The Guardian

With the arrival of US hedge funders at Wrexham, there is no pretence any more. This is just another project, as it always was Tea and cake. Cobble-close streets. Collectivism. Sugar rush. Hollywood fairytales. And also, as of this week, a minority owner with historical links to celebrity paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Wait! Welsh cakes! Welsh tea! Aggregated tourism benefits. The sloeblack, slow, b…

Prices 10 times those promised in initial bid Fifa not expected to change policy for 2026 The Football Association will pass on England supporters’ concerns about high 2026 World Cup ticket prices to Fifa. However, despite the growing outrage, it is understood none of the international federations expect world football’s governing body to change its policy. Anger among supporter groups continued …

Moore charged after abrupt firing at Michigan University says conduct violated policy Prosecutors allege home invasion, stalking Sherrone Moore, who was abruptly fired this week as the University of Michigan football coach, was charged Friday with three crimes including home invasion and stalking a person he had dated, prosecutors said. Moore has spent two nights in jail following his firing and …

Egyptian’s exile ends following talks with Arne Slot Unknown if he apologised to Liverpool’s head coach Mohamed Salah will be back in Liverpool’s squad for Saturday’s Premier League home game against Brighton following talks with Arne Slot. Slot revealed on Friday morning that Salah’s involvement against Brighton rested on the outcome of a conversation he would have with the forward at the club’s…

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Fifa’s demand that the most fervent supporters cough up a minimum of £5,000 in advance just for tickets is scandalous It was not mathematically confirmed until the Latvia game a month later, but as I watched Ezri Konsa turn in the third goal away to Serbia in early September I smiled to myself in the Stadion Rajko Mitic, knowing England were going to the World Cup. But immediately, a key question…

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now! One week on, and the unedifying spectacle of the Geopolitics World Cup tombola has faded, overtaken by the club game’s relentless news cycle. Mohamed Salah has taken a blowtorch to his immediate hopes of returning to the Liverpool starting XI; Real Madrid are apparently in crisis; and Celtic are bad again, their fans perhaps the first in history…

The world No 4’s entrance to the song Titanium has become an iconic moment in darts, but while he loves the attention what he really wants is the world title “There’s a lot of people playing darts who haven’t got no character,” Stephen Bunting says in a matter-of-fact tone, his voice still a little croaky from the cold that has been laying waste to him for the last week. “They’re boring to watch.…

Howman: ‘We are not effective enough at catching cheats’ Former Wada director general urges more ambition One of the most senior figures in global anti-doping has warned that too many drug cheats in sport are evading detection – and criticised the current system as “ineffective”. David Howman, the former director general of the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) and the chair of the Athletics Integr…

The 21-year-old came to rugby via an unusual route, but it is one that may soon see him in the England squad To announce Afo Fasogbon as English rugby’s next big thing is not entirely accurate. He may be big – 6ft 4in tall and around 130kg – but as far as the internet is concerned he arrived some time ago. Video footage of the young Gloucester prop waving off the more experienced Ellis Genge afte…

Prize fund boosted to £2m for racing’s premier Classic Aim to revive glory days and attract six-figure crowd Epsom racecourse has announced a £6m, five-year plan to revive the flagging fortunes of the Derby, the world’s most famous Flat race, which includes a boost to the Classic’s prize fund to £2m, free admission to the main enclosure for under-18s, free parking and the installation of a bank o…

Skier breaks record after destroying field at San Moritz One of favourites for 2026 Winter Olympics downhill Lindsey Vonn’s extraordinary comeback from retirement and serious knee surgery gathered pace on Friday when she became the oldest skier to win a World Cup race at the age of 41. The American, who had not raced for five years until she returned to the circuit last year, destroyed the women’…

Pressure, and no shortage of it, sits on Celtic’s shoulders and St Mirren are unfavourable opponents at Hampden Park It is very easy to root for Wilfried Nancy. A likable, passionate individual whose career has taken him from unheralded player to the forefront of a club the size of Celtic should be worthy of high praise. It also feels only two games into the Frenchman’s tenure in Glasgow that he …

We ask supporters for their take on the Egyptian’s standoff with the club before Saturday’s game against Brighton Mohamed Salah is one of the greatest players in Liverpool’s history. That isn’t open for debate. But everyone makes mistakes, and after the draw at Leeds , Salah made a huge one. By seeking the media to air his personal grievances , he essentially justified Arne Slot’s decision to ben…