city

Manchester City have signed England goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse on a short-term loan from Orlando Pride.

The 31-year-old will join the Women’s Super League champions until January, subject to international clearance.

Moorhouse has established herself in the National Women’s Soccer League after joining Orlando Pride from French side Bordeaux in January 2022.

She helped them win the NWSL Shield and NWSL Championship in 2024 and earned herself a call-up to the England squad that year.

Oldham-born Moorhouse, who has two England caps and was part of the Lionesses squad that won Euro 2025, counts Arsenal and West Ham among her former clubs.

They eventually lost their way in the top flight, with a change in style contributing to a decline which ended in relegation to the Championship in 2018.

Since then, Swansea have tasked various head coaches with returning the club to the top division while reviving the sort of style which became their trademark.

While it is too early in the season to assess promotion prospects, Matos believes his team are heading in the right direction.

“We have something special growing, we have something that everyone feels proud of,” he added.

“Now it’s up to us to take care of that because football is quite unpredictable and we need to understand the whys more than focus on the good things we have done now.”

Manchester City have completed their squad overhaul – including a fully revamped midfield – to the tune of £458m, a new Premier League record for a summer window.

But that eyewatering sum does not tell the full story.

New Manchester City boss Enzo Maresca received the full backing of director of football Hugo Viana in his first transfer window in charge after replacing Pep Guardiola. Indeed, City’s record transfer fee was twice broken this summer.

A joint-British record £125m was spent on Maresca’s former Chelsea skipper Enzo Fernandez after £116m was committed on Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest. Morocco international Ayyoub Bouaddi, 18, was also brought in for £86m. The trio accounted for the bulk of City’s summer incomings.

The departures of captain Bernardo Silva, 2024 Ballon d’Or winner Rodri, Tijjani Reijnders and Nico Gonzalez means the City midfield has been completely transformed.

Senior club sources are said to be delighted by the business done not only during the past couple of months but in January too, when plans were brought forward to sign long-term targets Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guehi.

And if the clock is rewound further back, Manchester City‘s rebuild of the team that won the 2023 Champions League really began in January 2025 after a difficult start to that season.

Just four players remain from the starting eleven and substitutes from the night they beat Inter Milan in Istanbul to win the continent’s biggest club prize.

Maresca now has the luxury of calling upon two established players in almost every position. City feel the squad is stronger at this point than at the beginning of last season which they believe has been achieved by remaining calm and trusting the transfer strategy.

However some big questions remain.

How will their new midfield signings all fit together?

And, despite the vast amount of money spent, have they actually left themselves without a back-up to Erling Haaland?

Following a four-season absence from the WSL, Birmingham are back, having won Women’s Super League 2 last season.

The Blues edged a thrilling title fight with Palace and Charlton, clinching the trophy on goal difference by winning at The Valley on final day.

They showed quality going forward and in defence, scoring the second-most goals and conceding the second-fewest.

They also finished with the league’s best goal difference, while striker Lily Crosthwaite picked up her award for WSL 2 player of the year last week.

Among six new signings, head coach Amy Merricks has recruited experienced centre-back Millie Turner, who made 145 WSL appearances in eight seasons at Manchester United, has two England caps and is the new Blues captain.

She will play alongside talented 23-year-old Neve Herron, who was named in the WSL 2 Team of the Year.

“There’s going to be challenges, there’s going to be moments, highs and lows, but come that first game of the season, we’re going to be ready,” Herron told BBC Sport.

Mike Trout was practically beaming. He dropped the phrase “fresh start” four times in an interview that barely lasted five minutes.

The burden of the Angels’ failures has been disproportionately his to bear. He has insisted that his path to Cooperstown would run through Anaheim and only Anaheim. He has played 16 seasons for an owner that blessed him with half a billion dollars, treated his family like royalty and stranded him in position to conclude a star-spangled career without ever winning a postseason game.

On Tuesday, Trout learned that the Angels would have a new owner: Stan Kroenke. Trout got off the call, looked up Kroenke and has not stopped smiling since.

“What a track record,” Trout said. “Wherever he buys, he wins.”

Rams owner Stan Kroenke has agreed to purchase a majority stake of the Angels on Tuesday. The deal is pending regulatory review and MLB approval.

(Kyusung Gong / Associated Press)

The Rams. The Colorado Avalanche. The Denver Nuggets. Arsenal.

So what if the Angels have baseball’s longest playoff drought? They now have baseball’s richest owner, with a net worth valued by Forbes at $24 billion.

Kroenke bought a controlling share of the Angels at a valuation of $4 billion, a record for a major league team, with current owner Arte Moreno retaining a small stake, a source with knowledge of the deal not authorized to discuss it publicly told The Times. The sale includes the team-owned television and radio outlets, ABTV and AM 830. The deal is subject to customary closing conditions and MLB approval.

In 2009, ESPN put Moreno on the cover of its magazine, proclaiming the Angels delivered the best value of the then-122 teams in the NFL, NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball. In this decade, the experience had been so devalued by 12 consecutive losing seasons that resale tickets for Tuesday’s game against the mighty New York Yankees were available for $5, amid a season of fans regularly chanting “Sell the Team!”

“He’s aware of the chants,” Angels president Molly Jolly said. “He knows about them. At the end of the day, this is about having the right next owner more than it is about anything else.”

Jolly wouldn’t say whether Kroenke or Moreno initiated the negotiations. She did say the sale was not conducted through a formal bidding process, but proceeded through face-to-face discussions between Kroenke and Moreno.

“He has a traditional sense about him,” Jolly said. “To be able to sit down with another gentleman and have a conversation and talk about baseball and the franchise, that resonates for how he thinks and looks at things, rather than it being a complex conversation.

“I think that’s what was the ‘Why now?’ It was the right person having the right conversation with him.”

As far as she knew, Jolly said, the conversations had not started when she assumed the team presidency in April, but the possibility of a sale had “always stayed out there” after Moreno invited bids in 2022 and then decided not to sell.

In July, after joining the Angels as interim general manager, John Mozeliak said he had spoken with Moreno for hours and the topic of whether the owner might sell the team “never came up.” On Tuesday, Mozeliak acknowledged that, when he started his position, Moreno “had mentioned that this was a possibility.”

Fans at Angel Stadium hold up signs during a game against the Yankees Tuesday marking Stan Kroenke’s agreement to purchase the Angels from Arte Moreno.

(Mark J. Terrill / Ap Photo/mark J. Terrill)

The sale is not expected to be finalized until early next year. Kroenke has not done the usual due diligence that would precede a sale — meeting with team management and touring the stadium — and has not introduced himself to officials from the city of Anaheim. The city owns the stadium and surrounding parking lots, a 150-acre site that city officials would love to see Kroenke develop.

In the meantime, it’s business as usual for the Angels. Mozeliak, who ran the St. Louis Cardinals when the Rams played in St. Louis, said he never has met Kroenke. He did recall speaking with Kevin Demoff, who oversees all of Kroenke’s teams.

Mozeliak has no idea whether Kroenke might invite him to stay, but for now the plan of rebuilding the team and reorganizing the front office remains on course, in the interest of serving fans weary and frustrated after 12 consecutive losing seasons.

“We’ve been preaching change all along,” Mozeliak said. “Now they’re going to see even more.”

And, he noted, the Padres and Angels had sold at successive record prices for MLB teams, despite the prospect of a lockout and owners’ hopes for a new collective bargaining agreement with a salary cap intended in part to raise franchise values.

“A lot of people thought teams wouldn’t sell until there was a new CBA,” Mozeliak said. “Clearly, that prediction was wrong.”

In the clubhouse, no one was talking about that. Neto was talking about the call Trout made to “some of the Rams guys” for a scouting report on Kroenke.

“I reached out to one Rams player,” Trout said, smiling. “He exaggerates a little bit.”

Still, given the national attention given last winter to the air conditioning not working properly in an Angel Stadium weight room, Neto said the evaluation from the Rams’ locker room was glowing.

“The most important thing they said is, he just wants what’s important for us,” Neto said. “That’s to make the clubhouse better, in the sense of whatever we need, we get, whether that’s amenity-wise, speakers, whatever it is, he’ll make sure we get those.”

Trout was so enthusiastic that, when a reporter asked if he was excited about what the new vision might be, he answered before the reporter could finish asking the question.

“No doubt,” Trout said. “Obviously, when you’re frustrated the last — I don’t know how many years it’s been, but to hear the news like this, I’m super excited to have this change.”

For his part, Neto sounded ready to pitch Tarik Skubal on pitching for the Angels — or, at least, pitching Kroenke on the possibility of recruiting him in free agency.

“Who doesn’t want to be in Southern California?” Neto said. “The weather is beautiful here. We have the best fans, in my opinion. We have a beautiful stadium.

“Who wouldn’t want to be here and play in this organization, in this market? It would be a no-brainer.”

Trout said the ownership change “was needed” and said there was “a good vibe around the clubhouse,” but both he and Neto expressed appreciation for Moreno.

“Arte was very supportive of us, whatever the outside noise was,” Neto said.

“I’ve seen a lot of hate, a lot of love, a lot more hate. But, as a player who has played under him, it was a lot of love. He treated us well, and that’s all you can ask for as a player.”

Sept. 2 (UPI) — The Trump administration sued a Kansas City school district on Tuesday, accusing it of violating federal law with guidelines concerning disclosure of a student’s gender identity to their parents.

The Justice Department described the lawsuit as the first it has filed against a school district alleging that gender-identity guidelines violate the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act and the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment.

“Parental rights are paramount in operation of America’s public schools, and Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools does not know children better than their own parents,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said in a statement.

“The department will not tolerate school districts playing fast and loose with federal law in the service of radical gender ideology.”

Having campaigned on an anti-“woke” platform that included opposition to transgender rights, President Donald Trump has repeatedly targeted policies benefiting transgender Americans, particularly minors and students, seeking to ban transgender girls and women from competing in female sports and restrict minors’ access to gender-affirming healthcare.

The lawsuit filed Tuesday challenges as unlawful KCKPS guidelines that allow students to request that their transgender or gender-nonconforming identity be withheld from their parents, with such requests considered on a case-by-case basis, as well as guidelines allowing school officials to consider using a student’s preferred name, gender, and pronouns. The Justice Department described such policies as “facilitating secret ‘gender transitions’ for children at school without their parents’ knowledge or consent.”

Federal prosecutors allege that the guidelines are unlawful because they require a meeting to be held to discuss the student’s request, creating records that the Justice Department argues FERPA requires school districts to provide to parents. FERPA also arms parents with the authority to challenge records, and the KCKPS guidelines deny them the opportunity to even see the gender plan for their child, let alone challenge, correct or delete it, the Justice Department argues.

Its PPRA claim is that the guidelines violate the law’s guarantee that minor students will not undergo a survey, analysis or evaluation that reveals certain information, including mental or psychological problems, sexual behavior or attitudes and religious beliefs, without parental consent.

U.S. Attorney Ryan Kriegshauser for the District of Kansas said the lawsuit should “not come as a surprise” given that public education only works when schools and parents work together.

“When schools withhold information from parents, they undermine trust and disrupt the essential balance between families and public educators,” he said in a statement.

KCKPS denies the allegations, stating it is in compliance with both FERPA and the PPRA and that it was “disappointed by the DOJ’s decision to file the lawsuit.”

The lawsuit comes more than a year after the Education Department initiated an investigation into the school district following receipt of a complaint against its guidelines from the conservative Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies, which was founded by former Trump administration officials.

In July, KCKPS Superintendent Anna Stubblefield told local KSHB41 that what the Trump administration is targeting are guidelines, not policies.

“There’s nowhere in the guidance where we say ‘withhold information from parents.’ We have no reason or incentive to withhold information from parents about anything that they’re entitled to for their students,” she said.

“When they say we have a policy, we’ve never had a policy.”

The home front.

* Television adage: When it bleeds, it leads.

“The MacNeil-Lehrer Newshour” on Monday decided to do a round-table talk with big-city mayors to ask about the reaction in their locales after the Rodney King case verdict. Screening calls went out.

Mayor Maureen O’Connor told MacNeil-Lehrer reporter Shannon Bradley that San Diego had managed to avoid major problems through the efforts of local officials, cops and community leaders, as well as an overall improvement in police-community relations in recent years.

At first, Bradley, a former San Diegan, was enthusiastic. Later, she called back with the letdown.

Co-anchor Robert MacNeil thought it would be “unfair” to include O’Connor on the same panel with mayors whose cities suffered violence and looting after the verdict.

Hey, isn’t that what critics say about the media: that they only want to report bad news?

“There’s a certain amount of truth to that,” Bradley says. “Sad to say, but true.”

* T-shirt being sold at London Underground clothing store in Fashion Valley: “NOT GUILTY? B.S.”

Done up graffiti style. Black lettering on white.

Store owner Dean Mostofi says he sold 300 over the weekend, nearly all to affluent white kids.

* So far, the $5,000 reward has not brought a single tip about the identity of the sniper(s) who shot at (but missed) two San Diego cops on Thursday night.

* One of the calls to the San Diego hot line established to let people sound off about the verdict was collect from Los Angeles: A distraught woman asking why L.A. doesn’t have a similar hot line.

* Venting the venters.

San Diegans who manned the hot line will gather May 13 to compare notes on what they heard.

* San Diego hotels and motels report a slight uptick in occupancy from tourists and others fleeing Los Angeles.

The flip side: Some Angelenos with reservations canceled because they needed to protect their homes.

* T-shirt being hawked on street corners in Los Angeles: “My Parents Looted Ralphs and All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt.”

Robbed of a Protest

Other stuff.

* A thief has stolen the bedsheet cross that Hugh and Elaine Willner draped down the canyon hillside behind their Clairemont home.

The Willners’ cross, meant to show solidarity with the City Council’s fight to save the Mt. Soledad cross, was highly visible from Interstate 5.

The thief is thought to have scaled the steep hill from Morena Boulevard under cover of darkness.

* Yes, the Tinker Bell impersonator on page T10 of the Disneyland supplement included in The Times on Sunday did seem to have a mustache. Nice legs, though.

* Sticker on the toilet-paper dispenser in the men’s room at Bazaar del Mundo: “Recycle Congress.”

* A joint fund-raiser is planned for tonight at Rumors Cafe in Ocean Beach for former Gov. Jerry Brown and congressional hopeful Bill Winston.

Interesting since both of Winston’s major opponents in the Democratic primary, Byron Georgiou and Lynn Schenk, worked for the Brown Administration.

* A San Diego audience will help choose the $100,000 winner for television’s “America’s Funniest Home Videos” on May 17. Also audiences in L.A., Orlando, Fla., and Hartford-New Haven.

* Political activism by the ton.

A Save the Rhino Walk is set for 8 a.m. Saturday in Balboa Park.

* Newly formed in San Diego: A social group for former New Yorkers.

No, they do not sit around and compare mugging stories. I checked.

In the Eye of the Beholder

As you know, the hottest political issue in Carlsbad is the beachfront sculpture done by a New York artist.

Some see art. Others see a bunch of bars.

And now an untitled limerick by Charles Nordin in a mobile home park’s newsletter:

A Carlsbad artist, enraged

At an Easterner’s being engaged

To design a new park

Said, “She misses the mark

For she, not an ape, should be caged.”

Argentina international Enzo Fernandez signs for Manchester City in a deal from Chelsea worth 125 million pounds ($169m).

Manchester City equalled the British transfer fee record for a player when they signed midfielder Enzo Fernandez from Chelsea on deadline day for deals in Europe.

The 25-year-old Argentina international, who was part of his country’s team that reached the 2026 World Cup final, had long been linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge.

The deal, however, was stretched to the final few minutes of the summer transfer window, which shut at 22:00 GMT on Tuesday.

City confirmed the deal with a video on the social media platform X, with the fee matching the 125 million pounds ($169m) that Liverpool paid Newcastle for Alexander Isak last summer.

The deal seemed to have been agreed upon between the clubs hours before the window shut, allowing for the player to complete a medical, but doubts about the deal started to emerge with the clock ticking on the deadline.

Fernandez himself had taken to his Instagram page ahead of the deadline on Tuesday to bid farewell to Chelsea fans.

“I want you to know that these have not been easy days for me. Writing this is not easy either. The truth is, I haven’t been in a good place,” Fernandez wrote in a message directed to fans of the London club.

“Three years ago, Cobham [the club’s training ground] and Stamford Bridge became home for me and my family.

“Believe me when I say that, from the moment I arrived, I became obsessed with winning and with bringing this club every trophy that its history deserves.

“We suffered, we cried, I got angry many times, but we also celebrated titles and unforgettable victories. Together, through the good times and the difficult ones.”

Fernandez was part of the Chelsea side that won the UEFA Conference League in 2025 before going on to claim the expanded FIFA Club World Cup that year.

City boss Enzo Maresca worked with Fernandez at Chelsea before taking on the daunting task of succeeding Pep Guardiola at the Etihad.

The Italian was a driving force behind the deal to land Fernandez after the recent sale of influential World Cup winner Rodri to Barcelona, as well as the departures of fellow midfielders Bernardo Silva, Nico Gonzalez and Tijjani Reijnders.

The 25-year-old will partner with England international Elliot Anderson and Moroccan Ayyoub Bouaddi in City’s revamped central midfield at a cost of more than 300 million pounds ($405.4m).

“Every player wants to be part of a club like this, because everyone knows how well-run City are,” said Fernandez in his statement released by City upon completion of the deal.

“This is a club built for success. If you look across the squad, City have quality in every area. I want to learn from my new teammates and become a better player.”

Fernandez, who signed for Chelsea from Benfica for 106 million pounds ($143.2m) in 2023, angered the Blues last season by expressing interest in joining Real Madrid, and was dropped for two matches as a result.

He scored twice in Argentina’s run to the World Cup final, including a stunning strike against England in the semifinal.

But his tournament ended with a red card in the final as Argentina were beaten 1-0 to miss out on retaining their status as world champions.

“He is a complete midfielder: technically gifted, hardworking, tenacious, and a goalscorer,” said City’s director of football Hugo Viana.

“To have played in two World Cup finals and won major trophies in multiple countries at just 25 says everything you need to know about his mentality, professionalism and technical quality.

“We are delighted to bring him here, and feel very strongly he will improve our team.”

When the Angels won their lone World Series, this was the headline in the Los Angeles Times: “Fantasyland!”

Can we run that headline again?

For your new owner, Angels fans, you get a proven winner and real estate developer — more on that in a second — whose very name drips with baseball history.

You know him as Stan Kroenke, the owner of the Rams. His full name is Enos Stanley Kroenke, so named in honor of two St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Famers: Enos Slaughter and Stan Musial.

As he assembled his sports empire, baseball was the one sport that eluded him. He has the Rams, the Denver Nuggets, the Colorado Avalanche and Arsenal. He badly wanted the Dodgers, a runner-up in the bidding when Mark Walter bought them in 2012.

Now he is acquiring the Angels — at a $4-billion valuation, a record for a baseball team — and getting the closest thing to a blank slate that any owner can get without buying an expansion team.

The general manager? He’s an interim, and his contract expires this year.

The manager? His contract expires this year too.

The roster? The only players currently under contract for next year are outfielder Mike Trout — the Angels’ answer to Musial — and pitcher Yusei Kikuchi.

The stadium? The lease expires in six years.

The Angels’ playoff drought? The longest in the majors, going on 12 seasons. Go, Super Bowl champ, go!

For Kroenke, the first order of business might well be a comprehensive search for what would be the Angels’ answer to Les Snead and Sean McVay, the GM and head coach duo that led Kroenke’s Rams to a Super Bowl championship. The players might not be the next order of business. The deal is not expected to be approved until early 2027, according to a sale announcement, and who knows whether owners still will be locking out players by then?

But Kroenke appears to be the perfect guy to resolve the longest-running and most critical order of business in Anaheim: resolving the Angels’ future there.

For 60 years, the Angels have played in a stadium surrounded by 130 acres of parking lots. For 60 years, fans have driven into the parking lots, watched the game, and driven home. For 60 years, the city has lost untold millions in tax revenue by failing to build anything atop those parking lots.

Kroenke just does it. He is doing it around SoFi Stadium, which he built. He is doing it around the Rams’ training facility in Woodland Hills, which he built. He plans to do it around the sports arena he is building in San Diego.

Now Kroenke could lobby for a new ballpark in Inglewood, in place of the Forum, and call it synergy. James Butts, the mayor of Inglewood, has said he would frown upon a ballpark there.

But here’s betting Kroenke won’t ask. The sale announcement highlighted Kroenke’s “presence in one of the largest sports and entertainment markets in the United States” and said the purchase of the Angels “extends this footprint south into a market of more than three million residents with its own distinct civic identity, corporate base and tourism economy.”

Kroenke wants what all sports owners want these days: money coming out of a stadium site 365 days a year, not just on game days. That means shops, restaurants, homes, hotels, offices, parks, music venues, and food halls. And good luck to Kroenke or any other developer trying to find a vacant 130 acres in any urban area in Southern California, much less one adjacent to a train station and within three freeways.

This is already happening across the 57 Freeway from Angel Stadium, where Ducks owners Henry and Susan Samueli are putting up what they call the OC Vibe. Kroenke’s history indicates he would do something just as fun, and likely grander given that he’ll have more land, and suddenly Anaheim could be the coolest place to be in Orange County (*unless Olivia Rodrigo is putting on another Daisy Chain Fields festival in Irvine).

And, if Kroenke is willing to rename the team the Anaheim Angels, the city and its local assemblyman just pushed through a new law that could provide him with a significant financial incentive for development, which in turn could reduce his cost to build the new ballpark the Angels so desperately need.

The city owns the stadium and parking lots, so they were not part of the team sale. City officials have not met with Kroenke.

“Fans and residents welcome the start of a new chapter for baseball in Anaheim,” Mayor Ashleigh Aitken said. “I am encouraged by Stan Kroenke’s track record with the Rams and his commitment to investing in and uplifting neighborhoods.

“I look forward to working with the team’s incoming ownership to advance our city’s priorities around housing, open space and youth sports at the right time.”

For decades, Anaheim has loftily labeled the land around the neighborhood around the “Platinum Triangle.” Now the city might well have struck gold.

The local assemblyman that introduced that law, Avelino Valencia, could hardly have been any happier Tuesday.

“This is a big day for Anaheim,” Valencia texted me. “For 60 years, our community has filled Angel Stadium, raised a World Series banner as the Anaheim Angels, and shown up through every season.

“Few cities can offer a new owner a foundation like that. New ownership means new possibilities, and Anaheim is ready for them.

“I congratulate Stan Kroenke and Kroenke Sports and Entertainment on their agreement to purchase the Angels, and I welcome them home. Let’s build a partnership rooted in pride of place, a team that reflects the city it calls home, and the return of the Anaheim Angels.

“Anaheim is ready to work together, and Anaheim is ready to win.”

In a statement, Sen. Tom Umberg (D-Santa Ana) called it “a great day for Angels fans and Anaheim.”

As the stalemate between the city and Angels owner Arte Moreno grew more entrenched, the condition of Angel Stadium deteriorated. So did Moreno’s investment in the team.

Three years ago, the city commissioned an assessment of what it would take to keep Angel Stadium up and running for decades to come. We’re still waiting.

Those words, in a nutshell, exemplified the relationship between the team and the city in recent years. When the news broke Tuesday, a city official reached out to me to ask if it were true. And, after years of city officials sniping that the Angels had for a decade clipped the “of Anaheim” from their “Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim” name, the Angels emailed a statement confirming the sale with this headline: “Kroenke Sports & Entertainment to Acquire the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.”

After a season of “Sell The Team” chants, Moreno did. And, after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Valencia’s bill into law last week, the title of the law actually sounded more appropriate Tuesday: “The Home Run for Anaheim Act.”

Asked about a realistic target for Cardiff this season, 11-cap Poland international Beliek added: “First half of the table, for sure.

“We have two more spots in the play-offs, and I honestly believe we are more than capable of getting there, 100 per cent.

“If we can get more clinical in the final third and more stable at the back, we can beat any team in this division.”

Although centre-back is his preferred position, Bielik has previously been used as a defensive midfielder.

The former Arsenal youngster hopes to free up Cardiff’s attacking options to express themselves.

“We have some scary players up front,” he said. “Sheffield couldn’t cope with the energy and the quality we have up there.

“Us centre-backs have to work hard to make sure that our offensive players have an enjoyable game and create chances to win the game.”

Manchester City have opened talks with Chelsea in their bid to sign midfielder Enzo Fernandez.

In what is set to be one of the key narratives on transfer deadline day, City have set the wheels in motion towards what would be one of the most expensive deals of the summer.

It is understood Chelsea want a minimum of £120m for Fernandez and talks are under way as both clubs negotiate a price.

Fernandez, 25, worked with City manager Enzo Maresca during the Italian’s reign at Chelsea.

Maresca is keen to work with the Argentina international again, while Fernandez is open to a move to City.

Manchester City have agreed a deal worth up to £65m to sign Iliman Ndiaye from Everton.

The clubs reached an agreement on a deal worth a guaranteed £60m plus a further £5m in add-ons for the Senegal winger.

The news comes after Tottenham agreed deals with Everton on Friday night for Ndiaye to join the London club, with Richarlison moving the other way in a separate transfer.

However, sources are indicating Richarlison failed to agree personal terms with former club Everton, who are understood to have made a £35m offer for the Brazil forward.

As a result, Tottenham have been unable to proceed with the Ndiaye transfer.

In an emotional statement on Instagram on Monday, Richarlison said: “After everything I’ve been through in the last few years, I’ve decided that never again will anyone decide my future for me.

“If they reach an agreement between Spurs and Everton, I will return to my beloved club.

“My intention was to go back to the place where I was very happy, yes, but the negotiations happened only in the way certain people wanted, and it will no longer be like that.

“Despite all this turmoil, I am under contract at Spurs and will remain at the club’s disposal.”

Tottenham are now in talks to sign Chelsea winger Mykhailo Mudryk on a season-long loan.

Manchester City’s deal for Ndiaye comes after an £80m move for Liverpool forward Cody Gakpo looked set to collapse on Monday.

City had opened talks with Liverpool over a deal for the Netherlands international, with the Reds willing to sell Gakpo, providing they could sign a replacement.

Liverpool completed the signing of France forward Bradley Barcola from Paris St-Germain for a fee worth up to £123m on Monday, but want another attacking player if Gakpo were to leave.

The Anfield club had targeted moves for Brighton’s Yankuba Minteh and Crystal Palace’s Ismaila Sarr but the valuation of both players has proved problematic.

Liverpool are now expected to keep Gakpo, 27, unless they are able to revive a deal for a new winger before Tuesday’s deadline.

Elias joins the Premier League club on a five-year contract, their sixth signing in the summer transfer window.

Manchester City ‌have confirmed the signing of 22-year-old Brazilian winger ⁠Allan Elias ⁠from Palmeiras on a five-year contract, the club’s sixth summer arrival.

“Allan is a really exciting player, ⁠and we think he will be a big addition to the squad,” City’s Director of Football Hugo Viana ⁠said in a statement on Monday. “He has shown throughout his short career so far that he will fight to be the best he can be.”

According to reports in British media, City have ‌agreed to pay around $47 million for the player who came through the academy ranks at the Sao Paulo club and made 96 first-team appearances.

Elliot Anderson, Geronimo Rulli, Ayyoub Bouaddi, Jeremy Monga and Pierce Charles have also joined the club during this transfer ⁠window.

“This is a surreal moment for ⁠me. Manchester City, with everything they have won over the past 15 years, are one of the most attractive clubs in the world ⁠for players,” Allan said.

“To be able to sit here today and say I ⁠have joined them is the proudest ⁠moment of my life. I love Palmeiras and always will — but the decision to come to City was an easy one.”

Florianopolis-born Elias said he ‌hoped to be “another good Brazilian” in the Premier League and follow in the footsteps of the likes of ‌Gabriel ‌Jesus, Ederson and Fernandinho, who all won Premier League titles with City.

Manchester City have signed winger Allan Elias from Palmeiras in a deal worth up to £34.2m.

City have paid an initial £32m plus £2.2m in add-ons for the 22-year-old Brazilian, who has signed a five-year contract.

Allan is a direct replacement for compatriot Savio, who completed a £75m move to Tottenham Hotspur last week.

The right-sided winger scored nine goals and provided 12 assists in 96 appearances in all competitions for Brazilian top-flight side Palmeiras after progressing through the club’s youth system.

“This is a surreal moment for me. Manchester City, with everything they have won over the past 15 years, are one of the most attractive clubs in the world for players,” Allan said.

“To be able to sit here today and say I have joined them is the proudest moment of my life.

“I love Palmeiras and always will – but the decision to come to City was an easy one. I want to be the best footballer I can be and the conversations I’ve had with the people at City so far has convinced me there isn’t a better place for me to fulfil my ambitions.”

Allan is the latest addition to Enzo Maresca’s squad during a busy summer window.

City have spent over £230m so far this summer with Elliot Anderson arriving from Nottingham Forest for £116m and Ayyoub Bouaddi joining for £85.6m from Lille.

City are in talks with Liverpool over a move for Dutch forward Cody Gakpo and are keen to sign Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez.

However, City have raised over £286m in player sales with 2026 World Cup Golden Ball winner Rodri making a £65m move to Barcelona, and Tijani Reijnders joining Al-Qadsiah for £52m.

Nico Gonzalez and James Trafford also commanded significant fees, while Omar Marmoush’s loan to Tottenham includes an obligation to make the move permanent next summer for £60m.

Liverpool’s Dutch forward Gakpo is a transfer target for Premier League rivals Manchester City.

Virgil van Dijk is hoping Liverpool hang on to Cody Gakpo, with Manchester City reportedly closing in on the Dutch international before Tuesday’s Premier League transfer deadline.

Gakpo looks set to be pushed down the pecking order at Anfield by the arrival of Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain for a fee that could rise to $166m, making the Frenchman the second-most expensive player in Premier League history.

In three and a half years at Liverpool, Gakpo has scored 51 goals and played a major role in the club’s 20th English top-flight title in the 2024–25 campaign.

The 27-year-old has made a bright start to this season, scoring one goal and providing an assist as Liverpool have drawn their opening two games 2-2 against Newcastle and Nottingham Forest under Andoni Iraola.

But Liverpool appear open to cashing in on Gakpo, with City reportedly set to pay 75 million pounds ($101.6m).

“He’s a quality player, and I think we should keep quality players, but let’s see what the next three days bring,” said Van Dijk.

“Obviously, it’s pretty clear that I want him to stay, not only because he is the quality player that he is, but also [because] he’s a friend of mine, and I think he will be very important for us.”

Barcola has been tempted to England by the European champions despite a difficult time for the Reds, who finished fifth in the Premier League last season.

But Van Dijk is confident Liverpool will always remain a popular destination for the world’s top players.

“I think Liverpool are still one of the biggest clubs in the world. Obviously, we all know that we’re going through a transition, and you either want to be part of it, or you don’t. I’m part of it now,” he added.

“He’s [Barcola] a very good player. If he comes, he’ll be welcomed with open arms, but until it’s there, there’s no point speaking about it now.”

Iraola has had an early awakening as to why he was given the chance to replace the sacked Arne Slot, as Liverpool’s defensive issues have been exposed by Newcastle and Forest.

But in both games, Liverpool have twice come back from behind to salvage a point.

“It takes some time, but obviously we all want it to work as soon as possible and for 90 minutes,” said Van Dijk.

“That’s now two games in a row we’ve had to fight back. Obviously, it’s a good sign that we fight back, but I think we can still do much better than what we have been showing.

“We have to score more; we have to concede less. Nottingham Forest came here three times in the last three seasons and came away unbeaten, and that shouldn’t happen.”

Good morning, and welcome to L.A. on the Record — our City Hall newsletter. It’s David Zahniser, with an assist from Sandra McDonald and Noah Goldberg, giving you the latest on city and county government.

Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman is waiting to hear whether she has secured a prize coveted by many of the city’s left-of-center candidates: an endorsement from the Democratic Socialists of America.

Earlier this year, the DSA’s Los Angeles chapter took up the idea for the June 2 primary, only to decide against it. They made that decision after hours of debate, all under the watchful eyes of local reporters. The group later recommended Raman in its June 2 voter guide, but that didn’t give her access to the DSA’s vaunted get-out-the-vote apparatus, which goes only to endorsed candidates.

This time around, endorsement discussions for the Nov. 3 runoff were held behind closed doors, followed by an online vote now under way. But the debate has been playing out publicly on a somewhat obscure platform: Geese magazine, which bills itself as “a daily review of American Communism.”

Contributors to that online publication — which declares on its website “We answer to no one” — have been going back and forth for weeks over whether the DSA should endorse Raman, a DSA member herself, in her campaign to unseat Mayor Karen Bass.

Things got rolling on Aug. 11, when Geese posted a 4,400-word essay supporting a DSA endorsement of Raman, arguing that such a move could “open the floodgates for socialism in Los Angeles.”

The four writers, DSA-LA members themselves, conceded that Raman is “no Zohran” — a reference to New York City’s charismatic DSA mayor, Zohran Mamdami. They acknowledged that she’s had a sometimes turbulent relationship with the group, which endorsed her council campaigns in 2020 and 2024 but also censured her at one point, in part because she accepted an endorsement from a pro-Israel group.

Still, the essayists praised her work on homelessness and tenant protections. And they commended her for seeking greater cooperation with the organization in recent months, hiring DSA-LA members to lead her campaign.

“What this signals is that with a DSA-LA endorsement, we may anticipate more constructive collaboration with the Nithya campaign going forward,” the group wrote.

Not so fast, argued another group of Geese contributors. On Monday, those five writers — also DSA-LA members — panned the idea of an endorsement, saying Raman hasn’t earned it.

These writers assailed Raman for voting to confirm former Sheriff Jim McDonnell as Los Angeles police chief and for seeking a rewrite of Measure ULA, the so-called mansion tax, which she views as an impediment to housing production. The authors also portrayed her as woefully out of touch with the DSA on Israel’s war in Gaza.

“If we endorse Raman, a candidate who lacks the inspirational leadership and collaborative political relationship that forms the foundation of a strong DSA endorsement, we risk spending the next four years managing the consequences; explaining, defending, and organizing around the shortcomings of a mayor who was never meaningfully accountable to our democratic socialist movement in the first place,” the group wrote.

Two days later, third Geese essay showed up, arguing that Raman is “the nerd that can dig our city out of this crisis.” That piece sought to rebut some of the criticism contained in the previous essay, while conceding that Raman can be “overly fixated on details, slightly thin-skinned, obtuse, and argumentative.”

“But let’s not forget that Nithya also has a long list of positive attributes as well: she is an exceptional administrator — reducing homelessness in her district by 49% through careful service provision,” the group wrote, anointing her as “Our Pothole Populist.”

A fourth piece, also pro-Raman, posted Friday. Meanwhile, Bass has not emerged unscathed during the back-and-forth.

Geese’s contributors criticized Bass for refusing to let City Controller Kenneth Mejia audit her Inside Safe homelessness program, saying she showed a “disregard for democratic processes.” They assailed her over her handling of the Palisades fire, the Lineage fire, police spending and other issues.

The pro-Raman rebuttal piece had some of the harshest language, accusing Bass, who made many trips to Cuba earlier in her life, of being “puppeted by business interests, landlords, the more reactionary segment of labor, and a smattering of liberal NGOs.”

Bass has not sought the DSA’s backing, either in the primary or the runoff. But she does have endorsements from the council’s other three DSA members.

Raman needs to win 60% of the vote to secure the endorsement. More than 6,000 chapter members have received emails with online ballots.

Monday is the last day to vote.

Tracking Traci Park

City Councilmember Traci Park represents a Westside district that runs along the coast. But that didn’t stop her from heading to Sherman Oaks for the raucous Aug. 19 mayoral debate.

Her appearance in the audience immediately sparked questions. Was she trying to make a decision on whether to weigh in on the mayor’s race?

After all, Park is the only council member who has not publicly picked a horse. Thirteen of the council’s 15 members have come out for Bass. (Raman also endorsed Bass at one point, but then jumped into the race at the last minute.)

Park has made clear she is no political ally of Raman, diverging on such issues as the city’s anti-encampment law. Still, an endorsement of Bass could pose risks.

Park represents the Pacific Palisades, where residents have sharply criticized Bass over her handling of the Palisades fire, which destroyed thousands of homes and left 12 people dead.

On Friday, Park declined to say whether she plans to endorse, saying she simply wanted to “hear what both candidates have to say.”

“It was a mayoral debate. I’m a City Council member, taxpayer, and resident,” she said in a statement. “The progress we’ve made on the Westside is at stake.”

Back to school for Mazariegos

It’s supposed to be a little like traffic school — but instead of learning to drive more safely, you learn to run a by-the-book political campaign.

Community organizer Estuardo Mazariegos, who is running to replace City Councilmember Curren Price in a South Los Angeles district, is now enrolled. He agreed to take a seven module, roughly three-hour class on the state’s campaign finance laws to resolve a complaint filed with the Fair Political Practices Commission, said Jesse Alson-Milkman, a strategist for the campaign.

That complaint accused Mazariegos of failing to pay for community space during at least six “postcarding party” events held by his council campaign at Mercado La Paloma. The complaint was filed by Josh Rothstein, a member of the Mid City West Neighborhood Council, who says he submitted the paperwork in his own capacity.

Mazariegos is on leave as co-director of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, which hosts its corporate office at Mercado La Paloma. That facility charges for certain types of meeting space, yet Mazariegos’ spending report initially showed no payments or in-kind donations for such costs, Rothstein said.

Alson-Milkman said five of the postcarding events were held at the market’s public dining area, so no payment or in-kind donation was needed.

The campaign did have a sixth event where it rented a room for two and a half hours, Alson-Milkman said. But the invoice for $137.50 was lost, he said, delaying payment for months.

The FPPC concluded the violation can be remedied without an enforcement action or financial penalty by having Mazariegos take a Political Reform Education Program, or PREP class, Alson-Milkman said.

The class was created by the FPPC to help candidates who commit minor violations to avoid getting “a mark on their record” — or a financial penalty.

State of play

— CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS: We’ve told you in recent weeks about issues surrounding the Homeless Count: the failure to count a 600-bed homeless shelter in 2024 and 2025, which may have skewed this year’s numbers, and the wildly diverging numbers in Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson’s South L.A. district. On Wednesday, the council instructed the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority to report back on some of the discrepancies.

— VENDORS VEXED: Bass has ordered the LAPD to stop issuing criminal citations to street vendors and remove any that were erroneously issued. The mayor’s office took that step after learning that citations were being incorrectly handed to vendors in MacArthur Park, a situation reported by LA Public Press. The street vending issue has been a flashpoint in the mayor’s race in recent weeks.

— UNDER THE MICROSCOPE: With the mayor’s race heating up, Raman’s record on homelessness has come under fresh scrutiny, particularly her time overseeing the council’s housing and homelessness committee. Raman has touted her work in identifying less expensive strategies for tackling the crisis. Critics say her tenure as chair hasn’t adequately met the moment.

— AUDITING THE GAMES: Mejia, the city controller, called on LA28, the committee organizing the 2028 Summer Olympic Games, to turn over reports on its finances. Mejia said the private committee has fully complied with only two out of nine requirements of its contract with the city. The controller issued his statement on the same day that several lawmakers called on Trump to provide much-needed transportation funding for the event.

— NO IFS, AND OR PHENIBUTS: The City Council instructed the city attorney to regulate phenibut, a drug that’s available at gas stations and being abused as a nervous system depressant. The regulations would include warning labels, a prohibition on sales to people under 21 and a ban on sales near schools and daycare centers.

— WHISTLE BLOWER SPEAKS: The police officer who recorded his colleagues making racist remarks told The Times that the LAPD “ruined my life.” Council members had been planning to formally condemn Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman over his filing of 16 felony counts against Officer Daniel Flores. But they shelved that plan on Tuesday after those charges were reduced to misdemeanors.

— PROGRAMMING NOTE: Our newsletter will be going dark for the Labor Day holiday weekend. We’ll see you again on Sept. 12.

QUICK HITS

• Where is Inside Safe? The mayor’s signature homelessness program went to the Westside, focusing on an area around Venice Boulevard and Glendon Avenue, which is represented by Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky.
• On the docket next week: As we mentioned previously, the DSA will wrap up its endorsement vote in the mayor’s race.

Stay in touch

That’s it for this week! Send your questions, comments and gossip to LAontheRecord@latimes.com. Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Saturday morning.

OUR Spotlight On column shines a light on the best things to see and do in popular holiday destinations, as well as some lesser known spots.

As Brazil sees a record breaking number of British tourists flocking to the country in 2026, this week we’ve set our sights on Rio de Janeiro.

The Sun’s Deputy Travel Editor Kara Godfrey recently visited the iconic city.

She explained: “I’ve never been to a place that looked exactly like it did in the movies – enter Rio.

“From the 5am pink sunrise of Copacabana Beach, to the men selling teeny tiny bikinis all tied to a huge stick, the city welcomed me with vibrant colours and beautiful chaos.

“Make sure to do some shopping – Havaianas are a steal here compared to the UK, with too many shops to choose from – or just rent an umbrella and lounger for the day for less than £20.

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“Thanks to the many beach vendors, they’ll all come straight to you, serving cocktails, snacks, meals and even accessories.”

Here are some of our other top tips for a trip to the Brazilian capital.

MUST SEE/DO

Hop in a taxi and head over to the district of Santa Theresa, nicknamed Little Lisbon.

The resemblance comes from the very quaint yellow tram that runs the length of it to the fantastic independent shops and cafes.

Street art brings colour to the roads, alongside sellers hawking Brazilian football shirts and rogue monkeys swinging through the trees.

Make sure to order delicious acai bowls and ‘pão de queijo’ a cheesy bread, at Cultivar for a true Brazilian breakfast.

HIDDEN GEM

One of the famous Brazilian clothing brands is Farm Rio – but one has a hidden rooftop that no-one knows about.

Casa FARM rooftop is set across four floors but go to the top and you will get an amazing view of the beautiful Green Lagoon and Christ the Redeemer without the crowds.

BEST VIEW

You can’t visit Rio without going to see the famous Wonder of the World, Christ the Redeemer.

Make sure to check the weather before going up – any fog up there and you’ll only see half the man – but the massive statue surrounded by the city of Rio will leave you in awe of its grandeur.

Then head over to Sugarloaf mountain for just as fantastic views, after hopping in two cable cars to take you up the 1,299ft.

Rio express tour with Christ Redeemer and Sugarloaf Mountain, from £70. See tuimusement.com.

RATED RESTAURANT

Make the most of the beautiful Rio beaches and eat at Tropik Beach Club, which is on Copacabana Beach with hearty bowls of shrimp rice and fresh ceviche, chased by a local caipirinha cocktail and live music as the sun goes down.

If you get snacky on your walk home, try and catch one of the nearby street vendors for a bag of Biscoito Globo a strangely-morish cassava beach snack.

BEST BAR

For a good night out, join the locals in the neighbourhood of Botafogo.

One of the most popular bars is Casa Tão Longe, Tão Perto which serves local Brazilian wines from small distilleries.

You have to be quick here. The tiny rattan seats line the pavement and are in short supply, but it is worth it for the friendly English-speaking staff.

For something a bit finer, head around to Belisco Bar de Vinhos, which serves up fantastic Chilean and Argentinian wine as well.

HOTEL PICK

The Fairmont Rio de Janeiro Copacabana couldn’t be better placed, straddling both Copacabana and Ipanema beach.

The rooftop infinity pool has a great snack menu as well as live DJs and beautiful views from the many sunloungers.

The rooms are simple but classy and spacious, many of which have seaview balconies.

Make sure to spend time at breakfast – the buffet is extensive – and book in for a glorious massage at the on-site spa.

Double rooms at Fairmont Rio de Janeiro Copacabana cost from £277 based on two sharing on room-only basis. See fairmont.com.

EUROPEAN city breaks can easily break the bank.

One museum, two cups of coffee and a short taxi ride in Paris or Rome can have your banking app in the red before you have even considered lunch.

But, in Bulgaria’s capital, the grandest sight has a golden dome and a whole day on public transport costs a startlingly low £1.70.

Say “dobŭr den” (good day in the local lingo) to Sofia, a leafy, lively city, which is a brilliant value getaway still slipping under too many Brits’ radar.

I have been all over Europe, the US and the Gulf states and yet when it comes to the deal of the century, there is one country that stands head and shoulders above the rest — and that’s budget-friendly Bulgaria.

For proof, the latest Eurostat data showed Bulgaria has the lowest overall consumer prices in the EU, with hotels and restaurants around 48 per cent below the average.

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In short, Sofia is a city where your holiday money can stretch almost as far as the eye can see.

Do not mistake the price tag for a lack of star power, though.

The mighty Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, all green copper and glittering gold, has that wow factor.

From there, you can stroll past grand old buildings, pavement cafes and Vitosha Boulevard, which stretches toward the mountain of the same name, rising in the distance like a blockbuster backdrop.

I checked into the magnificent Grand Hotel Millennium Sofia — a luxurious 5* retreat with 400 rooms and apartments, plus an amazing spa centre, gym and four themed restaurants and a one-of-a-kind Sky Bar, overlooking the city.

All that luxury would set you back upwards of £300 in one of Europe’s big-hitting capitals like Paris. But this was less than half that cost.

As part of the hotel complex, there is also a casino, the Palms Royale, which offers classic games such as roulette, poker, blackjack and modern slot machines as well as its own 24-hour restaurant and an upmarket Asian eatery.

Casino owner Milo Borissov, who is keen to welcome more British visitors, tells me: “We attract customers from Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

“Over half are weekend tourists who come specifically for the high-class service and games that the casino offers, combined with the restaurants, and the modern hotel accommodation.”

If you are out of luck at the casino, all is not lost, for Bulgaria also has some of the lowest prices in Europe for public transport, clothing, food, alcohol (you can still find a beer for about £1.50) and tobacco.

So where should you head first? St Petka of the Saddlers is a tiny, single-nave church partly sunk into the ground beside the bigger city sights.

It is so modest you could almost miss it, but make sure you don’t.

Standing on the site of an earlier Roman religious building, it preserves murals from several centuries. Duck inside and you can swap traffic noise for candlelit calm in seconds.

After this, head towards the former Central Mineral Baths.

Bring a reusable bottle: a restored marble fountain by the baths delivers warm mineral water from the city’s historic springs.

It is the sort of pleasingly simple freebie that makes you feel you have joined the locals, not just ticked off a landmark.

For another bit of time travel, go down to the Serdika area and take a lingering look around.

Roman-era Sofia is not sealed behind a museum door here — archaeological remains including excavated streets and ancient basilicas are right in the heart of town.

The cleverest hidden stop, though, is the Eighties-style Red Flat, on Ivan Denkoglu Street.

This is not a dusty museum. It is an interactive, four-room apartment that lets visitors touch, poke about and listen their way through the everyday life of a Bulgarian family in the Communist era. It’s an educational eye-opener.

For lunch, skip the obvious international chains and go on a mini food crawl.

Browse the Women’s Market for colourful stalls of fruit and veg plus ceramics and souvenirs, then seek out a Bulgarian cafe for home-cooked delicacies, such as banistra (cheese pastry) and kyufte (spiced, grilled minced meat rolls).

Then finish off your day with a glass of local wine or coffee in one of the side streets.

In fact, why not stretch to two? With prices this low, you’d be mad not to.

Rayan Cherki refuses to hide his emotions, an open book for all to see and hear in times of joy and disappointment.

Moments after Manchester City had put down their first heavyweight marker of the post-Pep Guardiola era by brushing aside Crystal Palace, he was asked live on TV how much he enjoyed the game. Rather than providing the usual textbook answer, he instead gave a colourfully uncomplimentary – and unprintable – description of his own first-half performance.

Erling Haaland, standing alongside Cherki as he waited to hand over the player-of-the-match award, could only laugh at the France attacker’s sweary honesty.

Indeed, the 23-year-old also refuses to hide his talent, making a nonsense of his self-criticism by unveiling a Selhurst Park masterclass with two brilliant second-half goals in the 4-1 victory.

Cherki made his impact under Guardiola last season, although there was always a feeling the mercurial signing from Lyon for a bargain £30m could produce more. He made 33 Premier League appearances – but 14 of those were as a substitute.

And there is a sense that he already has something to prove under new boss Enzo Maresca amid City’s vast attacking resources, coming off the bench to assist the two late goals that gave them victory against Bournemouth on the opening weekend.

Cherki was seen in animated conversation with Maresca after the final whistle, but his reward was a start at Selhurst Park and he delivered the sort of irresistible performance he, as well as City, needed.

The words “Anaheim Angels” are now enshrined in California law.

Whether the baseball team that calls Angel Stadium home reverts to its hometown name remains to be seen. On Thursday, however, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law the “Home Run for Anaheim Act,” a step that elected officials in Orange County consider a significant step in that direction.

The new law, introduced by Assemblyman Avelino Valencia (D-Anaheim), cleared the state legislature without a single vote against it.

The law does not mandate the Angels — playing under a Los Angeles name in Anaheim’s city-owned stadium — revert to the Anaheim Angels name.

For now, in fact, the law does absolutely nothing. On Friday, the Los Angeles Angels play at Angel Stadium.

Instead, the law provides the city with an incentive to dangle before the team. If the Angels — whether under current owner Arte Moreno or a future owner — wish to develop the 150-acre Angel Stadium property, state law would prioritize affordable housing within the site.

In an era where team owners covet the profits from development around stadiums and arenas — including places for fans to eat, drink and shop 365 days a year, not just on game days — the city of Anaheim could seek an exemption from the affordable housing law. That wouldn’t rule out housing on the site, but it would give a team more flexibility to build whatever project might be considered most profitable.

If the city obtains the exemption, the new law says, “then any materials, including, but not limited to, a lease, deed of sale, and promotional or marketing materials, shall refer to that team as the Anaheim Angels.”

Moreno has twice reached deals with the city to develop the land, only to see the city walk away both times. In the last deal, he rejected the city’s request to rename the team the Anaheim Angels.

“We are proud to call Angel Stadium of Anaheim our home,” Angels spokeswoman Marie Garvey said, “and any other comment about the future would be premature.”

Moreno, 80, has shown no public interest in a third negotiation with the city. The Angels’ current stadium lease extends through 2032, and the team has options to extend the lease through 2038.

By year’s end, the city has said it anticipates the release of a long-awaited property assessment, which is expected to show Angel Stadium needs hundreds of millions of dollars in upgrades to remain viable for the long-term. The city and team may not agree on who should pay for them, and real estate development around the stadium could be part of the solution for funding a new or renovated stadium.

The city could use the exemption as leverage in discussions with Moreno or a new owner, although leverage could work both ways.

When Anaheim sued the Angels over the 2005 name change, city-commissioned experts testified in court that the Anaheim name was worth hundreds of millions of dollars to the city over the life of the lease. That could compel an owner to ask the city to contribute to the cost of building a new stadium in exchange for the return of the Anaheim name.

An almost vacant large urban site — an aging stadium surrounded by 130 acres of parking lots, sitting between three freeways and a train station — is rare in Southern California and surely would attract development interest among potential bidders for the Angels.

But any new owner would have one more bit of leverage: Once the Angel Stadium lease expires, the owner would be free to move out of Anaheim.

Last season’s runners-up, Arsenal, will play the likes of Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund and Lille in the league phase.

Two-time defending champions Paris Saint-Germain were handed meetings with Barcelona, Manchester City and Aston Villa, among their eight matches in the league phase of this season’s Champions League, when the draw took place on Thursday.

PSG, who beat Arsenal on penalties in Budapest in May to retain the trophy, will play Barcelona, Roma, Turkish champions Galatasaray and Slovan Bratislava of Slovakia at home.

Luis Enrique’s team will travel to England twice to face City and Villa. They beat both teams on the way to winning their first Champions League title in 2025, and also defeated the latter in the UEFA Super Cup in Austria earlier this month.

The French champions will also go to Spain to play Villarreal and Italy to take on a Como side coached by Cesc Fabregas.

“I can’t say anything bad about the Champions League, but I won’t be watching the draw. I will be relaxing and going out on my bike, then we’ll take a look at the menu. But I would sign up for the same result as in the last two years,” Luis Enrique told reporters earlier Thursday.

PSG are aiming to become European champions for a third straight year, something only the Real Madrid of 2016 to 2018 have achieved in the last 50 years.

The first matches in this season’s league phase will be played between Tuesday, September 8 and Thursday, September 10, with the final games in late January. UEFA is expected to announce the full fixture schedule on Saturday.

Last season’s runners-up, Arsenal, the Premier League champions, will notably host Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund and Lille, as well as Sabah, the club from Azerbaijan who came through four two-legged qualifying ties to reach the league phase for the first time.

The Gunners have a tough list of away ties against Bayern Munich, Real Betis, Napoli and Slavia Prague.

Fenerbahce back, Viking in

Andoni Iraola’s Liverpool will be at home to Atletico Madrid, Porto, Villarreal and Lens, while playing Inter Milan, Club Brugge, Fenerbahce and Austrian league phase debutants LASK away.

Manchester United, who were not in the first pot of seeds, have home games against Bayern, Roma, RB Leipzig and Sabah, and also a series of difficult away fixtures against Atletico, Sporting of Portugal, Villarreal and Como.

Other notable games include Manchester City visiting Barcelona and Real Madrid entertaining Inter, while last season’s Europa League winners, Villa, must go to Barcelona and play Dortmund at home. Unai Emery’s team will also tackle Istanbul giants Galatasaray and Fenerbahce.

The latter are appearing in the Champions League proper for the first time since 2008/09 after beating Lyon in the playoffs this week.

New names in this season’s competition are Como, who have upset the traditional order in Serie A, and Sabah, while LASK made it to this stage for the first time after a stunning comeback win over Celtic in the playoffs.

Last year’s Norwegian champions Viking, from the city of Stavanger, have reached the Champions League proper for the first time, too, and they have a glamorous fixture schedule that includes Bayern, Atletico, Villa and Napoli.

This is the third season since the introduction of the new format for the Champions League, with 36 teams now all pooled together in one giant league and each playing games against eight different opponents.

This season’s final will be played at the Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid on June 5, 2027.

European champions Paris St-Germain will face Premier League duo Manchester City and Aston Villa as well as five-time winners Barcelona in the league phase of this season’s Champions League.

The back-to-back Champions League winners will welcome Barca to Parc des Princes, while they were also handed trips to Villa Park and Manchester in the draw for the league phase.

Premier League champions Arsenal, meanwhile, will host 15-time winners Real Madrid at Emirates Stadium, and have also been handed a trip to Bayern Munich.

Mikel Arteta’s men, who were beaten by PSG on penalties in the final last season, will face Borussia Dortmund, Real Betis, Lille, Napoli, Azerbaijan champions Sabah and Slavia Prague as well.

Enzo Maresca’s City will welcome PSG to Etihad Stadium and travel to Barcelona, where they will have a reunion with Spanish World Cup-winner Rodri, who moved to the Nou Camp in a £65m deal this summer.

City will also be up against another of their former midfielders in Kevin de Bruyne when Napoli visit Manchester, with Sporting, Porto, RB Leipzig, AEK Athens and Lens their other opponents.

Europa League winners Villa, returning to the competition after a season away, will host PSG and Dortmund and travel to Barcelona and Galatasaray.

Unai Emery’s side also face Club Brugge, Fenerbahce, Viking and Slavia Prague.

Manchester United, returning after a two-year hiatus, will meet Bayern, Atletico Madrid, Roma, Sporting, Leipzig, Villarreal, Sabah and Como.

Liverpool, meanwhile, host Atletico, Porto, Villarreal and Lens while visiting Inter Milan, Brugge, Fenerbahce and LASK.

The first league-phase matches will be played on Tuesday, 8 September and the last round of games will take place on 27 January 2027, with the exact schedule to be released on Saturday.

This season’s final will be held in Madrid on 5 June.