His pairing in central defence is one of the key decisions facing Scotland head coach Steve Clarke in Saturday's friendly against Japan, writes Tom English.
His pairing in central defence is one of the key decisions facing Scotland head coach Steve Clarke in Saturday's friendly against Japan, writes Tom English.
Do we really need a McDonaldâs CEO fronting ads or a Gianni Infantino Panini sticker? No. But in the age of Trump, the boss class feels emboldened A few weeks ago, the CEO of McDonaldâs appeared in a video sampling the chainâs new âBig Arch burgerâ. In the clip, Chris Kempczinski, or âChris Kâ as he casually calls himself, labelled it a âproductâ, matching the sterile tone of the review â all hars...
Do we really need a McDonaldâs CEO fronting ads or a Gianni Infantino Panini sticker? No. But in the age of Trump, the boss class feels emboldened A few weeks ago, the CEO of McDonaldâs appeared in a video sampling the chainâs new âBig Arch burgerâ. In the clip, Chris Kempczinski, or âChris Kâ as he casually calls himself, labelled it a âproductâ, matching the sterile tone of the review â all harsh lighting, corporate office backdrop and an awkward man talking and eating while wearing a shirt fitting uneasily under a light wool V-neck. Why would McDonaldâs, with its huge marketing budget and commercial success, choose to platform this guy? His stilted efforts were mocked and memed, with executives at Burger King and Wendyâs posting their own versions â what fun. Inevitably some market watchers claimed it drove engagement and sales. But to me, it seems to be just the latest flagrant example of CEOism: when CEOs/founders/heads of organisations centre themselves in the action â just because they can. Larry Ryan is a freelance writer and editor Continue reading...
Portugal head coach, who describes the country as a âfootball schoolâ, explains why he is ready to take risks in pursuit of World Cup glory âYou get there and the mountain is so big, you have no objective other than survive.â It was summer 1995, Roberto MartĂnez was 21, he had made one brief appearance for Real Zaragoza and just completed military service while playing regional football back in hi...
Portugal head coach, who describes the country as a âfootball schoolâ, explains why he is ready to take risks in pursuit of World Cup glory âYou get there and the mountain is so big, you have no objective other than survive.â It was summer 1995, Roberto MartĂnez was 21, he had made one brief appearance for Real Zaragoza and just completed military service while playing regional football back in his home town of Balaguer. A complete unknown, he was heading to Wigan, wherever that was, and didnât speak a word of English. He was also heading to the Third Division, where whatever they played it wasnât football, not as he knew it. âThere is fear: âNo,ââ he says. âBut my attitude was always: âWhy not?ââ. MartĂnez now stands in the hallway at the Portuguese federationsâs base in Oeiras near Lisbon, arms out in a warm welcome. Trophies sit in cases, the Nations League the latest addition. Only one cup is not there, which is why MartĂnez is. Seventy-five days until the World Cup starts , he takes Portugal into their final pre-tournament international break with matches against two of the co-hosts, Mexico and the United States . The man whose favourite goal was against Scunthorpe at Springfield Park leads a team who are among the favourites to triumph this summer, willing to dream precisely because he never dreamed any of this. Continue reading...
Clubâs financial crisis meant exclusion from the RFL Championship this season, and it could be a long way back for one of the sportâs storied names Sunday afternoon in Featherstone. The first shoots of spring are creaking through the skyline and the Railway pub is bustling with rugby league supporters as the townâs pride and joy, Featherstone Rovers, prepare to face Swinton Lions. Or at least, tha...
Clubâs financial crisis meant exclusion from the RFL Championship this season, and it could be a long way back for one of the sportâs storied names Sunday afternoon in Featherstone. The first shoots of spring are creaking through the skyline and the Railway pub is bustling with rugby league supporters as the townâs pride and joy, Featherstone Rovers, prepare to face Swinton Lions. Or at least, that is what should have happened last weekend. Instead, streets of this West Yorkshire town built on coal mining were deserted. The Railway, just a few hundred yards from Roversâ Post Office Road home, was largely empty and the gates of the stadium chained shut. Continue reading...
Hours before the world learned that a US missile had hit Shajareh Tayyebeh school, parents were already searching the rubble for their sons and daughters. In this exclusive report, four families describe the events of 28 February When Marzieh heard the first bang, an almighty crash that rattled the room, her first thought went to her youngest son, Mohammad. He must have got out on to the balcony a...
Hours before the world learned that a US missile had hit Shajareh Tayyebeh school, parents were already searching the rubble for their sons and daughters. In this exclusive report, four families describe the events of 28 February When Marzieh heard the first bang, an almighty crash that rattled the room, her first thought went to her youngest son, Mohammad. He must have got out on to the balcony and discovered a new game, she thought: using all of his small might to smash its sliding doors closed. Marzieh stood up from where she was working at her sewing machine, and shouted for him to stop. Continue reading...
Members of the UK public join the search after specialist dog units and thermal drones have yet to locate her Barely 24 hours after nine-month-old capybaras Samba and Tango were brought to Marwell zoo near Winchester, they had made a break for it through a hole in their temporary enclosure. The siblings were transferred to Hampshire from Jimmyâs farm and wildlife park in Suffolk on 16 March after ...
Members of the UK public join the search after specialist dog units and thermal drones have yet to locate her Barely 24 hours after nine-month-old capybaras Samba and Tango were brought to Marwell zoo near Winchester, they had made a break for it through a hole in their temporary enclosure. The siblings were transferred to Hampshire from Jimmyâs farm and wildlife park in Suffolk on 16 March after being outshone by other capybaras. Tango was quickly found, but her sister Samba remains at large, and the mission to find her has attracted national and international coverage. Continue reading...
Britainâs heavyweight prospect puts his unbeaten record on the line against Jermaine Franklin on Saturday Moses Itauma might represent the glittering future of heavyweight boxing but right now he is locked in the present. In the back seat of a car, while being driven from one swanky hotel to another in Manchester, the 21-year-old turns to me and says: âLetâs get going.â I know how much Itauma disl...
Britainâs heavyweight prospect puts his unbeaten record on the line against Jermaine Franklin on Saturday Moses Itauma might represent the glittering future of heavyweight boxing but right now he is locked in the present. In the back seat of a car, while being driven from one swanky hotel to another in Manchester, the 21-year-old turns to me and says: âLetâs get going.â I know how much Itauma dislikes interviews and so the only sensible option is to resist this blunt invitation to rush through our 45 minutes together. On Saturday night, in Manchester, Itauma fights Jermaine Franklin, the tough American who should provide his first notable test after he has won all 13 professional fights so far, with 11 ending in brutal stoppages. So he nods, just a little grudgingly, when I suggest we wait until we are sitting face to face. Continue reading...
A prominent Chinese political scientist has cautioned Southeast Asian countries against leveraging China-US tensions for short-term benefits, saying this strategy could backfire. Speaking on the sidelines of the Boao Forum for Asia on Friday, Zheng Yongnian, dean of the school of public policy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, said that in the context of South China Sea sovereignty...
A prominent Chinese political scientist has cautioned Southeast Asian countries against leveraging China-US tensions for short-term benefits, saying this strategy could backfire. Speaking on the sidelines of the Boao Forum for Asia on Friday, Zheng Yongnian, dean of the school of public policy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, said that in the context of South China Sea sovereignty disputes, the key challenge lay in how countries interpreted the China-US rivalry. âMany countries...
The HX-2 AI Strike Drone made by Helsing, a German defence start-up that develops artificial intelligence (AI) and software to enhance the capabilities of military hardware, during the "Enforce Tac" trade fair for security and defense in Nuremberg, southern Germany on Feb. 25, 2026. Photographer: Daniel Karmann/AFP/Getty Images
The HX-2 AI Strike Drone made by Helsing, a German defence start-up that develops artificial intelligence (AI) and software to enhance the capabilities of military hardware, during the "Enforce Tac" trade fair for security and defense in Nuremberg, southern Germany on Feb. 25, 2026. Photographer: Daniel Karmann/AFP/Getty Images
The last big story right before the war in Iran started was the collapse in the relationship between the Pentagon and Anthropic, with the latter objecting to any potential use of its models in either fully autonomous weapons or domestic surveillance. Of course, this story immediately become more relevant with the start of the war, and the reporting that Anthropicâs technology was in fact utilized ...
The last big story right before the war in Iran started was the collapse in the relationship between the Pentagon and Anthropic, with the latter objecting to any potential use of its models in either fully autonomous weapons or domestic surveillance. Of course, this story immediately become more relevant with the start of the war, and the reporting that Anthropicâs technology was in fact utilized at the start of hostilities. But what does that mean? How are these models used? And what would a fu
TOPSHOT - Women walk past a ballistic missile launch vehicle in Tehran on February 11, 2026, during a rally marking the 47th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images) - | Afp | Getty Images Twelve U.S. troops were wounded, two of them seriously, in an Iranian military strike on Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, a U.S. official told Reuters on Friday. The lat...
TOPSHOT - Women walk past a ballistic missile launch vehicle in Tehran on February 11, 2026, during a rally marking the 47th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images) - | Afp | Getty Images Twelve U.S. troops were wounded, two of them seriously, in an Iranian military strike on Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, a U.S. official told Reuters on Friday. The latest casualties add to the more than 300 U.S. military service members who have been wounded since the war against Iran started on February 28. Earlier on Friday, the U.S. military said 273 of them had already returned to duty. Thirteen U.S. troops have been killed in the conflict. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
Michael Vi/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Shares of Gilead Sciences ( GILD ) have been on a major run higher in recent years, far outperforming many peers that have been struggling. This made sense, as Gilead traded at very low valuations from the get-go. The problem is that this move higher has been driven by modest growth, yet amidst a re-rating in the valuation and Gilead rapidly getting rel...
Michael Vi/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Shares of Gilead Sciences ( GILD ) have been on a major run higher in recent years, far outperforming many peers that have been struggling. This made sense, as Gilead traded at very low valuations from the get-go. The problem is that this move higher has been driven by modest growth, yet amidst a re-rating in the valuation and Gilead rapidly getting reliant on its HIV business, I am much more cautious here. This compares to a much more bullish outlook in the fall of 2024. A recent M&A streak is not going to change that cautious stance here. Other, higher conviction ideas, including recent IPOs, can be found at Value In Corporate Events . Continued M&A Gilead announced its second >$1 billion deal before the first quarter of the year had ended. Towards the end of March, Gilead announced a $1.675 billion cash deal to acquire Ouro Medicines, a privately held biotechnology company that focuses on developing T cell engager therapies for autoimmune diseases. With this deal, the company will get its hands on OM366 (gamgertamig), which has shown great efficacy in phase 1/2 clinical studies in antibody-mediated orphan diseases, with the FDA having granted fast-track and orphan drug designation. The deal involves another half a billion in contingent milestone payments, but all this could change a bit as Gilead is in discussions with Galapagos to effectively "share" the deal, as both firms could pay up 50% in this transaction. About a month ago, Gilead announced a much larger $7.8 billion deal to acquire Arcellx ( ACLX ) in a $115 per share cash deal, excluding a potential $5 per share earn-out through a contingent value consideration. Arcellx has multiple drugs in its pipeline; the most promising is a CAR T-cell therapy for multiple myeloma. With the company spending up to $10 billion in M&A, that was not all, as the company hiked the dividend in February. Following a modest near 4% increase in the payout, these payouts now come in ...