The result continued Sporting's winless run in Italy. Four of their 16 games in the country have resulted in draws, while 12 have ended in defeat. The second leg is next Thursday at Estadio Jose Alvalade in Lisbon. The winner will face either Sevilla or Manchester United in the semi-final.
* Bayer Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz hit an 82nd-minute equaliser to rescue a 1-1 draw against visitors Union Saint-Gilloise of Belgium in their Europa League quarter-final first leg on Thursday. The 19-year-old Wirtz, in top form since his return this year following a months-long injury break, fired in to cancel out Union's lead through Victor Boniface in the 51st and leave the tie open ahead of next week's return leg in Belgium. The winner will face either Feyenoord or AS Roma in the semi-final.
* Mats Wieffer scored the winner to earn hosts Feyenoord a 1-0 home victory over AS Roma in the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final on Thursday, after he had given away a first-half penalty. Wieffer struck a bouncing half volley from outside the box in the 53rd minute to give the Dutch league leaders a narrow advantage to take into the return leg in the Italian capital. The second leg is next Thursday at Rome’s Olympic Stadium.
* Honda's Marc Marquez has been granted a stay of execution on a penalty imposed for his crash with Miguel Oliveira in the Portuguese season-opener, MotoGP said on Thursday. Oliveira was in second place in the opening stages when six-times premier class champion Marquez locked up and barged straight into the RNF Racing rider, with both crashing out.
* Cristiano Ronaldo’s Saudi club Al-Nassr fired coach Rudi Garcia on Thursday after less than a year in charge following media reports of dressing room tensions and just days before a crucial game against champions Al-Hilal. Al-Nassr, who signed Ronaldo in a deal worth more than $200 million, have collected seven points from their last four league games, dropping to second place in the table, three points behind leaders Al-Ittihad with seven games left in the season.
* Bayern Munich's Sadio Mane will not be part of the squad for Saturday's Bundesliga game against Hoffenheim and has been fined over a row he had with team mate Leroy Sane, the club said on Thursday. Senegal international Mane clashed with Sane at the end of their 3-0 loss at Manchester City in the Champions League quarter-final first leg on Tuesday.
* Ireland's top rally driver Craig Breen has died after an accident in a pre-event test for the Croatian round of the world championship, his Hyundai team said in a statement on Thursday. Media reported that Breen's car went off the road and collided with a pole while the 33-year-old was preparing for next week's rally, his second of the season.
* Novak Djokovic's quest for a record-extending 39th Masters trophy was prolonged on Thursday after the world number one fell to a 4-6 7-5 6-4 defeat at the hands of Lorenzo Musetti in the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters. Musetti will next face fellow Italian Jannik Sinner, who beat Hubert Hurkacz. Defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas eased past Nicolas Jarry in just over 90 minutes, saving two break points to claim a 6-3 6-4 victory and extend his winning streak at the tournament to 12 matches.
* Borussia Dortmund's Nico Schlotterbeck will miss Saturday's Bundesliga game at VfB Stuttgart and fellow defender Niklas Suele is doubtful with a muscle injury, coach Edin Terzic said on Thursday. Dortmund are in second place in the Bundesliga, two points behind leaders Bayern Munich with seven matches remaining.
* Major League Soccer (MLS) suspended Belgian Dante Vanzeir of the New York Red Bulls for six games and handed him an undisclosed fine for using racist language during a game, the league said on Thursday. The ban, which stemmed from an incident during a match against San Jose Earthquakes, is the longest suspension for a language-related offense in MLS history and will force Vanzeir to miss 18% of his team's regular season games.
* Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag tried to stay positive about the injury suffered by defender Lisandro Martinez during the 2-2 Europa League draw with Sevilla on Thursday. There was speculation Martinez had suffered a serious Achilles injury which would end his season.
* Premier League clubs have collectively agreed to stop featuring gambling sponsorships on the front of football kits from the 2026 to 2027 season, the English top-flight league said on Thursday. Eight of the 20 clubs in the league currently have betting companies as shirt sponsors, including Newcastle United (Fun88), West Ham United (Betway) and Everton (Stake.com).
* Assistant referee Constantine Hatzidakis will not face further disciplinary action for allegedly elbowing Liverpool's Andy Robertson in the face, the Football Association said on Thursday. Hatzidakis stood down while the incident, which occurred at half-time during Liverpool's draw with Arsenal in the Premier League last Sunday, was being investigated. The official made contact with Robertson's chin when the player approached him at Anfield.
