While the tournament saw the emergence of young stars, the usual suspects, the big names flattered to deceive.
Al-Nassr overturned a 1-0 first leg deficit to win 4-3 on Monday but with the contest ending 4-4 on aggregate, the players headed into a shootout from which Al-Ain prevailed.
Real Salt Lake won their first Major League Soccer championship on Sunday with a penalty shootout victory over David Beckham's LA Galaxy after the title game had ended in a 1-1 draw following extra time.
Traditional Dutch frailty in penalty shootouts again proved their Achilles heel when they lost 4-2 on spot-kicks to Argentina after a goalless World Cup semi-final on Wednesday.
Champions Manchester City crashed out of the League Cup after suffering a shock 2-0 defeat at struggling Southampton in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.
Lionel Messi says Argentina have felt the presence of the late, great Diego Maradona throughout their World Cup campaign, including on Friday when they beat the Netherlands on penalties to reach the semi-finals.
Portugal continue to be a paradox at Euro 2016, reaching the semi-finals without ever giving the kind of uplifting performance that their talented team should be capable of.
Harmanpreet, Sreejesh shortlisted for FIH Hockey Stars Awards
Poland reached the quarter-finals of Euro 2016 on Saturday when they beat Switzerland 5-4 in a penalty shootout after the sides had drawn 1-1 after extra-time. Granit Xhaka missed the second penalty for the Swiss when he fired his shot wide of the post.
The Harmanpreet Singh-led side will continue their FIH Pro League campaign in the European leg in May-June.
Chelsea stunned Bayern Munich to win the Champions League for the first time after a penalty shootout in the Allianz Arena after a tension-soaked final had ended 1-1 after extra time on Saturday.
Steve Cooper's team remained calm in front of a 53,000-strong crowd as substitute Nya Kirby sealed the issue after their goalkeeper Curtis Anderson denied Hinata Kida.
Saka, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden -- the three youngest players in the England squad -- have been described as "generational talents", but the Arsenal player said they had learned to tune out the noise, be it compliments or criticism.
It was a first Cup of Nations success for Senegal after two lost finals in 2002 and 2019.
British royalty were among the 60,000 spectators at Wembley.
Morocco gave their players time off for a second successive day on Thursday after the physical exertion of the Spain win.
Argentina ended their practice shooting penalties but coach Jose Pekerman said they aim to win their quarter-final against Germany
Morata became the first ever Spanish player to score for club and country at Wembley Stadium.
Portugal defender Pepe missed a training session on Monday as a precaution after suffering a problem with his thigh, a team spokesman told reporters. "Pepe has a muscle pain in his thigh and is not going to train today as a precaution," the spokesman said.
Iran beat defending champions DPR Korea via sudden death (6-5) after both the teams were locked 1-1 in the regulation time to set up a title clash with Iraq in the AFC U-16 Championship, in Margao on Thursday.
Here is what you need to know about their route to the final
Argentina can look forward to a mouthwatering Copa America semi-final clash with Brazil after delivering a much-improved display to beat Venezuela 2-0 in the quarter-finals in their first game at the Maracana since losing the 2014 World Cup final.
Australia's dancing substitute goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne saved the last penalty to clinch a place at this year's World Cup in Qatar as they edged Peru 5-4 in a shootout.
Delhi had to sweat it out to get the better of a resilient Chhattisgarh 6-5 (2-2) in the penalty shootout to advance into the quarter-final league of the 64th National Football Championship for Santosh Trophy at Howrah Stadium in Kolkata on Tuesday.
Chelsea beat Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties on Thursday to set up an all-English Europa League final with local rivals Arsenal in Baku on May 29.
Spain's 'Tiki Taka' passing was off-tempo at the Donbass Arena but the holders, unable to hurt Portugal in 120 minutes of stalemate, broke their hearts in a penalty shootout to reach the final of Euro 2012 on Wednesday.
Custodian Abhra Mandal saved three successive penalty shots to help East Bengal clinch Federation Cup football title by overcoming giant-killer Lajong FC of Shillong in a keenly contested summit clash in Guwahati on Sunday.
The Indian junior men's hockey team lost to Great Britain 3-4 in a nail-biting penalty shoot-out in the Sultan of Johor Cup final in Johor Bahru on Sunday.
Indian men's hockey team finish third...
Mumbai City FC beat FC Goa 6-5 penalties to reach the ISL final
Arsenal beat Liverpool 5-4 on penalties on Saturday to lift the FA Community Shield, the curtain-raiser for the English domestic season, after the two sides played out a 1-1 draw on a chilly afternoon at Wembley.
Uruguay defender Diego Lugano, whose missed penalty led to the semi-final defeat against Brazil, was sent off and gave away a penalty as his side lost 3-1 to Mexico in the Copa America third-place match on Saturday.
Costa Rica achieved "wonderful things" at this World Cup and are proud to bow out having conceded only two goals and without losing a game, coach Jorge Luis Pinto said on Saturday.
Brazil is under intense pressure to breathe life into their World Cup campaign and produce a performance worthy of champions when they face Colombia and their free-scoring midfielder James Rodriguez in Friday's quarter-final.
From the beaches to the capital, Costa Ricans poured into the streets to celebrate the national team's historic World Cup victory over Greece that put the team in the quarter finals for the first time.
Goalkeeper Andres Palop emerged as Sevilla's hero by saving three penalties in the shootout to give his side victory over Espanyol.
Phil Neville scored the decisive spot kick to give Everton a 4-3 penalty shootout win over holders Chelsea after their FA Cup fourth-round replay ended in a 1-1 draw after extra time at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
Italy coach Cesare Prandelli acknowledges that playing Spain in a friendly three months before the World Cup may not be the best idea but a decent performance could help his side take a step forward in their development.
Mahindra United beat Dempo via the tie-breaker in the semi-finals of the Federation Cup.
