Spanish top flight club Valencia have appointed former Portuguese goalkeeper Nuno as their new coach, the La Liga side confirmed.

"Valencia Football Club have reached agreement with Nuno Espirito Santo for a contract until June 30, 2015 with an option for a further season depending on results," the club said on their website.

It wasn't the World Cup in Brazil with fans streaming in from around the globe. But the world was definitely represented when U.N. ambassadors took to the soccer field against U.N. correspondents — with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon taking the ceremonial kickoff.

The match in a park on New York's Upper East Side on Wednesday afternoon ended with about 10 minutes left to play when a torrential thunderstorm drenched the teams and the spectators. The ambassadors, with help from a few diplomats and U.N. officials, were winning, 3-2.

Seven Germany players have been struggling with illness ahead of Friday's World Cup quarterfinal against France, although coach Joachim Loew is not expecting any of them to miss the match.

Loew says, "One-third of our squad has been complaining about a sore throat. ... But yesterday and today all players have been training and none were feeling exhaustion. I just hope that stays stable until tomorrow."

Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari believes the lack of bad blood between his side and Colombia will allow for an attractive spectacle when the two sides clash in their World Cup quarter-final on Friday.

Scolari's men needed penalties after a bruising 120 minutes to overcome Chile in the last 16 which left many of the Brazil squad in tears at the end of the match.

Liverpool have officially completed the signing of midfielder Emre Can from Bayer Leverkusen, the Premier League side confirmed Thursday.

Liverpool had agreed a £10million (12.5m euros, $17m) deal for the Germany Under-21 international last month but had to wait until the transfer window opened on July 1 to finalize the move.

Susie Wolff will on Friday become the first woman in 22 years to drive a Formula One racing car in an official competitive session when she takes the wheel of a Williams in the opening practice for Sunday's British Grand Prix.

Wolff, 31, a Scot who is married to Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff, believes she has a chance not only to prove that women deserve a chance at the highest level of motor racing, but that she has the talent to challenge for a racing seat in the future.

Former champion Petra Kvitova swept into her second Wimbledon final with a 7-6 (8/6), 6-1 victory over fellow Czech and close friend Lucie Safarova on Thursday.

Kvitova won her only Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2011 and the sixth seed is one more victory away from lifting the Venus Rosewater dish for the second time after seeing off 23rd seed Safarova with 24 winners and eight aces in 80 minutes on Centre Court.

So far none of Argentina's opponents has been able to stop Lionel Messi.

Perhaps Belgium has what it takes. But even if doesn't, the Red Devils present a fresh challenge for Argentina at this World Cup.

Galatasaray has confirmed it is in talks with former Italy coach Cesare Prandelli about taking over as manager of the Istanbul club.

Prandelli resigned from Italy immediately after the Azzurri's loss to Uruguay in the World Cup, which consigned his team to a disappointing group stage exit.

The euphoria in football-mad Colombia is deafening, and wonderfully contagious, ahead of Friday's do-or-die World Cup match against host Brazil.

Never before has the star-crossed nation made the quarterfinals. Some are even waxing poetic about World Cup unity accelerating the pace of 18-month-old peace talks to end a half-century of conflict that has claimed some 220,000 lives.