World Cup goals record ‘just a number,’ says Messi
KANSAS CITY: Lionel Messi savored a “beautiful moment” after becoming the World Cup’s joint all-time leading goalscorer on Tuesday but said, “ultimately, it is just a statistic, nothing more.”
France Sport News
DR Congo score 1st World Cup goal, pull out surprise draw vs. Portugal
TEXAS: Yoane Wissa scored a goal in first-half stoppage time and the Democratic Republic of Congo pulled off a surprising 1-1 draw against Portugal in the opening World Cup game for each side to begin Group K play at Houston on Wednesday. Portugal dominated possession but had just one shot on goal as DR Congo goaltender Lionel Mpasi finished without a save. It allowed DR Congo to earn a point in the country’s second-ever World Cup appearance and first since 1974 when it was known as Zaire. DR Congo’s draw was one of the more stunning results of early World Cup action, alongside the 0-0 draw Cape Verde orchestrated in their World Cup debut against a tournament favorite in Spain on Monday. Joao Neves scored an early goal for Portugal, which owned possession for 60 percent of the match and completed 791 passes to 263 for DR Congo and yet were unable to secure the victory. Due to the draw, Portugal fell two spots to seventh in the FIFA/Coca Cola World Rankings. DR Congo rose three spots to No.
Scotland's spirits likely to be dampened by Morocco in Boston
BOSTON, Massachusetts, June 17 : Scotland have hit the ground running in the World Cup with an opening 1-0 victory over Haiti in Group C and with their Tartan Army of fans winning hearts in Boston, but their return to the city on Friday to face Morocco could dampen their spirits.
Injured Musetti withdraws from Wimbledon
LONDON, June 17 : Italian Lorenzo Musetti pulled out of Wimbledon on Wednesday as he continued to recover from the thigh injury that meant the former world number five also missed the French Open.
Clinical De Minaur eases into Queen's quarter-finals
LONDON, June 17 : Top seed Alex de Minaur dispatched Canadian Denis Shapovalov with ease to move into the Queen's Club quarter-finals on Wednesday where he will face American Brandon Nakashima.
Ruto invites Arsenal after Kenyan fans celebrate title win
EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France, June 17 : Kenya's soccer-mad President William Ruto, an avid Arsenal fan, said on Thursday he had invited the Premier League champions to visit after thousands of jubilant supporters flooded Nairobi's streets to celebrate the club’s first title in more than 20 years.
UEFA hit Marseille with fine, squad restrictions for breaching financial rules
June 17 : French side Olympique de Marseille, who are set to compete in the Europa League in 2026-27, have been restricted from adding new players to their 'list A' in the European competition after a failure to comply with earnings targets, UEFA said on Wednesday.
Ivory Coast forward Wahi caught up in betting investigation
PARIS, June 17 : Ivory Coast World Cup forward Elye Wahi is at the centre of an investigation into suspected sports corruption after unusual betting patterns were detected around a yellow card he received in a Ligue 1 match last month, according to statements from French authorities and the French Professional Football League (LFP).