Bayern Munich travel to Mainz on Friday looking to avoid another costly slip-up which could thwart the champions' bid to reclaim top spot in the Bundesliga.

England manager Gareth Southgate confirmed Wayne Rooney will remain captain on Thursday as he faced the media for the first time since his permanent appointment.

England's Football Association chief executive Martin Glenn does not believe there has been a cover-up of child abuse within British football, he said on Thursday.

President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that Russia's new anti-doping program will be ready in early 2017 as the country battles to clean up its scandal-tainted image.

Gonzalo Higuain has angrily denied being given an armed escort or receiving death threats following his mega-money move to Serie A champions Juventus from rivals Napoli.

The battle for the world chess crown heads into a four-game tiebreaker on Wednesday, after 12 regular rounds failed to separate reigning champion Magnus Carlsen and his Russian challenger Sergei Karyakin.

After a win apiece and nine draws, the pair head into the chess equivalent of extra time in soccer, beginning a series of four quickfire games in New York at 2pm (1900 GMT).

Emotional tributes were paid Wednesday to the Brazilian football team Chapecoense Real that was virtually wiped out in a plane crash in the Colombian mountains that killed 71 people.

The charter plane, a British Aerospace 146, reported electrical problems just before the crash as it arrived in Medellin where Chapecoense were to play in the Copa Sudamericana final.

Gareth Southgate was appointed England's new full-time manager on Wednesday and will lead the national team's challenge for the 2018 World Cup and 2020 European Championship.

Newly-crowned Formula One world champion Nico Rosberg said Wednesday his relationship with rival and Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton would "always be difficult" after a fierce title battle. 

Pakistan said Wednesday it has received the green light to host its first Davis Cup tennis tie at home for 12 years, after being forced to play at neutral venues due to security fears.