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The brand new series hosted by Steph McGovern follows amateur art dealers putting their skills to the test

BBC Two’s brand new series has been plunged into chaos as contestants clash on air.

Former BBC Breakfast host Steph McGovern has returned to television screens for the hit BBC series that is set to rival The Apprentice.

The Big Deal with Steph McGovern follows seven trainee art dealers from around the UK who are putting their creativity, negotiating and profit making skills to the test as they battle it out to win a piece of art worth a staggering amount.

Airing new episodes every Thursday at 8pm on BBC Two, tonight’s instalment (Thursday, August 20) follows the six remaining amateur pairs who are split into two teams and challenged to sell contemporary art to furnish multi million pound homes.

A synopsis read: “Host Steph McGovern and series mentor Cordelia de Freitas are joined by Peter Staunton, an award-winning luxury interior designer who is on hand to tell the dealers about his clients’ tastes, as well as sharing tips and tricks when it comes to investing in art for the home.”

The dealers had a limited time to hunt for the best works before pitching their ideas directly to the homeowners – those with the lowest amount of commission would face elimination.

And it wasn’t long before tensions started to rise as the show was plunged into chaos. The teams were split into two larger groups, with opinions regularly clashing between Daisy and Darren.

Later, series mentor and art dealer Cordelia de Freitas and Peter Staunton, award-winning luxury interior designer met up with the teams to see what art work they had bought.

Despite a brief of a bronze sculpture, Daisy and Rebecca returned with two blue pieces as Cordelia said “talk about that” when it came to discussing the artist.

However, Daisy replied: “But guys, we’re not pitching to you right now”, as Cordelia added: “We’re here to help.” Daisy went on to say: “No, no it’s been a long day trust me, we can turn it on tomorrow.”

Speaking to cameras, team member Darren admitted: “Would I have picked those blue whatever they were? No absolutely not.”

Darren and Graham and Daisy and Rebecca clashed again later on the show when they butted heads choosing a sculpture design to pitch.

When Darren said they would get to the story behind their chosen design, Rebecca hit back: “Is there much point if we’re not going to pitch it”, to which Daisy stated: “Mum just leave it.”

Clashing on their opinions, the group continued to talk over one another as their co-stars looking on from the sidelines, Deborah and Rebeckah, told cameras: “I had to clock out because I found it distasteful and I’m not here to disgrace myself so I wanted to step out of it.”

Also speaking to producers, Darren said: “There’s definitely a divide there but again, this comes down to personality and taste. We’re not always going to like what other people like and they aren’t going to like what we like.”

The Big Deal with Steph McGovern airs every Thursday at 8pm on BBC Two

Oceania have offered support to Gianni Infantino, but New Zealand have gone against their own confederation in FIFA row.

New Zealand has become the latest nation to withdraw its support for FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s re-election bid over his aborted commercial rights stake sale plan, while Oceania’s confederation cautiously backed the ⁠governing body’s leadership.

Infantino has faced open revolt after three confederations – Europe’s UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF (North and Central America and Caribbean) – called for a review of his leadership and attacked his conduct over the plan to bring private investment into FIFA competitions.

Infantino will seek re-election for a fourth term in ⁠charge of the global governing body at the FIFA Congress next year, with the African and South American confederations declaring their continued support.

New Zealand, the only Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) nation to qualify for this year’s World Cup, said on Friday it had withdrawn support for Infantino and that the review of the stake sale proposal should be independent due to a loss of confidence and trust in FIFA’s leadership.

“We’ve called for an independent review specifically because what we don’t ‌want to see is a sort of in-house quick washover of this,” New Zealand Football (NZF) Chief Executive Andrew Pragnell told the Reuters news agency.

“An independent review is something else that has been called for by other confederations that will help restore some of the trust.”

The OFC said in a statement that it welcomed FIFA’s decision to withdraw the proposal and that football in the Oceania region had grown under the current FIFA leadership.

“OFC recognises the progress achieved over the last decade in advancing football development in Oceania under FIFA’s leadership and encourages FIFA to use the review as an opportunity to identify and implement any changes that may be necessary,” it added.

What allies does Infantino have?

Swiss Infantino had proposed carving off ⁠the commercial rights to the World Cup and selling 20 percent to private investors to raise about $4.2bn before ⁠a U-turn following the furore.

The proposal came with a $20m grant for member associations for the next funding cycle, an amount that could have been doubled if they signed the deal.

Following a crisis meeting in Morocco last week, FIFA apologised to its 211 member associations for mistakes in the handling of the proposal and said its leadership had ⁠full support for Infantino.

Despite the opposition of the three confederations, which represent 136 of the 211 member associations who will vote in the FIFA presidential election in March, Infantino still has plenty of allies in the game.

Six ⁠heads of Arab national football associations, including Qatar and 2030 World Cup cohost Morocco, firmly ⁠backed him on Thursday, saying they appreciated his “sustained efforts to advance football globally”.

The Confederation of African Football’s executive committee also unanimously confirmed its support for Infantino, though, there is no guarantee of a bloc vote from all 54 members.

Pragnell said an independent review into the scrapped FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal needed to shed light on decision-making and oversight at FIFA.

It should ‌also identify who was involved in the plan for Thrive Capital, a firm with close familial links to US President Donald Trump, to play a leading role in the venture.

“I think the scope needs to be considered really carefully, but what’s most important is that all confederations should agree ‌on ‌the scope, and it needs to get under way with urgency,” Pragnell told Reuters.

AFC member Australia has also called for an independent review alongside the Asian bloc, without publicly expressing a position on Infantino’s leadership.

“Based on what we’ve seen, including [Australia’s] commitment to the AFC statement, we’re strongly aligned,” Pragnell said.

June 6 (UPI) — Pope Leo XIV landed in Madrid Saturday to begin his one-week papal visit to the country, the first in 15 years.

Leo was greeted at the airport by King Felipe VI and his wife Queen Letizia, then addressed them at the Royal Palace along with politicians and diplomats.

He acknowledged political polarization and called for an end to it in Spain and elsewhere in the West.

“I come among you to affirm, encourage and instill a renewed fidelity to the Gospel among believers, as well as a deeper reconciliation and collaboration among the various elements of this nation,” the first American pope said.

“In reality, the message of peace, which at present unfortunately strikes some as naive and others as confrontational, is welcomed by those who do not shut themselves off in preconceived ideologies, but are rather open to the truth,” Leo said.

Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Díaz told the Washington Post that the left in Spain embraces the pope.

“The [left’s] alignment with Pope Francis was immediate: He defended Spain’s labor reform and the Episcopal Conference also supported it, something that would have seemed unthinkable 20 years ago,” she said. “With Leo XIV, that alignment deepens.”

The Spanish far-right are battling the Church, which they believed an ally. They are particularly upset over the church’s advocacy for migrants, The Washington Post reported. The left once saw the Church as complicit in the Franco dictatorship.

“The far right in Spain wants to copy the far right in the United States,” Bishop José Mazuelos Pérez, who heads a Canary Islands diocese providing shelter, food, blankets and medical care for arriving migrants, told The Post. “To go to war with the bishops over the issue of migration.”

On Monday, Leo will address the Spanish parliament, which is gridlocked. He’s expected to discuss that type of polarization, and his other visits around the country highlight differing segments of the Church.

He will have a prayer vigil with young people Saturday, then march Sunday in a traditional Spanish street procession.

On Thursday, Leo plans to visit the Canary Islands, a landing for Latin American migrants and for those arriving by sea from the African coast. He is planning to visit Lampedusa on July 4, an Italian island where migrants from Africa and beyond land.

On his flight to Spain, Leo acknowledged that he would be competing popular with Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny, who played the Super Bowl halftime show this year, for Spanish attention. Bad Bunny is scheduled to perform in Madrid Saturday night.

Leo said that more young people are turning to the Church, looking for something more.

“If they are confronted with the question: do they want to see Bad Bunny or do they want to see the pope, I think many will see Bad Bunny,” Leo said. “But I think there will also be a few here to see the pope. And that says something.”

On Sunday, the pope will celebrate mass on the feast of Corpus Christi in the Plaza de Cibeles. There will be a Corpus Christi procession, the Vatican said. He will also meet privately with members of the Order of St. Augustine to which he belongs.

Later, he will go to a gathering of representatives of culture, arts, business and sports at Madrid’s Movistar Arena.

The Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni said, “Leo XIV’s trip to Spain is a sign that, despite the secularization of society, the pope still has something to say in many areas, in Spain and in Europe, where he can play a constructive role in public debate,” Euro News reported.