Why Fifa World Cup players are drowning in commercial red tape July 12, 2026 Joshua Charalambous and Ellie Chakarto take a look at why this World Cup is restraining its stars A lot has been made about the star power at the Fifa Men’s World Cup – goals for Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe, Harry Kane and Lamine Yamal – and of course, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo who both [...]
Miami heat: Why climate could be key in 40C England v Norway World Cup quarter-final July 10, 2026 Athletes from Norway are the masters of staying elite in the heat, but their football team hasn’t had the chance to test that theory ahead of their World Cup clash with England in sweltering Florida on Saturday. Out of the frying pan and into the fire. If England’s World Cup last-16 clash was about resilience [...]
Ed Warner: Why I’m optimistic about the future for Sussex Cricket July 9, 2026 ‘What will you do about your blog?’ was one question at interview, repeated a number of times since I was announced as the chair of Sussex Cricket last week. What of my trenchant criticisms of cricket’s leadership, the sport’s confused calendar and the divide between its haves and have nots? For now, this column and [...]
World Cup hydration breaks see bookies offer quarter by quarter odds for England v Norway July 9, 2026 Enterprising bookmakers are offering odds on England’s World Cup showdown with Norway by the quarter, in a nod to games now being divided into four discrete parts by Fifa’s introduction of controversial hydration breaks. Punters have long been able to wager on first-half and second-half markets but now the betting company behind the Unibet brand, [...]
Frying squad: England’s World Cup bid fuelled by cooking oil and leftover food July 8, 2026 England’s World Cup campaign in the USA, Mexico and Canada is being powered by used cooking oil, leftover food and algae. The decision to maintain a World Cup training base in Kansas City has meant England are racking up the air miles for matches. A 2,800-mile round trip to Mexico City for Sunday night’s last-16 [...]
How Harry Maguire is using AI to help England… at table tennis July 7, 2026 Harry Maguire may have been left at home for the World Cup but the football cult hero is still set to play a part in England’s sporting success – via AI technology. Feedz, a sports tech platform designed to help coaches and co-founded by Manchester United defender Maguire, has been adopted by Table Tennis England. [...]
Fifa World Cup 2026: The tournament of IP infringement and touts July 4, 2026 With the World Cup well underway, Ben Travers explains why IP laws are being ignored? Much has been written of the economics of the 2026 Fifa World Cup, which looks set to be the biggest yet with tens of billions in revenue on the table. With the global sports industry representing potentially trillions of dollars [...]
Tech, trackers and tourniquets: How England are preparing for Mexico World Cup altitude July 3, 2026 For an array of reasons, England face the toughest test of their World Cup credentials late on Sunday night when they face co-hosts Mexico. At the Azteca Stadium, they will come up against a team who have won four games out of four at this tournament, are backed by fervent home support and who have [...]
Why World Cup players could pay tax in five different countries July 1, 2026 Football fever has arrived as England prepare for their first knockout game this evening, but for all the excitement the 2026 World Cup could create some major tax headaches for players. Fifa is protected because it negotiates some of the most lucrative broadcasting and sponsorship deals in the sports world, which usually come with tax [...]
German FA HQ raided by police in bribery probe days after shock World Cup exit July 1, 2026 Police have carried out a major raid on the headquarters of Germany’s football federation, the DFB, in a probe into suspected bribery relating to Euro 2024. The raid on Wednesday morning – 36 hours after the men’s national team suffered a shock elimination from the current World Cup by Paraguay – involved more than 150 [...]