The United States continued their solid build-up to the World Cup with a 2-1 win over Turkey on Sunday, raising expectations of a good showing in Brazil.

Chelsea forward Samuel Eto'o is out of Tuesday's Champions League semi-final first leg at Atletico Madrid because of injury.

Chelsea will give a better account of themselves in the Champions League in Paris on Wednesday than they did in an unexpected weekend defeat at CrystalPalace, manager Jose Mourinho said on Sunday.

Bayern Munich had to put their Bundesliga title celebrations on hold on Saturday after beating gutsy Mainz 05 2-0 while Borussia Dortmund also won, 3-0 at Hanover 96.

Real Madrid took full advantage of Barcelona's shock defeat at Real Valladolid with a 3-0 home win over 10-man Levante on Sunday that put Carlo Ancelotti's in-form side three points clear at the top of La Liga.

Portugal captain Cristano Ronaldo became the country's record goal-scorer during their 5-1 win against Cameroon in an international friendly on Wednesday.

Neymar's hat-trick lit up a powerful Brazil performance as the 32 nations taking part in this year's World Cup tested out their squads on a busy night of friendlies on Wednesday which also brought victories for Spain, Germany and France.

More than 80 countries treat homosexuals as criminals. Here are 10 countries that share India's homophobic streak. The punishments for such 'crimes' range from stoning to death to torture.

Sepp Blatter, who will be 78 in March, hinted that UEFA president Michel Platini could succeed him even though the once-close relationship between the two has become strained in recent years.

World soccer body FIFA has revised kick-off times for seven group matches at next year's World Cup finals in Brazil, including four in the hottest venues.

At least two of the eight first-round groups of four produced tough obstacles for their participants to progress to the knockout rounds.

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.

FIFA will go ahead with its controversial decision to stage World Cup matches at midday in tropical venues, president Sepp Blatter said on Tuesday as soccer's governing body announced a bafflingly complex procedure for Friday's draw.

Midfielder Jean Makoun scored twice as Cameroon qualified for the World Cup finals after beating Tunisia 4-1 in Yaounde on Sunday to win their two-legged playoff tie and book their place in Brazil next year.

Cameroon goalkeeper Charles Itandje made several sparkling saves to help his side force a 0-0 draw in Tunisia on Sunday in the first leg of their World Cup playoff.

An attack on the Assad regime is unlikely to bring relief to Syria's oppressed and vulnerable population or end the civil war. It will spread the area of violence and increase the stream of refugees in a region wracked by conflict, violence and instability affecting the Gulf countries as much as West Asia, says Rajendra Abhyankar

Victor Moses has become the third player to join Liverpool on Monday, with the forward signing on a season-long loan from Chelsea, the Premier League club confirmed.

Chelsea have boosted their striking options with the signing of veteran Cameroon international Samuel Eto'o from Russia's Anzhi Makhachkala, the Premier League club said on Thursday.

According to sources, the company has identified smaller markets such as Peru, which do not contribute significantly to profits, where it might shut shop in the near term.

US President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameroon have jointly warned Syria that it would face a "serious response" if it is found that Syrian forces used chemical weapons on civilians.

FIFA lifted Cameroon's indefinite suspension from international football on Monday, clearing the way for the team to finish their World Cup qualifiers.

A Turkish oil-chemical tanker with an all Indian crew of 24 has been hijacked by pirates off the coast of the West African nation Gabon.

Cameroon were suspended indefinitely by FIFA on Thursday because of government interference in the country's football federation.

Ethiopia, Togo and Equatorial Guinea are facing disciplinary proceedings for allegedly fielding ineligible players in the World Cup qualifiers, FIFA said on Sunday.

Ethiopia ended the hopes of 2010 World Cup hosts South Africa from making next year's finals in Brazil after a dramatic round of African group stage qualifying matches on Sunday.

Lionel Messi's picture was on the front pages rather than the sports sections of the Spanish media on Thursday, after the World Player of the Year and his father were accused of tax fraud.

It is targeting a rise in output to 16 million tonnes per year by 2016 from four million now.

England's Rio Ferdinand has quit international soccer, the Football Association (FA) said on Wednesday.

Galatasaray striker Didier Drogba hit back at a Fenerbahce fan who waved a banana towards him and team mate Emmanuel Eboue during the weekend's league encounter by highlighting some home truths about racism.

Tottenham Hotspur trounced a sorry Inter Milan 3-0 in the Europa League on Thursday while last year's European champions Chelsea were humbled 1-0 by Steaua Bucharest after being stung by a Raul Rusescu penalty.

CONCACAF, which represents soccer in North and Central America and the Caribbean, has backed a proposal to limit the FIFA presidency to two four-year terms and to impose an age limit of 72 for the president.

South Africa closed in on the African Nations Cup knockout stages with a win on Wednesday while debutantsCape VerdeIslands narrowly failed to do the same as Group A came alive after its moribund start.

Zambia's chances of emulating Egypt, Ghana and Cameroon as the only nations to retain the African Nations Cup did not look promising when they began their campaign with a stuttering 1-1 draw against Ethiopia on Monday.

Manchester City's Yaya Toure won the African Footballer of the Year award for a second successive time on Thursday, holding off a strong challenge from compatriot and Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba.

Barcelona pulled six points clear of Atletico Madrid at the top of La Liga when Lionel Messi netted his seventh double of the campaign and set up Alex Song to open his account for the club in a 3-1 success at home to Real Zaragoza on Saturday.

Ambitious Russian clubs and Spartak Moscow go in search of their first Champions League points this week as they attempt to improve their country's unimpressive record in the competition.

Dr Kiran C Patel and Dr Pallavi Patel, both physicians and longtime residents of Tampa, Florida, have donated $12 million to the University of South Florida in a new endowment aimed at creating the Patel College of Global Sustainability, expanding on nearly a decade of world-leading applied research to advance sustainability around the globe and improve the lives of the world's most vulnerable people.

India failed to maintain their recent impressive form as they went down 0-2 to Singapore in their international football friendly match in Singapore on Tuesday.

Samuel Eto'o scored twice to give ambitious Anzhi Makhachkala a 2-0 Europa League win over Young Boys on Thursday while Liverpool lost 3-2 at home to Udinese and Videton, Sparta Prague and Molde pulled off surprise wins.

Versatile Indian footballer Syed Rahim Nabi feels their 168th ranking in FIFA chart is not a true reflection of the national team's capabilities.