Opposition political parties on Wednesday questioned the country's capacity to host the 2010 Soccer World Cup.
The Ukrainian government asked employers to adjust the workday on June 14 so that Ukrainians can watch their national soccer team make its debut in the World Cup.
Parents in England are feeling the heat as their children catch World Cup fever and demand pricey souvenirs, from stickers of David Beckham to copies of Wayne Rooney's football kit, consumer groups say.
China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a manual on the safety of watching soccer games for Chinese soccer fans departing for Germany to watch the World Cup on Tuesday.
As part of their efforts to ignite the 2006 FIFA World Cup fever in Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe-Germany Society will host a football tournament for disadvantaged children in the country's capital city of Harare.
Police in the German city of Hanover have banned 51 notorious hooligans from Lower Saxony state from attending World Cup matches and entering the city center.
Approachable officers keeping a low profile and self-policing by fans are the keys to a trouble-free World Cup, a study based on Euro 2004 said on Thursday.
Sven-goran Eriksson's re-shuffled England faces a bumpy ride at the World Cup finals judging by its labored victory over Hungary.