FORTALEZA, Brazil - The historic wave of protests that has swept across Brazil in recent days has gained some important allies — the players of the Brazilian national football team.

SYDNEY - Australia qualified for the 2014 World Cup by beating Iraq 1-0 on Tuesday, with Josh Kennedy heading home the winner in the 83rd minute to reward a bold substitution by coach Holger Osieck.

PARIS - A trial involving Bayern Munich star Franck Ribery and Real Madrid's Karim Benzema on charges they solicited an underage prostitute has been adjourned until January.

The two France internationals face potential prison terms of up to three years each if convicted.

Ribery and Benzema were not present as the trial opened in Paris on Tuesday, and then was adjourned until January for procedural reasons.

The players are accused of sexual relations with an underage prostitute.

DEVIZES, England - The hand-written official team sheet from Alex Ferguson's first game as manager of Manchester United is expected to raise up to 3,000 pounds ($4,700) when it is sold at auction on Saturday.

United's 2-0 loss to Oxford United on Nov. 8, 1986, was the first of 1,500 league games under Ferguson, who retired last month after nearly 27 years in charge.

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Eastern Conference-leading Montreal Impact came into Saturday's MLS match rested, while the Columbus Crew were at the tail end of a brutal stretch of games.

But it was the Crew who came out strong in the early going and never looked back as Columbus snapped a three-game winless streak with an impressive 2-0 victory over Montreal.

Matias Sanchez scored in the sixth minute for Columbus and Dominic Oduro added another in the 22nd to snap the Impact's three-game winning.

WASHINGTON - The drought is finally over for Toronto FC.

An own goal by D.C. United defender Daniel Woolard in the 41st minute was the difference Saturday as Toronto fought back from an early 1-0 deficit to pick up a 2-1 victory and snap an 11-game winless streak in MLS play.

MANCHESTER, England - Manchester City hired Manuel Pellegrini as the club's new manager on Friday, entrusting a man nicknamed "The Engineer" with constructing a team to reclaim the Premier League title and become a force in the Champions League.

BARCELONA, Spain - Barcelona's current and former presidents set aside their differences and defended Lionel Messi against allegations of tax fraud on Thursday, a case that experts say could carry a prison sentence for the Argentina star.

A Spanish state prosecutor filed a fraud complaint on Wednesday alleging that Messi and his father Jorge avoided paying 4 million euros ($5.3 million) in back taxes on earnings from image rights during 2006-2009 by using illegal overseas tax havens.

BOYDS, Md. - Canadian Dwayne De Rosario recorded a hat trick to give struggling D.C. United a 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Union on Wednesday night in the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup.

The Toronto native put United ahead in the 24th minute with a blast from outside the box into the lower left corner of the net. A long scoring drought by both teams ensued until De Rosario gave United a 2-0 lead with his second goal in the 75th.