LOS ANGELES (AP) -- SOCCER
LONDON (AP) -- End it like Beckham.
David Beckham, whose curling free kicks, rugged good looks and celebrity marriage made him one of the most famous athletes in the world, is retiring from soccer.
Whether striding on the grass, the red carpet or the fashion catwalks, Beckham transcended his sport and became its highest-paid player, with a fortune estimated at $250 million.
The 38-year-old former England captain said Thursday he would quit after his final two games with Paris Saint-Germain, where he won a league title this season.
"It's a good way to go out," he said in Paris. "It's every athlete's dream, every footballer's dream to go out on the top -- on top form or winning a trophy ... leaving as a champion."
CHICAGO (AP) -- Landon Donovan was left off the 29-man U.S. roster for a training camp ahead of a trio of World Cup qualifiers next month. But American coach Jurgen Klinsmann anticipates he will rejoin the team at some point.
Donovan, a 31-year-old midfielder who played for the last three U.S. World Cup teams, took a sabbatical of nearly four months after last season, returning to the field with the Los Angeles Galaxy on March 30.
SAO PAULO (AP) -- The Brazilian government says some of the security robots bought to improve public safety during the 2014 World Cup will be ready for the Confederations Cup in June.
The company iRobot said the 30 robots would be delivered by the end of the year, along with spares and other support gear. The government confirmed that some will already be in action in the six cities hosting Confederations Cup matches.
The company said Brazil signed a $7.2 million contract, which included the small unmanned ground vehicles which can provide surveillance, bomb removal and other law-enforcement missions.
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PRO BASKETBALL
The Sacramento Kings' unsteady future finally seems to be settled.
A person familiar with the deal said the Maloof family has reached an agreement with a Sacramento group headed by TIBCO software tycoon Vivek Ranadive to sell a 65 percent controlling interest in the Kings at a total franchise valuation of $535 million.
The person, speaking on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press late Thursday night because they weren't authorized to talk publicly, said there are about 30 investors in the group put together by Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, a former All-Star guard.
An official announcement is expected Friday.
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GOLF
IRVING, Texas (AP) -- Keegan Bradley shot a 10-under 60 for a course record even with consecutive bogeys in the middle of his opening round at the Byron Nelson Championship.
Bradley was 7 under his last eight holes, including an eagle 3 at No. 7 before back-to-back birdies to end his round and take a three-stroke lead over 2011 Masters champion Charl Schwartzel. He had two bogeys, he missed the fairway at No. 18 and had a par putt that lipped the hole at No. 1, to start his back nine.
The 60 matched the lowest round at the Nelson, but was the first at the TPC Four Seasons course. He topped his career PGA Tour best by three strokes and equaled Phil Mickelson's opening 60 at Phoenix as the best round on the tour this season.
MOBILE, Ala. (AP) -- Lexi Thompson birdied four of her last five holes for a 7-under 65 and a share of the first-round lead with Eun-Hee Ji in the Mobile Bay LPGA Classic.
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BASEBALL
NEW YORK (AP) -- Major League Baseball appears set for a vast expansion of video review by umpires in 2014 and is examining whether all calls other than balls and strikes should be subject to instant replay.
Replay has been in place for home run calls since August 2008. Commissioner Bud Selig initially wanted to add trap plays and fair/foul calls down the lines for 2013, but change was put off while more radical options were examined.
"My opinion has evolved," Selig said after MLB executive vice president Joe Torre gave an update at a quarterly owners' meeting.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) -- AL Cy Young winner David Price was put on the disabled list for the first time in his career, a day after the struggling Tampa Bay ace was slowed by a strained left triceps.
Price went on the 15-day DL. The left-hander exited Wednesday night's loss to Boston after allowing four runs in 2 1-3 innings.
Price is 1-4 with a 5.24 ERA in nine starts this year.
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AUTO RACING
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) -- Dick Trickle, a former NASCAR driver whose larger-than-life personality and penchant for fun won him legions of fans despite a lack of success beyond the nation's small tracks, died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said. He was 71.
The Lincoln County Sheriff's Office said authorities received a call believed to be from Trickle, who said "there would be a dead body and it would be his." Authorities tried to call the number back, but no one answered.
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PRO FOOTBALL
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) -- A warrant has been issued for the arrest of former NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson in South Florida.
The state attorney's office confirmed that a Broward circuit judge issued a warrant May 7 against Johnson for failing to report to his probation officer.
Johnson received a year of probation last September after pleading no contest to a domestic violence charge involving his former wife, reality TV star Evelyn Lozada.
IRVING, Texas (AP) -- The Dallas Cowboys signed defensive end Anthony Hargrove, who sat out the 2012 season after he was suspended as part of the New Orleans Saints' bounty scandal.
Hargrove, who signed a one-year deal, got an eight-game ban from Commissioner Roger Goodell after the NFL said the Saints ran a program that paid defensive players improper cash bonuses for hits that injured opponents from 2009 through 2011.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- The Jacksonville Jaguars added another defensive lineman from New England, landing fourth-year tackle Kyle Love off waivers from the Patriots.
The Jaguars claimed defensive end Brandon Deaderick off waivers from the Pats earlier this week.
The Patriots released Love on Wednesday after he was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. Love had lost about 20 pounds before receiving the diagnosis about two weeks ago. He has since gained about half of it back.
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HOCKEY
Sharks forward Raffi Torres was suspended for the rest of San Jose's second-round playoff series against Los Angeles on Thursday for an illegal check to the head of Kings forward Jarret Stoll during the opener.
HELSINKI (AP) -- Paul Stastny of the Colorado Avalanche had two goals and two assists, and Nashville's Craig Smith added five assists to help the United States rout Russia 8-3 in the world hockey quarterfinals.
David Moss, Ryan Carter, Nate Thompson, Jacob Trouba, T.J. Oshie and Alex Galchenyuk also scored and John Gibson made 31 saves.
FORT MCMURRAY, Alberta (AP) -- It started almost two decades ago with a $20 hockey stick once wielded by a forgotten player for a string of mediocre teams.
It ends at the auction block this week when millions of dollars are likely to change hands. This may be the world's largest game-worn collection of memorabilia from the world's best player from the sport's last dynasty.
Shawn Chaulk owns a hoard of everything Wayne Gretzky. He says it's all for a singular cause that only a full-blooded hockey lover can savor.
"When you're a fan, fans are usually at a distance," he recently told The Canadian Press in the basement office of his home in Fort McMurray.
The online auction begins Friday through Montreal's Classic Auctions.
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TENNIS
ROME (AP) -- Six-time champion Rafael Nadal overcame one of the worst opening sets of his career to edge Latvian qualifier Ernests Gulbis 1-6, 7-5, 6-4 and reach the Italian Open quarterfinals.
Nadal's performance, and sometimes sluggish movement on the court, raised questions about whether he will be able to successfully defend his title at the French Open. The year's second Grand Slam starts in 10 days.
Nadal will next face fourth-seeded David Ferrer, who advanced when Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany withdrew because of dizziness.
Top-ranked Novak Djokovic had a far easier time than Nadal, beating Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-1, 6-4 to improve his clay-court record this season to 8-1. Serena Williams routed 14th-seeded Dominika Cibulkova 6-0, 6-1 for her 21st consecutive win, matching the best streak of her career.
sign out Welcome,
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