recordbreaking

Soccer Aid has raised an eye-watering and record-breaking amount of money for Unicef with their annual charity match that saw the likes of Joe Marler and Angry Ginge compete

Soccer Aid have raised a huge sum of money for Unicef. The annual charity football match raised a staggering £16.5million for the children’s aid organisation.

The match, which was created by Robbie Williams and Jonathan Wilkes in 2026, aims to raise millions for Unicef every year but has never raised as much as it did this year. By raising over £16m, the celebs taking part have increased the total ever raised from the event to £137million.

The grand total was revealed in the last few moments before Soccer Aid went off air, in an announcement made by Robbie, who also performed his song Feel for the halftime performance.

Over £1million of the total amount was raised by Olly Murs. The singer had taken on a mammoth challenge that involved cycling, rowing and running the 400km distance from Old Trafford to the London Stadium. Prior to the match beginning, Tom Hiddlestone revealed on air that Olly had raised £1,342,214 for the total pot.

The rest of the funds were raised throughout the event, including the build up to kick off. Tom Hanks and Tim Allen came out to the pitch to deliver the football and revealed that before play had even begun, the event had raised over £4.6million. Tim delighted fans as he said his Toy Story character Buzz Lightyear’s catchphrase: “To infinity and beyond!”

Roughly 15 minutes before the teams headed out, GK Barry caught up with Tom Hanks and Tim Allen with the latter catching many off guard courtesy of his comments.

While stood in the tunnel, upon GK Barry asking for their attention, the latter stated: “I’m just just b****ing about penalty shots.” The comment went unacknowledged by ITV, despite airing pre-watershed.

As Americans, the pair aren’t used to European football. Tim continued to say he was going to “try to work out how you win or lose a game on a penalty shot”. Tom, who said he did have some knowledge of the UK game, jokingly hit back: “You cannot use your hands.”

Soccer Aid celebrated its 20th anniversary this weekend with a massive showdown at the London Stadium. The fixture occurs every year and its mission is to raise vital funds for UNICEF while bringing together a unique mix of world-class football legends and beloved celebrities.

Former United captain Wayne Rooney led the line for England. Big football names taking to the pitch included Jill Scott, Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott.

Other huge names making up the England side were Tom Hiddleston, Danny Dyer, Paddy McGuinness, Olly Murs and Joe Marler. They were joined by Toni Duggan, Steph Houghton, Jordan North, Angry Ginge, GK Barry, Jack Wilshere, Joe Hart, Sam Thompson, Chloe Burrows, Jack Whitehall and Owen Cooper.

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May 26 (UPI) — Western European countries are caught up in an extreme and early heat wave in late May, with temperatures breaking records and officials warning of health risks.

In Great Britain, London broke heat records Monday and again Tuesday, with Monday marking the hottest May day on record when it hit 94.6 degrees Fahrenheit (34.8 degrees Celsius), two whole degrees higher than the previous record, CNN reported.

Tuesday temperatures reached 95 degrees (35 degrees Celsius). The average high temperature for this time of year is about 68 degrees (20 degrees Celsius).

The country experienced a “tropical night” Monday, which is one in which the temperature doesn’t fall below 68 degrees (20 degrees Celsius).

Not many people in Great Britain have air conditioning – about 5% percent, CNN reported. The UK Climate Change Committee said in a report last week that the country was “built for a climate that no longer exists.”

France is experiencing a similar heat wave, with temperatures regularly exceeding 86 degrees (30 degrees Celsius). Monday was also the country’s hottest May day on record. Officials said about seven people have died since Saturday due to issues caused by the heat, The New York Times reported. At the French Open, organizers installed water misters to help sweltering fans.

In Spain, the trend continues. While the country is more used to hotter temperatures, they may reach 104 degrees (40 degrees Celsius) later this week, the country’s weather service said.

The tone was set for a dazzling European encounter when both sets of fans unfurled giant tifos before kick-off – PSG’s was emblazoned with the words ‘the conquest of Europe’, while the visitors’ banner urged their side to ‘give everything’.

In a chaotic opening 45 minutes at the Parc des Princes, both sides did just that.

It was fitting the two top-scoring sides in the Champions League this season put five goals on the scoreboard in a mesmerising, end-to-end opening period.

Harry Kane’s penalty was cancelled out by Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s clinical finish, before Joao Neves’ glancing header and Michael Olise’s moment of individual brilliance left the sides level.

Many will suggest the PSG penalty, awarded after Bayern defender Alphonso Davies was deemed to have handled an Ousmane Dembele cross in the box, was harsh. Dembele calmly converted to give PSG a 3-2 lead at the break.

But the controversial incident was ultimately overshadowed by what pundits called one of the greatest halves of football they had ever witnessed.

Former England captain Alan Shearer said on Amazon Prime: “I can’t stop smiling at how open and bonkers this game is.

“It’s one of the greatest games I’ve ever been to. Two teams that believe in their own ability to outscore their opponent.”

The chaos continued after the break with PSG building a three-goal cushion, again through Kvaratskhelia and Dembele, leaving some to wonder if the outcome had been settled.

But Bayern were unwilling to let the chance of a first Champions League title since 2020 get away from them as they fought back in fearsome fashion.

Goals from Dayot Upamecano and Diaz were met with stunned silence from the home fans and no further response from the PSG players as the hosts finished with a slim advantage.

“I have been managing for more than 15 years, and I have to say it was the most exciting [match],” added Luis Enrique.

“It is important to show that that is the way to try to play football. OK, we are not happy as a coach when you concede four goals, but I’m happy because we won.”

It was the first time in any major European semi-final that both sides had scored at least four goals, and just the second time in a Champions League knockout match after Chelsea and Liverpool drew 4-4 in the 2008-09 quarter-final.

With PSG netting 43 goals and Bayern 42, it was also the first time two teams have each scored more than 40 times in a Champions League campaign.