Why private capital could make this the last Ashes series as we know them December 18, 2025 This is likely to be the last Ashes as we know it; but not because England might finally win a series down in Australia, or because the format is suddenly about to change. By the time the iconic bilateral series returns for its 75th iteration in 2027, it will be against the backdrop of a [...]
Is the Premier League decoupling from the rest of English football? December 18, 2025 Ed Warner pores over a report on the polarisation of English football and comes up with a solution to the Premier League’s stand-off with the EFL for the new regulator. “I just hope they don’t mess it up.” The Premier League club chairman’s answer to my question about his hopes for the Independent Football Regulator [...]
Cornish Pirates: We will kick door down to reach franchised Prem Rugby December 18, 2025 The chief executive of Cornish Pirates insists she is ready to “kick the door down” to get her Champ side into Prem Rugby if the top flight becomes a ringfenced franchise league. Prem Rugby and the Rugby Football Union are exploring a franchise model which would see the current 10 teams form a new ring-fenced [...]
Exclusive: SailGP to target teams in India and South Korea December 17, 2025 SailGP will target teams in India and the Middle East and races in Hong Kong and Italy as the Formula 1 of sailing breaks the $200m revenue mark. Record attendances, including 20,000 at the UK leg, have driven record revenues in SailGP’s fifth season, with founder tech tycoon Larry Ellison able to scale back funding [...]
Starmer threatens Abramovich with court over £2.5bn Chelsea proceeds December 17, 2025 Prime Minister Keir Starmer has vowed to take Roman Abramovich to court unless he hands over the £2.5bn proceeds from his sale of Chelsea FC to humanitarian causes in Ukraine. The huge windfall has been frozen in a UK bank account since May 2022, when the sanctioned Russian oligarch sold Chelsea to a US consortium [...]
Rugby league woes as Oldham RLFC faces winding-up by HMRC December 17, 2025 Oldham RLFC, a club in rugby league’s Championship, was hit with formal legal action by the British tax authority this week, Morning Wire can reveal. In the High Court system, HMRC filed a winding-up petition against Oldham Rugby League Football Club 1876 (Oldham RLFC) on Tuesday. A winding-up petition is a formal notice by a [...]
Murray-backed Hexagon Cup to become global padel series in deal with LIV Golf creator 54 December 17, 2025 The Hexagon Cup, the team-based padel competition backed by stars including Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal, is to expand into a global circuit, the Hexagon World Series. It will see multiple events take place around the world each year under the governance of the International Padel Federation, and aligned with the elite Premier Padel circuit [...]
Manchester City v Premier League battle set to drag on beyond season December 17, 2025 Manchester City will face another lengthy wait to discover their punishment if they are found guilty of breaching the Premier League’s financial rules, as the much-anticipated verdict of the independent commission will be delivered in stages. The initial judgement of the commission, which finished hearing the case 13 months ago, will only deal with matters [...]
World Cup: The rise of the armchair fan and why it matters December 16, 2025 The row over the 2026 World Cup ticket prices is as predictable as a plucky, late-stage English exit. But the eyewatering price tags are only part of the story. Without going into the economic principle of supply versus demand (the tickets will still sell out, in my opinion), I thought it was more interesting to [...]
Aussie Green reaches record IPL auction sale price December 16, 2025 Australian Cameron Green has been sold for £2.1m at the Indian Premier League auction to become the most expensive overseas cricket player in history. The all-rounder will play for Ramandeep Singh’s Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2026 IPL competition having been purchased for 25.2 crore by the eastern team. The Kolkata Knight Riders, whose 2024 [...]