Boateng: Portsmouth midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng has been given the go-ahead by FIFA to represent Ghana at the World Cup. The 23-year-old attacking midfielder was named in Ghana's provisional 30-man squad for the tournament but was waiting on official confirmation of his eligibility. Boateng was born in Berlin to a Ghanaian father and a German mother.
Street Party: Johannesburg's historic Soweto township closed down its most famous road yesterday for a street party outside Nelson Mandela's former home to count down the 20 days until the World Cup. About 1,000 people filled Vilakazi Street as local musicians played. Cities across South Africa are holding almost daily events to build public enthusiasm for the first World Cup on African soil.
McAllister: Middlesbrough boss Gordon Strachan has appointed former Leeds team-mate Gary McAllister as the club's new first-team coach. McAllister, a manager in his own right at Coventry and Leeds, will work alongside Strachan, assistant Garry Pendrey and new goalkeeping coach Jim Blyth.
Fined: Birmingham have been fined £10,000 by the FA after being found guilty of failing to control their players in last month's 1-0 defeat by Aston Villa. The charge related an incident in the match when referee Martin Atkinson awarded a penalty against defender Roger Johnson and a number of Blues players reacted angrily.
Pollitt: Wigan goalkeeper Mike Pollitt has signed a new contract to keep him at the club for another season. The 38-year-old's days at the club appeared to be numbered when manager Roberto Martinez brought in Vladimir Stojkovic on loan from Sporting Lisbon in January to be Chris Kirkland's deputy. However, the Serbian played six matches, never kept a clean sheet and put in a number of shaky performances.
Stoppelkamp: Hannover have continued their recruitment drive ahead of next season by agreeing an undisclosed fee with Rot Weiss Oberhausen for midfielder Moritz Stoppelkamp. The 23-year-old has signed a three-year contract with the Bundesliga club after scoring nine goals in 42 games in the second tier.
Cricket: Pakistan's cricket chief played down reports of match-fixing during the team's disastrous tour of Australia, saying the game's governing body has found no evidence of wrongdoing. The ICC anti-corruption unit confirmed on Thursday that it has been investigating Pakistan's Sydney Test defeat against Australia but said the challenge was finding solid facts. Pakistan lost the Sydney Test in January by 36 runs, failing to chase a modest target of 176 runs.
Rugby Union: Toulouse will be seeking an unprecedented fourth European Cup title when they take on fellow French club Biarritz at the Stade de France today. Toulouse have been the most consistent team in European rugby in the 15 years since the continent's showpiece tournament was launched, winning three times (1996, 2003, 2005) and twice losing finalists (2004, 2008).
Basketball: Veteran NBA ref Joe DeRosa has been slapped with a one-game suspension for throwing a game ball at a fan during half-time of Tuesday's play-off match in Orlando. DeRosa was near the scorer's table when he was approached by a fan at half-time of game two of the series between Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic. A fan behind the table approached and appeared to be shouting at DeRosa who flipped the ball to the fan.
Boxing: World champion Manny Pacquiao is returning to school for a crash course to prepare for his new job as a member of the Philippines parliament. The 31-year-old fighter, who was elected last week to represent the southern province of Sarangani, said he would soon take a week-long course at the university. "I will study for one week so I will understand the protocol in Congress," he said.
Rugby World Cup: A pumped-up Japan goes into its final game of the Asian Five Nations today against Hong Kong knowing it needs just one more point to qualify for the 2011 World Cup. Japan leads the race for the automatic Asian slot with three wins for 18 points, ahead of Hong Kong on 12 points. A win or draw will be enough to see them join hosts New Zealand, France, Tonga and Canada in Pool A of the rugby showpiece next year.