record

Foxconn’s (FXCOF) June revenue surged 52.11% year-over-year, and it forecast a growth outlook for the third quarter but cautioned about a “volatile global political and economic situation.”

The company saw a record second quarter revenue, which also beat analysts expectations, on ​strong demand

LeRoy Irvin, a cornerback and special teams player who made two Pro Bowls with the Rams in the 1980s, has died, the team said Thursday. He was 68.

Irvin holds the Rams record for most non-offensive touchdowns (11 — five interception returns, four punt returns, one fumble recovery return and one blocked field goal return). He also is tied with Janoris Jenkins and Ed Meador for most pick-sixes in team history.

“We mourn the loss of Rams Legend LeRoy Irvin,” the team wrote on social media. “We extend our condolences to his family and friends during this difficult time.”

No further details were provided. Freelance sports journalist Eric Geller reported that Irvin died Wednesday after a long battle with throat cancer.

Born Sept. 15, 1957 in Fort Dix, N.J., Irvin played running back at Glenn Hills High School in Augusta, Ga. He told Sports Collectors Daily in 2023 that he patterned his running style after O.J. Simpson’s.

“That parlayed into my pro career,” Irvin said. “When I moved to defensive back in college, I always prided myself on being a great runner, which led to me being a great punt returner.”

As a senior at Kansas in 1979, Irvin led the Big Eight Conference with 27 punt returns for 321 yards and two touchdowns. He also intercepted five passes that season. In four years with the Jayhawks, Irvin had 42 punt returns for 454 yards and two touchdowns to go with 10 interceptions.

Selected by the Rams in the third round of the 1980 draft, Irvin played in L.A. for 10 seasons before spending his final season with the Detroit Lions in 1990.

In an NFL record that still stands, Irvin recorded 207 punt return yards during a 37-35 win over the Atlanta Falcons on Oct. 11, 1981. Two of his six punt returns that day went for touchdowns, of 75 and 84 yards.

Irvin finished his career with 35 interceptions for 676 yards, and 147 punt returns for 1,457 yards. After retirement, he worked as a coach, broadcaster and businessman.

“Devastated to hear about the passing of my brother, teammate, and Rams legend Leroy Irvin,” his former Rams teammate and business partner Eric Dickerson wrote on Instagram.

“Leroy wasn’t just a lockdown corner and a fierce competitor on the field; he was a true friend and a great man who always brought incredible energy. Rest in peace, my brother. Sending my thoughts and prayers to the Irvin family and all of Rams Nation.”

Published on 03/07/2026 – 10:07 GMT+2•Updated
10:11

Stock markets across Asia mostly advanced on Friday, taking their cue from a fresh record close for the Dow on Wall Street, as some of the AI-linked shares battered in this week’s sell-off found their feet again while others kept falling.

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The volatility was calmer than the heavy selling seen a day earlier, when worries about stretched technology valuations sent semiconductor shares tumbling across the region.

At the time of writing, South Korea’s Kospi led the bounce, climbing over 4% to recoup part of the nearly 8% plunge it suffered on Thursday. Samsung Electronics, the country’s largest company and a major chipmaker, jumped 7%, while smaller memory rival SK Hynix rose 4.9%.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 added 1%, helped by a 6.6% leap in memory maker Kioxia, although chip-equipment supplier Tokyo Electron slipped 2.5%.

Elsewhere, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.7% and the Shanghai Composite rose 0.7%, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 advanced 1.3% and Taiwan’s Taiex bucked the trend, easing 0.6%.

As for European markets, both the Euro Stoxx 50 and the broader pan-European Stoxx 600 opened within a 0.3% range.

The UK’s FTSE 100, Germany’s DAX 30, France’s CAC 40 and Italy’s FTSE MI, all traded between 0.1% and 0.3% higher.

Spain’s IBEX 35taly’s FTSE MIB led the pack and rose about 0.4%.

Wall Street’s record, a cooler jobs report and oil

US stocks were mixed on Thursday, but the Dow still managed a fresh peak, rising 1.1% to 52,900.

The broader S&P 500 ended virtually flat despite seven in ten of its members gaining, held back by another retreat in chip stocks, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.8%.

Sentiment drew support from data showing US employers added 57,000 jobs last month, well below the 100,000 forecast and a slowdown on May.

A softer labour market could ease inflation pressure and, with oil back below its pre-war levels, may lessen the case for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates repeatedly this year, an outcome investors would welcome.

Crypto-linked shares also firmed as Bitcoin rose about 2%, lifting Robinhood and Coinbase alongside it.

Still, the AI trade remained under strain.

Micron gave up an early gain to fall 5.5%, a day after a 10.6% slump, while Lam Research sank more than 10% and Nvidia, now worth close to $4.7 trillion, edged 1.4% lower.

On oil, Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 1% to around $73 a barrel early Friday, while US crude added 0.5% to about $69, with prices still sitting below where they were before the Iran war began in late February.

Additional sources • AP

Herb Alpert walks up a long driveway at his rambling Malibu estate, wincing slightly after having woken up around 3 a.m. with a cramp in his left calf.

“It’s still kind of seizing,” the trumpeter says as he leads me past a garden lush with moist-looking tropical plants.

This, Alpert accepts, is the reality of life at 91. Yet the only reason he’s out here racking up steps by the hundreds on a recent morning is because he was tooling around in his sculpture studio before I arrived. And the only reason the sculpture studio is so far from his music studio — there’s also a studio devoted to his painting — is because of his huge success over the last 60 or so years.

“So I can’t really complain,” he says.

A Los Angeles native who got his start writing songs like Sam Cooke’s “Wonderful World,” Alpert has lived here in Malibu since 1972, a decade after he released “The Lonely Bull,” his debut album with the Tijuana Brass. The LP’s title track, inspired by a bullfight Alpert caught in Mexico, went to No. 6 on Billboard’s Hot 100; more than a dozen finger-snapping Top 40 hits followed, including “A Taste of Honey,” “Spanish Flea” (also heard as a theme song on TV’s “The Dating Game”) and “This Guy’s in Love With You,” which took a rare Alpert vocal turn all the way to No. 1.

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What’s more, these inescapable tunes came out on Alpert’s own label, A&M Records, which he “formed on a handshake,” as he puts it, in 1962 with his business partner Jerry Moss. The label quickly became one of the biggest independent record companies in music, with acts such as Carole King, the Carpenters, the Police, Peter Frampton and Janet Jackson, as well as a beloved recording studio complex on La Brea Avenue. (Moss, who with Alpert sold A&M in 1989 for a reported $500 million, died in 2023.)

After years working on his own and with his wife, the singer Lani Hall, Alpert revived the Tijuana Brass name in 2024 and launched a tour that will stop Sunday night at the Hollywood Bowl. We sat down in his gear-stuffed music studio to talk about it and much more.

I’m sure you heard that John Mayer and McG bought the former A&M Studios last year. I wondered what your emotional investment is in the place at this point.
I don’t have an emotional investment. Once I left the lot, I was out of there — I didn’t look back. I wanted to paint, I wanted to sculpt, I wanted to make music. I wasn’t thinking about the business.

What’s an A&M success story you took particular pride in?
Cat Stevens. I heard this kid — he was a kid at the time — at the Troubadour, just him and a guitar, and I got goosebumps. It was so beautiful and so honest.

What was Karen Carpenter like?
She was a doll. She didn’t know how great she was — didn’t think she was a great singer. One hell of a drummer too. Go onto YouTube and search Karen Carpenter’s solo on drums — it’ll knock your socks off. But she was innocent. She was lucky to have [her brother] Richard because Richard knew what to do with her in a very gentle way.

Even at the Carpenters’ smoothest, I hear deep sadness in Karen’s singing.
I think that’s a standard ingredient to great artists. Listen closely to Miles Davis and you’ll hear the same thing.

Karen struggled with her mental health, which her fame didn’t help. Did you ever feel responsible for what she went through?
I’ve gone over that question so many times in my head: If I hadn’t picked them out and signed them, would the same result have happened?

Where have you landed?
I don’t have an answer.

In a recent documentary about you, you’re talking about “Wonderful World” and you say that nobody knows what a hit record sounds like. That’s your feeling now based on years of experience. But did you think you knew when you were young?
I didn’t know then either. “Wonderful World” was a demo that Keen Records put on a shelf. When Sam started selling records on RCA Victor, they pulled it out as a lark, and it ended up one of the biggest-selling singles Sam ever had. I’ve told this story before, but at A&M a guy played a record for me — I said, “Man, this record stinks.” Well, I was turning down “Louie Louie.”

Why didn’t you understand “Louie Louie”?
It was out of tune. It was too long. I didn’t know what the hell they were saying.

That’s why it’s great.
Probably so. But did they have another hit record? Sam used to say, “Close your eyes when you listen to a new artist — don’t get swayed by whether they’re beautiful or they’re handsome or they can dance their ass off.”

OK, but you were like a heartthrob in the ’60s.
What am I now — chopped liver?

I don’t think you can say your success had nothing to do with your looks.
I don’t think it did. You know that sadness you were talking about? It’s in my horn.

I agree. But it didn’t hurt that you looked great.
It didn’t hurt once I had a hit record. It wouldn’t have given me a hit record.

Jerry Moss, left, and Herb Alpert in 1974.

(Michael Putland / Getty Images)

Let’s talk about your song “Rise.”
Got lucky with that.

In what way?
My nephew Randy, who’s one of my managers, he wanted me to take some of the Tijuana Brass records and do a little disco number with them. So we go into the studio with a bunch of great musicians, start playing “Taste of Honey” at 120 beats per minute. I got nauseous — I said, “Man, I ain’t doing this.”

Nauseous?
The record was big, and I didn’t want to tamper with it. But Randy had written this song called “Rise” with a friend of his. He wanted me to play that at 120 beats per minute too. I said, “Lookit, man — let’s slow this thing down and let people dance closer together.” We recorded it live in the studio. Julius Wechter was playing marimba — dear friend of mine. I said, “What do you think of this thing? Pretty cool, isn’t it?” He turns around and says, “I hate it. That beat — the four-on-the-floor is killing me.” I expected a different answer from him. But it didn’t matter.

What’d you make of the Notorious B.I.G.’s sampling “Rise” for his “Hypnotize”?
How could you not like that record? These guys that take your bass line and make a record by pressing a button — I think that’s cheating a bit. But there’s 70 zillion streams on that song. Can’t deny it.

“Rise” was also sampled by the rapper Nas for his song “Power, Paper & P—.”
I don’t know how to comment on that one.

A lot of musicians from your generation have been selling their catalogs lately. Have you considered it?
There’s no reason to — I don’t need the money.

I wrote about Frankie Valli a few years ago, and he and Bob Gaudio seemed eager to have this company Primary Wave out there finding ways to —
Monetize the catalog. I get it. But they don’t have to do that with us. I don’t know if you know what’s happening, but I’m in the heyday of my career right now.

Right now?
It wasn’t my idea to get the Tijuana Brass back together again. My nephew, he’s a social media guy, and he went around the world to see what songs of mine were selling the most. Turned out there were about 18 songs. I started listening to the 18, and at the end, I felt happy, I felt joyous, I felt a smile was on my face. I thought, Man, let’s try this — this might be interesting. We started doing it, and we’ve been sold out 50 concerts in a row.

It strikes me that without the Tijuana Brass, you weren’t playing the Hollywood Bowl.
Hell no, I wasn’t.

What’s that say to you?
That the music is touching people. The times we’re living in, there’s a lot of doubt with what’s going on, and I think people are getting some positive energy from it.

You’re a lifelong Angeleno. Lots of well-to-do folks say that L.A. has gone to hell in a handbasket. What’s your take?
I think it’s pretty much the same all over the country.

Which is?
Gone to hell in a handbasket. People are confused about where they’re going, whether they’re gonna be able to have enough food on the table, whether they can afford gasoline. I’m not saying it’s all bad — it’s just hard to make sense of a lot of it for a lot of people, including the guy you’re talking to.

Your music has pulled from any number of cultures. Do you think it speaks of your Jewish identity?
Most definitely. My father was born in a shtetl outside Kyiv — didn’t speak Russian, spoke Yiddish. He brought his mandolin with him when he was 16 years old on a boat by himself and landed at Ellis Island. He used to play songs for me on the mandolin. When his nostrils flared, I knew he was into it. That kind of got me.

Jewish meets Mexican feels very L.A. to me.
I think we’re all a product of our surroundings. In high school I used to go see Gerry Mulligan and Chet Baker, and I was touched by them. Of course, they were loaded.

What kind of guy was Chet Baker?
A troubled guy who was a brilliant musician. I gave him one of my horns, and he pawned it the next day. He was sweet but he didn’t have a hold on his emotions.

Not great for living, obviously. But good for music?
Well, you’re opening up a whole can of worms. I mean, why did so many great jazz musicians get hooked on drugs? Maybe guys that were hung up on being a human being, they found that getting stoned helped them through the struggle. I recorded Stan Getz the first time he ever recorded without drugs. It was at A&M — he was wearing this red silk shirt that had sweat stains under both arms. He had like 75 reeds on the ground because he couldn’t pick out the right one. He finally found the right reed, got over the anxiety and started playing — same Stan Getz you heard throughout his career. These guys were under the assumption that being stoned would change what they played. I don’t think that holds any water.

Was there a time you thought it might be true?
I did experiment with grass once. Turned on a recorder, took a puff, started playing some jazz. Took another puff, started playing some more jazz. I listened to that recording the next morning — it was terrible.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Can we do a little Herb Alpert trivia to finish?
Do I have a choice?

“A Taste of Honey” won record of the year at the Grammys in 1966.
You’re gonna ask why.

You beat the Beatles’ “Yesterday.”
No kidding?

The year after “Taste of Honey,” you were nominated for record of the year again with “What Now My Love.” That one you lost. Remember what you lost to?
Not “Louie, Louie.”

“Strangers in the Night.”
That’s a real pop song. Love the guy, but not my favorite by him.

What’s your favorite Sinatra song?
“Only the Lonely.”

“This Guy’s in Love With You” — great vocal performance. Why didn’t you do more?
I’m not a singer.

Sure you are.
I know it’s a great performance. But it was one take, man — I did that in one take.

This is what I’m saying.
Look, I had an interesting guy in the sound booth who did the arrangements named Burt Bacharach.

I read that you talked with Burt a few times a week until he died.
I did, and not about music. We talked about football, basketball, politics, you name it.

What’s your basketball team?
Lakers.

Hard to be a Lakers fan these days.
Easy to be a critic.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Mauricio Pochettino’s team continues to do things in this summer’s World Cup that no U.S. team has ever done before.

Its three wins are the most in a single tournament. So are the 10 goals in four games. It has the best goal differential ever and its two shutouts ties a record.

Yet all that means absolutely nothing to the players.

“They’re great milestones,” captain Tim Ream said. “But I don’t think anybody’s even once mentioned the different things that we’re doing. We’re focused on what we’re doing daily on the training ground, because that puts us in the best possible position to to put these performances.

“So yeah, not aware or even worried about records that we’re breaking.”

Well, except for maybe one.

With Wednesday’s gritty 2-0 over Bosnia and Herzegovina, a game the U.S. finished with just 10 men, the Americans won a game in the World Cup knockout stage for just the second time. That sends them on to a round-of-16 meeting with Belgium on Monday in Seattle where a win would be — you guessed it — historic.

“It’s cool and it’s great and it’s an accomplishment,” midfielder Weston McKennie said of the records. “But at the same time, we have high expectations for ourselves. That’s what we expect of ourselves, what we expect of our team.

“We just want to focus on Belgium now and continue to try to make history.”

That chore got a good deal more difficult because of an unwanted team record that was also set Wednesday. When Folarin Balogun scored a goal late in the first half then drew a red card early in the second, he became the first American — and third player ever — to get one of each in the same World Cup knockout game.

“Cool record,” defender Chris Richards said.

But while the goal, Balogun’s third of the tournament, proved to be all the U.S. needed to beat Bosnia, the red card — which cannot be appealed according to U.S. Soccer — means he’s suspended for the game with Belgium.

“It’s just so unfortunate, honestly,” Christian Pulisic said. “Looking back at it, it seems so harsh. I just told him he’s done so much for us, and now we’ve got his back.”

The red card came in the 64^th minute with the U.S. protecting a 1-0 lead built on Balogun’s goal just before the intermission. The American striker was battling hulking Bosnia defender Tarik Muharemovic for a loose ball when he inadvertently raked Muharemovic’s right calf with his studs up, then landed on his ankle, twisting it awkwardly.

Brazilian referee Raphael Claus did not flash either card before stopping play at the behest of the video assistant referee. But after consulting a slow-motion reply, Claus gave Balogun a red card for a dangerous challenge.

“For me, never is this a red card,” said Pochettino, now the winningest U.S. coach in World Cup history. “Watching after on TV, never was [it his] intention to step up on the player. That was a normal action in football.”

Maybe. But Claus sent Balogun off just the same, leaving the U.S. to protect a one-goal advantage for the final 30 minutes while playing a man down. It was probably the sternest test the Americans have faced in the tournament.

“It would be easy to have an excuse if they did score,” McKennie said. “But that’s not the type of team we are.”

For Ream, the challenge was actually no challenge at all.

“Would it be weird if I downplayed this and said [I] wasn’t even fazed by it?” he said. “It didn’t feel like we were down a man. We were still able to carve out chances and we were still able to keep hold of the ball. Everybody knew their roles.

“It felt really calm and felt really, really easy and simple for us in that moment.”

And that allowed another hero to shrug off the pain of his own wounds and step up big.

Early in the second half a Bosnian player stomped on Malik Tillman, shredding his boot and cutting his right foot (but not drawing a red card). During the hydration break, Tillman was able to change shoes and in the 82^nd minute, his white sock turning red with blood, he found himself standing over a free kick just outside the Bosnian penalty area.

“I’ve been dreaming about this game. I’ve been dreaming about, yeah, maybe taking a free kick and scoring,” said Tillman, who bent the ball off the gloved right hand of Bosnian keeper Nikola Vasilj and into the net for his first World Cup goal. “I trained for this in our practices and then it actually came true.”

So did the team’s dreams of reaching the round of 16, only now they’re arriving without their leading scorer, who will have to watch the Belgium game from the stands. Balogun’s absence, however, creates opportunity for others, with Haji Wright and Ricardo Pepi the most likely candidates to take his place.

And if this U.S. team has proven anything, it’s proven that it loves nothing more than embracing opportunities to prove people wrong.

“We’re going to miss him for the next game but we know that if it’s Pepi or Haji, whoever, is going to step up next and they’re going to do the job just as well as he did,” Richards said of Balogun. “One thing about this team is we’re really a big family and we’re shown it this whole tournament.

“Coming in, there was a lot of question marks about our whole team in general. Game by game we started to put ourselves right. Because we knew we had it the whole time.”

A punishing heatwave affected many parts of the country during the last week of the month.

Last month was provisionally the warmest June in England since records began, as well as the second-warmest for the United Kingdom, according to figures published by the country’s Met Office.

Rare extreme heat warnings were issued for several days last month, with “exceptionally warm overnight temperatures”, the weather agency said on Wednesday.

England registered an average temperature of 17.1C (62.78 degrees Fahrenheit) last month – the highest since records began in 1884.

“The exceptional warmth was driven by an intense and record-breaking heatwave at the end of the month,” the Met Office said in a statement.

The previous record of 16.9C (62.4F) was set in June 2025, nearly 3C (5.4F) above the long-term average. It means England’s top three warmest Junes since data began in 1884 have all occurred this decade, with the third being in 2023.

A punishing heatwave affected many parts of the country during the last week of the month, with temperatures topping 30C (86F) at some places in the UK for seven days in a row from June 21-27.

A peak of 37.7C (99.86F) was provisionally reached at Lingwood in Norfolk on June 26 – the highest maximum temperature ever recorded for the month.

This was more than 2C higher (3.6F) than the previous June record of 35.6C (96.08F), set in 1957 at Camden Square in London and equalled in 1976 at Mayflower Park in Southampton.

Last month also saw a provisional new June record for the highest overnight minimum, with temperatures at Cardiff Bute Park dropping no lower than 23.5C (74.3F) on June 25.

More than 1,000 schools and nurseries were closed during the heatwave, and there was disruption to public transport with overhead wires and signalling strained because of the heat.

Critics felt the country was ill-prepared to deal with the sweltering heat. Climate experts have urged the UK government to adapt its infrastructure to warming summers, with a surge in demand for fans and air conditioners, which remain rare in British homes.

The heatwave has also affected many countries in Europe, including France, Germany, Slovakia, Serbia, Croatia, Italy, Austria and western Ukraine, with more than 1,000 deaths linked to the scorching heat reported in France alone.

A group of scientists blamed climate change for the dangerous weather blazing across Europe. In a report by the World Weather Attribution, experts warned that the phasing out of fossil fuels is essential to reverse the extreme weather trend.

Brighton have agreed a club record £46m deal with Tottenham Hotspur for Croatia defender Luka Vuskovic.

Brighton had two bids for Vuskovic turned down last month.

However, they have now reached an agreement over a transfer that is also subject to potential additional payments that could take the overall fee to £50m.

The 19-year-old will have a medical when Croatia’s World Cup campaign is over.

They play Portugal in a last-32 tie in the early hours of Friday morning UK time.

Born in Split, Vuskovic came through the academy at local club Hajduk, becoming the youngest player to feature in Croatia’s top flight when he was just 16 – and going on to become his club’s youngest goalscorer.

He agreed a deal with Tottenham in September 2023 that saw him join the club in 2025.

Although he is yet to make his Spurs debut, Vuskovic made 30 appearances on loan with German club Hamburg last season, scoring six goals in the Bundesliga, and is now one of the most highly rated young central defenders in Europe.

He will replace Jan Paul van Hecke in Fabian Hurzeler’s squad.

Ironically, Van Hecke is moving in the opposite direction after Tottenham agreed to pay £52m for the Netherlands international, who had a year left on his Brighton contract.

Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda celebrates after the Dodgers beat the Montreal Expos to win the NL pennant in 1981.

(Associated Press)

Years as manager: 1976-1996

Record: 1,599-1,439, .526 win pct

After serving as the team’s third base coach for four seasons, Lasorda took over as manager late in the 1976 season when Alston announced his retirement. He led the Dodgers to the National League pennant in his first two full seasons, losing both times to the Yankees in the World Series. He won his first World Series in 1981, knocking off the Yankees, and rallied his team to a surprise title in 1988 in which the Dodgers beat the heavily favored Athletics. Lasorda was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997, his first year of eligibility.

A fiery and vibrant presence who spent 71 years with the Dodgers, Lasorda managed nine players who won the NL rookie of the year award. The Dodgers also opened the Japanese player pipeline on his watch. Hideo Nomo, the first Japanese big leaguer to permanently relocate to the U.S., joined the Dodgers in 1995. Three decades later, the team features Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on its star-studded roster.

Tiny Cape Verde have become the history makers of World Cup 2026 by defying all odds to become the smallest country to earn a spot in the knockout stages of the competition.

Their improbable run through the group stage, with a third straight World Cup draw, was completed with a 0-0 draw against Saudi Arabia on Friday night to advance in the tournament.

Keeping goal for Cape Verde throughout has been Vozinha, 40, who has embodied the grit of his nation.

“We are small, but we have big hearts and we are fighters,” said the goalkeeper, who last season played for Chaves in Portugal’s second tier.

The island nation off the western coast of Africa, which is making its debut on football’s grandest stage, already held 2010 champion Spain to a 0-0 draw – a shock in itself to begin their campaign.

They then came from behind to get a 2-2 result against Uruguay – the winners of the inaugural World Cup in 1930.

“The team was very eager to show this to the whole world,” Cape Verde coach Bubista said while draped in his country’s flag after the Saudi Arabia game.

“We are proud of having arrived at this stage. We have shown that we are a small country, but that we fight for the things that we want to achieve.”

Cape Verde’s three points put the team in second place behind Spain, which beat Uruguay on Friday night and won the group.

Cape Verde will play reigning World Cup champion Argentina in Miami on July 3.

Drawing all three group matches doesn’t guarantee advancement at major football tournaments, but several teams have done it in the past. Those include: Wales in 1958, Ireland and the Netherlands in 1990, and Chile in 1998. New Zealand, however, also got three draws at the 2010 World Cup and were eliminated.

On the eve of the match, Bubista mused, “Everyone is entitled to dream and nothing is impossible.”

The Blue Sharks proved him right, overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds as this country of just  530,000 reached the round of 32.

A woman, her face painted with a flag of the archipelago, held a sign that read: “Small Islands, Big Dreams,” a dream that these underdogs have made reality as they continue their charmed run on the world stage.

They did it with another strong game from Vozinha, whose tournament success has helped him amass more than 16 million Instagram followers.

He had a save in first-half stoppage time, grabbing a header from Mohamed Kanno to keep Saudi Arabia scoreless. Another save came in the 66th minute when he leaped to deflect a shot from Mohammed Abu al-Shamat.

A third came in the 92nd minute when he stopped a shot by Abdullah al-Hamdan.

“There is a lot of quality in our national team,” Vozinha said. “Maybe for many of you, you think the Cape Verdean player is not good enough. But we came here to show that we have a lot of quality and we are here to compete and our players can play everywhere in the big competition, in the big leagues.”

A group of shirtless men in the crowd each painted one letter of his name on their chests as they cheered Cape Verde.

But Vozinha had a much bigger fan among the crowd of 68,278 as his mother Ana Candida Evora watched from a luxury suite, waving a tiny Cape Verde flag. It was her second match of the tournament after missing Vozinha’s epic seven-save performance against Spain because of visa issues.

Cape Verde had a chance to score in the 50th minute, but Kevin Pina’s shot from distance was just above the crossbar. Another chance came in the 74th minute when Laros Duarte’s shot from the middle of the box was stopped by goalkeeper Mohammed al-Owais.

A last chance to score came in the final seconds when Nuno da Costa sent a shot from the middle of the box wide left.

But it didn’t matter because a couple of minutes after the final whistle, Spain completed its victory over Uruguay and set off a joyous celebration among Cape Verde’s players and fans, many of whom cried as they rejoiced.

Having led his squad to new heights, Bubista was asked if he could have imagined such a run entering the tournament.

“I’ve always said that sooner or later Cape Verde would be on such a stage,” he said. “Of course, it’s hard to have such a forecast, but I always knew.”

Saudi Arabia were eliminated after finishing with two points in the group stage.

“We were very poor in terms of creating things, controlling the game and creating actions,” coach Georgios Donis said. “And one cannot win a game this way. It would be very difficult.”

When David Jacks published a biography of Peter Asher in 2022, the veteran record producer and manager expressed surprise that anyone would have deemed his life worthy of the treatment. Four years later, he’s no less baffled to have become the subject of a new documentary, “Peter Asher: Everywhere Man,” directed by the filmmakers Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine.

“It just seemed to me,” he says, “that I wouldn’t be that fascinating.”

The movie, in theaters now, argues otherwise: A child actor alongside his two younger sisters, the bespectacled Asher became an unlikely pop star during the British invasion as half of the duo Peter & Gordon, whose debut single, “A World Without Love” — written by Paul McCartney — hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 in 1964. (McCartney offered the song to Asher while the Beatle was dating Asher’s sister Jane.) In 1968, the Beatles made Asher head of A&R at Apple Records, where he signed James Taylor; the two soon moved to Los Angeles and turned Taylor into music’s biggest heartthrob folkie.

Asher went on to shepherd Linda Ronstadt to stardom and to produce records by Diana Ross, Cher, Bonnie Raitt, Randy Newman, Neil Diamond and 10,000 Maniacs, among many others. And at 82 he’s still at it: Last year he produced Barbra Streisand’s latest duets album — they’re due to start work on a new Streisand solo LP, he says — and he’ll perform a show of his own July 19 at the Grammy Museum. Asher, who broke his leg in a recent fall, spoke about it all the other morning at his home in Malibu, where he walked into the kitchen using a cane before sitting down at a table set with pastries and several of the day’s newspapers.

What unites the jobs of musician, producer, executive, manager? What’s the through line?
Love of music and admiration for the people who do it. They’re very different jobs, and I came at them from very different perspectives. Record production was something I set out to do once I understood what a record producer did. Hire musicians much better than yourself and tell them what to do? That’s a cool job — how do I get in on that racket? Whereas I never had any ambitions to be a manager. It’s just that when James and I decided to go out on our own and try to put a career together, we didn’t know who we trusted to do it, so I kind of went, I’ll do it.

What’d you discover about the job of management?
The ingredients are common sense, not being a crook and having a great client.

Which is the hardest of those three?
The last one. I got to induct the first managers inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: Brian Epstein and Andrew Loog Oldham — the Beatles and the Stones. That’s the hard part. The only thing that would tempt me back into management would be lightning striking for a third time — to see James, to see Linda, then to see somebody comparably brilliant, which I occasionally do. But usually they have a manager already.

What’s the last new act that knocked you out?
Ed Sheeran.

Was that just because he looks like he could be your grandson?
That certainly crossed my mind.

As a producer, your records helped define the sound of rock in the ’70s.
The so-called California sound.

Then the zeitgeist shifted.
One became aware of that. Pop music got very electronic, which I loved.

Was there a place for you in that style?
I didn’t consciously try to make records in that style because I don’t think I could have — not as well as they were being made anyway.

What’s a record from the early ’80s that made you think that?
“Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).” I couldn’t do that.

Back to the ’70s: The doc is filled with pictures of James looking —
Like a movie star. With the cover of “JT,” I finally went all the way and said, “We’re doing the the glamour shot.” Then we did “Flag,” which everyone hated.

With the maritime flag. A truly perverse album cover.
I loved it. James loved it. Everyone thought we were crazy.

How crucial do you think James’ good looks were to his whole proposition?
I don’t know.

Oh, come on.
I really don’t. I mean, how would you gauge that? There’s probably girls who fell in love with him without listening to the record.

I think you just gauged it.
If he was ugly, would he be as big a star? Probably not.

(Evan Mulling / For The Times)

Same applies to Linda, right?
When I first saw Linda, it was stages of realization. Someone said to me, “You’ve got to go down and see this girl at the Bitter End.” I walk in and she’s singing so well — unspeakably good. Then she looks incredibly great — barefoot, short-shorts. Oh, my God, my heart. Then you meet her, and it turns out she’s a remarkably brilliant woman — extremely well read. You just kind of go, “All these things together — how can it be?” It’s the same thing talking about the Beatles: If you cast it like the Spice Girls, you still couldn’t have gotten four to fit together so perfectly.

Did you like the Spice Girls?
Terrific. “Tell me what you want / What you really, really want” — it’s a smash. And yet none of them are particularly good singers, which is kind of the point.

I went to an event not long ago where Paul McCartney played his new album for a small group of fans. It was fascinating to see the spell McCartney casts over people.
He’s had to get used to it — to admit to himself that he can’t meet people who aren’t amazed that they’re meeting him. Even as someone who’s known him off and on for a long time, you still get the wave of: Holy s—.

You’re still amazed to be around him?
Of course. I get it less — I’m ready for it. But you can’t pretend he’s not Paul McCartney. And he’s gotta live with that his whole life.

You grew up a member of the upper crust, I think it’s fair to say.
I don’t think we were that crusty. But upper, probably, yes.

I wondered how that situated you to live and work among artistic types.
If anything, the upper crust have more time to be artistic — less preoccupied with getting a job and making a living. But my parents worked incredibly hard — we weren’t upper crust in the sense of inherited wealth. My father was a doctor, my mother was a professor of music. But I never struggled, to be honest. I had a comfortable allowance, and then I went to school and worked hard. Everyone talks about sharing a flat with a million people, living on borrowed sandwiches — I skipped that phase.

Did that shape you in any meaningful way?
I don’t know. But I think when people do struggle, it becomes a meaningful part of their lives to get away from it. With someone like James, the struggle was a struggle with drugs. Now he says the worst thing about drugs is they’re a complete waste of time — you waste time doing nothing except looking for drugs. And I think that made him anxious to succeed and to be taken seriously.

I’m sure you saw the New York Times’ list of the 30 greatest living American songwriters.
You knew it was gonna be silly. Randy Newman, for God’s sake — you just cannot not include him.

No Neil Diamond either.
Insane.

And no Billy Joel.
[Shrugs].

How’s your health?
High blood pressure, high cholesterol, need to work out more — old man stuff. Other than that and a broken leg, great.

You’re OK with the cane?
It’s a considerable upgrade from the wheelchair. I like the cane — it’s kind of elegant.

What seems scarier: the body going or the mind going?
The mind going. And it is, slightly. I had a stroke, and bits of my brain aren’t quite working right. But compared to other people I know, I’m fine.

We’re at a moment when a lot of foundational rock ’n’ roll figures —
Are dying. It’s all the rage.

What’s it feel like to see your friends and colleagues go?
Better them than me.

Couple more for you: You managed Courtney Love for a spell.
I met her here in Malibu. I also managed Pamela Anderson for a while because she was a neighbor and asked me to help.

What, you put a shingle out?
“Manager for hire.” I’m trying to remember how I first met Courtney — I think Merck Mercuriadis was talking to her about publishing and Kurt stuff. I liked her. Very smart. I like smart women.

She’s easy to work with? Hard to work with?
Impossible to work with.

What’s James Taylor’s best album?
“JT,” maybe.

What’s Linda Ronstadt’s best album?
“Heart Like a Wheel.” With Linda, it’s unfair because they’re so radically different. How do you compare that to a mariachi record and then to Nelson Riddle?

Working with Riddle on those albums must have been a thrill.
He told us all these incredible stories about Frank Sinatra, who he didn’t like although he admired him enormously. It was John David Souther who originally suggested Nelson. Linda had tried doing the album a different way — did some versions with Jerry Wexler and it didn’t work out. So we had a meeting with Nelson: Would he consider doing a couple of arrangements for us? He went, “No.” We said, “What?” He said, “I’ll do an album, though.”

“A World Without Love” was one of eight songs to top the chart in 1964 with “love” in the title. What’s that say about pop music in the mid-’60s?
Same thing it says about pop music of all time: It’s either “I love you” or “She loves you” or “Why don’t you love me?” Weird Al pointed out to me that when you’re looking for a parody of a song, any song that has “love” in the title, substitute “lunch” and it’s funny. “A World Without Lunch” — I mean, who would want to live in such a place?

Uzbekistan’s largest-ever public market transaction has highlighted growing investor interest in the country and its economic reforms, while shifting attention to the next stage of developing its financial markets.

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The listing of the National Investment Fund of Uzbekistan, managed by Franklin Templeton, raised more money than all previous IPOs in the country combined over the past 30 years, according to Marius Dan, Central Asia CEO at Templeton Global Investments.

For investors and market operators, the transaction has drawn attention to a wider issue: how Uzbekistan develops the rules, institutions and market depth needed to support capital markets, debt financing, venture capital and private investment.

“What investors really want to know is that they’ll put their money in and that they will get their money back,” Julia Hoggett, chief executive of the London Stock Exchange, told Euronews.

Hoggett said investors usually begin by looking at a country’s fundamentals, including currency stability, inflation, economic growth, population trends and assets, before turning to the regulatory environment.

Building the infrastructure behind investment

Uzbekistan is preparing new financial legislation as it seeks to expand the range of financing available to companies and investors.

Laziz Kudratov, the country’s minister of Investment, Industry and Trade, told Euronews that legislation establishing the Tashkent International Financial Centre is expected to be signed soon.

The project would create a separate jurisdiction based on common law principles. Kudratov said the aim is to give foreign financial companies a legal environment based on international standards rather than requiring them to operate solely through local legislation.

He also said the planned jurisdiction would include 50 years of tax incentives, including exemptions from corporate income tax, value-added tax (VAT), property tax and customs duties.

The government is also preparing legislation covering alternative investment structures, including venture capital, private equity and limited partner-general partner investment models.

“We are also coming up with a new law on alternative investments,” Kudratov said. “It will create a framework to protect venture capital, LP and GP investment, and private equity investment in Uzbekistan.”

Dan said the National Investment Fund listing showed that international investors were willing to participate when transactions were structured in the right way.

“The initial public offering of the National Investment Fund shows that, in the right structure, investors are very keen to participate in the capital markets of the country,” he said.

Creating a deeper market

Dan said Uzbekistan’s capital market would need more companies, greater liquidity and more foreign institutional investors in the coming years.

He said continued listings of state-owned enterprises, both within and outside the National Investment Fund’s portfolio, would be important in broadening the investment universe.

Local debt markets are also beginning to attract more attention, he said, with retail investors looking more closely at investment opportunities inside Uzbekistan.

Kudratov said reforms introduced since 2017 had changed the investment environment through tax reforms, currency liberalisation and the removal of restrictions on profit repatriation.

“Any investor can come, invest and get their revenues out of the country within one day,” he said.

For Hoggett, investor confidence also depends on a proven track record.

“You can’t change things overnight and say people need to believe it. They need the evidence to see it,” she said.

Broadening participation

The growth of local debt markets and the entry of more retail investors are early signs that Uzbekistan’s financial market is beginning to widen beyond foreign institutional capital, according to Dan.

Hoggett said public markets can play a wider role by opening investment opportunities to more participants.

“The public markets are democratising,” she said.

Hoggett added that private companies are often owned by a relatively small group of investors, while public markets allow a broader range of investors to access company growth. That wider access comes with stronger disclosure requirements for issuers.

For Uzbekistan, broader participation would mean more than attracting foreign capital. It would also involve creating opportunities for domestic investors to participate in the growth of listed companies, debt markets and other financial products.

Governance and market discipline

Governance remains central to the development of Uzbekistan’s capital markets.

Dan said several companies within the National Investment Fund’s portfolio had already introduced board-level changes, including the appointment of independent directors.

“Corporate governance is key,” he said.

He described stronger oversight of state-owned companies as part of improving their operations.

Hoggett said public markets also impose discipline on companies seeking capital.

“The first rule of doing an IPO is meet your estimates, hit what you say you’re going to do,” she said.

That requires companies to build systems, controls, accounting capacity, finance teams and planning processes, she said. Hoggett added that such structures can help companies operate at scale and grow faster.

TORONTO — Marina Mabrey matched the WNBA scoring record with 53 points to help the Toronto Tempo rout the Sparks 125-97 on Thursday night.

Mabrey tied the mark set by Liz Cambage for Dallas against New York on July 17, 2018, and by A’ja Wilson for Las Vegas at Atlanta on Aug. 22, 2023.

Mabrey was 17 of 28 from the field, hitting nine of 18 three-pointers, and made 10 of 12 free throws.

The Tempo opened a nine-game homestand.

Published on
25/06/2026 – 10:43 GMT+2

Micron, one of only a handful of companies able to make advanced memory chips at scale, said on Wednesday that revenue in the third quarter reached $41.4 billion (€36.5bn), more than four times the $9.3 billion (€8.2bn) it recorded in the same period last year.

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The figure also comfortably beat the roughly $35.7 billion (€31.4bn) analysts had forecast, while profit climbed even more dramatically.

The Idaho-based group posted net income of $28.24 billion (€24.9bn), or $24.67 per share, against less than $2 billion (€1.7bn) a year ago. Adjusted earnings of $25.11 a share sailed past the $20.49 expected.

The market reaction to the impressive results was immediate.

Micron shares rose more than 15% in after-hours trading to around $1,213, leaving the company valued at roughly $1.16 trillion (€1tn).

The stock has now climbed about 700% over the past year, one of the most dramatic re-ratings of any large company through the AI boom, reflecting a fundamental shift in the economics of the AI build-out.

The vast data centres being constructed by hyperscalers such as Amazon, Microsoft, Google and Meta, which have collectively earmarked hundreds of billions of dollars in capital spending this year, depend on enormous quantities of high-bandwidth memory, a specialised chip that sits alongside the processors made by Nvidia and others.

Micron has said its entire 2026 output of these chips is already sold out under fixed-price contracts.

According to CEO Sanjay Mehrotra, the results reflect what he called the strategic value of memory in the AI era.

The company pointed to a series of multi-year customer agreements that it expects to make earnings more durable and predictable, a notable claim in an industry long defined by brutal boom-and-bust cycles.

Margins to rival the biggest names

What has startled analysts most is Micron’s profitability.

The company reported a gross margin of around 85% for the quarter, a level that now rivals or exceeds those of far larger technology names such as Nvidia and Meta, an extraordinary position for a memory maker historically squeezed by volatile chip prices.

The tightness of supply, with new factories not expected to add meaningful output until 2028, has handed producers exceptional pricing power.

Micron’s guidance was more striking still.

The company expects revenue of around $50 billion (€44bn) in the current quarter and adjusted earnings of roughly $31 a share, implying the boom is accelerating rather than fading. It is ramping up investment to match, lifting planned capital spending to about $27 billion (€23.7bn) this fiscal year and signalling a further jump in 2027, management told analysts during the earnings call.

The results offer reassurance to investors betting that AI infrastructure spending remains robust, with Micron’s order book serving as a real-time gauge of that demand.

The open question, as ever in the memory industry, is how long the upswing can last before supply catches up. Even the most bullish observers acknowledge that risk has not completely disappeared.

The UK has experienced its hottest June day on record after temperatures soared to 36.1C (97F) in Gosport, Hampshire, on Wednesday afternoon.

Hundreds of schools shut across England and Wales and transport has also been disrupted, with train passengers advised to avoid all non-essential travel.

The heatwave is forecast to continue into Friday, with a further high of about 38C possible, the Met Office said.

A red extreme heat warning issued by the Met Office across parts of south and central England and south Wales remains in place until 23:59 BST on Thursday.

Wednesday’s high came between 15:00 and 16:00, breaking the previous June record of 35.6C recorded in Southampton in 1976 and Camden in 1957.

This new record is described as “provisional” by the Met Office, which now has to conduct checks to ensure the measurement is reliable.

The next highest temperatures of the day were all recorded in southern England, including Wisley, Surrey, on 36C, Wiggonholt, West Sussex, on 35.9C, and Charlwood, Surrey, on 35.7C. And Wales had its hottest day of the year so far, with a high of 33.3C at Cardiff Bute Park.

A searing European heatwave continues to cause deaths and disruption, with France recording its hottest day since records began in 1947, and the temperature in Paris and other areas above 40C.

June 24 (UPI) — Global aquaculture production reached a record high, while Chile maintained its position as the leading supplier of salmon to the United States and one of the sector’s top exporting powers, according to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

According to the report The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture, global fisheries and aquaculture production reached 235 million tons in 2024. For the first time, aquaculture production surpassed 100 million tons of aquatic animals, 89% of which is destined for human consumption and provides at least one-fifth of the animal protein consumed by 3.1 billion people.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said Latin America and the Caribbean account for 15% of global aquatic product exports despite representing 9% of worldwide production, with a total of 13 million tons.

The region exported $27 billion worth of aquatic products, driven mainly by Chilean salmon, anchoveta from Peru and Chile, and Ecuadorian shrimp.

In this context, Chile ranks first in aquaculture production in Latin America, is the largest supplier of salmon to the United States and the world’s fifth-largest exporter of aquatic animal products.

Together with Norway, Chile accounts for nearly half of the value of global salmon and trout exports.

“The growth aquaculture has experienced in recent decades has not been accidental. Behind this progress lies significant work in research, innovation and technological development,” Valeska San Martín, an academic at the Coastal Research Center of the University of Atacama and a researcher at the Millennium Institute in Coastal Socio-Ecology, told UPI.

She said these advances have enabled the development of better feed for farmed species, more efficient genetic selection programs, increasingly precise environmental monitoring systems and automated tools that optimize feeding and health management.

“All of this has helped increase productivity and improve the efficient use of resources while at the same time reducing part of the costs associated with production,” she said.

San Martín added that Chile has been one of the most important players in global aquaculture development and is recognized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations as one of the world’s 10 leading aquaculture producers.

“In 2024, it led global exports of frozen salmon and trout fillets, processed mussels, fishmeal and various algae-derived products, reaching more than 100 international markets, particularly the United States, Japan, Brazil, China and Europe,” she said.

Growth prospects remain positive, according to SalmonChile, the industry association representing salmon producers.

“Chilean salmon exports maintained a positive trend in 2026. During the first quarter, they reached $1.991 billion, representing growth of 8% in value and 19% in volume compared with the same period a year earlier,” the organization told UPI.

SalmonChile added that the record achieved by global aquaculture in 2024 confirms the growing prominence of aquaculture products in international trade and consolidates Chile’s position as one of the world’s leading salmon-producing powers.

JOEL CORRY is on the brink of his biggest collaboration yet, after striking up a bond with Jennifer Lopez.

He’s worked with, and remixed songs from, some of the biggest names on the planet, including Charli XCX, Raye and Sir Elton John.

But Joel caught J-Lo’s attention in December after remixing her 2005 single Get Right, before he remixed her David Guetta collaboration Save Me Tonight in March.

And after flying Bizarre’s Jack out to Ibiza to join him for a mad 24 hours on the party island, Joel says he’s working on getting a studio date with her.

“I’m still in touch with J-Lo and her team, and we’re trying to work on new music together,” Joel says.

“I could definitely see that happening.

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“She loves dance music and doing a remix for Get Right for her last year was an honour.

“It was amazing to meet her and build that friendship.

“I look forward to her doing more of that.”

Of his close friend David, Joel adds: “I talk to him all the time.

“I am playing with him in a few weeks at Ushuaïa.

“He books me back every year to support him at Ushuaïa.

“He’s the best.

“He’s the King of Ibiza.”

Before he nails down his time with J-Lo, Joel has another project up his sleeve — and we did not see it coming.

He has recorded a track with Aleksandr Orlov, the animated aristocratic Russian meerkat who has been fronting ads with his “simples” catchphrase for Compare the Market since 2009.

Together they’re launching a bid for No1 with Simples featuring Scrufizzer [Joel Corry Remix].

Joel says with a laugh: “Listen, you know I’m the king of the summer bangers.

“And for Aleksandr the meerkat, it’s always been his dream to have a summer banger.

“So I’m just helping him out.

“Aleksandr for No1.”

Joel has big ambitions for his animated pal too, and is hoping ITV calls him up for a performance in the Love Island villa, three years after he played there with Becky Hill.

“I’ve done Love Island but we need to get the meerkat on Love Island,” Joel says.

“He would clean up in the villa, wouldn’t he?

“I’d love to go back and, this time, we’ll bring Aleksandr.”

During Jack’s whirlwind trip to Ibiza, he joined Joel in the DJ booth for his set at Wayne Lineker’s infamous O Beach, where he premiered Simples live.

He was accompanied by his girlfriend Coco Lodge, who found fame on series eight of Love Island, the same year he performed.

While he kept tight-lipped as to whether a proposal is on the cards, Joel has his heart set on Ibiza for the big day.

He says: “I’ve always said if I was ever gonna get married, Ibiza would be the place to do it.

“It has a special place in my heart.

“The first time I came here was when I was in my early twenties, and I’ve been back every year since.

“I’ve had residencies here for the last few years, and this is definitely my happy place.

“I think it’d be a perfect place to get married.”

While I’m sure Joel’s brother will be his best man, I wouldn’t put it past Aleksandr to wangle himself a role as ring bearer if all goes well with their track.

JAMIE and Rebekah Vardy’s success is sky-rocketing post Wagatha Christie – after the footballer’s new podcast proved a hit.

The audio series, Jamie Vardy’s Having A Party, launched hot on the heels of the couple’s ITV doc.  

The pair are understood to have signed a seven-figure deal with media giant Banijay for the series, which launched on June 9.

It’s now been revealed that the first episode has clocked up over 8.4million streams across podcast platforms in the first seven days. 

A source said: “Jamie and Becky could not be more happy with the success of their ITV show, and now the podcast figures have really given them a boost.

“It just serves to show they have a massive following.

“For the first week of a new podcast those numbers are fantastic. And, as for Banijay, they will be delighted with the initial return on their investment.”

The launch of the podcast, which will also feature regular guest appearances from Rebekah, 44, comes just a week after ITV aired three-part documentary The Vardys.

The show followed the family during his first year in Italy after he joined Serie A newcomers Cremonese. 

That series – which consolidated at more than 1.1 million viewers – has proved to be an even bigger hit on the network’s streaming service ITVX – behind only entertainment juggernauts I’m A Celebrity, Britain’s Got Talent and Celebrity Sabotage in the ratings. 

The next footballing destination for Leicester City legend Vardy – now 39 – is currently unknown.

However, the series and podcast illustrate his determination to build, with Rebekah, a powerful post-football brand – even whilst continuing to terrorise defences. 

Speaking of the podcast, Jamie said: “I am still an active player but having an opportunity to chat football and have a banter off the pitch is something that I am really looking forward to.”

The Vardys, which is available to watch now on ITVX, saw Rebekah opening up about the aftermath of the Wagatha Christie High Court trial with Coleen Rooney.

Rebekah said: “I’m living with the judgement the judge made but still to this day, I believe she was wrong.”

“People constantly go ‘well, it’s not going to change anything unless you apologise’ – but I’m not apologising for something I didn’t do.

“Like never, ever, going to apologise for something I didn’t do – it’s never going to happen. Hell will freeze over before I do that.

“It’s over, it’s done, I’m not going to carry on living in the past. I’m so f**king bored of it.”

Anderson, who played 55 times in all competitions for Newcastle United, made his debut in an FA Cup defeat against Arsenal in January 2021 before joining Bristol Rovers on loan a year later.

It was here that he completed a vital part of his education – while also figuring in what might still be the most remarkable match of his career.

Former Republic of Ireland international Glenn Whelan was player coach at Bristol Rovers, and vividly remembering the impact the confident “but never arrogant” Anderson made in the west country.

He told BBC Sport: “He just came into the building and showed his potential straight away. Nothing seemed to faze him. You could see straight away this boy was different.

“As the coach, there were certain scenarios in training when I tried to put him under a little pressure. Some kids would be a little bit more reserved and fall back. Elliot was right on the front foot. He took the bull by the horns.”

And the date 5 February 2022 was one of significance in Anderson’s development, as recalled by Whelan: “We were away to Sutton United. They were doing well and were a proper men’s team with a lot of grit. Some of the coaching team were a little wary of throwing him in against them.

“We were losing at half-time and I basically said ‘we need to get this lad on because he’s a game-changer.’ He came on and made an impact. He won a penalty and we drew. I think he played pretty much every minute after that.”

Anderson’s attitude and determination stood out as he excelled at Bristol Rovers – ending in a dramatic climax to the season.

“He just had a confidence about him to show everyone how good he was,” says Whelan. “It was not arrogance. He’d obviously had a great upbringing from his family and he had that Geordie in him.

“He played off the left wing, but if the ball wasn’t coming to him he would go and look for it. He didn’t care who was marking him. He could take the ball under pressure and make things happen.

“Elliot loved training. He wanted to learn, do the extras. He had the attitude to stay behind and get better. We could tell straight away he was going to be a top player.”

And Anderson left Bristol Rovers after one of the greatest days in their history, when they clinched promotion to League One on the final day of the season.

The Pirates started the day needing to better the result of third-placed Northampton or win by five goals more than their rivals – they won 7-0, Anderson getting the final goal with five minutes remaining to help Rovers move into the top three for the first time all season.

Anderson made his triumphant farewell chaired off by jubilant Bristol Rovers supporters.