The Guardian

Saints head coach issues apology in club video message Dragan Solak wants to ‘close the chapter and look ahead’ Tonda Eckert has apologised for orchestrating the Spygate scandal that culminated in Southampton being kicked out of the Championship playoff final . Southampton, who observed training sessions of three opponents last season, were denied the chance to win promotion after an independent …

Interest in joining the English top flight is strong, but how non-professional players are treated remains a key obstacle Several clubs including Bath have registered their interest in joining England’s Premiership Women’s Rugby (PWR). The expansion of the top flight has no concrete timeline, but the possibility of the league growing has thrown up different discussion points. How will non-profess…

Updates from Tuesday’s quarter-final matches in Paris Sabalenka outguns Osaka | Follow on TikTok | Mail Daniel Salut à tous et bienvenue à Roland-Garros 2026 – dixième jour! On the one hand, we’ve only three singles matches in this session … and on the other, just look at them! Continue reading...

Spaniard is clear front-runner to replace Arne Slot Liverpool want to make hire before World Cup starts Liverpool have opened formal talks with Andoni Iraola over succeeding Arne Slot as the club’s head coach. Iraola is the clear frontrunner for the Anfield vacancy with his style of play fitting Liverpool’s criteria for the front-footed, aggressive approach they felt was lacking in Slot’s second …

Goalkeeper Earps leaving PSG after two seasons Léon has won four Champions Leagues with Barcelona London City Lionesses are poised to sign Mary Earps and the Barcelona defender Mapi León on free transfers, the Guardian understands, after agreements were reached for them join when their contracts expire at the end of June. The former England goalkeeper has been keen on a return to the Women’s Supe…

Fewer than 60,000 saw Wigan beat Hull KR in the Challenge Cup final and the sport needs to address its attendance problem There was more Challenge Cup history under the Wembley arch on Saturday afternoon as Wigan Warriors secured a record-extending victory in rugby league’s most prestigious competition. But there was a slice of more sobering history too. The Warriors’ demolition of Hull KR was wa…

Julian Nagelsmann will rely on a Bayern-based core, but individual class is in worryingly short supply This article is part of the Guardian’s 2026 World Cup Experts’ Network , a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 48 countries who qualified. theguardian.com is running previews from three countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 11 June. Conti…

Second major of the year is wide open after exits of Sinner and Djokovic, paving way for a first-time finalist in Paris In the immediate aftermath of one of the most significant wins of his career, a victory over the unheralded Zachary Svajda that sent him into his first quarter-final at Roland Garros on Monday, Flavio Cobolli was posed a straightforward question. The Italian had been easing thro…

Analysts trace illegal views to 3.7m IP addresses in UK Champions League final watched legally by more than 7m Arsenal’s Champions League final defeat by Paris Saint-Germain attracted more than 16.2 million views on illegal streams in the UK after not being made free to air. Analysis conducted for the Guardian by the technology analyst Gaming Compliance International (GCI) shows there were 16.2m …

Wigan turned to young players to win their two finals on Saturday. England’s coaches should take the same approach By No Helmets Required The new England coach, Brian McDermott , has a job on his hands. The man he replaced, Shaun Wane, must have watched the Challenge Cup final on Saturday from the padded seats at Wembley and thought he had dodged a bullet. The prospect of facing the NRL’s finest …

Sebastián Beccacece has established a miserly defence and Moisés Caicedo’s ability in midfield could help team take the next step This article is part of the Guardian’s 2026 World Cup Experts’ Network , a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 48 countries who qualified. theguardian.com is running previews from three countries each day in the run-up to the tournament ki…

It’s real and physical, it scars and heals: sport is a visceral high – and the Gunners have reminded fans just what it means It’s going to take some time to shake this feeling. Frankly, I don’t want to shake it. I don’t want the flare smell, akin to a thousand party poppers going off at once, to leave my skin, I don’t want the stream of content to subside and I don’t want this joy to leave. When …

Club slashed women’s team budget despite near-promotion Head coach resigned after decision players called ‘cold and impersonal’ Plymouth Argyle have said they “did not take lightly” their decision to significantly reduce their women’s team’s budget and tell the squad via email that their contracts were not being renewed. The Guardian reported on Sunday evening that the vast majority of the squad …

Interns were pressured into recording other clubs Head coach says he did not know actions broke rules Southampton’s head coach, Tonda Eckert, initiated the practice of spying on opponents, according to new documents which also show that an intern tasked with recording rival training sessions was assured the “manager loved it”. Southampton were expelled from the Championship playoffs last month af…

Addresses media for first time since losing friends in car accident Former world champion to return to ring in tune-up for Tyson Fury bout Anthony Joshua has stressed that rather than coming to terms with his own grief after the car accident in which two of his closest friends died last December, his primary focus has been on helping their parents. As he prepares to resume his career next month, …