Carlos Alcaraz has withdrawn from the Cincinnati Open as he continues to recover from a wrist injury.
The world number two has not played since he pulled out of the Barcelona Open in April, missing Wimbledon and the chance to defend his French Open title.
After winning the event in 2025, Spain’s Alcaraz was due to return at the Cincinnati Open as part of preparations for his defence of the US Open, which begins on 30 August.
Instead, the organisers of the Ohio event – which starts on 11 August – said that “an ongoing wrist injury” will prevent the 23-year-old from taking part.
“We know Carlos is doing everything he can to get back to playing tournaments as soon as possible,” said tournament director Bob Moran.
“We wish him the best with his recovery and look forward to welcoming him back to Cincinnati in the future.”
Ireland’s women must plan for the forthcoming World Cup without distinguished goalkeeper Ayeisha McFerran, who has been ruled out of the tournament through injury.
McFerran’s many achievements in the game included being named Goalkeeper of the Tournament at the 2018 World Cup, at which Ireland were silver medallists.
Head coach Gareth Grundie has announced a 20-player squad to travel to Wavre, Belgium.
In McFerran’s absence, Lizzy Murphy and Holly Micklem are named, offering them their first chance to potentially represent Ireland in goal on one of hockey’s biggest stages.
The side will be making their third successive appearance at at a World Cup, having beaten Japan in a shootout in the bronze medal match in Santiago to ensure qualification for the 2026 edition.
Ireland, who are ranked 12th in the world, have been drawn in Pool C of the competition, and will face Spain in their opening match on 16 August, before playing New Zealand two days later and Belgium on 20 August.
A top-two finish in the pool would allow Ireland to progress to Pool E for a shot at a place in the semi-finals, while a third or fourth place finish would send them to Pool H where they will begin their final classification matches.
Meanwhile, Ireland men’s coach Mark Tumilty has also announced a 20-strong squad as the side prepare to make their first appearance in the competition since 2018.
Tumilty has named an unchanged squad from that which secured qualification in Santiago in March courtesy of a comprehensive semi-final win over Wales, before coming from behind to beat France in the final.
Ireland’s men are 10th in the world rankings and have been drawn in Pool C of the competition, taking on Australia in their opener on Sunday, 16 August, before facing South Africa and Spain on 18 and 20 August respectively.
As with the women, a top-two place would put the team into Pool E for a semi-final chance, while they would enter Pool H for classification fixtures if they come third or fourth.
Ireland women’s squad: Elizabeth Murphy, Holly Micklem, Roisin Upton, Hannah McLoughlin, Caoimhe Perdue, Lena Neill, Sarah McAuley, Ellen Curran, Lisa Mulcahy, Sarah Hawkshaw, Charlotte Beggs, Michelle Carey, Christina Hamill, Mia Jennings, Katie Mullan, Sarah Torrans, Aisling Utri, Mikayla Power, Niamh Carey, Emily Kealy.
Ireland men’s squad: Jaime Carr, Luke Roleston, Kyle Marshall (capt), Peter McKibbin, Mark McNellis, Sam Hyland, Gregory Williams, Fergus Gibson, Lee Cole, Luke Witherow, Sean Murray, Johnny McKee, Peter Brown, Adam McAllister, Matthew Nelson, Benjamin Walker, Jeremy Duncan, Ali Empey, Louis Rowe, Jonny Lynch.
When Linda’s son Michael (Paul Ready) gets her an AI eldercare robot to help her, it’s clear she’s less than thrilled with the decision.
Although she initially wanted to return her new robot companion, Linda quickly changed her mind, and what follows is a hilarious, unlikely and unconventional relationship.
Appearing on The One Show, actress Diane Morgan spoke to Alex Jones and Vernon Kay about the lengths she went to accurately play the robot.
Diane commented: “It’s really hard! I got an ulcer, did I tell you I got an ulcer? Yeah, I didn’t blink.
“I made the stupid decision to not blink. What an idiot. I was wearing these really thick blue contact lenses.”
Vernon cut in to share her confusion as she highlighted that Diane already has blue eyes.
The BBC star replied: “I know! I got an ulcer, so I stopped wearing them. I said, ‘Oh, how are we going to film the rest of it?’
“They just said, ‘We’ll do it in post’. I was like, ‘Well, what’s the point of me wearing them?!’”
As her co-star shared that he thought it was worth it, Vernon added: “You suffered for your art.”
Since the series was released earlier this month, BBC viewers have had nothing but praise for the show, with many admitting to binge-watching it in one sitting.
One person online commented: “Love ANN DROID.” Another wrote: “This show was amazing!! Sad, happy, funny and emotional.”
Someone else commented: “Absolutely loved it and Diane is just fabulous.” While a fourth wrote: “Binge watched on iplayer… so so good!!!!”
Another added: “Excellent series – funny, poignant and current – congratulations.”
Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman all but confirmed Wednesday that the team would be in contact with the Tigers to gauge their asking price for reigning AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.
“There just aren’t that many star-level players in the game,” Friedman said Wednesday afternoon when asked how aggressive the Dodgers would be in pursuing big-name players. “Any time one is available, we’re always going to participate in those conversations. We’ve shown to be very aggressive in the past. … We’ve traded a lot of really talented young players.
“But we’re able to be in those conversations because of the incredible work by our scouts and our front office and our player development group that has our farm system in such a strong spot to be able to talk to any team basically about any player.”
All that was expected. Checking in is simply due diligence.
Friedman avoided showing his hand when asked the odds of the Dodgers acquiring a player like that at the deadline.
“I don’t know,” he said. “I’m not in the handicapping business.”
Part of the calculation, with the Tigers on a skid that could push them to sell at the deadline, will be the health of the Dodgers’ pitching staff, which is steadily improving. So, instead of trying to fill specific holes, the Dodgers have the luxury of reading the market and being “a little bit more selective and opportunistic.”
Before the Dodgers’ game against the Mariners on Wednesday, they activated closer Edwin Díaz and designated left-hander Charlie Barnes for assignment. Right-handed starter Tyler Glasnow (back spasms) threw two innings of live batting practice, and right-handed reliever Blake Treinen (right elbow inflammation) threw one simulated inning.
Over in Class-A Ontario, left-hander Blake Snell (arthroscopic elbow surgery) was set to make what could be his last rehab start before being reinstated from the IL, although Friedman said the team was still talking through the next steps.
Two-way star Shohei Ohtani’s timeline back to the mound is the biggest unknown, but Friedman insisted that his lingering knee injury didn’t change the Dodgers’ evaluation of its rotation heading into the deadline.
“I don’t think it puts it in an acute need at all,” Friedman said. “We’re confident he’s going to come back. Again, if there was something structural, then we would be much more concerned with that. But there’s not. And the fact that it does keep improving suggests that we’re on the right path and feel very confident that he will be back.
“And then that’s also where it gets to the depth that we have and the talented arms that have stepped up with some of our injuries, that we feel like deserved an opportunity to keep going. So it just doesn’t fall into acute. That being said, we’re always open-minded to different things.”
Friedman also offered some insight on Ohtani’s right biceps injury, which he first publicly acknowledged on July 3 and that he said Tuesday night was not 100%. Ohtani hasn’t pitched in a game since that July 3 start, when the biceps issue flared in his last at-bat.
“If it weren’t for the knee, he would be pitching right now, he would be making his regular turn [in the rotation],” Friedman said. “We kept the arm going. Does he feel 100% in his arm? No. But neither does any pitcher in late July. But this is around the knee and making sure that we can get it to a place where there’s just no compensation. So exactly when that is, I’m not sure. But I feel confident that relatively soon, he’s going to start getting out and start ramping up for catch play and bullpens and getting him back.”
Ohtani’s timeline, however, hasn’t progressed the way the Dodgers initially expected since receiving an Orthovisc injection to lubricate his knee at the beginning of the All-Star break. They’d hoped he’d return to the rotation in its first turn out of the break. Instead, he threw a bullpen in Philadelphia last week, and then his throwing program stalled.
It’s also unclear what version of Ohtani the Dodgers will get when he returns to the mound.
“There’s no question it got significantly better,” Ohtani said in Japanese of the effects of the injection. “But after talking with the doctors, I don’t think it’s realistic to expect the pain to be zero. That may end up being something that has to wait until the offseason. In the meantime, I’ll keep working through my rehab program and try to get it as close to zero [pain] as possible.”
While playing through the knee injury, and searching for a mechanical adjustment to take some pressure off it, Ohtani’s execution has wavered. He had a 4.38 ERA in his last four starts, compared to 0.74 in his first 10.
“I think it speaks to the knee and the delivery and just the challenge of repeating it over and over and over again,” Friedman said, “and more speaks to why we are doing this and making sure that we get it calmed down and in a good spot so he can repeat. Then I’ll bet on him to execute.”
A sickening injury to England’s Gabriel Langton overshadowed his team’s silver medal in the men’s team gymnastics final at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
The 19-year-old, from the City of Birmingham Gymnastics Club, needed lengthy treatment on the mat after a horrible fall in the final rotation of the evening at The Arena.
Langton fell head first to the floor after missing his catch on the horizontal metal bar, three metres in the air, leading to a lengthy delay to the action as he was tended to by up to a dozen medical staff.
He was eventually led away on a trolley after being moved on to a stretcher with his head and neck braced and left to huge applause from the packed crowd who had spent much of the previous 10 minutes in hushed silence.
Langton was seen to be conscious and moving his legs and arms before leaving the arena floor, while team officials later said he was moving and speaking to doctors.
In a statement, Team England said: “We are grateful to the medical teams who responded immediately to provide assistance.
“He has been taken to hospital and we will share more information when it is available.”
When competition resumed, his England team-mates were unable to overhaul their deficit to Canada who claimed their first gold medal in the event in 20 years, having finished second to England at the past two games.
Langton, a late call-up to Team England in the place of the injured six-time Olympic medallist Max Whitlock, was unable to join his teammates on the podium as England collected their silver medals.
Team-mate Luke Whitehouse, who was first on to the apparatus after the competition restarted and posted a relatively low score of 11.700, said: “When something like that happens, you’ve just got to forget about it and reset. I just had to focus on my routine one skill at a time.”
Whitehouse added: “From what we’ve heard, he’s doing OK. Gymnastics is such a dangerous sport and things like this remind us of that. It’s one of those things you have to put out of your mind.”
Felix Dolci, who helped Canada to gold and led qualifying for the all-around competition, said: “It’s terrible but it goes to show that gymnastics is a very, very difficult and complicated sport. It’s dangerous you know sometimes.
“All our thoughts go to Gabriel and the team. Pushing through this is definitely not easy, England stayed focussed, they stayed in the zone, a huge shout out to them because that’s not an easy one.
“For any gymnast that was on the field of play, seeing this not only is difficult, but something you never want to see. It goes to show how hard the sport is.”
Hamish Carter from Team Scotland – who narrowly missed out on a bronze medal to Australia in the final rotation – said: “I didn’t actually see what happened. I’m just so happy that he’s alright and, having experienced that, anything could have happened.
“We’ve walked away with no medal but I’m thinking of Gabe in this moment.”
Six days after winning his first race in nearly a year, the multiple Grade 1-stakes-winning colt Journalism has been retired.
Coolmore America and Journalism’s ownership group on Friday announced the 4-year-old son of Curlin sustained an injury at the start of Saturday’s San Diego Handicap at Del Mar. The nature of the injury was not revealed.
Journalism broke slowly in the race when he moved forward just before the gate opened, then hit the side of the stall. He spotted the field several lengths but rallied to capture the 1 1/16-mile race for his first victory in five starts since winning the Haskell Stakes last July at Monmouth Park.
In addition to the Haskell, Journalism earned Grade 1 wins in the Preakness Stakes and Santa Anita Derby and was second in the Kentucky Derby, Belmont Stakes and Pacific Classic. The San Diego was his third Grade 2 win, along with the Los Alamitos Futurity and San Felipe Stakes.
He retires with seven wins, three seconds and three thirds from 14 starts, with earnings of $4,770,755.
Michael McCarthy trained Journalism for an ownership group headed by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, which paid $825,000 for him as a yearling. The colt already was scheduled to begin stallion duty next year at Coolmore’s Ashford Farm in Versailles, Ky.
“What Journalism did at Del Mar was the mark of a true champion,” McCarthy said in the news release. “To suffer an injury in the gate, give away that much ground, and still win purely on heart and class tells you everything you need to know about him. He owes us absolutely nothing. While it’s tough to see his racing career end this way, protecting him is our top priority, and he goes to stud at the top of his game.”
Centre back William Saliba won’t require surgery for injury sustained at World Cup, his club says.
Published On 23 Jul 202623 Jul 2026
Arsenal defender William Saliba will be sidelined for an extended period after suffering a back injury while playing for France during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the reigning Premier League champions say.
Saliba was hampered by the injury throughout the tournament in North America, limiting his training. He was substituted in the first half of France’s 2-0 semifinal defeat by Spain and missed the 6-4 third-place playoff loss to England.
“Subsequent specialist reviews on William’s return to London this week have confirmed that he has suffered a back injury which will require a period of rehabilitation,” Arsenal said in a statement on Wednesday.
France’s William Saliba shakes hands with coach Didier Deschamps after sustaining an injury and being escorted off the pitch [Marco Bello/Reuters]
“Extensive assessments have concluded that surgery is not recommended, but William should now commence a managed recovery programme.
“Everyone is fully focused on supporting William to ensure he is back to full fitness as soon as possible.”
Saliba made 50 appearances across all competitions for the North London club last season as the Gunners ended a 22-year wait to win the Premier League title and also reached the Champions League final.
NEW YORK — Lost amid the headlines about Tarik Skubal, the Dodgers face this unexpected reality as the trade deadline looms: They would like to add a starting pitcher, but they need to add a catcher.
Will Smith has not played in six weeks. In a “best case” scenario, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Friday, Smith would miss another month.
That left Roberts to make a jolting admission, when I asked him if the team really can count on Smith returning this season.
“We don’t know,” Roberts said, “but we certainly are counting on it.”
Would it be nice for the Dodgers to get their three-time All-Star catcher back in time for October? Of course.
Should the Dodgers count on it? Of course not.
The Dodgers won’t know where Smith stands by the Aug. 3 trade deadline. That means now is the time to acquire a catching option they may or may not need later.
Dalton Rushing, the primary catcher in Smith’s absence, has a .799 OPS. Among the 24 major league catchers with at least 200 plate appearances entering play Friday, Rushing ranked fifth in OPS.
He is hitless in his last 13 at-bats. His batting average: .266 before Smith’s injury, .233 since then.
On defense, Rushing ranks next-to-last in defensive runs saved among major league catchers, ahead of only the Angels’ Logan O’Hoppe. On Friday, in the Dodgers’ 2-1 victory at Yankee Stadium, the Yankees scored their only run on Rushing’s passed ball.
In past Octobers, the Dodgers have prioritized defense at catcher. In the 2020 World Series, Austin Barnes caught ahead of Smith in four of the six games, including the final two.
In 2025, with Smith recovering from a hand injury, Ben Rortvedt started ahead of Rushing in the Dodgers’ first four postseason games. Rortvedt was a trade deadline acquisition last summer, picked up with pitcher Paul Gervase from the Tampa Bay Rays for catcher Hunter Feduccia.
Will Smith bats for the Dodgers against the San Francisco Giants on April 22.
(Ezra Shaw / Getty Images)
Rortvedt, currently playing in triple-A for the New York Mets, fits the profile of what the Dodgers need now: a defense-first catcher with major league readiness. With Smith injured, the Dodgers first tried and then cut minor league journeyman Chuckie Robinson at backup catcher. Their current backup, Eliezer Alfonso, made his major league debut in his ninth professional season; he is hitless in nine at-bats.
Could the Dodgers pursue an established catcher, say Ryan Jeffers of the Minnesota Twins or Francisco Alvarez or Luis Torrens of the New York Mets? Possible, but probably not necessary.
Rushing could be their guy. Smith could be back.
Smith has started and re-started baseball activities, only to find out that the inflamed disk in his neck flares up.
“He hasn’t been able to get over the hump,” Roberts said.
The Dodgers are trying another round of complete rest before asking him to try hitting or throwing again.
“We felt that, if he’s inactive, it gives it a good chance to get all the inflammation out, the soreness out, the pain, increase flexibility, all of it,” Roberts said. “Then he has a fighting chance to work his way back. Trying to do everything — even at a lesser dosage — just wasn’t feasible.”
Trying to trade for Skubal might not be feasible, at least so long as his Detroit Tigers remain in the American League wild-card race. The Tigers won seven of their final 10 games in the first half, and they face teams with losing records in 13 of their 16 second-half games ahead of the trade deadline, starting with the Angels this weekend in Anaheim.
The Dodgers do not need a depth starter. However, they might do well to find someone they would feel comfortable starting the third or fourth game of a playoff series, lest they count on Blake Snell (elbow) and Tyler Glasnow (back) and Shohei Ohtani (knee) all returning to the mound healthy and effective.
Important, yes. As important as another catcher, no.
For a team that will spend almost half a billion dollars on its player payroll and luxury tax this season, its most important trade deadline pickup could be a catcher making maybe $1 million.
Outlets like the Washington Post seized the earthquake to retroactively attack Hugo Chávez. (Helena Carpio)
A devastating double earthquake hit Venezuela on June 24, leaving a trail of destruction and thousands dead. Dozens of buildings collapsed in coastal La Guaira State, the worst affected in the South American country.
The natural disaster followed two unnatural catastrophes: a decade-plus of US-led economic sanctions, and the January 3 US bombing attack and kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro.
But rather than sympathize with the beleaguered country, the Western media establishment seized the opportunity to continue demonizing the Bolivarian Revolution—while whitewashing Washington’s economic terrorism and its present efforts to tighten its semi-colonial stranglehold on the country (FAIR.org, 2/27/26).
An assault on public housing
The ground had barely stopped shaking when corporate media oligopolies took aim at one of the most visible pillars of Hugo Chávez’s legacy: Venezuela’s Great Housing Mission (GMVV).
A Washington Post headline (6/27/26) declared: “These Homes Rose out of Venezuela’s Socialist Revolution. Now They’re Rubble.”
An architect was quoted claiming that the damaged apartments had been “constructed hastily” to “meet a political deadline.” Though the Post claimed Chávez launched the housing program to secure votes for the 2012 election, the only beneficiary the paper could find received her home in 2014.
The Washington Post (6/27/26) blames the disaster on “mismanagement by the socialist government” and “government lapses…evident long before the worst of the economic crisis.”
AFP (6/29/26) singled out damage to a GMVV complex—“once touted as part of former strongman leader Hugo Chavez’s flagship housing program”—arguing that it “symbolize[d] the country’s dire situation.” Dozens of buildings geared toward tourism, including hotels and high-rises built for short-term rentals, in this neighborhood of Catia La Mar, were also flattened by the devastating tremors, but AFP made no effort to provide that context.
The New York Times (7/5/26) likewise attempted to besmirch what is one of the most ambitious public housing projects worldwide by repeating the unfounded claim that homes were assigned as a “reward for loyalty to Mr. Chávez.” However, the paper of record at least admitted that “Misión Vivienda buildings are far from the only apartments to have fallen.”
The Wall Street Journal (6/28/26) could not hide its elitism in describing how Chávez “rushed to provide apartments to the poor” in a town “beloved by the rich,” with a golf course and a “marina for yachts.” It went further by promoting a social media hoax that styrofoam found in damaged buildings meant that the housing mission used absurdly unsuitable materials in its construction. In reality, expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam is widely used to lighten the load on structures and for thermal insulation, a key factor in such a hot climate.
Venezuelan officials have called for a review of the collapsed structures and building codes, though they have claimed that the public housing buildings fared better than their privately constructed neighbors.
There is little evidence to suggest that GMVV buildings suffered a worse fate than their private sector counterparts. According to the open-source tool Terremoto Venezuela, only 11 out of 258 buildings reported as collapsed (“daño total”) belong to the housing mission.
The definitive figures will need to be put in perspective to see whether affected buildings and non-complicity with existing codes were prevalent in the GMVV developments or the recent tourist-driven real estate boom in La Guaira. But the media establishment immediately jumped to its politically motivated verdict before any thorough investigation had been conducted.
Whitewashing sanctions
While multiple outlets stressed that it is necessary to scrutinize whether authorities enforced the appropriate regulations in what is known to be vulnerable terrain (France24, 6/29/26; Reuters, 6/29/26), no evaluation of the Venezuelan state’s record is accurate if it ignores the wide-reaching sanctions regime imposed by Washington.
Yet many Western journalists completely overlooked sanctions in their coverage of the earthquakes and the Venezuelan state’s capacity to respond to a natural catastrophe.
For the Financial Times (6/28/26), it was the “grim legacy of ‘Chavismo’”—and not the fact that the United States has stolen the revenues from Venezuela’s main export—that has hindered the earthquake response.
Corporate outlets like the Financial Times (6/28/26) wasted no time in proclaiming that the “legacy of ‘Chavismo’ hinder[ed] Venezuela’s earthquake response,” while AP (7/3/26) decreed that the government’s response was “slow” and the BBC (6/29/26) claimed survivors were “left to fend for themselves.”
None saw fit to even mention that Venezuela has been under economic coercive measures for years. NBC (6/25/26) avoided the kneejerk verdicts and offered lots of testimony on the natural disaster, but when concluding that “Venezuela already faced economic challenges and poverty,” chose not to name sanctions as a key economic challenge and poverty factor.
In other reports, the whitewashing of sanctions was more subtle. The Guardian (7/3/26) attributed the government’s “sluggish response” to “years of corruption, economic mismanagement and investment in political repression and domestic security rather than emergency services and healthcare.” As almost an afterthought, it added that sanctions “have further enfeebled the Venezuelan state.” The Washington Post‘s anti-public housing article (6/27/26) called Venezuela’s economic collapse “the result of mismanagement by the socialist government exacerbated by US-imposed economic sanctions.”
The New York Times (7/4/26) wrote that “Venezuela’s fragile infrastructure—including rail, electricity and healthcare systems that have suffered from years of corruption and mismanagement.” In a later section it added, “Venezuela is reeling from years of economic turmoil and crippling US sanctions.”
Over the years, Western media have pulled all the stops to legitimize Washington’s hybrid war on Caracas and conceal the murderous impact of sanctions (FAIR.org, 6/4/21, 6/13/22). There is no shortage of documentation on how these coercive measures represented collective punishment (CEPR, 4/25/19). In an extensive 2021 report, UN rapporteur Alena Douhan thoroughly discussed the impact of sanctions on Venezuelan public services and infrastructure.
The current framing of earthquake coverage aims to separate US sanctions as much as possible from their direct consequences. Rail, electricity and healthcare systems became much more “fragile” because sanctions blocked the Venezuelan government from servicing equipment and importing spare parts, not to mention brain drain resulting from mass migration of qualified personnel largely trained in public universities. Similarly, the “economic turmoil” is a result of US sanctions, not a parallel phenomenon.
Indeed, economist Francisco Rodríguez, senior research fellow at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, dismisses arguments that the bulk of Venezuela’s economic decline preceded sanctions (CEPR, 5/19/26). Instead, the rate of GDP contraction nearly quadrupled following the US imposition of unilateral coercive measures in 2017.
And the need to conjure elaborate intermediation schemes in order to circumvent sanctions opened more avenues for corruption. To present the latter as an issue that uniquely and disproportionately plagues a government facing an economic blockade is disingenuous, to say the least.
Ignoring the semi-colonial straitjacket
In their recent coverage, most corporate media sources were quick to decree that the Venezuelan government’s response was “slow” (Financial Times, 6/27/26; Guardian, 6/29/26), “inadequate” (Reuters, 7/5/26), “faltering” (AP, 7/1/26) or “completely ineffective” (PBS, 7/2/26).
It is understandable that ordinary people would not sing the government’s praises after losing a relative or while looking for one trapped under rubble. But journalists have a responsibility to add context. In this case, a significant mitigating circumstance is that the tremors heavily hit the local authorities, which run civil protection and other services.
This AP article (7/1/26) reports that “the dismal response is linked to the huge numbers of people who have left the public sector because of extremely low pay”—but the words “sanctions” and “Trump” don’t appear anywhere in the piece.
Acting President Delcy Rodríguez stated that nearly all the directors from the La Guaira regional government were lost in the tragedy. Coupled with a collapse of communications, this added more hurdles for response efforts.
Another overlooked element is just how rare and deadly this double earthquake was. The New York Times was a notable exception, with a thorough piece (7/3/26) explaining how the disaster unfolded and why it caused so much destruction.
But the most relevant element to understand Venezuela’s present constraints is, once again, the role played by the US government. Just like with sanctions, corporate news outlets whitewashed Washington’s current semi-colonial impositions on the South American nation.
Since the January 3 attacks, the Trump administration has seized control of Venezuelan export revenues, particularly from oil sales (Venezuelanalysis, 2/20/26). Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the Venezuelan government would need to submit a “budget request” to access its own funds held by the US Treasury (Venezuelanalysis, 1/29/26). Neither US nor Venezuelan authorities have offered any transparent information on the amounts collected and disbursed, including Washington’s intermediation fees.
Trump is not known for precision in his statements, but he has not been shy in boasting that the cost of the January 3 military operation has been paid “many times over” from oil profits (New York Times, 6/29/26; Guardian, 6/28/26; Al Jazeera, 6/24/26). While there is no information to verify the claims, economist Francisco Rodríguez, analyzing Venezuelan Central Bank data, concluded that there is at least a significant delay in the US disbursement of Venezuelan funds back to the country (Banca y Negocios, 6/22/26). The suspicious lack of transparency has even drawn questions from traditional foreign policy paladins like the Council on Foreign Relations.
With few exceptions (Reuters, 7/1/26; AP, 7/3/26; New York Times, 7/6/26), this key, semi-colonial constraint on the Venezuelan state is completely overlooked. Even worse, some outlets mistakenly stated that the White House has “lifted” or authorized “relaxation” of sanctions (PBS, 7/2/26; Financial Times, 6/27/26). Actually it has only issued licenses for select Western corporations, and with the condition that proceeds be deposited in the US Treasury account. Following the recent natural disaster, the Trump administration issued a four-month waiver allowing earthquake relief-related transactions, but left all restrictions and asset freezes in place (Venezuelanalysis, 6/26/26).
Another ominous development has been the US forces’ takeover of operations at the Simón Bolívar International Airport, the country’s main air hub, and the La Guaira port. Despite regular Southern Command press releases, and even photographic evidence, the media establishment has paid little attention to this serious (further) encroachment on Venezuelan sovereignty.
The outlook is bleak for Venezuela, with this tragedy likely to increase dependency and semi-colonial plundering. But there is room for hope. The limits of US power are being exposed all over the world, and resorting to more and more violence will not stem this inevitable decline. Peoples in the Global South, including in Venezuela, will eventually (re)take control of their destinies. But they know that the corporate press barons are no allies in this struggle.
Surgery is among the options that will be considered by the Gunners when he returns to London, though an operation would probably require a long-term lay-off to recover.
The 25-year-old made 50 appearances in all competitions for Arsenal last season, as they ended a 22-year wait to win the Premier League and reached the Champions League final.
Earlier in the World Cup, Saliba said: “I’ve had some minor niggles for several months.
“I’ve been gritting my teeth because there was the Champions League and the Premier League.
“The World Cup comes round only once every four years, so you’ve got to grit your teeth.”
He missed France’s final group game against Norway before returning to Didier Deschamps’ side for the knockout stage.
France play England in the third-place play-off on Saturday (22:00 BST).
MINNEAPOLIS — Cameron Brink scored 10 points in her first game since June 15, but it wasn’t enough to list the Sparks past the host Lynx on Wednesday afternoon.
Kayla McBride scored 24 for her fifth straight 20-point performance, Courtney Williams added 19 points, and the Minnesota beat the Sparks 96-87 to record their fourth straight victory. The inconsistent Sparks have dropped back-to-back games since firing GM Raegan Pebley.
Minnesota went on a 19-3 run, scoring on 10 straight possessions, to take a 63-56 lead with 2:36 left in the third quarter.
McBride made her first three-pointer with four minutes left in the fourth for an 84-74 lead. Nia Coffey banked in a 3-pointer on the Lynx’s next possession for an 11-point lead.
Minnesota went 8 of 14 from 3-point range in the second half after missing 11 straight before halftime. Six of those makes came from different players.
Minnesota rookie Olivia Miles had 18 points in 26 minutes for Minnesota (19-6). Miles went to the floor with 6:03 left in the fourth and she did not return after appearing to roll her ankle on a driving layup.
Rae Burrell scored 24 points, and Nneka Ogwumike had 23 points, 12 rebounds and five assists for the Sparks (10-13). Los Angeles turned it over 20 times, leading to 30 points for Minnesota. Sparks point guard Kelsey Plum remains sidelined with a lower left leg injury and is expected to be re-evaluated next week following a four-week recovery.
Elias is likely to make his Test start since the opening round of the 2024 Six Nations against Scotland.
Cardiff’s Evan Lloyd is the other hooker in the squad and could make his first international appearance for more than a year, with Dee’s anticipated arrival in South Africa providing extra cover and experience.
Morgan is the obvious choice as captain against the world champions unless Tandy opts to rest the open-side flanker.
Wales slipped to 12th in the world rankings with their loss to Argentina and suffered a record 73-0 loss to the Springboks in their last meeting in November.
Maiara Niehues extended her scoring streak to three games, and Sveindís Jónsdóttir scored in her return from injury to give Angel City FC a 2-0 win over the Orlando Pride on Friday night at BMO Stadium.
Niehues fired home the rebound for the opening goal in the 36th minute. Jónsdóttir forced a turnover in the 56th minute, dribbled and scored from a tight angle to double the lead for Angel City (5-6-1).
Jónsdóttir returned to the starting lineup after missing the last four games because of a foot injury.
Goalkeeper Angelina Anderson recorded one save for her third shutout of the season.
Interim head coach Leif Gunnar Smerud led Angel City in the first match since the firing of Alex Straus.
NWSL Golden Boot leader Barbra Banda was unavailable for Orlando (5-6-2) because of a thigh injury.
Cardiff loose-head prop Rhys Barratt and Dragons back-row forwards Harri Keddie and Ryan Woodman all made their international debuts in Twickenham, but miss out on the squad for the three Tests.
Wings Gabriel Hamer-Webb and Tom Rogers, centres Bryn Bradley and Joe Roberts, fly-half Jarrod Evans, scrum-half Ellis Bevan, lock or flanker Freddie Thomas and back-row forward Olly Cracknell also miss out.
Leicester open-side flanker Tommy Reffell makes the cut after being overlooked by Tandy for the autumn internationals and Six Nations.
“We have selected a squad of 33 players for the Nations Championship to mirror what will be required for the World Cup in 2027,” said the head coach, who cut 11 players and lost Jenkins.
“We are building a lot of competition among our group of players, which is what we want to have, and there were some tough calls to make.
“We have an exciting opportunity over the next three weeks in a brand-new competition and can’t wait to get our campaign started against Fiji on Saturday.”
Louis Rees-Zammit, Max Llewellyn, Tomos Williams, Rhys Carre, Nicky Smith, James and Reffell could not face the Baa-Baas because they play for English clubs, but all return for the Nations Championship fixtures.
The loss of Jenkins means that Tandy is down to three specialist locks – Ben Carter, Teddy Williams and Adam Beard, who is included fresh from playing for Montpellier in their Top 14 final defeat by Toulouse on Saturday.
The former Ospreys second-row forward, who lost his starting spot to Carter during the Six Nations, came on in the final quarter in Paris.
“He has been with us for two campaigns, is battle-hardened and is really experienced,” said Tandy about Beard.
Wales had already lost centre Louie Hennessey, tight-head prop Keiron Assiratti and hooker Liam Belcher to injury before cutting down their squad.
Britain’s Jack Draper says he is “devastated” after withdrawing from Wimbledon just 24 hours before his first-round match with a long-term arm injury.
Draper, fresh off a run to the Eastbourne semi-finals last week, was due to face American sixth seed Taylor Fritz on Centre Court on Tuesday.
However, the arm problem that stopped him playing for most of the past year has once again prevented him from competing in a Grand Slam.
“There have been a lot of painful moments in the last 12 months, but this one is definitely the absolute worst,” Draper said.
It is the second significant injury blow for British interest, following Emma Raducanu’s withdrawal on Sunday because of a stress fracture in her right leg.
Draper spoke to media at Wimbledon on Sunday and gave no indication he was struggling again with the bone bruising in his serving arm.
However, Draper did say he felt the amount of injuries suffered by leading players is “pretty worrying”.
Fears about the British number one’s fitness grew over the past week.
Raducanu was spotted wearing a protective boot on Wednesday, then was unable to train on Thursday and Friday because of what is believed to be a shin problem.
The 2021 US Open champion returned to the court on Saturday to test her fitness and, wearing strapping around her lower right leg, started with a gentle hour-long session with her team.
But she then cut short another practice session with Russia’s Anna Kalinskaya – when the pair played a set – with 10 minutes remaining.
There were signs of improvement in her practice session on Sunday morning.
Raducanu was slightly less tentative against hitting partner Alexis Canter – particularly when she pushed with her right leg on the forehand side – but it was not as rigorous a test of her movement as she got against Kalinskaya.
Later on Sunday, Raducanu told the media she was willing to push herself and take more risk with the injury in order to step out at the All England Club.
“Playing at Wimbledon, in front of a home crowd, means everything to me, so this is really difficult to process,” Raducanu said.
Mike Trout said Friday he is unlikely to participate in the All-Star home run derby in Philadelphia because of his strained right hamstring.
Trout expects to return from the injury in plenty of time to play in the July 14 All-Star Game, but it likely will prevent the Angels center fielder from joining the home run-hitting contest the night before.
“They asked me when we were in Sacramento [last weekend], but I probably won’t do it,” Trout said before the Angels’ game against the Athletics. “It would have been cool to do it, but the injury kind of threw things off.”
Trout, a three-time American League MVP and 11-time All-Star, has turned down numerous invitations to participate in the derby because he felt the high volume of maximum-effort swings the event requires would throw him off at the plate.
He always maintained that he would take part in the derby at least once before he retires, and this seemed to be the year to do it, with All-Star Game festivities in Citizens Bank Park about 45 miles north of his hometown of Millville, N.J.
Trout, who’s among American League leaders with 17 homers, fueled more speculation that he would participate in the derby last weekend when he told USA Today that he was “considering” it.
But Trout, placed on the 10-day injured list on June 18, had a change of heart over the last week.
“When it came out that the All-Star Game was in Philly, I thought it definitely would have been cool to do,” said Trout, who ranks second behind New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge in All-Star voting for AL outfielders. “Then I hurt my leg, so I’m leaning toward not doing it.”
England manager Thomas Tuchel has defended his full-back selection policy after confirming Reece James will miss Saturday’s World Cup match against Panama.
As revealed by BBC Sport this week, James was assessed by England medics following Tuesday’s goalless draw against Ghana after complaining of a hamstring issue.
Tuchel has since confirmed that the Chelsea right-back has not travelled to New Jersey from their Kansas City base for their final Group L game against Panama on Saturday (22:00 BST). But he insists James has a chance of playing in England’s possible last-32 match next week.
However, BBC Sport understands that James is a significant doubt for the start of the knockout stages, should England qualify.
James’ injury – and the calf issue that caused Tino Livramento to return home from the United States – has thrown into question Tuchel’s decision to bring just three recognised full-backs to the World Cup.
Djed Spence, James and Livramento were the only genuine full-backs selected.
Nico O’Reilly, who played at left-back for Manchester City last season, is also in the squad – but he came through the ranks at Etihad Stadium as a midfielder. Dan Burn has also played at left-back but is recognised as a centre-back.
Spence and central defenders Jarell Quansah and Ezri Konsa are Tuchel’s alternative options at right-back.
Nevertheless, Tuchel said: “Yes, I am [happy with my options at right-back]. I selected the team, so I’m very happy with everything with the characteristic of the players and strengths that they give us.
“We would love to have every single key player, we would love to have them available, it’s not available – we find solutions, it’s what we do. It’s a tournament, we move on.”
James and Livramento, in particular, have a chequered injury history and Tuchel’s decision to take both to the World Cup is likely to be called into question.
Tuchel, though, is confident James will play again in the World Cup should England progress.
“It’s a minor hamstring issue, he’s not been able to train the last two days,” confirmed Tuchel.
“He’s now on an accelerated rehabilitation program and we take it game by game, but we strongly believe that he will be available [during the tournament].”
There was better news with regards to the availability of Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson, who Tuchel said would all be available to face Panama.
Rice (calf) and Anderson (glute) missed training on Thursday – but returned on Friday.
Tuchel confirmed Saka is ready to start after coming off the bench in the opening two matches because of a long-term Achilles tendinitis complaint.
Watch how GB’s Jack Draper returns from a two-month knee injury to beat USA’s Marcos Giron 6-4 7-6 (7-5). He will now face fellow Brit Jack Pinnington Jones.
CHICAGO — A spate of shootings in Chicago has led to seven deaths and at least 38 injuries since Friday evening, police say, prompting President Trump to renew his call for a military intervention in the nation’s third-largest city.
It is the latest in a series of threats made and interventions ordered by the Republican president against a Democratic-led city, including Los Angeles.
“Why isn’t Governor Pritzker calling me for help. I could make Chicago a safe City in ONE MONTH, in ONE YEAR, it would be one of the safest!!!” Trump said in a Sunday morning post on social media.
The office of Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender who has repeatedly rebuffed Trump’s calls for a military intervention, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Under Trump, National Guard troops have been deployed on crime-fighting missions in Democratic-led cities including New Orleans, Washington and Memphis, Tenn.; and Marines and Guardsmen were sent to L.A. last year amid protests over federal immigration raids.
Although Chicago Police Department data show a slight increase in shooting incidents compared with the first half of last year, violent crime rates have generally dropped in the city over the last few years, in parallel with national trends.
Preliminary information shared by Chicago police indicate there have been at least two dozen shooting incidents since 5 p.m. Friday. Those killed by gunfire include a 21-year-old shot in the chest Sunday, an 18-year-old shot in the armpit Saturday evening and a 50-year-old shot in the chest Friday.
At least 12 people in a crowd on a Chicago street suffered gunshot wounds Friday evening after an SUV pulled up and two people inside started shooting, police said.
The eight men and four women in the group ranged in age from 17 to 47. They were being treated at four hospitals. Police said another man suffered unknown injuries and refused medical treatment.
That shooting happened on Juneteenth, a holiday that celebrates the end of slavery in the U.S. Earlier Friday, former President Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama welcomed the first visitors to his presidential center on the South Side.
“What should have been a night of celebration and community reflection for Juneteenth was shattered by a horrific act of violence,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said in an X post Saturday. “My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their loved ones.”
“Violence has no place in our city, and those responsible will be held accountable,” he said.
SACRAMENTO — Angels outfielder Mike Trout is back on the injured list.
The team announced before Thursday night’s 5-0 loss to the Athletics that the 11-time All-Star was put on the 10-day IL due to a right hamstring strain. The Angels recalled infielder Christian Moore from Triple-A Salt Lake among a flurry of moves.
Injuries have hindered Trout for much of this decade. Since winning his third AL MVP award in 2019, Trout has played more than 82 games in a season just twice — 119 in 2022 and 130 in 2025.
The 34-year-old Trout had played in 74 of 75 games this year in a resurgent season. He’s batting .234 with an .866 OPS, 17 homers, 36 RBIs and seven steals.
He entered Thursday with an AL-leading 54 runs, a total that was tied for second in the majors behind Washington’s James Wood. Trout’s 66 walks also ranked second in the big leagues, behind the Athletics’ Nick Kurtz.
Trout had the second-highest vote count of any AL outfielder in the All-Star Game balloting totals that were released this week. He grew up near Philadelphia, where this year’s All-Star Game will take place next month.
The injury to Trout created an opportunity for Moore, who was hitting .333 with a .468 on-base percentage, nine homers, 45 RBIs and 10 steals in 51 games at Salt Lake while playing second base, third base and the outfield.
Moore hit .198 with a .284 on-base percentage, seven homers, 16 RBIs and three steals in 53 games with the Angels last season.
In other moves, the Angels recalled right-hander Ryan Johnson from double-A Rocket City, released left-hander Drew Pomeranz and optioned right-hander Brett Kerry and catcher Logan Porter to Salt Lake.
In Thursday’s game, Gage Jump gave up one hit over seven innings, and Shea Langeliers and Tyler Soderstrom hit back-to-back homers in a five-run first for the Athletics.
The first six A’s batters got hits off Johnson, who was recalled before the game.
Ismael Kone’s serious-looking injury left Canada manager Jesse Marsch in tears and overshadowed their first-ever World Cup finals win as they thrashed nine-man Qatar 6-0.
