19 h. ago Jos Buttler feels ‘a bit guilty’ about England’s World Cup qualification fears

A dire run of ODI form has raised the embarrassing prospect of England having to go through qualifying after falling to eighth in the world rankings.

Politics

64 h. ago Van Poortvliet leads way before limping off as maddening Harlequins flop again | Michael Aylwin

Leicester cope remarkably after illness swept through their squad but Quins cannot bring Champions Cup form to the PremEnglish rugby long ago gave up trying to explain the phenomenon that is Harlequins. Quantum physicists would struggle. Two weeks ago here, we watched this same team put 60 past the hitherto unbeaten Stormers from South Africa on the way to qualifying from the Champions Cup, a competition for the best domestic sides in Europe and, as if that were not enough, South Africa, a land of frightening beasts and double World Cup-winners.This is the same team that won in La Rochelle only last weekend to clinch that home tie in the last 16. Ridiculously, it was Quins’ win against all odds on the west coast of France that afforded Leicester last-gasp entrance by default into that very same elite of the elite. Well, you would never have guessed it, had you been here to witness the latest capitulation at the Stoop, a 34-7 humiliation on Saturday. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Sam Curran says England’s players know they need to start winning 50

World Cup qualification is under threat if they do not improve on a record of 11 defeats in 16 one-day internationals.

Sport

4 d. ago Ali Smith: ‘Henry James had me running down the garden path shouting out loud’

The Scottish author on a masterclass from Toni Morrison, the brilliance of Simone de Beauvoir and the trim novel by Tove Jansson containing everything that really mattersMy earliest reading memory Apparently I taught myself to read when I was three via the labels on the Beatles 45s we had: I remember the moment of recognising the words “I” and “Feel” and “Fine”. It took a bit longer to work out the word “Parlophone”.My favourite book growing up Sister Vincent taught primary six in St Joseph’s, Inverness, and was a discerning reader with very good taste, plus the kind of literary moral rectitude that meant she removed Enid Blyton from the class library because she believed Blyton’s books were written by a factory of writers. In 1972 she and I had a passionate argument when the class was choosing a book to be read out loud to us and I championed Charlotte’s Web by EB White, with which I was in love. Sister Vincent put her foot down. “No. Because animals speak in it, and in reality ani...

Politics

5 d. ago No more sad sandwiches and soggy salads: here’s how to make a proper packed lunch

While we’re slogging through the long, dark days of January, a little preparation can make your midday meal a source of comfort and joy• Sign up here for our weekly food newsletter, FeastEven if you have no truck with Blue Monday, Quitter’s Day or any of the other new-year wheezes concocted by enterprising marketeers, the last weeks of January can feel like a bit of a confused slog. Seasonal colds and lurgies abound. The weather is generally at its rain-lashed and blackly overcast worst. Well-intentioned attempts at self-improvement or abstemiousness are starting to creak in the face of a desire for whatever scraps of midwinter comfort we can find.Nowhere is this more apparent than when it comes to food and, more specifically, the daily puzzle of how to have something nourishing as a working lunch. These can feel like lean days in more ways than one – characterised by tax payments or a painfully slow creep towards the first payday of 2026. And that’s only more apparent now that, aft...

Politics

5 d. ago All you need to know about the Tartan Army booze cruise trips at the World Cup

It will be the first time Scotland has qualified for a World Cup since 1998 and loyal fans have quickly got to work on planning the sporting trip of a lifetime.

Politics

8 d. ago How Sadio Mané’s calm saved the Afcon final from absolute chaos

The veteran is known for his sense of responsibility And it was apparent as his Senegal teammates threatened to quit African’s football’s showpieceSign up for Soccer with Jonathan Wilson hereSadio Mané has done many great things for Senegal and for Senegalese football, but what he did on Sunday evening, in what he confirmed would be his last Cup of Nations game, was perhaps greater than his winning goal in Wednesday’s Africa Cup of Nations semi-final, greater than his penalty to win the World Cup qualifying play-off against Egypt in 2022, greater even than his decisive penalty in the 2021 final.When Senegal stormed off the pitch in protest at the award of a penalty against them eight minutes into injury-time at the end of the Cup of Nations final, African football faced a crisis. For this to happen at all was embarrassing, for it to happen in the final of the confederation’s showpiece would have been a humiliation – not least because many may have felt that Senegal had a point. Refe...

Events

1 week ago Sadio Mané strikes to deny Salah’s Egypt and send Senegal to Afcon final

Some day, perhaps, Mohamed Salah will get the better of Sadio Mané in a major game, but not on Wednesday, not in the Africa Cup of Nations semi-final. When Senegal beat Egypt in a shootout in the 2021 Afcon final, Mané scored the winning penalty before Salah had the chance to take his. In the shootout in the qualifying playoff for the 2022 World Cup, Salah missed his effort and Mané scored the winning penalty. This time it didn’t get to penalties, but Mané was still the matchwinner, thrashing in the only goal with 12 minutes remaining.Semi-finals, notoriously, are not for the playing but the winning, but this was among the worst of its type. There were fouls, there was grappling, there was time-wasting, there was the feigning of injury, there were countless attempts to influence the referee, there were numerous explosions of faux outrage, there was a lot of sideways passing, and there was very little in terms of imagination or flair or quality. As a spectacle it was awful; as an occ...

Events

2 w. ago Tom Willis wins family affair to help Saracens topple Toulouse in Champions Cup

Pool 1: Saracens 20-14 ToulouseRotimi Segun also scores twice for Prem side Even for the world’s best rugby player it is not all glamour. As he sniffed the damp air on a blustery, cheerless Sunday night in north London, Antoine Dupont must privately have been wondering if this was some sort of fiendish Anglo-Saxon conspiracy. Any similarity with the classic cathedrals and comforting familiarity of the Stade de France in next month’s Six Nations was conspicuously lacking.For a defiant Saracens, though, this chilly, sodden evening delivered the most beautiful of outcomes and a result that transforms the mood of their previous flagging season. They fully deserved this rousing victory, two first-half tries from Rotimi Segun and a barnstorming display from man of the match Tom Willis laying the foundations for the hosts’ best performance of the season which has sharply improved their Champions Cup knockout qualification prospects. Continue reading...

Society

2 w. ago Salah inspires Egypt with energy recalling golden generation to evoke recent history | Jonathan Wilson

Liverpool forward will face his former teammate Sadio Mané in Afcon semi against Senegal after arguably the Pharaohs’ best performance since 2008It is a long time since Egypt had a night this good. There have been two World Cup qualifications since their golden age of three successive Cups of Nations came to an end in 2010, and they’ve got to the finals of two Cups of Nations since, but this had a different feel to the knockout phases in 2017 or 2021 (played in 2022). This wasn’t grinding through, doing just enough (across the knockouts in 2017 and 2021, Egypt won one game without needing extra time or penalties; a grim 1-0 against Morocco in the 2017 quarter-final). It was taking on one of the giants of African football and beating them well. A 3-2 victory over Côte d’Ivoire was probably Egypt’s best single performance since they beat the same opposition 4-1 in the semi-finals of Ghana 2008.That game in Kumasi was always going to cast its shadow over this quarter-final. Saturday’s ...

Politics

2 w. ago Victor Osimhen helps Nigeria soar past Algeria into Africa Cup of Nations semi

The Super Eagles shone to reach the last four with star forwards Osimhen and Akor Adams on form as coach Eric Chelle eyes redemption after missing out on World Cup 2026 qualification , with hosts Morocco up next

Politics

2 w. ago Football transfer rumours: Arsenal to join race for Guéhi? Schade to Spurs?

Today’s fluff could soon be impenetrableHe was on the way to Liverpool last year and Manchester City are gunning for him now, reinforcements required after injuries to Josko Gvardiol and Rúben Dias. It’s only natural then that Arsenal feel a little bit left out. Yes, the league leaders are reportedly having a look at Crystal Palace’s in-demand captain, Marc Guéhi, whose contract runs out in the summer. Guéhi fighting it out with William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães in central defence? That wall at the back could become impenetrable.A re-jig in the Tottenham backline is also in the offing. They’re pushing hard for the Santos left-back Souza, 19 years young, after an £8m bid was rejected, while the former Genoa centre-back Radu Dragusin – who recently returned from an ACL injury – is rumoured for a move back to Italy, Roma the proposed destination. Brentford’s Kevin Schade continues to be linked with Spurs, which would set up a reunion with his former coach Thomas Frank. Continue read...

Sport

2 w. ago Charlotte Crosby looks incredible in bikini just days before scary hospital dash on holiday in Maldives

CHARLOTTE Crosby has thrilled fans with a glamorous bikini-clad snap taken just before her concerning rush to hospital. The Geordie Shore star, 35, shared the enviable picture with followers in the Maldives, prior to her hospital dart in Dubai.  The reality TV star uploaded the svelte picture and admitted she sometimes feels 'a bit nervous'...

Politics

3 w. ago The dangerous truth about your dad bod or beer belly... and why our leading experts are urging more men to use Mounjaro

Aged just 39, Dan Hayes viewed going to the doctor as no more than a sensible precaution when he started to feel a bit sluggish and less energetic than normal.

Politics

3 w. ago Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton learn Premier League fate in line

Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton enjoyed contrasting years on the oche, but have the Wales World Cup of Darts team-mates qualified for the Premier League?

Politics

3 w. ago ‘I find it all a bit comforting’: why Zodiac is my feelgood movie

The first 2026 entry in our ongoing series of writers calling attention to their comfort films is David Fincher’s thrillerIt begins with a murder, and then another. A woman is killed, a man grievously injured, and a letter is sent to the news media. The killer gives himself a name – this is the Zodiac speaking – and provides a message written in code. So we start with three mysteries: the man, his motives and his message. The third is quickly cracked; the first hypothesized, but never definitively proven. But it’s the why of it all – why a man would kill at least five seemingly random people, and why we as a culture still care – that will require more significant investigation.When it was first released more than 18 years ago, David Fincher’s Zodiac was considered a bit of an also-ran. Over two and a half hours long, it depicts the search for the Zodiac killer, who spent the late 60s terrorizing California’s Bay Area, as a series of bad leads and dead-ends, and concludes without def...

Politics

3 w. ago Scotland star Andy Robertson receives heartfelt Christmas gift from fan

Abigail Rudkin says she was “absolutely buzzing” after being asked by Robertson’s wife to create a special artwork celebrating Scotland’s World Cup qualification and paying tribute to his late friend Diogo Jota.

Politics

3 w. ago Scotland’s World Cup qualifier shows football should be on terrestrial TV, says SNP

The SNP has declared it "vital" for all major international sporting events to be broadcast on free-to-air television, preventing public exclusion.

Culture

3 w. ago From Sehitler to Armstrong: 10 female footballers set for breakthrough in 2026

Today’s newsletter looks at 10 superlative talents who are ready to take the next step in the coming 12 monthsAlara Sehitler, Bayern Munich and Germany (19): Sehitler’s transition into Bayern Munich’s first team has come as little surprise and the creative midfielder has established herself as a strong impact player for José Barcala’s side. She has three Frauen Bundesliga goals this season and sparked Bayern’s comeback against Arsenal in the Champions League. After making her senior debut for Germany in November 2024, she will be looking to establish herself as a regular for their upcoming 2027 World Cup qualifiers.Giulia Galli, Roma and Italy (17): Galli is widely regarded as one of the best young Italian talents to emerge for a long time and became Roma’s youngest player to make her Serie A debut in May 2024, aged 16 and one month. Establishing herself in the senior squad this season, she scored her first club goal in September and has featured in the Champions League. After starr...

Events

3 w. ago Full list of 2026 bank holidays so you can book time off work now

If the end of the Christmas season has got you feeling a bit glum, then you may already be looking at what time off or holidays you can get booked in 2026

Economics