Great Britain’s women’s flag football team suffered defeat at the World Championships as they missed out on qualifying for the 2028 Olympics.

The two-time defending European champions fought back to take the bronze-medal game to the final play, only for Mexico to clinch a 20-19 win in Dusseldorf, Germany.

That also meant Mexico – the world’s top-ranked team – secured a spot at Los Angeles 2028, when the non-contact version of American football will make its Olympic debut.

GB got off to a poor start as they were intercepted on their first two drives, with the second punished by a touchdown that put Mexico 13-0 up.

An Angelica Tait touchdown saw GB, who are ranked third in the world, get up and running before Mexico struck again to make it 20-6.

Grace Conway almost claimed an interception, which she could have run in for a touchdown, and GB ran out of time on offence as they aimed to cut the score before half-time.

But they closed to within a point through two touchdowns from Emily Kemp – the tournament’s leading scorer – then went for a two-point conversion to take the lead with two minutes left.

Although Kemp caught Jess Allen’s pass at the back of the endzone, her left foot came down just out of bounds, meaning Mexico could run down the clock to seal victory.

“We fell into a bit of a hole,” GB’s head coach Jack Reed told BBC Sport. “The drive at the end of the first half and the drop for the pick-six were unfortunate.

“I knew we’d fight, I knew we weren’t out of it, and we held them scoreless in the second half. But it’s a game of inches and Emily was out by an inch.”

The USA came from behind to beat GB 27-21 in the semi-finals and set up a meeting with Canada in the final.

The USA automatically qualify for LA28 as hosts and will be joined by Canada and Mexico, while GB must wait two years for another chance to qualify.

“I’m super proud of the team,” added Reed. “We showed the world that we can compete with anybody in the world. We played the number one ranked team today and number two yesterday (USA).

“We had an opportunity to win both games, they went down to the very end, so I think we earned the respect of the flag football world and surprised a lot of people.”

GB’s men beat Brazil 33-26 on Sunday to finish 13th overall, while the USA beat Italy 46-26 to secure their sixth straight world title.

Canada claimed a 34-26 overtime win over Mexico in the bronze-medal game to ensure they and Italy punched their ticket to LA28 this weekend.

India’s 2-2 draw against world No. 4 China in their Hockey World Cup opener was a major positive, especially with 11 players making their tournament debuts, head coach Sjoerd Marijne said on Sunday.India took the lead twice, but China, the 2024 Olympic silver medallists, fought back to earn a point. Marijne was pleased with the performance but felt India could have won if they had earned a late penalty corner.“With 11 debutants in the team, a draw against the world No. number four is very good for the future,” Marijne said after the match.

India Show Resilience Against China

India had already used their video referral when they appealed for a penalty corner late in the game, leaving them unable to review the decision.“We had a clear PC but the referee was at an angle where she couldn’t see it and you really can’t blame her. We really need to learn about the video referrals,” Marijne said.India struggled in the third quarter but responded strongly in the final period.“The third quarter was not that good but then we came back. The resilience of the team was good and I am happy with that. We did much better in the last quarter,” he said.The draw also eased the pressure ahead of India’s remaining Pool D matches.“It is a very important draw. If we had lost this one, the next two would have been must-win matches. Now we don’t have to do much calculations about who is winning against whom and we can focus on our own game,” he said.

Navneet Shines as India Look Ahead

Marijne praised Navneet Kaur, saying her performances showed India have attacking options beyond star drag-flicker Deepika.“Everyone was talking about Deepika during the Nations Cup but Navneet scored equally well and in the World Cup qualifiers too. So it’s not only about Deepika,” Marijne said.Navneet said India had ignored China’s reputation and focused on their own game.“It was a tough match but we did exceptionally well. We were leading twice and we have to do better in maintaining the lead,” she said.India next face South Africa, with captain Salima Tete stressing that the team must maintain its intensity.“We are happy with the one point but we will have to fight in every match and we are geared up for that,” Salima said.

The Women’s Africa Cup of Nations final takes place tonight in Rabat, with Malawi facing Cameroon in a historic showdown. Speaking to FRANCE 24, sports journalist Charlotte Richardson discussed the growing popularity of women’s sport, but also the persistent gaps in media coverage, funding and infrastructure compared with men’s competitions. She also highlighted the WAFCON’s last-minute postponement earlier this year, saying such a decision would be unthinkable in men’s football.

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Manchester United are on the hunt for a new left-back this summer as they look to strengthen an area which will concern Michael Carrick

Club Brugge manager Ivan Leko has admitted it will be “hard to reject” the right offer for Manchester United-linked Joaquin Seys. The Reds are looking to sign a new left-back this summer, with Luke Shaw having less than a year left on his current contract.

Patrick Dorgu, meanwhile, has looked more comfortable on the left wing, while two other options in that position, Diogo Dalot and Noussair Mazzrorui, are more right-backs. Harry Amass is another possibility for Michael Carrick, but is untested at the highest level.

Newcastle star Lewis Hall has been heavily linked with a summer switch to Old Trafford in United’s search for left-back reinforcements. The 21-year-old is seen as the perfect age and already has good Premier League experience.

But a move to M16 is unlikely for now after the Magpies sold several key players this summer, including Bruno Guimaraes, Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali. It means the Reds will have to explore other options with just over two weeks left before the transfer window slams shut.

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One name being mentioned is Seys. The Sun have recently claimed that United, Arsenal. Aston Villa and Newcastle are keen on signing the Belgian international this summer. It is said that the Reds also face competition from Portuguese giants Benfica and Porto, should they move to sign the £30million rated full-back.

And Leko has now opened up on the young star’s future in an interview ahead of Brugge’s 3-0 win over Oud-Heverlee Leuven on Saturday.

He said: “I’m proud that my guys are being linked to those clubs. We chat about it every now and then.

“How much of those rumours is true? I don’t know. But we all have eyes in our heads: their potential is incredible.

“On the other hand, they remain consummate professionals and are happy here. The focus is entirely on OHL.”

Leko previously claimed Seys was destined to play at the top of the Premier League and believes there is a chance he will move on before deadline day. The defender has three years remaining on his current contract.

After winning her first title in almost a year, Iga Świątek has opened up about the pressure and criticism she faced during a difficult 2026 season.

Świątek ended her 11-month wait for a title by beating Elena Rybakina 6-2, 6-3 in the Canadian Open final in Toronto. It was also her first title since beginning her partnership with new coach Francisco Roig.

Świątek celebrated with visible anger, screaming towards her team and pumping her fist after the win. She later explained that some of that emotion came from anger and criticism she had experienced during the difficult periods of her season, particularly from media and fans in Poland.

“After I won, I kind of let myself feel it [anger] a little bit because there are plenty of things that athletes, not only athletes, all the people have to struggle with. Sometimes we need to fight things that we shouldn’t.”

The 25-year-old has faced intense scrutiny this season. She had been criticised for her results, and people had questioned her team and decisions. She said that judgment had affected not only her but also the people around her.

“There is unfair judgment from different parts coming to us, and we need to handle it. For sure, last month I faced it, my team faced it.”

Rather than allowing the criticism to change her, Świątek said she wanted to stay focused on her own decisions and development.

“My goal was for it to not interrupt my process and define who I am. Being sure about my decisions, not letting this disrupt anything and focus on growing.”

She also said she hopes her experience can help other athletes dealing with similar pressure.

“It shouldn’t be like that so I took yesterday’s opportunity to just talk about it a little bit more even if it helps one person, or one young athlete knows that we all try to do something with it, maybe it will help a little bit.”

Despite everything surrounding the victory, Świątek knows she cannot spend too long celebrating. She travelled to Cincinnati shortly after winning in Toronto, but said she still wanted to appreciate what she had achieved.

“I’ll find my time to appreciate what happened and to be grateful about it, for sure. Because without it, it doesn’t make sense to keep going. You need to get a taste of these moments and remember them.”

Great Britain’s Charlotte Fry retains her Grand Prix Freestyle title in Aachen, Germany – becoming the first rider in the history of the FEI World Championships to win both individual dressage titles back-to-back.

WATCH MORE: Fry and Glamourdale win world individual dressage gold

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