Japan abruptly axed Nils Nielsen as coach on Thursday just 12 days after taking them to Women's Asian Cup glory, with football chiefs accusing him of being "lax" and "lacking passion".

Women's Asian Cup finalists Japan and Australia renewed calls Thursday for equal prize money with the men's tournament in a direct challenge to the Asian Football Confederation and accused the governing body of "ignoring" previous requests.

Vietnam emerged as the biggest climbers, driven by their dominant performance against Bangladesh and a crucial 3-1 victory over Malaysia.

More than three million of these tickets have already been sold during the first three sales phases.

Arne Slot is hoping Mohamed Salah's farewell can inspire a strong end to Liverpool's season as he declared the Egyptian a living "legend" at the club.

Thomas Tuchel said Phil Foden's place in England's World Cup squad is "not a guarantee" after failing once more to hit peak form for the Three Lions.

Distance has always been a sanctuary for goalkeepers.

Reflecting on his first year in international football, the 28-year-old described his experience with Bangladesh as deeply fulfilling.

Arpita framed the defeat as part of a learning curve for a side playing their first-ever match in the competition.

Despite the disappointment of the result, some Red and Green faithful stayed back to tidy the away section at the National Stadium in Kallang.

Bangladesh surrendered a two-goal lead, conceding twice from the spot, to slump to a heartbreaking 3-2 defeat against hosts Thailand in their opening match of the AFC Women’s U-20 Asian Cup at Thammasat Stadium in Pathum Thani on Wednesday.

With all 48 teams confirmed, the FIFA World Cup 2026 will kick off in Mexico on June 12, with the hosts taking on South Africa in the opening Group A match, while the final will be held in New York City on July 20.

After dominating the opening half, the men in red and green were forced to withstand sustained pressure from former champions Nepal.

Spanish football superstar Lamine Yamal, who is Muslim, on Wednesday slammed "intolerable" chants during a friendly against Egypt in Barcelona that police are investigating for Islamophobia and xenophobia.

Italy's Sport Minister Andrea Abodi said on Wednesday the head of the country's football federation should step down after the national team failed to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup.

Music, fireworks and the occasional round of gunfire erupted across Iraq's capital Baghdad early Wednesday after the national team qualified for the World Cup for the first time in decades.

Football is often called the beautiful game. But what unfolded on that night in 2006 at the Frankenstadion in Nuremberg, (now the Max-Morlock-Stadion) could hardly be described as beautiful.

Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso was emotional and apologetic after his side suffered a playoff penalty shootout loss in Bosnia on Tuesday, to miss out on their third successive World Cup, but he refused to talk about his future.

Iraq became the 48th and final team to qualify for the World Cup on Tuesday, defeating Bolivia 2-1 in an intercontinental playoff in Mexico to seal their first appearance at the finals in 40 years.

Goals from Danilo, Igor Thiago and Gabriel Martinelli secured victory in what was Brazil's final game before coach Carlo Ancelotti names his World Cup squad.