Spain has regained the top spot in the FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Rankings, which were released on Friday for the month of November.

David Beckham claims Thierry Henry did not deliberate handle the ball and has leapt to the defense of the France striker after claiming he is not a cheat.

Four years is a long period of time, but for players like Shay Given, Robbie Keane and the rest of Ireland's national soccer team, it may as well be 40 years.

Striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is confident that Barcelona will overcome its Champions League wobbles and beat Inter Milan to seal its progress as Group F winners.

ZURICH FIFA suspended Iraq from soccer because of political interference in the national federation.

FRANKFURT German prosecutors investigating match-fixing in soccer say 15 people in Germany and two in Switzerland have been arrested and about 200 games in Europe are under suspicion.

Even though French soccer star Thierry Henry has admitted to a handball during France's World Cup-clinching aggregate win over Ireland on Wednesday and has called for a replay to the game, soccer's international federation shot down the idea on Friday.

LONDON Thierry Henry denied Friday that he was a cheat but said the "fairest solution" would be to replay the France-Ireland World Cup playoff that was decided by his hand ball.

BELGRADE, Serbia Serbian police say they have arrested another suspect in the fatal attack on a French soccer fan in Belgrade two months ago.

PARIS France coach Raymond Domenech says he and his players see no reason to apologize for the Thierry Henry handball against Ireland that put the team into the World Cup.

LONDON There will be no rematch.

LONDON Irish soccer officials accused Thierry Henry of damaging the integrity of the game when he blatantly handled the ball to set up the goal that booked France's place at next year's World Cup in South Africa.

PARIS Soccer players just can't be trusted to be honest and Thierry Henry proved that by choosing to play volleyball against Ireland, blatantly handling the ball for the goal that sent France to the World Cup.

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany David Beckham won't be coming to Kaiserslautern.

SALT LAKE CITY The owner of Real Salt Lake is selling a stake in the soccer team to a Utah real-estate developer.

DUBLIN Ireland appealed to France and FIFA on Thursday to replay their World Cup playoff after an obvious hand ball by Thierry Henry set up the deciding goal.

FRANKFURT German police have arrested an undisclosed number of people suspected of fixing matches in major European soccer leagues.

DENVER NBC might have a partner in the cable company that wanted to be its Olympic rival.

JOHANNESBURG The flags of the 32 nations that qualified for the 2010 World Cup are flying in Johannesburg.

SAINT-DENIS, France France qualified for its fourth consecutive World Cup when officials missed an obvious hand ball by Thierry Henry that led to William Gallas' overtime goal in a 1-1 tie against Ireland on Wednesday night.

The United States Men's National Team concluded its 2009 campaign on Wednesday with a 3-1 defeat at Denmark.

LONDON West Ham is selling lingerie after singer Katy Perry wore a top made out of three jerseys at this month's MTV Europe Music Awards.

NICOSIA, Cyprus Soccer authorities in Cyprus say all fans will need to show state identity cards to buy tickets for domestic league matches in a bid to curb violence at games.

LOS ANGELES The only obstacle between David Beckham's Los Angeles Galaxy and a Major League Soccer championship is an MLS Cup opponent that barely made the playoffs after finishing the regular season with a losing record.

PARIS The first rock was thrown with such force that it traveled through the bus, smashing windows on its way in and out, Michel Gaillaud, a French doctor, recalls.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. Nine members of two high school girls' soccer teams have been suspended for their roles in a fight that sparked a brawl in the bleachers.

DENVER NBC might have a partner in the cable company that wanted to be its Olympic rival.

BELGRADE, Serbia Serbian President Boris Tadic faces a fine for allegedly drinking champagne at a stadium with his sports minister and the head of the soccer federation.

ZURICH Iraq faces suspension from world soccer if it does not restore the disbanded national federation by Thursday.

RICHMOND, Va. Virginia Commonwealth University has fired men's soccer coach Tim O'Sullivan.

BAGHDAD Iraq could face action from FIFA after its Olympic committee dissolved the Iraqi Football Association.

LARISSA, Greece Officials at Greek club Larissa say Mexican striker Antonio de Nigris has died in the central Greek city.

AARHUS, Denmark Houston Dynamo midfielders Ricardo Clark and Stuart Holden have been added to the U.S. roster for Wednesday's exhibition game against Denmark following their team's elimination from the Major League Soccer playoffs.

Argentina coach Diego Maradona has been banned from football for two months following his media outburst in the aftermath of a World Cup qualifier in October.

ZURICH FIFA handed Argentina coach Diego Maradona a two-month ban from all soccer activities on Sunday for his expletive-filled rants after his team qualified for the 2010 World Cup.

HANNOVER, Germany More than 45,000 fans gathered Sunday at the Hannover stadium for a memorial service for Germany goalkeeper Robert Enke, whose suicide has shaken the country.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. Real Salt Lake advanced to its first MLS Cup final by beating the Chicago Fire 5-4 on penalty kicks after 120 scoreless minutes in the Eastern Conference final Saturday night.

Rory Fallon scored the lone goal in the 44th minute and Mark Paston saved a penalty kick, as New Zealand defeated Bahrain, 1-0, on Saturday to qualify to the World Cup for the first time since 1982.

New Zealand reached the World Cup for the first time since 1982, with Cameroon and Nigeria also qualifying Saturday for next year's soccer showcase in South Africa.

Marek Hamsik converted a penalty kick in the 26th minute, and Slovakia defeated the United States 1-0 on Saturday in a friendly between 2010 World Cup qualifiers.

ZURICH Diego Maradona faces a FIFA disciplinary panel Sunday that could ban the Argentine coach from games at next year's World Cup because of his expletive-filled rant.

CARSON, Calif. Gregg Berhalter and Landon Donovan scored in overtime to put the Los Angeles Galaxy into MLS Cup final with a 2-0 victory over the Houston Dynamo on Friday night.

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia The U.S. soccer team gets to see what life is like without scoring leader Landon Donovan.

MADRID Cristiano Ronaldo is hoping to return to Real Madrid in time for the derby against Spanish champion Barcelona later this month.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. The U.S. Olympic Committee turned to former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue on Thursday to study how its oft-criticized board does business and determine if changes are needed.

WEMBLEY, England Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson was banned for four games and fined $32,000 Thursday for criticizing the fitness of a referee after a Premier League game.

MUNICH Bayern Munich says striker Miroslav Klose and his family have been quarantined after his twin sons came down with swine flu.

ATHENS, Greece Greek police say a small bomb has exploded outside a Panathinaikos fan club in Athens, causing minor damage but no injuries.

FRANKFURT Germany goalkeeper Robert Enke will be buried in a small ceremony near his home Sunday following a stadium memorial service for the player whose suicide has shaken the country.

FRANKFURT Robert Enke, the Germany goalkeeper who committed suicide Tuesday, will be buried Sunday in a small ceremony near his home following a memorial service at the Hannover stadium.