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Aug 26, 2026, 04:00 AM ETManchester United are set to open negotiations with Barcelona over the signing of defender Alejandro Balde, while Chelsea are set to receive a bid from Manchester City for midfielder Enzo Fernández. Join us for the latest transfer news and rumors from around the globe.Transfers home page | Men’s summer grades | Women’s gradesTrending rumorsAlejandro Balde made 60 LaLiga appearances for Barcelona over the past two seasons as the club won back-to-back titles. Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images- Alejandro Balde could leave Barcelona with Manchester United having shown an interest in the left back, according to…

Ted Hodgkinson, the Southbank Centre’s longtime director of literature and spoken word, is leaving the London institution to join Hay Festival in the newly created role of creative director.  Hodgkinson will officially join the Hay Festival team in the autumn. In the new role, Hodgkinson will be responsible for leading the event’s artistic and creative strategy and public programming.  He joins Hay’s executive team, led by Chief Executive Julie Finch. The wider executive team also includes International Director and co-Deputy CEO, Cristina Fuentes La Roche; Executive Producer and co-Deputy CEO, Adrian Lambert; Director of Communications and External Affairs, Christopher Bone;…

Nigeria’s world record holder Tobi Amusan will headline a strong Nigerian contingent at the final Diamond League meeting of the season in Zurich on Thursday, with compatriots Ezekiel Nathaniel and Chukwuebuka Enekwechi also set to compete against some of the biggest names in global athletics. The iconic Zurich meeting will span two days, with the women’s pole vault taking place at Zurich train station on Wednesday before the main programme moves to the Letzigrund Stadium on Thursday. For several athletes, the meeting represents the final opportunity to collect valuable points and secure qualification for the Wanda Diamond League Final, scheduled…

A massive flood swept through Nepal’s northern Rasuwa district on Wednesday, damaging roads and power infrastructure as authorities scrambled to assess the scale of the destruction. Videos shared by Nepal Police and others on social media showed torrents of muddy water crashing through mountain valleys in the Himalayan district bordering China. “We do not exactly know the extent of damage, but the flood is big, and it could have damaged many settlements,” Nepal Police spokesman Abi Narayan Kafle told AFP. “We have alerted people who are staying near the riverside to relocate… and deployed all our resources,” he said. Prime…

Fernandes rewarded for outstanding season with record assists in the league; Shaw builds on league win and Golden Boot.Published On 26 Aug 202626 Aug 2026Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes was crowned the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) Player of the Year, while Manchester City’s Khadija Shaw scooped the Women’s award for the second time.The award wins on Tuesday highlighted the individual brilliance of both players, with contrasting fortunes for their respective teams during the season.Portuguese international Fernandes broke the Premier League assists record during an outstanding 2025–26 season, setting up 21 goals as he surpassed Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne’s…

Singapore-based Vertex Ventures, backed by Singapore state investor Temasek, has made investments in Chinese robotics startups, including Unitree Robotics.SINGAPORE — Chinese robotics companies shut out of the U.S. by new restrictions on advanced robots can still reach American buyers by building genuine operations in Singapore, according to a Temasek-backed venture firm that counts humanoid maker Unitree Robotics among its portfolio companies. Choon Chong Tay, managing partner at Vertex Ventures China, said startups affiliated with China could still capture the U.S. market by anchoring day-to-day operations, hiring, and control of critical components in the city-state.China-affiliated startups with “substantial content” in Singapore,…

Would you pay £20 a month for the chance of making a friend, on the understanding that an algorithm – not you – gets to decide who you’ll meet?Driven by the decline of “third spaces” such as youth centres and pubs, an increase in remote working and rising loneliness – 40% of adults aged 16 to 29 feel lonely “always, often or some of the time”, according to the Office for National Statistics – paid social events are now in vogue.“There hasn’t been anything that feels authentic to helping people meet people,” says Nicola Gunby, a co-founder of Cliq, an…

Another Ofgem energy price cap day, another increase in bills. Miatta Fahnbulleh, the new energy secretary, can blame the usual culprit on Wednesday – the fossil fuel price “rollercoaster”, given a shove this time by Donald Trump’s Middle East misadventure. Higher gas prices will indeed be the main quarter-on-quarter reason why bills stand at a three-year high on a unit basis.But there is more to the tale on a longer view. Even when the gas rollercoaster dips downwards, the energy industry’s medium-term projections suggest bills will not fall meaningfully.Look at the forecast on Tuesday from EDF, one of the big…

Aug 24, 2026, 10:00 AM ETTHERE WAS SO much that Bianca Andreescu didn’t know when she stunned the world and won the US Open in 2019.She was 19, playing in her first full year on the WTA Tour, and in just the fourth major main draw of her career. Andreescu had won the titles at Indian Wells and the Canadian Open earlier that season, but few expected her to be triumphant in New York. And even fewer believed she could defeat Serena Williams in the final.But she didn’t know that.Editor’s Picks1 RelatedAnd with a 6-3, 7-5 upset victory over one…

ReelShort has struck a deal with Indonesian streaming platform Vidio to bring hundreds of microdramas to local audiences, as well as co-produce new short dramas with Indonesian production houses.  ReelShort catalogue titles will be available on Vidio starting on September 1 through the dedicated Short Drama tab, launched by Vidio last year, for subscribers on the TV Extra, Platinum, Platinum Extra, and Ultimate packages.  The initial offering will include more than 200 titles across popular genres including romance, billionaire romance, fantasy and family drama, with a wide selection of titles available with Indonesian dubbing and subtitles.  In addition, a “sizable”…