Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe scored and Australia spoiled Turkey’s return to the World Cup for the first time in 24 years with a 2-0 victory on Saturday night.

Goalkeeper Patrick Beach made eight saves for the Socceroos in their group opener as FIFA President Gianni Infantino looked on. Australia was playing in its sixth straight World Cup and seventh overall.

Turkey reached the semifinals of the 2002 World Cup but then missed five straight tournaments before qualifying this year by beating Kosovo in a playoff.

Irankunda broke through for the Socceroos in the 27th minute with a low shot while pursued by three defenders. It came less than a minute after the first-half hydration break. 

Irankunda celebrated by punching the corner flag in a tribute to Australian soccer legend Tim Cahill. The 20-year-old who plays for Watford is the Socceroo’s youngest-ever goal scorer at a World Cup.

Minutes later Beach stopped Abdulkerim Bardakci’s blast from distance. Beach started in goal for the Socceroos rather than experienced counterpart Matthew Ryan in a surprise decision from coach Tony Popovic.

Kenan Yildiz, a 21-year-old who plays for Juventus, was not in the starting lineup but subbed in for Turkey at half-time.

Turkey had a dangerous free kick in the 57th minute, but Arda Guler’s attempt was saved by Beach. Guler, a talented 21-year-old attacking midfielder who plays for Real Madrid, was not yet born the last time Turkey played in the World Cup.

Connor Metcalfe capitalized on Ismail Yuksek’s turnover in the 75th minute to double the Socceroos’ lead. The Socceroos fell to France in the opener in Qatar but then beat Tunisia and Denmark in their group before getting knocked out by eventual champion Argentina in the round of 16.

It is the third World Cup appearance for the Turks, who reached the tournament for the first time in 1954.

The teams are in Group D with the United States and Paraguay. The Americans downed Paraguay 4-1 in their group opener on Friday in Los Angeles.

While Real Madrid and Inter Milan met on Saturday at the Santiago Bernabeu, the occasion was not a competitive fixture but the annual Corazón Classic Match, a charity game featuring legends from both clubs.

However, the presence of Inter president Giuseppe Marotta at the event has sparked speculation about possible transfer discussions between the two European giants ahead of the summer window.

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Inter eyeing multiple Real Madrid stars

Indeed, according to Italian news agency ANSA (h/t Mundo Deportivo), Marotta led the Inter delegation for the charity match and, used the occasion to hold conversations with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez.

Although no official details have emerged, the meeting could lead to potential transfer business between the clubs in the coming months.

Inter Milan are huge admirers of Nico Paz. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

One player who has long been admired by the Nerazzurri is Nico Paz. The Argentine attacking midfielder has impressed since joining Como and continues to attract interest from several clubs.

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However, both Como and Real Madrid are reluctant to consider a sale.

Even though his return this summer is no longer on the agenda, Los Blancos retain a strong interest in the player’s development and view him as part of their long-term plans, making any deal particularly complicated.

More players on the agenda

Moreover, as per the report, other Real Madrid players are also being considered as potential targets by Inter Milan.

The report claims that Rodrygo Goes, Endrick and Franco Mastantuono have all appeared on the Italian club’s radar.

Mastantuono could leave on loan. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

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Of those names, Mastantuono is the most realistic subjects of speculation. The youngster faces an uncertain situation ahead of the new season, with increased competition for places in Real Madrid’s attacking line.

Any decision regarding his future will likely depend on manager Jose Mourinho’s assessment during pre-season.

For now, there is no evidence of formal negotiations between the clubs, but Inter’s interest in several Madrid players highlights the strong relationship between the two institutions and the opportunities that may emerge during the transfer window.

As the summer market gathers momentum, Rodrygo, Endrick and Nico Paz could all remain names to watch, even if any potential deal would require significant movement from both clubs before becoming a realistic possibility.

The UFC is headed to the White House with a seven-fight card bursting with quality. Naturally, most of the attention is on the two title fights: Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje and Alex Pereira vs. Ciryl Gane. 

The heat between Topuria and Gaethje has intensified throughout the week in D.C. Topuria took exception to Gaethje father calling him “another short guy” as well as the interim champion appearing to reference his now ex-wife after a nasty divorce. Gaethje, for his part, doesn’t believe he ever made a bad comment about Topuria’s ex and believes that the champion is just looking for extra motivation.

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The co-main event on Sunday night is equally compelling to fight fans. Pereira, in just 12 fights over five years, has become one of the most beloved action stars of a generation. After conquering both middleweight and light heavyweight, the Brazilian looks to make history by taking a piece of the heavyweight title, which would make him the first fighter to do so across three divisions. He faces Gane, who has repeatedly come up short in these spots. 

Gane holds a 10-2, 1 NC record in UFC since joining the promotion in 2019. He earned the interim title once before, defeating Derrick Lewis by TKO in 2021. But he failed to unify the title in a decision loss to Francis Ngannou and then was quickly submitted by Jon Jones in 2023 for the vacant title. Gane then returned to the title picture in 2025 and looked strong against Tom Aspinall before delivering a brutal double eye poke that ended the fight in a no contest.

But the undercard boasts an impressive blend of knockout artists, fast-rising stars and fan favorites.

Elsewhere on Saturday, fast rising heavyweight sensation Josh Hokit looks to take the next step toward a title shot when he takes on the legendary veteran Derrick Lewis. Hokit announced himself on the scene in just three UFC fights with his last being considered an all-timer against Curtis Blaydes at UFC 327 in Miami. Now, he must get past the all-time knockout leader if he wants to keep rolling into a potential fight with the winner of Saturday’s co-main event.

MORE UFC FREEDOM 250 COVERAGE: Complete staff predictions and picks | Best bets to consider | Viewer’s guide

Ahead of the biggest spectacle in UFC history, take a look at three non-title fights that you can’t miss.

Josh Hokit vs. Derrick Lewis

Hokit understands a simple truth in MMA: (mostly) all publicity is good publicity if you win. Within seven weeks, he’s transformed himself from unranked weirdo to top-five heavyweight on the cusp of a title shot. Make no mistake, that’s where we’re headed if he beats Lewis. Hokit wisely stirred up issues with Alex Pereira and, by proxy, Ilia Topuria at the UFC Freedom 250 press conference. It put a Pereira vs. Hokit heavyweight title fight in the public’s mind and attached his name to today’s top stars. The NFL alum is a small, athletic heavyweight with big-man power. His collegiate wrestling background rounds out his game, and his appetite for flipping off opponents gives flair to an unrefined but potent style. Standing in his way is one of UFC’s fan-favorites and all-time knockout leader. Lewis’ best days are behind him, but his power is still ferocious. A KO is highly probable in either direction, and, considering the stage, a title shot could be on the horizon.

Mauricio Ruffy vs. Michael Chandler

Chandler’s UFC run is one of great fortune and misfortune. The three-time Bellator champion was enlisted as a UFC lightweight title back-up before ever stepping into the Octagon. In his second fight, he nearly won the lightweight title. The cherry on top was supposed to be a fight with Conor McGregor at International Fight Week in 2023. Instead, Chandler burned his remaining prime waiting for a fight that never happened. Now 40, and wearing ridiculous damage, he takes on a talented KO artist entering his prime. Ruffy is a menace, and he’s only evolved since leaving The Fighting Nerds to train with UFC featherweight Alexander Volkanovski’s team. Two years into his UFC run, Ruffy is a top 10 fighter in the sport’s toughest division with highlight reel finishes against Rafael Fiziev and King Green. Chandler is an explosive athlete, but there’s a reason he and rival Justin Gaethje are the biggest underdogs on the card.

Diego Lopes vs. Steve Garcia

Meet your top candidate for Fight of the Night. Lopes’ second title shot against Volkanovski left him with baggage. The loss validated criticisms that the rematch was unearned, and took some attention away from what got Lopes his first title shot. The man has nerves of steel. A two-pronged offensive threat, Lopes can KO or submit people with equal efficacy. Garcia might be the most under-appreciated contender in the sport. “The Mean Machine” embodies the moniker, a nasty KO artist through and through. Lopes and Garcia have stoppages in nearly 83% of their combined wins — safety isn’t a concern. This is the first fight of the night for a reason. It’ll set an exciting tone and high bar for every fight to match.

Jun 12, 2026; Washington, D.C., USA; Ilia Topuria (left) and Dana White look on during a press conference for the UFC Freedom 250 at Lincoln Memorial. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images

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The Ciaron Maher-trained Royal Supremacy adopted front-running tactics to claim victory in The Q22 at Eagle Farm.

With Pride Of Jenni a non-runner on race morning due to the Heavy 9 track, Royal Supremacy took charge of the Group 2 2200m weight-for-age contest on Saturday.

Ridden by Mark Zahra, Royal Supremacy ($14) held on for a 1-½ length win from Pounding ($61), with Militarize ($5) finishing a length further back in third.

Zahra allowed Royal Supremacy to gradually find the front before letting the horse stride out approaching the home turn.

Maher mentioned the horse’s positive experience in Queensland.

“He’s thrived up here again,” Maher stated. “He’s been at Tony Gollan’s place and he’s improved each start.

“There was no speed on paper when Pride Of Jenni came out and he can be a bit of a terror to ride, so after a little bit of deliberation before the race, we thought it would be better to work with him rather than fighting him for 2000 metres.

“We thought he would drag himself through it (the ground) because he can get on the bit.

“It is tough to make ground today so we thought with no speed, they probably wouldn’t worry about him too much and that is how it worked out.

“He got into a nice rhythm and we’re both (Maher and Zahra) heading off to England tonight, so it’ll be a good trip over there.”

Zahra commented that Royal Supremacy never fully settled during the 2200m race, but he felt confident they were the ones to beat from the home turn onwards.

“He never completely drops the bit,” Zahra shared. “He was good enough out front but from the 700 or 600 (metres), I thought there was no way anything can beat me the way he quickens.

“It was a very good win, and he could have gone another lap, too.”

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Jadon Sancho’s time at Manchester United is officially coming to an end – here, we’re taking a closer look at his downfall at Old Trafford

Jadon Sancho is on the verge of being released from his Manchester United contract, officially closing the book on a hugely underwhelming spell at Old Trafford.

Although the club still held an option to extend his deal by another 12 months, United confirmed earlier this month that Sancho will leave when his contract runs out on June 30.

When the exciting winger first made the move to the Theatre of Dreams, he was considered one of the brightest young prospects in global football. Fans believed he would light up the Premier League and quickly become a worldwide star.

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At that time, it seemed almost guaranteed that Sancho would feature in England’s 2026 World Cup squad. Instead, as the summer tournament begins, he is currently without a club and trying to rebuild a career that has lost momentum.

His spell in Manchester was defined by erratic form, a public feud and a failure to reproduce his outstanding Bundesliga performances, leaving many supporters questioning how things unravelled so badly. Here, we examine Sancho’s dramatic decline at United, from his marquee arrival to a toxic feud that ultimately came to define his stint.

Big-money arrival

Sancho joined Manchester United from Dortmund in the summer of 2021 for a huge £73million fee. Expectations were extremely high, with supporters expecting a transformative attacking talent capable of reshaping the team’s forward line.

However, the winger struggled badly to settle under then-manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. He found it difficult to adjust to the intensity and physicality of the Premier League and rarely displayed the form that made him a standout in Germany.

Conflict with Erik ten Hag

The key shift in his United career came after a serious breakdown in his relationship with Erik ten Hag. Following a loss to Arsenal, the Dutch coach publicly said that Sancho was left out due to his training levels not meeting the required standard.

Sancho quickly responded on social media, strongly rejecting those claims and insisting he was being unfairly blamed. This open disagreement escalated rapidly behind the scenes, with Sancho later refusing to issue an apology for his public response.

‘Kicked out of WhatsApp group’

The situation reached a deeply strained stage when Ten Hag chose to fully exclude the attacker from the senior squad. The manager reportedly went as far as removing Sancho from the United first-team WhatsApp group, which staff used for important updates.

His isolation was not limited to online communication, as he was also completely banned from first-team facilities. He was even stopped from entering the senior dining area, leaving him to eat separately or with academy players.

Loan moves

Looking for regular minutes, Sancho was eventually sent back to Dortmund on loan, where he initially showed signs of improvement. He regained some confidence in Germany, although not enough to earn a permanent return.

A later loan spell at Chelsea brought a reasonable run of form, but the club decided not to sign him permanently. He then went through a disappointing stint at Aston Villa, struggling to make any real impact in the West Midlands.

Released

With no realistic path back into the United senior setup, the club made the decision this month to part ways completely. Sancho’s upcoming release brings an end to a difficult five-year period with the Red Devils.

This outcome marks a disappointing finish to a transfer that once carried enormous promise. After scoring 50 goals in 137 appearances in Germany, Sancho has managed only 18 in 163 matches since returning to England. Despite being part of England’s Euro 2020 squad, he has not represented his country since 2021, underlining how far his United career has declined.

What comes next?

The once highly rated attacker now faces the challenge of finding a new club to restore his reputation. A move overseas looks likely, with PSV, Besiktas and his former club Dortmund all mentioned as possible destinations.

Several mid-table Premier League sides have also shown quiet interest, while a high-paying switch to the Saudi Pro League remains another realistic path. Wherever Sancho goes next, he will need a major reset if he wants to come close to the potential he once showed early in his career.

Tom Pelissero is a national insider who has strong connections to the Minnesota Vikings. He therefore brings some authority behind his words.

Recently, Pelissero chatted with Rich Eisen, known for (among other things) running a blistering forty. Apparently, Minnesota is working through a true battle at quarterback, giving each guy near identical opportunities to prove capable of being the QB1.

Tom Pelissero Says it’s a True QB1 Battle

“They are splitting this 50/50,” Pelissero explained about the purple passer battle.

To my eye, the split was essentially even, as Pelissero indicates. J.J. McCarthy would get run with the starters; next up would be Kyler Murray with the starters. Neither were dominant forces completing every pass. Both made mistakes. What seemed to emerge, though, was a situation where the kid QB — McCarthy — was the better of the pair across the three days of practice.

At times, Murray turned the ball over. Some of that is to be forgiven since he’s so new and is human. More concerning, perhaps, is that there were several snaps where he struggled to find an open man. Being in a real football game instead of 7-on-7 would have led to some chaos.

Pelissero had more to say: “[Kevin O’Connell] wants this to be fair all the way through the entire process.” Next up was a reasonably juicy proclamation: “I think that at this stage coming out of minicamp, the coaches probably have a pretty good idea what direction they think this is going to go. And I don’t anticipate it takes all three preseason games for them to arrive at that conclusion.”

On Thursday after the final day of minicamp, Kevin O’Connell essentially offered the precise idea Pelissero is offering. Seeing this QB battle go all of the way to Week 1 isn’t going to happen.

The reason why Minnesota is in the clunky scenario they’re in is due to what was a horrendous passing attack last year. J.J. McCarthy deserved better stats, often letdown by WRs who dropped too many balls, an OL that was very injured, and an HC who refused to run with consistency.

Still, things got ugly. McCarthy finished his season at 6-4 behind 57.6% passing for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions.

Meanwhile, Murray has never lacked for accuracy. Nor, for that matter, is arm strength, speed, or promise more broadly an issue. He can do a ton well.

Where Murray has struggled has been with winning. Very seldom has he turned the Cardinals into a strong team, if ever at all. In seven seasons, Murray went to the playoffs a single time. He then got demolished while there.

Worse yet, the injuries have piled up in his career and his work ethic has been a source of concern. Kicking things back even further involves remembering the doubts about Murray’s commitment to football since he was so good at baseball that he had a chance to play pro in the MLB.

Oh, and for the record, Tom Pelissero did predict Kyler Murray as the starting quarterback. He seemingly did so as an assessment coming from his own perspective rather than delivering insight from Vikings coaches and/or executives.

Without question, Murray is the leader in the clubhouse, but the passer battle is just getting started.

Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.

Mike Santana has been on the top of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) for quite some time but he faced one of his toughest challengers yet in pro wrestling veteran Eric Young on “Impact.”

Young earned a guaranteed title shot with a battle royal win a few weeks ago. He made a statement against Santana last week when he hit the TNA world champion with a piledriver. Young was on a tear against the champion but continuous two counts nearly forced his hand against the referee.

But taking his eye off the prize ultimately hurt Young. Santana nailed a huge double underhook toss from the top rope against Young. A Santana bulldog and rolling cutter put him back in full control. Though, he couldn’t get Young to stay down either. The referee did get caught in the middle of the match, as Young hit him inadvertently.

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Mike Santana makes his entrance during NXT at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Fla., on June 3, 2025. (Bradlee Rutledge/WWE)

Santana hit Spin the Block but the referee was down. He tried to get the referee back up as quickly as possible. He picked up Young back to a vertical base and Young kicked him in the groin. Young nailed Santana with the TNA World Championship and then nailed a piledriver.

As the referee was counting, Santana somehow got his hand on the rope to break the count. Young was about to finish off Santana when Ricky Sosa appeared and distracted Young long enough for Santana to roll up Young.

Santana retained the TNA World Championship.

Nic Nemeth’s music hit and it looked like he was going to call his shot and get a title match on “Impact.” Nemeth grabbed the mic and said he could call his shot and win the title, but he wanted to wait until Slammiversary.

Nic Nemeth enters the ring during the New Japan Pro-Wrestling Wrestling DONTAKU event at Fukuoka Convention Center in Fukuoka, Japan, on May 3, 2024. (Etsuo Hara/Getty Images)

Santana and Nemeth shook hands, signaling the match was on. The two later worked together to take out Order Four after Mustafa Ali’s match against KC Navarro for the TNA International Championship.

Nemeth then hit Santana with a Danger Zone. Santana was right not to trust Nemeth ahead of their match at Slammiversary.

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Moose returns, sets match vs Eddie Edwards

Moose celebrates during NXT at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Fla., on Dec. 30, 2025. (Andrea Kellaway/WWE)

It was a few weeks ago that The System took out TNA veteran Moose in the back. After the TNA broadcast reported that Moose was cleared to return, he came out of the back as The System dished out punishment to Leon Slater.

Cedric Alexander just pinned Slater in a tag team match with Eddie Edwards. Brian Myers and Bear Bronson got into the ring and put the beatdown on Slater. That’s when Moose’s music hit. He came to the ring and sent The System scurrying.

Moose said he will take on Edwards in a match at Slammiversary.

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“Impact” match results:

• Mike Santana def. Eric Young to retain the TNA World Championship.
• Mr. Elegance def. Elijah.
• Cedric Alexander and Eddie Edwards def. Leon Slater and Fabian Aichner.
• Allie, Rosemary and Mara Sade def. Ash by Elegance, Heather by Elegance and M by Elegance.
• Mustafa Ali def. KC Navarro to retain the TNA International Championship.