Russian world number three Maria Sharapova has pulled out of the U.S. Open because of a right shoulder injury, tournament organizers announced Wednesday.

On the eve of the draw for the year's final Grand Slam event that begins Monday on the Flushing Meadows hardcourts, U.S. Open tournament director David Brewer announced the withdrawal.

Formula One returns this weekend after its now traditional mid-season European summer break with speculation swirling around Ferrari as the circus heads to the Belgian Grand Prix.

A month on from Lewis Hamilton's victory in Hungary, the Italian team is the focus of intense attention both on and off the circuit as they prepare for action at the majestic Spa-Ardennes circuit in the Ardennes.

Valencia announced it has agreed to send French defender Aly Cissokho to Liverpool on a one-year loan deal.

Valencia said Cissokho "has already joined the English team, which will have an option to buy the player."

Defending champion Petra Kvitova recovered from a set and a break down to beat Annika Beck 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 in the first round of the New Haven Open on Tuesday.

The third-seeded Kvitova dropped the first set and was broken in the first game of the second before staging the comeback in a match that was delayed due to rain on Monday.

The Indians released right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka on Tuesday at his request, giving the Japanese veteran a chance to catch on with another team after failing to secure a spot in Cleveland's rotation.

Matsuzaka has spent the entire season at Triple-A Columbus after failing to win a spot in Cleveland's rotation during spring training.

It was a frenzied start to FIFA's attempt to fill the stands for next year's World Cup in Brazil as fans applied Tuesday for more than 1 million tickets in just seven hours.

But it will be some time before they know whether they'll be among those lucky enough to get seats to football's signature event. Applicants won't hear back until October, after FIFA holds a random selection draw on all the requests.

Arsenal midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain faces at least three months on the sidelines, dealing a blow to the team's early-season hopes.

The England international injured his left knee in Arsenal's Premier League opener on Saturday which ended in a 3-1 loss to Aston Villa.

The Los Angeles Angels say slugger Albert Pujols will be sidelined for the season because of an injured left foot.

Pujols hasn't played since July 26. He had been saying he wanted to return when his partially torn plantar fascia healed.

Roger Federer is seeded No. 7 for the U.S. Open, his first slot outside the top three at any Grand Slam tournament in a decade.

Federer's ranking dropped two slots to seventh Monday, and the U.S. Tennis Association's seedings followed the ATP standings.

Giovani Dos Santos scored the equalizer and set up the late winner in a four-minute span to lead Villarreal's 3-2 comeback victory at Almeria on Monday, ensuring the club's successful return to Spain's first division.

Promoted Almeria outplayed Villarreal in front of its fans at Juegos Mediterraneos Stadium in the first half, with striker Rodrigo Rios scoring in the 39th minute from a pass from Rafael Ramos.