European football's governing body UEFA said on Thursday it would boycott the World Cup if FIFA pressed ahead with its private investor plan.

Australia coach Andrew McDonald says Ben Stokes has "a lot of good cricket left in him" and believes England's new Test coach should lure him of international retirement for the Ashes.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino said that the proposed launch of a private subsidiary to exploit the commercial benefits of the World Cup was "an opportunity but not an obligation".

Kate O'Connor cruised to heptathlon gold for Northern Ireland as Australia rounded off their best-ever Commonwealth Games in the pool with nine more swimming gold medals on Wednesday for a total of 37.