Malaysian sporting figures on Friday sought to play down the booing of Chelsea's Israeli midfielder Yossi Benayoun during a friendly in the Muslim-majority country.

Chelsea beat hosts Malaysia 1-0 Thursday in the capital Kuala Lumpur but the game was marred by racial abuse toward Benayoun as the crowd booed and jeered whenever the midfielder had the ball.

In a country where cricket is so ingrained in the social fabric that it dwarfs every other sport and most other topics of conversation, Aayushman Chaturvedi made a decision that was almost unthinkable for his parents.

He chose football.

Mohamed Bin Hammam arrives in Zurich on Thursday desperate to save his career, as FIFA bid to draw a line beneath a corruption scandal that has blackened the image of the world's biggest sport.

The 62-year-old stands accused of attempting to bribe Caribbean football officials to vote for him in the FIFA presidential election with cash gifts of $40,000 each, during a Caribbean Football Union (CFU) summit in May.

The Bulgarian parliament on Thursday made the fixing of football matches and illegal sports betting a crime punishable with up to eight years in jail.

In a move to clean up Bulgaria's sporting image, the parliament adopted an amendment to the penal code which meant that anyone who attempts to bribe sports officials faces fines of up to 15,000 leva (7,500 Euros, $10,700) and six years in prison.

Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez is unfazed by the collapse of his transfer to Brazilian side Corinthians and is expecting fresh bids from further clubs, his representative said Thursday.

Argentinian international Tevez is seeking to engineer a move away from City, with the player reportedly desperate to join a club in South America in order to be closer to his family.

Goal-line technology could be introduced to the English Premier League in time for the 2012/2013 season, chief executive Richard Scudamore said Wednesday.

Writing in a review of the Premier League season to be distributed to British lawmakers later Wednesday, Scudamore expressed hope that controversies over goal-line decisions could soon be a distant memory.

Brazilian side Corinthians have admitted defeat in their attempt to sign Argentinean star Carlos Tevez from Manchester City.

City manager Roberto Mancini had said on Monday that the English Premier League club had agreed to a deal but the Brazilians contradicted him and then said Tuesday that time had run out with the transfer window in Brazil for players coming in from abroad closing Wednesday night.

Yao Ming has made it official Wednesday, telling a packed news conference in his hometown that a series of foot and leg injuries have forced him to retire from basketball.

"I will formally end my career," said Yao, the 7-fooot-6 center who became a household name in China before starting his NBA career with the Houston Rockets as the top draft pick in 2002.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has urged his players to learn from their Champions League final defeat to Barcelona and dethrone the Spanish giants as Kings of Europe.

Ferguson told British media outlets on Tuesday that the next generation of United players would need to rise to the challenge of downing Barcelona while noting that winning the Premier League was equally important.

A United Arab Emirates player whose backheeled penalty in a friendly against Lebanon has become an Internet sensation, faces possible sanctions for being "disrespectful."

Video of Theyab Awana's goal in UAE's 7-2 win on Sunday has become popular on YouTube.