The Guardian

France’s always-cool winger has crowds hanging on his every move – adulation that means more than any title could When I was younger, I wanted to be the captain on my football team because back then, I assumed that the armband was given to the best player. It was a goal of mine for so long that, even as my youth teams won tournaments and trophies, and I won top scorer and best player awards, I st…

The winger is 28, and younger teammates are rising into the high-pressure spots he has usually occupied Usually, the second weekend of October sees Christian Pulisic flanked by compatriots as the Star-Spangled Banner plays. Last year, he was involved in US friendlies against Ecuador and Australia. But this year, with Fifa having folded the October window into September, Pulisic didn’t have the ch…

Follow updates from Kingsmead Cricket Ground Start time in Durban is 9.30am local/6.30pm AEDT Any thoughts? Get in touch with an email We begin, and… first over of the day goes to Renshaw?! Word from the ground is that Steve Smith did the warm-ups, so that’s good. He got a head knock from Anrich Nortje while batting yesterday, so they kept him from fielding as a concussion precaution. Continue re…

Ruth Chepngetich’s failed doping test, five months after she obliterated the record in 2024, left the sport deeply uneasy but powerless to act When Ruth Chepngetich annihilated the women’s marathon world record in Chicago two years ago today, NBC’s commentators compared it to the moon landing . “Bring it on Neil Armstrong!” cried one. “She has done things in this sport that we have not seen,” sai…

Australia and New Zealand are main contenders on home soil while pressure is straight on England in new format The Rugby League World Cup returns with a new format and a new feel this week, but in the men’s event there is a familiar clutch of nations vying for glory. Ten teams will compete in a complex group format, with only four semi-final spots on offer after the quarter-final stage was remove…

Norway’s champions, who host Bayern Munich on Tuesday, have excelled under Bjarte Lunde Aarsheim and Morten Jensen. We paid them a visit “When we recruit players, we say something bold.” The morning’s training session at Lyse Arena has finished and, over lunch, Morten Jensen is explaining how he and Bjarte Lunde Aarsheim have propelled Viking Stavanger from mediocrity to an implausible place amon…

Our cartoonist looks at the battle for eyeball and earhole supremacy in the game’s rapidly changing media landscape Buy a cartoon | Some of David’s favourite works And his latest book, Chaos in the Box: get it now Continue reading...

Situation is being monitored by global players’ union Fifpro Tournament is due to kick off in January with five venues in Riyadh Asia’s elite men’s footballers are on edge as they prepare to travel to conflict-affected Saudi Arabia for January’s Asian Cup. Multiple missile strikes by the Houthis on Riyadh’s international airport in recent days have killed more than a dozen people and wounded hund…

Buffalo Bills 37–34 Los Angeles Rams (OT) Allen was 0-7 in overtime coming into game Quarterback rushes for 121 yards on wild night Rams have field goal blocked in overtime Josh Allen accounted for 331 total yards and two touchdowns, Tyler Bass made a 45-yard field goal with 1:55 left in overtime shortly after Greg Rousseau blocked the Rams’ own attempt , and the Buffalo Bills outlasted Los Angel…

NLCS Game 2: LA Dodgers 4-7 Milwaukee Brewers Reigning champions 2-0 down in best-of-seven series William Contreras hit a tying homer in the fifth and singled home the go-ahead run an inning later as the Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-4 on Monday in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series. Four relievers combined to retire the last 15 Dodgers batters in order as th…

If ever there was validation needed for attack being the best form of defence, Frank Lampard can point to this game. Coventry climbed out of the relegation zone after their second successive win showcased the benefits of their manager’s willingness to balance risk with reward. Late goals from substitutes Ellis Simms and Stephen Mfuni allowed promoted Coventry to pull away from a Newcastle side wh…

The 52-year-old reflects on the pain of being sacked after two decades turning Red Bull into an F1 powerhouse, questioning his purpose in life and dealing with panic attacks Christian Horner should be in steamy Singapore, preparing for another grand prix victory, but here he is, at home on an autumnal morning in genteel Highgate as his wife, Geri Halliwell-Horner, welcomes me with a cheerful hug.…

The 21-year-old goalkeeper wants to impress on football the need to change old habits for the sake of the planet “I’m a bit of an outlier as a person, I like being unique in who I am and what I do,” says the former Arsenal goalkeeper Alexéi Rojas, who combines saving shots with saving the planet. “I would say that was one of the biggest pulls for me to become a goalkeeper. I like being different.…

Prem club release statement after releasing Totoa Auvaa ‘His conduct falls short of the standards expected’ Totoa Auvaa, the Saracens academy player who triggered the Ben Stokes captaincy crisis by throwing a punch at his England teammate Gus Atkinson, has been sacked after another incident over the weekend. “Following an incident this weekend, the club has determined that his conduct falls short…

Rider was to take part in track world championships British Cycling confirms Richardson was withdrawn Matt Richardson has been withdrawn from the Great Britain team for next week’s World Cycling Championships in Shanghai amid allegations of misconduct. British Cycling confirmed the 27-year-old is in the process of leaving the squad’s base in China, without giving any reason for the decision. The …