The roar of more than 40,000 home fans made all the difference for underdogs New Zealand, forward Hannah Wilkinson said on Thursday, after her Football Ferns stunned Norway 1-0 in their Women’s World Cup opener.

Manchester United have signed Cameroonian goalkeeper Andre Onana from Inter Milan on a five-year contract with the option of a further year, the Premier League club announced.

Tavua football has set its sight on one goal and that is to get itself out of the bottom of the Digicel Fiji Premier League standing ladder.

Portuguese midfielder Bruno Fernandes has been named as the new captain of Manchester United, the Premier League club said on Thursday.

Co-hosts Australia laboured initially in the absence of injured captain Sam Kerr but a second-half penalty from Steph Catley got them off to a solid start at the Women’s World Cup with a 1-0 win over Ireland in Group B on Thursday night.

Hannah Wilkinson’s second-half goal gave New Zealand a shock 1-0 win over former champions Norway at Eden Park on Thursday as the co-hosts claimed their first ever victory at a Women’s World Cup.

As the Rooster Chicken/Scoop Premier Ice Cream Battle of the Giants draws nearer, the Fiji Football Association has clarified that the top eight teams after round 13 will take part.

Hunting the holy grail and steering Sweden to its first FIFA Women’s World Cup title occupies coach Peter Gerhardsson’s every waking thought.

Spain’s back-to-back Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas is fit and ready to play in the team’s opening Women’s World Cup match against Costa Rica on Friday, coach Jorge Vilda said.

The FIFA Women’s World Cup presents windows of opportunities for many players including the many young women and girls who will be eagerly watching on from the stands or at their homes.

Australia and New Zealand will open the ninth Women’s World Cup co-hosted by the two nations today, despite a shooting near the Norwegian team hotel in New Zealand’s largest city of Auckland that left three dead and six injured.

Civil servants in Brazil will not have to worry about being late for work because of the Women’s World Cup after a government minister announced a change to office hours to let them catch the action in Australia and New Zealand.