Carlos Tevez scored a stunning goal as Serie A leaders Juventus beat Torino 1-0 on Sunday to continue an extraordinary dominance of their neighbours.
A summary of Wednesday's matches in the UEFA Champions League.
Tottenham Hotspur manager Andre Villas-Boas said the club could fine forward Gareth Bale for failing to attend training ahead of an expected world record "dream" move to Real Madrid. Bale, who has not been training with the squad due to injury, was granted three days off but did not report back to the club on Tuesday despite being pictured in London.
Fireworks light up the night sky above the Maracana as some 50,000 spectators present, and some 3 billion people tuned in around the world as Brazil lifted the curtain on its second major sporting event in two years, after the 2014 soccer World Cup.
Images from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Tuesday.
Juventus made light work of bitter rivals Inter Milan on Sunday, winning 3-1 to increase their Serie A lead to nine points after AS Roma were washed out and Napoli blundered to a 3-0 defeat at Atalanta.
A summary of Tuesday's qualification matches next year's FIFA World Cup.
Tottenham Hotspur have given the inexperienced Tim Sherwood the chance to stamp his mark on the ambitious London club by naming him on Monday as head coach until the end of next season with their sights on the top four.
Stevan Jovetic and Jesus Navas scored their first goals for ManchesterCity who avenged last season's shock FA Cup final defeat by Wigan Athletic with a 5-0 victory in the League Cup third round on Tuesday.
European powerhouse Spain bounced back from the defeat in their opening match to score a 4-0 victory over Niger in a Group D match of the FIFA Under-17 World Cup in Kochi on Tuesday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Rediff.com brings a preview of the main matches coming up this weekend in the English Premier League.
Neymar shrugged off some rough tackling and a missed penalty to score a brilliant solo goal as he led Brazil to a 3-0 win over Paraguay that moved them within sight of the 2018 World Cup finals on Tuesday.
Charlie Adam scored twice as Stoke City beat Manchester United 2-1 on Saturday to show the flailing Premier League champions it will take more than one big-money signing to improve their fortunes.
World champions Germany drew 1-1 with Spain in a high tempo friendly on Friday as they launched their preparations for a title defence in Russia while their opponents had striker Diego Costa making his long-awaited comeback as a substitute.
Chelsea's title ambitions suffered a major blow with a shock 2-1 home defeat by bottom side Sunderland on Saturday, handing the initiative to English Premier League leaders Liverpool who visit lowly Norwich City on Sunday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field