FIFA council member Wolfgang Niersbach, a member of FIFAs ruling council, was banned from soccer for one year on Monday in the first sanction from the investigation into Germanys 2006 World Cup bid.FIFAs ethics committee found Niersbach guilty of failing to report findings about possible unethical conduct and conflicts of interest during the bidding process.Niersbach, who was a vice president of the 2006 World Cup organizing committee in charge of media and marketing, described the punishment as inappropriate and excessive.Last year, Niersbach had been considered a possible successor to UEFA President Michel Platini before resigning as president of the German soccer federation when allegations against the bid first surfaced.Niersbach retained his elected positions on the top decision-making bodies at both FIFA and UEFA. He is the first member of the rebranded FIFA Council, which replaced the discredited executive committee in May, to be sanctioned by the ethics division.This decision hits me hard, Niersbach said. I was confident after last Thursdays hearing in Zurich that the ethics commission would not impose a ban, but that it would follow my argument that I am only to blame for a belated report on the critical payments between the 2006 World Cup organizing committee and FIFA in 2005, of which I gradually became aware in the summer of 2015, and that it would set a different punishment.I acknowledged my mistake and regretted it again.Niersbach is consulting his lawyers about whether to appeal against his ban.Swiss federal prosecutors, and German criminal and tax investigators, also have wider ongoing criminal cases into the 2006 World Cup -- a hugely successful tournament at the time which the host nation called its Summer Fairytale.The probe involves irregular seven-figure payments and contracts during the bidding process and organization of the World Cup implicating senior officials.The main FIFA ethics case focuses on former Germany great Franz Beckenbauer, who headed the World Cup organizing team and joined the FIFA executive committee in 2007; Theo Zwanziger, who replaced Beckenbauer at FIFA in 2011; Horst Schmidt, vice president of the World Cup organizing panel; and Stefan Hans, chief financial officer for the organizers.In February, an inquiry report commissioned by the federation tried to explain a complex trail of payments of 6.7 million euros ($7 million) and 10 million Swiss francs ($10 million) that linked Beckenbauer, then-FIFA president Sepp Blatter, FIFA powerbroker Mohamed bin Hammam of Qatar and Robert Louis-Dreyfus, the late former Adidas executive and part owner of Swiss marketing agency Infront.The report, by law firm Freshfields, did not rule out, but could not prove, that votes were bought when Germany beat a Nelson Mandela-supported South Africa bid in a 12-11 vote of FIFA executive committee members in 2000. Stitched NFL Jerseys .com) - The red-hot Los Angeles Kings will try to extend their winning streak to a season-high seven games when they visit the Edmonton Oilers for Sundays clash at Rexall Place. Cheap NFL Jerseys China . Halladay signed a one-day contract with the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday that allowed the veteran right-hander to retire as a member of team with which he broke into the majors and spent the bulk of his distinguished 16-year career. https://www.nfljerseys2020.com/ . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. NFL Jerseys 2020 .C. -- When North Carolina freshman Ryan Switzer reported to training camp in August he was a little miffed to learn he was third on the depth chart at punt returner. Cheap Jerseys 2020 . -- Ryan Getzlaf grabbed the three pucks wrapped in tape and held them up to his chest in the Anaheim Ducks dressing room for a celebration nine seasons in the making. Rob Nelson of ESPN Stats & Information revisits the worst bad beats from the weekends gambling action.Closing lines are courtesy of Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, and pick percentages are via Wunderdog Sports.ThursdayMinnesota Timberwolves at Toronto Raptors Closing line: Raptors -9.5The Timberwolves got off to a hot start in this one and led by 10 points after the first quarter. However, no lead is ever safe in the NBA. Entering the fourth quarter, Minnesota still led by one, and the 29 percent of bettors who took the +9.5 were seemingly in good shape. Unfortunately, it would be a final 12 minutes to forget if you were on the underdog.A 17-4 run by the Raptors put them up 12 points midway through the quarter. A Zach LaVine basket with a minute to go cut the Toronto lead down to nine, but that would be the last score for Minnesota. The Raptors tallied the next five points and won by 14, outscoring the Timberwolves 36-21 in the fourth.Final score: Raptors 124, Timberwolves 110 (Raptors cover)SaturdayWofford Terriers at Youngstown State Penguins Closing line: Youngstown State -6The best game of the FCS quarterfinals turned out to be a bad beat for those on Wofford +6. The Terriers jumped out to a 9-0 lead and never trailed by more than four points until double overtime. With the game tied at 23, Woffords David Marvin had a chance to win it with a 53-yard field goal on the final play of regulation. Marvin would miss, and the game would continue.On the first possession of overtime, Wofford drove down to the Youngstown State two-yard line but was stopped on fourth down. Those on the Terriers +6, would be able to cash their tickets with a game-winning Penguins field goal, but Youngstown States Zak Kennedy missed a 37-yard attempt -- his third missed field goal of the game. In double overtime, Youngstown State scored a touchdown, while Wofford turned it over on downs, resulting in a seven point loss for the Terriers.ddddddddddddinal score: Youngstown State 30, Wofford 23 -- 2OT (Youngstown State covers)Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs.?Villanova Wildcats Closing line: Villanova -6.5In a matchup of unbeatens, Notre Dame was looking like it might upset the top-ranked Villanova Wildcats. At the very least, the 38 percent who took the Fighting Irish to cover the 6.5-point spread were in great shape. Notre Dame led for the first 31 minutes but fell behind for the first time when Villanovas Jalen Brunson put his Wildcats up 57-56 with nine minutes left.The two teams went back and forth down the stretch, and Villanova led just 68-66 with less than a minute left. Much to the dismay of those on the underdog, the Fighting Irish went cold down the stretch, missing their final four shots. Villanova, on the other hand, went a perfect 6-for-6 from the free-throw line in the final minute, going on to win by eight.Final score: Villanova 74, Notre Dame 66 (Villanova covers)SundayPittsburgh Steelers at Buffalo Bills Closing line: Over/under 46In a game where it snowed throughout, a flurry of late scoring is what ended up costing the 49 percent of bettors on the under. With less than 10 minutes left, the Steelers led 21-7, with the total well below the closing over/under of 46. A pair of field goals by Chris Boswell, with a Charles Clay touchdown in between, made the score 27-13 with less than two minutes left.It would all come down to one last Buffalo drive, with those on the under desperately needing a stop. They wouldnt get it, as LeSean McCoys three-yard touchdown with 1:25 left made the score 27-19. Dan Carpenters PAT marked the 47th point ?of the game (and the 19th point in the final 9:57), pushing the total over.Finals score: Steelers 27, Bills 20 (Game goes over) ' ' '