Sven-Goran Eriksson has again dismissed reports he is set to leave his post as Mexico coach in favour of a return to the Premier League with Portsmouth.

Japan Rugby Football Union chairman Nobby Mashimo has confirmed his country has made a formal bid to host the World Cup in both 2015 and 2019.

Mike De Kock is confident Asiatic Boy is back to his best ahead of the Dubai World Cup on March 29.

England coach Fabio Capello has thrown his support behind the country’s bid to host the 2018 World Cup by declaring it is time for football “to come home”.

A TYPING mistake in a comprehension passage on one of yesterday’s English papers may have caused confusion for students in the know on their soccer history.

DIEGO MARADONA has been offered the job of Argentina coach after meeting with AFA president Julio Grondona last night.

IRISH players will wear state-of-the-art jerseys when competing in the Rugby World Cup.

Northern Ireland’s miserable run at the Netball World Cup continued with a 77-28 defeat by New Zealand in Liverpool.

An explosion at an illegal World Cup viewing site in northeast Nigeria killed at least 14 people while security forces arrested a "terror kingpin" among nearly 500 people detained as suspected terrorists in the southeast of the country.

A flyover under construction yesterday collapsed in a World Cup host city, killing at least two people and trapping a commuter bus, two construction trucks, and a car. Nineteen people were injured.

Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic will play no part in the World Cup after it was confirmed the Serbia and Montenegro international has suffered a knee ligament injury which will keep him out of action for “several weeks”.

Italy’s World Cup winners were welcomed home by scores of ecstatic fans on Monday evening.

Aurelien Rougerie claimed two tries as France swamped World Cup minnows Japan in emphatic style in their World Cup Pool B encounter at the Dairy Farmers stadium.

Crowd figures for the Rugby World Cup in Australia have already exceeded expectations.

Cameroon’s German coach Winfried Schaefer is determined his Lions will roar into the second round of the World Cup - even if it is at the expense of his countrymen.

Germany coach Rudi Voller praised match-winner Michael Ballack for committing the "technical foul" in today’s 1-0 semi-final win over South Korea that means he will miss the World Cup final.

Philippe Troussier has claimed a lack of motivation is the reason behind his decision to quit as Japan coach at the end of the World Cup.

South Korean officials today said they were ready to carry out a tough drug testing policy during the World Cup, which kicks off there and in Japan at the end of this month.