By the CNN Wire Staff
June 28, 2010

A judge in Tampa, Florida, on Monday sentenced Stephanie Ragusa, a former middle school math teacher, to 10 years in prison for having sex with two underage students in 2008.

"As parents, we place our trust in teachers to provide a safe environment in which our children can learn," Hillsborough County Circuit Judge Chet Tharpe said in handing down the sentence. "You violated that trust in the worst imaginable way."

Tharpe also sentenced Ragusa to 15 years of sex offender probation following her prison time.

Ragusa, 31, pleaded guilty in April to…

Barcelona have contacted Arsenal with a view to signing Cesc Fabregas, according to the Spanish side's sporting director Txiki Begiristain.

But Begiristain said Barca would be "respectful" of Arsenal in their pursuit of the midfielder.

"We contacted Arsenal to ask if they are ready to negotiate. We are waiting for an answer," said Begiristain.

But Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood said: "We haven't had an official approach from them."

Last week Fabregas, 23, who joined the Gunners from Barca in 2003, said he would only leave Arsenal for Barcelona.

Begiristain conceded Barca must respect Fabregas's contract, which runs until June 2014.…

Two senior South African football officials have been suspended just a month before the World Cup starts.

The South African Football Association (Safa) said no further information about the allegations would be revealed until the matter had been investigated.

A local newspaper on Sunday published an article alleging that a Johannesburg businessman owned half the rights in the national team's trademark.

There has been no comment from either of the suspended officials.

Team manager Sipho Nkumane and Safa commercial director Victor Nosi were suspended pending disciplinary proceedings, the organisation said in a statement.

"It must be emphasized that at this…

By Andy Exley

Within four months in 1996, two events that could hardly be more disparate occurred, yet both paved the way for the making of an icon.

Arsène Wenger joined Arsenal as manager (complete with ‘Arsène Who?’ headlines in the press) in September of that year and his impact on Arsenal Football Club and the game in general needs no explanation in this magazine. Rewind four months to June of that year and Shawn Corey Carter, also known as Jay-Z, released his debut album Reasonable Doubt to great critical acclaim.

The following 14 years have witnessed remarkable success for…

By Nick Teale

Arsène Wenger says he has huge respect for Patrick Vieira, a man he says will always be an Arsenal legend.

The French midfielder is set to return to his former club when his current employers Manchester City visit Emirates Stadium on Saturday.

Vieira made 406 appearances for the Gunners in nine years with the Club and was captain of the ‘Invincibles’ side which completed an unbeaten title campaign in 2003/04.

He left in 2005 to join Juventus but moved to Inter Milan a year later after the Turin club were relegated to Serie B. He spent three…

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti reckons his team are feeling the strain as they close in on their first Premier League title since 2006.
They lead Manchester United by one point with three games remaining and play Stoke on Sunday.
"I think the players feel the pressure now because they are very close to winning the title," said the Italian.
"But that's normal - it's better to be like this than to be 10 points behind and chasing nothing."
But Ancelotti is confident his first season in London will end with the Premier League title.
"I'm not worried because I know…

Adobe is to stop making software tools that allow Apple's iPhone and iPad to use its popular Flash technology.

The decision reverses an earlier pledge in which it said it would help get Flash working on the gadgets.

Flash is very widely used on the web and many sites use it to power animations, media players and other multimedia elements.

Despite this, Apple's products do not support Flash and it has made public statements criticising the technology.

Closed tools

In mid-April, Adobe released software called Creative Suite 5 that contained translation tools that automatically turn Flash code into programs that…

Sir Alex Ferguson has dismissed rumours he will retire as Manchester United boss at the end of next season.

The 68-year-old has been United manager for over 23 years but last year said he would step down if his health or hunger for the job ever deteriorated.

Inter Milan boss Jose Mourinho and Everton manager David Moyes have been touted as potential successors.

But Ferguson said ahead of United's crucial game against Tottenham: "It is rubbish, there is no truth in it."

The Scot almost retired in 2002 but changed his mind and subsequently went on to win a host…

Inter Milan boss Jose Mourinho accused Barcelona of having "short memories" after his side's 3-1 Champions League semi-final first leg victory.

Barcelona felt aggrieved not to have won a penalty, but Mourinho pointed to last year's semi-final when Chelsea had several appeals rejected against Barca.

"It's a pity. A year ago Chelsea were crying and Barca were laughing with the referee," said ex-Blues boss Mourinho.

"They laughed because he denied my Chelsea boys their rightful place."

Barca full-back Daniel Alves found himself booked for diving in the second half after going down under a Wesley Sneijder challenge inside the box.…

1977: Elvis is dead - long live the king
Elvis Presley died in his Memphis mansion on 16 August 1977, at the age of 42.

The iconic status he achieved in his lifetime coupled with a sudden and relatively early death cemented his position as one of the most famous rock stars ever.

Most people love a conspiracy theory, and the undisputed king of rock'n'roll has been the subject of more than a few, many of them variations on the theme of his faked death and continuing incognito existence.

But even if the music legend is not actually with us…