* Tottenham Hotspur reached the semi-finals of the League Cup with a 3-1 win over second-tier side Stoke City on a typically freezing Wednesday night (Dec 23) thanks to goals from Gareth Bale, Ben Davies and Harry Kane.
* A towering header from Casemiro and an added-time strike from Karim Benzema saw Real Madrid beat a stubborn Granada side 2-0 at home on Wednesday (Dec 23) to notch a fifth consecutive La Liga victory and go level on points with leaders Atletico Madrid.
* AC Milan snatched a stoppage time winner with a Theo Hernandez header to beat Lazio 3-2 at home and stay top of Serie A on Wednesday after the visitors had earlier hit back from two goals behind.
* Inter Milan chalked up their seventh successive Serie A win on Wednesday (Dec 23), overcoming Verona 2-1 away with a rare Milan Skriniar goal to keep up the pressure on neighbours AC Milan.
* A stoppage-time equaliser from Lorenzo Insigne gave Napoli a 1-1 draw at home to struggling Torino on Wednesday (Dec 23) as they snapped a two-game losing streak in Serie A.
* Chinese swimmer Sun Yang has had his eight-year ban for doping violations referred back to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after an appeal to a Swiss court, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said in a statement late on Wednesday.
* Japan's badminton world number one Kento Momota shrugged off nerves to make a winning return to competition in Tokyo on Wednesday (Dec 23), nearly a year after suffering serious injuries in a car crash. Momota beat Koshiro Moriguchi 21-12, 21-14 in the first round of the All-Japan championships, marking his return from the accident that left him fearing his career might be over after fracturing an eye socket.
* Russian doubles badminton player Nikita Khakimov has received a five-year ban after being found guilty of offences relating to "betting, wagering and irregular match results", the Badminton World Federation (BWF) said on Wednesday.
* London Irish's Boxing Day match at Bath has been called off after some of their players tested positive for COVID-19 and others showed symptoms, Premiership Rugby said on Wednesday.
* Atletico Madrid and England defender Kieran Trippier has been suspended for 10 weeks and fined £70,000 (about US$94,000) following a breach of betting rules, the Football Association said on Wednesday (Dec 23).Trippier, 30, denied seven alleged breaches of FA Rule E8, which were said to occur in July 2018, and requested a personal hearing.
