The Guardian

Those in attendance at Argentina’s opening match against Algeria could be forgiven, for a moment, for thinking they were at one of the great Argentinian cathedrals of football – La Bombonera , or maybe the national stadium, El Monumental . Kansas City Stadium, awash in the colors of the Albiceleste roared with the sound of nearly 70,000 Argentine supporters serenading their team, and their hero, …

Guineas winner fights hard for feature race success Moore and Soumillon given bans by stewards Five races and two Group Ones into his career, Bow Echo remains unbeaten – just. He had only a short head to spare over Gstaad at the line in the St James’s Palace Stakes, having briefly looked likely to canter to victory passing the two-pole, but it was enough to secure a first Royal Ascot Group One fo…

Hanging flags on LED advertising boards not allowed Fifa sources cite ‘safety and security reasons’ for ban England fans face having flags confiscated when they attend their opening game of the World Cup against Croatia at Dallas Stadium on Wednesday. The England Supporters Club (ESC) is understood to have been advised by stadium officials that fans will not be allowed to hang flags over the LED …

Australian sprinter sets new national record of 14.96 in Ostrava Result an improvement on teenager’s Diamond League debut Teenage sprint sensation Gout Gout has flown home to finish third behind his training mate and new 150m world record holder Noah Lyles at the Golden Spike track and field meet in Ostrava. Paris Olympics gold medallist Lyles clocked 14.67 seconds in the rarely-contested distanc…

Surely nobody expected anything different. Erling Haaland arrival on the biggest football stage of all involved a match-defining performance. Kylian Mbappé had laid down a marker with two goals in France’s win over Senegal . Haaland responded in kind, courtesy of a first-half double of his own. The Manchester City striker’s quest for the Golden Boot depends on Norway enjoying a decent run in the …

Manager confident match will showcase side’s abilities ‘We should play brave and to the strengths of the players’ Thomas Tuchel has said the occasion and tension will bring the best out of England when they open their World Cup campaign with an ­awkward game against Croatia on Wednesday. England cruised through ­qualifying, but have a patchy record against top opposition and much to prove before …

England, 119-6, beat Ireland, 118-9, by four wickets Sciver-Brunt top scores with 48 but then retires hurt England survived a wobble against Ireland on Tuesday at Southampton, recovering from 35 for three to chase down 119 with 15 balls remaining and four wickets to spare, and keep their World Cup campaign on track. England, though, will be sweating on the fitness of their captain Nat Sciver-Brun…

This was an ominous start from the World Cup favourites. A sputtering first-half performance gave way to a second period characterised by a combination of physical intensity and technical ability that few club sides, never mind nations, can match. Add on a record-equalling, then surpassing, couple of goals for Kylian Mbappé and some superlative playmaking from Michael Olise and this was very much…

It is rare to make five changes after winning by more than a hundred runs, but this has not been a normal week between Tests for England These past 10 days must have been curious for New Zealand’s cricketers, as their restful mid-series downtime was occasionally interrupted by news of England’s latest convulsions. “I guess it probably wasn’t necessarily what we were expecting,” deadpanned their c…

Boxer could face 20 years in jail if found guilty Mayweather’s attorney has not commented Floyd Mayweather is facing two felony charges over allegations he used a bad check to buy a $200,000 watch in 2024. The charges are for theft and intent to defraud. The theft charge carries a penalty of up to 20 years in jail if someone is found guilty, although sentences of that length for the offense are r…

Top-level rugby is fast becoming a different sport and finalists illustrate the domestic talent Borthwick needs to harness For anyone who hasn’t yet watched them, the weekend’s two English Prem semi-finals were brilliant adverts for the sport. The game between Northampton and Leicester fizzed with speed and quality passing. The following day’s encounter between Bath and Exeter involved one of the…

With the World Cup expanding to a massive 104 matches, navigating the "morass of endless football" can feel a bit overwhelming. Thankfully, the Guardian’s chief sports writer, Barney Ronay, has done the heavy lifting. He breaks down the group stage fixtures you absolutely cannot miss - from historic David v Goliath battles to high-stakes political showdowns. Continue reading...

McIlroy not a fan of planned two-tier system for events Fleetwood and Åberg drawn with world No 2 at US Open Rory McIlroy believes the “false economy” created by the threat of LIV Golf may now be putting some well-established PGA Tour events at risk. The world No 2 and current Masters champion said he felt people had lost sight of how good the tour was before it too had a huge cash injection. Con…

Player died suddenly after charity work on Saturday Off-field incidents, suspensions affected his career 49ers statement: ‘His smile lit up every room’ The family of former NFL star Aldon Smith is donating the player’s brain to the Boston University CTE Center to research the effects of repetitive brain injuries. The 36-year-old died suddenly on Saturday, hours after delivering pizzas to a homele…

Scrum-half could play in Saturday’s final against Exeter England preparing to name Nations Championship squad The England scrum-half Alex Mitchell is in line for an unexpected return to Northampton’s matchday squad for this weekend’s Prem final against Exeter. A hamstring injury had threatened to rule Mitchell out of the rest of the domestic season but the Saints are now hopeful he will be availa…