Entertainment

• Wednesday, March 5th 2014 - 04:30 UTC

  Blatter becomes Brazilian: Cup problems under control: it will be an exceptional event

  

  Problems with Brazil's World Cup venues are under control with just 100 days to go before the first match kicks off, FIFA president Sepp Blatter said on Tuesday.

• Thursday, February 27th 2014 - 21:19 UTC

  British cruisers name favorite cruise ships in 2014

  

  Cruise Critic has released its 2014 Cruise Critic U.K. Cruisers' Choice Awards, the cruise awards based entirely on reviews submitted by cruisers. Royal Caribbean rode the waves in the awards for the Large Ship class, with Serenade of the Seas, the third ship in the Radiance-class fleet, named Best Overall ship, Best Value-for-Money and Best Dining. Royal Caribbean's Adventure of the Seas took Best for Embarkation.

• Tuesday, February 25th 2014 - 17:29 UTC

  Gibraltar moved from Group to avoid playing Spain at qualifier for UEFA EURO 2016

  

  Gibraltar will play against the might of Germany, Scotland, Poland, the Republic of Ireland and Georgia in Group D of the qualifying rounds in the Euro 2016 football championships. Gibraltar’s first match is a home-fixture on 7 September against Poland.

• Tuesday, February 25th 2014 - 04:19 UTC

  Barca pays 13.5m Euros on the contract of Neymar after charges of tax-fraud

  

  Barcelona have made a payment of 13.5 million Euros ($18.53 million) to the Spanish treasury, after they were charged last week with tax fraud in the signing of Brazil forward Neymar.

• Monday, February 24th 2014 - 06:42 UTC

  Sao Paulo protest against World Cup and demand more hospitals and schools

  

  Brazilian police used tear gas and made an estimated 230 arrests on Saturday evening to disperse a protest in Sao Paulo ahead of the World Cup. Among those arrested in Brazil's business hub, which will host the opening match of the World Cup on June 12, were five journalists, O Estado de Sao Paulo daily reported.

• Saturday, February 22nd 2014 - 06:06 UTC

  Dilma invites the pope to the World Cup and presents him with a 'verde-amarella' jersey

  

  Pope Francis received Friday in a private audience Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, who formally invited the Argentine pontiff to visit her country during the World Cup soccer championship, which begins June 12.

• Saturday, February 22nd 2014 - 05:48 UTC

  Tall ships parade in Punta del Este; Mujica invited to a reception in ARA Libertad

  

  Uruguayan president Jose Mujica is scheduled to attend a reception on Saturday at Argentina's tall ship Libertad, which together with several similar vessels is participating in the '2014 Latin American Sails' tour of thirteen Latin American and Caribbean ports, and on Friday arrived to Punta del Este.

• Friday, February 21st 2014 - 10:02 UTC

  Barcelona charged with tax fraud when the purchase of Brazil's forward Neymar

  

  Barcelona have been charged by a Spanish court with committing tax fraud in the signing of Brazil forward Neymar last year in the latest twist to a saga that has already claimed the scalp of the club president.

• Thursday, February 20th 2014 - 10:27 UTC

  Scolari wants to banish the ghosts of the 1950 when Brazil was beaten by Uruguay

  

  Coach Luis Filipe Scolari says he wants Brazil to banish the ghosts of 1950, when his country last hosted the World Cup and lost the final in a defeat against neighboring Uruguay that has haunted them ever since.

• Monday, February 17th 2014 - 09:57 UTC

  FIFA will conduct surprise doping tests of all World Cup players

  

  FIFA is expected to conduct surprise doping tests of all World Cup players at least once beginning in March, setting up biological passports to determine possible irregularities in blood and urine samples. FIFA chief medical officer Jiri Dvorak said all teams and players should be tested unannounced between March 1 and the World Cup opener in June.