Fifa President Sepp Blatter has asked German great Franz Beckenbauer to find an alternative to the "tragedy" of penalty shootouts.

Czech Roman Kreuziger took a solo victory on the summit finish on stage 19 of the Giro d'Italia on Friday.

Andy Carroll's hopes of forcing his way into England's Euro 2012 starting line-up were boosted after manager Roy Hodgson confirmed the striker will start this weekend's friendly against Norway.

James Kamte's long tee shots took him to a superb seven-under-par 65 and the lead after the second round of the Sun City Challenge at the Lost City Golf Club.

The Investec South Africa women’s hockey team put in a much-improved performance against Great Britain in the second unofficial Test match, going down 3-0.

Moroka Swallows will play Shanghai Shenhua, one of the big spenders in world soccer, in a four-team tournament in China, next week.

Top-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland beat Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 7-6 (8) 6-3 on Friday to reach the final of the Belgian Open.

England dismissed West Indies' mainstay Shivnarine Chanderpaul as the tourists' collapse continued on the first day of the second Test.

Wigan Athletic's Roberto Martinez has been "made an offer" by Liverpool's American owners who are searching for a new manager after sacking Kenny Dalglish.

Roger Federer on Friday backed six-time champion Rafael Nadal to shatter Novak Djokovic's historic bid to become the first man in 43 years to hold all four Grand Slam titles.

French defender Sylvain Distin has signed a new one-year contract with Premier League club Everton, the Merseyside club announced on Friday.

Some family members of England's black players will avoid travelling to the Euros because of fears of racist abuse and violence.

Serena Williams says she is as committed to tennis now as she has ever been during the course of her career.

Jimmy Stonehouse has been announced as the SA Barbarians coach for their two matches during England's tour of South Africa.

Talks with Chelsea bosses have assured striker Fernando Torres his future lies with the Champions League winners.

James Anderson and Stuart Broad reduced the West Indies to 84/4 at lunch on the first day of the second Test at Trent Bridge.

The distractions of being French Open champion led to six wasted months, said 2011 winner Li Na.

Fifa president Sepp Blatter believes that world soccer's governing body was moving on from its corruption scandal.

James Morrison was the early mover in the second round of the PGA Championship as he surged to the top of the leaderboard.

Hosting of the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations is projected to cost South Africa R400 million, the LOC says.