MADRID: A Spanish town which celebrates an annual Octopus Festival has requested that Paul, the "psychic" octopus who predicted Spain`s World Cup win, be allowed to join them as a guest of honour this year.Carlos Montes, major of O Carballino, in the northwestern Galicia region, said they

AMSTERDAM: Thousands of fans turned the canals of Amsterdam into a sea of orange Tuesday, honking vuvuzelas and throwing confetti at the defeated Dutch football team after their nailbiting World Cup final defeat to Spain.The team, casual in shorts and T-shirts, floated along the

WELLINGTON: New Zealand coach Ricki Herbert, who guided his unheralded side to three defiant draws at the World Cup, declared Tuesday he has rejected a host of lucrative offers to move overseas. Herbert confirmed he had been tempted by big money contracts from European, Asian and

MADRID: Spain`s victorious World Cup squad returned to a heroes` welcome in Madrid with hundreds of thousands of fans cheering the team as they paraded through the capital`s streets on an open top bus. People chanted "Campeones! Campeones! Campeones!" and waved red and gold Spanish flags

WASHINGTON: The World Cup final between Spain and the Netherlands was the most-watched football game in US television history, drawing 24.3 million viewers, The Nielsen Co. said Monday.The final on the ABC network and Spanish-language Univision outdrew the June 26 US-Ghana match, which

JOHANNESBURG: A Spanish football fan who ran onto the pitch before the kick-off of the World Cup final and tried to put a hat on the trophy has been slapped with a fine, media reported Tuesday.Jaume Marquet Cot, who calls himself "Jimmy Jump", was fined 2,000 rands (260 dollars, 210

PARIS: President Nicolas Sarkozy damned the shamed French football squad on Monday, saying the team had been "disastrous" for their country`s image at the World Cup in South Africa."The image shown by the French team in South Africa? Disastrous. I said: `Those in charge must go`. They are

CAPE TOWN: rritable? Sad? Feeling empty? It could be post-World Cup withdrawal.The post-mortem on South Africa`s World Cup drew a near perfect score but locals are now grappling a once far-off question after a month of celebration and rare unity: How are you going to get your life

BIRMINGHAM: England captain Andrew Strauss revelled in the growing competition for places in the one-day side after "leading from the front" as his team wrapped up a series win over Bangladesh."We are going to need a squad of players at the World Cup (in Asia next year)," said Strauss

MADRID: Spain`s King Juan Carlos on Monday thanked the country`s national team for winning the World Cup for the first time at a reception for the 23-man squad at his palace in Madrid."Thank you champions, in the name of all of Spain and all Spaniards," he said after personally greeting

AMSTERDAM: The Dutch football team returned home Monday after their 1-0 World Cup defeat at the hands of Spain, their plane escorted by two F-16 fighter jets.The team landed at 5.20 pm (1520 GMT) at Amsterdam`s Schiphol airport, where they were kept away from the public, an AFP journalist

sCOLOMBO: Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara said on Monday he was disappointed that the umpire review system would not be used for the upcoming three Test series with India."As a player and a team, we are very much for the umpire decision review system," skipper Kumar Sangakkara told

MADRID: Spain gave its football team a heroes` welcome Monday as their World Cup triumph over the Netherlands inspired a red and gold fiesta after years of dashed hopes.As the South African hosts prided themselves for defying pessimistic predictions, up to a million people were expected

JOHANNESBURG: FIFA president Sepp Blatter on Monday said he was saddened by the Uganda bombings that killed 64 people while watching the World Cup final."I am very sad. I was really, really touched this morning when I heard about this news," the head of the football governing body told

LONDON: Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi has vowed to rid his squad of the disharmony that scarred their recent tour to Australia.Pakistan`s ill-fated trip to Australia earlier this year ended in a 3-0 Test whitewash and bans for four players - including former captain Younus Khan - amid

JOHANNESBURG: Spain believe international football is entering a bright new age, powered by the sleek, easy on the eye style which triumphed over Holland`s muscular harassment in the World Cup final.Vicente Del Bosque`s side added the world title to their European crown thanks to Andres

BIRMINGHAM: England, after losing the toss, made 347 for seven against Bangladesh in the third and final one-day international at Edgbaston here on Monday.England captain Andrew Strauss made 154, his best ODI score, and together with Jonathan Trott (110) shared an England record stand for

LONDON: Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi has vowed to rid his squad of the disharmony that scarred their recent tour to Australia.Pakistan`s ill-fated trip to Australia earlier this year ended in a 3-0 Test whitewash and bans for four players - including former captain Younus Khan - amid

JOHANNESBURG: Spain believe international football is entering a bright new age, powered by the sleek, easy on the eye style which triumphed over Holland`s muscular harassment in the World Cup final.Vicente Del Bosque`s side added the world title to their European crown thanks to Andres

JOHANNESBURG: Archbishop Desmond Tutu Monday encouraged South Africans to build on the infrastructure and social cohesion brought by hosting the World Cup to help the poor. "The challenge, now, is to ensure that the infrastructure that has been developed, particularly the transport