A Danish historian says he has discovered what he believes is a previously unknown fairy tale written by Hans Christian Andersen.
Retired historian Esben Brage said Thursday he found the six-page text in early October while searching in the National Archives through boxes that had belonged to wealthy families from Andersen's home-town of Odense in central Denmark.

Trailing Barcelona in the Spanish league and facing elimination in the Copa del Rey, Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho is questioning the will and attitude of one of the most talented and highest paid squads in football.
Mourinho said after his team's 2-1 defeat at Celta Vigo in the Copa on Wednesday that "there are players who have disappointed me" and that some "didn't want to play because it was cold, raining and (only) a Copa match."

Chelsea reached the Club World Cup final by scoring twice in the first three minutes of the second half to beat Monterrey 3-1 on Thursday.
The Champions League winner will face Copa Libertadores champ Corinthians in the final on Sunday.

Bradley Wiggins says he wants to defend his Tour de France title after previously indicating his focus in 2013 could be on the Giro d'Italia and the Spanish Vuelta.
The 32-year-old Briton had said he would probably help Team Sky teammate Christopher Froome, who finished second behind him in July, win the 2013 Tour.

Las Vegas, land of the quickie wedding, is in the midst of a serious love recession, and chapels in a city accustomed to playing the numbers weren't about to let the latest money-making opportunity pass — Dec. 12, 2012.
They hoped the lure of a wedding license stamped with a once-in-a-century 12-12-12 will help boost revenue. The city's share of the weddings business has fallen by a third since 2004 as cities from New Orleans to New York have gotten into the elopement industry.

A U.N. conference weighing possible Internet rules shifted into high-stakes showdowns on Thursday after advancing a proposal for greater government oversight. The proposal was a blow to U.S.-led efforts to keep new regulations from touching the Net.
The move frames the ideological divide at the 193-nation gathering in Dubai, which is scheduled to wrap up Friday with its first revisions of global telecom rules since 1988 — years before the dawn of the Internet age.

Utah's Mo Williams sank a three-pointer on the buzzer to give the Jazz a 99-96 win over San Antonio on Wednesday, ending the Spurs' winning streak at five and stopping the Texan team moving to the top of the NBA standings.
The Jazz trailed by eight points with a little more than four minutes remaining but fought back for a satisfying win over their recent nemesis. Williams' winning shot was his only three of the night and he finished with just eight points on 3-for-9 shooting from the field.

Celta Vigo upset Real Madrid with a 2-1 victory in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday, and Lionel Messi scored his 21st double to reach 88 goals in 2012, leading Barcelona to a 2-0 win over second-tier club Cordoba.
Having broken German great Gerd Mueller's 40-year-old record for most goals in a year on Sunday, Messi added to his tally in the 11th minute by tapping into an empty net from David Villa's pass.

Players in the final of South America's second most important football tournament fought while leaving the field at halftime, then one team refused to play the second half, charging that security officers attacked its players in the dressing room area.
Officials awarded the Copa Sudamericana title Wednesday night to the Brazilian team Sao Paulo after the referee waited a half hour in hopes the Argentine club Tigre would appear.

Former No. 1 Kim Clijsters ended her career with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Venus Williams in a ceremonial farewell match.
Clijsters retired after the U.S. Open but organized a match to thank her fans, 13,000 of whom turned up at Antwerp Sports Palace, including Crown Prince Phillipe and Princess Mathilde.
