LONDON, August 14 (Reuters): Netherlands women's soccer team manager Sarina Wiegman will succeed Phil Neville as England Women's head coach from next year after signing a four-year deal, the Football Association (FA) announced on Friday. The Dutch won the European Championship under Wiegman in 2017 and she also led them to their first World Cup final two years later in France, where they lost 2-0 to the U.S. Wiegman will replace 43-year-old former Manchester Uni

LISBON, August 14 (Reuters): Atletico Madrid again paid a heavy price for defensive tactics in the Champions League with a 2-1 defeat by unfancied RB Leipzig in the quarter-finals on Thursday as they passed up a golden opportunity to claim Europe's top prize. With their bete noire Real Madrid out of the competition and having avoided favourites Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Barcelona in the draw, everything seemed to be falling the way of Atletico, who knocked holders

BARCELONA, August 14 (Reuters): Valtteri Bottas led team mate and Formula One championship leader Lewis Hamilton in a Mercedes one-two in first practice for the Spanish Grand Prix on Friday. The Finn, who dropped to third overall in the standings after last Sunday's 70th Anniversary Grand Prix at Silverstone, clocked a best time of one minute 16.785 seconds on a hot morning at the Circuit de Catalunya. The Finn also reported hitting a flying bird during the session. S

SOUTHAMPTON, England, August 14 (Reuters): England’s Sam Curran says he was shocked at the criticism levelled at veteran seamer James Anderson following the three-wicket victory over Pakistan in last week's first test in Manchester. Anderson looked to be England’s most threatening bowler on the first day of the second test in Southampton on Thursday as he used the overhead conditions perfectly to return figures of 2-35 in 15 overs and help restrict the tour

(Reuters): Manchester City need to win the Champions League to truly establish themselves as European powerhouses, defender Kyle Walker has said. City have won four Premier League titles in the last decade but have failed to progress beyond the semi-finals of the Champions League during that period. Pep Guardiola's side eliminated 13-time champions Real Madrid in the last 16 and are firm favourites heading into Saturday's quarter-final clash against Olympique Lyonnai

PORTO ALEGRE, August 14 (Reuters): Paolo Guerrero's second goal in two games helped Internacional towards a 2-0 win over Santos on Thursday and maintained their unbeaten start to the 2020 Serie A season. Guerrero, who scored the winner last weekend in Inter's 1-0 win over Coritiba, headed in from close range 13 minutes into the second half and Edenilson guaranteed them all three points with a second two minutes from time. The result means Inter are one of only three

LISBON, August 14 (Reuters): RB Leipzig stunned Atletico Madrid, with a 2-1 victory in their Champions League quarter-final on Thursday, to reach the competition's last four for the first time in their club's short history. With two minutes of normal time remaining, United States midfielder Tyler Adams snatched victory with a deflected shot from outside the box to set up a semi-final clash with Paris St Germain. The German side had taken the lead in the 51st minute w

LISBON, August 14 (Reuters): Europe's old guard meet on Friday when Barcelona face Bayern Munich at the Estadio da Luz in the highly anticipated pick of the Champions League quarter-finals. Much of the build-up to the mini-tournament has focused on the challenge from the 'nouveau riche' clubs. Paris St Germain were the first to book a semi-final place with Wednesday's win over Atalanta and Manchester City are looking to progress on Saturday against Olympique

(Reuters): Six-times Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton has shrugged off a plan to restrict cars' engine modes in qualifying, saying it will have little impact on slowing his dominant Mercedes team. The governing FIA confirmed at the Spanish Grand Prix on Thursday that the 10 teams had been informed a change was being evaluated. A technical directive could take effect at the Belgian Grand Prix later in August. The change would require teams to use the same engi

LONDON, August 14 (Reuters): Arsenal playmaker Mesut Ozil has said he will remain with the Premier League club until his contract finishes next year despite not featuring towards the end of last campaign. Ozil has not played since the season resumed following the COVID-19 hiatus, with manager Mikel Arteta saying the German had been left out for tactical reasons, while a back injury has not helped his return to the starting lineup. The 31-year-old's contract at the Gunners is

Reuters Serena Williams survived another scare to beat older sister Venus 3-6 6-3 6-4 on Thursday in the latest instalment of their reluctant on-court sibling rivalry to reach the quarter-finals of the inaugural Top Seed Open in Lexington, Kentucky. Serena, who in her first-round match of the spectator-free tournament was five points from defeat against world number 60 Bernarda Pera, had to rally back from a set down and 4-2 final set deficit to prevail in a thrilling battle.

LONDON, August 14 (Reuters): Arsenal have signed Brazil winger Willian on a three-year deal, the Premier League club said on Friday. The 32-year-old joins Arsenal on a free transfer after failing to agree on a new long-term contract with Chelsea. Willian scored 63 goals in 339 appearances for Chelsea after his arrival from Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala in 2013. Twice a Premier League winner with the Blues, he will add experience to an Arsenal side full of talented youngsters

New Delhi, August 13 (IANS): Badminton player N. Sikki Reddy and physiotherapist Kiran C. have tested positive for Covid-19, the Sports Authority of India (SAI) said in a statement on Thursday. The pair had been part of the ongoing badminton national camp at the Pullela Gopichand Academy in Hyderabad. The academy has been closed for sanitisation, SAI said. "Both Sikki and Kiran are asymptomatic. Both are locals of Hyderabad and were attending the camp from their homes. The a

New Delhi, August 13 (IANS): The Sports Ministry is set to organise the largest country-wide run, the Fit India Freedom Run from August 15 to October 2. In keeping with the current pandemic situation and social distancing norms, the government has decided to encourage participants of the event to run at their own pace -- anywhere and at any time of their convenience. Additionally, they can break up their runs over several days in this period. The total kilometers clocked can be t

(Reuters): Brighton & Hove Albion's French forward Neal Maupay will receive support from the Premier League to bring legal action against an individual in Singapore who subjected him to abuse online, the league said on Thursday. The league began investigating after the matter was brought to their attention via their online abuse reporting system. "Premier League investigators believe that they have tracked the location of the person responsible to Singapore and

BERLIN, August 13 (Reuters): Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said on Thursday there would be "consequences soon" in an affair involving a youth coach and alleged racist comments. The German champions stood against any form of racism, he added. An internal investigation had been completed after alleged chats between a Bayern youth coach and colleagues were posted on Twitter by an anonymous account last week. They have since been removed. Reuters reporters

LISBON, August 13 (Reuters): The lingering impact of the COVID-19 pandemic could lead to some UEFA Nations League matches being held at neutral grounds, with any decisions on venue switches likely to come before the Champions League final on Aug. 23, sources have told Reuters. The opening two rounds of Nations League games are scheduled for Sept. 3-8 during the international break with all of the continent's national teams in action. UEFA would normally hold meetings aro

BELGRADE, August 13 (Reuters): World number one Novak Djokovic will compete at the Aug 31-Sept 13 U.S. Open and the Western & Southern Open curtain-raiser, the winner of 17 Grand Slam titles said in a statement on Thursday. His decision will come as good news for the U.S. Open organisers after several high-profile players, including former winners Rafael Nadal and Stan Wawrinka, pulled out over issues related to the novel coronavirus pandemic. But it is also a U-turn fro

LISBON, August 13 (Reuters): Paris St Germain scored two late goals, including a stoppage-time winner from substitute Eric Choupo-Moting, to beat outsiders Atalanta 2-1 and end the Serie A side's Champions League dream in their quarter-final on Wednesday. Atalanta, in their first Champions League campaign, went ahead with a curling effort from Mario Pasalic in the 27th minute and held out until the 90th when Brazilian defender Marquinhos equalised for the French champions.

(Reuters): Inter Miami have signed French World Cup-winning midfielder Blaise Matuidi on a free transfer after he left Juventus, the Major League Soccer (MLS) club announced on Thursday. Matuidi's contract with the Italian champions was terminated on Wednesday by mutual agreement. He made 45 appearances for Juve across all competitions last season as they won the Serie A title for a ninth straight season. The 33-year-old will be reunited with former Paris St Germain team