BARCELONA (SPAIN) (ITALPRESS) – “We’re not ruling anyone out, but we haven’t signed anyone yet.” After dinner to celebrate the victories in La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup, Barcelona sporting director Deco played defense with reporters who asked him about Julian Alvarez as a possible successor to Lewandowski. His position on João Pedro was more clear-cut, at least on the surface: “You’re wrong,” he tried to throw everyone off. “We have to work: we’ve lost a very important player like Robert, and we need to work to find another striker. It’s almost impossible to replace him, but that’s football.”

– photo IPA Agency –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

SOUTHAMPTON (ENGLAND) (ITALPRESS) – An appeal was rejected, Hull City and Middlesbrough will compete for a Premier League place on Saturday. The English Football League has rejected the appeal of Southampton, who were excluded from the Championship play-off final on Tuesday night for espionage.

The Saints, although admitting to having spied on the training sessions of three opponents including Boro before the first leg of the semi-final, had appealed, deeming the measure “manifestly disproportionate to any previous sanction in the history of English football.” But the EFL arbitration panel upheld the exclusion from the play-off final in addition to the four-point deduction to be served next season. Southampton called the outcome of the appeal “extremely disappointing. While fully recognizing the seriousness of the matter and the attention it has attracted, the club has always believed the original sanction was disproportionate, a position shared by many in the football community over the past 24 hours.”

– photo IPA Agency –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

ROME (ITALPRESS) – UEFA has approved a new format for the Nations League and the European qualifiers starting from the 2028–2029 season. The decision was made during the Executive Committee meeting in Istanbul.

Beginning with the 2028/29 edition, the Nations League will move from the current four leagues to three leagues, each made up of 18 teams. Each league will consist of three groups of six teams playing six matches against five different opponents: home or away against teams from different pots, and home and away against the team from the same pot.

With 55 participating teams, League C will include one group of seven teams, whose matches will begin one international window earlier. The quarter-finals, Finals Four, and promotion/relegation play-offs will follow the current format.

The European qualifiers will also adopt a tiered structure: League 1, made up of the 36 teams from Nations League Leagues A and B, and League 2, consisting of the remaining 18 (or 19) teams. League 1 will feature three groups of 12 teams drawn from three pots of 12 teams each.

Each team will play six matches, home or away, against six different opponents — two from each pot — in a system similar to the format used in UEFA club competitions. League 2 will follow the same structure as Nations League League C, with three groups of six teams (or one of seven).

Although automatically qualified for the final tournament, host nations will still take part in the European qualifiers, with objectives linked to their ranking in the next Nations League edition. The top-ranked teams in each League 1 group will qualify directly, while the remaining places will be decided through play-offs, ensuring fair qualification opportunities also for League 2 teams.

The project will be refined over the coming months before being submitted for final approval of the detailed format at the next Executive Committee meeting in September.

“The new formats will improve competitive balance, reduce the number of meaningless matches, and offer fans a more exciting and dynamic competition, while ensuring equal qualification opportunities for all teams without adding extra dates to the international calendar,” said UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin.

The next UEFA Executive Committee meeting is scheduled for September 15, 2026, in Thessaloniki.

– Photo IPA Agency –
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

RABAT (MOROCCO) (ITALPRESS) – Morocco continues to accelerate its energy transition, with the share of renewable energy in the national electricity mix rising from 37% in 2021 to 46% in 2025. This was stated, according to the Yabiladi website, by Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development Leila Benali, speaking before the House of Councilors. The minister emphasized that the government is pursuing important structural reforms in the energy sector with the aim of strengthening the Kingdom’s energy sovereignty, attracting investment, and creating new job opportunities.

According to Yabiladi, Benali specified that the additional capacity installed in the renewable energy sector during the current government term reached 1,733 megawatts, bringing the total installed capacity to 12.2 gigawatts in 2025. According to the minister, 2023 marked a turning point in energy investment dynamics, with the issuance of 66 permits for renewable energy projects with a capacity close to 6 gigawatts and investments exceeding $5.5 billion, compared to just 23 permits in the 2011-2021 period. In the first quarter of 2026, Benali added, new projects with a capacity close to 3 gigawatts were authorized, mobilizing investments estimated at approximately over $2.2 billion. The minister also highlighted that Morocco has mobilized investments of $12 billion as part of an electrical equipment plan for the period 2022-2030, aimed at creating an additional capacity of 15 gigawatts, of which more than 12 gigawatts will come from renewable sources.

– photo IPA Agency –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

RABAT (MOROCCO) (ITALPRESS) – The second Ministerial Conference on Peacekeeping in Francophone Environments opened in Rabat, attended by Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita and his French counterpart Jean-Noël Barrot. According to a statement from the Moroccan Foreign Ministry, Bourita expressed his hope that the mandates of UN peacekeeping missions would be in step with developments on the ground; otherwise, he noted, “they risk becoming instruments for maintaining the status quo” rather than authentic levers for conflict resolution.

Speaking at the opening of the Conference, Bourita emphasized that peacekeeping operations must be based on realistic mandates, supported by clearly defined and regularly reassessed political strategies. Bourita emphasized that this conference is taking place against a backdrop of persistent political divisions within the Security Council, the evolving nature of conflicts, and increasing pressure on available resources. French Minister Barrot called Morocco a “key player” in peacekeeping operations and an important partner on the African continent. According to a statement from the Moroccan ministry, Barrot praised the Kingdom’s numerous initiatives and commitment to stability, development, and prosperity across the continent, and also emphasized that UN peacekeeping operations remain “indispensable.”

UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed his gratitude to Morocco and France for organizing and co-chairing the second Ministerial Conference. During the conference’s opening session, Guterres stated, in a pre-recorded speech, that peacekeeping is one of the most concrete aspects of the United Nations, at a time when the world is witnessing an unprecedented number of conflicts since 1945. The high-level segment of the conference adopted a declaration praising Morocco’s leading role as a major player in international peace and security.

In the same Declaration, the participating ministers reiterated that the security of peacekeeping operations remains an absolute priority, condemning in the strongest terms any attack on such missions. Through the Rabat Declaration, the participating delegations expressed their willingness to work towards the development of clear and realistic peacekeeping mandates, prioritizing crisis exit strategies, the primacy of political solutions, and adaptation to the changing nature of conflicts, thus contributing to the creation of lasting peace and stability.

– photo IPA Agency –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LONDON (ENGLAND) (ITALPRESS) – Enzo Maresca is set to replace Pep Guardiola at Manchester City. In England, everyone agrees, but no one believes that the Catalan will fulfill his one-year contract with Manchester City, while everyone knows that the Italian will be his successor.

The specialized website TalkSport assures that there is already an agreement for a three-year deal, but points out that there is still a dispute with Chelsea over the New Year’s Eve separation. Some at Stamford Bridge suspect that the Italian was already being courted by City, and that this is why relations have deteriorated. These rumors have been denied by the former midfielder’s entourage.

According to TalkSport sources, Maresca himself has reportedly been contacted in the past by Tottenham (after the departure of Igor Tudor), Real Madrid (immediately after the departure of Xabi Alonso), and AC Milan, with the Rossoneri reportedly asking his agent, Jorge Mendes, for information this season. Maresca, however, only wants Manchester City, and Guardiola himself has reportedly recommended him to the club.

– photo IPA Agency –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LISBON (PORTUGAL) (ITALPRESS) – While awaiting the elections that will confirm Florentino Pérez as president of Real Madrid and the subsequent announcement of José Mourinho’s return to the Blancos, Benfica is working to find the heir to the “special one.”

According to the Portuguese newspaper “Record,” their top target is Marco Silva, currently coach of Fulham. The Portuguese newspaper also cites other alternatives: former Barça coach Xavi, Iraola, now at Bournemouth, and Thiago Motta, former manager of Genoa, Spezia, Bologna, and Juventus.

-Photo IPA Agency-
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Malta’s prison population has surged from below capacity to severe overcrowding within a year, placing Corradino Correctional Facility among Europe’s most overcrowded prisons, according to a Council of Europe report.

The annual Penal Statistics on Prison Populations survey found Corradino now houses 118 inmates for every 100 available places, up sharply from 83 inmates per 100 places in 2024.

Malta is one of nine European prison systems classified as severely overcrowded, alongside countries such as Türkiye and France, which recorded the highest occupancy rates at 131 inmates per 100 places.

The report also revealed that nearly one-third of inmates in Malta are awaiting sentencing, highlighting pressure on the country’s justice system.

Over the past two decades, Malta’s prison population has grown by 62%, from 2005 to 2025.

Foreign nationals account for 51% of Malta’s prison population, the eighth-highest proportion in Europe and well above the continental average of 17%.

Malta also recorded the third-highest proportion of women inmates in Europe, with women making up 8% of detainees, behind only Hungary and Czechia.

Across Europe, the proportion of female prisoners rose from 4.8% to 5.2% between 2024 and 2025, reflecting broader shifts in sentencing trends and detention patterns.

The Council of Europe said the findings point to growing challenges for prison systems, including overcrowding and rising numbers of older and female detainees.

-Photo IPA Agency-
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

ZURICH (SWITZERLAND) (ITALPRESS) – Switzerland is ready. Murat Yakin, coach of the national team that denied us a spot in the 2022 World Cup as group winners and then eliminated us from the 2024 European Championships, has made his selections, releasing the 26-man squad for the 2026 World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States. The Swiss are in Group B along with Canada, Qatar, and Bosnia.

Yakin’s list includes four players who play in the Italian league: Inter defender Manuel Akanji and Bologna, Milan, and Pisa midfielders Remo Freuler, Ardon Jashari, and Michel Aebischer, respectively.

The complete list

Goalkeepers: Gregor Kobel (Borussia Dortmund), Marvin Keller (Young Boys), Yvon Mvogo (Lorient).

Defenders: Ricardo Rodriguez (Betis), Silvan Widmer (Mainz), Manuel Akanji (Inter), Miro Muheim (Hamburg), Nico Elvedi (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Aurele Amenda (Eintracht Frankfurt), Luca Jaquez (Stuttgart), Eray Comert (Valencia).

Midfielders: Johan Manzambi (Freiburg), Granit Xhaka (Sunderland), Remo Freuler (Bologna), Denis Zakaria (Monaco), Ardon Jashari (Milan), Michel Aebischer (Pisa), Djibril Sow (Sevilla), Christian Fassnacht (Young Boys), Fabian Rieder (Augsburg).

Forwards: Noah Okafor (Leeds United), Dan Ndoye (Nottingham Forest), Zeki Amdouni (Burnley), Breel Embolo (Rennes), Ruben Vargas (Sevilla), Cedric Itten (Fortuna Düsseldorf).

-Photo IPA Agency-
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LONDON (ENGLAND) (ITALPRESS) – A historic decision in England: Southampton has been excluded from the Championship play-offs for espionage. The club had been reported by the EFL (England Football League) for spying on the training sessions of Oxford United and Ipswich Town during the season, as well as filming Middlesbrough preparing for the first leg of the play-off semi-final on May 7. The Saints acknowledged these allegations, also penalizing them with a four-point deduction to be served next season. Middlesbrough, defeated by Southampton in the semi-final, has thus been reinstated and will now play Hull City for a Premier League spot: the final will be played on Saturday at Wembley.

“We believe this sends a clear message for the future of our sport regarding sporting integrity and conduct,” Boro stated in a statement, which sparked the scandal. Two days before the match between the two teams, a man was caught filming Middlesbrough’s training session at Rockliffe Park before fleeing. But he didn’t hurry enough: a Boro photographer had managed to take some pictures, which led to him being identified as one of the Saints’ analysts. This led to a complaint to the League and the disciplinary proceedings. Rules prohibit clubs from observing rivals’ training sessions in the 72 hours before a match.

– photo IPA Agency –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews