FIFA.com - Latest News

Torres praises Benitez and Gerrard

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 16:21:00 GMT

Spain and Liverpool striker Fernando Torres spoke about his admiration for Liverpool coach Rafael Benitez and captain Steven Gerrard.

Villarreal sign Ibagaza from Mallorca

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 16:13:00 GMT

Real Mallorca have announced that 31-year-old Argentinian playmaker Ariel Ibagaza is set to join Primera Liga runners-up Villarreal.

Urawa stay top in J-League

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 15:57:00 GMT

Asian club champions Urawa Red Diamonds maintained their slim margin atop the J-League table after defeating FC Tokyo 2-0 on Saturday.

Lazio sign Libor Kozak

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 15:20:00 GMT

Czech under-19 striker Libor Kozak, who scored 11 goals with his second-division club last season, signed for Serie A side Lazio.

Aragones signs Fenerbahce deal

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 11:33:00 GMT

Spain's UEFA EURO 2008-winning coach Luis Aragones on Saturday signed a two-year contract with Turkish club Fenerbahce.

Stage set for Messi to thrill

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 09:39:00 GMT

Cruyff, Maradona, Rijkaard, Veron... a host of celebrities have been queuing up to praise Lionel Messi as he prepares to thrill in Beijing.

Soriano: Ronaldinho won't go cheap

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 22:33:00 GMT

Barcelona vice-president Ferran Soriano has insisted the club will only sell Brazilian ace Ronaldinho if they receive a "proper price" for his services.

Atletico prise Coupet from Lyon

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 21:07:00 GMT

France goalkeeper Gregory Coupet finally became an Atletico Madrid player today after the Spanish club reached an agreement with Lyon.

Boro add Digard to ranks

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 20:45:00 GMT

Midfielder Didier Digard, 21, will play Premier League football next season after joining Middlesbrough from French side Paris Saint-Germain.

Hammers sign Icelandic prospect

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 20:41:00 GMT

Icelandic centre-back Holmar Orn Eyjolfsson, 17, has joined West Ham United from Kopavogur in his homeland on a long-term contract.

Taylor extends Newcastle deal

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 17:45:00 GMT

Newcastle United defender Steven Taylor has signed a new three-year contract with the club.

Dunne stays on at City

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 17:41:00 GMT

Manchester City captain Richard Dunne committed his future to the side by signing Friday a new four-year contract with the Premier League club.

Liverpool sign Dossena

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 17:38:00 GMT

Liverpool announced on Friday that they have signed Italian defender Andrea Dossena from Udinese.

China part company with Petrovic

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 16:03:00 GMT

China have not renewed coach Vladimir Petrovic's contract after their failure in 2010 FIFA World Cup™ qualifying, it has been announced.

Van Bommel eyes Oranje comeback

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 15:58:00 GMT

Mark van Bommel re-affirmed his desire Friday to play for the Netherlands again following the departure of coach Marco van Basten.

Rensing steps out of Kahn's shadow

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 12:33:00 GMT

Bayern Munich's goalkeeper Michael Rensing admits he will be glad to finally step out of Oliver Kahn's shadow after five years on the sidelines.

Emnes signs for Boro

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 11:40:00 GMT

Dutchman Marvin Emnes on Friday moved from Sparta Rotterdam to English Premier League club Middlesbrough in a £3.2 million (6.3m dollar) deal.

Battles intensify for top spots

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 09:19:00 GMT

It's business as usual in many of the world's leagues, and we preview the action in Brazil, the US, Japan, Cameroon and Russia.

China's Zheng could miss Olympics

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 07:53:00 GMT

China's star footballer Zheng Zhi, a fixture with the English club Charlton, is likely to miss the upcoming Beijing Olympics due to a back injury.

EURO gives way to transfer buzz

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 07:34:00 GMT

EURO 2008 has dominated the recent headlines but there has still been plenty of activity on the transfer front. FIFA.com brings you up to date.

Australian squad for Beijing announced

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 05:28:00 GMT

The 18-man Australian squad for the Men's Olympic football tournament, containing three over-age players, was announced in Sydney on Friday.

Kewell signs for Galatasaray

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 04:50:00 GMT

Australia forward Harry Kewell has signed a three-year contract with Galatasaray, the Turkish champions' website reported on Friday.

Sights set on Qatar

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 02:08:00 GMT

The preliminary draw for the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011, held in Doha on Thursday, brought two all-too-familiar rivals together yet again.

Engelaar makes Schalke move

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 23:43:00 GMT

Dutch international midfielder Orlando Engelaar has signed for German club Schalke 04 from FC Twente, the Bundesliga side announced on Thursday.

Atletico sign Sinama Pongolle

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 23:23:00 GMT

Atletico Madrid have signed French striker Florent Sinama Pongolle on a four-year deal from Recreativo Huelva, it was confirmed on Wednesday.

Casiraghi names Olympic squad

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 23:15:00 GMT

Italy coach Pierluigi Casiraghi unveiled his 22-man squad for next month's Beijing Olympics, which contains no over-age players, on Thursday.

Renato laments Fluzão loss

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:55:00 GMT

Renato Gaucho has lamented Fluminense's penalty-shootout loss to LDU in the Libertadores final as one of the worst moments of his life.

Fener confirm Aragones deal

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:41:00 GMT

Fenerbahce have announced Luis Aragones, who recently led Spain to EURO 2008 glory, as their new coach following the departure of Zico.

Di Matteo succeeds Ince at Dons

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:26:00 GMT

Milton Keynes Dons have handed Roberto Di Matteo his first managerial role after Paul Ince quit the club to take over at Blackburn Rovers.

More tears at the Maracana

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 14:48:00 GMT

It was 1950 all over again at the Maracana last night when Fluminense failed to deliver the trophy their vociferous fans had been praying for.

LDU do Ecuador proud

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 14:17:00 GMT

LDU's triumph was a fillip for unheralded teams from across the continent, and further underlined Ecuadorian football's recent progress.

Domenech survives the axe

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 13:25:00 GMT

The French Football Federation has decided to retain Raymond Domenech as coach and charged him with guiding Les Bleus to South Africa 2010.

Just Fontaine: for the record

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 10:13:00 GMT

Not only did he break new ground with his incredible 13 goals at the 1958 FIFA World Cup, but Just Fontaine still holds the record 50 years on.

Spain make historic leap

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 08:51:00 GMT

Spain have followed up their EURO 2008 triumph by rising three places to go top of the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking for the very first time.

Penalty delight for LDU

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 05:25:00 GMT

LDU became the first Ecuadorean club to win the Copa Libertadores, beating Brazil's Fluminense on penalties after a 5-5 tie on aggregate.

Blackburn's Nelsen joins Oly-Whites

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 04:49:00 GMT

Europe-based trio Ryan Nelsen, Chris Killen and Simon Elliott were all confirmed as the over-age members of New Zealand's Olympic team.

Messi, Aguero in Olympic squad

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 03:46:00 GMT

Barcelona striker Lionel Messi and Atletico Madrid forward Sergio Aguero have been included in Argentina's squad for the Beijing Olympics.

United sweat on Ronaldo injury

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 23:22:00 GMT

Medical teams from Manchester United and Portugal are to seek specialist advice over an injury sustained by winger Cristiano Ronaldo.

Palmeiras to double stadium capacity

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 21:56:00 GMT

Palmeiras have announced plans to double the capacity of the Estadio Palestra Italia to 60,000 in a bid to stage matches at Brazil 2014.

Jo joins City for record fee

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 21:12:00 GMT

Manchester City have broken their transfer record to sign Brazilian Jo, and manager Mark Hughes has admitted they are still chasing Ronaldinho.

Rummenigge dismisses Podolski reports

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 17:22:00 GMT

Reports that forward Lukas Podolski is on his way back to Cologne are "a big joke" according to Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

Statement from FIFA regarding ISMM/ISL

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 16:56:00 GMT

FIFA has taken note of the verdict passed by the Zug criminal court in the case against former managers of "ISMM/ISL" today.

Yorke stays on at Sunderland

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 13:38:00 GMT

Dwight Yorke has signed a new one-year contract to stay with the North East side, the English Premier League club announced on Wednesday.

Gutierrez signs for Newcastle

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 13:34:00 GMT

Argentina winger Jonas Gutierrez has joined Newcastle United, the English Premiership side announced on Wednesday.

Final fever hits Rio

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 13:33:00 GMT

FIFA.com was in Rio de Janeiro to sample the atmosphere ahead of the second leg of the Copa Libertadores final between Fluminense and LDU.

Sun Xiang joins Austria Vienna

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 11:11:00 GMT

Chinese international Sun Xiang has signed a one-year renewable contract with Austria Vienna, the Austrian First Division side announced on its website.

Myanmar to hold cyclone charity match

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 11:03:00 GMT

Myanmar's national football team will play a Southeast Asian select XI in a charity match to raise money for cyclone victims.

Le Tallec leaves Liverpool for Le Mans

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 10:55:00 GMT

Liverpool confirmed on Wednesday that French midfielder Anthony Le Tallec had agreed terms for a transfer to Le Mans.

Nigeria decide on overage trio

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 10:44:00 GMT

Nigeria have selected full internationals Osaze Odemwingie, Vincent Enyeama and Ikechukwu Uche as the three overage players in their Olympic squad.

Down but not out

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 10:07:00 GMT

Fluminense trail 4-2 from the first leg of the final, but comebacks against Sao Paulo and Boca Juniors have instilled belief they can outlast LDU.

Endgame for Libertadores duo

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 09:53:00 GMT

The Copa Libertadores trophy will be lifted for a first time tonight by LDU or Fluminense, who must overcome a two-goal deficit at the Maracana.