Merlin Olsen, a gridiron Hall of Famer who became a popular actor and broadcaster in the wake of his National Football League career, has died at the age of 69. Utah State, where Olsen attended university, said he died outside of Los Angeles early Thursday after battling cancer. He was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a cancer of the lung lining, last year.

Suspected gang member Willie Clark was found guilty of murder on Thursday in the 2007 shooting death of Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams. The verdict was the culmination of an 11-day trial, and came after the jury deliberated for a day and a half. Clark, who faces life in prison when he is sentenced on April 30, showed no emotion as the verdict was read.

Wayne Rooney says his receding hairline is partly responsible for his improved heading prowess this season. The 24-year-old England international took his goal tally for the season to 30 with two strikes against AC Milan in the Champions League on Wednesday and opened the scoring with his seventh successive headed goal at Old Trafford.

Europa League round of 16 first-leg results on Thursday:At MadridAtletico Madrid (ESP) 0 Sporting Lisbon (POR) 0At Hamburg, GermanyHamburg (GER) 3 (Mathijsen 23, van Nistelrooy 40, Jarolim 76) Anderlecht (BEL) 1 (Legear 45+1)At Lille, FranceLille (FRA) 1 (Hazard 84) Liverpool (ENG) 0At Kazan, RussiaRubin Kazan (RUS) 1 (Noboa 29) Wolfsburg (GER) 1 (Misimovic 67)Playing later (2005GMT)At LisbonBenfica (POR) v Marseille (FRA)At Turin, ItalyJuventus (ITA) v Fulham (ENG)At AthensPanathinaikos (GRE) v Standard Liege (BEL)At Valencia, SpainValencia (ESP) v Werder Bremen (GER)Second-leg matches to be played on March 18.

A court ruled Thursday against three French pensioners appealing for ownership of Fouquet's, an iconic Paris restaurant on the Champs Elysees, in a legal battle that has gone on for half a century. Pierre, Michel and their sister Lina Renault were told by a court in 2007 they were the legal owners of the building housing the famous restaurant and other businesses, valued at 70 million euros (95 million dollars).

Manchester United chief executive David Gill insists the Glazer family will not be forced out of Old Trafford by fan discontent and a potential takeover bid from the Red Knights. United fans have shown their opposition to the Glazers' reign, and the massive debts the American family have loaded onto the club, by wearing green and gold scarves at matches this season.

Troubled Premier League club Portsmouth received a boost in their attempt to avoid liquidation on Thursday as the British tax authority accepted the team's move into administration. Officials at HM Revenue and Customs had insisted Portsmouth's owner Balram Chainrai did not have the legal right to put the club into administration, but they have now abandoned that claim.

Collated results from the first day of the men's field hockey World Cup in New Delhi on Sunday:Group BSpain 4 (Roc Oliva 19, David Alegre 21, Rodrigo Garza 46, Pau Quemada 60) South Africa 2 (Julian Hykes 16, Ian Haley 30)H-t: 2-2England 3 (Ashley Jackson 25, James Tindall 34, 45) Australia 2 (Jamie

Barely two years after it opened, a unique Arctic "doomsday" stockpile of all the world's crop seeds has reached the half-million species mark, the foundation that oversees it said Thursday. A mold-resistant wild bean from Costa Rica, a vulnerable strawberry from a bear-infested part of Russia's Kuril islands and a host of American soybeans are among the latest additions to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault.

Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas is set to miss Saturday's Premier League clash at Hull with a hamstring injury. Fabregas suffered the injury in the first half of last weekend's victory over Burnley and was ruled out of the midweek Champions League victory over Porto as a result. Gunners boss Arsene Wenger had rated the Spain midfielder's chances of facing Hull as 50-50, but his creative talisman looks certain to absent from the trip to the KC Stadium.