Football: US seeks friendly with Iran

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THE UNITED STATES has extended an invitation to Iran to play in America next year. "There have been ongoing discussions between the two federations," said Brian Remedi, the US Soccer Federation's spokesman in Chicago. "We would like to play a match in the US sometime next year."

Iran eliminated the United States from the 1998 World Cup by beating them 2-1. An exchange of gifts between players won the countries the 1998 fair-play prize from the game's world governing body, Fifa.

Poland's coach, Janusz Wojcik, has recalled Radoslav Gilewicz, this season's top scorer in the Austrian league, for their Euro 2000 qualifier match against England on 8 September.

Wojcik will be hoping Gilewicz, who has scored 10 goals in 10 games for Tirol Innsbruck, can reproduce that form against England in what could be the game that decides who claims second place in Group Five.

What would Wojcik give to have a Christian Vieri in his squad? Vieri is the world's most expensive player and he scored a hat-trick on his debut for Internazionale, but he says he needs to improve his fitness.

"I'm not yet at my peak," the Italian international said after Inter started their Serie A season with a 3-0 win over Verona. "I need to work hard to improve it. That doesn't mean I'm going to score four in the next game."

Fluminense fans ran riot and the referee abandoned the club's third division match at Vila Nova early in the second half because police using tear gas could not contain the violence. Fluminense, once one of the top first division clubs in Rio de Janeiro, were losing 2-0 to Vila Nova when nearly 300 fans began fighting in the stands and throwing sticks and rocks on to the pitch. They also attacked their own players.