Christian

FOR years, Victoria Beckham’s been branded the biggest spoilsport when it comes to a potential Spice Girls reunion – thanks to her refusal to ever sing on stage again.

But – following reports that it’s Geri Horner, not Victoria, who’s “dragging her heels” on plans to mark the girls’ 30th anniversary next year – a different picture is emerging. One which reveals a bigger “diva” hiding in plain sight.

Yes, all evidence suggests that Geri’s doing what she’s always done behind the scenes – vying to be top dog. And if she doesn’t get her way, she’ll simply do what she did before: quit. 

Speaking exclusively to the Sun, an insider tells us that whispers of Geri’s obstinance behind closed doors are nothing new. 

We’re told: “Although it’s always Victoria who gets the reputation for being a diva, it’s actually Geri.

“There’s always been that slight distance between her and the rest of them as she did leave them high and dry at the biggest point of their career during that world tour in 1998 [when she shocked the world and left the band at the height of their fame and fortune]. 

NET GAINS

Surprising twist for football’s most toxic couple – as star reveals huge plans

TOXIC FALLOUT

Inside Britney’s war with ex Kevin as pals claim ‘low-life’ abandoned her

“Obviously that was years and years ago and they’ve all moved on but the four others do have a slightly different bond. But Geri is quite selfish and will always put herself first to get what she wants and she likes to be the one in control making all the decisions.”

Earlier this week, The Sun revealed that Geri, Victoria and their fellow bandmates Emma Bunton, Mel B and Mel C have been involved in discussions ahead of the 30th anniversary of the release of their debut single Wannage next year.

According to sources: “A variety of projects are being talked about to mark the occasion, including a documentary and a possible tour or performance by the group.”

There’s also apparently hope of a biopic being made for Netflix by Orchid Pictures, which is headed by The Crown producer Suzanne Mackie.

But time is closing in on making a final decision – and Geri’s reportedly gone quiet, with insiders reporting she’s been “dragging her heels” for almost a year now. 

Our source says Geri’s reluctance stems from a number of factors: one, she’s always been in the driving seat when it comes to the Spice Girls – ever since they first got put together in 1994.

Long-time fans might remember that Geri often positioned herself as the creative force behind the band, and was known to butt heads with their management. 

She even infamously led the band’s coup against their then-manager Simon Fuller in 1997, firing him because he was too controlling.

They initially managed themselves in the aftermath – with Geri largely taking the reins – before subsequently taking on a different team to steer them forwards. 

As a result, Geri has long been considered to be the de facto leader – a crown she’s worn proudly. The fact that she’s not the instigator of these latest plans is therefore apparently causing discomfort for Ginger Spice.

Husband’s scandal

The other factor that seems to be waylaying her decision-making right now is the ongoing controversies surrounding her husband, Christian Horner. 

Racing legend Christian served as head of Red Bull for 20 years, but was let go as team principal in July following a slump in the team’s performance and amid reports of internal power struggles.

But the elephant in the room at his leaving-do was the fact that – just 12 months earlier – he’d been embroiled in a text scandal.

A female employee accused him of “inappropriate, controlling behaviour”, before an independent investigation cleared him of wrongdoing.

In the aftermath, Christian denied all allegations – and Geri loyally stood by him. But the controversy inevitably played a part in Christian’s Red Bull exit, and – according to sources – it did a number on Geri, who felt understandably humiliated.

Granted, Christian’s rumoured £80million payout will have softened the blow, but being married to Christian has always carried a certain sense of pride and prestige for Geri.

Geri’s still embarrassed by all the Christian allegations, and feels she’s lost some of the power she had

Insider

So, seeing his name dragged through the mud will have undoubtedly done a number on her.

Our insider reveals: “Geri’s still embarrassed by all the Christian allegations, and feels she’s lost some of the power she had. 

“She now wants to be the one who plans all the 30th anniversary celebrations.” 

Cheeky spice

On the face of it, Geri’s undoubtedly transformed before our eyes over the past 30 years.

Back in 1994, she assumed the highest rank among her new bandmates thanks to her ballsy attitude and outspoken antics – and that was something she dialled up when they hit it big. 

Taking the title Ginger Spice with pride thanks to her box-dyed, flaming red hair, Geri earned a name for herself for being cheeky, headstrong, and loudly screaming “girl power!” to anyone who would listen.

The origins of that famous Spice Girls pop feminist slogan are debatable, but Geri’s certainly repeated it enough over the past three decades to claim a majority share in its inception. 

Back then, part of her calling card was being messy, cheeky and pushing boundaries, like the time she kissed Prince Charles on the cheek – and, rumour has it, pinched his bum at the premiere of The Spice Girls’ movie Spiceworld in 1997.

She later clarified: “I didn’t pinch Prince Charles’ bum, as reported. I patted it.” 

Meanwhile, her legendary Union Jack dress – which she boasted she’d made herself using a tea towel – became a lasting emblem of the band as a whole. As a result, Geri promulgated herself as the group’s mascot. 

When she left the Spice Girls in May 1998 – saying at the time it was due to “differences between us” – she inevitably sirened the beginning of the end for the band.

The girls continued as a foursome for another album, but while Geri’s solo career soared, they couldn’t quite match their previous success – which, one can only assume, will have fed her feelings of importance all the more. 

Over the years, feelings of bad blood softened – even as we learnt more and more about the in-fighting that had plagued the band, as it emerged that Geri and Mel B had often come to blows. 

In 2007, they reformed as a fivesome for the first time for their Return of the Spice Girls world tour, and Geri proudly flew the flag again – literally – in a Union Jack inspired outfit. 

She may have mellowed slightly, but she still upheld that cheeky Ginger Spice persona that had initially made her famous.

A triumphant performance at the Olympics Closing Ceremony in 2012 reunited them again – followed by a photocall at the London premiere for the Spice Girls’ inspired West End musical, Viva Forever! 

At the latter, Geri stood between her bandmates in a massive blue ballgown, again reminding us who was queen bee. 

Who’s Posh?

But – over time – as Victoria’s fashion career skyrocketed, it became more and more difficult to maintain the Spice Girls as a five-piece. 

Crucially, Victoria’s ambivalence to the band wasn’t sparked by any need for control; it was simply her coming to the inevitable conclusion that her talents lay elsewhere, and she gave them her blessing to continue regardless.

In the meantime, Geri’s metamorphosis continued. Over time – and especially after meeting Christian in 2013 – she dropped the cheeky, outspoken, ballsy act, and started becoming….well, just a little Posh. 

After she and Christian married in 2015, they settled in a country mansion in Oxfordshire, welcomed their son Monty, now eight (Geri’s also mum to Bluebell, 19, from a previous relationship), and duly became lord and lady of the manor.

In the process, Geri’s taken to wearing an all-white wardrobe, speaking in clipped vowels, and blushing at the memory of some of her more brassy stunts of the past.

When she and Mel B, Mel C and Emma reunited as a foursome for the Spice Girls’ second reunion tour in 2019, she directly addressed her twentysomething behaviour, saying she’d been a “brat” for leaving the band in 1998.

But – according to our source – while Geri may have softened on the outside, and now prefers cooking with her Aga and tending to her farm animals than causing a scene at showbiz events, she’s still just as headstrong as ever. 

She may not be about to pinch a monarch’s bum anytime soon, but she refuses to be sidelined. 

The others feel if Victoria is onboard, then they need to get it all sorted, and fear that Geri dragging her heels could cause Victoria to change her mind

Insider

So, now that she’s feeling on shaky ground as the group’s 30th anniversary approaches, we’re told she’s keeping her distance until they reassure her, in no uncertain terms, that she’s still de facto leader.

To that end, our insider says Geri kept a wide berth from the others when all five girls attended the premiere for Victoria’s new Netflix docuseries Victoria Beckham earlier this month.

Our source tells us: “Even at Victoria’s premiere, she kind of stayed away with Christian and his daughter, while Emma and Mel C mingled with everyone. Geri didn’t pose on the carpet with them. 

“When The Spice Girls first got together, it was Geri and Mel B making most of the decisions because they were the loudest, but they’ve all found their voices and the others feel if Victoria is onboard, then they need to get it all sorted, and fear that Geri dragging her heels could cause Victoria to change her mind. 

“But Geri likes to feel needed so will want them to be flattering her and giving her more control so that she agrees.” 

As rumours of in-fighting spread earlier this week, Geri took to Instagram, upholding her reinvention as the true Posh Spice by announcing she’d be appearing at The Royal Commonwealth Society’s Christmas Concert in December. 

She told fans she was “looking forward” to it – while making no mention of the big music milestone anniversary on the horizon. 

It seems the issue comes down to power: who wants it absolutely, and who’s willing to share.

Geri may have long trailblazed the world’s need for girl power, but she might just have been talking about one specific girl only: herself. 

FREEBIE FINDER

Last minute October half-term ideas – everything you can do for FREE

SPICING UP

How ‘diva’ Geri’s ‘embarrassing’ saga with Christian reignited Spice Girls rift

And if she doesn’t get that absolute power, she’s fully prepared to Stop right there, thank you very much.

Representatives for Geri Horner were approached for comment.

The seven-time champion is a supporter of Vasseur, who was instrumental in signing him.

Speaking during the drivers’ news conference before this weekend’s United States Grand Prix, Hamilton said: “It is a little bit distracting for us as a team. The team have made it clear where they stand in terms of re-signing Fred.

“Fred and the whole team are working really hard on a future for the team.”

Vasseur’s contract was due to expire at the end of this season, but it was renewed just two and a half months ago.

Ferrari tend not to comment on stories about the future of the team, considering it media speculation.

But when reports linking Horner to the team first emerged in the summer, Ferrari used channels to communicate to the media that there was no truth in the claim. The company’s position has not changed since.

In the mirror I’m wearing enormous golden pantaloons, but only I can see them. Children sit in a rock pool playing mermaids, and in the next room there’s a talking pea in a display case, beside a towering stack of mattresses. It’s the world of Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875), one of the 19th century’s most beloved writers. I’m in Odense, on the island of Fyn (sometimes anglicised to Funen) in the south of Denmark, to explore Andersen’s enduring legacy in his home town 150 years after his death, and to discover a few fairytales of my own.

HC Andersens Hus is the city’s museum dedicated to the writer, incorporating his first home. Niels Bjørn Friis from Museum Odense says that in earlier iterations of the museum there was little focus on Andersen’s stories. The writer’s life was explored, but The Ugly Duckling, Thumbelina and The Little Mermaid were nowhere to be found. For visitors who come to Odense seeking storytelling magic, it was a little lacking.

The redesign of Odense city centre, rerouting a major road, provided the opportunity to reimagine how the city’s most famous son could be honoured. A major architecture competition awarded Japanese firm Kengo Kuma and Associates the contract, with the curators’ new approach at the core of the design. The distinctive timber-clad museum with interlinked spiralling spaces opened to great fanfare in 2021. “We’ve tried to create a space where we don’t talk about Andersen, but we talk like Andersen: with humour, irony and perspective,” says Friis. Even the gardens take this approach: “It’s a garden for wanderers and for giants, it’s designed to make you feel small,” he says, a challenge achieved by clever planting, playing with height, scale and many winding paths in a deceptively small space.

Andersen wrote two and a half autobiographies and frequently contradicted himself. HC Andersens Hus takes this approach to heart; often the views of his friends or snippets of letters are presented to gently question the author’s own version of events. “Andersen is the guide, but he’s not reliable,” says Friis. The result is a compelling whirlwind tour of Andersen’s life and art, thought processes and best-loved stories. It’s provocative and playful, for adults and children, with a bonus basement make-believe land, Ville Vau, for the youngest visitors.

Back in the real world, the small city of Odense is charming, with cobbled streets and old wooden houses painted in bright colours. The Andersen legacy is everywhere: the traffic lights feature the writer with his signature top hat, brass footprints provide a free Andersen walking tour, and there’s a sculpture trail too. Every August this dedication peaks with the annual HC Andersen festival, which celebrates the author’s legacy through art, dance, theatre and music.

This year, the week-long festival had 500 shows, most of which were free. As I explore Odense, I meet painted stilt-walkers, ghoulish monsters and an Andersen lookalike telling stories. I hear feminist spoken-word pieces and see an incredible late-night performance featuring acrobatic dancers descending from the town hall and hanging from a crane. Still to come this year are lectures, family art workshops and, expanding the storytelling legacy beyond Andersen, the city’s annual Magic Days festival.

As in most of Denmark, bikes are the best way to get about in Odense and a “cycling highway” winds through the city centre. From Hotel Odeon, I cycle to the free harbour-side swimming pool, then out of town for a loop around Stige Ø, a small island connected by causeway to the mainland. City residents picnic here after work, or enjoy a quiet hour fishing, paddleboarding or swimming.

Back in Odense, I eat at Restaurant Under Lindetræet, where the menu is inspired by Andersen themes and stories. The poem Denmark, My Native Land is featured when I visit, and proprietor Nils Palmqvist reads extracts, translated into English, as he presents each course. It’s an experience repeated often in my days in the city, the fynbo (as residents of Fyn are known) love a yarn and it feels as though storytelling is always on the menu here.

All good fairytale destinations need a castle, and Fyn boasts 123 castles and manor houses across the island. Taking day trips from Odense, I visit Egeskov Castle, Europe’s best-preserved Renaissance water castle. While much of it is open to visitors, Egeskov is also the family home of Count Michael Ahlefeldt-Laurvig-Bille and his wife, Princess Alexandra zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg. I wonder if she can feel a pea through a stack of mattresses. The couple are often found in the vast landscaped gardens and play park chatting to visitors.

At Valdemars Castle to the south of Fyn, I meet Louise Iuel-Brockdorff Albinus, the current owner of Valdemars Castle built between 1639 and 1644 by King Christian IV. After a family inheritance dispute that emptied the castle contents, Albinus decided to open her home to visitors and filled it with art, inviting international artists to create site-specific pieces. The juxtaposition of the high cornices and fine wallpapers with Czech artist Jiří Georg Dokoupil’s huge balloon-like sculptures and colourful bubble paintings would no doubt have amused Hans Christian Andersen, who loved to challenge expectations.

From Valdemars Castle, I catch the MS Helge, a wooden ferry built in 1924, which transports passengers around the South Fyn archipelago. This beautiful coastline was last year designated a Unesco Global Geopark for its unique “drowned” ice age landscape. I disembark in Svendborg and rent a bike from South Funen Bicycle Rental. I’m cycling today with Mette Mathiasen from Destination Fyn, who is behind the development of the 410-mile (660km) castles route around Fyn. It’s divided into 14 sections, with local operators offering luggage transfer. We’re exploring a 21-mile section, along the coast to the village of Åbyskov and Elsehoved beach. We pass turreted castles, manors and long stretches of quiet coastline, pedalling along country lanes with hedgerows overflowing with blackberries. Unlike most of Denmark, there are some hills in the south of Fyn, but with quiet trails and the option of an ebike, this is gentle, all-abilities cycling.

As dusk falls, I pedal across the moat to my last castle of the day and my final destination on Fyn – Broholm Castle. Broholm has 700 years of colourful history and plenty of ghost stories, and was a frequent haunt of Andersen, featuring in his 1837 novel Only a Fiddler. From a childhood of poverty to international acclaim, Andersen’s life was quite the adventure. Following in his footsteps on Fyn has been full of castles and colourful characters, with a few surprises too.

The trip was provided by Visit Denmark and Destination Fyn. Hotel Odeon has doubles from 1,100 kroner (£128) B&B. Broholm Castle has doubles from 1,695 kroner B&B

Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu said Horner had “approached” the US-based team but added: “Nothing has gone any further. It is finished.”

Alpine managing director Steve Nielsen said the French team’s executive adviser and de facto boss Flavio Briatore was “old friends” with Horner.

Nielsen added: “I don’t know what they talk about. Everything I know is there are no plans for Christian to come to Alpine but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen.”

Williams team principal James Vowles said Horner had not approached them.

“We’re very happy with the structure we have and it’s working,” Vowles said. “I don’t see any reason to change from that.”

Horner is free to return to F1 by the middle of next year after finalising a severance package with Red Bull on 22 September.

The 51-year-old was fired as Red Bull team principal after the British Grand Prix in July.

Multiple sources at Red Bull have told BBC Sport the settlement package was worth 60m euros (£52m).

Released by Arsenal as a youth player, Burgess went to university before he was offered a trial at Championship side Middlesbrough during his second year of study.

He earned a two-year professional contract, but was encouraged by then-manager Tony Mowbray to continue his education.

“It was something you couldn’t turn down,” he said of his first professional deal. “So I took it and finished my degree at Teesside University. They allowed me to transfer my first two years.

“Mowbray told me to make sure I finished it because the contract was a foot in the door, not a guaranteed career. I listened to his words and thankfully, I’ve been able to carve a career out with the game as well.”

Burgess enjoyed spells in League One with Peterborough and Portsmouth, before taking the plunge with a move to Belgium in 2020.

And, remarkably, he is not the only English centre-back who has swapped life in the third tier for a crack at the Belgian top flight.

Defensive partner Ross Sykes was picked up from Accrington Stanley in 2022 after Union “took a chance” on him.

The pair went on to help Union win their first league title in 90 years last season after Sykes, like Burgess, overcame adversity in his formative years.

Sykes may be 6ft 5in now, but he was previously released by Burnley because he was deemed to “too small” as a kid.

It ended up proving a turning point in his career.

“I didn’t want to keep going with academy football,” he said after he was let go at the age of 11. “But my mum and dad persuaded me to go on trial at Accrington Stanley one or two weeks later. I didn’t look back after that.”

Sykes and Burgess have gone on to make 318 appearances between them for Union on a journey that has taken the Belgian league leaders to Europe’s top table for the first time.

And Union’s 3-1 win against PSV in their first Champions League fixture did not come as a surprise to Sykes last month because his side are “not afraid to come up against anyone”.

Burgess certainly looked at home at Europe’s top table. The Union captain was rated 9.39 out of 10 by BBC Sport readers, finishing the match as the top-ranking player.

An Englishman who has only played one league game in the top two tiers of English football might not seem the most obvious to lead a European campaign – but Union have always taken the road less travelled.

“It’s a club built on the profile of bringing youngsters through from unknown leagues,” Burgess explains. “We have players from the Estonian, Latvian, Croatian, Austrian leagues and Union will give them a chance to shine if they see potential.

“My role is to help them and keep demanding high standards and usher them through, and then they get big moves all over Europe, which is a pleasure to see.”

CHRISTIAN HORNER has been warned that a Formula One return with Aston Martin would “not work”.

Horner, 51, was handed a whopping £80million payout for leaving Red Bull Racing after he was sacked as team principal in July and replaced by Laurent Mekies.

3

3

But the ex-F1 chief, formerly the longest-serving team boss in the paddock with 20 years of service which yielded 14 drivers and constructors titles, is already plotting a way back into the sport after it was revealed he was “missing” it.

Horner’s payout was less than the £110m he could have had for the full duration of his deal which had run to 2030.

But SunSport understands taking the lower offer means he is free to return to F1 as early as spring 2026.

A number of teams have been linked to Horner, including Haas, Alpine, Ferrari and Aston Martin, as he looks to also buy into a team as a co-owner.

The latter of these teams recruited Horner’s former Red Bull ally, Adrian Newey, after 19 years working together at the Milton Keynes-based team.

Design chief Newey, 66, is said to be getting “very little sleep” in his new role as Managing Technical Partner at Aston since starting on March 1 this year.

However, former Haas boss and Drive to Survive fan favourite Guenther Steiner has claimed reuniting the pair at the team’s Silverstone base would not work.

Steiner, 60, told Lottoland: “In the last year the problem between Adrian and Christian was one of the reasons why Adrian left Red Bull.

BEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK

“So, bringing Christian back, I don’t think that would work at the moment.”

He continued: “I don’t think Aston Martin need Christian right now.

“I think there was a lot of unhappiness internally, and something had to change.

“The change was Christian leaving, and they are just trying to go back to their glory days now.

“With Red Bull, we could see it during the last one-and-a-half years where every race weekend there was drama, and that has gone away.

“I think Aston Martin with the people they have in place are very well set to show what they can do under the new regulations.”

Steiner also joked he had “sent my bank details and asked him to send me some of the money” when speaking about Horner’s mega payout.

Red Bull have enjoyed an upturn in form with Max Verstappen winning the last two races in Italy and Azerbaijan.

With the Singapore Grand Prix this weekend, the flying Dutchman is looking to add the track to his list of wins for the first time in his career.

If Verstappen, who turned 28 today, wins the street race he will have won a race at every circuit on the 2025 calendar across his F1 career.

3

Christian Walker homered twice and the Houston Astros beat the Angels 6-1 on Saturday night, a couple of hours after getting eliminated from playoff contention.

Zach Cole and Jesús Sánchez also went deep for the Astros, who will miss the postseason for the first time since 2016.

Walker was batting in the second inning when Cleveland scored in the bottom of the ninth at Progressive Field for a 3-2 victory over Texas that clinched the final American League playoff spot for the Guardians and eliminated the Astros.

That snapped Houston’s streak of eight consecutive playoff appearances, a run that featured seven straight trips to the AL Championship Series from 2017-2023 and World Series titles in 2017 and 2022.

With Saturday night’s game rendered moot, Astros manager Joe Espada pulled his top three batters — Jose Altuve, Isaac Paredes and Carlos Correa — after two innings.

Cole followed Yainer Diaz’s second-inning single with a two-run homer off Angels starter Caden Dana (0-4). Walker led off the fourth with a homer for a 3-0 lead. Cole walked and Sanchez lined a two-run homer to right field for a 5-0 lead. Walker’s solo shot — his 27th of the season — made it 6-1 in the ninth.

Houston starter AJ Blubaugh gave up one hit in four scoreless innings against the Angels (72-89), and reliever J.P. France (1-0) allowed one run and two hits in three innings, striking out five and walking one.

Dana, the Angels’ rookie right-hander, permitted five runs and five hits in seven innings.

Key moment: France gave up an RBI double to Jo Adell and walked Logan O’Hoppe to put two on with one out in the sixth, but the right-hander struck out Christian Moore and Oswald Peraza to preserve a 5-1 lead.

Key stat: Sunday’s season finale will be only the fourth game since the start of the 2015 season that the Astros (86-75) will play while out of postseason contention. The other three came at the end of 2016, when Houston was eliminated from the wild-card race on Sept. 29.

Up next: Astros RHP Lance McCullers Jr. (2-5, 6.71 ERA) will start Sunday against Angels LHP Sam Aldegheri (0-1, 8.00).

On 9 July the team announced Horner had been “released from his operational duties”.

He was dismissed after a controversial 18 months that started when a female employee accused him of sexual harassment, an allegation that was made public in February 2024.

Horner was twice cleared of the claims, firstly after an internal investigation conducted by a lawyer, then by another lawyer who dismissed the complainant’s appeal.

In a statement on Monday Oliver Mintzlaff, Red Bull’s chief executive officer corporate projects and investments, thanked Horner for his “exceptional work”.

He added: “With his tireless commitment, experience, expertise and innovative thinking, he has been instrumental in establishing Red Bull Racing as one of the most successful and attractive teams in Formula 1.”

Horner said in the same statement that leading Red Bull had been “an honour and a privilege”.

More to follow.

CHRISTIAN ERIKSEN has said that his defibrillator implant is “just part of me now” as he admitted that he only remembers it is there during airport security checks.

Eriksen, 33, collapsed on the pitch during Denmark‘s opening game against Finland at the delayed Euro 2020 tournament in 2021.

1

The former Manchester United midfielder suffered a cardiac arrest and needed life-saving resuscitation on the pitch.

He was later fitted with a defibrillator implant (ICD) before returning to football with Brentford and then United in 2022.

Now Eriksen has signed for Bundesliga side Wolfsburg, having been let go by Man Utd at the end of the season, and has opened up on how he rarely thinks about his heart condition these days.

Speaking at his official presentation for Wolfsburg on Friday, the Dane discussed how setting off alarms when going through airport security body scanners is his only reminder of the incident.

He said: “I only have to go past the scanner and undergo a separate check. That’s all. There are no restrictions. Nothing.

“I have never felt anything since then. It is just a part of me now – nothing strange or sad.”

Eriksen went on to explain that he won’t delve into the details of what happened until after his career is over.

He added: “[I’m happy to] be seen as a footballer again, and not as the guy who had this moment at Parken [Stadium].

“I will only talk in detail about it after my career – it is something very personal.”

Eriksen, who was approached to join Wrexham this summer, could make his debut for Wolfsburg this weekend in a league clash with Borussia Dortmund.

He leaves Man Utd having made over 100 appearances in which he helped the club win both the FA Cup and the League Cup.

And despite the turbulent few years at Old Trafford, Eriksen had nothing but positive things to say about his time in Manchester.

He said: “Personally, I had a great time being at United. When I came back to football with Brentford, getting the chance to play against United was a massive thing.

“I also think I proved myself as a footballer at United. I had a really great time, and my family loved it there, and I’m sure we still have a lot of friends from our time there.

“I had a good time at the club, but it was a strange time because there was a lot of stuff going on at United.

“The focus and the perception of the club from the outside world is a bit different sometimes to how it really is.

“There are some lovely people at the club who are really working hard and trying their best, but it does not always go your way.”

HARD as it is to accept, if the prime McCann suspect disappears after his release from prison he’ll take all hope of solving the Maddie case with him. And I know who is to blame.

Prime suspect Christian Brueckner, 49, was given a meagre seven years behind bars for tying up, torturing and raping a pensioner in 2005, in Praia da Luz – the same village Maddie disappeared from two years later, but has now been released.

10

10

10

When he was sentenced in 2019 – after witnesses and DNA tied him to the dreadful attack – he was already a multi-convicted paedophile targeting girls as young as five and with a known obsession for brutal sexual attacks, which he privately fantasised over.

But thanks to Germany’s soft-touch justice system, he has now walked free from prison despite warnings he could reoffend, serving the same sentence a violent burglar would have faced in Britain.

And was his time behind bars tough? One lag told The Sun that JVA Sehnde prison – where Brueckner was caged – is “like Starbucks,” full of friendly staff, abundant coffee and individual TVs and electrical goods provided for every inmate.

The harsh reality is that the paltry sentence Brueckner was handed by a judge is not out of the ordinary in Germany.

Critics have described the justice system as so farcical that it has become “accommodating” to criminals and “a blessing” to violent crooks and sex attackers.

In fact, you can look no further than ten miles from the prison where McCann suspect Brueckner was housed.

In Hanover, a man dubbed “The Maschsee Murderer” isn’t hiding or scraping by after his awful crime – he is enjoying a thriving social media existence.

In 1997, Alexander K lured a friend to Lake Maschsee, strangled her, dismembered the body and dumped the remains in the water.

The right-wing extremist was sentenced to just 15 years behind bars and was simply released after serving his term, despite the brutality of his crime.

Since then, Alexander has become a TikTok phenomenon with followers fascinated by him arranging dates through apps while he openly talks about his dark past.

He would go on to post pictures and videos of women he enjoyed dinner with, callously wearing T-shirts that read: “I survived a date with the Maschsee Murderer.”

While exploiting such an unforgivable crime is forbidden in the UK, Alexander has capitalised on his past, turning his vile reputation into a source of danger tourism.

Such a clear mockery of victims and the justice system suggests Brueckner could easily disappear without a trace after his release.

Another case close to Brueckner’s former jailhouse in Hanover highlights the uphill battles faced in monitoring offenders – and keeping their victims safe and reassured.

10

10

10

10

Vanessa Münstermann’s life was transformed forever when a jilted ex took revenge by throwing acid in her face – causing her agonising pain and a lifetime of disfigurement.

The 29-year-old beautician lost an eye and an ear after she was attacked while walking her dog – and was forced to undergo surgery for years afterwards to treat her injuries.  

Critics have described the justice system as so farcical it has become ‘accommodating’ to criminals and ‘a blessing’ to violent crooks and sex attackers

A judge at the time described it as “an extreme crime with extreme consequences”.

Yet her former lover is set to be released imminently after just SIX years behind bars.

Panicked Vanessa – worried about retribution – has been trying to get officials to slap him with an electronic tag to monitor his movements and include conditions not to go near her.

Despite fighting for more than two years, there are no signs of success.

Maddie suspect released

German investigators also faced a similar uphill battle before Brueckner’s release, but it appears their calls for the sex offender to be tagged have been granted.

He officially left the high-security prison in Sehnde near Hanover just after 9:15am German time yesterday morning.

The rapist was even given breakfast before being driven away in his lawyer’s black Audi A6.

A chilling image showed Brueckner wearing a red and white striped shirt as he sat in the rear seat with his hand up in the air.

Brueckner has refused to rule out fleeing Germany now that he is free, sparking fears he could slip into a non-extradition country and dodge justice forever – even if a major Maddie breakthrough is found.

Officials have tried all they can to keep track of him, with an electronic tag being mandated and the seizure of his passport.

But investigators still worry Brueckner could flee Germany despite his conditions due to no passport being required to move freely within mainland Europe.

If he crosses the German border, then it’s believed the tag would no longer work, making him untraceable.

But let’s be clear – while the German justice as a whole has allowed Brueckner to walk free, German prosecutors, the courts, and police forces can only work with the laws of their country, which appear to be stacked heavily in Maddie suspect’s favour.

This is the situation justice officials face in Germany.

In the UK, murder attracts an automatic whole-of-life sentence. Judges set a minimum tariff — usually 20–30 years, but it can be longer.

Whole-life terms are possible in the most serious cases, meaning a prisoner will never be released.

In Germany, most killers would expect to be released after just 15 years.

In the UK, violent rapists – such as Christian Brueckner – would expect to be jailed for up to 15 years – or longer if there are aggravating factors.

Post-release monitoring exists in almost every case, making it the rule rather than the exception.

In Germany, rapists can enjoy just two years behind bars, while those with longer sentences of up to ten years are usually released early.

German law offers no way back – no remedy after the case to protect its citizens from such a threat

Terrorists face life behind bars in the UK, but often just 10–15 years in Germany, again with early release after two-thirds of the sentence has been served.

Armed robbers get 10–20 years in the UK, but as little as just five years in Germany.

Britain makes extensive use of probation, electronic tagging, Sexual Harm Prevention Orders, and lifelong licence conditions for high-risk offenders. Breaches can mean immediate recall to prison. 

German authorities face a battle just to fit electronic tags – as shown by Brueckner’s case.

There are fewer conditions upon release – and sometimes none at all – and post-release monitoring can be as little as a weekly phone call, even for society-threatening offenders such as Brueckner.

The judge who handed Brueckner the current soft sentence from which he was yesterday released is the same judge behind his sensational acquittal for rape and sex attacks on children last year.

It’s hard not to question the court’s attitude to that trial last year. It spent years trying to reject the case but was forced to take it on by a higher court and there has been private speculation over the bad blood of being forced to take such an unwanted case.

But experts have told me the judge did exactly her job and followed German law to the letter.

Perhaps her only mistake was failing to slap an order on Brueckner at his 2019 sentence that would have given officials the option to keep him behind bars, given the extraordinary danger he poses to the public.

10

10

The argument for Germany’s preoccupation with individual liberties over society protection is understandable.

The Weimar Republic, which Adolf Hitler hijacked for his own evil ends, used police and courts to design the society it wanted – turning the justice system into a tool of dictatorship, repression and mass murder.

Modern Germany built its constitution to avoid ever again allowing courts or police to be used as instruments of tyranny, enshrining individual rights and strict limits on state power.

That is a situation the wonderful, abundantly reasonable people of Germany never want repeated.

Germany is a brilliant, modern, rich, thriving, forward-thinking democracy – with problems Britain might gladly swap its own battles for.

The people are hardworking, friendly, intelligent – but also funny and laidback in a way that smashes the clichéd image the country has sometimes carried outside its borders.

It’s well recognised here, however, that the cost of all this seems to be a propensity to forgiveness and trust in its offenders.

10

A few hours after Charlie Kirk was killed, Sean Feucht, an influential right-wing Christian worship leader, filmed a selfie video from his home in California, his eyes brimming with tears.

The shooting of one of the nation’s most prominent conservative activists, Feucht declared, was no less than “a line in the sand” in a country descending into a spiritual darkness.

“The enemy thinks that he won, that there was a battle that was won today,” he said, referencing Satan. “No, man, there’s going to be millions of bold voices raised up out of the sacrifice and the martyrdom of Charlie Kirk.”

Soon afterward, Pastor Matt Tuggle, who leads the Salt Lake City campus of the San Diego-based Awaken megachurch, posted a video of Kirk’s killing on Instagram, adding the caption: “If your pastor isn’t telling you the left believes a evil demonic belief system you are in the wrong church!”

People place lighted candles below a photo of Charlie Kirk at a vigil in his memory in Orem, Utah.

(Lindsey Wasson / Associated Press)

Kirk’s death has triggered a range of reaction, much of it mournful sympathy for the 31-year-old activist and his family. But it also has sparked conspiracy theories, hot-take presumptions the left was responsible and calls for vengeance against Kirk’s perceived enemies.

At a vigil for Kirk in Huntington Beach this week, some attendees waved white flags depicting a red cross and the word “Jesus,” while some chanted, “White men, fight back!” Kirk spread a philosophy that liberals sought to disempower men, and some of his male supporters see his killing as an attack against them.

Whether the calls for vengeance will ebb or intensify remains to be seen, especially with Utah Gov. Spencer Cox’s announcement Friday that a suspect in the fatal shooting, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, had been arrested after a family member turned him in.

In life, Kirk spoke of what he called a “spiritual battle” being waged in the United States between Christians and a Democratic Party that “supports everything that God hates.”

In death, Kirk, one of the Republican Party’s most influential power brokers, is being hailed by conservative evangelical pastors and GOP politicians as a Christian killed for his religious beliefs.

President Trump called Kirk a “martyr for truth and freedom,” and ordered flags to be flown at half-staff in his honor. He blamed Kirk’s death on the rhetoric of the “radical left.” Vice President JD Vance, who helped carry Kirk’s casket to Air Force Two, retweeted a post Kirk wrote on X last month reading, “It’s all about Jesus.” And Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, quoting Jesus, wrote on X: “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

A woman lays her head down on a seat during a vigil at CenterPoint Church for Charlie Kirk in Orem, Utah.

(Lindsey Wasson / Associated Press)

Experts on faith and far-right extremism say they are troubled by the religious glorification of Kirk in this era of increased political violence — and the potential vengeance that may spring from it. The activist’s death, they say, seems to have ignited various factions on the right, ranging from white supremacists to hard-core Christian nationalists.

“The ‘spiritual warfare’ rhetoric will only increase,” and Kirk is now being lifted up as “a physical manifestation” of a religious battle, said Matthew Boedy, a professor of rhetoric and composition at the University of North Georgia who has written a forthcoming book about Christian nationalism that prominently features Kirk.

“Spiritual warfare rhetoric was a big part of Jan. 6,” he said of the deadly 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters. “Making a martyr out of Charlie Kirk will change our nation in severe ways.”

Samuel Perry, a sociologist at the University of Oklahoma and expert on Christian nationalism, said he is a Christian himself but that religion, cynically used, “has the potential to amplify what would otherwise be very secular political conflicts between Democrats and Republicans.”

“What if those are amplified with a cosmic and ultimate significance?” he said. “It becomes, ‘This is God vs. Satan. This is angels vs. demons — and if we lose this next election, we plunge the nation into a thousand years of darkness.’ … It basically provokes extremism.”

Feucht, a Christian nationalist and failed Republican congressional candidate from Northern California, said that “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church” and that, in the wake of Kirk’s death, “we have to do something.”

Kirk — who rallied his millions of online followers to vote for Trump in the 2024 election — declared that God was on the side of American conservatives and that there was “no separation of church and state.” He was also known for his vitriol against racial and religious minorities, LGBTQ+ people, childless women, progressives and others who disagreed with him.

Kirk called transgender people “a throbbing middle finger to God.” He said the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was “a huge mistake” and called the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. “awful.” On his podcast, he called with a smirk for “some amazing patriot out there in San Francisco or the Bay Area [who] wants to really be a midterm hero” to bail out of jail the man who attacked then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband with a hammer in their home in 2022.

A memorial is set up for Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah.

(Lindsey Wasson / Associated Press)

In 2023, Kirk sat on the stage of Awaken Church in Salt Lake City and said: “I think it’s worth it to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the 2nd Amendment to protect our other God-given rights.”

Two days before his death, Kirk retweeted a video of himself saying that a “spiritual battle is coming for the West,” with “wokeism or marxism combining with Islamism” to go after “the American way of life, which is, by the way, Christendom.”

Perry said, “There’s no need to whitewash the legacy of Charlie Kirk.”

“This is a tragedy, and no one deserves to die this way,” Perry said. “Yet, at the same time, Charlie Kirk is very much part of this polarization story in the U.S. who used quite divisive rhetoric, ‘us vs. them, the left is evil.’”

Perry noted that Kirk’s Turning Point USA had placed him on its Professor Watchlist, a website that says it aims to expose professors “who discriminate against conservative students and advance leftist propaganda.” The entry on Perry flags him for “Anti-Judeo-Christian Values.”

Some on the right say their recent fiery words are only a response to the hateful rhetoric of the left. One widely shared example: Two days before Kirk’s killing, the feminist website Jezebel published an article titled, “We Paid Some Etsy Witches to Curse Charlie Kirk.” It has since been removed and replaced by a letter from the site’s editor saying it had been “intended as satire and made it absolutely clear that we wished no physical harm.”

Kirk was killed by a single sniper-style shot to the neck Wednesday during an outdoor speaking event at Utah Valley University.

After announcing the suspect’s arrest Friday, Gov. Cox said he had prayed that the shooter was not from Utah, “that somebody drove from another state, somebody came from another country.” But that prayer, he said, “was not answered the way I hoped for.”

He then said that political violence “metastasizes because we can always point the finger at the other side” and that, “at some point, we have to find an offramp, or it’s going to get much, much worse.”

Some of Kirk’s most prominent evangelical followers have said that his death represents an attack on conservative Christian values and that he was gunned down for speaking “the truth.”

Jon Fleischman, Orange County-based conservative blogger and former executive director of the California Republican Party, who started out as a conservative college activist, knew Kirk and said “there is one hell of a martyr situation going on.”

“A lot of people are getting activated and are going to walk the walk, talk the talk, and give money as their way of trying to process and deal with losing someone they care about,” he told The Times.

In recent years, Kirk had become more outspoken about his Christian faith. He founded the nonprofit Turning Point USA in 2012 as an avowedly secular youth organization and became known for his college campus tours, with videos of his debates with liberal college students racking up tens of millions of views.

But in 2020, during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, college campuses closed. Kirk started speaking at churches that stayed open in violation of local lockdown and mask orders, including Godspeak Calvary Chapel in Ventura County, which was led by Pastor Rob McCoy, a former Thousand Oaks mayor.

McCoy is now the co-chair of Turning Point USA Faith, which encourages pastors to become more politically outspoken. McCoy, who could not be reached for comment, wrote in a statement Friday: “For those who rejoiced over his murder, you are instruments of evil and I implore you to repent. For those of you who mock prayer, you would do well to reconsider. Prayer doesn’t change God, it changes us toward a more peaceful and civil life.”

Professor Boedy said McCoy turned Kirk toward Christian nationalism, specifically the Seven Mountains Mandate — the idea that Christians should try to hold sway over the seven pillars of cultural influence: arts and entertainment, business, education, family, government, media and religion.

Christian nationalism, which is rejected by mainline Christians, holds that the United States was founded as a Christian nation and that the faith should have primacy in government and law.

Brian Levin, founder of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism and a professor emeritus at Cal State San Bernardino, said, “the more violent fringes of Christian nationalism have disturbing aspects that are eliminationist and antidemocratic.”

He noted that some of the same Christian nationalists and white supremacists who are now calling Kirk a martyr already deified Trump, especially after he survived two assassination attempts on the campaign trail last year and said he had been “saved by God to make America great again.”

Levin said many Christian nationalists portray Trump as “an armed Christian warrior protecting America from a disturbing assortment of immigrants, religious minorities, genders and sexual orientations.” And so, when he uses martyr language to describe Kirk, his adherents latch on.

“Where do martyrs come from? From violent conflicts and wars,” Levin said. “The fact of the matter is that this is a moment that Trump could have more effectively seized, but he veered into divisive territory.”

California Senate Minority Leader Brian W. Jones (R-Santee) also called Kirk “a modern day martyr.” In a statement, Jones quoted Thomas Jefferson, who said, “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.”

Jones wrote: “Let us take care that we allow that tree to grow and blossom as it feeds on the lifeblood of Charles J. Kirk in the years to come.”

Times staff writer Seema Mehta contributed to this report.

Christian Wade will leave reigning Super League champions Wigan Warriors at the end of the rugby league season in order to return to rugby union with Newcastle Red Bulls from December.

The 34-year-old crossed codes to join Wigan on a short-term deal from Gloucester at the end of the 2024-25 Premiership season but could not make a lasting impact in the 13-a-side game.

Wade made two appearances for Wigan and scored tries in both, but committed persistent handling mistakes when fielding high kicks in their defeat by Hull FC in July, which was the last time he played for the Warriors.

The second-highest try-scorer in Prem history – just eight behind Chris Ashton’s record – Wade’s imminent arrival is one of the first key moves by Newcastle following their takeover by Red Bull.

“It’s been an absolute honour to be involved with a great club like Wigan Warriors, and they’ve been fantastic with me,” Wade said., external

“I’ve never been someone to shy away from a challenge, I’ve learnt a lot from the experience and it’s a special organisation.

“Their fans are incredible, more like a football crowd with how tribal they are, and I’ve been proud to represent them.”

Wigan head coach Matt Peet paid tribute to Wade’s professionalism and commitment during his time with the Warriors.

“We’ve really enjoyed having him in the group and we wish him and his family all the very best as he moves on to this exciting new chapter with Newcastle. It is clear to see why he has had such an outstanding career,” Peet said., external

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — James Dobson, a child psychologist who founded the conservative ministry Focus on the Family and was a politically influential campaigner against abortion and LGBTQ+ rights, died on Thursday. He was 89.

Born in 1936 in Shreveport, La., Dobson launched a radio show counseling Christians on how to be good parents and in 1977 started Focus on the Family.

He became a force in the 1980s for pushing conservative Christian ideals in mainstream American politics alongside fundamentalist giants like Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson. At its peak, Focus on the Family had more than 1,000 employees and gave Dobson a platform to weigh in on legislation and serve as an advisor to five presidents.

His death was confirmed by the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute. He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Shirley, as well as their two children, a daughter-in-law and two grandchildren.

‘Mount Rushmore’ of conservatives

Dobson interviewed President Reagan in the Oval Office in 1985, and Falwell called him a rising star in 1989. Decades later, he was among the evangelical leaders tapped to advise President Trump in 2016.

In 2022, he praised Trump for appointing conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark decision that allowed states to ban abortion.

“Whether you like Donald Trump or not, whether you supported or voted for him or not, if you are supportive of this Dobbs decision that struck down Roe v. Wade, you have to mention in the same breath the man who made it possible,” he said in a ministry broadcast.

Dobson belongs on the “Mount Rushmore” of Christian conservatives, said Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, another group Dobson founded. He promoted ideas from “a biblical standpoint” that pushed back against progressive parenting of the 1960s, Perkins said.

Weighing Dobson’s legacy

John Fea, an American History professor at Messiah College in Pennsylvania, has been critical of Dobson’s politics and ideas but recounts how his own father was a better parent after becoming an evangelical Christian and listening to Dobson’s radio program. Fea’s dad was a tough Marine who spanked his kids when he was mad at them. Dobson advocated spanking to enforce discipline but said it shouldn’t be done in anger.

“Even as a self-identified evangelical Christian that I am, I have no use in my own life for Dobson’s politics or his child-rearing,” he said. “But as a historian what do you do with these stories? About a dad who becomes a better dad?”

Possible presidential run

After developing a following of millions, Dobson considered running for president in the 2000 election, following in the footsteps of former television minister Pat Robertson’s surprise success in 1988.

“He had a big audience. He was not afraid to speak out,” said Ralph Reed, a Christian conservative political organizer and lobbyist who founded the Faith and Freedom Coalition. “If Jim had decided to run, he would have been a major force.”

Despite their close association later in life, Reed’s enduring memory is of Dobson’s voice as his sole companion while traveling through rural America as a younger political organizer.

“I’d be out there somewhere, and I could go to the AM dial and there was never a time, day or night when I couldn’t find that guy,” Reed said. “There will probably never be another one like him.”

A political juggernaut for decades

Dobson helped create a constellation of Family Policy Councils in around 40 states that work in tandem with his organization to push a socially conservative agenda and lobby lawmakers, said Peter Wolfgang, executive director of one such group in Connecticut.

“If there is one man above all whom I would credit with being the builder — not just the thinker — who gave us the institutions that created the space for President Trump to help us turn the tide in the culture war, it would be Dr. James Dobson,” Wolfgang wrote in a column last month.

James Bopp, a lawyer who has represented Focus on the Family, said Dobson was able to rally public support like few other social conservatives.

Records compiled by the watchdog group Open Secrets show that Focus on the Family and Family Research Council have combined to spend more than $4 million on political ads and close to $2 million lobbying Congress since the late 1990s.

Opposition to abortion and LGBTQ+ rights

Dobson left Focus on the Family in 2010 and founded the institute that bears his name. He continued with the Family Talk radio show, which is nationally syndicated and is carried by 1,500 radio outlets with more than half a million listeners weekly, according to the institute.

His radio program featured guests talking about the importance of embracing religion and rejecting homosexuality, promoting the idea that people could change their sexuality.

“The homosexual community will tell us that transformations never occur. That you cannot change,” he said in a 2021 video posted on his institute’s site that promoted “success stories” of people who “no longer struggle with homosexuality” after attending a ministry. He said there is typically a “pain and agitation” associated with homosexuality.

Conversion therapy is the scientifically discredited practice of using therapy to “convert” LGBTQ+ people to heterosexuality or traditional gender expectations.

The practice has been banned in 23 states and the District of Columbia, according to the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ+ rights think tank.

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed in March to hear a Colorado case about whether state and local governments can enforce laws banning conversion therapy for LGBTQ+ children.

Ted Bundy interview

An anti-pornography crusader, Dobson recorded a video interview with serial killer Ted Bundy the day before his 1989 execution. Bundy told Dobson that exposure to pornography helped fuel his sexual urges to a point that he looked for satisfaction by mutilating, killing and raping women.

Months after the execution, Bundy’s attorney James Coleman downplayed the Dobson exchange.

“I think that was a little bit of Ted telling the minister what he wanted to hear and Ted offering an explanation that would exonerate him personally,” Coleman said in an interview with the AP. “I had heard that before and I told Ted I never accepted it.”

Catalini and Meyer write for the Associated Press. Catalini reported from Trenton, N.J., and Meyer from Nashville. AP writers Tom Beaumont in Des Moines, Iowa; Tiffany Stanley in Washington; Geoff Mulvihill in Cherry Hill, N.J.; and Susan Haigh in Hartford, Conn., contributed to this report.

Pete Hegseth, widely considered the least qualified Defense secretary in American history, is hardly anyone’s version of the ideal Christian husband and father.

Only 45 years old, he’s been married three times.

His first marriage — to his high school sweetheart — lasted a mere four years, deteriorating after Hegseth admitted to multiple extramarital affairs.

A couple of years later, he married his second wife, with whom he had three children. During that marriage, he fathered a child with a Fox News producer who eventually became his third wife.

He paid off a woman who accused him of sexual assault (he denies the assault). He routinely passed out drunk at family gatherings and misbehaved in public when inebriated, according to numerous witnesses. His own mother once accused him of being “an abuser of women,” though she later retracted her claims when Hegseth was facing Senate confirmation.

Still, the Senate’s Republican majority, cowed by President Trump, confirmed his appointment. Hegseth has two qualities that Trump prizes above all others. He is blindly loyal to the president, and he looks good on TV.

After his installation, Hegseth proceeded to fire top military brass who happened to be Black or women or both. He has restored the names of Confederate generals to Army bases (Bragg and Benning). His petty “anti-woke” crusade led him to strip the name of the assassinated gay rights leader Harvey Milk, a former Naval officer who served honorably, from a Navy ship. And he has considered doing the same to a ship named in honor of the abolitionist and Civil War hero Harriet Tubman. He has said that women do not belong in combat roles, and has kicked out transgender soldiers, cruelly stripping them of the pensions they earned for their service.

In March, he shared classified information about an impending American airstrike in Yemen on an unsecured Signal group chat that included his wife, on purpose, and the editor of the Atlantic, by accident.

He is, in short, the least serious man ever to lead this nation’s armed forces.

As if all that weren’t dispiriting enough, Hegseth is now in bed (metaphorically) with a crusading Christian nationalist.

Earlier this month, Hegseth made waves when he reposted on social media a CNN interview with Douglas Wilson, the pastor and theocrat who is working hard to turn the clock back on the rights of every American who is not white, Christian and male.

In the interview, Wilson expounded on his patriarchal, misogynistic, authoritarian and homophobic views.

Women, he said, should serve as “chief executive of the home” and should not have the right to vote. (Their men can do that for them.) Gay marriage and gay sex should be outlawed once again. “We know that sodomy is worse than slavery by how God responds to it,” he told CNN’s Pamela Brown. (Slavery is “unbiblical,” he avowed, though he did bizarrely defend it once, writing in 1990 a pamphlet that “slavery produced in the South a genuine affection between the races that we believe we can say has never existed in any nation before the War or since.”)

When a new outpost of his church opened in Washington, D.C ., in July, Hegseth and his family were among the worshippers. CNN described Hegseth’s presence as “a major achievement” for Wilson.

“All of Christ for All of Life,” wrote Hegseth as he endorsed and reposted the interview. That is the motto of Wilson’s expanding universe, which includes his Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho, the center of his Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches, a network of more than 100 churches on four continents, parochial schools, a college, a publishing house and media platforms. “All of Christ for All of Life” is a shorthand for the belief that Christian doctrines should shape every part of life — including government, culture and education.

Wilson is a prolific author of books with titles such as “Her Hand in Marriage,” “Federal Husband,” and “Reforming Marriage.” His book “Fidelity” teaches “what it means to be a one-woman man.” Doubtful it has crossed Hegseth’s desk.

“God hates divorce,” writes Wilson in one of his books.

Given the way sexual pleasure is celebrated in the Old and New Testaments, Wilson has a peculiarly dim view of sex. I mean, how many weddings have been graced with recitations from the Song of Solomon, with its thinly disguised allusions to pleasurable sexual intimacy? (“Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is better than wine.”)

Wilson’s world is considerably less sensual.

“A man penetrates, conquers, colonizes, plants,” he writes in “Fidelity.” “A woman receives, surrenders, accepts.” Mutual sexual pleasure seems out of the question: “The sexual act cannot be made into an egalitarian pleasuring party.” Ugh.

There is nothing particularly new here; Wilson’s ideology is just another version of patriarchal figures using religion to fight back against the equality movements of the late 19th and 20th centuries. They are basically the hatemongers of the Westboro Baptist Church dressed up in respectable clothing.

“Some people may conflate Christian nationalism and Christianity because they both use the symbols and language of Christianity, such as a Bible, a cross and worship songs,” says the group Christians Against Christian Nationalism on its website. “But Christian nationalism uses the veneer of Christianity to advance its own aims — to point to a political figure, party or ideology instead of Jesus.”

What you have in people like Hegseth and Wilson are authoritarian men who hide behind their religion to execute the most unchristian of agendas.

God may hate divorce, but from my reading of the Bible, God hates hypocrisy even more.

Bluesky: @rabcarian
Threads: @rabcarian

Following three successive promotions under Phil Parkinson, Wrexham are now set for what will be their first season in the second tier since 1981-82.

They have already added Wales goalkeeper Danny Ward, striker Ryan Hardie, central midfielders Lewis O’Brien and George Thomason, left-back Liberato Cacace and attacking midfielder Josh Windass to their ranks since winning promotion to the Championship.

But signing Eriksen would prove the biggest addition yet, if Parkinson can convince him to step down to the Championship.

Eriksen made 35 appearances in all competitions for the Red Devils last season – scoring five goals – but is now a free agent.

He began his professional career with Ajax and spent seven seasons with Tottenham Hotspur before joining Brentford in 2022 following one campaign at Inter Milan.

He won an FA Cup and a League Cup during his time at Old Trafford.

Wrexham kick-off their 2025-26 campaign against newly-relegated Southampton at St Mary’s Stadium on Saturday 9 August.

Olivia Culpo and Christian McCaffrey are now parents, and the arrival of their baby girl has them both feeling lucky.

Model-actor Culpo revealed Sunday that she and her NFL star husband welcomed their daughter earlier this month. She marked the beginning of her journey into motherhood on Instagram, sharing several pictures from her newborn’s first moments in the world. A carousel of black-and-white photos document tender moments between Culpo, McCaffrey and their baby at Cedars-Sinai.

Culpo’s Instagram post also included a name reveal. “Colette Annalise McCaffrey,” she captioned her photos, adding a white heart emoji.

Additionally, Culpo shared photos from baby Colette’s arrival to her Instagram stories, where she praised her San Francisco 49ers running back husband. “Colette is so lucky to have the best daddy in the world,” she wrote in an Instagram photo of McCaffrey tending to their newborn. “A love like no other.”

In another Instagram story on Sunday, Culpo recalled her labor as the “scariest and most rewarding of all experiences” and her husband’s calming effect. She shared a photo of McCaffrey holding her head during her delivery. In his Instagram story, McCaffrey reciprocated the sentiment, posting a photo of himself holding his baby girl.

“Luckiest man on the planet,” he captioned the photo. “I love you @OliviaCulpo.”

Culpo, 33, and McCaffrey, 29, were rumored to be dating as early as May 2019 and got engaged in April 2023. They married in June 2024 in Culpo’s native Rhode Island. Culpo, a former Miss Universe, announced in March that she and her husband were expecting their first child together.

“Next chapter, motherhood,” she captioned photos from her maternity photo shoot.

A representative for Culpo did not immediately respond on Monday to The Times’ request for additional information.

Edu Rubio, former West Ham, Crystal Palace and Wolves coach

Norgaard is a modern defensive-anchor player. He can break up play, intercept, tackle, block and win aerial duels. He can let Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice do their thing while he protects their backs.

He can also recycle the ball and play forwards effectively. In a league where there are so many transitions, a player who senses danger and has a great ability to regain the ball can be a must-have in your team.

His physicality, and the fact it has been tested in the Premier League, also makes him a very sensible signing. He can be a great addition to Arsenal.

Norgaard will fit perfectly with Zubimendi. They can even play together if Arteta opts for two holding players and one 10, instead of one anchor and two number eights.

Zubimendi is more of a passer and creator. Norgaard is more a break-up-play midfielder who can regain possession, secure possession and stop the opposition from easily breaking into the final third.

Arteta is making sure he will have enough strength in the midfield area to compete in all four competitions.

Christian Horner has been sacked as Red Bull team principal with immediate effect after 20 years, the Red Bull Racing Formula One team announced on Wednesday.

The 51-year-old oversaw a period of dominance by the team, winning the drivers’ championship eight times – including the past four titles with Max Verstappen  – and adding six constructors’ crowns.

Who will replace Horner at Red Bull Racing?

Horner, who has been in charge of Red Bull since the team was formed in 2005, will be replaced by the principal of sister team Racing Bulls, Laurent Mekies.

A motorsport aerodynamics specialist, the French-born Mekies entered Formula One in the early 2000s and had stints working with Arrows, Minardi, Toro Rosso and Ferrari before joining Racing Bulls as team principal in 2024.

“I think he has a very, very good understanding of the business, having started as an engineer and then worked at the FIA,” said Fred Vasseur, current F1 team principal at Ferrari, when Mekies left the famous Italian team in July 2023.

No reason given for Horner sacking

Horner was sacked as Red Bull’s team principal with immediate effect.

The team’s official media statement, released on Wednesday, reads:

“Red Bull has released Christian Horner from his operational duties with effect from today [Wednesday, July 9, 2025] and has appointed Laurent Mekies as CEO of Red Bull Racing. Oliver Mintzlaff, CEO Corporate Projects and Investments, thanked Christian Horner for his exceptional work over the last 20 years.”

“We would like to thank Christian Horner for his exceptional work over the last 20 years,” said Mintzlaff. “With his tireless commitment, experience, expertise and innovative thinking, he has been instrumental in establishing Red Bull Racing as one of the most successful and attractive teams in Formula 1. Thank you for everything, Christian, and you will forever remain an important part of our team history.”

Martin Brundle, an ex-F1 driver, current race commentator and friend of Horner, told Sky Sports News:

“I am due to speak to Christian later. I put a message to him saying, ‘I am sorry to read this, can we have a chat before I am due to go on TV because I want to know more about it from his point of view’.

“He wasn’t able to do that. What he did say was that no reason was given to him as to why he is being released.”

A difficult 18 months for Horner

Horner’s dismissal follows a challenging period on several fronts for the team principal.

His exit from the team comes nearly a year-and-a-half after it was leaked that a female employee had accused Horner of sexual harassment and coercive, controlling behaviour. Horner was twice cleared of the claims by Red Bull headquarters, situated in Austria.

At the same time, Max Verstappen’s father, Jos, called for Horner to leave his position and claimed that the Briton’s presence could tear the team apart in a March 4, 2024, interview.

Jos told The Daily Mail that “there is tension while he remains in position”, referring to Horner.

He added, “The team is in danger of being torn apart. It can’t go on the way it is. It will explode. He is playing the victim when he is the one causing the problems.”

The early-2025 departure of Adrian Newey – the former chief technology officer of Red Bull Racing and widely considered one of the greatest motorsport designers in F1 – to rival team Aston Martin was a huge loss to the Milton Keynes-based team and to Horner personally.

Newey had joined Red Bull in 2006, just months after Horner’s appointment, with the pair forming one of the most successful F1 management partnerships in history.

How successful was Horner as Red Bull boss?

Under Horner’s leadership, Red Bull won their first world championship in 2010, with German driver Sebastian Vettel taking the first of four consecutive drivers’ titles.

Following a multiyear period of dominance by archrival Mercedes, Red Bull, this time with Max Verstappen of the Netherlands as their star driver, entered a second championship window, winning four more drivers’ titles consecutively from 2021 to 2024.

In 2023, Horner presided over the most dominant season in Formula One history, with the team winning 21 of 22 races, and Verstappen setting a new F1 record with 10 consecutive victories.

Will Max Verstappen stay at Red Bull Racing?

At the midway point of the 2025 season, Verstappen trails McLaren duo Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris in the drivers’ standings and has all but conceded the drivers’ title for this season.

As far back as April 13, Verstappen was already pessimistic about the prospects of winning a fifth straight drivers’ championship.

“McLaren are not my rivals right now. I am just taking part in this world championship,” Verstappen said, as quoted by nl.motorsport.com.

When pressed further if he meant he doesn’t see himself competing for the 2025 drivers’ title, he replied: “No, I don’t.”

In recent days, and not for the first time, Verstappen has been linked with a move to rival Mercedes, possibly as soon as next season.

Brundle told Sky Sports News that Horner’s exit from Red Bull may defuse tensions, resulting in Verstappen re-signing with the only F1 team he has ever driven for.

“It makes it more likely that Verstappen will stay,” Martin Brundle said. “It became personal in Team Verstappen.”

The Angels placed rookie second baseman Christian Moore on the 10-day injured list with a sprained left thumb on Thursday.

Moore left the Angels’ 8-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night with the injury. Moore suffered the injury when he dove for Ozzie Albies’ ground ball in the sixth inning. Moore’s hand bent awkwardly when he hit the ground.

Angels interim manager Ray Montgomery said he was grateful Moore would not require surgery, though he wouldn’t put a timetable on how much time the rookie might miss.

“Anytime you see somebody like him have an injury like that, you fear the worst,” Montgomery said, adding the hope Moore could miss two weeks might be “looking at the best-case scenario.”

Moore, a 2024 first-round draft pick from Tennessee, was hitting .189 in 53 at-bats following his promotion to the Angels on June 13.

Infielder Chad Stevens, whose contract was selected from triple-A Salt Lake, moved into the starting lineup at second base on Thursday night in his major league debut.

“He’s been playing really well,” Montgomery said of Stevens. “He’s done everything he can do to earn this opportunity.”

The 26-year-old Stevens was hitting .307 with 14 homers at Salt Lake.

The Angels released right-hander Héctor Neris, who had a 7.80 ERA in 23 games.

Christian Pulisic was supposed to be in St. Louis on Tuesday, preparing to play in the national soccer team’s Gold Cup semifinal with Guatemala. Instead he was standing under a freeway overpass in Culver City playing with a bunch of kids.

“This is kind of what I was, you know, born to do,” the former and perhaps future captain of the national team said. “Having this platform and being here to inspire, hopefully, the next generation and do this for kids, it’s special.”

Pulisic, 26, isn’t far removed from being a kid himself, one who grew up learning the game on mini fields not too different from the one he was opening Tuesday. But for Pulisic soccer is no longer a child’s game, it’s a business. And that has taken a lot of fun out of it.

So when Pulisic, the national team’s active leader in both appearances (78) and goals (35), decided to pass up this summer’s Gold Cup, the last major competition before next year’s World Cup, he was widely pilloried as selfish and egotistical by former national team players including Clint Dempsey, Tim Howard and Landon Donovan.

American Christian Pulisic is grabbed by Bolivia’s Hector Cuellar as they chase the ball during a Copa America match in Arlington, Texas, on June 23, 2024.

(Julio Cortez / Associated Press)

“I just can’t fathom turning down the privilege of representing my country,” added Alexi Lalas, who played on two World Cup teams for the U.S.

However, Pulisic says he was simply exhausted.

He played a career-high 3,650 minutes in all competition for AC Milan last season, leading the team with 11 goals and nine assists in Serie A play while appearing in 118 games for club and country in the last 22 months. He needed a break to rest both body and mind before the World Cup, when he’ll be the focus of a U.S. team playing the tournament at home for the first time in 32 years.

So after consulting with U.S. Soccer and national team coach Mauricio Pochettino, he took it, offering to play in two June friendlies — an offer Pochettino declined — but turning down an invitation to play in the Gold Cup.

The reaction was swift and hurtful, with many critics accusing Pulisic of turning his back on his country.

“To question my commitment, especially towards the national team, in my opinion that’s way out of line,” Pulisic said in his defense on a Golazo Network podcast last month.

“I don’t regret my decision. I think it’s the right thing for me.”

AC Milan’s Christian Pulisic celebrates with teammate Tijjani Reijnders after Reijnders scored against Como in Milan, Italy, on March 15.

(Antonio Calanni / Associated Press)

Given a chance to expand on that Tuesday, Pulisic declined.

“I said what I needed to say. I don’t think it’s something that I want to harp on,” he said.

But events like Tuesday’s clearly rekindle his passion for soccer by reminding him of what the game still looks like through a child’s eyes.

“To see the joy that it brings to kids’ faces and to give them a free space to just come and play and enjoy the game like I used to when I was a kid, that’s what it’s all about,” he said. “When I was around their age, that’s when I really grew the love for the game.”

His father, Mark, was a former indoor soccer player and longtime coach, so Pulisic spent much of his childhood in places just like the one in Culver City. Getting back to those basics after what has been one of the most trying months of his professional career has been a breath of fresh air and it showed because Pulisic, whose smiles are rare and generally sarcastic, was wearing a wide and sincere one Tuesday.

The play space he was visiting is the second Christian Pulisic Stomping Grounds facility in the U.S., one developed in conjunction with the global sports brand Puma. The first Stomping Ground opened two years ago in Miami and there are plans to build a third in Texas.

Wedged into an industrial area crowded with storage facilities and warehouses beneath an on-ramp to the 405 Freeway, the space, home to the Culver City Football Club, was refurbished to include mini indoor and outdoor turf fields, a putting green and a life-size chess set.

The costly update was nice, said Krist Colocho, president and chief executive of the Culver City Football Club. But having the captain of the men’s national team come to christen the site, then engage some three dozen players, ages 9 to 13, in training drills, was priceless.

“There’s no words for it,” he said. “The top player in the U.S.? It’s amazing. To get to play with him? That’s a cherry on top.”

The nonprofit club, Colocho said, is dedicated to ending the pay-for-play model that has made soccer too expensive for many kids. The Pulisic-Puma partnership will help with that.

“This is a start,” he said. “Coming from a background where soccer is difficult to afford, this is going to be one of those stepping [stones] that we work with.”

AC Milan’s Christian Pulisic celebrates after scoring against Cagliari in Milan, Italy, on May 11, 2024.

(Antonio Calanni / Associated Press)

Outside Pulisic backed toward a mini goal as 6-year-old Arih Akwafei charged forward, pushed the ball around Pulisic and tucked it into the net, then celebrated as only a 6-year-old can.

“It was fun doing everything and using our bodies to try to play soccer with him to see if he was good or not,” Arih said, gulping air between words in an effort to control her excitement. “I scored on him.”

Cameron Carr, 9, agreed.

“It’s a very big deal,” he said of Pulisic’s visit.

Asked whether he’d be happier if Pulisic was in St. Louis practicing with the national team, as so many critics had demanded, Cameron grew confused. To him the answer was as obvious as the question was stupid.

“I’m very happy that he’s taking his time to meet with us kids when he could be training,” he said.