Seven-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi is back in contention for the prestigious award a year after being omitted from the nomination list, which this time doesn't include longtime rival Cristiano Ronaldo.

Messi, the Inter Miami star who led Argentina to the World Cup title in December, was named on Wednesday to the 30-man list of nominees along with Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappé.

The coach of Spain's World Cup-winning women's soccer team was fired Tuesday, less than three weeks after the victory celebration that led to the suspension of the country's soccer federation president for kissing a player.

The Spanish soccer federation offered no immediate explanation for the dismissal and mostly praised Jorge Vilda, saying he was "key to the notable growth of women's soccer" and thanking him for leading the national women's team to its first World Cup title and to No. 2 in the FIFA rankings.

Brazil is about to start its sixth attempt to add a sixth star to its famous soccer shirt.

The vibe is very different from the start of its past five South American World Cup qualifying campaigns, though, because the Selecao is rebuilding with an interim coach, its star player not based in Europe and promising young players are either struggling for form or injured.

Roberto Mancini will this week start his bid to make Saudi Arabia's national team as much of an international discussion topic as its big-spending professional league.

Just two years after leading Italy to the European title, Mancini left Rome for Riyadh in August.

Germany will play the United States in the semifinals of the Basketball World Cup, a rematch of an exhibition matchup from earlier this summer where the Americans needed a big rally to win.

Franz Wagner scored 16 points and Germany — the last unbeaten team left in the World Cup — held off Latvia 81-79 in a quarterfinal game on Wednesday, pulling away in the fourth quarter of what had been a back-and-forth matchup for the first 30 minutes.

Saudi Arabian champion Al Ittihad and its star striker Karim Benzema avoided Manchester City in the semifinals draw Tuesday for the first FIFA Club World Cup to be hosted by the kingdom.

The Dec. 12-22 tournament for continental champions and the host nation's league winner will be played in Al Ittihad's home city Jeddah – the latest statement of Saudi ambitions in global soccer including aiming to host the men's World Cup in 2034.

The Serbian Basketball Federation announced that forward Borisa Simanic has lost one of his kidneys as the result of an injury sustained during a World Cup game against South Sudan.

Simanic has been operated on twice in Manila, the team said. Additional complications presented themselves after the first surgery, team doctor Dragan Radovanovic said, requiring the second procedure on Sunday where the kidney was removed.

Lithuania beat the U.S. at the 1998 world championships, then failed to medal. Lithuania then beat the U.S. again at the 2004 Olympics, then failed to medal.

And history will repeat itself at this World Cup.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Karim Benzema and their Saudi Arabian football clubs will play in Iran for Asian Champions League games this season because of improved relations between the countries.

The Asian Football Confederation on Monday praised "a groundbreaking agreement" between the Saudi and Iranian football federations that lets their teams host each other in home and away games instead of seeking neutral ground.

If there was a silver lining to the U.S. World Cup team losing to Lithuania, it's this: The Americans now truly know how painful it is to watch another national team line up against a nation that has won four consecutive Olympic gold medals and celebrate in its face.

As one might guess, they didn't enjoy that feeling.