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Man Utd posted record revenues for the 2025/26 season and are already expecting to better those figures this term, but issues still remain.

In some ways, the financial picture at Manchester United for the 2025/26 season is a testament to the club’s resilience and ability to make money, even in a year when almost nothing is happening.

United played just 40 games in all competitions last season and had no European football at all, but still managed to post record revenues of £677.6million. Those figures should be smashed this season, with the Champions League back at Old Trafford.

Football finance expert Kieran Maguire said it was evidence of the durability of “brand United” in delivering a set of results, but the positive headline figure doesn’t tell the full story.

While United’s ability to generate cash was strong again and will only rise with European football and a new training kit sponsor, the level of debt shot up, and an interest repayment of £70million brought up a milestone that will only reinforce the view of many supporters that success while the Glazers remain in place will be difficult to achieve.

“The finance costs, that’s an emotional one,” said Maguire, on the Price of Football podcast. “There’s almost £70million in interest costs. United were stung by the exchange rate movement issue, but over the course of the Glazer ownership, we’ve now got total interest costs in excess of £1billion.

“That’s £1billion that could have gone into sports science, it could have gone into the transfer budget, it could have gone into better facilities for fans.

“And this is where United are losing out to the likes of Spurs, because if you go to Spurs, you arrive an hour before the kick-off, you can pick up a pint in 30 seconds, they’ve got a far better range of food, so people go for the experience. United, you go to the football and that’s it, and you get out as quickly as you can.

“The level of debt has gone up. They’ve admitted that. We don’t know what the club’s plans are. I know they’ve rescheduled the debt, but at higher interest rates. So that’s going to be a further handbrake on Manchester United.

“And it does mean that there is extra pressure there on the footballing side of the club in terms of delivering results.”

United’s gross debt now sits at around £689million and it has gone up in these latest results after a loan was refinanced in the summer, partly to buy land for a new 100,000-seater Old Trafford.

While that new stadium could be a significant long-term revenue generator, in the immediate future, it is likely to complicate the club’s financial picture.

“The club is never going to generate enough cash to be able to repay the debt, unless they produce dozens and dozens of young football players in the same way that Chelsea do and, to a certain extent, City do, through their academy,” said Maguire.

“They’re not going to make it from Old Trafford itself. And of course, the debt is going to go higher and higher with the new stadium.

“Once approval is given, that’s when you get the worst scenario. You’re borrowing money to pay for the construction, so you’ve got those interest costs, and you’re not getting the benefit of having the bigger stadium. So there’s no positive when it comes to revenues and you’ve got the negatives when it comes to costs.”

Maguire expects a “big acceleration” this season, with the extra money from Europe and new commercial deals, while ticket prices continue to rise, which is partly behind better-than-expected matchday income for 2025/26.

But while the latest results are theoretically strong, questions remain about the club’s long-term direction and its ability to achieve targets such as Premier League success by the end of next season.

“These results, in my view, are as good as can be expected for a Manchester United that was not in the Champions League and not participating in Europe,” said Maguire.

“But the improvement on-field performance, which you’ve got to give Michael Carrick a lot of credit for, it is papering over some of the cracks elsewhere at the club, which does appear to not really have an identity in the boardroom and doesn’t appear to have a strategy and a philosophy, apart from ‘this is the INEOS way’, which worked well in petrochemicals, so therefore it’s bound to work in football.”

The combination of breeding and innate ability has been instrumental in Better Late’s development into a more formidable racehorse. His trainer is of the opinion that the gelding is on the cusp of another victory at Rosehill, contesting the Midway Handicap (1300m) this Saturday.

Having been gelded prior to his last racing campaign, the now four-year-old achieved two wins from his six outings. However, it is during this current preparation that two barrier trial successes were followed by two second-place finishes, with a victory at benchmark 68 level at Newcastle on August 25 occurring in between.

“He’s by Maurice so he is only going to get better with a bit of time on his side,” Newcastle-based trainer Nathan Doyle commented.

“He has come back in good order and I can’t fault any of his runs this preparation and he’s got the hoof on the till once again.

“The track suits him being an on-speed runner. He’s pretty bombproof.”

A consistent performer, Better Late has seen his Racing and Sports ratings improve at each of his last three starts. His most recent performance at Rosehill over 1200m on September 12 was hampered when James McDonald, aboard Formal, managed to get the better of him late.

Encouragingly, McDonald is booked to ride Better Late this time around, commencing from barrier eight.

“You can take that as you will,” Doyle remarked with a smile.

“But we are very happy to have him aboard.

“Better Late does everything right and gets out of the gates and makes his own luck and I will be disappointed if he isn’t in the finish.”

Doyle also has Mercy Me entered in the final race, scheduled over 1100m. This mare is first-up following a lackluster conclusion to her winter campaign, finishing out of the placings in the Listed Queensland Day Stakes (1200m) in June.

“Her work was good on Tuesday,” Doyle shared.

“She does need to take the step up from three-year-old grade and takes on the older horses but she seems to be in he right frame.”

Explore the competitive betting markets for the race at your favourite online bookmakers.

Twelve seconds.

That’s how long Gable Steveson’s second UFC fight lasted before Sean Sharaf put him on the canvas at UFC 331.

Steveson came into the UFC with a ridiculous amount of hype. He’s an Olympic gold medalist, one of the best wrestlers America has produced in years and an athlete who has been told pretty much his entire life that he could do anything he wanted in sports.

Then he got punched in the face harder than he ever has in his life, and that’s MMA.

So now we’re left with the obvious question: Is it really over for Gable Steveson?

No. At least, it shouldn’t be.

One loss doesn’t erase everything Steveson has accomplished, and it definitely doesn’t mean he can’t become a good MMA fighter.

But let’s not pretend UFC 331 wasn’t a massive reality check.

Steveson didn’t lose a competitive fight. He didn’t get tired after two rounds or get exposed by someone with better grappling.

He got caught– In the blink of an eye,

That’s going to follow him for a while.

The UFC didn’t bring Steveson in because he had a long MMA resume. He had basically the opposite. The entire appeal was the upside.

He’s a freak athlete with an elite wrestling background, he’s only 26 and he has the kind of physical tools that are hard to teach. The problem is that MMA isn’t wrestling.

That sounds obvious, but it’s something that gets forgotten whenever another elite wrestler makes the jump.

Steveson can be one of the best wrestlers on the planet and still have no idea what it’s like to deal with a professional heavyweight trying to take his head off. That’s what Sharaf showed him in about 12 seconds. Now the UFC has a decision to make:

Do they throw Steveson right back in there against another dangerous heavyweight and see what happens?

If Steveson actually wants to do this, he needs time.

He needs rounds. He needs to get comfortable getting hit. He needs to learn how to use his wrestling in an MMA fight instead of assuming his wrestling will automatically carry him.

And most importantly, he needs to fight. Not five years from now. Not after another two-year training camp.

He needs to get back in there, fight someone around his level and figure out what kind of MMA fighter he actually wants to be.

Because talent isn’t the question.

We’ve already seen what Steveson can do on a wrestling mat. The question is whether he can turn that talent into MMA wins. That’s going to take time, and honestly, Steveson deserves the chance to find out.

He’s 26 years old. UFC 331 was a disaster, but it doesn’t have to be the end of his story. It can just be the fight he really, really wishes he could forget.

And if Steveson sticks around long enough, maybe 12 seconds eventually becomes nothing more than a funny answer to a trivia question.

Right now, though?

He’s got a lot to prove.

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Manchester United legend Eric Cantona stated he would never have signed for the team if current co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe was in charge.

It follows fresh controversy this week after Sir Jim claimed in a BBC interview that the United Kingdom is in decline because “nobody’s tough enough to deal with the immigration problem”.

Ratcliffe had previously identified the France forward Cantona as his favourite United player.

But when United fan Pete Boyle, on his TikTok channel, asked Cantona if he would have signed for the club under Ratcliffe, he replied: “No, Of course not.

“You know what I think about all of this, with this kind of politics and I cannot understand that someone like this can say something like this when he’s one of the owners of the club.

“Football is a very popular sport. Football is made – all the greatest players come from different waves of immigration. Everywhere, in France, in England, everywhere.

“In France for instance, the greatest players in France, they all come from different waves of immigration.”

Cantona moved to Old Trafford in 1992 from rivals Leeds and helped the club win four Premier League titles in five seasons.

Over the weekend, Ratcliffe said he could see why rich people are leaving the UK, describing the country as “on the slide”.

When asked about the issues that politicians should focus on, Ratcliffe said immigration was “clearly one” as well as high taxes.

“We had the greatest empire in the world. We were a great people. We won two world wars,” he told the BBC.

But he criticised politicians for a reluctance to act on what he called the “immigration problem” and the “benefits problem”.

“Nobody’s tough enough to deal with the immigration problem. Nobody’s tough enough to deal with the benefits problem. But somebody needs to do it,” he said.

Sir Jim attracted criticism earlier this year after he said the UK had been “colonised by immigrants”.

He later issued a statement saying he was sorry if those remarks had “offended some people”, with then-prime minister Sir Keir Starmer and then-mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham among those who condemned them.

Half-time is supposed to be a pause in the action, but very few supporters actually pause. The whistle goes and everyone immediately finds another small task: checking scores, replaying a disputed decision, opening a game or joining the frantic queue for drinks before play resumes.

Those few minutes have become an extension of the sporting event itself. Whether you’re watching football at home, following rugby in the pub or standing beside a GAA pitch wondering why you didn’t bring a warmer coat, the break has its own collection of habits and distractions to suit anyone.

One Match Suddenly Becomes Five

A supporter will often spend half-time discussing the first half, but the conversation now competes with an impressive amount of information arriving through your phone. You’ll check results from other grounds, look at the league table and discover that a player in another match has somehow been booked twice in four minutes. Group chats become amateur analysis desks, usually featuring at least one member who’s convinced the referee has a personal grievance against their club.

Some fans also wander beyond match coverage and into the wider selection of sports and gaming content available online. A person comparing entertainment platforms could consult something like GambleGuru’s independent Irish casino guide, while somebody else might open a puzzle, play a short mobile game or inspect the odds for the second half. None of these activities needs to become the main event. They’re simply among the many digital detours competing for attention while the players are taking a.

Half-time browsing isn’t very organised as you’ll begin by checking a substitution and end up reading about a former midfielder’s restaurant or watching a clip from a match played twelve years ago. The break may be short, but it doesn’t stop the internet from giving it a good slice of ambition.

The Second Screen Has Changed How You Watch

Watching sport with a phone nearby gives you access to details that broadcasters can’t always cover with immediate effect. You can check a player’s recent form, find an alternative camera angle or confirm whether the rule being confidently quoted from the sofa has existed since 2019. A tactical change becomes easier to spot once you’ve seen the average positions, while a replacement carries more significance when you know he’s returning from injury. During a busy weekend, score apps also let you follow several competitions without abandoning the game in front of you.

The downside is that your phone doesn’t understand the concept of half-time. It’ll continue offering notifications, videos and unrelated headlines after play resumes. One quick glance can become ten minutes, during which the match produces a goal, a red card and the only genuinely interesting thing the commentator has said all afternoon.

Experienced second-screen users develop a rough system. They check what they need during stoppages, silence unnecessary alerts and put the device down when the action returns. It’s hardly a heroic act of self-discipline, but it does prevent you from learning about an important goal through the group chat while the television is directly in front of you.

Stadium Breaks Have Their Own Logic

Half-time inside a stadium is a completely different activity from half-time on the sofa. Your priorities become incredibly basic: find food, visit the facilities and get back before anything happens.

The same break feels different across sports. A rugby crowd might spend it discussing territory and missed kicks, while football supporters examine whether the midfield is being overrun. At a GAA match, the talk can move rapidly between individual battles, shooting accuracy and whatever weather has arrived sideways across the stand.

Phones still appear, although connectivity doesn’t always cooperate when thousands of people try to use the same network. A page that loads instantly at home can suddenly behave as though it’s being delivered by a tired pigeon. Supporters adapt by checking downloaded tickets in advance, taking screenshots of travel details and accepting that video replays can wait.

The break also belongs to the live venue. Music, announcements and on-pitch activities fill the silence, while supporters spot acquaintances several rows away and attempt conversations through elaborate hand signals. Watching at home gives you more information, but being there gives half-time a social quality that an app can’t reproduce.

A Short Break Can Reset the Whole Match

Half-time isn’t only useful for spectators. It can change the direction of the contest. Coaches have a small window to correct positioning, alter the press or settle players after a frantic opening period. A team that looked disorganised can return with a clearer plan, leaving everyone outside the dressing room to speculate about what was said.

Viewers perform their own reset. You refill a drink, reconsider the first half and decide whether the match is genuinely poor or merely tense. The pause can restore patience after a scrappy spell, particularly when every misplaced pass has been treated as a personal insult.

Digital distractions have made those minutes slightly busier, though they haven’t made the basic ritual disappear. Supporters still argue over decisions, predict substitutions and convince themselves the next goal is inevitable. Phones have simply added more material to inspect while doing it.

The 2026/27 BKT United Rugby Championship gets underway this weekend, with eight matches across Ireland, Italy, South Africa and Wales as all 16 teams begin their new campaign.

The opening round starts on Friday, September 25, with Connacht and Ulster both at home, before five Saturday fixtures including Leinster’s trip to Johannesburg and a heavyweight meeting between Munster and Glasgow Warriors at Thomond Park.

Here are the URC Round 1 fixtures, Irish/UK kick-off times, TV details, match officials and current bookmaker handicaps.

Friday, September 25

Benetton v Dragons RFC – 7.45pm

Venue: Stadio Monigo, Treviso
Handicap: Benetton -10
TV: Premier Sports, Sky Italia
Referee: Christopher Allison (SARU)
TMO: Marius Jonker (SARU)

Benetton begin their campaign at home against Dragons and are 10-point favourites with the bookmakers.

Connacht v DHL Stormers – 7.45pm

Venue: Dexcom Stadium, Galway
Handicap: Connacht -4
TV: TG4, Premier Sports
Referee: Sam Grove-White (SRU)
TMO: David Sutherland (SRU)

One of the most interesting handicap lines of the opening weekend sees Connacht installed as four-point favourites against the Stormers in Galway.

The Stormers finished third in the 2025/26 regular season before reaching the semi-finals, while Connacht finished outside the play-offs. The South Africans also begin the URC campaign with a number of their leading internationals involved with the Springboks.

Ulster v Edinburgh – 7.45pm

Venue: Affidea Stadium, Belfast
Handicap: Ulster -11
TV: Premier Sports
Referee: Federico Vedovelli (FIR)
TMO: Vincenzo Schipani (FIR)

Ulster carry one of the biggest handicaps of the opening weekend, starting as 11-point favourites against Edinburgh in Belfast.

Saturday, September 26

Lions v Leinster – 12.30pm

Venue: Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Handicap: Leinster -7
TV: TG4, Premier Sports
Referee: Ben Breakspear (WRU)
TMO: Craig Evans (WRU)

Leinster begin their campaign in South Africa and have been made seven-point favourites for the trip to Ellis Park.

Johannesburg has provided some difficult afternoons for Leinster in recent seasons, making this one of the more intriguing fixtures of the opening round.

Sharks v Ospreys – 3.00pm

Venue: Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban
Handicap: Sharks -13
TV: Premier Sports
Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (FIR)
TMO: Filippo Russo (FIR)

The largest handicap of Round 1 sees the Sharks giving Ospreys a 13-point start in Durban.

Munster v Glasgow Warriors – 5.30pm

Venue: Thomond Park, Limerick
Handicap: Glasgow -1
TV: Premier Sports
Referee: Morné Ferreira (SARU)
TMO: Marius Jonker (SARU)

This is perhaps the most eye-catching bookmaker line of the weekend.

Despite playing at Thomond Park, Munster are slight underdogs, with Glasgow installed as one-point favourites.

There is very little between the teams according to the opening market, setting up what could be one of the games of Round 1.

Zebre Parma v Bulls – 5.30pm

Venue: Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi, Parma
Handicap: Bulls -10
TV: Premier Sports, Sky Italia
Referee: Andrew Brace (IRFU)
TMO: Olly Hodges (IRFU)

The Bulls begin their season on the road and are 10-point favourites against Zebre in Parma.

Scarlets v Cardiff – 7.45pm

Venue: Parc y Scarlets
Handicap: Scarlets -1
TV: S4C, Premier Sports
Referee: Adam Jones (WRU)
TMO: Keith David (WRU)

Round 1 concludes with a Welsh derby that the bookmakers can barely separate.

Scarlets have been made one-point favourites over Cardiff in what is effectively a pick’em contest.

URC Round 1 Handicaps

What Do The Round 1 Handicaps Tell Us?

From an Irish perspective, the opening lines provide an interesting snapshot of expectations heading into the new season.

Ulster are strong favourites at home, Leinster are backed to win on the road in Johannesburg and Connacht are four-point favourites against the Stormers.

Munster’s position is particularly interesting. Home advantage at Thomond Park would normally count heavily in their favour, but the bookmakers have Glasgow starting as narrow one-point favourites.

At the other end of the scale, the Sharks have the biggest handicap of the weekend at -13 against Ospreys, while Scarlets v Cardiff is the closest market at just one point.

Handicaps correct at time of publication and subject to change.

SportsNewsIRELAND will have rugby news, team updates, analysis and coverage throughout the 2026/27 United Rugby Championship season.

LiveScores Now Available at IrishScores.com

SEATTLE – Shortstop Jeremy Peña was out of the Houston Astros‘ lineup Wednesday against Seattle, a night after he was hit on the right forearm by a pitch.

Peña underwent X-rays that showed “there’s no damage” in the area but was still “pretty sore,” manager Joe Espada said pregame. It was unclear if Peña would be available off the bench Wednesday night.

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Peña was hit by a 96.4 mph sinker from Mariners right-hander Carlos Vargas in the eighth inning Tuesday, slamming his bat in frustration. He stayed in to run the bases but was replaced on defense in the bottom of the inning.

The Astros entered Wednesday tied atop the American League West with the Rangers with five games to play. Houston has the tiebreaker against Texas. Espada expressed hope that Peña might only miss a game with the Astros starting a four-game series against the A’s on Thursday in West Sacramento, Calif.

Peña, the Astros’ leadoff hitter, has a 123 OPS-plus this season and was 11-for-30 in his past seven games entering Wednesday. The Astros, who have scored the second-fewest runs in the majors since the Aug. 3 trade deadline, were 56-48 with Peña in the starting lineup and 22-31 without him.

Center fielder Daulton Varsho was absent from Houston’s lineup for a third consecutive game due to a left wrist issue. His availability off the bench was also unclear pregame.

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“Varsho is very slowly progressing,” Espada said. “There’s still some stiffness in that wrist. Anytime he does any baseball activity, it just stiffens up on him. So we’ll see how much more (time) he needs.”

The Astros’ lone trade deadline addition, Varsho entered Wednesday with a .172 average and .535 OPS in his 41 games with the team.

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This article originally published at Jeremy Peña out of Houston Astros’ lineup for series finale vs. Seattle Mariners.

Andy Burnham has branded a ban on fans being allowed to drink alcohol in the stands during men’s football matches as “discrimination”.

The prime minister told reporters that “I don’t think it’s fair for football fans to be singled out”, as he suggested a change could be trialled.

Laws are in place which prevent drinking in view of the pitch at stadiums for clubs in the top five tiers of men’s football in England. Other sports do not face such a restriction.

The Football Supporters’ Association (FSA) said the “outdated” legislation should be reviewed, but police chiefs have warned against relaxing the law and would like to meet the PM to “explain the challenges”.

The legislation was introduced in 1985 by Margaret Thatcher’s government for English and Welsh football grounds. At the time, then-Home Secretary Leon Brittan said that alcohol was a “major contributory factor in violent and disorderly behaviour” in football grounds.

Burnham is a keen football fan and a season-ticket holder at Premier League team Everton.

Shortly before he became prime minister, he criticised the restriction on football fans as he attended a rugby league game at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium where it was possible for supporters to have a drink in the stands.

Speaking to reporters on his trip to the United Nations in New York, Burnham was asked if it was still his view now he is in Downing Street.

Burnham replied: “I think that legislation dates to an era where football was very different.

“And I do believe there is a case to remove that discrimination. There are different ways it could be done. It could happen on a trial basis.

“But I’m not going to back away from what’s been a long held view of mine. I don’t see how it can be fair that some supporters of one sport can be treated differently.”

Government sources have stressed that Burnham was restating an opinion that he has long held, rather than making any sort of policy announcement.

The prime minister’s comments are not being seen inside government as an indication that he is looking to change the law in the area.

A trial or pilot scheme to look at whether a change would be possible is not being ruled out but any wider move would require extensive consultation involving football clubs, fans and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport – none of which is currently planned.