Belgium

The only England football fan to be jailed for rioting during the Euro 2000 championships has lost his appeal against his conviction, according to a report in The Independent newspaper.

The Greek FA (EPO) has called on the Greek government to throw their backing behind a joint bid with Turkey to stage the European soccer championship in 2008.

BBC Director-General Greg Dyke branded soccer world body FIFA as "hypocritical" on Tuesday for selling the television rights to the 2002 World Cup while supporting global television coverage of the event.

Jacques Rogge, a Belgian surgeon who has won a reputation for fixing the pains and strains of organising Olympic Games, on Monday joined the race for world sport's most powerful job - the International Olympic Committee (IOC) presidency.

ABC and ESPN have bought the exclusive broadcasting rights in the US market for premier IAAF events in a three- year agreement with the IAAF and ISL Worldwide.

Hot favourite to replace Juan Antonio Samaranch as president of the IOC, Jacques Rogge, is to officially declare his candidacy next week.

Soccer's international players' union FIFpro are likely to take the European Commission to court over new rules governing soccer transfers, saying they infringe players' rights and break European law.

Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger has warned that soccer could be heading for trouble over the new transfer system and said that it lacked all-round support from the game.

Players' representatives have reacted angrily to new rules governing soccer transfers agreed in their absence and hinted at court action.

The IAAF World Cross Country Championships will no longer take place in Dublin on 24-25 March, as originally planned ? the latest victim of the UK outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease.

Sporting events across Europe are under threat as fears about the foot-and-mouth outbreak in Britain spread to the continent.

Football has reacted cautiously to a new transfer system agreed by the European Commission, Fifa and Uefa.

Soccer's governing bodies and the European Commission (EC) go into last ditch talks on Monday still split on how to bring the game's transfer system into line with European Union labour laws.

Brussels is the leading candidate to stage the world cross country championships if the event is switched from Dublin because of the foot-and-mouth crisis in England.

Sanctions and compensation are the two stumbling blocks faced by European soccer in its bid to strike a new transfer deal with the European Commission (EC).

World champion Michael Schumacher has said he would reluctantly wear a sponsor's helmet after a Belgian court issued an injunction to stop him appearing in a rival firm's helmet that he claims is safer.