The Guardian

Cox: ‘We were hoping one of us would have kicked on’ Sam Curran will miss rest of the summer due to injury Jordan Cox was one of four half-centurions as England maintained control of the first Test against Pakistan – but there were a few regrets as no one reached three figures on day two in Leeds. “We were hoping one of us would have kicked on and instead of make it just a hundred, make it 150, 1…

Sunderland fans hope Régis Le Bris and his talented squad can continue to surprise the pundits and Opta Guardian writers’ predicted position: 14th (NB: this is not necessarily Louise Taylor’s prediction but the average of our writers’ tips) Last season’s position: 7th Continue reading...

Manchester United’s new-look midfield, Ipswich’s ambition is tested and Kevin Keegan tributes at Newcastle While Myles Lewis-Skelly looks likely to remain at the Emirates , the same can’t be said for Ethan Nwaneri. The 19-year-old was outstanding in his breakthrough season for Arsenal in 2024-25 but barely featured last season and was sent on loan to Marseille. That didn’t really work out and Ars…

Hungary’s Sandor Csanyi highly critical of Fifa president He cites dismissal of COO Kevin Lamour as ‘final straw’ Gianni Infantino has lost the support of another one of Fifa’s vice-presidents, with the Hungarian football federation chief, Sandor Csanyi, criticising the president’s “professional judgment, ethical standards and leadership”. In an explosive letter sent to Infantino on Tuesday, whic…

A summer of five heatwaves and barely a drop of rain have left groundstaff wrung out as they work all hours to keep packed schedule going On Thursday, the County Championship resumes for its final six-week run, charging towards 27 September with barely a pause for breath. It’s tight at the top of Division One, with only 11 points between first placed Nottinghamshire and sixth placed Essex, while …

Brazilian legend pledges excitement at his unveiling for a comeback that is winning over initially disbelieving fans It seemed like a joke, a hoax, when at 10pm on 19 June, Ravenna broke the news of Ronaldinho’s signing . The Brazilian, a former Ballon d’Or winner and one of the most recognisable figures in world football, had played his last official match in 2015 for Fluminense; a professional …

With one semi-final in her last seven tournaments, the coming months will define the next stage of her career Towards the end of a messy first set tie-break late on Wednesday, Aryna Sabalenka wildly sprayed another painfully nervous backhand before slamming her racket to the ground. As the racket connected with the acrylic floor, its vibration dampener detached from the strings and rolled off in …

The Essex batsman, filling in for Jacob Bethell, wasted no time in laying down a claim to a longer run in the England side When Jordan Cox was 19, playing in his fifth first-class match and unbeaten overnight on 167 for Kent against Sussex, he decided to set himself a new task. Cox told Sam Billings, his captain and an England international, that he would go past Billings’ first-class best of 171…

New managers galore suggest many of the usual suspects will struggle to dethrone the champions, but their own hunger could be the key Mikel Arteta wants to get his messaging absolutely right. According to him, Arsenal are not about to defend their Premier League title. They are set to attack another one. Remember Win the dog, who the manager brought in to the club’s training ground a few years ba…

Meetings around event seen as chance to lobby for votes Fifa president may meet his most credible challenger Gianni Infantino wants to split the European and North American coalition that is seeking to oust him by attending a junior tournament in the Dominican Republic this weekend in another gamble to cling on to power from the Fifa president. The Guardian has learned that Infantino has made pla…

Maeve Plouffe says incident on Wednesday was ‘scary’ Josh Tarling to ride in Vuelta in memory of brother Fin The Australian rider Maeve Plouffe says she was nearly hit by a non-race car during the opening stage of the Tour of Britain Women. With cycling still coming to terms with the death at the Volta a Portugal of the 19-year-old British rider Finlay Tarling , who was last week killed in a coll…

Tottenham salute ‘key part’ of 1960-61 Double side Former winger also won Cup Winners’ Cup in 1963 Tottenham’s 1961 Double-winner Terry Dyson has died at the age of 91. The Premier League club confirmed Dyson’s death on Thursday and paid tribute to their former winger, who made 209 appearances and scored 55 goals for Spurs across a 10-year spell. Continue reading...

Midfielder linked with £120m move to Manchester City Chelsea still interested in Bournemouth’s Alex Scott Xabi Alonso has refused to offer any guarantee that Chelsea will hold firm if Manchester City try to sign Enzo Fernández. Fernández’s future remains up in the air and the prospect of him leaving Stamford Bridge has not gone away, even though Chelsea’s unofficial deadline for clubs to make wri…

Stadium has hosted two men’s World Cup finals Arena Itaquera in São Paulo will host 10 matches The Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro will host the opening game and the final of next year’s Women’s World Cup. The 78,838-capacity stadium, which hosted the finals of the 1950 and 2014 men’s World Cups as well as the finals of the Olympic football competitions in 2016, will be the venue for Brazil’s Group A …

The code-hopping winger is one of the hottest properties in world rugby but says she feels ‘vulnerable’ ahead of her eagerly-anticipated first 15s Test cap Maddison Levi is widely considered the most exciting rugby player in the country. But this weekend the Gold Coast 24-year-old is a “vulnerable” rookie as she faces up to the biggest challenge of her career: finally making her hotly-anticipated…