstappen became the first Formula One driver to take 16 victories in a season
The world's most-talented young players gave India a memorable show of high quality football on the field as the country showcased its organizational skills in a near-flawless and record-breaking FIFA Under-17 World Cup across six cities, which culminated with England clinching the title in Kolkata on Saturday.
England coach Mark Sampson named an experienced squad on Monday for the women's World Cup in Canada.
Two-thirds of soccer enthusiasts in 23 nations feel the first World Cup finals on African soil has become too expensive for fans to enjoy, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.
A civil war and the menace of militancy has prevented them from playing many matches in run up to the FIFA Under-17 World Cup but then Iraq have proved that they can conquer odds and perform well.
Javier Ceppi, Tournament Director of the 2017 Under-17 football World Cup, which India will host, says the success of the event depends on the country's fans. Laxmi Negi reports.
Mexico's national coach Victor Vucetich says he has been notified by the country's soccer federation that he is no longer in the job, according to an interview posted on Thursday night on ESPN.com.
Peru fans take $800 taxi to get to World Cup game
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
New Zealand are placed in Group B along with Turkey, Paraguay and Mali.
FIFA legends Carlos Valderrama and Marcel Desailly on Wednesday advised the Indian colts to view the upcoming FIFA Under-17 World Cup as a huge opportunity to shine on the international stage and perform to their potential.
India were on Friday drawn with two-time champions Ghana, United States and Colombia in a tough Group A of the FIFA Under 17 World Cup.
Brazilian forward Neymar is faced with not just a bitter few days of what might have been, but a coming season of what to do now.
