Sporting Digest: Football

The Swiss champions, Sion, lost their appeal yesterday to Uefa, European football's governing body, and will have to replay their Uefa Cup tie against Spartak Moscow on Wednesday. Uefa ordered the first-round second-leg match on 30 September, which ended 2-2 with Spartak advancing 3-2 on aggregate, to be replayed after upholding a Sion protest that the goals were too small. Sion had asked for a 3-0 forfeit in their favour.

The Portsmouth trio, Sammy Igoe, Aaron Flahavan and Russell Perrett, have all signed new contracts which will keep them at Fratton Park until 2001.

Aston Villa have been allocated 1,000 tickets for their Uefa Cup second round first leg with Athletic Bilbao in Spain on 21 October.