Gabi Milito of Barcelona finally returned to action playing the first 45 minutes in a friendly match against Bolivian side Bolivar on Wednesday. The game was played at Barca's new Sant Joan Despi training ground and the hosts won by 4-1.
 
Milito played in the first half, alongside Rafa ...

Uruguay secured the last available berth for South Africa 2010 football World Cup. They earned a 2-1 win over Costa Rica on aggregate in the playoffs.
 
The two teams drew 1-1 at a packed Centenario stadium in Montevideo on Wednesday in the return leg of a play-off between the fifth-placed ...

Cameroon, Nigeria and New Zealand reserved their places for the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa.
 
Algeria, who was hoping to pick up the final African place, will have to contest in a winner-take-all play-off against Egypt in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum on Wednesday after losing ...

Argentina coach Diego Maradona has been banned for 2 months from all football activities by FIFA. The ban was imposed as a punishment for post-match comments made after his side's World Cup qualifier against Uruguay last month.
 
FIFA's disciplinary panel took the decision after a three-hour ...

New Zealand earned a 1-0 win over Bahrain to secure its first World Cup berth in 27 years. The winning goal for New Zealand came from Rory Fallon in the 44th minute.
 
Fallon said,"I was just praying that wasn't my last chance. Then Leon put in a great ball and with those I don't ...

East Bengal registered their biggest victory of this season with a 3-0 win over Lajong FC. Riding on their Ghanaian strikers' performance, East Bengal got their third win on the trot, in an I-League tie at Barasat on Thursday.
 
While Abel Hammond scored a brace, veteran Yousif Yakubu netted ...

A new CEO will be appointed for the I-League football by the end of this month. All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Praful Patel conducted interviews for the post of chief executive for the I-League at the Football House on Thursday.
 
Former Mahindra United footballer and coach ...

Etisalat, a UAE base communication services has signed 3 years sponsorship deal with Manchester City. According to reports the company inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the football club.
 
Manchester City FC (MCFC) CEO Garry Cook and Etisalat Chief Marketing Officer Essa Al ...

Germany goalkeeper Robert Enke was killed after being hit by a train at a level crossing, speculated as a suicide by police. His death was announced on Tuesday by the president of his Bundesliga club Hanover 96.
 
Enke's advisor Joerg Neblung confirmed on Tuesday night to DPA that Enke, who ...

Cristiano Ronaldo has been released by Portugal due to his ankle injury. Ronaldo returned to Madrid after the Portuguese football federation confirmed that his badly sprained right ankle will need two more weeks to recover.
 
The 24-year-old Ronaldo had been called up by Portugal to play in ...

Belgian Philippe de Ridder was appointed as the new coach of East Bengal. He taking the charge on Monday said he was taking his "tough" assignment as a challenge.
 
Ridder, who was earlier East Bengal coach in 2005, said,"The last time I was new to East Bengal. This time there ...

Darren Bent has been included in the England squad for next week's friendly match against Brazil in Doha.
 
The Sunderland striker has scored eight goals this season, though he missed a penalty on Saturday against former club Tottenham Hotspur.
 
Bent comes into the squad with both ...

Portugal is set to call Cristiano Ronaldo for the 2010 World Cup even though he is out of action due to an ankle injury.
 
Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) president Gilberto Madail insisted on Thursday that Ronaldo would be on Sunday's national team list for the crucial November 14 and ...

Mohun Bagan have moved world football governing body FIFA challenging arbitrator's decision to give Bhutia interim relief to play for East Bengal.
 
In a fax to the world body's secretary general Jerome Valcke on Thursday, the city club requested for restoration of Bhutia's contract with the ...

India will face Iraq in the Group C of the qualifying rounds of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Under-19 Championship on Thursday. The match will be played at Arbil in Iraq.
 
According to information, Indians have already arrived at Arbil on Tuesday evening from Dubai and had a full ...

David Beckham will join AC Milan in January on loan deal from Los Angeles Galaxy. This was announced by the Italian club on Monday. A club website statement said that the 34-year-old England midfielder will play for Milan from January to June.
 
Beckham, who has served a loan term last ...

Mumbai F.C. defeated former champions Mohun Bagan by 2-1 to log 3 points in I-League on Monday.
 
Despite maintaining greater ball possession, Bagan had to eat an humble pie mainly due to the costly lapses of custodian Shilton Pal, who took his place under the bar as an injured Sangram ...

East Bengal conceded a 1-1 draw with Salgaocar Sports Club in an I-League encounter on Thursday.
 
In search of their first win in the high-profile league, East Bengal took the lead in the 12th minute as Abel Hammond fired home a volley to raise expectations among the handful of supporters ...

New Zealand has not made any changes in their 18-man squad for the critical World Cup qualifying play-off against Bahrain slated for Nov 14 .This was announced by New Zealand coach Ricki Herbert.
 
Announcing his squad on Thursday, he named the same players who made up the team that fought ...

Real Madrid lost to Alcorcon by 0-4 in the third round of the King's Cup. The Spanish giants suffered one of the most humiliating results in their proud history. Radio Marca described it as a "historic night of shame" for Real.Borja Perez, Alcorcon's two-goal hero, called it "a ...

Chris Hughton was named manager of Newcastle United as owner Mike Ashley confirmed he was no longer seeking to sell the club. Hughton has been in caretaker control of the club since the beginning of the season. He has agreed for the contract until the end of the 2010-11 season. Ashley has been ...

VfB Stuttgart and Borussia Dortmund lost their respective round three matches in German Cup. The Bundesliga side suffered a shock 0-1 defeat to second-division Greuther Fuerth in the third round of the German Cup.
 
Borussia Dortmund were also stunned, going down 2-3 to VfL Osnabrueck of the ...

Brazilian football star Robinho may quit his current club Manchester City. He has said that he wants to be the best player in the world.
 
The striker said playing at Barcelona will increase his chances to achieve his goal. The latest revelation is sure to annoy coach Mark "Sparky" ...

Juande Ramos was sacked as CSKA Moscow coach on Monday. The announcement came after CSKA’s 3-1 defeat against Russian Premier League rivals FK Moscow on Sunday.
 
CSKA in their website said, “As of today the contract of Juande Ramos was terminated by mutual ...

East Bengal's football coach Subhas Bhowmick quit from his post on Monday. He took the moral responsibility for his club's 3-5 defeat against arch-rivals Mohun Bagan in an I-League game played on Sunday.
 
Bhowmick sent his resignation letter to club president Pranab Dasgupta, saying the ...

Bayern Munich will meet Eintracht Frankfurt again on Wednesday in the third round of the German Cup. Munich came from behind to beat Frankfurt 2-1 in the Bundesliga from Daniel van Buyten's 88th-minute winner after earlier wasting a dozen first rate chances.
 
On Wednesday in Frankfurt, ...

Mohun Bagan registered a 5-3 win over East Bengal in an I-League derby clash. Nigerian Edeh Chidi fired four with a hat-trick as Mohun Bagan prevailed over arch-rivals East Bengal.
 
The fat scoreline at the Salt Lake stadium was, however, no indicator of the standard of the fare dished out ...

Brazilian Carlos Parreira returned as coach to South Africa's national football team on Friday. He took over his compatriot Joel Santana, who was dismissed this week.
 
The South African Football Association (SAFA) confirmed that Parreira had been picked to turn around the lacklustre World ...

Indian football captain Bhaichung Bhutia was felicitated by All India Football Federation (AIFF) for having played 100 matches for the country.
 
Bhutia was handed a plaque, a gold coin and Rs.5 lakh by AIFF president Praful Patel on Tuesday.
 
"It has been a long and wonderful ...

Praful Patel was elected unopposed as the All India Football Federation (AIFF) president on Tuesday. The civil aviation minister was elected to the top post at the Annual General Body meeting of the AIFF at its headquarters.
 
Patel was working as acting president of the AIFF after ...