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SANTIAGO, Chile — Taking advantage of a bad night by Neymar, Colombia defeated Brazil 1-0 in the Copa America on Wednesday, keeping its quarter-final hopes alive in the South American tournament.

Jeison Murillo scored a 36th-minute winner, and Neymar’s poor performance was capped by a red card after the final whistle because of an altercation with Colombian players.

Colombia’s Carlos Bacca, who shoved Neymar from behind, also was shown a red card. Bacca apparently was upset after the Brazilian seemed to head-butt teammate Murillo during a discussion.

Neymar’s yellow card earlier in the match was his second of the tournament, which was already enough to suspend him from the final group match.

Brazil could have secured a spot in the quarter-finals with a win over Colombia, but now it will decide its future against Venezuela on Sunday.

“Colombia showed that it is a very experienced team,” Brazil coach Dunga said. “Our players at times got caught in their provocations and forgot to play football. Brazil has to play football. Brazil can’t go to war, we have to focus on what we do best, which is play football.”

The result ended Colombia’s 24-year winless drought against the five-time world champion and left Colombia, Brazil and Venezuela tied atop Group C with three points each. 

If Peru beats Venezuela, all four teams will enter the final round with three points each. The top two teams in each of the three groups advance, plus the two-best third-place finishers. A loss on Wednesday would have left Colombia with zero points and in difficult position to advance.

“Colombia showed that it’s a team that has matured, that can play these types of matches,” Colombia coach Jose Pekerman said. “We couldn’t slip up today, we needed an almost-perfect match in all areas.”

With Neymar struggling, Brazil had difficulties getting near the goal and it was Colombia — led by James Rodriguez and Falcao Garcia — that created the most dangerous chances.

Murillo netted the winner off a free kick cross into Brazil’s area. He got to the loose ball near the penalty spot and fired a low shot through the legs of Brazil defender Thiago Silva.

Neymar had a chance to equalise with a close-range header in the 44th minute, but Colombian goalkeeper David Ospina made a good save to keep his team ahead. Off the rebound, the ball touched Neymar’s hand, prompting the referee to show him a yellow card.

Neymar complained, saying that the touch was involuntary. He had already received a yellow card in the opening game against Peru, when he played extremely well and led Brazil to a 2-1 come-from-behind victory.

“The referees have to respect Neymar because he is always getting hit,” Brazil midfielder Willian said. “It happened again today and he was the one ejected.”

Brazil had another great chance to score in the 58th minute, after Murillo misplayed a pass back to Ospina and the ball ended with Roberto Firmino inside the area, but the forward missed the open net, sending his shot over the crossbar.

The Copa America is Brazil’s first official competition since it was humiliated in a 7-1 World Cup semifinal loss to Germany last year. Brazil eliminated Colombia in the quarter-finals of the home tournament.

VIENNA — Nico Rosberg is still kicking himself for failing to pressure Lewis Hamilton in Montreal and now has to make up for it at this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix.

Rosberg missed out on a hat-trick of wins after finishing second at the Canadian Grand Prix, as Hamilton won the race to extend his championship lead over his Mercedes teammate to 17 points.

With the form Hamilton has been in so far this season — four wins out of seven races — Rosberg has to make the most of any opportunity he gets.

The German driver gained good momentum after winning in Spain and Monaco, with Hamilton finishing second and third respectively, but his best form eluded him in Canada.

“Canada was really lost for me on the Saturday,” Rosberg said. “Not getting everything together in qualifying hurt my chances big time.”

Another pole position in Saturday’s qualifying would complete a calendar year of pole positions for Mercedes.

The last time either Hamilton or Rosberg failed to qualify in pole was at last year’s Austrian Grand Prix. Still, that did not hinder Rosberg, who won from third on the grid.

“My first race at this track last year couldn’t have been much better. Of course, we didn’t have the ideal start in qualifying but we nailed it on Sunday and it was great to get the win,” Rosberg said. “I’m sure we’ll have some tough competition here once again with Williams and probably some others too.”

Hamilton’s performance was arguably even more aggressive, driving brilliantly from way back in ninth spot on the grid to finish second.

The atmosphere around the Red Bull Ring track in Spielberg, nestled in the Styria region of Austria and surrounded by rolling hills, was among the most festive in F1 when it returned to the calendar last year. It gives drivers a welcome chance to connect more with the fans, amid a growing concern that the sport is lacking in excitement compared to previous years, with Mercedes crushing the competition, less noisy cars and a lack of overtaking some of the main sticking points.

“It’s a circuit I really enjoy driving and the crowds are unbelievable, so I’m looking forward to getting back out there and having a good battle,” Rosberg said.

The design of the track, with many long straights combined with some high-speed corners is similar to Montreal, which will no doubt please Hamilton.

“It was a great feeling to finally get back on top in Canada,” said Hamilton, who is eyeing a 38th career win. “Now, though, it’s time to move on and put things right at a circuit I had a tough introduction to last year.”

The race should also give an indication whether Red Bull is genuinely improving after a difficult start to the season underlined by problems with the Renault engines.

Daniil Kvyat finished fourth and Daniel Ricciardo finished fifth at Monaco — Red Bull’s best result so far. But Monaco’s circuit is the hardest to overtake on, and so this did not expose Red Bull’s relative lack of racing pace. The inconsistency resurfaced in Montreal, where Kvyat was ninth and Ricciardo 13th.

The days of Red Bull dominating with Sebastian Vettel winning four straight titles from 2010-13 seem a long way away, and the team’s motorsport consultant Helmut Marko is not optimistic that Red Bull can give their passionate home fans something to cheer about.

“As soon as there is a long straight we lose out. We know that we have a handicap on the engine side, horsepower-wise,” Marko said. “The next circuits that are similar to Monaco are Budapest and then Singapore. If you only have three venues where you are relatively competitive, that spells the end to any dreams of glory. That is annoying.”

Vettel, meanwhile, needs to bounce back after a disappointing fifth-place finish in Canada, a result that leaves him 43 points behind Hamilton.

However good the party turns out to be, Red Bull are feeling far from bullish as Formula One descends on their home Austrian circuit in search of excitement this weekend.

Last season, when Austria’s scenic Spielberg circuit returned to the calendar after an 11-year absence, the hosts revved up the fans by winning in Canada with Australian Daniel Ricciardo.

This time, with both their drivers sure to collect penalties in the next few races for exceeding the engine allocation, there will be a lot more criticism than optimism wafting around in the mountain air.

Neither Ricciardo, whose permanent smile has been tested to the full, nor Russian team mate Daniil Kvyat have come close to winning and former champions Red Bull, now fourth overall, have not been shy in blaming engine partners Renault.

“Unfortunately, the Red Bull Ring is a real power track so we won’t be with the front-runners,” Red Bull motorsport consultant Helmut Marko told the Formula1.com website.

“But even if our drivers will hardly see the podium this year, the fans will get entertainment at its best,” added the Austrian.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Brazil beat Senegal 5-0 to join Serbia in the final of the Under-20 World Cup and bury on Wednesday the nascent suspicion football’s great expressionists had embarked on a new, more sober course.

After its latest matches against Uruguay and Portugal were scoreless and decided in penalty shootouts, speculation grew that a new generation was ushering in a more defensive style.

A theory that Brazil’s 7-1 loss to Germany at least year’s senior World Cup forced a general reappraisal of its direction — a new emphasis on defence over attack — grew as goals dried up.

Brazil exploded that theory on Wednesday, striking three times in the first 19 minutes to earn its final place opposite Serbia, which beat Mali 2-1 in extra time.

While Brazil was a team transformed, Serbia continued its steady progress to the final; playing sound defence and showing an ability — rare at this tournament — to clinically convert a few scoring chances.

An early goal to Andrija Zivkovic set the tone early for an imposing Serbian performance but Youssouf Kone’s equaliser helped Mali regain its confidence.

The second half was played at a frantic pace and Mali had the best of it but neither side created the decisive goal. In extra time Milos Veljkovic’s header found Ivan Saponjic, who nodded the ball past Mali goalkeeper Djigui Diarra.

Kone received a second yellow card six minutes from time to all but end Mali’s hopes, and the team’s performance dissolved in bizarre scenes of petulance and recrimination.

Mali players including Kone and Diarra confronted referee Mauro Vigliano after Kone’s second yellow for a foul. As the scene became more heated, Vigliano tried to move away and Kone appeared to grab his shoulder from behind. Kone eventually left, but took the longest route possible around the field. Diarra received a yellow card for his dissent.

Five-time champion Brazil took all of its chances to advance to the final for the ninth time and to end the remarkable run of first-time qualifier Senegal.

Brazil rushed out to a two-goal lead after seven minutes, before adding a third in the 19th minute, all but ending Senegal’s challenge.

An attack down the right flank by Joao Pedro was followed by an innocuous pass into the middle which deflected off Senegal defender Andelinou Correa’s heel into goal.

Two minutes later, three Brazil players found themselves with an overlap on a fast break and Gabriel Jesus held his nerve while Marcus Guilherme found space and blasted home.

Another soft shot along the ground from the flank was only partially stopped by a sprawling Ibrahima Sy, the Senegalese keeper, directly into the path of Brazil midfielder Boschilia, who scored.

Brazil added a fourth in the 35th minute through Jorge.

The second half lost some structure but the South Americans added their fifth after clever interplay allowed Guilherme to tap in his second in the 78th minute.

As good as Brazil was on attack, its defence has been its real strength; it has played 8 hours, 22 minutes since it last conceded a goal. Coach Rogerio Micale was relieved, after two penalty shootouts, to see his team win so emphatically.

“We won those games in penalties and it was close but we’ve been creating plenty of chances,” he said. “Today we scored them.

“Everybody was perfect today. We have grown during the competition... we’ve reached the final with a huge game today and we expect to do it again in the final.”

AMMAN — Jordanian ultra-marathon runner Salameh Al Aqra continues his Austrian tour by participating in the fifth Mozart 100 Ultra-marathon race in Salzburg on June 20.

Following his victory in 19th Erste-Sparinvest Ötscher-Ultra-marathon with an overall time of 5h56m19s on the 70km course, Aqra will try to win the race in Salzburg for the first time.

Last year he finished third with a time of 8h46m56s on the 102.6km course, followed by Andreas Pfandlbauer of Austria (8h41m16s) and Nemeth Csaba of Hungary (8h30m47s).

The Mozart 100 race takes place in the scenic area around Salzburg and is divided into three categories: 102.6km, 55km and 25.5km.

MIAMI — At a Caribbean anti-corruption conference in the Cayman Islands in March last year, politicians and activists called on regional leaders to create a culture of integrity and transparency with zero tolerance for offenders. It didn’t seem to matter to the organiser that one of the main sponsors was the regional football body CONCACAF that was mired in a big bribery scandal.

That organiser, the University College of the Cayman Islands, trumpeted CONCACAF’s involvement and said the aim of the gathering was “to raise awareness of the potential for corruption and decline in ethical standards across all the various sectors of society, including sports, and the consequent damaging effect on economies and social harmony”.

Little more than a year later, CONCACAF is at the centre of the turmoil engulfing FIFA, football’s world governing body, following US prosecutors’ indictment last month of nine current and former officials and five business executives in a $150 million corruption case.

Of the nine, four were members of CONCACAF, which also represents countries in North and Central America. The two most prominent from the Caribbean were former CONCACAF president Jack Warner, from Trinidad and Tobago, and the man who replaced him in that job — Jeffrey Webb from the Caymans, who was a speaker at the conference. Both had also served as FIFA vice presidents and members of its powerful 24-member executive committee.

From the tiny Caymans, a British dependent territory, to the larger independent nations of Jamaica and Trinidad, the scandal has left the region facing questions about whether a culture of corruption is embedded in small island politics and society. The abuse of football, which has overtaken cricket and athletics in popularity in the region, has become a symbol of that problem.

“There is a Jack Warner or two in every Caribbean parliament today,” said political scientist Tennyson Joseph at the University of the West Indies in Barbados, noting that poor public services in some islands had opened the door to populist would-be Robin Hoods.

The scandal also risks damaging the island economies by deterring US and other foreign banks from dealing with banks in the region.

“Due to compliance requirements it’s getting more and more difficult for local banks to find a correspondent bank that will take Caribbean business,” said David Jessop, a veteran consultant to the Caribbean Council, a London-based non-profit trade advisory group.

The indictment details a series of wire transfers between Caribbean banks and US banks, and the US authorities have indicated they will be reviewing such transactions to see if any institutions knowingly facilitated bribe payments.

Blatter praised

FIFA President Sepp Blatter, who announced on June 2 he will step down, is widely regarded in the Caribbean as a hero for championing developing countries, giving them the same power as big football playing countries in votes at the annual FIFA congress and providing funds to develop the sport in the region.

The corruption questions facing Blatter were “a small price to pay for all the good he has done”, wrote sportscaster Orville Higgins in the Jamaican newspaper, The Gleaner last week.

A number of former football officials, even those tainted by this scandal and earlier corruption investigations, have retained political influence.

Warner, for example, was reelected to parliament in Trinidad despite his resignation as FIFA vice president and CONCACAF president in 2011 after he was the subject of a FIFA probe into his role at a meeting where bribes were paid to officials in the region.

The US indictment alleges that beginning in the early 1990s, Warner “began to leverage his influence and exploit his official positions for personal gain”, including soliciting and accepting bribes for his executive committee vote in the selection of who would host the FIFA World Cup in 1998 and 2010.

He has denied the charges and is fighting extradition from Trinidad to the US: Warner and his lawyer declined to speak with Reuters for this article.

His two sons, Daryll Warner, a former FIFA development officer, and Daryan Warner, have pleaded guilty to wire fraud and other financial crimes in the same US case. For Daryan, e the charges largely relate to his obtaining tickets to World Cup games fraudulently and selling them at a substantial profit.

In 2011, FIFA’s ethics committee investigated dozens of Caribbean football officials in what became known as the cash-for-votes scandal, following allegations that representatives of each federation in the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) received envelopes stuffed with $40,000 in return for supporting Asian Football Confederation head Mohammed Bin Hamman in that year’s presidential election.

Ten were sanctioned and five others issued warnings. FIFA initially suspended Jack Warner for his role in helping Bin Hamman but the case against him was dropped by FIFA when he resigned all of his football positions.

Several continue to hold key posts, including Caribbean Football Union President Gordon Derrick of Antigua and CONCACAF Vice President Horace Burrell of Jamaica.

Burrell was banned for three months from taking part in any football-related activity for apparent violations of FIFA’s code of ethics at the 2011 CFU meeting. Later that year, the committee gave Derrick a reprimand and a fine of 300 Swiss Francs ($322) for code of ethics violations at the same meeting.

Burrell and Derrick did not respond to requests for comment.

Burrell, a retired Jamaican army captain, is credited with helping Jamaica’s team, known as the ‘Reggae Boyz’, qualify for its only World Cup Finals in 1998. A food chain Burrell owns — the Captain’s Bakery — has sponsored some of the lower level leagues, also helping his popularity. He also teamed up with Webb to bring one of the chain’s outlets to the Caymans.

Webb’s arrest stunned many in the Caymans. He had built a reputation as an official who could clean up CONCACAF after Warner’s reign, and was seen as a potential successor to Blatter.

An attorney for Webb declined to comment.

Blind eye

Experts on Caribbean politics say none of this should be a surprise.

Joseph from Barbados, pointed to an “under-developed democratic culture” in the Caribbean that could turn a blind eye to public corruption, deemed petty and excusable.

The Caribbean lacks campaign finance laws creating a “black hole in dealing with corruption,” said Trevor Munroe, the region’s most prominent political scientist at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica.

But that could be changing. Legislation before the Jamaican parliament seeks to regulate political contributions for the first time. Another bill would create an independent anti-corruption commission. Similar legislation has also been introduced in Trinidad.

The scandal has also opened up other fissures in society, such as those between locals and foreigners living in the Caribbean.

When the Caymans only daily paper, the Cayman Compass, ran an editorial suggesting Webb was part of a culture of corruption on the small island chain, the publishers were accused of treason by the head of the government.

Premier Alden McLaughlin suggested the paper’s American owners were foreigners with no understanding of the island’s way of life. The publishers, David and Vicki Legge, saying they didn’t feel safe, fled to South Florida.

For those running football teams in the region it has led to a lot of soul searching.

“Somewhere along the way historically we have lost the idea of what the role of football and sport is in human development,” said Renard Moxom, director of the Caymans national football teams. “We need to get back to the real purpose of promoting the game. We really need to protect it. It’s in a fragile state right now.”

AMMAN — Jordan’s U-16 football team wrapped up their local training camp after playing Palestine in two matches as both teams prepare for the West Asian Championship in Amman starting July 29. Jordan beat their guests 2-0 after losing the first match 3-2.

Jordanian team officials led by head coach Éric Delétang underlined the importance of the two friendlies which will give the staff the chance to assess the team ahead of the upcoming West Asian Championship.

The Jordan Football Association confirmed the U-16 team will host its Saudi counterpart on August 26 ahead of Group B qualifiers which will be held from September 12-20 in Kyrgyzstan for the 2016 AFC U-16 Asian Championship which Jordan will play alongside Nepal, Oman and Kyrgyzstan.

OAKLAND, California — Stephen Curry received treatment for dehydration following Game 5 of the NBA finals, a little worn out after carrying Golden State to the brink of its first championship in 40 years.

Warriors will need him at his best Tuesday, knowing what’s coming from LeBron James in Cleveland.

“They’re going to come out and give it their best punch,” Warriors guard Klay Thompson said.

Warriors will have two chances to win the series after taking a 3-2 lead with their 104-91 victory Sunday. They would host Game 7, if necessary, on Friday.

“We don’t want to come back here,” Thompson said. “As much as we’d love to win it in front of our fans, we really want to finish it in Cleveland.”

James had 40 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists Sunday, his second triple-double in the series, and was asked how he copes with such a performance not resulting in victory.

“Well, you cope with it by understanding it’s just one game and looking at the opportunity we have on Tuesday to force a Game 7,” he said. “Obviously, for myself, I want to do whatever it takes to help our team win, and I haven’t been able to do that the last two. So hopefully I can do a better job coming in on Tuesday. We all as a unit can do a better job, and we’ll be fine.”

MVP! MVP!

After Curry’s dismal Game 2 and rough start to Game 3, he has rediscovered his shot. His 37-point performance Sunday including seven 3-pointers, the second time in the series he’s fallen one shy of Ray Allen’s NBA finals record.

“I just think sooner or later, Steph’s going to get going,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “He had a tough first couple of games. He got going at the end of Game 3 in the fourth quarter and that’s all it takes. Steph makes a couple shots, he feels like he’s got it rolling, and he’s been great ever since.”

Fantastic finishes

Warriors, with their superior depth, have largely dominated the fourth quarters of the last three games, outscoring Cavaliers by 12, 15 and seven points. Whether the problem has been fatigue or poor execution, Cavaliers know they have to clean that up in Cleveland.

“We gave up 31 points in the fourth,” James said of Sunday’s game. “Some of them were free throws, but a lot of them were them just breaking us down. So we’ve got to do a better job of that.”

Legend of Lebron

James is averaging 36.6 points, 12.4 rebounds and 8.8 assists in the series with two triple-doubles. He’s one shy of tying the record of four 40-point games in one finals, set by Jerry West in 1969 and Michael Jordan in 1993, and has been so good that the Warriors don’t even pretend they might stop him.

“He’s been there for years now, so you’re not going to shut him down. But if you continue to make him work hard for each and every bucket that he gets, it takes a toll on his body,” said Golden State’s Draymond Green, the runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year.

“If he gets 40, he gets 40. Like I said, that’s why he’s LeBron James. You can go throw a triple-team at him, and he’ll probably still get 40, but as long as you make him work for those 40, then you’ve got to be satisfied with what you do.”

Hack-an-Iggy

Though Cleveland coach David Blatt has said he is against the Hack-a-Shaq strategy of intentionally fouling away from the ball, Andre Iguodala wasn’t surprised when Cavaliers used it against him down the stretch.

Iguodala was just 2 for 11 from the free-throw line in Game 5 and a woeful 6 for 18 (33.3 per cent) in the finals, so he figures he may see more of the strategy the remainder of the series.

“So got a day tomorrow when we get to Cleveland to prepare for it, and it’s a challenge,” Iguodala said. “Just like any other challenge, you want to meet it head on and you want to be ready for it.”

AMMAN — Jordan's national team plays Trinidad and Tobago on Tuesday in a friendly amid the regrouping agenda for World Cup and Asian Cup qualifiers.

The guest team is ranked 67th in FIFA World Rankings while Jordan  is now at 103rd and is 12th among Asian teams.

The national team recently beat Tajikistan 3-1 in its opening Group B qualifier for the 2018 World Cup expected to be held in Russia, doubling as part of the qualification for 2019 Asian Cup as well.

Jordan is set to play Bangladesh, Kyrgyzstan and Australia in Group B as they seek to advance in both competitions with 40 teams playing home and away in a round-robin format in the second qualifying round which runs until March 2016. 

Jordan's coach Ahmad Abdul Qader who took the helm after the  team failed to reach the quarters of the 2015 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup was content with the latest match and said "beating Tajikistan  was important  and provided the confidence and morale boost in a tough group".

The coach said the upcoming friendly against Trinidad and Tobago would provide a chance for all players to take part and help improve the FIFA ranking as well.

During the past period, the Kingdom's team played four friendlies holding Kuwait 2-2, Lebanon 0-0, losing 2-1 to Saudi Arabia and 1-0 to Syria. 

The Jordanian squad had the most memorable World Cup qualifying journey in 2013 when they lost a possible chance to move to the World Cup finals for the first time. 

The Kingdom had never reached that far in World Cup qualifying since taking part in the World Cup Qualifiers in 1985.

In the Asian Cup, Jordan has reached the championship three times since first taking part in qualifiers in 1972. The pinnacle was at the 13th Asian Cup, when they lost to Japan in the quarter-finals and jumped to the best ever FIFA Ranking of 37th in August 2004. In 2011, Jordan again reached the quarter-finals.

Just as Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr did not want to reveal details of an altered game plan for Game 4, his Cleveland Cavaliers counterpart did not want to tip his hand for Game 5.

Cavaliers head coach David Blatt was asked how he would counter Kerr’s decision to go smaller with his starting five last Thursday, replacing centre Andrew Bogut with swing-man Andre Iguodala.

Iguodala scored 22 points in the 103-82 win in Cleveland to tie the Finals at 2-2 with Game 5 at Oracle Arena in Oakland on Sunday.

“I think that we’ve made more than our share of adjustments throughout the course of the entire play-offs, not only in this series,” said Blatt, referring to the adjustments he has been forced to make because of injuries to starters Kevin Love (shoulder), Kyrie Irving (knee) and a suspension to J.R. Smith.

“Every game brings out new things and certainly presents new challenges. If you look at the one game, it makes you think ‘okay, we’ve got to change this, that and the other thing.’ If you look at the four games, in three out of four of those games we were pretty good doing the things that we did. So I think you’ll see a combination of both of those possibilities.

“We’ve got to continue to do certain things really well. What we need to change, we will.”

If Cavaliers superstar LeBron James has his way, he wants his coach to stick with the team’s starting five of James, Matthew Dellavedova, Iman Shumpert, Tristan Thompson and Timofey Mozgov.

“In this case with our bigs, Timo and Tristan, Timo’s starting off on [Iguodala], it’s a different match up than Bogut, obviously,” James said.

“You’ve got a guy that’s primarily on the perimeter in Game 4 versus guarding a guy that’s always in the paint, for the most part, unless he’s initiating offense.

“So it’s definitely a different change for us. But I think we’ll be much more prepared for it tomorrow night if they go with the same line-up.

“We’re going to play our game. We’ve gotten to this point by playing the way we play, and we’re not going to change. We’ll make adjustments throughout the game, but we won’t change our starting line-up.”

Off guard

LeBron James is trapped in the endless online loop of the moment he got caught with his pants down on national television.

James’ wardrobe adjustment — briefly lowering his compression pants in the moments before his Cleveland Cavaliers took on Golden State Warriors Thursday — was another example of television not moving fast enough to stop a moment best left off the air.

The moment flashed by so quickly, with James’ body partially obscured by an onscreen graphic, that many viewers probably missed it in real time.

“You needed to have a really good DVR and a microscope, I think,” said Tim Winter, president of the Parents Television Council. His watchdog group frequently encourages its members to file complaints to the federal government for violations of indecency standards but in this case he advised followers to stand down, calling it “much ado about nothing”.

The Federal Communications Commission would not comment Friday on whether anyone had formally complained about James’ unexpected exposure.

Dating back to Janet Jackson’s exposed breast on a Super Bowl halftime show and even before, directors of sports and entertainment events have long been on guard to stop such moments from slipping through. Often, telecast of live events are delayed several seconds to enable someone backstage to press a button to stop offensive language.

Success is mixed at best: A week earlier, bilingual jockey Victor Espinoza could be heard offering swear words in English and Spanish after guiding American Pharoah over the finish line for the Triple Crown.

A director is usually backstage watching several different camera feeds and ordering which one goes out over the air, and will head to another shot if something untoward is shown. Generally, there’s not enough time to edit out something that happens so quickly, said Ross Greenburg, an independent sports producer and former president of HBO Sports.

“Something like this is very rare, is next to impossible to prevent, and to my knowledge there is no video delay in effect that could prevent it from going out live,” said Marc Payton, a recently retired sports television director who was in charge for national baseball, football and boxing telecasts.

Don’t just blame TV, Greenburg said. A star like James in a big event like the NBA finals should be aware that a camera is going to be trained on him from the moment he walks out of the locker room.

ABC Sports would not comment on James’ extra exposure, and Cavaliers star was traveling West on Friday.

Twitter was alight with followers only too happy to fill in the breach, though.

GENEVA — Sepp Blatter may seek to stay on as the president of FIFA, a Swiss newspaper reported on Sunday, less than two weeks after Blatter said he would step down over a major corruption scandal at the organisation.

However, Domenico Scala, the official overseeing the process of choosing a new president, said that Blatter’s departure was an “indispensable” part of planned reforms to football’s governing body.

Blatter is under pressure to step down for good as US and Swiss authorities widened their investigations into bribery and corruption at the sport’s global governing body. EU lawmakers are among those calling for his immediate departure.

But according to the Schweiz am Sonntag newspaper, Blatter had received messages of support from African and Asian football associations, asking him to rethink his decision to step down.

Blatter was honoured by the support and had not ruled out remaining in office, the newspaper said, citing an anonymous source close to him.

Blatter said on June 2 he would step down as FIFA president in the wake of the corruption investigation, having led football’s world governing body since 1998, although he would stay on until a successor was elected.

FIFA, in an e-mailed statement, referred Reuters to the speech Blatter made on June 2 and said they had “no further comment to make”.

In his speech, Blatter said: “I have decided to lay down my mandate at an extraordinary elective congress. I will continue to exercise my functions as FIFA president until that election.”

He also added: “Since I shall not be a candidate, and am therefore now free from the constraints that elections inevitably impose, I shall be able to focus on driving far-reaching, fundamental reforms that transcend our previous efforts.” 

But Scala, head of FIFA’s audit and compliance committee, said in a statement that Blatter needed to stick by his pledge that he would not stand again.

“For me, the reforms are the central topic,” he said, without referring to the interview directly.

“That is why I think it is clearly indispensable to follow through with the initiated process of president’s change as has been announced. “

Blatter has changed his mind in the past. When he began his fourth mandate in 2011, he said it would be his last, but he later backed down, stood again and was re-elected in May.

FIFA is expected to pick his replacement at an extraordinary congress in Zurich between December and February. The exact date will be decided by an executive committee meeting on July 20.

Blatter’s renewed interest in the job was also a reason for the departure of Walter de Gregorio as FIFA’s director of communications, since he had argued for a completely new start and advised Blatter to go, the Swiss newspaper said.

De Gregorio declined to comment to the newspaper.

Scala has reminded Blatter to stick with his plans to step down.