Madagascar, for the first time, Senegal and former champions Tunisia and Egypt sealed places at the Africa Cup of Nations finals Tuesday with two matchdays to spare. Njiva Rakotoharimalala scored four minutes before half-time to earn Madagascar a 1-0 Group A victory over Equatorial...

Romania's world number one Simona Halep on Tuesday withdrew from the Kremlin Cup, a joint WTA and ATP event, due to concerns over an ongoing back injury. "I tried everything I could to be ready here as I really wanted to play," Halep said. "But unfortunately the back is still causing me...

Gareth Bale will miss Wales' Nations League clash against the Republic of Ireland after the Real Madrid star returned to Spain to continue his recovery from a groin injury. Bale was sidelined for Wales' 4-1 friendly defeat against Spain in Cardiff on Thursday after aggravating the groin...

Germany's 3-0 defeat to the Netherlands on Saturday left them bottom of their Nations League group ahead of Tuesday's away match against world champions France. Three months after the World Cup debacle, head coach Joachim Loew is desperate for a win at the Stade de France to ease the...

Ukrainian teenager Dayana Yastremska said Sunday she was dreaming of a Grand Slam after she crushed Chinese number one Wang Qiang 6-2, 6-1 at the Hong Kong Open to claim her first ever title. The 18-year-old comprehensively outplayed the world number 24 to win the tournament without...

Russian President Vladimir Putin met mixed martial arts champion Khabib Nurmagomedov on Wednesday, saying that he did not deserve harsh punishment for a recent post-fight brawl. The Russian strongman appeared on state television meeting the fighter, who defended his Ultimate Fighting...

Cristiano Ronaldo shrugged off damaging rape allegations to score for Juventus as the Serie A champions beat Udinese 2-0 under the rain in northeastern Italy to stretch their lead at the top of Serie A on Saturday. The Portuguese forward lashed in the second goal after 37 minutes from...

Cristiano Ronaldo is ready to play for Juventus against Udinese on Saturday, despite rape claims made against him, although his coach Massimiliano Allegri admits he may be tempted to rest the embattled star. The Portuguese superstar has travelled with the Italian champions to play at Udine,...

US sportswear giant Nike says it is "deeply concerned" by rape allegations against star client Cristiano Ronaldo while shares in his club Juventus fell almost 10 percent on the Italian stock exchange on Friday. Ronaldo's coach at Juventus, Massimiliano Allegri, said the striker is...

Chelsea ended title rivals Liverpool's perfect start to the Premier League season in a thrilling 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge. Champions Manchester City are top on goal difference from Liverpool, while Manchester United's 3-1 loss away to West Ham raised fresh questions over the future of...

Sebastian Vettel admitted he did not see Lewis Hamilton in his Ferrari mirrors when the pair battled for position during a classic mid-race scrap in Sunday?s Russian Grand Prix. The four-time champion German was accused of performing a double-defensive move by the Mercedes driver as he...

Real Madrid failed to win for a second straight game and missed the chance to go top of La Liga as they drew with city rivals Atletico Madrid. Real, beaten by Sevilla in midweek, could have overtaken Barcelona, who drew against Athletic Bilbao earlier. Welshman Gareth Bale...

Former world number one Andy Murray has brought his season to a premature end, pulling out of the China Open in Beijing after reaching the quarter-finals at the Shenzhen Open. The 31-year-old Briton is battling to regain top form and fitness following hip surgery in January but British...

Monaco slumped to their sixth defeat in all competitions this season when they lost 2-0 at Saint Etienne, a worrying setback just days before they face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League. Monaco, runners-up in Ligue 1 to Paris Saint Germain last season, remain third from bottom...

Jose Mourinho believes Manchester United have been found wanting for motivation in a difficult start to the season, but is expecting a big response from his side in Saturday's visit to West Ham. United begin the weekend sitting seventh, eight points off the top of the Premier League,...

Sebastian Vettel topped the times for Ferrari in Friday's opening free practice for the Russian Grand Prix as championship leader Lewis Hamilton wound up third. The four-time champion German, who trails Hamilton by 40 points in the title race, clocked a best lap in 1min 34.488sec round...

Diego Simeone described Atletico Madrid's sluggish start to the season as a wake-up call but it was Real Madrid's nightmare in Seville that threw a whole new complexion on Saturday's city derby. Atletico were seven points adrift of the top of La Liga after drawing to Eibar two weeks ago, and...

Cristiano Ronaldo has been suspended for one game after his red card against Valencia in the opening game of the Champions League 2018/19 at the Mestalla. The Portuguese was shown a straight red for appearing to grab the head of defender Jeison Murillo in the first half of Juventus' eventual...

UEFA, football's top governing body in Europe, on Thursday picked Germany to host the 2024 UEFA European Football Championship. According to UEFA, Germany received 12 votes and Turkey, four. There was one abstention.  After congratulating both football associations for...

Luka Modric ended Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi's decade-long domination of football's individual awards by being crowned FIFA's best player of the year on Monday. The Real Madrid and Croatia midfielder starred for both club and country as Madrid won a third straight Champions...