Martinez has gone 16 consecutive games without scoring a goal, spanning a total of 772 minutes.

The Brazilian team and national federation had been criticised for their silence concerning the cases of striker Robinho and full-back Alves, both aged 40.

Brazil will hope not to break an ignominious 23-year-old record when they visit Wembley Stadium to square off against hosts England in a mouthwatering friendly on Saturday.

Kylian Mbappe believes he will know which club he will join next season before the European Championship kicks off in June, the France forward said on Friday.

Argentina were without their captain Lionel Messi but the world champions faced no trouble against El Salvador as they cruised to a 3-0 victory in a FIFA friendly at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia today.

England captain Harry Kane will miss Saturday's friendly against Brazil and is "extremely doubtful" to face Belgium next week.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Friday waded into a row over a new England football shirt designed by Nike that changes the colours of the St George's Cross, saying "we shouldn't mess" with national flags.

Convicted rapist and former Brazil international footballer Dani Alves will remain in jail until at least Monday after failing to raise the one-million-euro bail set by a Barcelona court to ensure his release pending appeal.

Bangladesh coach Javier Cabrera was disappointed with the way his charges dropped their guard suddenly in a 5-0 thrashing by Palestine in a World Cup Qualifier in Kuwait on Thursday night, despite fighting toe to toe with the Middle East nation for a large portion of the game.

Argentina will miss their captain Lionel Messi for their FIFA friendly against El Salvador today at 6:00 am (Bangladesh time) in Philadelphia.

The German national football team's decision to drop Adidas as its kit supplier sparked dismay in Berlin on Friday, with the economy minister blasting the switch to US sportswear giant Nike for its lack of "patriotism".

Italy asked that Robinho be made to serve his sentence in his home country instead.

Rafael Leao, Matheus Nunes and Bruno Fernandes all struck for the rampant hosts in the first half.

Bangladesh put up a better show than their tie against Lebanon but yet suffered a 5-0 defeat to a spirited Palestine in their World Cup Qualifying match at Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium in Kuwait City, Kuwait on Thursday.

Wednesday's surprise decision by the court caught prosecutors off guard as the footballer had routinely been refused bail since his arrest in January 2023 on grounds he was a high flight risk.

With the season reaching its climax, the average goals per game currently stands at 3.24 compared to 2.85 last season, an increase of 13.7%. It is the biggest jump since 1925-26 when the offside rule was tweaked to favour attacking players.

Bangladesh will have their work cut out as they face Palestine, a team currently 86 places higher in FIFA rankings, in a World Cup Qualifiers Group I fixture at Jaber Al-Ahmad Stadium in Kuwait tonight. The match will kick off at 12:30am (Bangladesh Standard time).

Thierry Henry's France side are firm favourites to progress following a kind group draw for men's football at the 2024 Olympic Games on Wednesday, as the hosts wait to see if Kylian Mbappe will be made available.

A Milan court in 2017 found Robinho and five other Brazilians guilty of gang raping a woman in 2013.

FIFA has taken action against member nations over the actions of their governments before.