Congratulatory messages are pouring in from every nook and corner of the country for the&nbsp;<a href="http://aninews.in/keysearch/keyword-search/indian-fifa-u-17-world-cup.html">Indian FIFA U-17 World Cup&nbsp;</a>football team who wrote a brand new chapter in the Indian football history by overpowering Italy U-17 national team 2-0 in a friendly match here on Friday.

Be it the flamboyant cricketer Virender Sehwag or an ardent football fan Abhishek Bachchan- nobody let the opportunity to praise the youngsters through their social media channels slip.

Taking to his official Twitter account, Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports&nbsp;<a href="http://aninews.in/keysearch/keyword-search/vijay-goel.html">Vijay Goel</a>said,&quot;Great day! #India U-17 #football team defeats #Italy 2-0! Well done boys, proud of you all!&quot;

Former Indian opening batsman&nbsp;<a href="http://aninews.in/keysearch/keyword-search/virender-sehwag.html">Virender Sehwag</a>, who is famous for his witty remarks on Twitter apart from his explosive batting style, praised the Indian team for making `idli` out of Italy.

&quot;Yaay! We have beaten Italy.Congratulations to the under 17 @IndianFootball on the spectacular victory. Italy ki&nbsp;<a href="http://aninews.in/keysearch/keyword-search/idli.html">idli</a>&nbsp;ban gayi !,&quot; he added.

Aditya Thackeray comes out loud in support of Indian Football and time and again AIFF has expressed their gratitude towards this youthful vibrant leader.

The Mumbai-based leader urged everyone to watch the match before the kick-off and the avid football fan was following the action as it unfolded.

After Matos&#39; boys secured the victory, he could not hold his emotion back and congratulated the boys wholeheartedly.

&quot;Huge boost for India! @IndianFootball team of U17 lads won against Italy&#39;s Football Team of U17 2-0! Congratulations #IndianFootball&quot;

He added more: &quot;This win is a big win for India and a boost before the U17 World Cup in India! @IndianFootball&quot;

Praful Patel, President, All India Football Federation said,&quot;First entering the 100 club &amp; now India&#39;s U-17 Team beats Italy&#39;s U-17 Football Team. Way to go @IndianFootball #FIFAU17WC,&quot; Patel said.

Even the film industry didn&#39;t mince their words eulogizing the colts who pulled off the heroics last night.

<a href="http://aninews.in/keysearch/keyword-search/abhishek-bachchan.html">Abhishek Bachchan</a>, an ardent football fan, symbolised this victory as &quot;a sign of things to come.&quot;

&quot;Many congratulations to our Indian U-17 boys football team who beat Italy 2:0 today. Hope this is a sign of things to come. #BleedBlue&quot;

Stephen Constantine praised the entire team for the wonderful victory against the Azzurri.

&quot;Great result lads well done to the entire team&quot;, was what he tweeted yesterday following the 2-0 victory.

&#39;AIFF Player of the Year 2016&#39; Jeje Lalpekhlua who is going to hit the pitch tomorrow for Mohun Bagan in their quest for the second consecutive Hero Federation Cup, congratulated the boys for their astounding feat.

The lanky defender Sandesh Jhingan and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu also heaped their praises for the colts.

&quot;Congratulations to our u-17 @IndianFootball for this inspirational win, keep working hard and more results like this will come.My best wishes&quot;, was what Sandesh&#39;s twitter handle read yesterday.

Sunil Chhetri, who has already embossed his name as the highest scorer on the national colours for India, tweeted: &quot;Big result last night for our @IndianFootball U17s against Italy. Keep working hard and miracles will happen boys!&quot;

Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, who has an all-win record as the National Team skipper until now, put a cosy picture of himself along with the U-17 squad on his official twitter handle and wrote: &quot;Good win for the @IndianFootball U-17 team against #<a href="http://aninews.in/keysearch/keyword-search/italy.html">&nbsp;Italy</a>&nbsp;U-17, im not surprised by it because i know these boys have the fight in them&quot;

The Asian Football Confederation lavished their praises for the Indian colts which would surely motivate them to scale a newer height in the near future.

&quot;A great result - well played India!&quot;

Earlier, Abhijit Sarkar (31st minute) and Rahul Praveen (80th) scored for the Indians either side of the break.

The match was part of the exposure tour of Europe for the Indian boys as they gear up for the FIFA&nbsp;U-17 World Cup to be held in India later this year.

<a href="http://aninews.in/" target="_blank">(ANI)</a>

Congratulatory messages poured in from all quarters for Friday's performance

Congratulatory messages are pouring in from every nook and corner of the country for the Indian FIFA U-17 World Cup football team who wrote a brand new chapter in the Indian football history by overpowering Italy U-17 national team 2-0 in a friendly match here on Friday. Be it the flamboyant cricketer Virender Sehwag or an ardent football fan Abhishek Bachchan- nobody let the opportunity to praise the youngsters through their social media channels slip. Taking to his official Twitter account, Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports Vijay Goelsaid,"Great day! #India U-17 #football team defeats #Italy 2-0! Well done boys, proud of you all!" Former Indian opening batsman Virender Sehwag, who is famous for his witty remarks on Twitter apart from his explosive batting style, praised the Indian team for making `idli` out of Italy. "Yaay! We have beaten Italy.Congratulations to the under 17 @IndianFootball on the spectacular victory. Italy ki idli ban gayi !," he added. Aditya Thackeray comes out loud in support of Indian Football and time and again AIFF has expressed their gratitude towards this youthful vibrant leader. The Mumbai-based leader urged everyone to watch the match before the kick-off and the avid football fan was following the action as it unfolded. After Matos' boys secured the victory, he could not hold his emotion back and congratulated the boys wholeheartedly. "Huge boost for India! @IndianFootball team of U17 lads won against Italy's Football Team of U17 2-0! Congratulations #IndianFootball" He added more: "This win is a big win for India and a boost before the U17 World Cup in India! @IndianFootball" Praful Patel, President, All India Football Federation said,"First entering the 100 club & now India's U-17 Team beats Italy's U-17 Football Team. Way to go @IndianFootball #FIFAU17WC," Patel said. Even the film industry didn't mince their words eulogizing the colts who pulled off the heroics last night. Abhishek Bachchan, an ardent football fan, symbolised this victory as "a sign of things to come." "Many congratulations to our Indian U-17 boys football team who beat Italy 2:0 today. Hope this is a sign of things to come. #BleedBlue" Stephen Constantine praised the entire team for the wonderful victory against the Azzurri. "Great result lads well done to the entire team", was what he tweeted yesterday following the 2-0 victory. 'AIFF Player of the Year 2016' Jeje Lalpekhlua who is going to hit the pitch tomorrow for Mohun Bagan in their quest for the second consecutive Hero Federation Cup, congratulated the boys for their astounding feat. The lanky defender Sandesh Jhingan and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu also heaped their praises for the colts. "Congratulations to our u-17 @IndianFootball for this inspirational win, keep working hard and more results like this will come.My best wishes", was what Sandesh's twitter handle read yesterday. Sunil Chhetri, who has already embossed his name as the highest scorer on the national colours for India, tweeted: "Big result last night for our @IndianFootball U17s against Italy. Keep working hard and miracles will happen boys!" Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, who has an all-win record as the National Team skipper until now, put a cosy picture of himself along with the U-17 squad on his official twitter handle and wrote: "Good win for the @IndianFootball U-17 team against # Italy U-17, im not surprised by it because i know these boys have the fight in them" The Asian Football Confederation lavished their praises for the Indian colts which would surely motivate them to scale a newer height in the near future. "A great result - well played India!" Earlier, Abhijit Sarkar (31st minute) and Rahul Praveen (80th) scored for the Indians either side of the break. The match was part of the exposure tour of Europe for the Indian boys as they gear up for the FIFA U-17 World Cup to be held in India later this year. (ANI)

Football: India beat Italy 2-0 in FIFA U-17 World Cup preparation

FIFA announced its proposed slot allocation for the expanded 48-team World Cup on Thursday, including an automatic place for Oceania, 16 places for Europe - up from 13 - and a six-team inter-zonal playoff tournament for two more spots.

The proposals will be submitted to the FIFA Council at its next full meeting in Bahrain in May for a final decision, FIFA said.

Under the proposal, made by the FIFA Bureau, for the enlarged tournament beginning in 2026, Europe would get 16 direct places, Africa nine, Asia eight, South America six, CONCACAF six and Oceania one, totalling 46 teams.

The host nation would qualify automatically and its slot would be taken from the allocation of its confederation.

In the most innovative part of the proposal, the two remaining places would be decided by a six-team playoff tournament which would take place in the World Cup host nation, possibly in the November before the finals, FIFA said.

That tournament would include one team from each confederation, except UEFA, and an extra one from the continent of the host country.

FIFA decided in January to increase the tournament from 32 teams to 48.

The current allocation is 13 places to Europe, five to Africa, four to Asia and South America and three to CONCACAF.

Asia, South America, CONCACAF and Oceania also get a place in two inter-zonal playoffs.

The proposal shows how football has grown around the world over the last 40 years.

As recently as 1978, when the World Cup had only 16 teams, Africa and CONCACAF were given only one place each while Asia and Oceania had to share one place between them.

According to the FIFA world rankings, the top nine teams in Africa currently include Burkina Faso, who have never played at a World Cup, and Democratic Republic of Congo, who took part only once as Zaire in 1974.

CONCACAF&#39;S top six include Panama and Haiti while St Kitts and Nevis are seventh.

Asia&#39;s top eight include Uzbekistan and Qatar while China are ninth and Syria 10th.

(Reuters)

There'll be an automatic place for Oceania, 16 places for Europe - up from 13 - and a six-team inter-zonal playoff tournament for two slots

FIFA announced its proposed slot allocation for the expanded 48-team World Cup on Thursday, including an automatic place for Oceania, 16 places for Europe - up from 13 - and a six-team inter-zonal playoff tournament for two more spots. The proposals will be submitted to the FIFA Council at its next full meeting in Bahrain in May for a final decision, FIFA said. Under the proposal, made by the FIFA Bureau, for the enlarged tournament beginning in 2026, Europe would get 16 direct places, Africa nine, Asia eight, South America six, CONCACAF six and Oceania one, totalling 46 teams. The host nation would qualify automatically and its slot would be taken from the allocation of its confederation. In the most innovative part of the proposal, the two remaining places would be decided by a six-team playoff tournament which would take place in the World Cup host nation, possibly in the November before the finals, FIFA said. That tournament would include one team from each confederation, except UEFA, and an extra one from the continent of the host country. FIFA decided in January to increase the tournament from 32 teams to 48. The current allocation is 13 places to Europe, five to Africa, four to Asia and South America and three to CONCACAF. Asia, South America, CONCACAF and Oceania also get a place in two inter-zonal playoffs. The proposal shows how football has grown around the world over the last 40 years. As recently as 1978, when the World Cup had only 16 teams, Africa and CONCACAF were given only one place each while Asia and Oceania had to share one place between them. According to the FIFA world rankings, the top nine teams in Africa currently include Burkina Faso, who have never played at a World Cup, and Democratic Republic of Congo, who took part only once as Zaire in 1974. CONCACAF'S top six include Panama and Haiti while St Kitts and Nevis are seventh. Asia's top eight include Uzbekistan and Qatar while China are ninth and Syria 10th. (Reuters)

FIFA unveils new slot-allocation for 48-team World Cup in 2026

Wales conceded an agonising late equaliser as Serbia battled to a 1-1 draw in a World Cup qualifier on Saturday as former champions Italy and Spain both won 4-0.

Earlier Saturday, the Republic of Ireland has stunned Austria 1-0 in Vienna and are top of Group D on 10 points, with Serbia second on eight and Wales third on six.

Gareth Bale rocketed Wales into a 30th-minute lead in Cardiff after Hal Robson-Kanu dispossessed Matija Nastasic and fed the ball to the Real Madrid forward, who cracked home a powerful snap shot to make it 1-0.

But Aleksander Mitrovic was fastest to react with four red shirts around him when Antonio Rukavina whipped in an inviting cross to level for the visitors late in the game.

&quot;It was a disappointing result, we feel like we threw away two points. We&#39;re at home, 1-0 up after 85 minutes, it`s two points lost,&quot; Bale admitted after the game.

Just moments before Serbia had levelled, Bale had seen a snapshot come agonisingly back off the post.

Wales coach Chris Coleman was less disappointed and was looking down the road.&nbsp;

&quot;We are four points behind Ireland but we play them twice,&quot; he said. &quot;We have a massive chance. Tonight the boys deserved all three points.&quot;

It was the third game in a row the Welsh have gone ahead only to draw.

&quot;We can be proud of ourselves. We are on the right track. Today we can be happy with one point,&quot; said Serbia captain Branislav Ivanovic.

The Irish top Group D thanks to a James McClean strike three minutes after half-time in Vienna.

&quot;This is going to be a very tight finish. But this has been a splendid start for us and we are delighted with the 10 points,&quot; said Ireland boss Martin O`Neill.

Spain and Italy continue to set the pace at the helm in Group G and both have 10 points.

Spain played at Granada where Macedonia`s Darko Velkovski scored a 34th minute own goal before Votolo on 63 minutes, Nacho Monreal (83) and veteran striker Aritz Aduriz (85) gave them a comfortable win.&nbsp;

Taking on minnows Liechtenstein, Italy&#39;s Anfrea Belotti scored either side of strikes from Ciro Imobile and Antonio Candreva.

Eran Zahavi converted an 18th-minute penalty to set Israel on their way with Dan Einbinder and Eliran Atar making sure they beat Albania 3-0 in Tirana.

Iceland failed to replicate their Euro 2016 heroics in a 2-0 defeat in Croatia in Group I.

Croatia grabbed the lead after 15 minutes through Inter Milan midfielder Marcelo Brozovic, but it was Iceland who took control after that in Zagreb, where the game was played out in front of empty stands after a FIFA stadium ban.

Despite having plenty of the ball in both halves, Iceland failed to make the crucial breakthrough.

And the home side punished them in injury time, Brozovic again doing the damage against the run of play.

Croatia, now top of the group with 10 points from four games, finished the match with 10 men after Ivan Perisic was sent off at the death.

Also in Group I, Turkey revived their slim hopes of making it to Russia in 2018 with a 2-0 home victory over Kosovo in Antalya.

Burak Yilmaz and Volkan Sen scored within four minutes of one another in the second half to leave Kosovo bottom on just a solitary point.

Georgia and Moldova played out a 1-1 draw in Tbilisi to remain rooted in the bottom two spots in Group D.

(AFP)

Serbia's Aleksander Mitrovic scored late in the match to push Wales down to third in the group

Wales conceded an agonising late equaliser as Serbia battled to a 1-1 draw in a World Cup qualifier on Saturday as former champions Italy and Spain both won 4-0. Earlier Saturday, the Republic of Ireland has stunned Austria 1-0 in Vienna and are top of Group D on 10 points, with Serbia second on eight and Wales third on six. Gareth Bale rocketed Wales into a 30th-minute lead in Cardiff after Hal Robson-Kanu dispossessed Matija Nastasic and fed the ball to the Real Madrid forward, who cracked home a powerful snap shot to make it 1-0. But Aleksander Mitrovic was fastest to react with four red shirts around him when Antonio Rukavina whipped in an inviting cross to level for the visitors late in the game. "It was a disappointing result, we feel like we threw away two points. We're at home, 1-0 up after 85 minutes, it`s two points lost," Bale admitted after the game. Just moments before Serbia had levelled, Bale had seen a snapshot come agonisingly back off the post. Wales coach Chris Coleman was less disappointed and was looking down the road. "We are four points behind Ireland but we play them twice," he said. "We have a massive chance. Tonight the boys deserved all three points." It was the third game in a row the Welsh have gone ahead only to draw. "We can be proud of ourselves. We are on the right track. Today we can be happy with one point," said Serbia captain Branislav Ivanovic. The Irish top Group D thanks to a James McClean strike three minutes after half-time in Vienna. "This is going to be a very tight finish. But this has been a splendid start for us and we are delighted with the 10 points," said Ireland boss Martin O`Neill. Spain and Italy continue to set the pace at the helm in Group G and both have 10 points. Spain played at Granada where Macedonia`s Darko Velkovski scored a 34th minute own goal before Votolo on 63 minutes, Nacho Monreal (83) and veteran striker Aritz Aduriz (85) gave them a comfortable win. Taking on minnows Liechtenstein, Italy's Anfrea Belotti scored either side of strikes from Ciro Imobile and Antonio Candreva. Eran Zahavi converted an 18th-minute penalty to set Israel on their way with Dan Einbinder and Eliran Atar making sure they beat Albania 3-0 in Tirana. Iceland failed to replicate their Euro 2016 heroics in a 2-0 defeat in Croatia in Group I. Croatia grabbed the lead after 15 minutes through Inter Milan midfielder Marcelo Brozovic, but it was Iceland who took control after that in Zagreb, where the game was played out in front of empty stands after a FIFA stadium ban. Despite having plenty of the ball in both halves, Iceland failed to make the crucial breakthrough. And the home side punished them in injury time, Brozovic again doing the damage against the run of play. Croatia, now top of the group with 10 points from four games, finished the match with 10 men after Ivan Perisic was sent off at the death. Also in Group I, Turkey revived their slim hopes of making it to Russia in 2018 with a 2-0 home victory over Kosovo in Antalya. Burak Yilmaz and Volkan Sen scored within four minutes of one another in the second half to leave Kosovo bottom on just a solitary point. Georgia and Moldova played out a 1-1 draw in Tbilisi to remain rooted in the bottom two spots in Group D. (AFP)

FIFA World Cup qualifiers: Spain, Italy win big, Wales held

FIFA&#39;s ethics committee today banned Wolfgang Niersbach, former president of the German Football Association (DFB), for one year over misconduct surrounding the country&#39;s successful 2006 World Cup bid. 
 
&quot;Mr Niersbach has been banned for one year from all football-related activities,&quot; a statement from FIFA&#39;s in-house court said, noting that the German official &quot;failed to report findings about possible misconduct concerning the awarding of the 2006 FIFA World Cup&quot;. 
 
Niersbach served as vice-president of the 2006 World Cup organising committee. 
 
He resigned from the German federation last November amid accusations that the DFB used a slush fund of 10 million Swiss francs (6.7 million euros, $8 million, according to the exchange rate at that time) in 2000 to buy the right to host the tournament. 
 
The 65-year-old has said he will now consider whether to appeal the decision. &quot;This decision hits me very hard,&quot; Niersbach told SID, an AFP subsidiary. 
 
&quot;I think this sanction is inappropriate and over the top.&quot; &quot;I will let my lawyer advise me as to whether I will appeal against the decision.&quot; 
 
&quot;After the hearing in Zurich, I was confident that the Ethics Commission would impose no sanction. I have once again acknowledged and regretted my mistakes.&quot; 
 
Niersbach had insisted that quitting his job should have been punishment enough because he was not directly accused of paying bribes or financially benefitting from corruption. 
 
FIFA prosecutors sought a two-year ban, however, arguing that Niersbach should have spoken up sooner when he learned of possible wrongdoing. 
 
The ethics committee suspension will force his immediate removal from posts he currently holds on the FIFA Council and UEFA executive committee. 
 
FIFA opened a probe on March 22 targeting six people including Niersbach and Franz Beckenbauer, the German football legend and World Cup organising committee chief, over their roles in the bidding process, amid allegations of bribery. 
 
The FIFA investigation followed the release of a report commissioned by the DFB which found that Germany may have bought votes to secure the tournament. 
 
The report linked Beckenbauer to a suspect deal with disgraced former FIFA bigwig Jack Warner. 
 
(AFP)

FIFA prosecutors sought a two-year ban, however, arguing that Niersbach should have spoken up sooner when he learned of possible wrongdoing

FIFA's ethics committee today banned Wolfgang Niersbach, former president of the German Football Association (DFB), for one year over misconduct surrounding the country's successful 2006 World Cup bid. "Mr Niersbach has been banned for one year from all football-related activities," a statement from FIFA's in-house court said, noting that the German official "failed to report findings about possible misconduct concerning the awarding of the 2006 FIFA World Cup". Niersbach served as vice-president of the 2006 World Cup organising committee. He resigned from the German federation last November amid accusations that the DFB used a slush fund of 10 million Swiss francs (6.7 million euros, $8 million, according to the exchange rate at that time) in 2000 to buy the right to host the tournament. The 65-year-old has said he will now consider whether to appeal the decision. "This decision hits me very hard," Niersbach told SID, an AFP subsidiary. "I think this sanction is inappropriate and over the top." "I will let my lawyer advise me as to whether I will appeal against the decision." "After the hearing in Zurich, I was confident that the Ethics Commission would impose no sanction. I have once again acknowledged and regretted my mistakes." Niersbach had insisted that quitting his job should have been punishment enough because he was not directly accused of paying bribes or financially benefitting from corruption. FIFA prosecutors sought a two-year ban, however, arguing that Niersbach should have spoken up sooner when he learned of possible wrongdoing. The ethics committee suspension will force his immediate removal from posts he currently holds on the FIFA Council and UEFA executive committee. FIFA opened a probe on March 22 targeting six people including Niersbach and Franz Beckenbauer, the German football legend and World Cup organising committee chief, over their roles in the bidding process, amid allegations of bribery. The FIFA investigation followed the release of a report commissioned by the DFB which found that Germany may have bought votes to secure the tournament. The report linked Beckenbauer to a suspect deal with disgraced former FIFA bigwig Jack Warner. (AFP)

FIFA bans former German boss Wolfgang Niersbach

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Football: India beat Italy 2-0 in FIFA U-17 World Cup preparation

FIFA unveils new slot-allocation for 48-team World Cup in 2026

FIFA World Cup qualifiers: Spain, Italy win big, Wales held

FIFA bans former German boss Wolfgang Niersbach