14 h. ago Real Sociedad steal a march on Barcelona to get city party started early | Sid Lowe

Carnival drums provided the backdrop to surprise victory over league leaders that was not just down to luck“There was a little magic in the atmosphere,” Pellegrino Matarazzo said. Real Sociedad’s new coach could feel it; he could hear it too, the sound of drums beating on every street of the city he has embraced and into the stadium that has embraced him back already. When he and his players arrived at Anoeta on Sunday evening, they entered through a guard of honour, a band of soldiers and chefs lined up in the rain, hammering out the club anthem and hoping. By the time they departed around midnight, following 35,346 supporters out into San Sebastián, it had actually happened. La Real had beaten Barcelona 2-1. Celebrations, his captain Mikel Oyarzabal said, had come a day early.This week is tamborrada, the San Sebastián festival where, at midnight on 20 January, the city flag is raised and marching bands parade through its streets in Napoleonic uniforms and cooks’ costumes grasping ...

Events

20 h. ago Spanish media all agree as Marcus Rashford sends timely Barcelona transfer message

On-loan Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford came off the bench for Barcelona to score against Real Sociedad but couldn't prevent his side's 2-1 defeat

Politics

31 h. ago European football: Barcelona slip up at Real Sociedad while Milan stay in hunt

La Liga lead cut to one point after surprise 2-1 defeatFüllkrug scores first goal in Italy since leaving West HamReal Sociedad damaged Barcelona’s title defence with a surprise 2-1 home victory as Hansi Flick’s side fell to a first defeat in 12 matches. The Catalan side, who hit the woodwork four times and had two goals disallowed, now lead their rivals Real Madrid by only a point at the top of La Liga after Álvaro Arbeloa’s side beat Levante on Saturday.Sociedad, now unbeaten in four games under their new American coach Pellegrino Matarazzo, had Carlos Soler sent off late on but managed to hold on. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Wrexham receive clear £13m transfer message as Norwich striker sits out of FA Cup tie

Hollywood-owned Wrexham could steal a march on one of their Championship rivals in the January transfer window

Economics

7 d. ago Why influx of former Tories into Reform UK may cause trouble for Nigel Farage

The public could start to view Reform UK as the Conservative party in all but name if too many Tories defect

Events

7 d. ago Man Utd transfer news: Rivals steal march in race for midfielder as surprise decision made

Manchester United's hunt for January transfers could make or break a campaign that has already been severely disrupted by the departure of manager Ruben Amorim

Sport

7 d. ago Ronald Araújo returns from mental health break to see Barça over Super Cup line | Sid Lowe

For Barcelona’s Uruguayan defender, the 3-2 victory over Real Madrid in the Super Cup wasn’t just about the titleNot many people saw the exact moment Ronald Araújo lifted the Super Cup to the sky and a weight from his mind but the men that matter most did: they were right there, standing by him. They had welcomed him back, 47 days later and in a final, lifted him up towards the light, and handed him the captain’s armband. Now, after they had beaten Real Madrid 3-2 together, they handed him the captain’s responsibility and a captain’s honour, inviting him to raise the trophy for all of them. Which was when someone walked in front of the camera, went whoops and walked back again.By the time the shadow left the screen, Araújo was holding with the cup over his head, teammates roaring around him, and the Real Madrid players who stayed to watch had turned down the tunnel. They had been close to trading places. In a final of sudden storms – three clear chances and a goal in 2min 54sec afte...

Politics

1 week ago ‘Wildcatters’ race for Venezuelan oil deals ahead of wary western majors

Entrepreneurs seek to steal march on bigger rivals that are still weighing risks of re-entering country

Economics

2 w. ago ‘We have a new role’: mayors across the world increasingly taking on society’s biggest challenges

From Budapest to Barcelona, New York to Paris, mayors are increasingly being thrust on to the political frontlines as they face down the rise of the far rightIn Budapest, it was a call to flout the Hungarian government’s ban on Pride that catapulted the city’s mayor into the headlines. In Barcelona it was a bold plan to rid the city – one of Europe’s most visited – of tourist flats by late 2028. And in Paris, it was a drastic makeover; one that included making the Seine swimmable and turning its car-clogged riverbanks into pedestrian-friendly areas.The mayors’ actions – and the global conversation they elicited – hinted at how, in much of the world, the role of mayor has been recast. Gone are the stereotypes of endless ribbon cutting ceremonies and flesh-pressing events; instead mayors are increasingly being thrust on to the frontlines of some of society’s thorniest challenges. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Joan García goes back to Espanyol: Barça’s ‘science fiction’ keeper saves the day | Sid Lowe

Goalkeeper who swapped city rivals in the summer proved pivotal on his return with a stunning series of saves“I hope people don’t get angry but he’s my friend.” There wasn’t long until the Barcelona derby and Jofre Carreras had briefly abandoned the warm-up to talk to the TV. There on the touchline, talk inevitably turned to his former roommate, housemate and teammate Joan García, now in goal for their greatest rivals. Carreras’s answer was just about audible over all the noise and then he was off again: he had something else to do before it all started, accepting a shirt marking his 100th game for Espanyol. Behind them as club legend Rafa Marañón presented it, the team captains lined up for a photo of their own with the first Catalan to referee this fixture in 80 years and, way off to the left out of shot, García clapped. Like everything else he did, except actually play, he did so discreetly.Joan and Jofre, both 24, have known each other “for as long as I can remember”, in Carrera...

Politics

2 w. ago European football: David’s failed Panenka costs Juventus against Lecce

McKennie equalises in 1-1 draw but Juve’s title bid hitEspanyol ban fans with Barcelona shirts at city derbyJuventus’s Serie A title hopes were dealt a blow as they were held to a 1-1 draw at home by relegation-battling Lecce on Saturday, with the hosts coming from behind but failing to win after Jonathan David had a Panenka-style penalty saved.Juventus remain fifth on 33 points, five off the leaders, Milan, who have played a game less. Lecce are 16th on 17 points, five points above the relegation zone.This story will be updated Continue reading...

Economics

2 w. ago Arsenal files: Lonely Zubimendi missing pooch but says he deserves better than London as Emirates welcomes safe standing

MARTIN ZUBIMENDI has settled brilliantly at Arsenal and has proved to be their best summer signing. Yet there is one thing the midfielder really misses about Spain. Zubimendi, who joined from Real Sociedad for £51million, explained: “My dog still lives in Spain. "The thing is that I live alone here and he doesn’t deserve that...

Events

2 w. ago From Guéhi to Yildiz – who could be on the move in the January transfer window?

We look at 10 players likely to create headlines next month, including the ‘new Kevin De Bruyne’Men’s transfer interactive: January 2026 editionWhile Semenyo would doubtless prefer to be in Morocco at the moment, one of the advantages to Ghana’s failure to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations has been that the 25-year-old is in the same country as all the clubs who have expressed an interest in signing him. With a contract at Bournemouth containing a £65m release clause that becomes active for the first two weeks of January, Manchester City appear to have won the race for the player who has scored 19 Premier League goals since the start of last season. Chelsea and Tottenham have now moved on to other targets but could Liverpool or Manchester United attempt to steal a late march on their rivals? They need to get a move on if so. Continue reading...

Politics

4 w. ago Villarreal tried everything against Barcelona – except moving the game to Miami | Sid Lowe

In a match mercifully on Spanish soil, Villarreal bombarded Barça but were undone by profligacy and ill-disciplineMarcelino García Toral came bounding down the steps like an excited schoolboy when the bell goes. He flew past the substitutes and staff, skidded left, and sprinted up the line all wide-eyed and excited, shaking his fists and beaming. He had gone 15 or 20 metres, maybe 25 when he realised – just a fraction later than everyone else – that something had gone wrong again. So Villarreal’s manager put the brakes on and his head down, and turned back towards the bench feeling almost as silly as this was getting. This, he already suspected, was going to be one of those days.They had been playing 16 minutes and the goal Villarreal had scored, the goal Jules Koundé scored for them, wasn’t a goal at all. Just as the chance they made after 80 seconds wasn’t, Nicolas Pépé putting wide from a yard out. Just as Ayoze Pérez’s opportunity on six minutes wasn’t a goal, Tajon Buchanan’s e...

Politics