India will take on regining world and Olympic champions Holland in their opening encounter of the women’s Hockey World Cup in Rosario, Argentina, from August 29 to September 11 this year.

Pune FC surged into the second spot in the I-League table after thrashing last year’s champions Churchill Brothers 4-1 at the Balewadi Stadium in Pune on Thursday.
The I-League debutants went ahead in the 26th minute through Japanese recruit Arata Izumi. Edmar Figueira doubled the advantage five minutes later. Churchill e

The World Cup in South Africa will bring joy to millions of people around the globe. But for Messrs Andrey Arshavin, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Petr Cech, Luka Modric and Dimitar Berbatov, the football carnival will be a painful reminder of their teams’ failure to qualify for the mega event. Watching television and reading newspapers may not be easy for the five stars from June 11 to July 11.

Laurent Blanc will replace the controversial Raymond Domenech as France coach after the World Cup, the French Football Federation (FFF) said on Thursday.
A prominent member of France’s 1998 World Cup-winning squad, although he was suspended for the final, Blanc will take over from Domenech after the June 11-July 11

Cyclist Floyd Landis, who lost his Tour de France title after a positive drug test, has admitted systematic doping and accused fellow American Lance Armstrong of doing the same, two reports said Thursday.

FC Sevilla prevented Atletico Madrid from celebrating a cup double on Wednesday as they beat the recently-crowned Europa League champions 2-0 to take the King’s Cup here for the fifth time in their history and second in four years.

A day after the Asian Football Confederation decided to scrap the ambitious Vision India programme in New Delhi and Tamil Nadu, the All India Football Federation expressed regret that the state associations failed to comply to the AFC norms.

A high-profile casualty is inevitable in Group G at the World Cup with Brazil, Portugal and Ivory Coast fighting for two places while North Korea concentrate on damage limitation.

India captain Baichung Bhutia added another feather to his cap, after he was given honorary life membership to the Portugal Football Players’ Association.

With the I-League crown already in Dempo’s bag, hosts Pune FC will take on Churchill Brothers in a penultimate round match for the runners-up place here on Thursday .
A victory over the visitors will mean that Pune FC will replace Churchill in the second place, which will be a credible achievement for the I-League debutants.