Sunday, 1 March 2026
F1 MAKE AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX DECISION AS TEAMS CAUGHT UP IN MIDDLE EAST CHAOS
Formula One officials are monitoring the situation after several teams were left in travel chaos ahead of the 2026 Australian Grand Prix next weekend following airstrikes by the US, Israel and Iran
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| Melbourne hosts the first F1 race of the 2026 season(Image: Clive Rose, Getty Images) |
The 2026 Australian Grand Prix is set to proceed next weekend despite reported travel worries for several teams. This follows the closure of Doha and Dubai - the primary stopover hubs for Qatar and Emirates airlines - on Saturday due to ongoing conflict in the region.
The Middle Eastern countries made this decision after Iran launched retaliatory strikes in Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and the UAE in response to the United States and Israel initiating joint airstrikes on the country. The Daily Mail reports that airport closures have resulted in travel turmoil for several Formula One teams ahead of the Aussie GP on Sunday, March 8.
The report suggests that approximately 2,000 team and organisational staff have had to abruptly change their travel plans. It's understood that those heading Down Under are being rerouted onto flights via Hong Kong and Singapore, whilst some are flying directly into Perth with Qantas, before a three-hour and 35-minute domestic connection to Melbourne.
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| Eventual world champion Lando Norris won last year's race in Melbourne(Image: SAEED KHAN, AFP via Getty Images) |
However, it's believed that the 2026 season-opening F1 race in Australia will still take place. Officials are keeping an eye on the situation and are liaising with the relevant authorities.
Some teams have already made their way to Australia ahead of practice on Friday, before qualifying takes place a day later at Albert Park. F1 are said to be relaxed and are not expecting any significant issues ahead of the season opener.
Apart from the cancelled events in 2020 and 2021, due to the Coronavirus pandemic, Melbourne has featured on the F1 calendar every year since 1996. Significant regulation changes promise an unpredictable start to the new season.
Pre-season testing indicates no team will dominate, though Mercedes and Ferrari are considered as frontrunners to triumph in Australia next weekend.
And there has already been substantial controversy surrounding Mercedes' engine, with competitors claiming they have found a method around engine compression ratio restrictions.
The FIA confirmed earlier this month that it would not prohibit Mercedes' engine and have now revealed a new mid-season rule amendment: a test in June to tackle the alleged 'loophole'.
- Isaac Seelochan and Cameron Winstanley
THE NRL MAKES HISTORY WITH LAS VEGAS THRILLER - AS ONE STAR HAS A NSFW MOMENT ON LIVE TV
Canterbury skipper Stephen Crichton stood up like only he can to land a field goal with six seconds of golden point remaining to sink a gallant St George Illawarra 15-14.
A record Las Vegas crowd of 45,719 got their first taste of golden point footy and it took 89 minutes and 54 seconds of a cracking, old-fashioned arm wrestle to split the teams.
Crichton set himself in position from right in front to snap his left-footer straight through after playing a great match on Saturday (Sunday AEDT).
The Dogs led 10-8 at the break and went further ahead with a try to winger Jacob Kiraz after a trademark Crichton left-hand flick.
Dragons debutant winger Setu Tu, at the age of 27, capped a stellar match with a try in the 59th minute to reduce Canterbury's lead to just two.
The Red V defended like demons to scramble and deny the favourites on numerous occasions.
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| Stephen Crichton (pictured) starred as the Canterbury Bulldogs claimed a thrilling 15-14 victory against St George Illawarra |
With Valentine Holmes limping, Kyle Flanagan nailed a 30m penalty and it was 14-all with six minutes on the clock.
It was a thriller right to the end. With less than 40 seconds on the clock, Holmes looked to win the match for the Dragons, booting a drop goal from the halfway line. The ball agonisingly dropped short and the Doggies rebounded. Kiraz ran the ball up and offloaded to Marcelo Montoya, who broke through the Dragons’ line.
Defenders scrambled to bring the 189cm winger down, with Christian Tuipulotu grabbing the back of his shorts.
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| A record Las Vegas crowd of 45,719 got their first taste of golden point footy and it took 89 minutes and 54 seconds of a cracking, old-fashioned arm wrestle to split the teams |
An embarrassing moment followed, as Montoya’s backside was exposed on live television. The Bulldogs went coast to coast, sending the ball wide as they attempted to touch down for another try but agonisingly knocked on, sending the match to extra time.
In the first segment of golden point, Jaydn Su'A charged down a Matt Burton shot. Connor Tracey did the same to deny Daniel Atkinson, while Valentine Holmes had another crack from 45m that failed.
Atkinson went for a failed 50m shot with 90 seconds to go and the Bulldogs received a penalty. Crichton then stood up to cap a man-of-the-match display.
The two sides have a fierce rivalry and there was niggle and flair-ups, particularly when Crichton caught Tu high.
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| There was a bizarre moment just before full-time as Marcelo Montoya's backside was exposed during a tackle |
Dragons firebrand Luciano Leilua gave away a penalty in possession when he had a disagreement with Jacob Preston. Both captains were told to tell their players to cool it.
St George Illawarra prop Toby Couchman was put on report in the first half for a shoulder to the head of Sitili Tupouniua. Minutes later Red V winger Christian Tuipulotu was also booked for a shoulder charge on Connor Tracey.
The Dragons showcased resilience in defence in the opening half to thwart slick Canterbury attack, orchestrated by half Lachlan Galvin.
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| The Bulldogs winger had broken through the St George defence, but was humorously pulled down by his shorts |
The 20-year-old has clearly upped his passing precision and decision making in the off-season and his confidence, execution and running game impressed.
St George Illawarra also got a controlled display from new half Atkinson, who called the plays and took most of the long kicks.
The Dogs scored the first try when Galvin spied a chance on the right side, skipped across and threw a slick pass to put storming back-rower Jacob Preston through.
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| The two sides have a fierce rivalry and there was niggle and flair-ups, particularly when Crichton caught Setu Tu (front left) high |
Preston, a sublime hole runner, stepped fullback Clint Gutherson with ease.
The Dragons hit back with creative hooker Damien Cook dinking a slick left-foot grubber through for rampaging prop Emre Guler to plant it.
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| The Dragons were ultimately penalised for dissent, with Crichton making them pay with a try-assist and the magic moment at the death |
After the break the Dragons blew up when Moses Suli went off for an HIA after they claimed he had been head-slammed by Bailey Hayward.
They were penalised for dissent and Crichton made them pay with a try-assist and the magic moment at the death.
- AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS
ARSENAL'S WAGE BILL BLOWS CHELSEA'S AWAY AS STAGGERING AMOUNT BOTH SIDES SPEND COMPARED
Arsenal spend significantly more on wages than Chelsea as the Gunners prepare to face their London rivals
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| Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has been backed by the club financially(Image: Mike Hewitt, Getty Images) |
Arsenal have certainly supported Mikel Arteta financially as the club attempt to end their wait for a Premier League title. The Gunners held a five-point lead at the top of the table following their commanding 4-1 victory in the north London derby last weekend.
It proved a timely result for Arsenal, not merely to secure bragging rights over Spurs but also to deliver the ideal response following their frustrating draw to Wolves. The side faced criticism after surrendering a two-goal lead, increasing scrutiny on the league leaders.
While Arteta is aiming to end a 22-year title drought, there is a degree of expectation that Arsenal should seal the league title this term, especially as other challengers have stumbled. As the club prepare to meet Chelsea on Sunday, there's little question that the Gunners have supported the manager through the salaries that they are prepared to pay compared to their upcoming opponents.
Arsenal's wage bill is reportedly the second-highest in the division, trailing only Manchester City. This indicates that Arsenal spend more on wages than Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea, despite the latter being regarded as having a larger squad.
It was recently confirmed that Bukayo Saka had signed a lucrative new contract. It has been reported by football.london that the deal makes him the club's highest-paid player on £300,000 per week, with Arsenal further extending the wage gap to the teams beneath them and heightening the pressure on the club to finally secure the Premier League title.
Spotrac previously stated that Arsenal spent £189,956,000 annually on wages for their first team squad. However, Saka's salary rise from £195,000 per week represents an additional £5.46million, bringing the revised total to £195.416million.
This figure substantially exceeds Chelsea's estimated wage bill of £153.296m, which ranks fifth in the Premier League, trailing Liverpool (£176.8m) and Manchester United (£167.492m) as well. The club embrace a more youth-oriented approach towards recruitment, resulting in lower salaries than Arsenal.
Based on Spotrac data, Chelsea captain Reece James stands as the club's highest-paid player on £250,000 weekly. Wesley Fofana is the only other Chelsea player claimed to be collecting a weekly wage of £200,000 or above.
Conversely, Arsenal have multiple players, including Saka, who receive more than Chelsea's leading earner. Kai Havertz (£280,000) and Gabriel Jesus (£265,000) earn larger salaries than James, while William Saliba (£250,000), Declan Rice (£240,000) and Martin Odegaard (£240,000) collect the same or marginally less than the Chelsea captain.
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| Bukayo Saka and Reece James are reportedly the top earners at their respective clubs(Image: Matteo Ciambelli/DeFodi Images via Getty Images) |
In total, seven Arsenal players pocket £200,000 per week or above, compared to just two at Chelsea. Meanwhile, Moises Caicedo and Cole Palmer rank among Chelsea's best performers, yet both sit outside the club's five highest-paid stars, earning weekly wages of £150,000 and £130,000 respectively.
Only Man City are reported to outspend Arsenal on wages, with Spotrac recording their annual salary expenditure at £248.835m. Erling Haaland's earnings far exceed those of his teammates, with an estimated weekly salary of £525,000.
However, City's second-highest earner Bernardo Silva commands the same reported wages as Saka's new contract, with Omar Marmoush narrowly trailing the Portuguese midfielder on £295,000. Highlighting the contrasting pay structures between Pep Guardiola's squad and Chelsea, John Stones, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Ruben Dias and January recruit Marc Guehi all pocket the same wages as James.
While there is also a considerable gulf between City and Arsenal's spending, it does highlight that the Gunners are among the best-placed clubs financially to mount a challenge to City's supremacy in recent years. Saka's new deal demonstrates that Arsenal are prepared to offer elite-level wages and the club can begin turning ambition into reality by clinching silverware this season.
- Jake Bayliss
'THAT WAS EXTREME TODAY' - VINCENT KOMPANY REACTS TO BAYERN MUNICH 3-2 WIN OVER BORUSSIA DORTMUND
Vincent Kompany embraced enjoyed the intensity of Der Klassiker after Bayern Munich’s dramatic 3-2 win over Borussia Dortmund.
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| 28 February 2026, North Rhine-Westphalia, Dortmund: Soccer, Men, Bundesliga, Borussia Dortmund - FC Bayern Munich, Matchday 24, Signal Iduna Park, Coach Vincent Kompany (Bayern Munich) gives instructions. IMPORTANT NOTE: In accordance with the regulations of the DFL German Football League and the DFB German Football Association, it is prohibited to use or have used photographs taken in the stadium and/or of the match in the form of sequential images and/or video-like photo series. Photo: David Inderlied/dpa (Photo by David Inderlied/picture alliance via Getty Images) |
When Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund meet, you can always expect some tension, and eventful clashes. On Saturday, Der Klassiker delivered once again when Bayern defeated Die Borussen 2-3 in a thrilling encounter.
After a pretty mild first half, the teams turned it up a notch for the second half, especially the last 15-20 minutes of it, with a late equalizer by BVB’s Daniel Svensson in the 83rd minute to knot the game, before Bayern captain Joshua Kimmich managed to score the winning goal with a beautiful shot into the upper corner of Gregor Kobel’s goal in the 87th minute.
Bayern’s coach Vincent Kompany pointed this out during an interview after the match, emphasizing both team’s initiative to get an extremely important victory, as captured by FCBayern.com. “That was extreme today. You could feel that Dortmund desperately wanted to seize their opportunity. We noticed that throughout the entire 90 minutes. Even after the 2-2, they kept pushing forward; they were determined to win. But our lads didn’t just sit back either. We kept trying to create our chances,” stated Kompany.
Kompany also took a chance to stress the attractiveness of the Bundesliga, showcasing to the football world how exciting the league can be. “In my opinion, it was great publicity for the Bundesliga. With intensity, goals, and above all, the absolute will of both teams to always attack and win the game.”
With this victory, Bayern Munich inches closer to the title, sitting atop the Bundesliga already having an 11-point lead over 2nd-placed Borussia Dortmund, with 10 games remaining.
- alco1
LAMINE YAMAL SENDS EPIC MESSAGE TO BARCELONA FANS AHEAD OF COPA DEL REY TIE AGAINST ATLÉTICO
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| BARCELONA, SPAIN - FEBRUARY 28: Lamine Yamal of FC Barcelona celebrates scoring his team’s second goal during the LaLiga EA Sports match between FC Barcelona and Villarreal CF at Spotify Camp Nou on February 28, 2026 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images) Getty Images |
Lamine Yamal is feeling good and already looking forward to facing Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey in midweek after scoring his first Barcelona hat-trick against Villarreal.
Barcelona head into the second leg of their semi-final tie at Camp Nou already 4-0 down and with a mountain to climb. However, Yamal is simply refusing to give up hope. He took to social media after the game with a post that reads: “1% chance, 99% faith.”
Yamal also had a few words about the match afterwards, telling the media: “It was time to react and push. We are doing it. Now let me tell our fans… …come to the stadium against Atléti, the magic can happen.”
Eric Garcia is backing Yamal to deliver the goods against Atletico. He shared his thoughts afterwards saying, “We are lucky that he plays for our team, Lamine’s performance has been incredible, he could even have saved one or two goals for Tuesday.”
Let’s hope he has saved a few goals for Tuesday night as Barca face a huge task trying to turn the tie around.
- Barca Blaugranes
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