Football

Soccer-Scotland lose to Greece but handed a lifeline by Danes' draw with Belarus

ATHENS (Reuters) -Scotland are one home win away from securing a place in next year's World Cup despite suffering a 3-2 defeat by Greece on Saturday, with Denmark's 2-2 draw with Belarus in the other Group C game offering a lifeline and setting up a blockbuster clash with the Danes on Tuesday.

Football

Soccer-Swiss almost through to World Cup after 4-1 win over Sweden

GENEVA (Reuters) -Switzerland secured a 4-1 victory over Sweden on Friday that all but sealed their spot at next year's World Cup, leaving them top of the group with a considerable goal difference advantage over second-placed Kosovo. 

Football

Soccer-Kosovo win 2-0 in Slovenia to secure World Cup playoff spot

LJUBLJANA (Reuters) -Kosovo kept their dreams of a World Cup debut alive on Saturday with a 2-0 win over Slovenia that guaranteed them at least a playoff spot to qualify for next year's tournament in Mexico, Canada and the United States.

Rugby

Rugby-England win over All Blacks can be launch pad for 2027 World Cup

LONDON (Reuters) -When England famously beat New Zealand in 2003 with 13 men and won in Australia for the first time it gave the squad an unswerving belief that they could beat anybody, and months later they won the World Cup for the first time.

Football

Soccer-Oyarzabal nets double as Spain beat Georgia to all but seal World Cup spot

TBILISI (Reuters) -In-form striker Mikel Oyarzabal scored twice as Spain thrashed Georgia 4-0 away on Saturday to set a national record and all but guarantee their place in next year's World Cup finals.

Rugby

Rugby-Evans kicks Wales to last-gasp 24-23 win over Japan

CARDIFF (Reuters) -Replacement flyhalf Jarrod Evans kicked a penalty after the hooter as Wales claimed a priceless 24-23 victory over Japan on Saturday, their first home victory in two years and relief for new coach Steve Tandy.

Rugby

Rugby-New Zealand's Robertson rues missed chances as Grand Slam dream ends

LONDON (Reuters) -New Zealand coach Scott Robertson rued his side's lack of cutting edge as their Grand Slam hopes were dashed by England in a 33-19 defeat on Saturday, with a poor start to the second half costing the All Blacks dearly.

Football

Soccer-Brazil beat Senegal 2-0 in feisty friendly at the Emirates

LONDON (Reuters) -First-half goals from Estevao and Casemiro secured a 2-0 victory for Brazil over Senegal in a fiery friendly at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium on Saturday.

Football

Soccer-Belgium have not been good enough in World Cup qualifiers, says Doku

ASTANA (Reuters) -A disappointed Jeremy Doku said Belgium have not been good enough in most of their World Cup qualifiers, even though they have the routine task of needing to beat tiny Liechtenstein at home on Tuesday to secure a berth at next year's finals.

Football

Soccer-Turkey beat Bulgaria 2–0 to secure playoff place

ANKARA (Reuters) -Turkey beat Bulgaria 2-0 in a World Cup qualifier on Saturday to confirm second place in Group E and a spot in the playoffs for next year's finals.

Rugby

Rugby-Ford steers brilliant England to emphatic win over New Zealand

LONDON (Reuters) -A pumped-up England rallied from 12-0 down with 25 unanswered points and a powerful finish to beat a ragged New Zealand 33-19 on Saturday and claim their first Twickenham victory over the All Blacks since 2012 and end their Grand Slam hopes.

Football

Soccer-Kazakh keeper Anarbekov makes Belgium wait for World Cup qualification

ASTANA (Reuters) -Kazakhstan goalkeeper Temirlan Anarbekov made a series of stunning saves to deny Belgium the opportunity to clinch World Cup qualification as they drew 1-1 in their Group J clash at the Astana Arena on Saturday.

Tennis

Tennis-Alcaraz and Sinner set up inevitable ATP Finals decider

TURIN, Italy (Reuters) -World number one Carlos Alcaraz eased to a 6-2 6-4 win over Canada's Felix Auger-Aliassime at the ATP Finals on Saturday to set up a highly-anticipated title decider with defending champion Jannik Sinner.

Football

Soccer-Man City beat Man United to go four points clear in WSL

MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) -Manchester City made the most of a late first-half collapse by Manchester United to score twice just before the break as they secured a 3-0 derby win on Saturday that put them four points clear of second-placed Chelsea in the Women's Super League. 

Rugby

Rugby-Depleted South Africa overpower Italy in Turin

TURIN, Italy (Reuters) -South Africa shrugged off a red card for the second successive match to power to a 32-14 win over an Italy side who threw away a golden opportunity to earn a rare win over the world champions in Turin on Saturday.

Cycling

Motorcycling-Alex Marquez eases to sprint victory at Valencia Grand Prix

VALENCIA, Spain (Reuters) -Gresini Racing's Alex Marquez led from the start to comfortably win the 13-lap Valencia Grand Prix sprint on Saturday, leaving runner-up Pedro Acosta behind by more than one second.

Cricket

Cricket-Rajasthan trade captain Samson to Chennai for Jadeja and Curran ahead of IPL 2026

(Reuters) -Rajasthan Royals have traded their captain Sanju Samson to Chennai Super Kings in exchange for all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran in a significant trade ahead of the 2026 season, the Indian Premier League (IPL) said on Saturday.

Other Sports

Canadian football fans rally against attempt to adopt US rules

WINNIPEG, MANITOBA (Reuters) -The Canadian Football League is fighting fan unhappiness over upcoming rule changes that traditionalists say betray the Canadian version's proud differences from the better-known U.S. game, ahead of the championship game on Sunday. 

Other Sports

Alpine skiing-Super Shiffrin blasts to slalom victory in Levi

LEVI, Finland (Reuters) -American Mikaela Shiffrin laid down a marker for the Olympic season ahead by obliterating her rivals to easily win the opening Alpine Ski World Cup slalom race on Saturday.

Rugby

Rugby-Belgium on the brink of surprise World Cup place

DUBAI (Reuters) -Belgium are one game away from a first-ever World Cup finals appearance, having set up a deciding match against Samoa on Tuesday in the final qualification tournament in Dubai for the 2027 finals in Australia.