Romelu Lukaku’s agent, Federico Pastorello, confirms the Belgian striker will resume training with his Napoli teammates today, meeting with Antonio Conte: ‘The coach will decide what to do.’

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Lukaku returns to Napoli to meet Conte

Belgium international Lukaku has returned to Naples after spending over one month in Antwerp, Belgium, for individual training sessions to regain full fitness.

Lukaku refused to return to Naples during the international break in March, remaining in Belgium without the club’s consent.

He was, therefore, fined and frozen out of the team. He did return to Naples for just one day towards the end of April to meet club directors with his agent, Pastorello.

Lukaku and his representative did not sit down with Conte at the time, prompting the coach to publicly express his dissatisfaction.

“I know both [Lukaku and Conte] really well, and they both live football with great passion,” Pastorello told DAZN Belgium via TMW.

“That was not the right moment for a meeting, but they’ll do it today.”

Lukaku has now returned to Napoli’s training centre, his agent confirmed.

“Lukaku is back to Napoli, as expected, and he’ll resume training with the team now that he’s in better shape. Then the coach will decide what to do with Romelu,” Pastorello said.

Lukaku suffered a severe muscle injury at the beginning of the season, which forced him to the sidelines in the first part of the campaign.

The Belgian international, 32, has played only 64 minutes across all competitions this season, scoring one goal.

His contract at the Stadio Maradona runs out in June 2027.

Reports in Italy claim that Luka Modric returned to the Milan training centre this morning. Hence, the Rossoneri hope to see the Croat return to action for the last game of the season despite a recent cheekbone surgery.

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Modric’s season with Milan might not be over as Italian sources, including Sky Sport Italia and MilanNews, report that the 40-year-old returned to Milanello on Tuesday morning for the first time since suffering a cheekbone injury that required surgery two weeks ago.

Modric returns to Milanello for first time after surgery

It was expected that Modric would not play for Milan again this season, focusing his recovery on the World Cup with the Croatia national team.

However, according to MilanNews, his return to Milanello this morning suggests that the Real Madrid legend will push to be available for the season’s final game.

Milan have won only one of their last five league games and are still not certain to qualify for the Champions League, as their advantage over fifth-placed Roma has been reduced to three points.

Milan host Atalanta next weekend, then visit Genoa in Round 37 and play at home against Cagliari in the final round.

• Read more – Allegri’s doubt, Modric out: The possible consequences for Milan without Champions League

Gian Piero Gasperini is pushing Roma to secure contract renewals for four out-of-contract players this summer, including Paulo Dybala and Lorenzo Pellegrini, both of whom have been linked with Inter Milan, while Zeki Celik has also attracted interest from Liverpool.

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According to Sky Sport, via TuttoMercatoWeb, the recent departures of Claudio Ranieri and sporting director Frederic Massara have actually brought the squad closer together, with Gasperini using that unity to press the club for a clean sweep of renewals.

Alongside Dybala, Pellegrini and Celik, winger Stephan El Shaarawy is also out of contract, with all four previously considered likely to leave at the end of the season.

Gasperini pushes Roma board to retain key quartet despite summer uncertainty

The situation has shifted, however, with Gasperini now understood to want all four players kept at the club.

His desire to retain them comes amid significant external interest, especially at zero cost.

Celik has been linked with both Inter and Liverpool, while Pellegrini has also been mentioned in connection with the Nerazzurri.

Dybala, meanwhile, has been repeatedly linked with a return to Argentina to join Boca Juniors.

Keeping hold of these players would be a significant mark of strength from Roma, especially as fans feel many still have something to give to the club.

Losing any of them, especially to a division rival like Inter, would be a huge blow, especially as

Growing reports in Italy suggest that Maurizio Sarri is Napoli’s top candidate to replace Antonio Conte in 2026-27.

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Will Sarri replace Conte at Napoli in 2026-27?

Italian transfer expert Alfredo Pedullà reports that Lazio coach Sarri is the leading candidate for the Napoli job next season if Conte leaves.

The Partenopei boss is under contract at the Stadio Maradona, but his future at the club will be determined in the coming weeks, with a meeting expected between the Italian tactician and the Napoli management, including President Aurelio De Laurentiis.

Pedullà writes on X that “confirmations are coming from all sides” that Sarri is Napoli’s “top name” for next season if the club and Conte decide to part ways.

Sarri returned to Lazio last summer but has had a troubled season at the Stadio Olimpico, mostly due to a summer transfer embargo that prevented the Biancocelesti from making new signings for the first part of the campaign.

Sarri, 67, already spent three seasons at Napoli, from 2015 to 2018.

He won 98 of 148 games in charge of the Partenopei, failing to win the Scudetto in his final season at the club despite collecting 91 points.

Inter legend Beppe Bergomi insists Milan, Juventus and Napoli can’t settle for a mere top-four finish next season and warns Barcelona about Alessandro Bastoni’s price tag: ‘He has great value…’

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Inter and Italy legend Bergomi examined the Nerazzurri’s title-winning campaign in an interview with Repubblica, where he also discussed the improvements that Cristian Chivu’s team will need for 2026-27.

Chivu has won the Scudetto in his first full Serie A season as a coach, and Bergomi had no doubts about the former defender’s quality in the dugout.

“I knew he’d do well. Roberto Samaden, who had long been in charge of the youth sector, told me that Cristian could win his players’ hearts, and he did,” he said.

Bergomi went on to name the key Inter player this term.

“Lautaro. He’s the top scorer despite playing fewer games than in the past,” he said.

“He has amazing quality and leadership skills. Zielinski and Dimarco are just one step behind.”

Bergomi feels the Nerazzurri’s target for next season is already set, but he also sent a warning to the other contenders.

“Win the league again, and it is not only true for Inter,” he claimed.

“Milan, Napoli and Juve can’t just say ‘we aim for a Champions League spot.’ It’s not fair towards the fans. The Champions League is an opportunity, but it is complex. With the new formula, if you don’t finish [the league phase] in the top eight, it gets very tough.”

According to recent reports, the Nerazzurri will have a minimum budget of €40-50m to strengthen the team, a sum that could be increased through some sales.

“I’d like a physically strong central midfielder, like Koné, Rabiot or Khephren Thuram, and a dribbler, like Nico Paz,” Bergomi said.

“It will be hard to sign him from Real Madrid, but that’s the type of player [Inter need].

“Inter have been without Calhanoglu, Dumfries, and Lautaro for many games,” continued the ex-defender.

“Bastoni too. In addition to injuries, he was subjected to unjustified public shaming. He made a mistake, but he took responsibility for it.”

Inter President Marotta has already confirmed Barcelona’s interest in Bastoni. Should the Serie A champions really sell the Italian centre-back?

“It depends on the offers,” concluded Bergomi.

“He has great value; you can’t just sell him off cheaply. I see him doing well in Spain and in the Premier League.”

With all eyes falling on the Allianz on Wednesday night, a spot in the final of this season’s Champions League hangs in the balance as Bayern Munich welcome PSG to Germany for their second-leg showdown. Eventually dragging themselves to an early advantage last week as they secured what was a remarkable 5-4 victory in Paris, […]

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Prediction: Manchester United to win 2-0 Best Odds: 8/1 Bookmaker: Zetbet Sunderland and Manchester United will lock horns with each other in the Premier League this weekend. The match between the Black Cats and the Red Devils will be held at the Stadium of Light and is scheduled to kick off at 3pm UK time […]

The post Prediction: Sunderland vs Manchester United appeared first on Soccer News.

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Prediction: Aston Villa to win 3-0 Best Odds: 10/1 Bookmaker: Zetbet Burnley and Aston Villa will lock horns with each other in the Premier League this weekend. The match between the Clarets and the Villans will be held at Turf Moor and is scheduled to kick off at 2pm UK time on Sunday. Burnley Burnley […]

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The Champions League final four is often the stage for unbelievable scenarios.

From spectacular comebacks and historic thrashings to longevity records, the semi-finals have helped forge the legend of the Champions League.

Here’s a look back at the numbers and performances that have marked the competition’s history.

The biggest comeback in a Champions League semi-final

Liverpool 4-0 Barça in the second leg (0-3 in the first leg, 2018/19)

The biggest aggregate score (home and away)

Bayern Munich 7-0 Barça (4-0, 3-0) 2012/13

The biggest wins in a Champions League semi-final

Real Madrid 6-0 Zurich (07/05/1964)

Bayern Munich 4-0 Barcelona (23/04/2013)

Real Madrid 4-0 Bayern Munich (29/04/2014)

Liverpool 4-0 Barça (07/05/2019)

Manchester City 4-0 Real Madrid (17/05/2023)

Most goals scored in a Champions League semi-final

4 goals - Robert Lewandowski (Dortmund vs Real Madrid, 24/04/2013)

The oldest player in a Champions League semi-final 🦁

41 years and 206 days, Mark Schwarzer (Chelsea 1-3 Atlético), 30/04/2014

The youngest player in a Champions League semi-final

17 years and 2 days, Rayan Cherki (Lyon 0-3 Bayern, 19/08/2020)

The youngest goalscorer in a Champions League semi-final

17 years and 291 days, Lamine Yamal (Barcelona 3-3 Inter, 30/04/2025)

The oldest goalscorer in a Champions League semi-final

37 years and 148 days, Ryan Giggs (Schalke 0-2 Man United), 26/04/2011

The youngest player to score a hat-trick in a Champions League semi-final

23 years and 143 days, Alessandro Del Piero (Juventus 4-1 Monaco, 01/04/1998) 

The oldest player to score a hat-trick in a Champions League semi-final

32 years and 86 days, Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid 3-0 Atlético, 02/05/2017)

Top scorer in Champions League semi-finals

Cristiano Ronaldo - 13 goals 

Stats: UEFA

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇫🇷 here.

Romelu Lukaku’s agent, Federico Pastorello, confirms the Belgian striker will resume training with his Napoli teammates today, meeting with Antonio Conte: ‘The coach will decide what to do.’

Lukaku returns to Napoli to meet Conte

Belgium international Lukaku has returned to Naples after spending over one month in Antwerp, Belgium, for individual training sessions to regain full fitness.

Lukaku refused to return to Naples during the international break in March, remaining in Belgium without the club’s consent.

VERONA, ITALY – FEBRUARY 28: Romelu Lukaku of SSC Napoli celebrates after scoring his team second goal during the Serie A match between Hellas Verona FC and SSC Napoli at Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi on February 28, 2026 in Verona, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

He was, therefore, fined and frozen out of the team. He did return to Naples for just one day towards the end of April to meet club directors with his agent, Pastorello.

Lukaku and his representative did not sit down with Conte at the time, prompting the coach to publicly express his dissatisfaction.

“I know both [Lukaku and Conte] really well, and they both live football with great passion,” Pastorello told DAZN Belgium via TMW.

NAPLES, ITALY – FEBRUARY 10: Romelu Lukaku of SSC Napoli reacts after missing a penalty in the penalty shootout during the Coppa Italia match between SSC Napoli and Como 1907 at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on February 10, 2026 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Francesco Pecoraro/Getty Images)

“That was not the right moment for a meeting, but they’ll do it today.”

Lukaku has now returned to Napoli’s training centre, his agent confirmed.

“Lukaku is back to Napoli, as expected, and he’ll resume training with the team now that he’s in better shape. Then the coach will decide what to do with Romelu,” Pastorello said.

Lukaku suffered a severe muscle injury at the beginning of the season, which forced him to the sidelines in the first part of the campaign.

The Belgian international, 32, has played only 64 minutes across all competitions this season, scoring one goal.

His contract at the Stadio Maradona runs out in June 2027.

Jon Rahm has reached a deal with the DP World Tour that will allow him to retain membership and be eligible for selection for next year’s Ryder Cup with the future of LIV Golf uncertain.

Rahm and the tour had appeared at an impasse after the two-time major champion turned down an offer taken by eight of his LIV colleagues to remain a member.

The 2023 Masters winner had declined to pay fines and accept a settlement that would have involved him playing a minimum of six events on the European tour, though now has reached agreement after further negotiations. It has not been confirmed how many events he will be expected to play.

A key part of the European teams that have won the last two editions of the Ryder Cup, Rahm now appears set to be available to Luke Donald again at Adare Manor next year.

“The DP World Tour and Jon Rahm have come to an agreement on conditional releases to play in conflicting tournaments on LIV Golf during the remainder of its 2026 season,” the DP World Tour confirmed in a statement.

“This involves payment of all outstanding fines accrued from 2024 to date, along with participation in agreed DP World Tour tournaments (outside the Majors) in the remainder of the 2026 season.”

News of the deal comes a week after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) confirmed that it would be ceasing its funding of LIV Golf at the end of the 2026 season. The breakaway league is now searching for alternative investors as it resumes the campaign at Trump National Golf Club near Washington DC this weekend.

Rahm joined LIV in December 2023 with a reported signing-on fee of $350m (£258m). He topped the individual standings on the series last year, and already has two victories this season.tThe 31-year-old finished in a tie for 38th at the Masters last month and is set to compete at the PGA Championship at Aronimink next weekend.

Good morning everyone, the Seattle Seahawks have woken up!

After an excruciatingly quiet stretch of offseason, the Seahawks have signed one of the most accomplished players of this free agency, bringing former first-round pick Dante Fowler in to play opposite DeMarcus Lawrence and make quarterbacks sad.

By the way, for the comp pick watchers, we’re past the deadline for any FA signings counting toward or against the formula, so this affects nothing but a roster spot and the salary cap.

This has felt like a strong possibility for a while, for a few reasons. Things became even more clear when Seattle entered and subsequently exited the 2026 draft without any drafted edge help. Additionally, Fowler overlapped with Lawrence in Dallas and Aden Durde in 2022 and 2023, and Seattle brought Fowler in for a visit. Finally, reviving 30-year old pass rushers seems to be one of the many specialties of head coach Mike Macdonald.

Fowler is not quite at the same tier as Lawrence – and the $5 million contract supports that, but he completely fits the bill for what has become the Seahawks defensive line engine.

• Versatility across the line
• Known for his high motor and nasty, disruptive playstyle
• Power rusher with high pressure rate. His 2025 was higher than any Seahawks player.
• Skilled and accomplished run defender

It’s not a pure Boye Mafe replacement in terms of skillset. He’s closer to Derick Hall, Lawrence, or even Leonard Williams in that regard.

Fowler’s career production has been a bit up and down. He only has two 10+ sack seasons, but 15 forced fumbles over 10 years is nothing to sneeze at, neither is 74 tackles for loss. His two best seasons were with the Los Angeles Rams and Washington Commanders, so we’ll just assume that the Cowboys don’t know what they’re doing, that Durde and Macdonald do, and look forward to Fowler in a Seahawks jersey soon!

In Today’s Links: another breakdown of the Jadarian Price pick, photos from the next phase of Seattle Seahawks offseason practice, takeaways from Rookie Minicamp, a look at the Macdonald Regime, thus far; and much more! Thanks for being here with us at Field Gulls. You know the rest.

#np Hold On by Alabama Shakes

Seahawks News

How many Seahawks have there been recently? – Seaside Joe
And how many more will be added to the list next year?

Brock sees similarities to RB legend in Seahawks’ Jadarian Price – Seattle Sports
The Seattle Seahawks made it through their rookie minicamp over the weekend, which allowed for the first look at first-round running back Jadarian Price in the blue and Action Green.

PHOTOS: Sam Darnold, Jaxon Smith-Njigba And The Seahawks Begin Phase Two Of Offseason Workouts – Seahawks.com
The Seahawks kicked off phase two of the team’s offseason workout program on Monday, May 4, 2026 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.

How Russell Wilson might fare if he joins CBS’ NFL pregame show – The Seattle Times
There are two schools of thought regarding how former Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson would fare if he joins “The NFL Today” on CBS next season.

Five takeaways from Seahawks rookie camp, including Jadarian Price’s hands – The News Tribune
From top draft choice Jadarian Price through a 5-foot-6 United States Air Force lieutenant, the Seahawks brought in more guys for a rookie minicamp than they’ll have players on their roster next season.

Stock Watch: Examining Seahawks Post-Draft Winners, Losers – Emerald City Spectrum
Now more than a week removed from the 2026 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks have gotten a first look at their newest draft class via rookie minicamp, and the offseason program will soon kick into full overdrive with Phase 2 opening next week.

Lessons to learn from the Seahawks 2026 draft – Seahawks Draft Blog
Brady Henderson has published a typically excellent breakdown of the Seahawks draft, with a few very interesting nuggets included. I wanted to touch on a few things we should remember for next year.

Why the Seahawks Signing of Dante Fowler Jr. Is Perfect – si.com
Dante Fowler Jr. won’t be the best pass rusher for the Seattle Seahawks, but the team isn’t asking him to be.

Inside the Macdonald Era: Why This Isn’t an Accident – The Hawks Eye w/ Bryce Coutts
The Mike Macdonald era in Seattle didn’t happen by chance… it was built with intent.

NFC West News

NFL Supplemental draft offers a quarterback the Cardinals may consider – Revenge of the Birds
The Arizona Cardinals appear to be pretty good with their quarterback situation.

Which Day 3 pick from the 49ers’ draft will play the biggest role in 2026? – Niners Nation
Is the answer too obvious?

Ty Simpson’s opponents ranked him below Jalen Milroe – Turf Show Times
ESPN asked SEC coaches why they were surprised by Simpson pick

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg announced Tuesday that assistants Nate Loenser, Ernie Zeigler and Pat Monaghan and general manager Luca Virgilio have signed contract extensions following the best season in program history.

Hoiberg, the Associated Press national coach of the year, also named Loenser associate head coach. Contract terms were not immediately announced.

The Cornhuskers finished 28-7 overall, tied for second in the Big Ten at 15-5 and beat Troy for their first-ever NCAA Tournament win and then Vanderbilt to reach the Sweet 16. They were No. 14 in the final AP Top 25.

“The success our program had this year is really a testament to the efforts of our entire staff, and it is important to reward them for all of their work,” Hoiberg said. “The work they pour into our players is evident in their development in our program. Nate, Ernie and Luca have been vital over the last four years in helping us build a winning culture and enjoy sustained success that Nebraska basketball has not seen in a long time."

Loenser, who coordinates the defense, just completed his fifth season on the staff. Zeigler, who works with the offense and plays a major role in game planning, has been at Nebraska four seasons. Monaghan, who joined the staff in April 2025, assists in player development, game planning and recruiting.

Virgilio, who has been with Hoiberg all seven seasons at Nebraska, is in charge of roster management and retention.

___

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

James Tarkowski comes off second best against towering Newcastle defenders

(Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

For two seasons, James Tarkowski has been the bedrock of the Everton defence— the "Mr Dependable" who simply doesn't miss a minute of football.

But as we dissect the fallout from last night’s chaotic 3-3 draw against Manchester City at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, a growing number of Blues are asking a difficult question: is our vice-captain becoming a liability?

The Manchester City Meltdown

Last night was a microcosm of Tarkowski's season. While the headlines will rightly praise Thierno Barry’s double and the spirit shown to come from 0-1 to lead 3-1, the defensive lapses that allowed City to escape with a point were criminal.

The most egregious moment came in the 83rd minute. Having just taken a 3-1 lead, Everton’s defence — led by the veteran duo of Tarkowski and Michael Keane — completely switched off. Erling Haaland was allowed to race onto a Mateo Kovacic pass with embarrassing ease. Tarkowski’s lack of recovery pace and positioning were exposed as Haaland lifted the ball over Pickford. To concede within seconds of our third goal suggests a leadership vacuum at the heart of the backline.

Furthermore, Tarkowski's discipline was again called into question. His 53rd-minute yellow card for a cynical foul on Jeremy Doku was his 7th of the season (depending on the source, some data suggests 6, but his disciplinary record remains a concern). It forced him to play on a tightrope for the remainder of the match, limiting his ability to be aggressive against City's late onslaught.

The Statistical Decline

While Tarkowski still dominates the air — ranking in the 96th percentile for aerial duels won — other metrics paint a more worrying picture of his 2025-26 campaign:

• Goals Conceded: Everton have conceded 39 goals with Tarkowski on the pitch this season across 33 starts.
• Errors and Penalties: He has already conceded a penalty for handball this season (against Leeds) and was cited for an error leading to a goal in the 1-2 loss at Fulham in February.
• Indirect Responsibility: Beyond "official" errors, he has been part of a defensive unit that has struggled for consistency. In recent weeks, he has recorded low match ratings in losses to West Ham (1-2) and Liverpool (1-2), with critics pointing to a decline in his mobility following previous injury layoffs.
• The Pace Deficit: With only 4 successful dribbles all season and a 41% long-pass completion rate, Tarkowski is increasingly looking like a "box-defender" in a league that demands more mobility and technical security.

Time for the O’Brien-Branthwaite Axis?

The irony of last night was that Jake O'Brien, the man many want to see partner Jarrad Branthwaite long-term, was the one who scored the towering header from an excellent James Garner corner to put us 2-1 up. O'Brien showed the dynamism and goal threat that Tarkowski has struggled to provide this term (Tarkowski has just 1 goal from 16 shots inside the box this season).

The "squad audit" is becoming clear: while Tarkowski’s experience is valuable, his high wages and declining physical stats suggest he may no longer be an automatic starter if David Moyes wants to implement a more modern, mobile defensive line next season.

Of course, Branthwaite is out for what remains of this roller-coaster season, but worryingly, Tarkowski has already been granted a 2-year contract extension running through to June 2028. So his role going forward as one of Moyes's ageing favourites seems assured for the time being.

We love "Tarky" for his heart, but in a 3-3 thriller where the Everton defence "let themselves down" (Moyes's own words), the leadership we expect from our vice-captain was nowhere to be found when the game and the full 3 points from a precious win were on the line.

Manchester United have been on a roll under caretaker manager Michael Carrick, who remains an option for the full-time position at Old Trafford. However, that has not stopped the Red Devils from being linked to several managerial candidates ahead of the summer.

INEOS have had some poor luck with their managerial appointments and will be hoping to get third time lucky this year. Former head coach Ruben Amorim was appointed by United’s minority owners after a lot of background work, but his tenure turned out to be a disappointment.

The Portuguese head coach had an underwhelming 14-month spell at the Theatre of Dreams, and left in January with the club’s top-four hopes uncertain. Amorim’s future was also subject to speculation last summer after a 15th-placed finish in the Premier League last season.

The Portuguese survived the summer but had an underwhelming start to the new campaign, prompting speculation about his future. It was during that time that Brighton & Hove Albion manager Fabian Hurzeler was named as a possible replacement for the former Sporting manager.

Hurzeler’s rise at the Amex

Hurzeler arrived at the Amex in the summer of 2024, becoming the youngest permanent coach in Premier League history. The German soon added to his reputation as one of the most exciting young coaches in the world, and transformed Brighton into a well-drilled attacking unit.

Hurzeler has already displayed tactical flexibility, with his team playing intense attacking football and working extremely hard on the pitch. United had no answer to his tactics earlier this year in the FA Cup third round, losing the game 2-1 and exiting the tournament.

Darren Fletcher was in charge for that game in mid-January as interim manager following United’s decision to sack Amorim. The English giants were looking for some stability and appointed Carrick as the Portuguese’s temporary replacement a couple of days later.

Carrick, meanwhile, has already confirmed participation in next season’s Champions League by registering 10 wins and two draws in his 14 games in charge. United are third in the league table with three games remaining, and the focus has now shifted to the managerial selection process.

Michael Carrick Managerial Career Stats

Source: Wikipedia.

Several Premier League candidates have been named as options for the role, and it now appears that Hurzeler was also in the mix.

United considered Fabian Hurzeler

According to TEAMtalk, United briefly considered Hurzeler for the permanent position, but the German is now expected to sign a new deal at the Amex. The report states: “Brighton have moved decisively to secure the long-term future of head coach Fabian Hurzeler, with TEAMtalk able to confirm that the highly-rated German has agreed a new deal with the club.”

“We can also reveal that Manchester United had also done some work on him as part of their ongoing managerial hunt, though the Red Devils’ co-owners, INEOS, have long been convinced by Michael Carrick and were simply doing due diligence on alternatives should their first choice fail.”

A recent report relayed by The Peoples Person also states that United now consider Carrick as the frontrunner for the permanent position.

Final Thoughts

Hurzeler has been a revelation for the Seagulls, but as things stand, Carrick appears to be the best candidate for the position. With Champions League qualification secure, it is hard to look beyond the Englishman at the moment.

Featured image Gareth Copley via Getty Images

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The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social

As reported earlier this week, FC Barcelona are keeping tabs on AFC Bournemouth striker Eli Junior Kroupi heading into the summer transfer window.

The Blaugrana are in the market for a new centre-forward as Robert Lewandowski appears set to move on at the end of the season.

While Julian Alvarez is the priority target, his finances make the operation difficult, prompting Barça to keep an eye on alternatives, with Kroupi, 19, emerging as an option.

Eli Junior Kroupi not for sale

However, according to Lyall Thomas of Sky Sports, Bournemouth are not looking to sell Kroupi in the upcoming transfer window.

The teenage Frenchman joined the Cherries only last year, arriving from Lorient, and has enjoyed an impressive debut campaign – bagging 12 goals from 30 matches in the English top-flight.

His performances have alerted not only Barcelona, but also Manchester City and a number of other Premier League clubs.

Not for sale. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

As per the report, the Blaugrana have been tracking the France U21 international extensively this season and see him as a prospect for the long-term.

It must be remembered that the Catalans had already been monitoring Kroupi back in 2024 as well, before he had moved to Bournemouth.

Despite the interest that the young forward is attracting, Bournemouth are currently not looking to sell the player, who is tied down to a long-term contract until 2030.

So, unless the club come up with a significant offer, Barcelona’s chances of signing Kroupi in the upcoming transfer window appear to be very slim.

The teenager is not the only Premier League attacker that Deco & co. are tracking, with names like Joao Pedro of Chelsea and Newcastle United’s Anthony Gordon also on the club’s radars.

The personal chef who accused former New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs of assault and attempted strangulation returned to the witness stand Tuesday before the prosecution rested its case on the second day of trial in Dedham District Court.

Watch Live: Trial of former Patriots star Stefon Diggs continues

Jamila Adams, Diggs’ former personal chef, was the first witness called by prosecutors on Monday. She remained under cross-examination by the defense on Tuesday morning, which continued challenging her credibility and version of events.

The defense called its first witnesses to the stand after Adams was dismissed.

Diggs is accused of assaulting and attempting to strangle Adams inside his Dedham home in December. He has pleaded not guilty.

On the first day of testimony, Diggs walked quickly into court without speaking to reporters.

Under questioning from prosecutors, Adams became emotional as she described the alleged assault, saying Diggs began choking her. She testified that the incident at his Dedham home on Dec. 2, 2025, followed a heated exchange of text messages between the two over payments she said she was owed.

Defense attorneys have pushed back on Adams’ account, arguing the assault never happened. They pointed out that Adams did not take photos of any alleged bruising or marks and failed to disclose to police that she and Diggs were involved in what they described as an intimate relationship.

The defense also noted Adams was upset about being excluded from a trip to Miami and suggested that anger may have played a role in her allegations.

Boston attorney Elyse Hershon, a legal analyst, said the defense aggressively highlighted inconsistencies in Adams’ testimony.

“We have to look at why she would lie about this, and the defense is bringing out information,” Hershon said. “She deleted text messages before she went to the police and showed an angry exchange between her and Diggs. That doesn’t look good. So something that doesn’t look good is something the defense will use in their closing — to really say you can’t believe her, you can’t trust her, she lied, she just wanted money.”

The trial is expected to last another one to two days. Adams is scheduled to resume testimony first thing Tuesday morning as cross-examination continues.

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The Tampa Bay Lightning competed for the majority of the 2025-26 NHL season without their veteran captain.

Defenseman Victor Hedman played in 33 games, the lowest total of his 17-year career. A pair of injuries, including a procedure on his elbow, kept him out early in the season.

Then, on March 25, the team announced the 35-year-old Hedman was taking a leave of absence for personal reasons. He missed Tampa Bay’s final 15 games of the regular season and the seven-game postseason series against the Montreal Canadiens.

MORE: Jon Cooper blames ‘hockey gods’ as Canadiens shock Lightning in Game 7

The Canadiens eliminated the Lightning with a 2-1 victory in Game 7 on Sunday, May 3, in Tampa.

On Tuesday, Hedman released a statement through the team on X addressing his absence to “focus on my mental health.”

“I’ve always believed that being a leader means doing what’s best for the team,” the statement read. “In this case, it also meant doing what was necessary to take care of myself, so I can be the best player, teammate, husband and father I expect to be.”

‘Much better place today’

Though he didn’t address the details of his mental health struggle, Hedman shared that he is doing well now.

“I’ve been fortunate to have strong support from my family, my teammates and the organization, my therapist and I’m in a much better place today,” Hedman said in the statement.

Lightning head coach Jon Cooper indicated before Game 6 that Tampa Bay may have gotten Hedman back into the lineup if the postseason had lasted longer. Hedman skated with the team during several practices during the playoffs.

The 6-foot-7, 244-pound Hedman owns a rare combination of size and skill. The Lightning selected the Swede with the No. 2 pick in the 2008 NHL Draft, and he leads the franchise in games (1,164), goals (172), assists (639) and points (811) by a defenseman.

Hedman won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the 2020 postseason, leading the Lightning to the first of two consecutive Stanley Cups. He earned the Norris Trophy for the NHL’s top defenseman in 2017-18.

Hedman closed his statement with the hope that his decision helps others address mental health concerns.

“This is something that exists in our game more than people see,” Hedman wrote. “If this moment helps make it easier for others to take care of themselves when they need to, that matters.”

May 5 (UPI) -- Tampa Bay Lightning captain Victor Hedman missed the final 15 games of the regular season and playoffs to focus on mental health, he said Tuesday.

Hedman issued a statement on the hiatus through the Lightning, who lost to the Montreal Canadiens in seven games in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. He also spoke Tuesday at a news conference in Tampa, Fla.

"I spent most of my life in this game, and nearly all of my career with this organization," Hedman said in a statement. "Wearing this jersey -- and serving as captain -- is the greatest responsibility of my professional life.

"That responsibility doesn't only apply on the ice. Over the past couple of months, I made the decision to step away and focus on my mental health. It was not an easy decision, but it was the right one.

"I've always believed that being a leader means doing what's best for the team," Hedman said. "In this case, it also meant doing what was necessary to take care of myself, so I can be the best player, teammate, husband and father I expect to be."

Hedman, 35, joined the Lightning as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2009 NHL Draft. The two-time Stanley Cup winner appeared in 1,164 regular season games over the last 17 years for the franchise, including 33 in 2025-26.

"I've been fortunate to have strong support from my family, my teammates and the organization, my therapist and I'm in a much better place today," the 6-foot-7 defenseman said.

"This is something that exists in our game more than people see. If this moment helps make it easier for others to take care of themselves when they need to, that matters.

"I'm proud of this team, and I look forward to what's ahead."

Hedman totaled a goal and 16 assists this season. He underwent elbow surgery in December and missed six weeks of action. Hedman returned before the 2026 Winter Olympics and played his final game of the campaign on March 19. He practiced with the team during the first-round series with Montreal.

Hedman said it was "tough timing" and he is excited for next year.

The veteran defenseman logged 172 scores and 639 assists over his first 1,164 appearances for the Lightning. He is under contract through 2028-29.

"It's obviously a thing that's been going on for a long time and I [was] trying to work through it and find ways to get around it," Hedman said Tuesday. "I wasn't able to do that. That's where the decision came that I needed to take some time and find myself again."

Hedman advised others dealing with mental health issues to "reach out for help."

"Don't sit with your thoughts," Hedman said. "There are a lot of people out there that can help you. That's what I found out. Like I said, it's never too late, either."

"If that doesn't get given as a penalty, then it's an absolute free-for-all from now on," David Moyes said after the game.

The Everton manager wanted a spot-kick after Merlin Rohl was pulled to the ground by Bernardo Silva at an 85th-minute corner.

"I might have to start coaching my defenders how to defend differently completely," Moyes added. "It looks like now you're able to sort of grapple and wrestle on the ground if you want.

"I'm absolutely amazed."

It was checked by Paul Howard, the video assistant referee, but he ultimately decided that the foul took place before the ball was in play.

And you cannot give a free-kick or a penalty if the ball is out.

The referee can take disciplinary action, but the restart has to remain the same.

Last season, Southampton's Jack Stephens was sent off via a VAR review for pulling the hair of Chelsea's Marc Cucurella when the ball was out. The game still got under way again with a corner.

It is often why you see a lot of the pushing and shoving taking place just before a corner taker delivers the ball into the box.

There is no doubt that most of the holding was before the ball was kicked. But Everton fans argue it was still happening when James Garner kicked the ball, and that VAR should have intervened.

The VAR stats show why Everton feel so frustrated.

With three rounds to go, they are the only team in the Premier League yet to have an overturn go in their favour. In fact, no other team has fewer than two.

At the other end of the scale, Chelsea have had 11 VAR interventions go their way.

The last time the Toffees gained from a review was in January 2025, for a penalty at Brighton.

But stats from the Premier League's key match incidents panel indicate Everton have not generally been hard done by.

Everton have suffered only one error this season, when they should have been awarded a penalty on VAR review at home to Arsenal.

The Toffees have, however, benefited from four refereeing mistakes.

There was a missed VAR intervention to award a penalty to Wolves in August.

A spot-kick should have been given to the Gunners in the reverse game at Emirates Stadium, and to Chelsea in March - but neither reached the threshold for VAR.

Garner, meanwhile, should have received a second caution against Aston Villa in January.

• Read more from Dale on the officiating

Now that the 2026 NFL Draft is over, the next order of business for the Atlanta Falcons front office will be locking up some of their top assets with long-term deals.

At the top of the list is star wide receiver Drake London, who's currently scheduled to play out the 2026 season under his fifth-year option, which will cost the team just under $17 million.

The Falcons can cut into that number and create some cap space by signing London to a new contract, though. According to Over the Cap, Atlanta can save up to $12.5 million by extending him.

So, how much will a London extension cost the Falcons? According to Josh Kendall at The Athletic, London's deal will likely echo that of New York Jets receiver Garrett Wilson, which came in at four years and $130 million. The devil is of course in the details, though - especially guaranteed money.

"Wilson signed a four-year, $130 million deal last summer. If I were to guess at London’s new deal, I’d guess four years for $135 million, but the real number to watch will be the fully guaranteed money. Wilson’s total of $38.3 million fully guaranteed ranks just 15th among wide receivers in the league, according to Overthecap.com."

So far London has lived up to expectations since Atlanta picked him in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. In 62 career games he's totaled 309 catches, 3,961 yards and 22 touchdowns. He missed five games with a PCL strain last season but has had no major injuries so far. London still managed to post 919 yards and seven touchdowns.

London is the best receiver the Falcons have had on their roster since Julio Jones' prime, and it's a no-brainer to give him a lucrative long-term deal with the intention of him leading their receiving game for the foreseeable future.

This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Atlanta Falcons: Drake London estimated contract terms

Alex Bowman is making up ground with 15 races left in the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series regular season. Bowman sits 127 points behind the Chase bubble in the driver's standings with over half of the regular season remaining. Meanwhile, the No. 48 car is only 83 points back in the owner's standings.

The Hendrick Motorsports driver appeared to be out of the mix and while it is still a long shot, he is making up the needed ground. Bowman is on the pace to accomplish his points goal set before returning from his vertigo symptoms. The No. 48 team has a better chance at making the Chase, but Bowman can't be ruled out yet.

If Bowman can gain 8.5 points per race on the Chase bubble, he will reach the 16-driver field. It may require at least one win before September, but Bowman's two straight top-3 finishes certainly helps his case. It seemed nearly impossible two weeks ago; however, Bowman is giving himself an opportunity after two strong runs.

More: Kyle Busch could face NASCAR penalty after wreck at Texas in 2026

This article originally appeared on Motorsports Wire: Alex Bowman making up ground on Chase bubble with 15 races remaining

Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe has called reports of tension with a member of the coaching staff ‘exaggerated’, as talk of malcontent with the Frenchman at the Santiago Bernabeu continues to grow. Mbappe was heavily criticised for leaving Spain during his recovery period, as he faces a race against time to be fit for El Clasico on Sunday night.

Mbappe seemed to be the target of several indirect messages sent by Real Madrid manager Alvaro Arbeloa following their 2-0 win over Espanyol, while President Florentino Perez is also frustrated with his behaviour.  It is not the only incident that has resulted in disappointment with Mbappe, The Athletic report.

Mbappe involved in tense incident with staff member

Their information is that Mbappe was involved in a ‘flare-up’ with a member of the coaching staff before Los Blancos’ 1-1 draw with Real Betis two weeks ago. It follows on from reports that Antonio Rudiger and Alvaro Carreras had an altercation of their own. During a training game, Mbappe reportedly spoke angrily to the staff member, and used insulting language after being called offside.

Mbappe camp responds to reports

The same outlet includes comment from Mbappe’s representatives on the poor atmosphere at the Real Madrid training ground, and Mbappe’s loss of temper. They said there had been some exaggeration over the reaction to Mbappe’s handling of his recovery from a hamstring injury.

“A portion of the criticism is based on an over-interpretation of elements related to a recovery period strictly supervised by the club, and does not reflect the reality of Kylian’s commitment and daily work for the team.”

The fact that Mbappe’s representatives did not feel the need to deny the moment of tension with a staff member, or the poor atmosphere at Valdebebas, will certainly raise eyebrows in the Spanish capital. Mbappe is increasingly under pressure to become the leader of this Real Madrid side, and so far, those on the ground are yet to see satisfactory evidence that it is happening.

Lakers announce Luka Doncic’s injury status for Game 1 vs. Thunder originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

LeBron James practically carried the Los Angeles Lakers into the second round of the NBA Playoffs.

Coach JJ Redick did see massive performances from Luke Kennard, Marcus Smart and Deandre Ayton, but the Oklahoma City Thunder are going to be a bigger challenge. This is why many want to see Shai Gilgeous-Alexander face Luka Doncic in this series.

However, it looks like an injury will prevent that from happening.

MORE: LeBron James has never faced longer odds in his career than against the Thunder

Lakers reveal Doncic's Game 1 injury status vs. Thunder

Luka Doncic will not play in Game 1 against the Thunder.

The Lakers listed their star guard as out in the most recent status report. This means that either Jarred Vanderbilt, LeBron James, Marcus Smart or Austin Reaves will be assigned a match-up against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Doncic is dealing with a Grade 2 left hamstring strain. Poetically, the last game he played with the Lakers was against the Thunder back on April 2. The Lakers sent him to Europe to treat the injury, and he has since returned to the U.S. and saw LeBron James lead his team to a 4-2 series win against the Houston Rockets.

Before Game 1 against the Thunder, Brian Windhorst said that Lakers fans should not be expecting Doncic anytime soon.

"He is not close," Windhorst said. "There is a whole ramp up that is required when you are coming back from a hamstring, and he has not started that contact ramp up yet.

"I don't know where they'll be in 10 days, but do not expect to see Luka the first few games of this series."

Redick will have to rely on the same squad to either extend this NBA Playoffs series against the Thunder for Doncic's return or just get the whole thing done without any expectations of their star coming back.

More Lakers news:

• Lakers doubted again as ESPN unanimously picks Thunder series winner
• Bleacher Report picks clear side in Luka Doncic vs. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander debate
• JJ Redick already sounds like a coach managing expectations vs. OKC

Time to help our next door neighbours?

Sometimes your next door neighbour might ask for a favour. Can they borrow some sugar?

Do they need anything from the shop?

Will you be in to sign for a delivery?

On Sunday, Arsenal’s neighbours will be asking for a massive favour.

Sometimes you cannot control how fate falls, yet it is ironic that the club destiny has asked to help save Spurs from relegation is the one who would love to see it happen the most.

A twist of fate in the title race

A couple of months ago, the league leaders were in a position where it was possible to have the title won by this weekend. I am not saying the Gunners would have gone to the London Stadium going through the motions, but there would have been Gooners who would not have minded if that was the case.

Some would argue Tottenham fans would deserve that after how some acted two seasons ago when we needed them to get a result against Man City. Their own manager questioned the mentality of a fanbase cheering for their own side to lose, even when they still had a chance of qualifying for the Champions League. In terms of their domestic form, that would prove to be the turning point for Big Ange.

If we win at West Ham, our North London rivals kick off the next day with a chance to go four points clear of safety.

There would only then be six points left for both Spurs and the Hammers to play for. Considering their goal difference, that would be a long way back for the Irons.

(Photo by ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Karma knocking at the door

Spurs will not be grateful for our help. They will be the first to laugh if we surrender our lead at the top of the table.

Yet there is something amusing about them being embarrassed to knock on the door and admit they need us. To see them humble themselves and rely on us to bail them out.

It is not quite as fun as watching them play in the Championship.

Yet the idea of them cheering goals this weekend that could send us closer to being champions, that comforts me.

That is karma.

Dan Smith _____________________________________________________________________________________________ADMIN COMMENT

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More Stories / Latest News

Are Arsenal About to Save Spurs from Relegation?

5 May 2026, 15:45

From Emery to Arteta, Could Chelsea Follow Arsenal’s Rebuild Path?

5 May 2026, 14:30

Arsenal v Atletico Madrid: Predicted Line up and Score Prediction

5 May 2026, 13:30

The 2026 Fifa World Cup will be the biggest World Cup ever in terms of size and scale, with this year’s edition set to be the single most bet-on football event in the world.

The tournament will be hosted across the USA, Canada and Mexico from June 2026, and is the first World Cup to feature 48 teams and 104 matches.

Football bookmakers are preparing themselves for one of the biggest betting events of all time, so we’ve put together a list of the best World Cup betting sites on the UK market.

These sites will offer a range of pre-match and in-play markets, live streaming availability and ongoing promotions running before and throughout the six-week tournament.

Bookies will also prepare a raft of welcome offers, with updated UKGC guidelines now imposing a ban on mixed sportsbook and casino bonuses.

Read on to find our recommendations for the best sites for World Cup betting.

The best World Cup betting sites and offers for 2026

We consider a range of criteria when evaluating the best World Cup betting sites on the market.

Factors we look at include market depth for tournament betting, quality of World Cup-specific promotions, the competitiveness of the betting sign up offers and the overall mobile experience.

The table below provides a brief look at our recommendations for the best World Cup betting sites on the market:

Bet365 - best for in-play and live betting

Bet365 is our pick as the best option for in-play and live betting thanks to an unmatched range of in-play markets and live streaming of international football, including many World Cup warm-up matches and friendlies.

The brand offers great World Cup odds on a huge breadth of pre-match football markets including outright winner, top goalscorer, group winners, team to qualify, match result, both teams to score and player-specific markets.

As for other live betting features, the cash out option is particularly valuable during knockout rounds, allowing customers to lock in profit or cut losses before a match ends.

In terms of the Bet365 welcome offer, the promo is around the industry standard for value, offering £30 in free bet credits when users deposit and wager £10.

Betfred - best World Cup welcome offer value

Betfred is one of the most established bookmakers on the UK market, with a long history of World Cup coverage and customer service during major sporting events.

Betfred's Bet £10 Get £50 welcome offer is the highest value standard welcome offer among the bookmakers featured here, making it an obvious starting point for new customers signing up ahead of the tournament.

In addition to the welcome offer, Betfred run various ongoing football promotions, which extend well beyond the sign-up offer and run throughout major international tournaments, making it a great choice for World Cup betting.

The bookie also provides a wide range of World Cup markets, including group stage betting, team to qualify, golden boot, and match betting across all fixtures.

Sky Bet - best for World Cup bet builders

The first thing that makes Sky Bet catch the eye is their market-leading qualifying bet requirement, allowing users to bet as little as £0.05 to trigger the ‘Bet £0.05 Get £30 welcome offer’.

This is the most accessible threshold of any offer featured here, with users receiving 3x£10 free bets that can be used on World Cup betting across multiple group stage fixtures.

While the potential value on the offer stands out, Sky Bet is our World Cup betting site pick for bet builders thanks to the BuildABet feature, which allows customers to combine multiple selections within a single World Cup match (e.g. first goalscorer, number of cards, match result) into one bet with a combined return.

In addition to good availability on bet builders, it is likely that Sky Bet will offer World Cup price boosts on major matches throughout the tournament, making it a solid overall choice for anyone looking to bet on the World Cup.

talkSPORT BET - best for World Cup coverage

TalkSPORT BET has a unique position as the betting brand of the talkSPORT radio network. As the UK's biggest commercial sports radio station, they will carry extensive World Cup 2026 coverage throughout the tournament.

As an extension of the talkSPORT network, the World Cup betting site is a good choice for football fans already engaged with talkSPORT's media content around the sport.

The brand’s welcome offer allows new users to bet up to £40 and get up to £40 in free bets, with a minimum £20 stake and football bets placed only via the app.

While talkSPORT BET will provide a solid range of markets and competitive World Cup betting odds, the bookie also stands out for a range of football-focused ongoing promotions tied to talkSPORT's live World Cup commentary and coverage.

Coral - best for World Cup prediction games

Coral's low £5 qualifying bet makes the Bet £5 Get £30 welcome offer one of the most accessible for new customers during the tournament.

Once signed up, users will find that Coral is a great bookie for free-to-play football prediction games with cash prizes and free bets up for grabs.

Their long-running Football Super Series prediction game will likley be rebranded and repackaged for the World Cup, with rewards given for accurate predictions.

Coral will also have wide market coverage across all 104 World Cup fixtures, with competitive World Cup odds across the group and knockout stages.

And for fans of in-person betting, Coral Connect links the customer's online account to in-shop betting, which is useful for anyone who wants to follow World Cup matches in any of their high-street betting shops.

Ladbrokes - best for World Cup free bet flexibility

Ladbrokes is one of the UK's most established and recognisable bookmakers, with a reliable mobile app well-suited to live match betting.

The brand’s welcome offer offers great value as a ‘Bet £5 Get £30’ promo, and the rewards are structured as 6x £5 free bets.

This is the most granular split of any offer featured here, giving new customers maximum flexibility to spread bets across multiple World Cup group stage fixtures rather than committing to fewer, larger stakes.

In addition, Ladbrokes offer excellent international football coverage – with extensive pre-match and in-play markets across all 104 World Cup matches – as well as a great range of ongoing football promotions running throughout the tournament.

How to claim a World Cup free bet

Below, we’ve provided a step-by-step guide on how to sign up for your typical World Cup betting site:

• Step 1: Choose a bookmaker from our recommended list and click through to their website.
• Step 2: Complete the online registration form, including name, date of birth, address, email address and payment details.
• Step 3: Opt in to the welcome offer if prompted during registration, or find it in the promotions section of your account once registered.
• Step 4: Make a qualifying deposit at the minimum required amount. This varies by bookmaker, so check the T&Cs for your chosen site.
• Step 5: Place a qualifying bet on World Cup markets at the minimum required odds (typically evens (1/1) or greater, though requirements vary).
• Step 6: Once your qualifying bet has settled, free bets or bet credits will be credited to your account, usually within 24 hours.
• Step 7: Use your free bets on World Cup match betting, outright markets, or specials of your choice before the expiry date.

How we rank and review World Cup betting sites

Here are some of the key elements we look for when updating our rankings and reviews of the best World Cup betting sites:

Regulation

All the best World Cup betting sites on our list are regulated and licensed by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC).

Responsible gambling

Safe betting operators which follow responsible gambling practices and offer several responsible gambling tools.

Customer experience

We look into the customer experience across various platforms, judging football bookies for their layout, usability, loading speed and customer service.

Payment options

Football punters require a diverse range of payment options beyond debit cards and those bookies that feature on the list of Apple Pay bookmakers among others, are given preference.

Promotions

A valuable sign up offer is one thing but we want to see operators that take care of existing customers with free bets, price boosts, money back promotions and free to play games.

Responsible gambling

When having a bet on World Cup markets, it’s vital to practice responsible gambling.

Gambling can be addictive and it’s important to stay in control of your football World Cup betting.

Never treat betting as a way to make money, never wager more than you can afford and when the fun stops, stop.

Gambling sites offer punters tools, like deposit limits, profit and loss trackers and self-exclusion options, to help them stay in control.

But if you ever feel like you need help or advice on gambling addiction, don’t hesitate to contact one of the charities or organisations below.

• NHS Help
• GambleAware
• Gamblers Anonymous

FAQs on World Cup betting sites

What are the best World Cup betting odds for 2026?

All bookmakers listed in this piece carry competitive markets across all 104 fixtures. World Cup odds vary by bookmaker and will fluctuate throughout the tournament in response to team news, group draw results, and match outcomes. Outright winner markets are the most popular starting point for bettors, but punters should use odds comparison tools to find the best value on World Cup betting odds.

Can I bet on World Cup 2026 warm-up friendlies?

Most UK-licensed bookmakers offer betting on World Cup warm-up matches. Market depth is strongest for games involving major nations, and coverage of smaller nations will vary by bookmaker. All bookmakers listed here carry international friendly markets, though again the markets on games between smaller nations may be more limited.

What World Cup betting specials are available?

World Cup specials typically include top goalscorer (or golden boot winner), number of goals in the tournament, first nation eliminated, team to win each group and player-of-the-tournament markets. The range of specials expands significantly as the tournament progresses into knockout rounds.

Do World Cup free bets have wagering requirements?

Free bets from UK-licensed bookmakers do not typically require the original stake to be wagered. Only winnings from World Cup free bets are withdrawable. Under UKGC rules updated in January 2026, any wagering requirements on bonuses are capped at 10x maximum. Remember to always check individual T&Cs before claiming offers.

Is World Cup betting legal in the UK?

World Cup betting is fully legal in the UK for adults aged 18 and over using operators licensed by the UK Gambling Commission. All bookmakers recommended in this article are UKGC-licensed. When betting on any event, remember to gamble responsibly and visit BeGambleAware.org if you need additional information or support.

What are the top World Cup betting markets?

This is subjective, but generally the most popular betting markets on the World Cup are top scorer, outright winner and accumulators picking the group winners.

What are the odds for England to win the World Cup 2026?

England's World Cup winner odds are currently 13/2 second favourites behind Spain (5/1). Check the current ante-post prices directly with any of the bookmakers listed on this page, as they change regularly. All of the operators recommended here offer World Cup outright markets.

We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.

Event: UFC Baku: “Fiziev vs. Torres”
Date: Sat., June 27, 2026
Location: Baku Crystal Hall in Baku, Azerbaijan
Start times: Paramount+ Prelims at 12 p.m. ET | Paramount+ Main Card at 3 p.m. ET

UFC Baku Main Event on Paramount+:

155 lbs.: Rafael Fiziev vs. Manuel Torres

UFC Baku Main Card on Paramount+ (3 p.m. ET):

185 lbs.: Shara Magomedov vs. Michel Pereira
185 lbs.: Marvin Vettori vs. Ismail Naurdiev
185 lbs.: Brunno Ferreira vs. Ikram Aliskerov
125 lbs.: Asu Almabayev vs. Charles Johnson
185 lbs.: Michal Oleksiejczuk vs. Abusupiyan Magomedov

UFC Baku Preliminary Card on Paramount+ (12 p.m. ET):

265 lbs.: Rizvan Kuniev vs. Tyrell Fortune
185 lbs.: Nursulton Ruziboev vs. Andrey Pulyaev
205 lbs.: Julius Walker vs. Abdul-Rakhman Yakhyaev
135 lbs.: Bekzat Almakhan vs. Jean Matsumoto
170 lbs.: Daniil Donchenko vs. Andreas Gustafsson
155 lbs.: Nazim Sadykhov vs. Matheus Camilo

*Fight card, bout order and number of fights subject to change.*

For the current UFC schedule of events click HERE.

The Vikings selected Demond Claiborne in the sixth round of the NFL draft. What is his realistic 2026 fantasy outlook, and how might his presence impact Aaron Jones, Jordan Mason, and Zavier Scott?

An ideal landing spot for a late-round pick? Quite possibly. On paper, this backfield looks pretty packed. But in reality, a lot could go wrong in a hurry, which could propel the rookie to fantasy legitimacy.

Jones will turn 32 in December, will be a free agent after this season, and is fully post-prime. While Minnesota will still lean on him when possible, his durability is now a major question mark. Jones’s over/under on games played is probably around 12 or 13. Fantasy managers should be prepared to snag at least one of his backups.

Mason, of course, is the most obvious backup. At this stage of his and Jones’s careers, Mason almost certainly will be the better bargain, and his over/under on games played is closer to 15. He can manage a fairly full workload when healthy, though his modest usage in the passing game limits his ceiling.

Scott is a prototypical #3 or #4 RB, or at least his usage makes him seem that way. A former college wideout, Scott’s realistic ceiling is capped at around the top 55-60, and that assumes he gets 35+ targets.

Claiborne, Minnesota, has a college bell cow with long-term NFL appeal if he can add a little more to his frame (his listed weight is between 188 and 195 pounds). If he can leapfrog Scott on the depth chart, he should be in line for at least a few games as Mason’s handcuff (assuming Jones misses time), and that would make him a decent deep-league add after fantasy drafts.

This article originally appeared on Touchdown Wire: Demond Claiborne rookie fantasy outlook and impact on RB teammates

The Zurich Classic of New Orleans is the latest PGA Tour event to announce its dates for a 2027 season that is looking to be similar to this year, minus Hawaii.

The American Express in La Quinta, California, is set for the third full week in January again. The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (Feb. 4-7) and WM Phoenix Open (Feb. 11-14, the week of the Super Bowl) already have announced dates on their websites.

The Masters, around which the early season revolves, is April 8-11, and again will be followed by the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town and the Zurich Classic.

The mystery remains Florida, except for The Players Championship set for March 11-14. Adding to the intrigue was the return of Doral to the schedule, which looked nothing like the Doral of old except for all the water on the course and airliners descending on nearby Miami International Airport.

Five of the top 15 players in the world were missing from the Cadillac Championship, as were the fans that used to pack the Blue Monster even when Tiger Woods wasn't winning. The PGA Tour was last at Doral in 2016. LIV Golf was there the last four years and had better crowds.

It didn't help the Cadillac Championship that Formula 1 was in Miami last weekend and attracted some 275,000 spectators over three days. The weather was dodgy on Sunday, and Cameron Young eliminated any suspense with his six-shot win.

It's looking more likely that big changes to the PGA Tour won't be ready until 2028. Still to be determined is how soon the PGA Tour will act to move the Cadillac Championship back to the Florida swing that leads to the Masters.

Florida currently has four tournaments — the Cognizant Classic at PGA National, the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill, The Players and the Valspar Championship, which gets a good field despite a bad date because Innisbrook is such a proper test.

Is there room for Doral? That's more moving parts for the PGA Tour to figure out.

CEO Brian Rolapp didn't have answers last August when he announced a schedule of two majors and three signature events in a six-week span. He said of Doral, “I think we’re looking forward to bringing that back as a PGA Tour tradition.”

It clearly doesn't have much tradition the first weekend in May.

Nelly Korda and Coca-Cola

Fresh off back-to-back wins and a return to No. 1 in the world, Nelly Korda raised her profile even more with a playful appearance Monday on “The Pat McAfee Show.” That's when she revealed how Coca-Cola helped her develop that sweet golf swing.

McAfee asked how often she made changes, and Korda gave credit to longtime coach David Whelan for building her swing. She also said her father, Grand Slam tennis champion Petr Korda, played an important role.

“My parents spent so many hours with me, just working on tempo. That is the one thing they ingrained in my brain,” Korda said. “And my dad always referred to Coca-Cola.”

She moved her arms back for “Coca” and forward for “Cola.”

“It was super simple, but it was the key to have a very fluid swing,” Korda said.

She also allowed one more secret on the turnaround this year when she said, “I have higher shoes.”

“I’m trying to actually get closer to the ground with my chest,” Korda said. “I actually get a little bit steeper in my swing and I can hinge a little faster. So it’s just literally the smallest of things. But yeah, golfers are crazy. I’m crazy, just to let you know.”

Rose and Poulter going with McLaren irons

Justin Rose made a big switch and then set himself up for an easy punch line. He became the first global ambassador for McLaren Golf, the company best known for its Formula 1 race cars. He used McLaren irons at the Cadillac Championship and then got off to quite the slow start.

He was 21 shots behind after three rounds, closed with a 68 and beat two players in the 72-man field. One tournament is no measure, of course. But it's a bold move for Rose and McLaren, which has promised to “push the boundaries of equipment design and manufacturing.”

Rose says the clubs were performing well on the range, though he expects a refinement period.

He has been down this road before. Rose was No. 1 in the world when he left for Honma, winning within weeks at Torrey Pines but then falling out of the top 10 just over a year later. He left Honma 16 months into the deal.

Rose isn't the only player switching to McLaren. Ian Poulter, himself a lover of fast cars, had the McLaren irons in his bag at LIV Golf Virginia.

US Open spot up for grabs at LIV Golf

LIV Golf’s first tournament on U.S. soil this week also comes with a spot available in the U.S. Open.

Joaquin Niemann already secured one spot from LIV by finishing among the top three in last year’s points race. Another spot is available for the leading player from the top three in points on May 18, and LIV Golf Virginia is the last event before that cutoff.

Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau are set as U.S. Open champions in the last 10 years. The final spot is a close race with Thomas Detry holding down third place by 0.86 points over Elvis Smylie. Lurking and very much in range is Anthony Kim at No. 5, who is just over 14 points behind. Finishing 10th is worth 21 points, as an example.

The British Open offers one spot to the leading player not already in the field from the standings through LIV Golf Andalucia on June 7. The cutoff originally was Louisiana at the end of June, but that event has been postponed for now.

Koepka and Srixon end relationship

Brooks Koepka is back to being a free agent in the equipment market.

Koepka didn't have an equipment deal when Nike got out of the business of clubs and golf balls until he signed with Dunlop-owned Srixon in late 2021. He joined LIV Golf the next year, but then won the PGA Championship in 2023 at Oak Hill.

Dunlop Sports announced last week they had mutually agreed to end their contract.

“Over the course of their relationship, Brooks served as an exceptional ambassador for the Srixon and Cleveland Golf brands,” said a statement on the company’s website. “His commitment to competing at the highest level of the game, including a major championship victory with Srixon and Cleveland Golf equipment in play, exemplifies the performance standard both brands stand for."

The first sign of the deal ending came in late February when Koepka began using the Titleist Pro V1x golf ball. Koepka is playing the Myrtle Beach Classic this week.

Women’s TGL gets 6 more players and a logo

Three-time major champion Minjee Lee is among six women who have joined the indoor WTGL that starts later this year. The tech-infused league playing in SoFi Center also revealed Tuesday a logo — a red “

The logo was unveiled Monday for WTGL players in the field for the Mizuho Americas Open in New Jersey. The other players to join are Celine Boutier, Andrea Lee, Megan Khang, Danielle Kang and Albane Valenzuela.

WTGL now has 14 commitments from players, which includes five of the top 10 in the world, along with Michelle Wie West. Still not included for the inaugural season is top-ranked Nelly Korda.

Stat of the week

Scottie Scheffler has earned $6.75 million in his last three tournaments without winning. He was runner-up in the Masters, the RBC Heritage and the Cadillac Championship.

Final word

“Yes, I am living my best life, for sure. But golf also humbles you, so I know that I need to enjoy these moments.” — Nelly Korda after winning her second straight tournament at the Riviera Maya Open at Mayakoba.

___

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Ireland internationals Jacob Stockdale and Stuart McCloskey have emerged as injury doubts for Ulster's European Challenge Cup final against Montpellier later this month.

Outside back Stockdale must visit a maxillo-facial surgeon for a facial fracture sustained in a collision with Immanuel Fey-Waboso in Ulster's semi-final win over Exeter Chiefs last weekend.

In-form centre McCloskey will have an MRI scan to determine the extent of the hamstring problem he picked up in the Chiefs game.

Back row David McCann also requires an MRI scan after sustaining a knee injury in the 29-12 win over the Prem side.

Ulster face Montpellier in Bilbao on 22 May as the Irish province chase their first piece of silverware in 20 years.

In more positive news, Ulster boss Richie Murphy's front-row options have been boosted with props Angus Bell and Scott Wilson and hooker Rob Herring returning to training this week before Friday's United Rugby Championship game against the table-topping Stormers at Affidea Stadium (19:45 BST).

Ulster sit eighth in the URC table following back-to-back defeats by inter-provincial rivals Leinster and Munster.

Murphy's side will secure Champions Cup rugby for next season with a top-eight URC finish or by winning the Challenge Cup.

Many players believe the prize money at Grand Slams isn’t enough, and there’s even talk of a possible boycott in response.

Sam Querrey, who once reached the Wimbledon semi-finals, says players would be better off boycotting Grand Slams instead of just complaining about how much they get paid.

But where does Aryna Sabalenka, the current world number one, stand on all this?

Aryna Sabalenka says Grand Slam boycotts are likely

Sabalenka was asked about the ongoing dispute over Grand Slam prize money during her press conference at the Italian Open.

“I feel like the show is on us. I feel like without us, there wouldn’t be a tournament, and there wouldn’t be that entertainment. I feel like definitely we deserve to be paid more percentage.”

When pressed on whether she thinks players might eventually boycott Grand Slams, Sabalenka didn’t hesitate.

“I think at some point we will boycott it, yeah,” she replied.

“I feel like that’s going to be the only way to kind of fight for our rights.”

The issue isn’t just about prize money but also about how much of the total revenue players are getting.

The top players from both men’s and women’s tennis responded by releasing a joint statement after learning that French Open prize money would rise by only 9.5% from 2025 to 2026.

What exactly did players say about the Grand Slam prize money?

“Roland Garros generated €395m in revenue in 2025, a 14% year-on-year increase, yet prize money rose by only 5.4%, reducing players’ share of revenue to 14.3%,” they said.

“With estimated revenues of more than €400m for this year’s tournament, prize money as a percentage of revenue will likely still be less than 15%, far short of the 22% that players have requested to bring the grand slams into line with the ATP and WTA tours.

“As Roland Garros looks to post record revenues, players are therefore receiving a declining share of the value they help create.

“More critically, the announcement does nothing to address the structural issues that players have consistently and reasonably raised over the past year.

“There has been no engagement on player welfare and no progress towards establishing a formal mechanism for player consultation within Grand-Slam decision making.

“The Grand Slams remain resistant to change.

“The absence of player consultation and the continued lack of investment in player welfare reflect a system that does not adequately represent the interests of those who are central to the sport’s success.”

If boycotts happen, would it even impact Grand Slams?

If Aryna Sabalenka was joined by Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner, Coco Gauff or others when threatening to skip Roland Garros, then tournament organisers may be forced into action.

The negative publicity is also something it can’t afford either. But there must be widespread support across both tours from top stars if this was ever considered an option.

Read more:

UCLA is entering a new era under head coach Bob Chesney this season.

Chesney is in his first season as UCLA’s head coach after leading James Madison to its first ever College Football Playoff appearance last season. The Bruins’ concluded their spring practices with their annual Spring Game at the Rose Bowl on Saturday, and Chesney is earning praise for what he has done with UCLA so far.

Former USC wide receiver Travon Patterson attended two of UCLA’s spring practices and said Chesney reminds him of former USC head coach Pete Carroll.

“I talked to Travon Patterson yesterday on my drive home from a tournament I was at in San Diego,” Biggins said. “He played at USC under Pete Carroll. He’s been to two UCLA practices and he said ‘Dude, this guy reminds me of Pete Carroll. The way that UCLA practices are set up with the energy, and the vibe, and the radio, the music pumping.’ He goes ‘It’s like our old USC practices.’”

Carroll led the Trojans to a 97-19 overall record, two national championships and seven consecutive Pac-10 championships from 2001-09. He held a 34-game winning streak between 2003-05 and is considered one of the best coaches in USC history.

Carroll ultimately left USC to become the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks in 2010. With the Seahawks, he won five NFC West titles, made two Super Bowl appearances and won Super Bowl XLVIII.

After one season as the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders in 2025, the franchise fired Carroll in January. Although his stint with the Raiders did not last long, his success with USC and the Seahawks is undeniable.

Chesney’s Young Staff is Helping With Recruiting Process

Chesney brought multiple former James Madison staff members with him to Westwood, like offensive coordinator Dean Kennedy and defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler.

Chesney and his young coaching staff have helped UCLA dominate in the recruiting process this offseason. The Bruins boast the No. 4 Class of 2027 in the nation and the No. 2 class in the Big Ten.

“I think Chesney also hired a really good, young staff that gets after it from a recruiting standpoint,” Biggins said. “They have to be doing a good job with NIL.”

Since taking on the role as head coach in December, Chesney has shown he has what it takes to lead UCLA towards a national championship.

Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The post UCLA’s Bob Chesney Compared to Former USC Coach Pete Carroll appeared first on LA Sports Report.

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — New Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon says he doesn’t consider himself a “huge rah-rah guy,” but there’s one point the former Arizona Cardinals coach is trying to make sure he gets across.

This is his message: You are under no obligation to be the person you were five minutes ago.

“I said it for the players, but it’s for us, too,” Gannon said Monday during his first media session since taking this job three months ago. “And what that’s basically saying is grow and adapt and get better. And if we all have that mindset and can continually stick to the process, we’ll get better.”

That adaptability is apparent from Gannon’s schematic approach.

The Packers had run a 4-3 defense during Jeff Hafley’s two years as coordinator before the Miami Dolphins hired him as their coach. Green Bay previously had utilized a 3-4 alignment under Joe Barry, the Packers’ defensive coordinator from 2021-23.

Gannon says he wants to adjust his scheme to reflect the strengths of his personnel.

“I don’t really get caught up in 4-3, 3-4,” Gannon said. “We’re an NFL-style defense hopefully, right? I just believe that you’ve got to be, you’ve got to continually every year try to adapt and solve problems and really with your guys in mind.”

Gannon has some specific principles he likes to utilize, but he said he’s not going to force a defense to do something that doesn’t suit its players’ talents.

“We’ve got to put them in the best positions possible, that they feel comfortable that they can go out and play the game,” Gannon said. “Before scheme, I truly believe it’s not what you play, it’s how you play.”

Gannon comes to Green Bay after an unsuccessful head coaching stint. He went 15-36 at Arizona before getting fired late in his third season.

Before going to Arizona, Gannon had a productive two seasons as the Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive coordinator. The Eagles reached the Super Bowl, ranked second in the league in total defense and had a franchise-record 70 sacks — 15 more than any other NFL team — in Gannon’s final season with them.

Gannon described the interview process with Packers coach Matt LaFleur and how it made him eager to join his Green Bay staff.

“I think Matt’s a savant, so he can go from topic to topic to topic, and you’ve got to be pretty wired up or you’ll fall behind pretty quick,” Gannon said. “It was intense. I was sweating. I was in a coat and tie, and I think I was sweating a little bit. It was fun. It was fun. I got home off the plane and I told my wife, Gina, I said, ‘This is where I want to go.’"

Gannon takes over a defense that ranked 12th in yards allowed per game (311.8), ninth in yards allowed per play (5.0) and 11th in points allowed per game (21.2) last season. That defense wasn’t the same after All-Pro pass rusher Micah Parsons tore his anterior cruciate ligament, an injury that occurred during the first of Green Bay’s five straight losses to end the season.

Parsons has said he hopes to be back for the start of the 2026 season, but has indicated a Week 3 or Week 4 return is more likely. Gannon believes Green Bay’s defense has plenty of other productive players to go along with Parsons.

“It’s a good mix of some younger players, (and) we’ve got some vets that are some really good players — that sweet spot,” Gannon said. “(Safety Xavier) McKinney, you think he’s been playing forever because he’s such a high performing vet, but he’s still pretty young. And then you got some guys that are younger and in their first contract that have played really good football.”

Green Bay’s defense has some new faces who are familiar with Gannon. Linebacker Zaire Franklin began his NFL career in Indianapolis when Gannon was coaching the Colts’ defensive backs. Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave had a career-high 11 sacks as part of Gannon’s Philadelphia defense in 2022.

Gannon knows the type of defense he wants to see. He believes the Packers have the pieces in place to play that style, no matter how they line up.

“I think that’s what a good defense looks like — a fast, violent, physical team that takes the ball away,” Gannon said.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Eddie Hearn has claimed that Conor Benn turned down three world-title fights against different opponents before leaving Matchroom earlier this year.

In February, Benn was involved in a shock split from Hearn’s promotional company Matchroom, signing with rivals Zuffa Boxing – despite Hearn’s apparent loyalty to the British star during a two-year saga that began with Benn failing two drug tests.

Benn has since fought once, outpointing Regis Prograis in a catchweight bout in April, though he is expected to drop back down to his natural division of welterweight next, having traded middleweight wins with rival Chris Eubank Jr in 2025.

It is unclear whom the 29-year-old will face, although he has repeatedly targeted big names from the US. And now, Hearn has offered a potential explanation for that approach.

Speaking to various outlets, including Boxing News, Hearn said: “When Lewis Crocker won the world [IBF welterweight] title, I was like: ‘Oh, my God. Crocker vs Benn at the O2 [Arena] for the world title!’

“I went to Conor and he was like: ‘Nah, I don’t want that fight’. Then he eventually started talking about the [IBF’s 10lb] rehydration [policy] and all that kind of stuff.

“So, then I was like ‘Rolly Romero’. We had that fight done with [Romero’s manager] Luis DeCubas. Benn was like: ‘It’s not a very big fight.’ I’m like: ‘Mate, you’re getting a [WBA] world-title fight in London. I think you can beat Rolly Romero.’

“‘What about [IBF super-welterweight champion] Josh Kelly at the Stadium of Light?’ [Benn said:] ‘I ain’t fighting f***ing Josh Kelly.’

“I think he knows his limitations, so why would you get beat for small money when you can get beat for bigger money?”

The Independent has approached Benn for comment.

Prior to a points loss to Eubank Jr last April, Benn was unbeaten as a professional. He avenged that loss in November, as the pair returned to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, dropping Eubank Jr en route to a decision win.

Following Benn’s shock move to Zuffa, he was expected to be paired with a big-name opponent, given reports of Zuffa paying him $15m for one fight.

And while Prograis is a former world champion, he did not bring the profile that some fans expected, nor was he fighting at his natural weight or in his prime.

Furthermore, the American – who ventured up in weight to box Benn – carried an injury into his fight with the Briton, who outpointed the 37-year-old in Tottenham. Prograis then retired in the aftermath.

The 2026 Fifa World Cup takes place across the USA, Canada and Mexico this summer, with a record 48 countries fighting for the biggest prize in football in June and July.

And UK betting sites are already competing hard for new customers with sign-up offers, enhanced odds, tournament-specific promotions and World Cup 2026 free bets.

This page covers the best World Cup free bet offers on the UK market, with a focus on evaluating value, flexibility and accessibility to make sure users can benefit from generous free bet amounts, flexibility across World Cup markets and straightforward T&Cs.

Only UKGC-licensed bookmakers are included in our recommendations, and the guide below provides more detail on each betting site, their respective welcome offers and any World Cup free bets.

What are World Cup free bets?

World Cup free bets are sign-up bonuses offered by UK bookmakers to new customers registering ahead of or during the tournament.

These World Cup sign up offers are triggered by depositing and placing a qualifying bet of a set minimum amount. Once it settles, free bet tokens are credited to use on World Cup markets or across the wider sportsbook.

Free bet stakes are not returned if the bet wins. For example, a £10 free bet at 3/1 pays £30 profit, not £40. This is standard industry practice.

Therefore, comparing value relative to qualifying stake is what matters, not just the main free bet figure.

Types of World Cup free bet offers

• Bet & Get: The most common type – deposit and bet a minimum amount, meet the T&Cs and receive free bet tokens. Most bookmakers' standard welcome offers fall into this category.
• Enhanced World Cup odds: Bookmakers offer significantly inflated prices on popular markets ahead of major matches, e.g. England to score first at 10/1 rather than the standard price. Winnings are typically paid as free bets.
• Prediction games: Several bookmakers run free-to-play World Cup prediction games (for e.g. Sky Bet's Super 6, BetMGM's Golden Goals) with cash prizes. No stake required.
• Acca boosts: Profit boosts on World Cup accumulators, rewarding punters who build multi-match combination bets across the group stage and knockout rounds.
• Money-back specials: If a specific event occurs - such as a match ending 0-0 or a team losing only on penalties - your stake is refunded as a free bet.

Choose your favourite World Cup free bet offer

Best World Cup betting offers

Below, we have provided all the detail you need on the best World Cup betting promos on the UK market, including information on each offer’s qualifying terms, free bet tokens and additional promos for existing users.

Betfred – Best overall World Cup free bet offer

The Betfred World Cup free bet offer is one of the most valuable World Cup sign up offers. New customers can bet £10 to unlock £50 in free bets, which is the highest-value standard welcome offer available for the World Cup.

Free bets are split across the general sportsbook and accumulator-only bets, with 2x £10 acca tokens and 3x £10 tokens for any sports market. This makes the offer ideal for multi-match tournament bets.

In terms of offers for existing customers, Betfred typically has 20 promotions available at any given time, which is more than most rivals.

As an example, Double Delight and Hat-Trick Heaven promos mean that if your first goalscorer nets twice or three times in a World Cup match, winnings are doubled or trebled.

Overall, Betfred is a great option for betting on the World Cup too, with strong market depth expected across all tournament fixtures this summer.

Coral – Lowest qualifying stake for a World Cup free bet

The Coral promo is among the best World Cup betting offers on the market as it combines a low qualifying threshold with easy terms and an accessible site to make it one of the easiest World Cup free bet to claim.

New users can place just a £5 qualifying bet to unlock £30 in free bets, which makes it one of the lowest qualifying threshold of any major UK bookmaker. There is just a £5 deposit required to unlock the offer with no promo code needed.

World Cup free bets are credited as 6 x £5 tokens, five of which are valid on football betting markets with the remaining £5 free bet reserved for horse racing.

In terms of promos for existing users, Coral usually runs plenty of boosts and specials during tournaments, while the Football Super Series prediction game is free to enter and offers up to £100 accurate guesses on football outcomes – a perfect companion for the World Cup.

Bet365 – Best for in-play World Cup betting

Bet365 is the world's most used bookmaker with 80 million+ customers, and their World Cup free bet offer allows customers to bet £10 to get £30 in bet credits.

Once user qualify, they can use their £30 in bet credits as they please – from 10p accumulators to £1 in-play bets or a lump sum £30 bet, the choice is all yours.

Once signed up, users will also find a site and app that provides the best in-play World Cup betting experience, with 100+ live in-play markets expected on major fixtures and odds updating in real time.

In addition, Bet365 has an excellent bet builder, including Bet Builder+ for combining markets across different games.

This all ties in to the app’s 4.7/5 rating on the App Stores, making it the best online betting app for following the tournament on the move and betting in-play.

Paddy Power – Best for World Cup novelty offers

Paddy Power is the best betting site for novelty offers during the World Cup, with special promos including ‘Justice Payouts’ – which refunds bets affected by controversial VAR decisions or poor refereeing calls – and a Multi-Match Bet Builder that lets users combine selections from different World Cup fixtures into a single bet.

The brand’s Request-A-Bet service allows punters to propose custom World Cup markets via social media, while Paddy's Rewards Club provides ongoing free bets and odds boosts to keep the value coming throughout the tournament.

In terms of the welcome offer, the Paddy Power welcome offer lets users land £30 in free bets with just £5 as an initial stake, making it one of the lowest qualifying stakes on the UK market.

BetMGM – Best for World Cup acca free bets

BetMGM is the best choice for punters who want to put acca bets on during the World Cup, with the popular betting site providing competitive football odds that regularly match or beat rivals across Premier League and international markets.

Football Profit Boosts are applied to major tournament matches throughout the competition, and these can also be applied to accas in some cases, while the 2UP Early Payout feature means bets are settled as a winner if your team goes two goals ahead in a World Cup match.

For new users, BetMGM’s World Cup free bets offer lets users bet £10 to unlock £40 in free bets, which come in the form of 2x £10 general sportsbook tokens and 2x £10 Bet Builder tokens (for bet builders with minimum odds of 3/1).

Once signed up, customers will find a range of promos for existing users too, including the Golden Goals free-to-play game, which lets users predict six correct scores to win up to £1,000,000.

How to claim World Cup 2026 free bets

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to claim free World Cup bets:

Step 1: Choose a bookmaker from the list above and click through to their sign-up page.

Step 2: Complete the registration form with your personal details.

Step 3: Make a qualifying deposit using an accepted payment method (debit card recommended – e-wallets are often excluded from welcome offers).

Step 4: Place your qualifying bet on any eligible market at the minimum required odds.

Step 5: Wait for the bet to settle – free bet tokens are typically credited within minutes of settlement.

Step 6: Navigate to your bonus balance or bet slip and select the free bet option when placing your next bet.

Step 7: Use your free bet on any eligible World Cup market – check T&Cs for market restrictions before placing.

What to look for in World Cup 2026 betting offers

There are several factors to consider when evaluating whether to claim World Cup betting offers. Before signing up, consider the following:

Qualifying stake and odds: The lower the better. Sky Bet's £0.05 threshold is exceptional compared to most bookmakers' £5-10 minimum.

Free bet expiry: The World Cup runs for approximately five weeks. A 7-day expiry is tight – look for offers with 30-day windows or use tokens promptly after qualifying.

Market restrictions: Some free bets are limited to accumulators or bet builders. Confirm the free bet can be used on standard World Cup match odds if that is your preference.

Stake not returned: Free bet stakes are never included in winnings. Factor this in when assessing the true value of any offer,

Ongoing promotions: The welcome offer is just the start. Consider what each bookmaker offers existing customers during the tournament – prediction games, enhanced odds and acca boosts all add significant value over five weeks of football.

UK gambling rules for World Cup betting offers

New betting regulations were introduced on 19 January 2026, and now wagering requirements on betting promotions are capped at 10x, though they remain rare on standard sportsbook free bets.

Mixed sportsbook and casino bonuses are now banned too. Punters will not see offers such as "Bet £10, Get £30 + £10 Casino Bonus" on any of the bookmakers listed above, or indeed on any licensed UK bookie.

These regulations were introduced to improve transparency in promotional offers and to better protect consumers, though bettors should always remember to check full T&Cs before betting.

How we review best World Cup betting offers

When evaluating free bet offers, our writers will only recommend UKGC-licensed operators.

We test offers first-hand, assessing them based on factors including value, the fairness of their terms, qualifying accessibility, usability and the overall user experience on the site or app.

Additionally, our writers enjoy full editorial independence when reviewing any offers, keeping our reviews fair and balanced and ensuring that we only recommend the best offers.

World Cup betting odds

Most World Cup betting sites have already released their outright markets for the 2026 World Cup, with Spain, France and England heading up the winners’ market.

Below, you’ll find the latest odds on who will win the World Cup, but if you’re interested in the sub-markets - such as top scorer, golden ball, group winners - you may want to visit our dedicated World Cup odds page.

World Cup 2026 free bet tips

1. Read the T&Cs of every free bet offer to avoid getting duped by unfavourable terms.
2. Don’t waste your free bet on a short-priced bet, remember your free bet stake will not be returned with the winnings.
3. Check the potential winnings of your stake vs any maximum cap on free bet winnings - don’t make the bet if you can’t win the full amount.

Why trust us?

Chris Wilson is a betting content producer and sports reporter who has been working at The Independent since 2023.

He writes betting tips across a range of sporting events as well as reviewing dozens of new betting sites and new casino sites across the UK.

Chris has extensively tested and reviewed offers from established operators and new bookies to find the best free bet offers for readers of The Independent.

Responsible gambling is always at the forefront of his research, ensuring customers have a fair and secure experience claiming and using World Cup betting offers online.

Please gamble responsibly

If you’re having a bet on the World Cup, it’s vital to practice responsible gambling, as even the best world cup betting offers still involve real financial risk.

The excitement of a major international tournament can increase gambling urges, and betting can be addictive, so it’s important to stay in control of your gambling whether you’re using online bookmakers, casino sites, slot sites, bingo sites or any other gambling platform.

Never treat gambling as a way to make money, never bet more than you can afford and when the fun stops, stop.

If possible, try and set deposit limits and time-outs before the tournament even begins.

Gambling sites offer punters tools like deposit limits, profit and loss trackers and self-exclusion options, to help you stay in control.

Try not to get carried away by World Cup betting offers or casino bonuses, which are widely available on gambling apps.

But if you ever feel like you need help or advice on gambling addiction, don’t hesitate to contact one of the charities or organisations below.

• NHS Help
• GamCare
• Gamblers Anonymous
• GAMSTOP

World Cup free bets FAQs

Can I use a World Cup free bet on any match?

This depends on the bookmaker. Many standard welcome offer free bets can be used on any sportsbook market, including all World Cup fixtures. However, some offers restrict free bets to specific bet types such as accumulators or bet builders. Always check the T&Cs of your specific offer before placing your qualifying stake.

Which bookmaker has the best World Cup free bet offer?

Betfred's Bet £10 Get £50 offer represents the best headline value, while Sky Bet's Bet £0.05 Get £30 is the most accessible thanks to its minimal qualifying stake. Bet365 is the strongest all-round option for punters who want to combine a solid welcome offer with the best in-play betting experience on World Cup matches.

Do World Cup free bets expire?

Yes. Most free bets expire between seven and 30 days after being credited to your account. Sky Bet's free bets last 30 days, giving the most flexibility to use them across the full tournament. Always check when your free bets were credited so that you do not accidentally let them expire.

What happens if a World Cup match is abandoned?

If a match is abandoned before a result is determined, bets are typically voided and stakes returned. Free bets used on abandoned matches may also be returned to your account, though this varies by bookmaker, so check the relevant T&Cs.

Can I claim more than one World Cup free bet?

Yes. Each sign-up offer is available once per customer per bookmaker, but there is nothing to prevent you opening accounts with multiple UKGC-licensed operators to claim several free bets World Cup offers simultaneously. This is a perfectly legitimate way to maximise value during the tournament.

What are the odds for England to win the World Cup 2026?

England's World Cup odds will fluctuate as the tournament progresses, but they are currently 13/2 second favourites behind Spain (5/1). Check the current ante-post prices directly with any of the bookmakers listed above, as they update in real time. All of the operators featured above offer World Cup outright markets.

We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.

Ahead of tomorrow night's semi-final second-leg clash with PSG, Bayern Munich's Vincent Kompany senses the fans are behind his team ahead of this pressurised encounter. 

“There's a good relationship between this team and the fans. At the start of the season, maybe not many believed we'd still have a chance to reach the final.

“Now we're here, we've experienced many special moments. And I think the fans believe we can do it. We want to make it a memorable moment,” he said in his press conference today.

When asked about the first-leg which ended in a 5-4 defeat, the Bavarians' head coach adopted a calm tone – conceding goals doesn't bother him provided they win and advance to the final. 

“The mission is to win games. We have ideas that we think help us to do that. It's just about that. We've shown that we can win many games, PSG have shown that too.

"In the end you have to score one more goal than your opponent to win a game. If you can do it without conceding, that's the best thing that could happen”

“It always depends on the teams. If one decides to take a step back and defend more, then there could be some calmer phases in the game. Otherwise there won't.

“It's difficult to imagine that either team will change what brought them here in the first place. We're playing at home, we want to win and will do everything for that,” he added. 

On the personnel front, the Belgian explained “Serge [Gnabry] is out. All others are there and available. That's important and a big difference to last season, where we were very unlucky with injuries".  

Hello and welcome to another edition of Free Agent! Hurry up and enjoy your Taco Tuesday Cinco de Mayo today.

We'll start with thoughts on Saudi Arabia's sports takeover that's been stopped in its tracks. After that it's time to dive into the implications of the Dianna Russini–Mike Vrabel affair for league policies. We'll close with a slightly bonkers idea: Did the Sixers beat the Celtics with a little help from the war on drugs?

Locker Room Links

• The Milwaukee Brewers donated $27,000 for pothole repairs and are getting some advertising out of it. (Granted, taxpayers have spent over a billiondollars combined on their ballpark.)
• A lawsuit over immigration rules almost forced the Dutch soccer league to replay 133 matches.
• Ever wondered what happens to all the horse poop at the Kentucky Derby?
• A Senate Commerce subcommittee will hold a hearing on sports betting on May 20.
• It was a chaotic weekend for D.C.'s golf courses (and not just because I played 18 holes!)—after an initial report said the three courses at East Potomac were getting closed by the Trump administration, a judge forced the government to keep the courses open (for now). Also, the administration might want the Commanders to run a golf course?
• That's still a better idea than the Washington, D.C., city government getting an ownership stake in the Commanders.
• Elsewhere in Reason: Nick Gillespie interviews Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch on the Declaration of Independence, how unchecked power threatens liberty, and what the Founders can teach future generations.
• The NBA has a new anti-tanking plan and everyone can see what a bad idea it is.
  

  The NBA's proposed lottery odds reform, visualized pic.twitter.com/rXm7FuK4oP

  — Lev Akabas (@LevAkabas) April 29, 2026

The Saudi Sports Takeover That Wasn't

Sometimes, the right thing to do is nothing at all.

Just a few years after it seemed like Saudi Arabia was going to take over the sports world, backed by its unlimited oil money, the takeover has been stopped in its tracks. LIV Golf is losing its Saudi funding after years of $500 million annual losses. The Saudi Pro League is no longer trying to lure in the biggest stars in soccer with eye-popping sums. Other plans to host or bid for global sporting events are scaled back or scrapped altogether. This isn't just a coincidence of timing, or solely because of the chaos caused by the Iran war: The Saudi Public Investment Fund is making a strategic, long-term shift away from sports (at least for the rest of the decade).

That "unlimited" oil money isn't so unlimited after all.

This wasn't because of any direct government action. Sports fans just never bought into what the Saudis were selling. Ignoring Saudi sports products has always been relatively easy.

As much as Americans were against a Saudi sports takeover, it never rose to a threat level high enough to justify government action, even from those who aren't libertarian-minded. LIV Golf struggled under both a skeptical Biden administration and an accommodating Trump administration. Legislation to tax LIV Golf and the Saudi wealth fund went nowhere in Congress. A Justice Department investigation and congressional hearing over the proposed LIV Golf merger with the PGA Tour yielded no results went anywhere. The biggest government action was probably an antitrust investigation into PGA Tour punishments against LIV players—had that investigation led to prosecution, it would have helped LIV and hurt the PGA Tour.

There was no need for a heavy-handed ban or sanctions. Other than some generally negative vibes, politics didn't bring down the Saudi sports plan, capitalism did.

The investments still had an impact, to be sure. Competition was always going to produce changes. PGA Tour players are enjoying more prize money than they used to. Soccer clubs had to make marginally higher offers to stars who were tempted by Saudi money. But the Saudi-backed competition wasn't enough to take down the biggest establishments in sports.

Saudi investment in sports isn't going away forever. The country will still host the 2034 World Cup, and the wealth fund still owns Newcastle United of the Premier League. Other oil-rich countries have their own sports investments, too. But the failure of Saudi Arabia's sports investments will be a cautionary tale that these efforts will not yield the intended economic or political results. It should always be remembered that Middle East oil investments, especially in sports, are still largely made and governed by the politicians of those countries, not innovators and entrepreneurs who can actually be competitive in a capitalist system.

The Vrabel Problem the NFL Can't Legislate Away

The (alleged) Dianna Russini–Mike Vrabel affair has raised some questions for the NFL, like whether it needs an official policy change that could stop conduct like a coach having an affair with an NFL reporter.

In theory, the Patriots (or any other employer) could fire someone for marital infidelity. Given some infamous actions in team owner Robert Kraft's past, that might look like a bit of a double standard. Plus, marital infidelity is probably, unfortunately, too common and messy for the league and teams to investigate every occurrence or to try to maintain a useful set of standards on.

The NFL could, though, adopt a policy on conduct between league personnel (players, coaches, administrators, etc.) and the press. They could set a strict rule against contact with the press outside of official team events and venues to avoid any appearance of impropriety—but this would make everyone worse off. Any kind of journalism outside of buttoned-down game reports and superficial quotes would be difficult to do. Reporters and subjects spending time together outside of official venues is a common form of source-building for journalists. Plus, the league thrives on the insider culture of constant updates coming from Adam Schefter, Ian Rapoport, etc. Insiders always have news to share because someone in the league is giving them updates outside of official channels. The NFL insiders are cozier with the league than I'd like, but all involved benefit from the league news they constantly churn out.

The league could specifically ban sexual relationships between journalists and personnel. But then it would need to define which journalists fall under that rule. All of them? What about a local TV news anchor whose channel covers the team but isn't specifically a sports journalist? Also, if any of this is going to affect the players, it would have to be spelled out in the collective bargaining agreement.

The league is better off regarding the Russini-Vrabel affair as a shocking yet rare event. It's a distraction the league wants to avoid in the future, but the downsides of all the possible one-size-fits-all solutions are too large.

If it were up to me, given the particulars of this specific situation, I'd fire Vrabel anyway. The evidence of the relationship is fairly overwhelming. The nature of a romantic coach-reporter relationship creates a complicated power dynamic—the coach can threaten to cut off the reporter's access and scoops at any time if he doesn't get what he wants, putting the reporter's job in jeopardy, or at least making it more difficult. It's unbecoming and below the standard of judgment that the league should have for itself.

Did Ketamine Knock Out the Celtics?

Should Sixers fans thank the war on drugs for their upset of the Celtics? Maybe!

In January, Paul George was suspended for 25 games for taking "an improper medication" relating to his mental health. There's no confirmation or even solid reporting to back this up, but there are rumorsthatsay ketamine is the banned substance that George was caught taking. (In theory, it could have been anything else on the NBA's long list of prohibited substances—this take would still apply to any other illegal drugs on that list.)

Ketamine is a drug that dulls pain and has hallucinogenic effects. It's sometimes used to treat depression, and some users will take microdoses instead of full-fledged doses. It's shown to be effective for therapeutic uses, sometimes rapidly so. For athletic purposes, it would have no performance-enhancing effects—that's partially why the World Anti-Doping Agency does not explicitly ban it. The case could be made that ketamine is safer than alcohol and nicotine, but the federal government lists it as a Schedule III drug that's only legal for prescribed medical use.

Whether it was ketamine or not, George had to sit out for February and most of March—making him well-rested and ready to roll just in time for the playoffs. Now 36-years-old, George averaged 18.2 points in the series. In Saturday night's huge game-seven win, he played 42 minutes, his second-highest in the series. Fans are hoping he gets suspended every year just for the downtime before the playoffs.

I'm sorry Paul George you can do ketamine to get fresh legs for the playoffs every year

— Drunk Sixers Fan (@DrunkSixersFan) May 1, 2026

Maybe it was luck that helped the Sixers in game seven, maybe it was Joel Embiid or the lack of Jayson Tatum, or maybe it was defense. Maybe George's absence actually hurt in the big picture because he was away from the team for so long. Or maybe, just maybe, getting suspended for (allegedly) taking a Schedule III drug is why George played well and why the Sixers upset the Celtics.

But before other players start getting any ideas, the suspension cost George $11.7 million in salary.

Replay of the Week

I was watching in a bar and couldn't hear anything, I just remember thinking "The pack is really tight! Wait, where'd that guy come from?" Unbelievable finish.

FROM LAST PLACE TO KENTUCKY DERBY GLORY, WHAT A RACE FOR GOLDEN TEMPO!

The 152nd Kentucky Derby on NBC and Peacock pic.twitter.com/yUIczKx4SX

— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) May 2, 2026

That's all for this week. Enjoy watching the real game of the weekend, Hannover 96 battling for promotion in Bundesliga 2.

The post What To Do About Saudi Arabia's Sports Takeover? Nothing, Apparently. appeared first on Reason.com.

The standoff between Jon Rahm and the DP World Tour is over.

Rahm told reporters Tuesday ahead of LIV Golf Virginia that he and the DP World Tour had come to an agreement, ending a stalemate between the two sides that threatened Rahm's Ryder Cup eligibility. Details of their truce weren't immediately available, but Rahm said he and the DP World Tour both made concessions to reach a deal. It's likely Rahm will be able to play in LIV events without needing a release and garnering more fines.

With the two sides coming to an agreement, Rahm's status on the DP World Tour is no longer in question.

In March, Rahm withdrew the appeal of sanctions against him but had not settled with the DP World Tour. The appeal is how Rahm remained eligible to compete in DP World Tour events and participate in the Ryder Cup. Players can maintain their DP World Tour membership while competing on different tours so long as they play in a minimum of four non-major DPWT events. For those competing on LIV, however, it's six events, two of which are chosen by the Tour itself.

Rahm stated he didn't agree with those terms. He was the only one of nine European LIV members who didn't agree to terms for a conditional release, which stated players would compete in six-to-eight non-major DP World Tour events — as well as pay any outstanding fines and withdraw any active appeals — in order to keep their status as members.

At the Masters, Rahm was confident he would be on the 2027 Ryder Cup team at Adare Manor, answering, "Yes" when asked whether he would be on the team. He was also asked at Augusta National whether he could play in a DP World Tour event right then, and he did not know the answer.

Rahm has two wins this season on LIV Golf, and, thanks to receiving OWGR points this year, has risen to No. 21 in the Official World Golf Ranking. He has three runner-up finishes in addition to his two victories in 2026.

This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Jon Rahm, DP World Tour reach agreement to end stalemate

Xabi Alonso could hold fire on accepting a new head coach position this summer.

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Sky Sports Dougie Critchley suggested that the Spaniard was highly unlikely to take on the Chelsea job amid links with the position vacated by Liam Rosenior in April.

The former Real Madrid boss has also been heavily linked with Arne Slot’s job at Liverpool.

Xabi Alonso won’t take the Chelsea head coach role

Critchely hopped onto X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday afternoon to cast some doubt over suggestions that Alonso could be the next Chelsea head coach.

And we’d have to wholeheartedly agree with the reputable journalist that such a move would seem… well… a little bit daft to say the least.

Want more Empire of the Kop coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust

Here we’re talking about a club that seems to relish in leaving managers next to no time to establish themselves in the position and build a culture.

Mind, we don’t think Rosenior was particularly well-equipped to meet the challenge of restoring Chelsea back within the elite class of Premier League clubs.

While you’d back Alonso to get more of a tune out of the Blues by comparison, it’s an environment that would prove to be even more toxic than the one he experienced in Madrid.

Liverpool or Bayern remain Alonso’s ideal next moves

There are a lot of ifs, buts and maybes involved, but it’s hard to imagine Alonso accepting a step down below what his talents deserve.

Yes, perhaps there’s an argument for taking a relatively “safe” role – perhaps at a club comparable to Bayer Leverkusen’s level.

But that would be assuming the Bundesliga winner feels his time in Real Madrid was such a failure it necessitates a decision designed to restore his reputation. And as far as we’re concerned, no such effort is required; we agree with Critchley’s view that his dismissal at Real Madrid was indeed unfair.

As such, Xabi Alonso should be aiming for the kind of next step that guided his decision to leave Leverkusen.

Having ticked Madrid off his list, that really only leaves jobs of the calibre of Liverpool and Bayern Munich. Vincent Kompany remains extremely settled in Bavaria, but there’s an ongoing question mark over the future of Arne Slot at L4.

In that case, it may very well be ideal to wait and see how this situation develops.

More Stories / Latest News

Sky Sports journo ‘staggered’ by Xabi Alonso news on Tuesday afternoon

May 5, 2026 15:38

Pedro sends warning to Liverpool as Chelsea star makes ‘step up’ promise

May 5, 2026 15:30

Liverpool’s Season Has Exposed Three Areas That Must Be Fixed This Summer

May 5, 2026 15:30

The path for Tigers ace Tarik Skubal to reach a record-setting contract in free agency this offseason hit a major speedbump with the disclosure that he’ll need surgery on his pitching elbow.

Skubal, the two-time defending American League Cy Young Award winner, will have arthroscopic surgery to remove loose bodies from his left elbow. A specific timetable for his return has not been disclosed, but other pitchers who have had similar procedures have been out of action for two to three months. As a result, Skubal will likely be out until at least after the All-Star Game break in mid-July, and perhaps until around the Aug. 3 trade deadline.

“I think the length of the rehab is probably just getting your spring training buildup again, getting your volume up,” Skubal said. “But the procedure itself I think is pretty simple as far as what I’ve been explained.”

The financial implications of the current situation could be significant. After another dominant season in 2025, Skubal won an arbitration decision in February that awarded him a $32 million salary for this year—breaking all prior records for MLB players in the arbitration system.

With that decision in place, Skubal, 29, had been widely seen as a strong candidate to set a free-agent record this fall for a pitcher. The current contract milestone for a free-agent pitcher is the Dodgers’ 12-year, $325 million deal with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, signed in late 2023, and prior projections of a Skubal deal had hovered around $400 million. 

The latest injury, however, complicates that outlook, and any suitor team will be closely watching Skubal’s health and effectiveness on the mound when he returns before tendering anything close to an unprecedented contract offer. Skubal, meanwhile, is represented by super agent Scott Boras, who undoubtedly will be pushing hard to preserve the pitcher’s market value.

“The fans in Detroit want the Tigers to build the Tarik barrack,” Boras said last fall in one of his trademark puns. 

Skubal was also part of the U.S. team in the wildly successful World Baseball Classic, but his workload was carefully managed and he threw in just one game before returning to spring training. In the current MLB season, Skubal has a 3–2 record with a 2.70 earned run average. 

Hanging On?

The Tigers, meanwhile, will need to continue competitively with their best player on the injured list. The team is 18–18 entering Tuesday’s game, tied with the archrival Guardians atop the AL Central division. The Tigers’ .500 record is happening despite having the second-best run differential in the AL. 

Beyond the threat from Cleveland, Detroit is also grappling with a resurgent White Sox club that is just a half-game behind in the standings, thanks in part to the exploits of first-year slugger Munetaka Murakami, who is tied with Yankees superstar Aaron Judge for the MLB home-run lead.

“It’s a big test,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said of Skubal’s absence. “You can’t deny it’s a big blow, but we’re not canceling the season. We’re going to play the games.”

The post Skubal’s Elbow Surgery Puts Free Agent Record in Doubt appeared first on Front Office Sports.

We finally got to hear from Jonathan Gannon!

The Packers hired their new defensive coordinator in late January after the departure of Jeff Hafley, but, for some reason, it took more than four months for the Packers to let him talk to the media.

Why? Who knows, and in the grand scheme of things it doesn’t really matter. It’s not like he was going to say anything particularly meaningful or insightful. In fact, you probably could have guessed pretty much the exact things he ended up saying.

“We want to be fast and physical.” Yeah, every defense does. “We want to take the ball away.” I’ve yet to see an NFL defense that didn’t. “We’re going to have a multiple front.” That’s life in the NFL in 2026; everyone plays that way.

This is not to take anything away from Gannon, and if you were excited to hear him speak, more power to you. Shoot, I was interested! I enjoyed listening to his thoughts, if only because this is the guy that’s going to be shaping what we hope is going to be a Super Bowl-caliber defense for the next few years, and hopefully longer. It pays to get to know that guy a bit.

But what were we really missing out on for the last four months? Not much. It’s just weird we had to wait this long.

Jonathan Gannon knew quickly he wanted to be Packers defensive coordinator | Packers News

Of course he did. The choice was between “receive millions of dollars to coach Micah Parsons” and…not doing that.

5 things to know about new Packers QB Tyrod Taylor | Packers.com

The Packers’ backup QB shuffle continues.

Trainer of Top Kickers on Trey Smack’s Leg Strength, Ability to Handle Cold | Sports Illustrated

It looks more and more likely that the Packers’ new kicker is about to Smack veteran Brandon McManus right off the roster.

Packers OC says Jordan Morgan ‘ready’ for left tackle, clarifies roles

Jordan Morgan finally gets a crack at playing the position he was drafted to play.

NFL Power Rankings 2026: Which teams improved this offseason? | ESPN

The Packers’ offseason work has them ranked in the top quarter of the NFL according to ESPN’s rankings.

A real WKRP radio comes to Cincinnati, decades after the sitcom about a fictional station | Associated Press

If the phrase “God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly” means anything to you, you’ll enjoy this news.

The Seattle Seahawks have inked former Florida Gators edge rusher Dante Fowler Jr. to a one-year contract with a max value of $5 million. The Super Bowl LX champions add the 2015 third overall draft pick to an elite defensive unit that was a driving force in their title run last season.

The Seahawks opted to address this need in free agency rather than expending any of their 2026 NFL Draft selections on a pass rusher. Defensive coordinator Aden Durde and Seattle viewed Fowler as a priority target to fill this void, hosting the 6-foot-3-inch, 261-pound Lakewood, Florida native for a pre-draft visit. Durde coaches Fowler in both Atlanta and Dallas and called the 31-year-old a "top option."

Over his 10 seasons in the NFL, Fowler has recorded 58.5 sacks and 15 forced fumbles — his 11.5 sacks in 2019 were a career-high. A three-year starter at Florida, Fowler totaled 140 tackles and 14.5 sacks; his breakout season came in 2013, when he led the Gators' defensive line in tackles, earned All-SEC Second Team honors and tallied 10.5 tackles for loss.

For the defending champions, Fowler offers a veteran presence on the edge with a proven track record of production. His ability to set the edge against the run, disrupt plays early in the backfield and generate pressure on opposing quarterbacks makes him a potentially valuable piece to go alongside Leonard Williams and Bryon Murphy II.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Former Gator Dante Fowler Jr. signs with Super Bowl Champion Seahawks

Marc Guehi looked glum as he headed for the Manchester City bus outside Hill Dickinson Stadium. Understandably, too. His ability to pick the right pass had helped him settle smoothly into the City defence. Until he picked the wrong pass, supplied Thierno Barry with a goal and a 3-3 draw altered the title race.

This had seemed a sequel to 2014 and 2023, a night when City chalked up crucial wins at Everton in the run-in. Instead, there were flashbacks to a couple of other games which, indirectly, led to City becoming champions. City conceded three times in 12 minutes on Monday; in 2014, in “Crystanbul”, Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool let in three in the last 11 minutes away at Crystal Palace. That also finished 3-3. Go back to 2012, and City’s first league title since 1968 was aided by David Moyes’ Everton, mounting an extraordinary comeback to draw 4-4 with Manchester United. In each case, two points were dropped in dramatic fashion.

It may be of scant consolation to Guehi now but, if Arsenal hold on to their advantage at the Premier League summit, his uncharacteristic error will be far from the only reason. In the last couple of years, there has been the temptation to deem this team the City of old: the relentless, remorseless winning machine. They are not, though. City have finished a league season with 14 straight wins before. They needed to be perfect in this run-in, to win their last eight: but this is an imperfect side.

They have spent the season playing catch-up after losing twice in August. City have reeled in Arsenal before, but it is not a failsafe formula. Especially when Guardiola’s City, who used to be frontrunners in title races, have had issues when in front in games. City are far above Arsenal in one table: for points lost from winning positions. Lost leads could be decisive. Their second defeat of the season, at Brighton, came when they led for half an hour.

They have drawn eight times. There was a stalemate at Sunderland. In each of the other seven, City have lost a lead. Perhaps the most damaging was also the most forgivable: amid considerable pressure, Guardiola’s injury-hit side almost held out for victory at Arsenal in September before Gabriel Martinelli’s injury-time lob.

It made for a three-point swing. Yet City should have more regrets about allowing managerless Chelsea an added-time leveller at the Etihad in January. Or failing to beat relegation-threatened West Ham and Nottingham Forest in back-to-back games in March. Or letting Thomas Frank take his last point as Tottenham manager after City went 2-0 up.

Collectively, it points to a lack of ruthlessness. It also suggests that, defensively, City are not quite good enough. That is in spite of some spectacular saves from Gianluigi Donnarumma. Briefly on Monday night, it felt like a block from Iliman Ndiaye could be bracketed alongside a magnificent stop from Alexis Mac Allister at Anfield as a transformative moment in the season.

City’s lost leads came with a host of different defences and centre-back partnerships. A mitigating factor in the draw with Chelsea was the loss of the injured Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol during the second half; when they were held by Brighton three days later, it was with the rookie Max Alleyne starting.

Guehi and Abdukodir Khusanov had shown promise as a partnership but, even before Barry’s first goal on Monday, it was notable how isolated they looked. Guardiola’s latest revamp has given his team running machines as full-backs, but Matheus Nunes and Nico O’Reilly’s forward momentum is not always allied with defensive solidity.

For the second successive season, City have had a reminder of the importance of Rodri in his absence. Their best form of the campaign, in the trio of wins over Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea in three different competitions, came with the Ballon d’Or winner partnered with Bernardo Silva in the middle of midfield. Maybe Rodri would have given them the calm and authority they lost at Everton.

There were warning signs in a couple of other games he sat out, even if City ultimately emerged victorious. They lost control in the second half at home to Leeds and away at Fulham, eventually prevailing 3-2 and 5-4 respectively. The latter, in particular, is not a typical Guardiola scoreline.

Neither is 3-3. It was Guardiola’s 376th Premier League game and just a second to end with an equal split of six goals. Everton finished with the third highest open play expected goals of any team against Guardiola’s City in the English top flight. Moyes nonetheless described City as the best team in the division. But, five months ago, his former midfielder Mikel Arteta brought Arsenal to the banks of the Mersey, ground out a forgettable 1-0 win and allowed his old club an xG of just 0.24 and one shot on target.

There has long been a theory Arsenal’s defence could win them the league. And perhaps the difference between the top two will be City’s struggles to hold on to leads.

Davey Todd has told BBC Sport NI that he is "gutted" to have been ruled out of this year's North West 200 international road race.

The race meeting's chief medical officer's assessment was that he was not satisfied that the Yorkshire rider had recovered sufficiently enough from injuries sustained in a crash at the Daytona races in Florida in early March.

The 30-year-old sustained multiple injuries in the incident, including a broken femur, tibia, foot and nose and surgery in the USA.

Two weeks ago Todd's 8Ten Racing teammate and co-owner Peter Hickman had indicated that he was optimistic that the nine-time North West race winner would be fit to take his place on the grid for the races over the Triangle circuit.

However hopes of his participation this year have now been dashed.

"Following his injuries at Daytona in March, Davey Todd underwent a medical examination by the Chief Medical Officer at the 2026 Briggs Equipment North West 200 today," a statement released by the organisers on Tuesday afternoon said.

"Unfortunately, because of his injuries, Davey was found to be unfit to take part in the North West 200 this week.

"We are very disappointed that Davey will not be on the grid this year," race director Mervyn Whyte, said.

"He has enjoyed a lot of success at the North West and a huge following who will be equally disappointed. We would all have loved to have seen him out there racing but safety is paramount."

"I'm gutted, I'm confused. I worked so hard over the last weeks to get fit and to come back and race in front of the fans here at the North West," Todd told BBC Sport NI.

"I rode a bike on Thursday for the first time at Valencia and I surprised myself with how fast I was going and how good I felt on the bike.

"Everything was slotting into place. I feel strong, feel healthier day by day and in a good place."

"I've put absolutely everything I possibly could over the last eight weeks to be back on this grid and I was amazed a few days ago, really proud of myself, that I was able to get myself back in the position that I could come here and race again and be competitive, and to be told I'll not be given the opportunity of doing that means I'm gutted."

High school football schedules for the 2026 season are rolling out rapidly across the country, and Colorado continues to stand out as a premier pipeline for college recruits. This upcoming fall is no different, with numerous programs nationwide now finalizing and releasing their complete 2026 schedules.

[ $19.99 gets you a FULL year of On3 | Rivals national coverage ]

Coming off a season where the Aurora (CO) Regis Jesuit Raiders were one of the top teams in the state of Colorado and now head into 2026 with one of the tougher schedules around. The Raiders return Class of 2028 four-star quarterback Luke Rubley, who last season threw for 2,084 yards and 20 touchdowns.

The full Regis Jesuit 2026 football schedule can be seen below, with official game times to be announced at a later date.

Regis Jesuit Football 2026 Schedule

Aug. 28 – Aurora (CO) Eaglecrest
Sep. 4 – at Spokane (WA) Gonzaga Prep School
Sep. 11 – Denver (CO) Mullen
Sep. 17 – at Parker (CO) Legend
Sep. 25 – Littleton (CO) Heritage
Oct. 1 – at Colorado Springs (CO) Pine Creek
Oct. 9 – Castle Rock (CO) Castle View
Oct. 22 – at Aurora (CO) Grandview
Oct. 30 – Littleton (CO) Valor Christian

In 2025, Regis Jesuit posted a 4-7 record and ranked as the No. 16 program in the state, according to the final Colorado High School Football Massey Rankings. 

More about Regis Jesuit High School

Regis Jesuit High School, located in Aurora, Colorado, is a premier Catholic college preparatory institution serving young men and women through single-gender education on the same campus. Rooted in Jesuit values, the school emphasizes academic excellence, spiritual growth, and service to others. RJHS offers a rigorous curriculum, a strong athletic program, and a vibrant student life dedicated to forming men and women with and for others.

How to Follow Colorado High School Football

For Colorado high school football fans looking to keep up with scores around the Centennial State, staying updated on the action is now easier than ever with the Rivals High School Scoreboard. This comprehensive resource provides real-time updates and final scores from across the state, ensuring you never miss a moment of the Friday night frenzy. From nail-biting finishes to dominant performances, the Rivals High School Scoreboard is your one-stop destination for tracking all the Colorado high school football excitement across the state.

Grêmio takes the field this Tuesday at 7 p.m. against Deportivo Riestra in a decisive Group F clash in the Copa Sudamericana.

The team led by Luís Castro is trying to end an uncomfortable run of 13 matches without an away win to temporarily take the top spot in the group and avoid the strain of playing in the competition’s playoffs.

The Qualification Scenarios

Currently in second place with four points, the Tricolor would overtake Riestra with a win and move up to seven points.

If they get a positive result in Argentina, Grêmio will depend only on themselves to advance directly to the round of 16.

That is because the current leaders, Montevideo City Torque, face Palestino on Wednesday and will then have a direct showdown with the team from Rio Grande do Sul at the Arena in the final round of the group stage.

A draw keeps the current positions, but it could allow Palestino to close the gap in the standings.

A defeat, meanwhile, would drastically complicate the Brazilian side’s plans, leaving the opponents alone at the top and forcing Grêmio to rely on a combination of results to avoid an early elimination or being stuck with second place.

The Playoff Ghost

The urgency to finish top of the group comes from last season’s trauma. In 2025, Grêmio finished second in its group and was eliminated in the playoffs by Alianza Lima.

Ten players from the current squad were part of that defeat and are now trying to avoid repeating the mistake, which would add two extra matches to an already overloaded schedule.

Reinforcements and Absences

Luís Castro will have forward Amuzu back after recovering from ankle pain. He traveled with the squad and is seen as an important option for the attack.

On the other hand, the coach will be without Nardoni and Arthur, which will require changes to the midfield setup for the clash in Buenos Aires. In addition to the tactical challenge, the team will have to deal with outside pressure after being met by protesting fans upon arriving in the Argentine capital.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.

Delhi Capitals take on Chennai Super Kings at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Tuesday.

With only four victories in nine outings this season, Axar Patel's side find themselves rooted to seventh place on the points table.

Five defeats in nine games is not an ideal position for any team eyeing the playoffs, and at this stage of the tournament, every single result carries enormous weight.

Delhi are running out of room to manoeuvre, and a slip-up against a resurgent Chennai could make things significantly harder.

Meanwhile, CSK have managed to get three wins from their last five matches, including a dominant victory against their bitter rivals Mumbai Indians.

However, history has rarely been kind to Delhi in this fixture. Across 32 meetings between these two sides, Chennai have come out on top 20 times compared to Delhi's 12. 

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DC vs CSK IPL 2026: Win probability and toss result

After 6 overs, DC are 37/2

CSK have had a fantastic start to the match as they have sent back both DC openers, Nissanka and Rahul, cheaply. Rana and Karun are at the crease. 

Toss: Toss to take place at 7 p.m. IST.

DC vs CSK IPL 2026: Playing XI

DC playing XI: KL Rahul(w), Pathum Nissanka, Karun Nair, Tristan Stubbs, Nitish Rana, Axar Patel(c), Ashutosh Sharma, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Lungi Ngidi, T Natarajan

Impact subs: Vipraj Nigam, Sameer Rizvi, Abishek Porel, Auqib Nabi Dar, David Miller

CSK playing XI: Sanju Samson(w), Ruturaj Gaikwad(c), Urvil Patel, Kartik Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Jamie Overton, Akeal Hosein, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Mukesh Choudhary, Gurjapneet Singh

Impact Subs: Shivam Dube, Prashant Veer, Matthew Short, Akash Madhwal, Sarfaraz Khan

MORE: Visit Cricket News for all the latest cricket coverage and opinion

DC vs CSK IPL 2026: Win percentage

DC vs CSK: Betting odds

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Tennessee’s loaded 2026 football schedule now has some important dates to remember. The University announced a few game designations for the upcoming season, which includes a ‘Checker Neyland’ date for the highly anticipated matchup with Texas.

This will be the first ever meeting between Tennessee and Texas that didn’t occur in the Cotton Bowl. The Longhorns are slated to be one of the top teams in the preseason polls after once again attacking the transfer portal hard. Arch Manning returns, which will put a Manning on the opposing sideline inside of Neyland Stadium, making for an awkward situation for Peyton.

Tennessee announced that the September 19th game against Kennesaw State will serve as the salute to service game.

They have designated Auburn as Champions Weekend, which will mark the return of Alex Golesh to Neyland. Golesh helped lead Heupel’s most successful at Tennessee back in 2022, riding Hendon Hooker and Jalin Hyatt to a No. 1 ranking and the head coaching job at South Florida. This will be Golesh’s first season on The Plains.

Finally, Tennessee will play their homecoming matchup against Kentucky on November 7th. The Wildcats are in a completely new era as well, bringing in Will Stein after things got stale with Mark Stoops. Kenny Minchey is set to take over at quarterback after transferring in from Notre Dame.

Tennessee will open on September 5th with Furman at home, followed by a true road game at Georgia Tech on September 12th.

There are moments late in a season where narratives shift quickly, and ahead of facing Liverpool, Joao Pedro has already started shaping the mood around Chelsea’s response.

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Following their latest defeat, the Brazilian forward has openly admitted things need to change, setting up an interesting backdrop before we meet them at Anfield.

Pedro sends clear message after Chelsea defeat

Speaking via chelseafc.com after their 3-1 loss to Nottingham Forest, the 24-year-old didn’t hide from the performance, despite scoring a late goal.

Pedro made it clear that standards inside the squad aren’t where they need to be, saying: “We need to improve… everyone needs to step up, me included.”

That honesty continued when he addressed the wider issue of inconsistency.

The Brazil international admitted: “Last week we beat Leeds, this week it didn’t happen. We need to find a way to be consistent.”

It’s the kind of message you expect from a player trying to rally his side, but it also highlights just how unstable they’ve been heading into this weekend.

Liverpool opportunity grows ahead of Anfield clash

This fixture has become even more significant, especially with Champions League qualification still not mathematically secured.

Chelsea’s defeat to Forest has already boosted our position, with Opta now giving us a 98.35% chance of finishing in the top five, underlining how results elsewhere are working in our favour.

At the same time, we’re dealing with our own challenges, including the Premier League’s highest injury count, which makes every game a test of depth and resilience.

Pedro himself acknowledged the pressure on his side, adding: “We still need to fight for every point… it wasn’t good enough; we need to change the situation.”

That combination of urgency and frustration could make Chelsea dangerous, but it also shows a team still searching for answers.

Ultimately, while the Chelsea forward is talking about stepping up, this is an opportunity for us to do exactly the same at Anfield, take control of the situation, and make sure the conversation after the game is about Liverpool getting the job done.

Reports in Italy claim that Luka Modric returned to the Milan training centre this morning. Hence, the Rossoneri hope to see the Croat return to action for the last game of the season despite a recent cheekbone surgery.

Modric’s season with Milan might not be over as Italian sources, including Sky Sport Italia and MilanNews, report that the 40-year-old returned to Milanello on Tuesday morning for the first time since suffering a cheekbone injury that required surgery two weeks ago.

Modric returns to Milanello for first time after surgery

It was expected that Modric would not play for Milan again this season, focusing his recovery on the World Cup with the Croatia national team.

However, according to MilanNews, his return to Milanello this morning suggests that the Real Madrid legend will push to be available for the season’s final game.

PISA, ITALY – FEBRUARY 13: Luka Modric of AC Milan celebrates after scoring a goal during the Serie A match between Pisa SC and AC Milan at Arena Garibaldi on February 13, 2026 in Pisa, Italy. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)

Milan have won only one of their last five league games and are still not certain to qualify for the Champions League, as their advantage over fifth-placed Roma has been reduced to three points.

Milan host Atalanta next weekend, then visit Genoa in Round 37 and play at home against Cagliari in the final round.

2026 will mark the sixth football season for Tennessee under head coach Josh Heupel. The season will also be the third with 16 SEC teams after Oklahoma and Texas became league members in 2024.

The Vols will kick off their 2026 football season Sept. 5 versus Furman at Neyland Stadium.

The Vols will also host Kennesaw State (Salute To Service), Texas, Auburn (champions weekend), Alabama, Kentucky and LSU, while playing at Georgia Tech, Arkansas, South Carolina, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt during the 2026 campaign.

Beginning in 2026, Tennessee will play Alabama, Kentucky and Vanderbilt as permanent opponents. Each SEC school will have three permanent opponents and six rotating opponents for the next four years.

Tennessee's Checker Neyland game will be against Texas. The SEC contest is slated for Sept. 26 at Neyland Stadium.

Nov. 7 will also mark homecoming for the Vols against Kentucky.

More: Josh Heupel details if a starting quarterback will be named in spring

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This article originally appeared on Vols Wire: 2026 Tennessee football: Checker Neyland, homecoming games announced

Valve’s Steam Controller has been targeted by Scalpers Valve’s Steam Controller was released yesterday, and it didn’t take long for it to sell out worldwide. To the surprise of no one, the controller has started popping up on eBay, with sellers trying to take advantage of Valve’s limited stock of its new PC-optimised gamepad. Scaplers […]

The post Scalpers target Valve’s Steam Controller – Sells out in minutes appeared first on OC3D.

Apex Legends’ Overclocked update includes performance fixes for AMD’s Ryzen X3D CPUs Respawn Entertainment has confirmed that fast CPUs are causing stutters in Apex Legends, with AMD’s Ryzen X3D CPUs particularly prone to this issue. With the game’s newly released “Overclocked” update, improvements have been made to Apex Legends’ physics calculations to prevent these issues […]

The post Apex Legends patched because AMD Ryzen X3D CPUs were fast enough to break the game appeared first on OC3D.

Guerrilla Games' upcoming multiplayer spin-off of its mainline open-world Horizon series, Horizon Hunters Gathering, is set to have its second closed beta playtest later this month, from May 22-25, 2026. The closed playtest adds two new characters for players to try out, a new story mission from the game's narrative, a new region to explore, and an increased challenge with more difficult missions and changes to one of its core game modes. The game's first closed playtest, which, just like this upcoming one, you'll need an invite to participate in, took place at the cross between February and March of […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/horizon-hunters-gathering-closed-beta-playtest-may-2026/

Teamgroup has released its latest Elite DDR5 memory modules featuring high speeds of up to 8000 MT/s, which are ready for next-gen platforms. Next-Gen Platforms Will Support Some Crazy High-Speed DDR5 Memory & Teamgroup Is Ready With Its Elite Series Offering Up To 8000 MT/s Transfer Rates Press Release: Global memory leader Team Group Inc. continues to advance product performance with the introduction of new high-frequency specifications for its ELITE PLUS DDR5 and ELITE DDR5 desktop memory modules. Both products deliver speeds of up to 8000 MT/s and operate at 1.1V with CL56-56-56-128 timings, fully compliant with JEDEC standards. Designed […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/teamgroup-elite-ddr5-8000-mtps-1-1v-jedec-compliant-speed-mainstream-memory/

Intel has accelerated its PC roadmap, with several chips including Nova Lake, Razor Lake, Titan Lake & Moon Lake on track to tackle AMD. Intel To Offer Four PC CPU Families In The Next Two Years As It Positions Its Lineup To Compete Aggressively Against AMD, Apple & Qualcomm Chipzilla is going aggressive not only on the Foundry front, but also in its PC business as it remains on track to offer four diverse chip families in the next two years. This shows heightened confidence at Intel as its PC platform execution not just accelerates, but also gets back on […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/intel-pc-platform-roadmap-on-track-to-tackle-amd-nova-lake-razor-lake-titan-lake-moon-lake-cpus/

The AI boom has resulted in TSMC battling to increase its manufacturing capacity for clients to fulfill 3nm chip orders, leaving a massive opportunity for Samsung to capitalize on. However, even though the Korean giant has made strides in bringing its 2nm GAA technology to U.S. soil in the form of its Taylor plant, its reliability in manufacturing higher volume at stable yields remains in question. While there have been talks of Samsung becoming a viable alternative to TSMC, companies like Tesla and Qualcomm are only considering a dual-sourcing strategy because they now have a backup option to a foundry that […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/samsung-yet-to-prove-is-reliability-against-tsmc-only-seen-as-a-backup-option/

GammaFlip provides live gamma exposure charts and heatmaps for BTC, ETH, SOL, and XRP, helping traders see dealer hedging pressure and identify key volatility zones. The web app auto-plots gamma flip levels, shows 10 structural price markers, and lets you replay full GEX history with OHLC overlays. Data updates every ~60 seconds from Deribit, Bybit, and OKX. Premium unlocks dashboard, heatmap, and Time Machine, while Pro adds a REST API for bots and research.

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Bahamas police opened an investigation following the drowning death of an elderly cruise ship passenger.

An American man, 83, died after being found unresponsive in the water Sunday during a stop at Norwegian Cruise Line’s private Bahamas destination, Great Stirrup Cay.

The man was found unresponsive by his son while snorkeling, Eyewitness News reported. Despite assistance by a lifeguard and medical personnel, he never regained consciousness. He was pronounced deceased at the scene, and his body was later transferred to New Providence for an autopsy.

Norwegian Getaway Guest Pronounced Dead at Great Stirrup Cay

It is thought the man was a guest on Norwegian Getaway, which was the only ship to call on May 3. The vessel was on a three-night sailing in The Bahamas and had earlier docked at Nassau. It returned to PortMiami on Monday, May 4.

The incident comes less than a month after the cruise company settled a lawsuit claiming negligence in the drowning death of a guest in Bermuda in 2024.

The suit was settled for an undisclosed sum just days before a trial was set to begin. The lawsuit alleged NCL failed to warn guests about dangerous riptides, the absence of lifeguards at the beach, and previous drowning deaths in the area.

Great Stirrup Cay, part of the Berry Islands chain, has been operated by Norwegian Cruise Line since 1977, when it became the first cruise line in the industry to develop a private island concept.

The cruise line recently spent about $150 million upgrading the 268-acre island with more amenities and guest experiences. These include a 28,000-square-foot pool area and the Vibe Shore Club adults’ retreat. The Great Tides Waterpark is set to open in late summer 2026.

Norwegian Cruise Line did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.

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Read full article: https://www.travelandtourworld.com/news/article/tourism-surge-in-china-may-day-2026-holidays-mark-record-breaking-domestic-travel-and-new-consumption-models-reshaping-the-future-of-travel/

Tourism Surge in China: May Day 2026 Holidays Mark Record-Breaking Domestic Travel and New Consumption Models Reshaping the Future of...

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Read full article: https://www.travelandtourworld.com/news/article/thunder-bay-ontario-builds-new-trail-network-connecting-to-minnesota-as-us-canada-cross-border-hiking-faces-major-shifts-everything-you-need-to-know/

Thunder Bay, Ontario Builds New Trail Network Connecting to Minnesota as US-Canada Cross-Border Hiking Faces Major Shifts: Everything You Need...

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Read full article: https://www.travelandtourworld.com/news/article/caribbean-and-united-states-travel-exploring-the-caribbeans-most-beautiful-less-crowded-beaches-for-tranquil-2026-escapes/

Caribbean and United States Travel: Exploring the Caribbean’s Most Beautiful Less‑Crowded Beaches for Tranquil 2026 EscapesExplore the Caribbean’s most beautiful...

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Read full article: https://www.travelandtourworld.com/news/article/flight-attendants-expose-the-wildest-passenger-incidents-rocking-commercial-aviation-in-the-us-everything-you-need-to-know/

Flight Attendants Expose the Wildest Passenger Incidents Rocking Commercial Aviation in the US: Everything You Need to KnowFlight attendants reveal...

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Google previews Meridian GeoX, Meridian Studio, Data Manager updates, and visual Google tag setup ahead of Google Marketing Live.

The post Google Previews Meridian GeoX, Data Manager Measurement Updates appeared first on Search Engine Journal.

Samsung News is getting updated with support for short videos alongside premium publishers in the US. With these updates, the company’s news aggregator app is taking the traditional reading experience to the next level.

Now, Samsung News will offer short videos and content from credible publishers in the US. The update is now rolling out across devices, bringing a mix of premium journalism and quick-hit video content into one streamlined feed.

Short videos

A new short-form video carousel now sits inside the app, serving up bite-sized clips across categories like news, sports, finance, lifestyle, and entertainment.

The initial lineup includes content from outlets like ABC News, PEOPLE, Allrecipes, EatingWell, and Entertainment Weekly, among others. These clips are curated by Samsung’s editorial team, not just pulled in randomly.

Premium publishers

Samsung is doubling down on trusted, mainstream publishers to make its curated feed more credible and useful.

Users will now see content from names like ABC News, USA TODAY, The Washington Post, and PEOPLE integrated directly into Samsung News.

Sports and finance coverage is powered by Yahoo Media Group, which fills in the gaps with real-time updates and broader coverage.

The curation feels tighter, and the sources are the kind you would actually trust for daily updates. It is also a smart move for users who do not want to juggle multiple apps.

“Galaxy users consume news in different ways, whether it’s through quick video updates or in-depth reporting,” said Maya Harris, VP & Head of Strategic Partnerships for Samsung’s TV & Mobile Services. “We’re continuing to evolve Samsung News to meet those needs, with more formats, more trusted sources and a personalized experience that puts the day’s most important stories front and center.”

Related article:

• Samsung News introduces short-form video in the US and UK

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About a year ago, Xiaomi introduced the Xiaomi 15S Pro, its first phone to be powered by an in-house chipset, which was called the Xring O1. This was a variant of the Xiaomi 15 Pro, which originally ran on a Snapdragon 8 Elite. The company may be looking to do something similar this year, reports Yogesh Brar. The scuttlebutt is that there will be a version of the Xiaomi 18 Ultra powered by the Xring O3. That’s the next generation Ultra, which should arrive in December – according to Brar, the company isn’t planning on a global release for the Xring-based model, so it will be available only...

outboxed Junto Nakatani on Saturday to retain his undisputed super-bantamweight titles and reaffirm his position amongst boxing’s best, but in the eyes of , there is another fighter who deserves top spot in the pound-for-pound rankings. In a technical affair, Inoue landed the cleaner shots to claim a unanimous decision win and hand Nakatani a […]

The post Devin Haney says one man should rank above Naoya Inoue as the best fighter in the world appeared first on Boxing News.

On Saturday, hopes to regain the heavyweight throne at the first time of asking, challenging for the WBO world title, and in the eyes of David Price, there is one man who sticks out as the favourite. Wardley earned knockout wins over and in 2025 to become interim WBO champion, before he was later elevated […]

The post David Price makes his Fabio Wardley vs Daniel Dubois prediction: “He’s the man to pick” appeared first on Boxing News.

Fenerbahçe'de yaklaşan kongre öncesi şaşırtan bir haber geldi. Seçimlerde aday olmasına kesin gözüyle bakılan Mehmet Ali Aydınlar, herkesi şaşırtan kararını açıkladı ve aday olmayacağını ilan etti.

Eski Fenerbahçeli yönetici Mehmet Ali Aydınlar, sarı-lacivertli kulübün seçimli olağanüstü genel kurulunda başkan adayı olmayacağını duyurdu.

Aydınlar, AA muhabirine yaptığı yazılı açıklamada, "Fenerbahçe'nin yarınlarının, şahsım üzerinden oluşacak tartışmalarla gölgelenmesine izin vermemek adına yapılacak seçimli olağanüstü genel kurulda aday olmayacağım." ifadelerini kullandı.

Fenerbahçeliliğinin son günlerde farklı şekillerde tartışıldığını üzüntüyle takip ettiğini belirten Aydınlar, şunları kaydetti:

"Kulübümüzün içinden geçtiği bu dönemde elimi taşın altına koyarak Fenerbahçe'mizin geleceğine katkı sunmak ve bu camiaya yakışır bir yönetim anlayışını hayata geçirmek için bu yola girdim. Bugün görüyorum ki adımın başkan adaylığı ile anıldığı ilk andan itibaren yaşananlar, söylenenler ve ortaya çıkan tartışma ortamı hayatım boyunca savunduğum ilke ve değerlerle örtüşmemektedir. Fenerbahçe'nin bir dünya markası olması hayali, benim için bugüne ait bir hedef değil; yıllardır inandığım, her dönemde destek vermeye çalıştığım kalıcı bir idealdir. Benim kulübüme olan bağlılığım bir ünvana, bir makama ya da bir sıfata bağlı değildir."

Fenerbahçe bağlılığını hayatının her anından taşıdığı bir sorumluluk olarak gördüğünü aktaran Aydınlar, şöyle devam etti:

"Ancak gelinen noktada görüyorum ki ismim üzerinden yürüyen tartışmaların Fenerbahçe'nin birlik duygusuna katkı sağlamaktan uzaklaştığı bir ortam oluşmuştur. Herkesin kendini bir diğerinden daha fazla Fenerbahçeli gördüğü, herkesin kendi doğrusu üzerinden bir yol tarif ettiği bir zeminde, ortak bir gelecek inşa etmenin ne kadar zor olduğu ortadadır. Bugüne kadar kulübümüz için yaptıklarım ve taşıdığım her sorumluluk vicdanımla ve Fenerbahçe sevgimle örtüşmektedir. Bunun hesabını her zeminde herkese verebilirim."

Camiayı ayrıştıran her gündemin önünde kişisel hedeflerin ikinci planda olduğunu belirten Aydınlar, şunları aktardı:

"Bu nedenle Fenerbahçe'nin yarınlarının, şahsım üzerinden oluşacak tartışmalarla gölgelenmesine izin vermemek adına yapılacak seçimli olağanüstü genel kurulda aday olmayacağım. Bu süreçte gösterilen teveccüh ve destek için tüm kongre üyelerimize, camiamızın her ferdine yürekten teşekkür ediyorum. Bugüne kadar Fenerbahçe'mize olan bağlılığım hiçbir zaman kişilere ve koşullara bağlı olmadı. Bundan sonra da olmayacaktır. Ben; dünüyle gurur duyan, bugünüyle sorumluluk hisseden ve yarınlarına inanan bir Fenerbahçeli olarak, ne zaman ve ne gerekiyorsa elimden geleni yapmaya ve her zaman kulübümün yanında olmaya devam edeceğim. Çünkü Fenerbahçe, kişilerin değil, değerlerin kulübüdür."

Tottenham, Premier Lig'den düşmemesi halinde Brahim Diaz için 25 milyon euroluk teklif sunacak. Real Madrid'in Faslı kanat oyuncusu, Galatasaray'ın da listesinde bulunuyordu.

Tottenham, yaz transfer döneminde Brahim Diaz için 25 milyon euroluk bir teklif yapmaya hazırlanıyor. İngiliz ekibi, Premier Lig'de kalması durumunda Real Madrid'le masaya oturacak. 26 yaşındaki kanat oyuncusunun Madrid'deki mukavelesi 30 Haziran 2027'de bitiyor. Yani yaz döneminde sözleşmesinin son senesine girecek.

KALMAK İSTEMİYOR

Faslı kanat oyuncusu, yeterince forma şansı bulamadığı için Real Madrid'de devam etmek istemiyor. Madrid cephesi ise ondan para kazanmak için satış ihtimalini değerlendiriyor. 26 yaşındaki futbolcu bu sezon La Liga'da 26 karşılaşmaya çıktı. Sahada ise 1.003 dakika kaldı. 7 asisti bulunuyor.

ASLAN'IN RADARINDAYDI

1.70 boyundaki oyuncu, Galatasaray'ın da kanat alternatifleri arasında yer alıyordu. Tottenham Premier Lig'de kalır ve resmi teklifini iletirse, Aslan'ın işi zorlaşabilir. Ancak Sarı-Kırmızılılar'ın kanat listesinde farklı seçenekler de bulunuyor. Diaz yaz döneminde en fazla takip edilen isimlerden biri olacak.

Galatasaray'da Günay Güvenç'in geleceği tartışılıyor. Eyüpspor'da kiralık olarak forma giyen Jankat Yılmaz ise iyi bir performans sergiliyor. Sezon sonunda çok ilginç gelişmeler yaşanabilir.

Günay Güvenç bu sezon şans bulduğu maçlarda beklentilerin altında kaldı. Samsunspor karşılaşmasındaki performansı ve gördüğü kırmızı kart ise, ayrılık iddialarını güçlendirdi. Hemen belirtmekte fayda var... Şu anda Galatasaray Yönetimi'nin, Günay'ın ayrılması yönünde bir kararı yok. 34 yaşındaki eldivenin mukavelesi 30 Haziran 2028'e kadar sürüyor.

LİGDE DÖRDÜNCÜ SIRADA

Sezon başında Eyüpspor'a kiralanan Jankat Yılmaz ise, formayı kaptıktan sonra çok iyi performanslar sergiledi. 21 yaşındaki eldivenin 12 Süper Lig sınavında maç başına kurtarış ortalaması 3.6'yı buldu. Kurtarış yüzdesi ise 74! Yani Uğurcan Çakır(%79), Mateusz Lis (%76) ve Muhammed Şengezer'in (%75) ardından en yüksek kurtarış yüzdesine sahip kaleci...

SON SENESİNE GİRİYOR

Jankat hem yerli hem de Galatasaray'ın altyapısından çıktı. 1.93 boyundaki file bekçisinin Sarı-Kırmızılılar'la kontratı ise 30 Haziran 2027 tarihinde bitecek. Yani sözleşmesinin son senesine giriyor. Yönetimin onunla mukavele yeniledikten sonra Uğurcan'ın yedeği pozisyonuna geçebileceği konuşuluyor. Bu durumda Günay'la yollar ayrılacak. Tekrar hatırlatmak gerekiyor. Şu anda bu değişiklikle ilgili alınan resmi bir karar yok...

Beşiktaş, Nottingham Forest Kulübü'nden kiralanan Jota Silva'yla ilgili kararını çoktan vermişti. İngiliz ekibi de gelecek sezon için planlarını yaptı.

Beşiktaş, yaz transfer döneminin son anlarında Nottingham Forest Kulübü'nden Jota Silva'yı kiralamıştı. Kulüpler arasındaki anlaşmada, Kartal'ın 17 milyon euroluk satın alma opsiyonu bulunuyordu. Ancak Siyah-Beyazlılar bu maddeyi aktif hale getirmeyecek. Portekizli kanat oyuncusu sezon sonunda İngiltere'ye dönecek.

ORADA DA DÜŞÜNÜLMÜYOR

Nottingham Forest Kulübü'nün gelecek sezon planlamasında da Jota Silva yok. 26 yaşındaki futbolcuya iyi bir teklif gelirse satılacak. Aksi halde yine kiralanacak. 1.79 boyundaki oyuncunun oradaki mukavelesi 30 Haziran 2028 tarihine kadar devam ediyor. Nottingham onu 2024 yazında Vitoria'dan 7 milyon euroya almıştı.

DOĞRU DÜZGÜN OYNAMADI

Jota Silva, Süper Lig'de 16 maça çıktı. Sahada sadece 510 dakika kaldı. Bu kadar kısıtlı bir süre içinde 4 gol ve 1 asist üretti. Portekizli futbolcunun Premier Lig'den talibinin bulunmadığı öğrenildi. Yani gelecek sezon da farklı bir ülkenin yolunu tutacak gibi gözüküyor.

Brezilya Futbol Federasyonu, Manchester United'la iletişime geçerek Matheus Cunha'nın son 3 lig maçında oynatılmamasını istedi. Taraflar anlaştı. Fenerbahçeli Ederson ise derbideki hareketleri sonrasında sezonu kapatmıştı!

ESPN Brasil'in haberine göre; Manchester United ve Brezilya Futbol Federasyonu, Matheus Cunha'nın Dünya Kupası'na en iyi haliyle katılması için kalan üç lig maçında dinlendirilmesi konusunda anlaştı. Manchester United, önümüzdeki sezon Şampiyonlar Ligi'ne katılmayı garantilemişti.

DERBİ SONRASINDA KAPATTI

Fenerbahçe'nin Brezilyalı kalecisi Ederson ise Galatasaray derbisinde gördüğü kırmızı kart ve sonraki hareketleri sebebiyle sezonu kapatmıştı. Brezilya Futbol Federasyonu'nun, kadroda bulunan milli oyuncuların yıpranmaması yönündeki isteği ise kafaları iyice karıştırdı.

HERKES SAMBACILARI İZLİYOR

Cuhna hamlesinin ardından birçok insan, Brezilya Milli Takımı'nın havuzunda bulunan oyuncuların durumunu takip etmeye başladı. Bu futbolcuların cezalı duruma düşüp düşmeyecekleri merakla bekleniyor. Ederson'un Galatasaray derbisinden bilerek atıldığı yönünde birçok iddia vardı! Ancak bunların şu aşamada sadece söylenti olduğunu belirtmekte fayda var.

Beşiktaş devre arasında Inter'den Kristjan Asllani'yi kiralamıştı. Teknik Direktör Sergen Yalçın, bu hamlenin kiralık olarak yapılmasında ısrarcıydı. Günün sonunda hoca haklı çıkmış gibi duruyor.

Beşiktaş'ın kış dönemindeki hamlelerinden biri Kristjan Asllani'ydi... Arnavut orta saha oyuncusu, Inter'den kiralandı. Yapılan anlaşmaya göre; Siyah-Beyazlılar'ın 11 milyon euroluk satın alma opsiyonu bulunuyor. Bu madde mecburi değil... Yani Kartal devam etmek istemezse, oyuncu İtalya'ya dönecek.

ÖNEMLİ BİR ADIM

Aslında ilk başta Kristjan Asllani'nin bonservisiyle birlikte alınmasının planlandığı öğrenildi. Ancak Teknik Direktör Sergen Yalçın buna karşı çıktı. Oyuncuyu sezon sonuna kadar görmek isteyen teknik adam, teklifin "kiralama" yoluyla yapılmasını istedi.

OPSİYON KULLANILMAYACAK

Günün sonunda Sergen Yalçın haklı çıkmış gibi gözüküyor. Kristjan Asllani'nin performansı, tatmin edici olmadı. Bu sebeple de satın alma opsiyonu kullanılmayacak. Eğer 24 yaşındaki futbolcu bonservisiyle gelseydi, Beşiktaş açısından daha kötü bir tablo oluşacaktı.

Beşiktaş'ın sezon başında kadrosuna kattığı Vaclav Cerny'de önemli gelişmeler yaşanıyor. Çekyalı kanat oyuncusunun yaz döneminde ayrılma ihtimali hayli yüksek...

Beşiktaş yaz transfer döneminde Wolfsburg'a 6 milyon euro ödeyerek Vaclav Cerny'yi kadrosuna katmıştı. 28 yaşındaki futbolcuyla 30 Haziran 2028 tarihine kadar mukavele yapıldı. Sözleşmede ayrıca +1 yıllık uzatma opsiyonu bulunuyor. Çekyalı yıldız, çok iyi başladığı Beşiktaş kariyerine tartışmalarla devam ediyordu.

ALT LİMİT BELLİ

Kartal'ın oyucuyu satmayı planladığı ve en az kendi ödediği rakam olan 6 milyon euroyu isteyeceği konuşuluyor. Beşiktaş yaz döneminde her iki kanat bölgesini de güçlendirecek. Mevcut kadrodaki birçok isimle de yolların ayrılması bekleniyor. Cerny yerine daha genç bir oyuncunun düşünüldüğü öğrenildi.

BAZI ALMAN EKİPLERİ

Vaclav Cerny bu sezon Süper Lig'de 28 karşılaşmaya çıktı. Sahada 1.893 dakika kaldı. 4 gol ve 8 asist üretti. 1.82 boyundaki futbolcuyla bazı Alman ekiplerinin ilgilendiği belirtildi. Yaz döneminin başlarında konuyla ilgili sıcak gelişmelerin yaşanması bekleniyor.

Barcelona, Manchester United'dan kiralanan Marcus Rashford'ın 30 milyon euroluk satın alma opsiyonunu kullanmayacak. İngiliz ekibi ise bu parayı ödeyen herhangi bir takıma oyuncuyu satacak. Ortada Galatasaray ve Fenerbahçe iddiaları var.

Talksport'un haberine göre; Barcelona, Manchester United'dan kiralanan Marcus Rashford'ın 30 milyon euroluk satın alma opsiyonunu kullanmak istemiyor (bazı kaynaklara göre 35 milyon). İngiliz ekibinin yöneticileri de Rashford'ın Manchester'daki geleceğinin sağlıklı olacağına inanmıyor.

ARADA FARK BULUNMUYOR

Bu sebeple 30 milyon euroluk rakamı masaya koyan her takımla görüşme yapılacak. Galatasaray devre arasında Napoli'den Noa Lang'ı kiralamıştı. Hollandalı futbolcunun satın alma opsiyonu da 30 milyon euroydu. Yani 2 futbolcu arasında bonservis bedeli bakımından fark bulunmuyor.

SEÇENEK MASADA DURUYOR

Elbette Rashford ve Lang'ın maaşları arasında önemli bir fark var. Ancak Galatasaray'ın gerekirse İngiliz yıldız konusunda şartları zorlayacağı öğrenildi. Bu arada Fenerbahçe'deki başkan adaylarından birinin de Rashford konusunda istekli olduğu konuşuluyor. İngiliz yıldız konusunda Türkiye seçeneğinin masada bulunduğu belirtildi.

Galatasaray'ın, Mainz forması giyen Nadiem Amiri konusunda harekete geçme kararı aldığı öğrenildi. 29 yaşındaki merkez orta saha, inanılmaz bir sezon geçiriyor.

Galatasaray'ın yaz döneminde orta sahaya en az 2 takviye yapması bekleniyor. Listedeki önemli isimler arasında bulunan Nadiem Amiri konusunda hareketlilik yaşanabilir. Sarı-Kırmızılılar'ın harekete geçme kararı aldığı öğrenildi. Mainz Kulübü'yle kısa süre içinde pazarlık masasına oturulacak.

1 MİLYONA ALINMIŞTI

29 yaşındaki merkez orta sahanın Bundesliga ekibiyle 30 Haziran 2028 tarihine kadar mukavelesi bulunuyor. Tahmini piyasa değeri 17 milyon euro seviyelerinde... Mainz, Alman futbolcuyu 2024'ün Ocak ayında Bayer Leverkusen'den transfer etmişti. O dönemde sadece 1 milyon euro bonservis bedeli ödendi.

SICAK BAKIYOR

Nadiem Amiri bu sezon Bundesliga'da 24 karşılaşmaya çıktı. Sahada 1.934 dakika kaldı. 11 gol ve 3 asist üretti. Oyuncu cephesinin Galatasaray seçeneğine sıcak baktığı öğrenildi. Sarı-Kırmızılılar, Mainz Kulübü'nü uygun şartlar karşılığında ikna edebilirse resmi imzayı attırmayı planlıyor. Taraflar arasındaki görüşmeler yakında başlayacak.

Trabzonspor, Beşiktaş'tan satın alma opsiyonuyla kiraladığı Ernest Muçi'den para kazanabilir! Arnavut futbolcuya Avrupa'dan "çift haneli" bir teklif gelirse, Beşiktaş'a 8.5 milyon euro ödenecek.

Trabzonspor bu sezon başında sürpriz bir hamleyle Ernest Muçi'yi Beşiktaş'tan kiralamıştı. İki kulüp arasındaki anlaşmada 8.5 milyon euroluk satın alma opsiyonu bulunuyor. Eğer Bordo-Mavililer, 10 Mayıs'a kadar bu parayı Kartal'ın hesabına yatırırsa, Arnavut futbolcunun bonservisini de alacak.

SON TARİH 10 MAYIS

10 Mayıs'tan sonra bütün ipler Beşiktaş'ta olacak. 25 yaşındaki orta saha oyuncusunun Kartal'daki sözleşmesi ise 30 Haziran 2027'de tamamlanıyor. Avrupa'dan bazı talipleri bulunan 1.80 boyundaki futbolcuda kritik gelişmeler yaşanıyor. Trabzonspor'un, oyuncuya yurt dışından çift haneli bir teklif gelmesi halinde Beşiktaş'a 8.5 milyon euroluk opsiyonu ödeyeceği belirtildi.

KASASINA GİRECEK

Böylece Fırtına, Ernest Muçi'den para kazanabilecek. Yönetimin, menajerlerle temaslarını sürdürdüğü öğrenildi. Eğer 10 Mayıs'a kadar oyuncuyla ilgili resmi bir teklif gelirse, Bordo-Mavililer vakit kaybetmeden Beşiktaş'ın payını ödeyecek. Artan para ise Trabzonspor'un kasasına girecek.

Galatasaray devre arasında Atalanta'dan Ederson'la ilgilenmişti. Brezilyalı orta saha konusunda tekrar harekete geçeceği konuşuluyordu. Atletico Madrid, oyuncuyla anlaştı ancak Atalanta'dan şok bir istek geldi...

Herkes Galatasaray'ın kış döneminde yıldız bir orta saha hamlesi yapmasını bekliyordu. Ancak bu bölge için kadroya sadece Renato Nhaga katıldı. Genç yetenek, Şampiyonlar Ligi listesine de eklenmemişti. Sarı-Kırmızılılar'ın ilgilendiği isimlerden biri; Atalanta forması giyen Ederson'du...

ÇOK ZORLAYICI OLACAK

Brezilyalı orta saha konusunda nabız yoklandı ancak sonuç alınamadı. Sezon sonunda da teklif yapılabileceği konuşuluyordu. Son gelen haberler ise bu transferin çok zorlayıcı olabileceğini gösteriyor. Oyuncu cephesiyle el sıkışan Atletico Madrid, Atalanta'nın tavrı sonrasında şok geçirdi.

TAKSİT OLAYI KABUL EDİLMEDİ

Atalanta, Atletico Madrid'den 45 milyon euro talep etti. Üstelik bu parayı tek seferde peşin olarak istedi. Madrid cephesi bunun üzerine masadan kalktı ve görüşmeler durdu. 26 yaşındaki merkez orta sahanın 30 Haziran 2027 tarihine kadar sözleşmesi bulunuyor. Buna rağmen İtalyan ekibinin beklentisi çok yüksek... Atletico Madrid gelişmesi, Galatasaray açısından da önemli bir referans oldu. Cim-Bom bu kadar yüksek bir parayı peşin ödemeyi kesinlikle düşünmüyor.

Bu gün futbol üzrə Azərbaycan çempionatında (Premyer Liqa) 2025/2026-cı illər mövsümünün 30-cu turuna yekun vurulub.

Arena.az xəbər verir ki, sonuncu oyun günündə də bir qarşılaşma baş tutub.

“Karvan” doğma meydanda “Neftçi” ilə üz-üzə gəlib. Yevlax şəhər stadionunda baş tutmuş görüşün baş hakimi Rauf Cabbarov olub. Paytaxt təmsilçisi rəqibini 3 cavabsız qolla məğlub edərək növbəti 3 xalına sevinib.

Xatırladaq ki, turun əvvəlki oyunlarında “Kəpəz” “Sumqayıt”a (2:1), “Zirə” “Qəbələ”yə (1:0), “Qarabağ” “Turan Tovuz”a (2:1) qalib gəlib. “Araz-Naxçıvan” “İmişli”yə (0:1), “Şamaxı” isə “Sabah”a (0:3) uduzub.

Premyer Liqa
30-cu tur
5 may

“Karvan” – “Neftçi” 0:3
Qollar: İmad Faraj, 31. Emin Mahmudov, 50-pen. Freddi Varqas, 57.
Hakimlər: Rauf Cabbarov, Kamran Bayramov, Kərim Zeynalov, Ruslan Quliyev.
VAR: Kamranbəy Rəhimov.
AVAR: Zeynal Zeynalov.
Yevlax şəhər stadionu, 16:00.

Karvan: 99. Pedro Mateus, 6. Vadim Abdullayev (k), 33. Eltun Turabov, 13. Vüsal Məsimov, 16. Rauf Rüstəmli, 5. Emin Rüstəmov, 20. Coy Sleyd Mikels, 2. Şakil Sno, 11. Kayl Spens, 8. Peter Kinqs, 21. İmani Barker.
Ehtiyat oyunçular: 1. Kamran İbrahimov, 25. Əmrah Bulud, 42. İbrahim Qədirzadə, 18. Süleyman Əhmədov, 14. Uğur Cahangirov, 17. Samir Abdullayev, 77. Əli Abdullayev, 37. Mois Nqvisani, 10. Samuel Durrant, 4. Olavale Doyeni.
Baş məşqçi: Füzuli Məmmədov.

Neftçi: 1. Emil Balayev, 8. Emin Mahmudov (k), 15. Elvin Bədəlov, 7. Emil Səfərov, 77. Falaye Sako, 5. İqor Ribeyro, 18. İfeanyi Metyu, 33. Breno Almeyda, 11. İmad Faraj, 10. Freddi Varqas, 22. Luis Ortis.
Ehtiyat oyunçular: 13. Kenan Piriç, 91. Nurəziz Əzizov, 4. Elvin Camalov, 17. Murad Xaçayev, 19. Ağadadaş Salyanski, 47. Murad Məmmədov, 14. Edvin Kuç, 24. Mustafa Sek, 9. Bassala Sambu, 70. Andrey Ştoqrin, 23. Cordan Rezabala, 28. Alessio Kurçi.
Baş məşqçi: Yuri Vernidub.

Futbol üzrə Azərbaycan millisi mayın 28-dən 30-dək Bakıda, iyunun 1-dən 10-na qədər isə Avstriyada təlim-məşq toplanışında olacaq.

Arena.az bu barədə AFFA-nın rəsmi saytına istinadən xəbər verir.

Xəbərdə qeyd olunur ki, millimiz Avstriyanın Bad-Valtersdorf şəhərində baş tutacaq təlim-məşq toplanışı zamanı iki yoxlama oyunu da keçirəcək. Belə ki, komandamız iyunun 5-də Malta, 9-da isə San Marino yığması ilə qarşılaşacaq.

Oyunlar Macarıstanın Sombatxey şəhərində yerləşən Haladaş İdman Kompleksinin stadionunda keçiriləcək. Hər iki qarşılaşmanın Bakı vaxtı ilə saat 22:00-da başlanması nəzərdə tutulur.

Almaniyanın “Borussiya” (Dortmund) komandasının sabiq baş məşqçisi Edin Terziç yeni mövsümdən Bilbao “Atletik”ini çalışdıracaq.

Arena.az xəbər verir ki, bu barədə İspaniya klubunun mətbuat xidməti məlumat yayıb.

Xatırladaq ki, daha əvvəl La Liqa təmsilçisinin mətbuat xidməti hazırkı mütəxəssis Ernesto Valverdenin cari mövsümün sonunda klubdan ayrılacağını açıqlamışdı. Onu isə bu postda Terziçin əvəz edəcəyi dəqiqləşib.

Terziçin müqaviləsinin müddəti 2028-ci ilin yayına qədər nəzərdə tutulub. O, yeni vəzifəsinin icrasında cari mövsüm başa çatdıqdan sonra başlayacaq.

Yeri gəlmişkən, Edin Terziç Yupp Haynkesdən sonra “Atletik”in tarixində ikinci almaniyalı məşqçi olacaq.

Terziçin 43 yaşı var. O, iki dəfə – 2020-ci ildən 2021-ci ilə qədər və 2022-ci ildən 2024-cü ilə qədər “Borussiya”da çalışıb. Dortmund təmsilçisi onun rəhbərliyi altında Almaniya Kubokunu (2021) qazanıb və UEFA Çempionlar Liqasının finalına (2024) yüksəlib.

Google is trying a new method of bot authentication named Web Bot Auth. Google posted a new help document that explains that Web Bot Auth is a “new cryptographic protocol that helps websites to validate that bots are authentic.”

The goal of Web Bot Auth is to help you automate the process of authenticating which AI Agent bots are authentic and which are fraud.

Limited test. Google said the search compan is “testing the protocol with some AI agents hosted on Google infrastructure.” Not all Google user agents are using Web Bot Auth and Google is not yet signing every request of agents using the protocol.

Thus Google recommends that in addition to Web Bot Auth you continue relying on IP addresses, reverse DNS, and user-agent strings as Google gradually rolls out signed traffic.

What is Web Bot Auth. Google defined Web Bot Auth as “Web Bot Auth is an experimental cryptographic protocol used to authenticate requests sent by bots. Instead of relying solely on self-reported headers and IP addresses, Web Bot Auth allows agents to cryptographically sign their requests.”

Web Bot Auth can bring the following benefits according to Google:

• Future-proofing: Help establish a web where agent providers and websites can build mutual trust and make informed access decisions.
• Cryptographic certainty: Move beyond easily spoofed headers to a verified identity and decouple agent identity from IP addresses.
• Better observability: Gain clearer insights into how agents interact with your content.

Why we care. As AI Agents become more and more common across the web, managing which Agents can access your site and web pages may become more and more of a challenge. This new method of authentication may help you allow authentic AI Agents and block the inauthentic AI Agents.

Again, this is an “experimental” feature right now, so keep track of its progress.

One of the major reasons PPC practitioners hold onto syntax-oriented keyword strategies is the disconnect between “query intent” and “conversion intent.” For years, you’ve likely relied on keywords to show you understand what your customers want and to prequalify traffic using syntax-oriented signals.

As user behavior shifts to more conversational queries and AI becomes an increasingly relevant part of the user journey, the distinction between these two intents becomes even more critical to understand and act on.

Here, we’ll define query and conversion intent and explore strategies to apply them effectively. This isn’t prescriptive. You should make decisions based on what will serve your business well. However, it provides a framework for analyzing your data and optimizing for the right humans.

Disclosure: I’m a Microsoft employee, and I’ll be sharing some examples that pull from Microsoft tooling. However, most of the strategies reflect platform-agnostic approaches.

What are query and conversion intents?

Query intent is the underlying need driving the text put into a search function. This search function can be on a SERP (search engine results page), video/social/gaming/email/site search bar, or AI surface.

Conversion intent is the human need to achieve some outcome, understood through stated and inferred data points. These range from text entered in various search experiences, content consumed, and tracked actions taken.

Different examples of query and conversion intent will have higher or lower rates of confidence based on how explicit text is, as well as patterns in content consumed.

For example, if I search “Microsoft ads login,” both query and conversion intent are clear — I want to log in. It’s easy to match ads and organic content to that query. Videos shown in any video query would have to do with logging in, and emails would be focused around login information.

Google SERP

Bing’s SERP

YouTube results

The query “Microsoft ads” is more nebulous, as such, needs to draw from other signals like previously engaged content and search history. While I might get a login page, I’d likely also see blog/sales content, third-party advice on Microsoft ads, and potentially competitor info trying to capitalize on the general nature of the query.

Google SERP

Bing SERP

YouTube results

Let’s look at a non-branded example as well. “Purple hair dye” has a clear transactional intent. While the user might not have a brand in mind, they know they want a specific color. 

We don’t know if the user is looking for a semi-permanent or permanent color. We also don’t know the user’s pronouns, so matching them to a specific demographic to entice a purchase is a gamble. 

Google SERP

Bing SERP

YouTube results

In the query “purple hair dye for long wavy hair,” the transactional intent is maintained. However, the query focuses more on the core needs of the person behind the text. Long, wavy hair means there needs to be enough dye to cover long hair.

Additionally, while some men have long wavy hair, the person behind the query is more likely to identify as female. 

Wavy hair has a different composition than straight or curly hair, so products specifically for wavy hair will be more relevant than those without hair type identifiers.

Google SERP

Bing SERP

YouTube results

In all of these examples, there was clear conversion intent. The human behind the query clearly wanted to achieve something. However, if we relied only on the text (i.e., query intent), we might miss a meaningful opportunity to connect with customers. 

This is why close variants (which have been available on both Google and Microsoft for ~10 years) represent a useful way to unshackle ourselves from syntax alone.

Additionally, by limiting our understanding of queries to SERPs, we ignore critical insights from where our customers connect, work, and play. Microsoft’s internal data from March 2024 shows that brands that use both Audience ads (display, native, and video) and Search see a 6x conversion rate. Part of this is brand recognition, and the power of brand media buys influencing performance.

Yet there’s also the pragmatic piece that some marketers refuse to engage with video and social. By being where your competitors refuse to be, you can shape and capture desire while they fight over a shrinking share of voice.

How to optimize for each intent

Once you understand the difference between query and conversion intent, you can begin mapping out the actions needed to capitalize on both.

Conversion intent is much easier to understand than query intent. This is why AI systems typically run queries in the background to understand human input and get at the conversion intent behind the query. 

To succeed at shaping queries and capturing conversions, it’s critical to understand the input points for humans and the AI systems that will be serving them results.

Let’s revisit the “purple hair dye for long wavy hair” query:

Copilot surfaces how it arrived at the output by looking up information and finding the best matches. This is similar to the SEO concept of E-E-A-T.

Yet you’ll notice that the results for my personal Copilot are different than the traditional SERP (chiefly that ads aren’t the dominant result — ads serve at the bottom of clearly transactional conversations after organic listings).

This is where the “Details” function comes into play and can help you know where to focus content, feed, and messaging functions:

This product is pretty flat on price, save for some deep summer dips. If I’m desperate for color, I might buy now, or I might wait for what seems like a regular summer sale. I’m also getting insights into why this product is wonderful (hair conditioning, cruelty-free, vibrant, and customizable color, etc.).

These are things I’ve shown interest in through past purchases, conversations with Copilot, and other signals it has access to.

Brands that want to optimize for query intent need to make sure the following are in good order:

• Feed/landing page clarity
  • It should be incredibly easy to map what the product/service is to the query. While there is value in some 1:1 matching of language, it’s much more important that the core offering be understood as aligned with what the human is looking for.
  • For example, DUI and DWI are technically two different charges and have geo implications. However, DUI tends to be the universal legal charge and service.
• Images adding context
  • Visual content is critical to engage humans. However, if the image isn’t clear or is duplicative of another service/product page, you might confuse the user and the machine attempting to understand and position you for queries. This is why it’s critical to add alt text (even on paid landing pages) for images and videos.
  • A good way to test whether your visuals are serving you well is to put the landing page into a PMax campaign creator. If you see the images and they match the correct service text, you’ve done a good job.
• Invest time in understanding how humans and AI are querying
  • Free tools like Google Trends, Microsoft Clarity, and Bing Webmaster offer insights into search trends, citations, grounding queries, and which AI systems and humans are successfully engaging with your content.

Conversion intent is more straightforward, though debatably harder because it requires more creative and critical thinking: 

• Matching messages to personas
  • The reason one person says yes to you might be completely different from the reason someone else does. Locking in conversion intent includes being mindful of how you’re selling yourself. If you ignore what matters to your customers in reviews, intake from customer success or sales, and other signals, you risk selling yourself badly and losing the customer.
  • This is where AI-powered creative and audience mapping can be helpful, since platforms have access to more insights than a brand does during the auction.
• Honor the impulse nature of visual content
  • Someone coming to you from a display spot or short video is very different than someone coming from a text-laden SERP. They were inspired to act and need frictionless paths to conversion.
  • One-click checkout (including solutions like Copilot Checkout) ensures humans don’t need to think to do business with you.

Ultimately, both query and conversion intent need brand and performance marketing to be successful, and it’s critical to understand how the success metrics manifest.

The converging roles of brand and performance

For a long time, brand and performance marketing were treated as separate motions, with separate owners, budgets, and success metrics. 

• Brand was about reach, recall, and long-term connection. 
• Performance was about efficiency, conversion rate, and immediate return. 

That separation made sense when channels, measurement, and user journeys were cleaner than they are today. It’s much harder to maintain in an environment where AI systems infer intent continuously and across surfaces. 

A user doesn’t experience brand and performance as separate. They experience confidence, familiarity, relevance, and ease. Those signals are created over time through exposure, engagement, and trust, and they often determine whether conversion intent ever materializes, regardless of how “high intent” a query might appear on its own.

From a metrics perspective, this convergence is clear. Brand-oriented activity influences performance outcomes even when it isn’t the final touch. Exposure to display, native, or video doesn’t always produce an immediate click, but it changes how humans and systems interpret future behavior. 

When someone later performs a search, engages with an AI assistant, or compares options on a marketplace, prior brand interactions act as accelerators. They reduce hesitation, shorten decision cycles, and increase the likelihood that a conversion signal will be credited downstream.

From a strategy standpoint, this means brand work should no longer be evaluated solely on isolated upper-funnel KPIs, and Performance work can’t be evaluated purely on last-click efficiency. 

Audience-based formats, contextual placements, and visual storytelling directly shape conversion intent by shaping preferences and expectations before a query even occurs. Search and shopping formats then serve as capture mechanisms, translating that latent intent into action.

This is particularly relevant in AI-assisted experiences, where systems synthesize multiple inputs before presenting options or recommendations. Content, feeds, reviews, images, and historical engagement all influence how brands are represented and when they appear.

In these environments, strong brand signals don’t compete with performance outcomes. They enable them by making the brand easier to understand, trust, and choose.

Brand and performance don’t need to use the same tactics, but they must be planned together. Measurement frameworks should account for assistive value, not just final interactions.

Creative strategies should recognize that inspiration and conversion often happen at different moments. Optimization should focus less on forcing intent into rigid buckets and more on supporting the full decision journey.

When we recognize that query intent and conversion intent are related but not identical, the convergence of brand and performance becomes less a philosophical debate and more an operational necessity.

Success comes from designing systems that reflect how humans actually decide, not just how they type.

Key takeaways

• Query intent describes what is said; conversion intent reflects what the human needs to accomplish. They overlap, but they aren’t interchangeable.
• Brand activity shapes conversion intent long before a query is expressed and influences how future interactions are interpreted.
• Performance outcomes improve when Brand signals reduce friction, uncertainty, and choice overload.
• AI-driven experiences amplify this convergence by relying on cumulative signals rather than single actions.
• Sustainable optimization requires aligning brand and performance strategies, metrics, and expectations around the same human outcomes.

In February 2025, the world watched as a small group of humanoid robots took the stage at the CCTV Chinese New Year show for the very first time. It was a charming performance, even if the steps were shaky and the movements were mostly limited to the arms.

Just one year later, at the Spring Festival Gala, the shaky steps were gone and the humanoid robots were able to actually run and do standing somersaults and full kung fu routines with swords and nunchaku. The message was clear: in just one year, we have witnessed a decade’s worth of advancement.

The 10-year leap in technology is real and not limited to robotics. Which raises a critical question for every digital marketer eyeing the world’s largest web population: How has search in China progressed in recent years?

A parallel in the Chinese search landscape

The answer is that we’re witnessing the first, calculated tremors of a massive shift. AI models have not yet replaced traditional search. The evolution isn’t happening through a single “big bang,” but through a constant, iterative pulse. 

New LLM models are surfacing every few months, each more specialized than the last. Chinese tech giants are increasingly open-sourcing their models, and even industry leaders are hedging their bets. Baidu, for example, is integrating DeepSeek into its search experience, even as its own Ernie (Wenxin) model remains a formidable powerhouse.

Let’s look at how users actually search in China today — and what this nuanced shift from links to reasoning means for your 2026 SEO strategy.

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The great narrative fallacy: Is web search dead in China?

In many marketing circles, a specific narrative has been repeated so often it has become an article of faith: “Traditional search on Baidu is dead — and has been for years. Websites are obsolete. In China, everything is WeChat.”

This narrative is almost always driven by service providers whose business models depend on WeChat, Douyin, Weibo, or Xiaohongshu marketing. To them, the “open web” is a ghost town. But is this actually true?

The social supremacy argument

There’s a grain of truth in the hype. The Chinese web is a mobile-first multiverse. Users access and explore the web through super-apps:

• RedNote (Xiaohongshu / Little Red Book): This is the de facto engine for lifestyle research and travel planning.
• Pinduoduo and Douyin: These are the juggernauts of social commerce and impulse buying.
• WeChat: The absolute center of daily life, where everything from a quick message to a utility bill payment via QR code happens.

In this environment, social media isn’t just a channel. It’s the air people breathe. For B2C brands, social ads can — and often do — exceed website-driven sales by orders of magnitude.

The B2B reality check

For those of us working with B2B companies that need real visibility in China, the “Baidu is dead” narrative falls apart the moment you look at the analytics. Clients who invest in Baidu SEO and Baidu search engine advertising (SEA) continue to see a steady, high-volume stream of real human visitors — in many cases generating more qualified leads and higher conversion rates than their counterparts in the UK or Germany.

Why? Because when a B2B procurement officer or a technical engineer needs a specific industrial solution, they don’t just scroll until they find it on a social media feed. They search for a verified, authoritative source. In other words, they look for a website.

Is the social media narrative a lie? No. But ignoring a channel that — at least in the B2B sector — remains more effective in China than in many search-first Western countries is simply bad business. The goal isn’t to choose one over the other; it’s to understand how they coexist. 

And just as we’ve settled the debate between web marketing versus app marketing, a new challenger — the LLM — has entered the battleground to disrupt both.

Mapping the 2026 landscape: Intent-based specialization

To a Google-first marketer, the idea of searching anywhere but a search engine feels like a detour. In China, it’s the standard operating procedure. Users don’t just “Google it.” Instead, they choose the tool that fits the intent.

As a Baidu specialist living and working in China, I see this daily. While I might be optimizing a B2B landing page for Baidu, my wife is likely on Pinduoduo, finding household deals, or on Xiaohongshu, planning our next weekend trip. 

The “everything app” exists, but the “right app” always wins the click.

1. Traditional web search: The authority tier

Despite the “death of the web” narrative, traditional web search remains the primary battleground for B2B and high-authority research. If a user needs a technical whitepaper, a government regulation, or a verified corporate headquarters, they go here.

• Baidu: Still the mobile heavyweight, with a ~70% mobile market share. Its structural advantage is massive: The Baidu app is installed on over 724 million monthly active devices (as of early 2026). It has evolved into an AI-first portal, but for SEOs, it remains the place where the open web lives and breathes.
• Microsoft Bing: The professional’s sanctuary. It has claimed a massive chunk of desktop search for those seeking a cleaner, international, or technical experience.
• Haosou (360 Search): The enterprise default, often pre-installed on corporate PCs and known for its security focus.
• Sogou: Deeply integrated with WeChat, it’s the bridge between the walled garden and the web.
• Google: Yes, Google. Despite the firewall, a significant population of tech-savvy professionals and researchers use it via VPN for global technical data and academic resources.

2. Social discovery: The inspiration tier

This is where search becomes discovery. Users don’t always have a keyword, but they do have an interest. In this context, SEO is about social indexing: ensuring your brand appears when a user looks for proof and not just products.

• WeChat (Weixin): The internal search for official brand news and private traffic.
• Xiaohongshu (RED): The ultimate product-discovery engine. If you aren’t on RED, you don’t exist in the lifestyle or luxury sectors.
• Douyin: Visual, video-first search. Users search Douyin to see how something works.
• Kuaishou: The powerhouse for lower-tier cities and raw, authentic grassroots content.
• Weibo: Real-time search — what is happening right now in the public eye.
• Bilibili: Long-form video search for deep dives, tutorials, and Gen Z subcultures.

3. Ecommerce: The transactional tier

In the West, users often start on Google and end on Amazon. In China, the journey frequently starts and ends in the same place.

• Taobao / Tmall: The grand bazaar. If you want variety and brand stores, this is the first stop.
• JD.com: The Amazon of China for logistics and high-end electronics.
• Pinduoduo: The favorite for daily essentials and group-buy deals. Its search logic is entirely driven by value for money.
• Douyin Mall: The rising star of “impulse search,” merging entertainment with immediate checkout.
• Xianyu (Goofish): The go-to for the thriving second-hand market and hobbyist niches.

4. Generative AI (LLMs): The reasoning tier

This is the newest layer of the map — the “thinking” search. These AI models don’t just produce lists of links. They are assistants that synthesize the web for the user.

• Doubao (ByteDance): Currently the most popular consumer AI assistant, used for casual, conversational queries.
• DeepSeek (Domestic): The choice for developers and those in need of “deep thinking” logic. It’s the engine currently getting tested inside WeChat’s search bar.
• Kimi (Moonshot AI): The king of long-context. Users use Kimi to search through 50-page PDFs or complex financial reports.
• Qwen (Alibaba): Powerfully integrated into the Alibaba ecosystem for business and coding tasks.
• Tencent Yuanbao: The “AI brain” for WeChat content.
• Wen Xiaoyan (Baidu): The AI-facing evolution of Baidu search.

5. Hyper-local and logistics: The utility tier

For the physical world, search is about “now” and “near me.”

• Meituan / Dianping: If you’re hungry or want to see a movie, you don’t use Baidu. You use Dianping for reviews and Meituan for transactions.
• Amap (Gaode) / Baidu Maps: The “search engines of the real world.” SEO on these platforms is purely about point-of-interest (POI) optimization.
• Ctrip (Trip.com) / Railway 12306: The specialized gates for the massive domestic travel market.

From mapping to maneuvering: The Baidu specialist’s edge

Baidu SEO isn’t dead; your website just isn’t the sole focus of web search anymore.

The ‘walled garden’ SERP: A decade of distraction

If you’re a Google-centric SEO, there are some notable differences when working with Baidu:

• The ad-heavy layout: It isn’t uncommon to see ads claiming the top, middle, and bottom of a Baidu search engine results page (SERP), occupying nearly 50% of the visible real estate.
• The Baidu monopoly: The most coveted organic positions are almost always reserved for Baidu’s own properties. Baidu Baike (the encyclopedia), Baidu Zhidao (the Q&A hub), and Baijiahao (the news/blogging arm) are the permanent residents of Page 1.
• The portal giants: High-authority giants like Zhihu (China’s Quora), Bilibili, and Sohu take up whatever space is left.

Riding the Chinese SERP dragon

In this environment, ranking a corporate homepage for a high-volume keyword is a fool’s errand. Instead, we’ve mastered the art of the “long-tail dragon.”

In the West, we talk about the long tail of search as a small, niche opportunity. In China, with its linguistic complexity and massive user base, the long tail is a winding, multi-layered beast that is often more lucrative than the head terms. 

And we don’t just rank a website; we piggyback on the authority of the platforms Baidu already trusts. If you can’t beat Baidu Baike, you become the verified entry inside it.

Interestingly, it is these very platforms — the ones we’ve been using to bypass the “blue link problem” — that have now become the primary focus of the next generation of search.

What is changing in Baidu SEO?

In China, there is no brand loyalty toward particular AI models, as Westerners have toward platforms like ChatGPT and Claude.

The AI-switching reality

Chinese users are restless. They don’t stick with one model. They switch — sometimes because a hyped model hits a downtime wall, and sometimes because a new model claims the throne of the “most intelligent AI.” In this cycle of competition and user preference, an SEO can’t just focus on the “big sources.”

If you’re following the Western playbook, you’re likely chasing Reddit, Quora, and YouTube as your “sources of truth” for AI training. But in China, that focus is dangerously narrow. To win the reasoning battle, you must understand the investor-source connection.

Brainstorming the wisdom platforms

If you want to train AIs to see your brand in China, you have to look at the platforms they were built on:

• Tencent is invested in Sogou. In 2021, Tencent fully privatized Sogou. This means Sogou Baike is no longer just a Baidu alternative — it is now a core training set for Tencent’s Yuanbao. If you ignore Sogou Baike, you’re invisible to the AI search bar inside WeChat.
• Bytedance owns Baike.com. Bytedance bought Baike.com (formerly Hudong Baike) specifically to fuel its search ambitions. If you want to get cited by Doubao, your content needs to be mirrored here and not just on Baidu.
• The neutral giants: Keep an eye on Zhihu. Because both Tencent and Baidu are heavy investors in Zhihu, it remains one of the few neutral high-authority sources that almost every Chinese LLM uses for opinionated or expert reasoning.

The new SEO commandment

We’re no longer just optimizing for a search engine. We’re optimizing for a data pedigree.

If your client is B2B, you might still prioritize the Baidu ecosystem. But if your client is in ecommerce and you aren’t feeding the Qwen engine via Alibaba’s ecosystem, or the Doubao engine via Baike.com, you’re limiting your visibility across key AI systems.

The 2026 China SEO/GEO blueprint: From keywords to semantic saturation

If you’re waiting for a “DeepSeek optimization checklist” or a “Doubao ranking guide,” you’ve already missed the point. Because users switch models as often as they switch takeout apps, you can’t afford to be “Baidu-only” or “WeChat-centric.”

Here is what’s actually working for SEO in China in 2026:

Optimize for citations and not just clicks

While SEO in the West is focused on generative engine optimization (GEO), in China, it’s all about fact density. 

• The logic: When Kimi or DeepSeek performs a reasoning query, the AI looks for verifiable facts.
• The tactic: Stop writing marketing fluff. Start using the inverted pyramid writing style. Lead with a direct, data-backed answer in your first paragraph. Use hard statistics, expert quotes, and structured lists. If a model can’t extract a fact from your content in 200 milliseconds, it might hallucinate a competitor’s data instead.

Build an entity moat across wisdom platforms

As we brainstormed earlier, every AI has a “parent” with a preferred data source. But since models are now open-sourcing their weights and distilling each other’s intelligence, your brand must achieve entity consistency.

• The goal: Your brand name, headquarters, and core product claims must be identical across Baidu Baike (Baidu), Sogou Baike (Tencent), and Baike.com (ByteDance).
• The result: When these models cross-check their reasoning, they find a consensus. In 2026, consensus is the new authority.

Leverage information gain

Chinese AI models have a well-observed recency bias — they prefer sources that are roughly 25% fresher than traditional search results.

• The tactic: Don’t just regurgitate what’s already on Zhihu. Provide a “unique data slice.” If everyone says “The best time to post on Douyin is 6 PM,” and you publish a case study proving “11 AM is better for B2B industrial leads,” the AI will cite you as the “nuanced exception.” That citation is worth more than ten #1 rankings.

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The era of the entity architect

We’ve come a long way from the shaky steps of the 2025 CCTV Gala.

In 2026, China’s search ecosystem is no longer a directory of links. It’s a living, reasoning entity.

For the Western search specialist, the lesson is clear: The “super app” was a distraction. The real story is the fragmentation of intent.

My wife still goes to Pinduoduo for the best price. My colleagues still go to Bing for technical sanctuary. And the “I, Robot” enthusiasts of 2026 are using a rotating door of LLMs to find their answers.

As a Baidu specialist, my job has shifted from “ranking a website” to “architecting an entity.” We no longer build for the bot; we build for the source. If you’re the undeniable source of truth across the platforms that shape China’s information ecosystem, it doesn’t matter which model delivers the answer.

You’ll be the one they’re cheering for.