The individual walk-ons at Club World Cup underline Fifa’s failure to understand that football is a team sport – just ask PSG It is in the details that the truest picture emerges. Quite aside from the endless politicking, the forever-war with Uefa, the consorting with autocrats and the intriguing broadcast...
Florian Wirtz looks ready-made to be a key piece of the puzzle at Liverpool | Andy Brassell
After his rapid rise at Leverkusen, Liverpool’s new club-record signing is well set to step outside his comfort zone When the Bayern Munich charm offensive starts in earnest, few players are impervious. When months of public flattery and declarations of interest in Florian Wirtz continued past the Rekordmeister’s title celebrations...
Nuno Espírito Santo signs new three-year deal to stay at Nottingham Forest
Manager guided club to highest finish for 30 years Late run of defeats scuppered Champions League hopes The Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espírito Santo has signed a new three-year contract to remain at the City Ground until at least 2028. The 51-year-old guided Forest to a seventh-place finish in the...
Impressive St Helens sink Leeds to relieve pressure on Paul Wellens
St Helens 18-4 Leeds Harry Robertson’s stunning cover tackle inspires Saints There are moments in any Super League season that can feel pivotal. Some are good, some are bad: some can even prove to be a false dawn and merely turn out to be indifferent. But if St Helens are...
Cercene’s shock Royal Ascot victory ends long wait for Joseph Murphy
Trainer celebrates first Group One winner with 33-1 shot ‘It’s 50 years of work by the family. A lifetime’s ambition’ A lifetime of hope and endeavour enjoyed a glorious reward here on Friday as Joseph Murphy, who is two years short of a half-century with a trainer’s licence, finally added...
‘How did I get here?’: GB basketball captain Temi Fágbénlé’s journey from shy London teen to WNBA
Britain’s driving force on EuroBasket prospects, playing alongside Caitlin Clark and the importance of a team mentality at the highest level “It’s great to be back with Great Britain,” Temi Fágbénlé says, her voice carrying the quiet confidence of a seasoned international basketball player. “I come from the WNBA but...
Michael Vaughan criticises Ben Stokes’s ‘staggering’ decision to put India in to bat
Tourists end opening day at Headingley 359-3 Former England captain Vaughan questions choice The former England captain Michael Vaughan said he was “staggered” that Ben Stokes chose to bowl first after winning the toss on the opening day of the Test series against India. The tourists proceeded to plunder 359...
Freeman and Van der Merwe miss chance to make impression in tough Lions opener | Brendan Fanning
Andy Farrell will want players to display a bit of attitude as well as talent but Argentina showed it will take time Swag is a word more common in the US than in this corner of the world. It’s a made-to-measure term for athletes with attitude as well as talent;...
‘A perfect storm’: multi-club ownership, Crystal Palace and a looming court threat
Uefa’s legal team is preparing for more action as a complex and increasingly common issue rears its head again In the waterfront offices of Uefa’s House of European Football headquarters in Nyon, the legal team are preparing for an unwanted trip around Lake Geneva to Lausanne. Over the course of...
Nick Kyrgios: ‘If I’d acted a bit differently, I would have had a Wimbledon title’
Tennis’s great disruptor speaks on his highs and lows on Centre Court and the BBC’s ‘very strange’ decision to leave him out of the commentary box Wimbledon runs through Nick Kyrgios’s tumultuous career with a mysterious force full of pain, glory and controversy. It is a tournament defined by history...