g at Los Angeles on May 15. Gordon had two hi

KAZAN, Russia -- World Cup winner Germany will play South American champion Chile in the group stage of next years Confederations Cup.The Germans will also take on Australia and the African champion, to be determined in February, in Group B.Its good opportunity for some younger players but we will have a strong team, said Germany coach Joachim Loew, who is planning to rest some senior players.European champion Portugal will face hosts Russia in Group A, along with Mexico and New Zealand. Russia will play New Zealand in the opening game in St. Petersburg.I think its going to be a very difficult group with Russia, the host nation for the tournament, with a new coach and a lot of ambition, Portugal coach Fernando Santos said. We are not favorites but we are here to play to win.The tournament runs from June 17 to July 2 next year in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan and Sochi, and is a warmup event for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Its a key test for some of the trickier areas of Russias preparations, including the costly and much delayed 69,000-seat St. Petersburg stadium. Russian President Vladimir Putin told FIFA president Gianni Infantino on Friday that the stadium would be finished by the end of next month.The Confederations Cups future after 2017 is uncertain, with Infantino saying earlier Saturday that the format could be changed and we are putting everything on the table.Thats because the 2022 World Cup in Qatar will be held in November and December, meaning the Confederations Cup would cause severe disruption to the club calendar if held in its traditional slot a year before the bigger tournament.Infantino said FIFA officials are discussing questions such as Shall we play it in June? Shall we play it in November? Shall we think about the format?Last year, then-FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke said the 2021 tournament would be moved from Qatar and played elsewhere in Asia.The Confederations Cup features many of the best teams in world football -- with FIFAs six continental champions, plus the World Cup holder and the following years World Cup host. But it has struggled to build a distinct identity beyond being simply a test event for a larger tournament. Phil Esposito Bruins Jersey . -- Ty Montgomery had 290 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns, and fifth-ranked Stanford held on to beat No. Jaromir Jagr Bruins Jersey . - NASCAR announced a 33-race schedule for the 2014 Nationwide Series with virtually no changes from this years slate. http://www.thebostonbruinshockey.com/sean-kuraly-hockey-jersey/ . Despite dominating possession, Schalke needed an own goal from Nicolas Hoefler for the breakthrough a minute before the interval. The Freiburg midfielder misjudged Jefferson Farfans corner and bundled the ball into his own net. Torey Krug Bruins Jersey . That left plenty of energy for pitching books and swatting away free agency questions. Anthony had 24 points and nine rebounds, and the Knicks avenged an embarrassing home loss with a rout of their own, beating the Boston Celtics 114-88 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory. Charlie McAvoy Bruins Jersey . Here are his mid-season NBA awards. MVP: (KEVIN DURANT-Thunder) - Has been sensational this season and more importantly, the most consistent player in the league. Considering that his team has been without star guard Russell Westbrook and with the free agent departure of sharpshooter Kevin Martin, hes had to carry the majority of the load to not only keep his team afloat but more importantly, at an elite level. ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Elliot Johnson has some fond memories of his years with the Rays. None might have been sweeter than his return to Tampa Bay with the Kansas City Royals on Thursday night. Johnson had a three three-run homer for his second hit of an eight-run sixth inning, leading the surging Royals to a 10-1 victory over the Rays. "Its hard to describe the first time back," he said. "I wish everyone would get a chance to understand what its like and its really hard even to put into words." Traded to Kansas City by the Rays in February, Johnson led off the big inning with a single and chased Jeremy Hellickson (4-3) with his second homer of the season, both coming off Hellickson. Johnson got his third hit of the game in the eighth inning and is 6 for 11 with four RBIs against his former team while batting .202 with three RBIs against every other team. "When they came into our place, I had a good series there," Johnson said. "I wasnt really playing that well, and Ned (Yost) gave me some opportunities to play against them. I picked it up and today played well again. Its good to get them anyway you can, but it feels good to get them against them, of course. (Former Rays pitcher James) Shields said the same thing; he wishes he could pitch here." "He gets fired up playing against these guys and he really helped us out today," said Eric Hosmer, who homered off Jake Odorizzi in the seventh. Ervin Santana (5-5) gave up five hits and an unearned run in 7 2-3 innings. The Royals, who have won eight of nine, set a franchise record by holding an opponent to three runs or fewer in a 12th straight game. "Everything is going our way right now so we have to keep that up," Santana said. Hellickson lost for the first time since April 25, giving up eight runs on 10 hits in 5 2-3 innings. He retired 15 of the 16 Royals he faced in the first five innings. "He was locating his faastball and his changeup really kept us off stride," said Kansas City bench coach Chino Cadiha, who was acting manger while Yost attended his daughters wedding in Georgia.dddddddddddd "I guess we figured it out in the sixth, and here we go." Johnson led off the sixth inning of a scoreless game with his first hit. After Alcides Escobars double, Alex Gordon drove in the first run with Kansas Citys third straight hit. Three more singles and an RBI double by Miguel Tejada preceded Johnsons homer to give the Royals an 8-0 lead. In all the Royals sent 11 men to the plate in the inning. "I just fell behind to Elliot, the first batter of the inning, and just couldnt stop it after that," Hellickson said. "Im pretty frustrated. It wasnt a fun game. Eight runs, its unacceptable." It was the Royals biggest inning of the season, exceeding the seven runs they scored in the third inning at Los Angeles on May 15. Gordon had two hits in raising his road batting average to .381, compared to .231 at home. Matt Joyce had two hits for the Rays, who have lost four of five. NOTES: The Rays optioned Odorizzi to Triple-A Durham after the game and took pitcher Alex Cobb off the bereavement list. ... Tampa Bay LHP David Price (strained left triceps) threw 54 pitches over three innings in a simulated game. The AL Cy Young Award winner could rejoin the rotation in late June or early July. ... Rays 3B Evan Longoria got his second break from playing on the artificial turf in five games, getting the start as the DH. Kelly Johnson made his first start this season at third in place of Longoria. ... RHP Nate Adcock, designated for assignment by the Royals on June 6, was claimed on waivers by Arizona. He was optioned to Triple-A Reno. ... Tampa Bay LHP Matt Moore (8-2) looks to stop a two-game skid, in which he allowed 15 runs, in Friday nights game with the Royals. RHP Luis Mendoza (1-3) will start for Kansas City. ' ' '