SKY SPORTS REACT AFTER PRESENTER RACHEL BROOKS ANNOUNCES DEPARTURE

 

Photo: Race Pictures

Sky Sports have issued a statement following the departure of long-serving presenter Rachel Brookes.

Brookes took many across the Formula 1 scenes by surprise when she announced on social media that she had left her role with Sky Sports with immediate effect after more than a decade with the broadcaster.

While the presenter confirmed she will remain involved in Formula 1 in a new capacity and plans to attend next week's British Grand Prix at Silverstone, she revealed the news ahead of this weekend's Austrian Grand Prix, writing:

“After many years at Sky, I am moving on to exciting new ventures and looking forward to what comes next. I have left the Sky F1 team, but F1 still has my heart & so I'll still be involved in it. I'll keep you posted. In the meantime, see you at Silverstone!"

Amid the reaction that has followed the 51-year-old's departure, a Sky Sports spokesperson addressed the news in a statement to PlanetF1, saying:

"Rachel has moved on from the Sky Sports F1 team to take on new challenges as we evolve our coverage. Rachel has been an asset for the team, and we wish her well in her new endeavours."

Photo: Race Pictures

Brookes opens up on backlash after Verstappen interview

Brookes' departure from Sky Sports comes shortly after she spoke about the wave of online abuse she received following her interview with Max Verstappen at the Spanish Grand Prix.

The presenter had asked the Dutchman whether his collision with George Russell in the closing stages of the race had been intentional. Verstappen responded tersely, insisting that it "doesn't matter". Brookes then pressed further, arguing that it did matter to the fans and children watching the sport.

During the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona, Verstappen collided with Russell after becoming visibly frustrated over team radio when he was instructed to hand back a position to the Mercedes driver – a decision he was clearly unhappy with.

- Samson Ero

EX-NFL STAR SLAMMED FOR 'ABUSE' AND 'CLICK BAIT' OVER CLIP OF HIS YOUNG SON BEING PUNISHED WITH 2AM JOG

 

Retired NFL star Brandon Marshall has gone viral with a polarizing social media post showing his son being punished with a 2am jog as the six-time Pro Bowler recorded the scene from the comfort of his car.

'This is my son,' Marshall wrote in the caption, 'not my friend.'

Throughout the video, the 42-year-old All-Pro receiver is heard pushing the boy to run faster and even threatening to make him run further if he doesn't pick up his pace.

'It's no different than when we were in LA, Santa Monica, running at midnight on the pier,' Marshall said as the visibly sleepy boy slowly made his way through a residential area. 'We wanted to do that; we love to do that.

'If you don't start running, we're gonna go three miles, so you better start running,' Marshall continued from off camera while recording and driving slowly alongside his son.

Ultimately the boy is able to reach 6mph, but not until after a few more remarks from his father.

Brandon Marshall's son is seen running through a residential area in the pre-dawn hours 

Brandon Marshall divided his followers over the post, which some saw as 'click bait' 

'You should be going at 8 or 9 miles per hour right now,' Marshall said. 'If this truck don't get to nine miles per hour, I promise you, we're going all the way to the gas station, which is three miles down and back… There we go. Now we moving.'

'You should be going at 8 or 9 miles per hour right now,' Marshall said. 'If this truck don't get to nine miles per hour, I promise you, we're going all the way to the gas station, which is three miles down and back… There we go. Now we moving.'

The decision to force a boy into the streets for an unwanted jog angered many fans, including one who saw the punishment as child abuse.

'This is emotional, verbal and physical abuse,' they wrote. 'This public humiliation should be reported to Child Protective Services. Not okay to do this to this child. There are better ways to teach a lesson to your child.'

Many others objected to Marshall's decision to post the punishment online rather than keep it inside the family.

'That's family business, not instagram business,' one critic wrote.

'And this is on social media because?' another asked.

One follower suggested Marshall 'get out and run with him,' adding: 'Discipline him, but don't use him for click bait.'

Marshall was accused of abuse and posting 'click bait' over the divisive Instagram video

Many parents felt Marshall's punishment was fine, but the Instagram post was a misstep 

Another parent offered particularly constructive criticism.

'You should NEVER discipline a child with embarrassment it messes up their mental health state,' they wrote. 'Kids are people too. This is so lame. It didn't need to be public if this is how you wanted to discipline that's fine. You did this to show off on the internet. I hope you take this down. And I read some of your comments learn how to take constructive criticism my guy. Most of us aren't trying to hurt you just giving good feedback. Take care.'

But the responses weren't all negative. Marshall, a father of three, was commended by many for disciplining his son.

'Yall acting like this is hurting HIS SON,' wrote one defender. 'He's teaching. Correcting behaviors before the streets do.'

The 'streets' in this case appear to be a gated community in South Florida, where Marshall has lived since his decorated NFL career ended in 2018.

- ALEX RASKIN

JESSE LINGARD'S GRANDFATHER DIES AHEAD OF CHILD SEX OFFENCES TRIAL

Kenneth Lingard was accused of sexually abusing a girl from the age of five

Footballer Jesse Lingard's grandfather has died while awaiting a retrial for a number of alleged child sex offences.

Kenneth Lingard, who was aged 87, was accused of sexually abusing a girl from the age of five as he stood trial at Liverpool Crown Court in 2025.

While he was cleared of two counts of indecent assault by the jury, verdicts couldn't be reached on the remaining 15 counts, it can now be reported.

Benjamin Aina KC, prosecuting, told a hearing on Monday, June 15: "On June 10 this year, Kenneth Lingard passed away and a death certificate has been produced."

The 87-year-old, of Northway, Warrington, had been due to face a retrial in May but the proceedings were rescheduled for next year after the court heard he was in hospital.

The first trial heard the historic allegations about the pensioner were reported to police by the complainant in November 2022, following the release of a documentary in which Jesse Lingard spoke about his grandfather’s positive influence on his career.

The jury was told the woman messaged the midfielder after the programme was aired and said: "Shame on you Jesse Lingard. Loads of lies. Your grandad Kenneth Lingard molested and sexually abused me and you know he did."

The former Manchester United and England player flew to the UK from South Korea, where he was playing for FC Seoul, to give evidence in his grandfather’s defence last April.

The footballer, who now plays for Brazilian team Corinthians, denied he had known about any alleged abuse, telling the court: "If I knew any of these allegations, I’d have cut ties with him years ago."

Lingard, a former gymnastics coach and powerlifter, told the court the assaults "never happened".

Addressing the court on Monday, Judge Katherine Pierpoint said: "In the circumstances of this case, having seen the evidence which shows the death of the defendant on June 10 this year, any existing indictments no longer have any legal effect unless the court is shown otherwise."

- The Mirror

FORMER WEST HAM MIDFIELDER DIMITRI PAYET INVESTIGATION FOR ABUSE AFTER 'FORCING WOMAN TO DRINK URINE'

Dimitri Payet is under police investigation in Brazil (Getty)

Former West Ham midfielder Dimitri Payet is under police investigation after being accused of ‘physical, psychological and sexual violence’ against a woman in Brazil.

Larissa Natalya Ferrari, a 28-year-old lawyer, said in her testimony to Brazilian authorities that ‘she was attacked by Payet, leaving marks on her body, and suffered physical, moral, psychological and sexual violence’.

According to police documents, the attacks took place between January 25 and February 6 this year.

Larissa alleges that she had an extramarital relationship from September 2024 to March of this year with 38-year-old Payet, who has been married for 18 years and has four children.

In an interview with Brazilian outlet G1, Larissa detailed the alleged abuse she received during her relationship with Payet, who now plays for Brazilian side Vasco da Gama.

'The first signs of aggression were in December. I asked for two tickets to Vasco and Atletico Mineiro, one for me and one for my friend. And my friend posted a photo of this courtesy without his name appearing and published it on Instagram,’ Larissa said.

Larissa Natalya Ferrari alleges that she abused on multiple occasions during her relationship with Dimitri Payet (Instagram)

And he [Payet] got very angry with me. It was the first time he really offended me, used psychological pressure on me and it was the first time we argued.

‘From that day on, he started to talk about punishment because I had disappointed him.

‘I started to feel emotionally violated because he had already started to put pressure on me.

Dimitri Payet has been married to his wife Ludivine for 18 years (Getty

‘During sexual intercourse, he started to hit me, step on my face, my body. I was afraid to say anything because I knew it was a punishment for my mistake and if I didn’t accept the punishment, I could lose him. So, yeah, I ended up accepting it.

‘Dimitri knew about my psychological problems, using this against me. Dimitri convinced me to put my head in the trash, in the toilet, made me drink my own urine and other sexual bizarre acts.’

Larissa has revealed that she has left Rio de Janeiro and is currently undergoing psychological and psychiatric treatment.

Larissa Natalya Ferrari is now undergoing psychiatric treatment after the alleged abuse from Dimitri Payet (Instagram)

In a separate interview with Metropole, Larissa said: ‘He always used this term ‘punishment’. He made me believe that I was guilty and deserved to be punished. And I believed it.

- Chris Davie

ARSENAL FAN GETS 3-YEAR BAN FOR ONLINE ABUSE OF THOMAS PARTEY

A fan who racially abused Arsenal player Thomas Partey in a social media post was banned from attending all games for three years on Tuesday.

Charles Ogunmilade, who is Black, admitted to sending a "grossly offensive" message on X, which he claimed was satire of what a racist white person would say.

He posted the offensive comment in April 2023 after Partey, a Ghana international who is Black, missed a shot during Arsenal's 3-3 draw with Southampton.

The court in London was informed the post on X was reported to the police, who visited Ogunmilade's home. He said the comment was intended to be a sarcastic quote among a group of friends.

"I am not a racist person," Ogunmilade said in court.

While issuing his sentence, magistrate Shaoni Myer said Ogunmilade's early guilty plea, prior good character and experience of racism were taken into account.

The soccer banning order also requires him to surrender his passport to police whenever the England men's national team plays an away game abroad. He was ordered to pay a fine and costs totaling £260 ($325).

- Associated Press 

MAX VERSTAPPEN'S DAD WAS 'BRUTALY ABUSIVE" TO HIS SON MAX - PIERRE GASLY

Pierre Gasly recalls the intense pressure Max Verstappen faced from his father during their early racing days,  “After a race in Spain, I won that race and Max finished second behind me. I come back and his dad lost his shit, yelling in Dutch, then insulting him in English words I won't repeat on camera, but they weren't nice.

He grabbed Max’s helmet, took it and threw it at him saying ‘No, get out! Go back to the tent! You can't even win one of your races!’ 

So the pressure was obvious. It was intense pressure, race after race.”

- F1Grids

F1 DRIVERS WARNED BY FIA PRESIDENT FOR INSIGHTING ABUSE TOWARDS STEWARDS

 

OLYMPIC MEDALIST SUES US BOBSLED COACH

Reuters 

Aja Evans, a 2014 Olympic bobsled bronze medalist, has filed a lawsuit alleging that a doctor who worked on Team USA's medical staff subjected her to nearly a decade of sexual abuse and harassment during treatment.

The doctor, Jonathan Wilhelm, a chiropractor who resides in Montana, as well as the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) and USA Bobsled and Skeleton Federation were named as defendants in the lawsuit filed on Wednesday in a state court in upstate New York.

Evans, 35, said in a news release on Thursday that Wilhelm's "repeated molestation and sexual assault" left her "physically and emotionally damaged, to the point where I experience chronic anxiety and fell out of love with the sport of bobsledding."

The lawsuit said Wilhelm's treatment "mirrors the abuse perpetuated" by Larry Nassar, the former USA Gymnastics team doctor serving a potential 175-year prison sentence following his 2018 conviction for sexually abusing female gymnasts.

SPEAK UP! FROM MUTINY AND BOYCOTTS TO EQUAL-PAY DEMANDS, WOMEN'S GAME FACES RECKONING

Reuters 

From the American campaign against abuse in their professional leagues to France players demanding the removal of their coach and Canadians threatening boycotts, women's soccer is facing a reckoning in the lead-up to the ninth World Cup.

Some of the issues will be resolved, others might drag on, but it looks like the days when players suffered in silence rather than speaking out are long gone.

"One hundred percent, I think it's so prevalent," said Jonas Baer-Hoffmann, the general secretary of global players union FIFPRO.

"I think it's more prevalent than it's ever been in any other sport on a global stage. I don't think you've had this kind of co-ordinated - or uncoordinated - wave of speaking up, standing up, forcing change ever before."

Speaking up has proved highly successful in some cases.

EX-US GYMNASTICS DOCTOR NASSAR STABBED IN PRISON, IN STABLE CONDITION

Reuters 

Disgraced USA Gymnastics ex-doctor Larry Nassar, who was convicted of sexually abusing young female gymnasts, was in stable condition on Monday after being stabbed by another inmate in prison, the Associated Press reported.

Nassar, who is serving a decades-long sentence at a federal prison in Florida, was stabbed in the back and chest during an argument on Sunday, the AP reported, citing a person familiar with the matter. He was in stable condition, the AP reported.

The report did not provide more details. Representatives for the Bureau of Prisons and the U.S. Penitentiary Coleman in Florida did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Nassar was sentenced in 2018 to up to 175 years in prison for sexually abusing young female gymnasts who were entrusted to his care. Those gymnasts include Olympic gold medalists Simone Biles, Aly Raisman and McKayla Moraney.

- Reuters 

JUDGE WHO SENTENCED NASSAR CALLS FOR NATIONAL INQUIRY INTO CANADIAN SPORTS

Reuters 

Rosemarie Aquilina, the American judge who sentenced disgraced USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar, has called for an independent inquiry into sports across Canada amid widespread allegations of harassment, abuse and bullying.

Aquilina, who testified on Monday at the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, said all athletes deserved immediate and meaningful action and accountability and that could happen only with an independent judicial investigation.

SCUDERIA ALFATAURI STATEMENT HANNAH SCHMITZ

 

RYAN GIGGS' ABUSIVE BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS HIS EX-GIRLFRIEND LANDS HIM IN COURT

 

Former Manchester United legend and UK's most decorated sports personnel Ryan Giggs is charged with abusing and assaulting ex-girlfriend, Ms. Grenville, and her sister 

FORMULA 1 SAYS NO TO ABUSE

 

ABUSE FACED BY REFEREES ON THE PITCH

NICHOLAUS LATIFI STATEMENT AFTER FACING ABUSE | ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX