NEWARK, N.J. — Arseny Gritsyuk and Nico Hischier scored first-period goals, Nico Daws made 16 saves and the New Jersey Devils beat the Ducks 4-1 on Thursday night.
Anthony Mantha restored the two-goal lead with 6:33 left in the third, and Jack Hughes added an empty-netter with 6.1 seconds remaining. New Jersey won its second straight to improve to 6-4-0, while the Ducks dropped their fifth in a row to fall to 4-6-0.
Gritsyuk and Hischier each scored their fifth goal of the season, with Jesper Bratt assisting on both scores. Hughes assisted on Gritsyuk’s goal.
Tim Washe scored for the Ducks on a tip at 8:20 of the third period. Ville Husso made 25 saves for the Ducks.
Gritsyuk opened the scoring at 4:38 of the first, connecting from close range off Bratt’s centering pass. Hischier scored off a rebound on a power play with 41 seconds left in the period.
Up next for the Ducks: at Philadelphia on Saturday.
The World Series is upon us, and this one should be a delight: The team with the best record in the National League, the Milwaukee Brewers, against the team with the best record in the American League, the Tampa Bay Rays.
The players are about to take baseball’s grandest stage. Yet this has somehow become a strange national obsession: not how Jacob Misiorowski or Junior Caminero might shine in the series, but how many people might watch it.
Should you care? Not really. Have you ever thought about watching a World Series game and thought, “Hmmm, let me consider what the ratings might be before I decide to tune in?”
Major League Baseball cares, of course, because its owners count on billions of dollars from the sale of television rights, and those rights are worth more money when more people watch the games. And, since the fog of a collective bargaining war has enveloped the sport, the ratings make for an intriguing subplot in the World Series.
This World Series is what owners say they want: less of, say, the Dodgers and the New York Yankees, more of teams from smaller markets that seldom advance through the playoffs, if they even get there. Neither the Brewers nor the Rays have won a World Series.
Yet the ratings for the Dodgers-Yankees World Series in 2024 almost doubled those for the Arizona Diamondbacks and Texas Rangers in 2023, and this year’s ratings should be much closer to 2023 than 2024.
So, in a sport that already generates the majority of its broadcast revenue in national rather than local packages, amid the collapse of regional sports networks, are the owners taking a risk of making less money on the World Series?
Fox currently airs the World Series as the jewel of a seven-year, $5.1-billion deal that expires in 2028.
Ed Desser, a Santa Monica-based consultant who launched NBA TV and helped negotiate the Dodgers’ record SportsNet LA deal, said the value of a World Series featuring teams such as the Dodgers and Yankees goes beyond the large audiences they command because they play in large markets.
“It’s commonplace for people to hate the Dodgers, hate the Yankees — and, to some extent, that’s good for business, because it’s another rooting interest. Anything that gets people to focus their attention is good,” Desser said. “It’s easy to hate a team that’s in a glamorous place and spends more than almost anybody.
“I’m not sure that anybody has an ax to grind against the Rays or the Brewers. Sports is about passion.”
That said, neither Desser nor Bob Thompson, the former president of Fox Sports Networks, believes MLB is setting itself up for a big fall in revenue from the Fall Classic.
For Fox — and whatever other bidders might emerge come 2028 — ratings would be important, but not as much as you might think.
“Does expected audience matter? Of course,” Desser said. “They’re in the media business, and the way you monetize is by selling subscriptions to your channel and selling advertising.
“But, typically, you’re taking a much longer viewpoint. You’re making a deal that might be five, eight, 12 years. When you do that, you have an expectation that some teams get better, some teams get worse, sometimes you get a large market, sometimes you get a small market. It kind of evens out.”
This is the fifth season of the current Fox contract. The 10 World Series berths have been spread among nine teams, with the Dodgers appearing twice.
To a broadcast outlet, Thompson said, financial success in the World Series is not just about ratings.
“It’s about how good the matchup is and how long the matchup goes. The bulk of the advertising is sold up front (before we know the teams),” Thompson said. “Ratings for the series aren’t going to be a huge deal, unless you’re selling time in, say, Game 6 and Game 7, where you can really be jacking your rates.”
Last year’s Dodgers-Blue Jays World Series extended to seven games, attracting viewers amid a dramatic finish and ultimately getting a higher rating than the 2024 Dodgers-Yankees series, even though Canadian viewers weren’t included in that Nielsen count. The Dodgers-Yankees series lasted five games, and the Dodgers beat up on the Yankees when the Yankees weren’t beating themselves.
Even if the World Series itself might be worth less with more lower-profile teams competing, Thompson said MLB could include it as part of a larger package, or dangle it as an incentive for streaming outlets or other new bidders.
He also noted that the latest MLB collective bargaining proposal calls for fewer regular-season games and more postseason games.
“Playoffs are going to get you a premium over regular-season games,” Thompson said.
And, to the extent that postseason ratings might be in decline, ratings for everything — sporting events, awards shows, news shows, dramas, comedies, you name it — are in decline. Only the NFL is immune to lower ratings.
“Big events matter more than they used to, even with smaller audiences,” Desser said. “The World Series is still a big event, and there is a premium for that.”
The three most-watched shows on broadcast television in the week of Oct. 5-11, according to Nielsen: Sunday Night Football (Atlanta Falcons vs. Baltimore Ravens) with 17 million viewers; SEC Football (Alabama vs. Georgia) with 12 million viewers; NLCS Game 1 (Dodgers vs. Brewers) with 11 million viewers.
The top entertainment show that week: Tracker (CBS), with 7.4 million viewers.
The owners will make their money on the World Series, one way or another.
“Even at a lower expectation for audience, there is still going to be that value,” Desser said. “It’s one of the biggest things happening in October.”
From Gary Klein: Other than the missing 23 carats of diamonds, the replica Super Bowl LVI rings fans received on Sunday at SoFi Stadium looked like the real thing.
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Chargers fall to 0-6
From Kathleen Gier: The Chargers hit the road to face the undefeated, AFC West-leading Kansas City Chiefs, still looking for their first victory of the season.
They were unsuccessful, falling 22-6 on Sunday evening at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chargers are 0-6 to start the season for the first time since 2000, when they finished 1-16. They’ve also lost nine straight games since last season, tying a franchise mark for most consecutive losses.
“I truly believe and was confident that we would win this game,” Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh told reporters. “We have to address everything, guys, and especially offensively.
“We’re not scoring enough points. That’s the bottom line.”
The Chargers’ offense, already weakened by a series of injuries to its offensive line and receiving corps, struggled mightily, recording their second-lowest output of the season at 259 total yards. They also lost wide receiver Ladd McConkey, who was ruled out midway through the second quarter with a concussion. He had just one catch in his return from a foot injury that kept him out last week against Denver.
Miami is No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 for the first time since 2002, No. 2 BYU has its highest ranking since its 1984 national championship season and Notre Dame and Georgia stayed in the top five Sunday after both lost close games.
The UCLA Bruins, who are 6-0 after defeating Wisconsin, moved into the top 10 at No. 9, while idle USC moved up three spots to No. 16.
The Hurricanes took over the top spot from Georgia, which lasted one week at No. 1 after losing to Auburn at home. The Bulldogs were the second No. 1 team in two weeks — Texas was the other — to lose to an unranked opponent.
The Hurricanes received 40 of the 70 first-place votes from the media voting panel and were just 22 points ahead of BYU, which won a thriller at home over Notre Dame. The Cougars got 20 first-place votes and were 26 points ahead of Ohio State. The Buckeyes got nine first-place votes and were well ahead of No. 4 Notre Dame and No. 5 Georgia.
Miami is the first No. 1 team from the Atlantic Coast Conference team since Clemson in 2020. Other than Clemson, there had not been another ACC team ranked No. 1 since Florida State in 2014.
MLB postseason schedule
All times Pacific
NLCS
No. 1 Milwaukee vs. No. 2 Dodgers at Milwaukee 2, Dodgers 1 (box score) at Milwaukee 7, Dodgers 4 (box score) Milwaukee 6, at Dodgers 2 (box score) Milwaukee 6, at Dodgers 4 (box score)
ALCS
No. 1 Tampa Bay vs. No. 2 Cleveland Cleveland 7, at Tampa Bay 3 (box score) at Tampa Bay 3, Cleveland 1 (box score) at Cleveland 3, Tampa Bay 2 (box score) Tampa Bay 7, at Cleveland 3 (box score) Tampa Bay 3, at Cleveland 1 (box score) Monday at Tampa Bay, 5 p.m., TBS/truTV/UniMas/HBO Max *Tuesday at Tampa Bay, 5 p.m., TBS/truTV/UniMas/HBO Max
World Series All games at 5 p.m. PT All game on FOX/FOX Deportes/FOX One
No. 1 Milwaukee vs. TB/Cleveland Friday at Milwaukee, TBD, FOX/FOX Deportes/FOX One Saturday at Milwaukee, TBD, FOX/FOX Deportes/FOX One Monday, Oct. 26 at TB/Cle., TBD, FOX/FOX Deportes/FOX One Tuesday, Oct. 27 at TB/Cle., TBD, FOX/FOX Deportes/FOX One *Wed., Oct. 28 at TB/Cle., TBD, FOX/FOX Deportes/FOX One *Friday, Oct. 30 at Milwaukee, TBD, FOX/FOX Deportes/FOX One *Sat., Oct. 31 at Milwaukee, TBD, FOX/FOX Deportes/FOX One
* if necessary
This day in sports history
1940 — Alabama snaps Tennessee’s defensive scoreless streak of 71 quarters but still loses 27-12. Tennessee hadn’t allowed a point since Oct. 29, 1938, when it beat LSU 14-6.
1957 — Maurice Richard of the Montreal Canadiens scores his 500th goal in a 3-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks.
1960 — After 13 years in Minneapolis, the Lakers opened their inaugural season in Los Angeles with a 140-123 loss at Cincinnati.
1966 — Bobby Orr makes his NHL regular season debut for the Boston Bruins.
1985 — Robbie Bosco of Brigham Young passes for 585 yards in a 45-23 victory over New Mexico.
1985 — Dale Klein of Nebraska ties an NCAA record with seven field goals in a 28-20 victory over Missouri.
1986 — Lloyd Burruss of Kansas City intercepts three passes and returns two for touchdowns to lead the Chiefs to a 42-21 victory over the San Diego Chargers.
1994 — Duke beats North Carolina 3-2 in women’s soccer to end the Tar Heels’ unbeaten streak of 101 games.
1997 — Pittsburgh goaltender Tom Barrasso makes 22 saves to earn his 300th victory with a 4-1 win over Florida. Barrasso becomes the first American-born goaltender and 13th overall with 300 wins.
1997 — Sandy Alomar of the Cleveland Indians hits the 700th World Series home run.
2002 — Avon Cobourne becomes the fifth Division I-A rusher with four 1,000-yard seasons as West Virginia beats Syracuse 34-7. Cobourne has 108 yards in the game for 1,002 yards this season.
2012 — The National Hockey League announces the cancellation of the 2012-13 regular-season schedule through November 1. A total of 135 regular-season games are now lost from Oct. 11 through Nov. 1.
2014 — Peyton Manning breaks Brett Favre’s NFL record of 508 career touchdown passes and he throws four TD passes in Denver’s 42-17 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. The record-breaker was an 8-yarder to Demaryius Thomas with 3:09 left in the first half. Manning reaches the milestone in his 246th regular-season game. Favre needed 302.
2014 — DeMarco Murray becomes the first running back in NFL history to start a season with seven straight 100-yard games in a 31-21 win over the New York Giants. Murray, with 128 yards and a touchdown, breaks Hall of Famer Jim Brown’s 56-year-old record.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time…
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
Emmerdale actress Claire King, who plays icon Kim Tate on the ITV soap, has teased the fallout to Thea Ramsden’s stabbing, hinting it could lead to a shock death
An Emmerdale character faces a gruesome death next week (Image: ITV)
An Emmerdale character faces a gruesome death next week on the ITV soap.
As DS Thea Ramsden is stabbed during a showdown with her secret mother Kim Tate, Kim actress Claire King warns that the detective might die. As a terrified Kim frets over missing Baby Tate, some Halloween horror leaves her fearing for her safety.
Things come to a head when Thea shows up at Home Farm, with Kim unaware that Thea is her long-lost daughter. As tensions rise, and Thea is accused of kidnapping Baby Tate, Kim tries to escape but is grabbed by Thea.
Kim panics, and stabs Thea leaving her injured. But will Kim’s secret daughter survive? Hinting at Thea’s fate, Claire shared: “Thea turns up, and at first Kim doesn’t think it’s Thea at all, so she tells her what’s going on—the noises, the bangs, the things like that.
“Then Kim suddenly thinks, ‘Oh my gosh, it is it’s Thea.’ So she tries to run and escape. She hides, but Thea comes through, locks the back door before she can bolt through it. So as she’s running round the table, she kind of slips, and Thea manages to grab hold of her.
“And in a panic, she’s thinking, ‘I’m going to get hurt.’ So, and she just happens to stumble across a cheese knife, sharp cheese knife, and in her panic state, she stabs Thea.”
On whether it could lead to Thea’s death, Claire teased: “The knife has gone in. She’s not bleeding out, but she does pass out, and and Kim’s in total panic mode. She doesn’t know whether she can save her or not.
“I think she’d be absolutely beside herself if she realised that Thea was her daughter at this point because she spent all this time trying to get to know her, having lost her 27 years ago, and and now she could lose her forever.”
If Thea survives, Claire reckons Kim could face big trouble. Claire said: “Thea’s been stalking Kim for a long time, so she knows that she could do her harm.
“And this is the worst-case scenario now because she thinks that, you know, Thea will actually get her back and put her in prison for this. So it’s it’s whether, it’s how Thea is going to respond to this in hospital when she gets treated.
“The police would get involved, and obviously if something happens to her, um, or if the worst-case scenario, she dies, she could end up back in prison again.” Claire also talked about the changes to villainous Kim over the years, but added she was still “ruthless”.
Claire said: “I think she is mellowing, but it’s mainly because we’ve been seeing a lot of children about and babies, and and the horses and things, and those are the things that make her soft. But underneath she’s she’s still got a a steely hard core, you know. And a very ruthless side.”
TAMPA, Fla. — José Ramírez’s mental mistake and fielding error cost Cleveland in Game 2 of the American League Championship Series, a day after his bat helped boost the Guardians to an opening win.
He left third base uncovered on Chandler Simpson’s fourth-inning infield chopper, then misplayed Ben Williamson’s grounder for an error that led to three unearned runs as the Tampa Bay Rays evened the best-of-seven series with a 3-1 win Tuesday night.
“It’s a little bit faster here with the surface and I was playing parallel to the base,” Ramírez said through a translator. “The ball bounced right on the edge between the dirt and the turf, and that’s what made it a little more difficult for me. I tried to knock it down.”
“It’s frustrating. I feel bad because I wasn’t able to make that play and after that the runs came in. I feel bad about that,” he added.
A seven-time All-Star who has finished among the top five in MVP voting six times, Ramírez had three hits and scored twice in Cleveland’s 7-3 win in the opener.
Game 2 was 0-0 with Victor Mesa Jr. on first and two out in the fourth when Chandler Simpson beat out a high chopper to shortstop Brayan Rocchio.
Ramírez, shifted toward second base on the left-handed hitter, took a few steps toward Simpson and watched the shortstop throw to first. Seeing third base uncovered, Mesa rounded second and sped to third standing up as Ramírez tried in vain to catch up.
Four pitches later, Williamson hit a two-hopper that struck the edge of where the artificial turf meets the dirt near third. The ball skipped between Ramírez’s legs into left, allowing Mesa to score.
“José kind of got stuck. It looked like he just didn’t move his feet,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. “Just kind of looked like he sat back a little bit with his feet set instead of moving his feet. So tough break right there and obviously they capitalized.”
Liam Hicks pulled Parker Messier’s next pitch, a slider, into right-center for a two-run single and a 3-0 lead.
“They’ve done that all year. When they smell blood, they take it and run,” Vogt said. “We had some sloppy plays in the field that we need to clean up.”
Ramírez homered in Games 4 and 5 of the Division Series as Cleveland overcome an 0-2 series deficit, the first Cleveland player to homer in consecutive postseason games since Francisco Lindor in 2018.
Tom Cruise’s latest film Digger is expected to lose around $245m (£185m), Hollywood analysts have said, after the film’s continuing poor performance in cinemas.
Ticket sales for the satirical black comedy, which stars Cruise as oil magnate Digger Rockwell, dropped by around 60% in the movie’s second weekend.
It brings Digger’s total box office takings to around $35m (£26m) globally so far. The film is estimated to have cost its studio Warner Bros around $280m (£211m) to make and market.
But Cruise said last week, external that he “never thought of movies when I’m making them [in terms of] opening weekend,” adding he was instead focused on making films that “hopefully will translate, last and evolve”.
The film’s takings relative to its budget mean it could become one of the biggest film flops in Hollywood history.
Digger’s performance is in sharp contrast to the success of IP-driven hits starring Cruise in recent years, such as new instalments of the Top Gun and Mission: Impossible franchises.
Digger is directed by Alejandro G Iñárritu, best known for films such as Birdman, Babel and The Revenant.
Hollywood trade publication Variety said Digger was expected to end its box office run with around $50m (£38m) worldwide.
The film would need around $350m (£264m) to break even, due to its budget, marketing costs, the portion of ticket sales that go to theatres and the likely spend on an awards season campaign.
However, a Warner Bros spokesman pushed back slightly on the figure, telling Variety the film’s break even point was $300m (£227m).
The Saudi-backed Yemeni forces battling the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels claim they have regained a large swath of territory in a new counteroffensive launched on Monday. This includes the recapture of the Red Sea port city of Mokha and other key positions near the highly-strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait (BAM). As we reported last month, the Houthis had taken these areas during an offensive of their own.
“On Monday, the Nation Shield Forces, the Giants Brigades, and the Tihama Resistance—supported by the Popular Resistance—seized control of the city of Al-Mokha in western Taiz Governorate following fierce battles against the terrorist Houthi militias backed by the Iranian regime,” the official Yemeni Saba news outlet reported. “The forces, aided by air support, succeeded in capturing Al-Mokha after clashes with the terrorist Houthi militias, which had controlled the city since early last September. The battles, which took place at various locations surrounding Al-Mokha, involved the use of diverse weaponry and resulted in casualties among the terrorist Houthi militias, the capture of several of their members, and the flight of others.”
Dubbed Operation Yemen Dawn, the counteroffensive aims to “restore state institutions, liberate the capital Sana’a, and end the Houthi terrorist militia coup,” Rashad al-Alimi, president of the internationally recognized government of Yemen, stated Monday on X.
“With God’s aid, the will of our people, the valor of our armed forces and all military formations, and the support of our brothers and friends, Yemen will march toward a new dawn of freedom, peace, and stability,” al-Alimi added.
على بركة الله، انطلقت عملية “فجر اليمن” لاستعادة مؤسسات الدولة، وتحرير العاصمة صنعاء، وإنهاء انقلاب الميليشيات الحوثية الإرهابية. بعون الله، وإرادة شعبنا وبسالة قواتنا المسلحة وكافة التشكيلات العسكرية، ودعم أشقائنا وأصدقائنا، سيمضي اليمن نحو فجر جديد من الحرية والسلام والاستقرار. pic.twitter.com/bP1h9EVdu2
The claims about the recapture of Mokha follow statements made earlier on Monday that the National Shield Forces and Giants Brigades, “liberated Dhubab [also spelled Dhobab] District and strategic positions around the Bab al-Mandab Strait in western Taiz Governorate on Monday following clashes with Iran-backed Houthi militias,” Saba claimed. “The clashes left a number of Houthi fighters dead or wounded, while others fled under pressure from the military operation. Several military vehicles and pieces of equipment were also destroyed or disabled. The forces are continuing clearance and security operations in the liberated areas and cutting Houthi supply routes.”
In addition, the Kingdom’s Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki, spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition, stated that “100 fighter jets were providing support to the forces of Yemen’s internationally recognized government fighting against the Houthis,” according to The Associated Press. “He said the coalition has secured ‘air protection’ of the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait and destroyed hundreds of Houthi targets as part of the ongoing campaign.”
After Yemeni officials announced the new counteroffensive on Sunday, al-Maliki vowed “full operational support” to the Yemeni government forces, until the Houthis are “eliminated,” the AP added.
On Monday, the Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center (HOCC), an organization closely aligned with the Houthis, confirmed increased Saudi airstrikes and threatened a response. HOCC warned “all airlines operating in Saudi airspace that it is unsafe, with the exception of the airspace over ‘Mecca and Medina,’” the official Houthi Telegram channel reported.
HOCC did not elaborate on that warning.
While TWZ cannot verify these claims, independent Yemen analyst Mohammed al-Basha said it appears that the anti-Houthi forces have gained ground on the Red Sea coast.
The founder of the widely quoted Basha Report stated on X that he had “high confidence” that Yemeni government forces recaptured Dhobab Airport, “cutting off the Houthi supply route between Mocha and Bab al-Mandab.” He added that “Southern Giants Forces are now heading towards the city of Dhobab, Al-Omari Camp, and Bab al-Mandab.”
بثقة عالية الساعة العاشرة صباح الاثنين ٥ أكتوبر استعادة مطار ذوباب وقطع طريق إمداد الحوثي بين المخا وباب المندب قوات العمالقة الجنوبية الان تتجه نحو مدينة ذوباب ومعسكر العمري وباب المندب https://t.co/6eHYJ3cnza
Videos have emerged showing what appears to be Saudi-backed forces running over Houthi fighters. The Houthis have called this a war crime.
Several videos emerging of Saudi-backed government forces driving over and shooting fleeing Houthi fighters caught off guard by their offensive in southwestern Yemen.
Amid the spike in fighting, the State Department issued a new warning to Americans in Saudi Arabia.
“Due to the ongoing security situation in Saudi Arabia and the potential for aerial drone or missile attacks on Saudi Arabia, the U.S. Mission strongly encourages all U.S. citizens to remain vigilant and follow the guidance of national alerts released by Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defense,” the department stated on X.
Saudi Arabia: Due to the ongoing security situation in Saudi Arabia and the potential for aerial drone or missile attacks on Saudi Arabia, the U.S. Mission strongly encourages all U.S. citizens to remain vigilant and follow the guidance of national alerts released by Saudi… pic.twitter.com/QzVaER1WZ8
Yemen Dawn was launched in the wake of large-scale Houthi advances. As we noted earlier in this story, the rebel group captured the port of Mokha and two key islands in the Red Sea, increasing its control over the Bab al-Mandab Strait (BAM). That moved the front lines to the key city of Taiz, which sits astride a major roadway linking it to the port city of Aden. The Houthis recently captured strategic hilltops near Taiz, advancing on the last road between the city and Aden, which serves as the interim capital of the Yemeni government.
The conflict between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis grew out of a civil war in Yemen that erupted in 2014. It expanded a year later when a Saudi-led coalition joined forces with the government ousted by the Houthis and raged on until the parties reached a tenuous ceasefire in 2022. The Saudis held off on getting involved in the recent Red Sea conflict which saw the U.S. and coalition warships duking it out with the Houthis, and eventually led to a U.S.-led air campaign over Yemen. Tensions, however, reignited after that conflict ended when the Houthis joined the U.S.-Iran conflict on the side of their major supporter.
Earlier this year, the Houthis imposed a blockade on the BAM and began striking Saudi ships in the southern part of the Red Sea as well as targeting critical energy terminals on that body of water and Saudi refineries. Iranian proxies have also struck the vital East-West pipeline that carries oil to the Red Sea to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has vastly curtailed shipping after the launch of Operation Epic Fury. That line has reportedly since reopened after being shut down following a long-range drone attack.
Bab al-Mandab Strait. (Google Earth)
On Monday, Turkey and Pakistan said they will undertake a “rapid deployment” of troops to Saudi Arabia under the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, a pact designed to assist the Kingdom’s fight against the Houthis, the Middle East Eye reported.
“The announcement on Monday came after representatives of the three countries held an emergency meeting in Riyadh where they condemned recent attacks on Saudi Arabia, in particular those targeting the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, without mentioning the Houthis by name,” the publication added.
Concern about maintaining the flow of energy resources from the region has spurred France and the U.K. to send additional forces to help the Saudis.
You can see Macron’s announcement in the following video.
Nous agissons pour protéger nos compatriotes des conséquences de la crise au Moyen-Orient. Objectifs : sécuriser les approvisionnements et faire baisser les prix à la pompe. pic.twitter.com/kvrgHcV4E4
The U.S. also appears to be increasing its assistance to Saudi Arabia. Though President Donald Trump turned down the Kingdom’s request to directly attack the Houthis, the U.S. is “providing aerial refueling for Saudi warplanes conducting defensive air patrols,” The New York Times reported on Sunday. That’s in addition to the previously known assistance to Riyadh provided by “more than 200 U.S. intelligence and military analysts working in Saudi command centers helping to analyze and select targets in support of its Yemeni allies,” the newspaper added.
The stark reality, especially facing European leaders like Macron, is that if Saudi oil infrastructure and transport nodes near the Red Sea are destroyed or the pipeline that feeds them is shut down for months, the last major oil lifeline from the region — and especially to Europe — will be closed off, sparking a deeper energy crisis.
Iran has already severely curtailed the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz since the U.S. and Israel attacked it on Feb. 28. The movement of oil has been further impeded by a U.S. blockade on Iranian ports. However, transits have been increasing as of late, thanks in large measure to U.S. military escorts that U.S. Central Command claims have allowed more than a billion barrels of crude to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
Still, the price of Brent crude continues to hover over $100 per barrel due to a combination of factors that still make this a very dangerous region. This includes the ongoing threats from the Houthis in the BAM and the aforementioned spike in fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed forces. In addition, there are continuing Iranian attacks on shipping, including one today and three over the weekend, the skyrocketing cost of insuring vessels and the possibility Gulf countries may be paying Iran to allow their oil through. Such payments, essentially a toll, are “potentially handing Tehran a significant portion of the value of the cargo,” Al Jazeera noted.
Asked about the Saudi-backed counteroffensive, Trump said “It will all work out very well.”
Question: What’s your view on the Saudi and Yemeni counter attack against the Houthis?
Meanwhile, talks between the U.S. and Iran to end hostilities between the countries remain at an impasse, though the two sides have not directly attacked each other in weeks. The U.S. rejected Iran’s conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, and Tehran says it is preparing a reply to the U.S. counterproposal, CBS News reported Monday morning.
For his part, Trump continues to waver, suggesting the U.S. could “leave tomorrow” or resume striking Iran.
It is far too early to tell whether the new Saudi-backed counteroffensive in Yemen will have any lasting effect on the battlefield. The coalition arrayed against the Houthis isn’t known to be highly robust and the quality of its forces have been in question. Still, it has been clear that the Saudis and their allies had to act strongly, and this would be exactly that.
Pinto became part of Portugal’s witness protection programme in 2020 after agreeing to co-operate with authorities and provide files obtained through the Football Leaks operation.
He posted on X on Friday, external that the decision to terminate his participation in the programme on 10 October has put him in a “life-threatening situation”.
The 37-year-old said it had left him with no alternative but to relocate to an undisclosed location for an indefinite period because of “multiple death threats” and “the serious risk of an assassination attempt”.
BBC Sport has approached the Commission for the Protection of Victims of Crimes in Portugal for comment.
Pinto has described himself as a whistleblower, but was convicted in Portugal of offences including illegal access to data and attempted extortion and given a four-year suspended sentence.
He wore a bulletproof vest during his first trial in 2020, which was also subject to heightened security measures.
Earlier this year, he was acquitted in a second trial of 241 counts of illegally accessing email accounts belonging to a number of sports bodies in Portugal, including Benfica.
Pinto repeated allegations from 2018 that Infantino intervened to help City and Paris St-Germain avoid financial fair play sanctions from European football’s governing body Uefa.
A statement from Pinto’s lawyers released on Friday said the decision to end his participation in the witness protection programme left him at heightened risk, noting legal proceedings stemming from the leaks remained ongoing, including the case against Manchester City.
Pinto has set up a fundraising page to help him “survive this serious situation”, which he claims was “created by the Portuguese State”.
SEATTLE — Logan Gilbert struck out eight in four no-hit innings and five Seattle pitchers combined for 12 strikeouts as the Mariners beat the Angels 7-3 in the regular-season finale for both teams.
The Angels finish 2026 with a record of 62-100, the first 100 loss season in franchise history. It was a 10-game slide for the Angels, who had a 72-90 record in 2025.
Gilbert retired the first 12 batters he faced and, after walking Moisés Ballesteros at the start of the fifth inning, was lifted and left to a standing ovation from the Mariners fans.
The Mariners took a 1-0 lead in the second inning when Weston Wilson drove in Cole Young with a grounder to third base.
Seattle scored two more runs in the third on Cal Raleigh’s RBI single off Angels starter Yusei Kikuchi, and Dominic Canzone scored on a groundout by Josh Naylor to make it 3-0.
Kikuchi (1-7) gave up three runs and six hits over five innings, with one walk and seven strikeouts.
Bryce Teodosio scored for the Angels on a sacrifice fly in the top of the sixth inning, but the Mariners responded with three in the bottom half when Young scored on an Angels throwing error and Randy Arozarena drove in two with a double to make it 6-1.
Jose Siri hit a two-run homer for the Angels in the eighth, and Leo Rivas scored for the Mariners in the bottom half on a wild pitch.
Cooper Criswell pitched the ninth for the Mariners. Eduard Bazardo (4-4) got the win.
After finishing the 2025 season with a 90-72 record and advancing to the seventh game of the ALCS against Toronto, the Mariners missed the playoffs with a disappointing 76-86 record this season. Despite that mark, the Mariners drew 2,883,798 fans in 2026, the team’s highest total since 2004.
One in five holidaymakers who book trips well in advance later discover the same flight or hotel has dropped in price as the departure date nears, according to new research.
Booking too early has its downsides (Image: Getty Images)
Researchers explored whether travellers are more likely to identify with a traditional, take-charge Type A personality (54%) or a more laid-back Type B approach (31%) when booking and enjoying a holiday.
Type A travellers prefer to meticulously plan every detail of their trip well before setting off, while Type Bs are more likely to go with the flow and embrace the unexpected when they’re away.
But the study of 2,000 adults who have travelled abroad in the last three years found 20% of Type A travellers later spotted the exact flight or hotel they had spent weeks researching available for significantly less .
Another 10% said they had lost money trying to amend or cancel rigid bookings when their plans changed. Despite that, almost three quarters (73%) of Type As said booking a holiday just a week before departure feels too risky .
However, 36% of Type B travellers said they feel confident there is little risk of missing out on their dream destination, even without planning months in advance.
The research was commissioned bylastminute.com to mark the launch of its ‘Travel Bgents’ platform, a hub that rewards Type B bookers with extra discounts.
Zoë Fidler, from the holiday firm, said: “There’s a common misconception that Type B travellers are just unstructured non-planners who leave things to chance. In reality, they are the savviest bookers in the game.
“Type B travellers have simply realised that holding off on pressing ‘book’ is the smartest move you can make, knowing they can get what they want and at a great price.”
Even so, a quarter (25%) admitted they wish they could embrace a more spontaneous approach and have the confidence to book a trip without overthinking.
Around 30% of Type B travellers said they feel reassured they could change plans on a whim when leaving it late to lock in their trip.
And it’s not just about saving money and planning time. Some 42% of Type B travellers said spontaneous adventures while on holiday create lasting memories — compared with 20% of Type A travellers .
Type B travellers were also more likely to say they stumble across hidden gems (36% vs 28%) or enjoy unexpected moments (42% vs 20%).
Zoe Fidler added: “By holding out for the right moment, Type B’s unlock premium trips at a fraction of the cost, without the over-planning.
“Leaving it to the last minute isn’t about compromising or settling for leftovers; it’s an intentional, high-reward strategy.”
