• Reuters

    England's soccer fortunes add sporting drama to UK election

    Does British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak risk scoring an own goal by calling an election during the 2024 European Championship soccer tournament in July?Sunak, himself a soccer fan, might be hoping for a boost to his struggling campaign if England do well, although whether there really is a link between sport and elections is disputed by experts. On a positive note, however, England, runners-up three years ago, are among the favourites under manager Gareth Southgate with a team full of in-form attacking players including Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka.

  • The Canadian Press

    Mexico's poorest receiving less government funds under president who brought poor to the fore

    MEXICO CITY (AP) — President Andrés Manuel López Obrador swept into office nearly six years ago with a simple motto laying out his administration’s priorities: “For the good of all, first the poor.” His administration scrapped a host of existing social programs and installed their own, quickly increasing overall social spending to unprecedented heights for senior citizens, unemployed youth, students, farmers and people with disabilities. But less noticed was that the new roster of social program

  • Reuters

    Soccer-Manipur's ethnic violence splinters teams and sporting dreams

    Ethnic clashes in India's Manipur state saw its most successful women's club fail to field a team in the Indian Women's League in 2023-24, with its coach fleeing his burning home and a number of players in self-imposed exile interstate. The unrest in the northeastern state, which has resulted in more than 200 dead and tens of thousands displaced, divided football teams like Eastern Sporting Union (ESU) along ethnic lines and forced some players out of the state. "At first we didn't think it would be that bad, but suddenly it was everywhere," former ESU skipper Irom Prameshwori Devi, who has since joined East Bengal, told Reuters of the outbreak of violence.

  • The Canadian Press

    Vancouver Whitecaps tell fans Lionel Messi is not expected to play when Inter Miami visits Saturday

    VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — The Vancouver Whitecaps informed fans on Thursday that superstar Lionel Messi is not expected to play when Inter Miami visits Vancouver on Saturday. Miami has not issued any statements about the availability of Messi or his teammates Luis Suarez and Sergio Busquets. But the Whitecaps said it was their understanding the trio would not travel with the club for its first visit to Vancouver since signing Messi last year. More than 50,000 people had been expected to