LONDON - Wayne Rooney believes his receding hairline has contributed to his prolific season and the Manchester United striker is adamant he is not feeling the weight of expectation ahead of England's bid for the World Cup. Rooney scored twice as Manchester United thrashed AC Milan 4-0 to go...

LONDON  — Wayne Rooney has been up close to the World Cup trophy in a photo shoot and, with 30 goals already to his name this season, hopes he can get his hands on it for real in July. The Manchester United striker was under orders not to handle the trophy, which was in central London on...

ZURICH — FIFA president Sepp Blatter said the introduction of goal-line technology was rejected because it was too costly and would slow down games. The FIFA-dominated International Football Association Board rejected plans to pursue the use of technology at its annual meeting last...

BARCELONA  — UNICEF has appointed Barcelona forward Lionel Messi a global Goodwill Ambassador. The 2009 FIFA World Player of the Year received the honor in a ceremony in Barcelona. A UNICEF statement said that Messi's "determination to use his fame to help the world's most vulnerable...

LONDON — Boosted by an impressive 4-0 Champions League triumph over AC Milan, Manchester United now has to concentrate on staying on top of the Premier League. After Wayne Rooney took his goals tally for the season to 30 with two more against the Italian club, United has a home game against a...

MANCHESTER  — David Beckham earned his most rousing applause as he left the pitch at Old Trafford on Wednesday, simply for wearing a green and gold scarf that symbolizes the protest by Manchester United fans against the club's American owners. Beckham, who played 394 matches for Manchester...

MADRID — Real Madrid was eliminated from the Champions League in the first knockout round for the sixth year in a row Wednesday after drawing 1-1 against Lyon, sending the French club through 2-1 on aggregate. With a 1-0 deficit from the first leg, Madrid looked determined to score from the start...

MANCHESTER — Wayne Rooney spoiled David Beckham's Old Trafford homecoming Wednesday by scoring another two goals against AC Milan as Manchester United cruised into the Champions League quarterfinals with 4-0 rout. Having scored twice in United's 3-2 victory in the first leg, Rooney netted in each...

LONDON — David Nugent captured a 1-1 draw for relegation-threatened Burnley against Stoke on Wednesday to lift the club one place to 18th in the 20-club Premier League. Turkish star Tuncay Sanli headed Stoke into a 23rd-minute lead at Turf Moor after one of Rory Delap's trademark long throws and...

PORTSMOUTH  — Portsmouth fired 85 members of staff on Wednesday as part of the indebted Premier League club's attempt to avoid the threat of closure. Club administrator Andrew Andronikou fired almost half the club's 166 full-time employees and said that chief executive Peter Storrie has taken...