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Real Madrid’s draw gives Bercelona sliver of hope

Barcelona have the chance to trim Real Madrid’s lead at the top of La Liga to five points when they host Granada on Tuesday after the Real juggernaut took a skid in a 1-1 draw at home to Malaga on Sunday. The setback for Jose Mourinho’s side, after a brilliant last-minute free-kick from Santi Cazorla, halted their ... Read More

Chelsea, Liverpool reach FA Cup semifinals

Fernando Torres ended a 26-game goal drought as Chelsea reached the FA Cup semifinals on Sunday, and Liverpool ensured a second trip to Wembley Stadium this season on a weekend overshadowed by concern over critically ill Bolton player Fabrice Muamba. Torres scored twice in a 5-2 win over Leicester and Chelsea ... Read More

Federer back to his very best in California desert

World number three Roger Federer has not won a grand slam crown for more than two years but he proved on Saturday he is still a major force to be reckoned with at the elite level. The Swiss maestro delivered a delicious smorgasbord of crunching forehands, sizzling backhands, delicate drop shots and pinpoint volleys as he ... Read More

Messi scores again, Barcelona beats Sevilla 2-0

Lionel Messi took his season goal tally to 51 by scoring in a sixth straight game as Barcelona provisionally moved within seven points of Spanish leader Real Madrid with a 2-0 victory at Sevilla on Read More

Bolton’s Muamba collapses; FA Cup game abandoned

Bolton midfielder Fabrice Muamba was rushed to hospital on Saturday as medics appeared to try to resuscitate him after he collapsed during an FA Cup match that was subsequently abandoned. The Zaire-born England under-21 international fell to the ground in the 41st minute with no players around him. The ... Read More

We’ll be ready for World Cup, Brazil President tells FIFA chief

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff assured FIFA chief Sepp Blatter on Friday the country would be ready to host the 2014 World Cup, easing tensions over the slow pace of preparations for the finals. “We are very happy with the outcome of this meeting. You see a smiling FIFA president,” Blatter told a news conference after ... Read More

Indonesia’s government threatens to take over Football Association

Indonesia’s government threatened to take over the country’s soccer association as the bitter infighting over a breakaway league rages on, local media reported on Friday. FIFA has threatened to sanction Indonesia unless the football association (PSSI) restores order and unifies the rebel Indonesia Super League with the ... Read More

Jerusalem attracts 15,000 runners, holds its second marathon ever

Jerusalem is holding its second international marathon and the race this year has drawn 15,000 runners from Israel and abroad. The city’s ancient holy sites give the run a unique appeal, but steep hills and chilly weather promise a challenging haul. There are about 1,500 runners from overseas. Overall, about ... Read More

English Premier League boss explains FIFA remark

English Premier League chairman Dave Richards tried to explain on Thursday his comments about soccer’s world governing body FIFA “stealing” the game from the British, saying he had not meant to cause offence. “First of all I’d like to clarify something. I’m a Yorkshireman and I’m quite broad (spoken),” he told Sky Sports ... Read More

Extendable beds and TVs for athletes in village

London Olympic chiefs unveiled the first furnished apartments at the athletes’ village on Thursday, including extendable beds for taller sportsmen and boldly colored sports-themed duvets. Up to 16,000 athletes and team officials from more than 200 countries will eat and sleep in the village at the Olympic Park in east ... Read More

Pele to join Blatter meeting with Brazil president

Pele will join Friday’s clear-the-air meeting between FIFA president Sepp Blatter and Brazil President Dilma Rousseff, soccer’s world governing body said on Wednesday. Blatter will travel to Brasilia to try to patch up differences after FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke infuriated the Brazilians by saying organizers ... Read More

Lucky winner to open new London Olympic Stadium

London’s new Olympic Stadium will be opened officially by one lucky winner from a 40,000-strong audience at a special ticketed event on May 5, organizers said on Tuesday. LOCOG said in a statement that tickets for the “2012 Hours to go: An evening of athletics and entertainment’ event would go on sale on Thursday, priced ... Read More

Small Syrian team for London Olympics has full IOC support

Syria will be present at the London Olympics despite ongoing violence in the country, with the International Olympic Committee backing a small group of athletes who could qualify for the Games, the IOC said on Tuesday. A year-long uprising against President Bashar al-Assad has already claimed some 8,000 lives in the country ... Read More

Chelsea aims to keep England’s flag flying

If Chelsea fails to overturn a two-goal deficit against buoyant Napoli on Wednesday, England will be without a representative in the Champions League quarterfinals for the first time since 1996. Chelsea was left to fly the flag for the English Premier League after Arsenal was eliminated by AC Milan last week, ... Read More

Real Madrid bank on red-hot Ronaldo for CSKA Moscow visit

Cristiano Ronaldo’s red-hot run of form and La Liga leaders Real Madrid’s almost perfect home record makes them favorites to see off CSKA Moscow in their Champions League last 16 second leg on Wednesday. Ronaldo is Real’s leading scorer with 40 goals in all competitions and he has scored nine in his last six outings, ... Read More

Guardiola more important to Barca than me, says Messi

Lionel Messi played down his impact at Barcelona on Monday, saying coach Pep Guardiola is more important to the Catalans. The Argentine three-times World Player of the Year scored twice at the weekend to move to within five goals of the club’s all-time top scorer Cesar Rodriguez, who netted Read More

Europe’s big guns under threat in Champions League

The Champions League could have one of the most diverse and understated quarterfinal lineups in its 20-year history if four of Europe’s major powers fail to up their game in this week’s last-16 second legs. Unheralded APOEL, the first Cypriot team to reach the knockout stage of the competition, and Benfica, ... Read More

Rooney goals lift Man United top after City lose

Two goals from Wayne Rooney put Manchester United back on top of the Premier League for the first time in five months when they beat West Bromwich Albion 2-0 at Old Trafford on Sunday and Manchester City surprisingly lost 1-0 at Swansea City. Rooney took his tally to nine goals from his last six matches and 26 for the ... Read More

Afghanistan, Ireland favorites in T20 qualifiers

Two years ago, Afghanistan was the surprise package of the Twenty20 World Cup cricket qualifying tournament. Now it is the team to beat. The defending champion is the top seed at the 16-team tournament which begins Tuesday. But it is likely to face a stiff challenge from Ireland, which it beat by eight wickets ... Read More

English Football Association demands technology after ghost goal row

Queens Park Rangers manager Mark Hughes was fuming on Saturday after the FA repeated its call for goal-line technology when his side became the latest to suffer from a clear case of human error. The west London team was denied a goal in the 20th minute of their relegation showdown at Bolton Wanderers when Clint Hill’s ... Read More