Paris (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice in the opening four minutes on the way to a four-goal haul as European champions Portugal smashed Andorra 6-0 in World Cup qualifying on Friday, while France recovered from a goal down to thrash Bulgaria. The Real Madrid superstar was making his first appearance for Portugal since he […]

New York (AFP) – The former president of the Costa Rican soccer federation, Eduardo Li, pleaded guilty Friday in New York to extortion and fraud in a corruption case that has also touched dozens of former leaders of soccer's world governing body. This was a reversal for the 57-year-old, who had pleaded not guilty in […]

St Albans (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Captain Wayne Rooney and winger Theo Walcott will both start England's World Cup qualifier at home to Malta on Saturday, interim manager Gareth Southgate confirmed on Friday. Rooney, 30, has been a substitute in Manchester United's last three games and recently admitted that his poor form meant he deserved […]

Rome (AFP) – Striker and captain Mauro Icardi has extended his contract with Inter Milan until June 2021, the Serie A giants said on Friday, disappointing some of Europe's biggest clubs. The Argentine, who has hit 58 goals in 114 games in all competitions since joining Inter in 2013, has reportedly pocketed a salary increase […]

London (AFP) – Swansea manager Bob Bradley hit back at his critics on Friday as the American insisted his nationality had nothing to do with his arrival at the struggling Premier League club. Bradley was hired by Swansea's new American owners Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan to replace the sacked Francesco Guidolin ahead of popular […]

London (AFP) – England will hope to erase the lingering stain of Sam Allardyce's embarrassing exit when interim manager Gareth Southgate takes charge for the first time in Saturday's World Cup qualifier against Malta. Just 12 days after Allardyce was forced to quit in disgrace following his indiscreet and offensive comments to undercover newspaper reporters, […]

Berlin (AFP) – Germany want a show of power in Saturday's 2018 World Cup qualifier against a Czech Republic side hoping for 'a little miracle' against the world champions. "We're playing against a team that can only be defeated in exceptional circumstances. We hope for a little miracle," Czech coach Karel Jarolim told German magazine […]

Montevideo (AFP) – Brazil and Uruguay scored easy victories to maintain their lead at the top of South America's 2018 World Cup qualifying tournament as Chile lost ground after crashing to defeat in Ecuador. A virtuoso performance from Barcelona superstar Neymar lay at the heart of Brazil's 5-0 mauling of Bolivia in Natal, with the […]

Natal (Brazil) (AFP) – Neymar scored one goal and set up two more as Brazil turned on the style with a 5-0 thrashing of Bolivia in South America's 2018 World Cup qualifying competition. Barcelona superstar Neymar's 49th international goal in his 73rd appearance took him one clear of Zico on Brazil's all-time topscorer's list. Still […]

Montevideo (AFP) – Edinson Cavani maintained his superb start to the season with two goals as Uruguay extended their lead at the top of South America's 2018 World Cup qualification tournament with a 3-0 win over Venezuela. Cavani, who has been in sensational form for club and country, struck twice in the second half after […]

Quito (AFP) – South American champions Chile suffered another jolt to their 2018 World Cup qualification hopes on Wednesday, crashing to a 3-0 defeat against Ecuador to remain outside the qualification places. Chile, the region's dominant side over the past two years with back-to-back Copa America wins, were torn apart as Ecuador produced a rampant […]

The semi-final round of World Cup Qualifying is over and the final round of World Cup Qualifying is only a month away. The United States Men’s National Team has a pair of friendlies to prepare for a tough pair of World Cup Qualifiers against Mexico and Costa Rica in November. The first of these two […]

Paris (AFP) – Daniele De Rossi's late penalty rescued a point for Italy against Spain in a heavyweight World Cup qualifier on Thursday, as Wales played out an entertaining draw in Austria. Spain dominated possession against the Italians in Turin and looked set to come away with a precious victory when Vitolo pounced on an […]

Turin (Italy) (AFP) – Roma midfielder Daniele De Rossi levelled from the spot eight minutes from time as Italy grabbed a lucky point in a 1-1 World Cup 2018 qualifying draw with dominant Spain on Thursday. Italy's 2-0 defeat of La Roja in the last 16 of the European Championships this year ended Spanish hopes […]

Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) (AFP) – Saudi Arabia's Nassir Al Shamrani scored late to deny Australia a crucial victory in Thursday's World Cup 2018 qualifier between the top two sides in Asian zone Group A. The entertaining 2-2 draw ensured both sides maintained their unbeaten start after three matches in the final round of qualifying for […]