Sports

• The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) hopes to keep politics separate from sports when women's clubs from North and South Korea face off in the AFC Women's Champions League semifinals on May 20 at Suwon Stadium, 30 km south of Seoul. • The match is scheduled for 7 p.m. local time, pitting the two Korean teams against each other in a high-stakes encounter. • AFC officials emphasized maintaining focus on football amid historical tensions between the divided nations.

Revocations will start on Friday for those who owe $100,000 or more, and then expand to those who owe $2,500 or moreSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email The US state department will begin revoking the US passports of thousands of parents who owe a significant amount of unpaid child support.The department told the Associated Press on Thursday that the revocations would begin on Friday and be focused on those who owe $100,000 or more. That would apply to about 2,700 American passport holders, according to figures supplied to the state department by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Continue reading...

• The North Carolina High School Athletic Association approved two new varsity sports—girls' flag football and boys' volleyball—effective for the 2026-2027 season. • Both sports have gained popularity across high schools nationwide, with championship events being hosted by the NCHSAA starting immediately. • The board's decision reflects growing demand for gender-inclusive athletic opportunities and expands participation options for student-athletes in North Carolina.

• India announced it will continue banning bilateral sports events with Pakistan while permitting Pakistani athletes to compete in multilateral tournaments hosted in India. • The policy shift aims to position New Delhi as a global sports hub, as stated in an official release from New Delhi on Thursday. • This comes amid ongoing geopolitical tensions, balancing diplomacy with national security concerns in sports diplomacy.

Retail group with 4,800 stores worldwide expects drop in profits this year amid ‘muted market’Business live – latest updatesThe sports fashion retailer JD has warned that profits will fall this year amid a “muted market” hit by weaker spending by young people and concerns about the Middle East conflict.The company, which runs 4,800 stores worldwide including the JD, Blacks and Millets chains in the UK, said it expected profits of between £750m and £850m in the year ahead, after reporting £852m in the year to the end of January. Continue reading...

The limited-edition versions will place the US president’s portrait inside cover alongside declaration text and flag motifsUS politics live – latest updatesThe United States government, marking 250 years of independence from a monarchy, will this summer issue passports featuring a large photograph of its most senior leader’s face.The limited-edition documents, billed as a commemoration of America’s 250th anniversary of independence, will display Donald Trump’s photograph on the inside cover, surrounded by the text of the Declaration of Independence and the US flag, with his signature rendered in gold. A separate page features the famous painting of the founding fathers signing that very document. Continue reading...

Special envoy to Donald Trump suggested the idea‘Firstly not possible … secondly not appropriate’The Italian sports minister, Andrea Abodi, has described a proposal for his country to replace Iran at the World Cup as “not appropriate”, rejecting any idea that the Azzurri will be granted a last-minute berth at this summer’s tournament.On Wednesday it emerged that Paolo Zampolli, a special envoy to Donald Trump, had suggested Italy should be fast-tracked to the World Cup despite their shock defeat by Bosnia & Herzegovina in last month’s playoffs. Zampolli proposed the four-time winners Italy replace Iran and said they would “have the pedigree to justify their inclusion”. But Abodi said that football’s showpiece tournament should remain meritocratic. Continue reading...

Eurail, which sells passes, says data being ‘offered for sale on dark web’ after December breach affecting 300,000 peopleHolidaymakers across Europe are facing the stress and expense of getting new passports after their personal data was posted on the dark web after a hack of the Interrail company Eurail.Personal data, including passport numbers, names, phone numbers, email and home addresses and dates of birth of more than 300,000 European travellers was accessed in December. But this week Eurail revealed to customers that “data copied during the security incident has been offered for sale on the dark web and a sample dataset has been published on Telegram”. Continue reading...

Justice department claims state is violating Title IX – the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination The US Department of Justice sued Minnesota’s education department and the state’s school athletics body on Monday for allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls’ sports.In a lawsuit, the justice department claims that by making female student athletes compete against transgender girls, as well as share locker rooms and bathrooms with them, Minnesota is violating Title IX – the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination for any programs that receive federal funding. Continue reading...

• East and Midwest Regions completed Sweet 16 action on Friday, March 27, with top-seeded Duke facing a tough challenge from Rick Pitino's team. • Live bracket updates, scores, and in-depth analysis available for all 2026 March Madness games. • Elite Eight matchups now determined, setting stage for Final Four in Indianapolis.

Bill was introduced in the Senate on Monday as prediction market companies face greater scrutiny on state levelPrediction markets are facing fresh bipartisan scrutiny in the US Senate as companies like Kalshi and Polymarket continue to battle state-led efforts to regulate online betting.A bill was introduced in the US Senate Monday that would ban federally regulated platforms from allowing wagers on sporting events, what would be a huge blow to marketplaces where billions of dollars have been traded on major events like the Super Bowl and the NCAA’s March Madness. Continue reading...

Jonathan Horn scooped best sports feature prize for a series on AFL, while Chris Hopkins won for pictures of a cancer sufferer caring for her son Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSports writer Jonathan Horn and photographer Chris Hopkins have won Melbourne Press Club awards for their work for Guardian Australia.Guardian Australia was recognised with eight nominations in a range of categories in the 31st annual Quill awards, which were presented in Melbourne on Friday night. Continue reading...