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The Guardian
18 minutes ago
- The Guardian
US sports lobby Home Office for travel exemption after golf caddie refused UK entry
Sports organisations in the US will press the Home Office to apply exemptions to new travel rules for American citizens entering the UK, after Harris English's caddie missed out on around £130,000 by being denied access for the Scottish Open and the Open Championship. The case of Eric Larson has alerted sport governing bodies such as the NFL and NBA, which stage games in London, that sportspeople or staff can be prohibited from entering the UK under electronic travel authorisation (ETA) rules if they have a criminal conviction. Larson was sentenced to 13 years in prison in 1995 for involvement in drug dealing and rebuilt his career as a caddie for several leading PGA Tour players after serving 10 years. Larson's past had been largely forgotten until the Scottish Open, when it was revealed that any American citizen given a custodial sentence of at least 12 months will now be denied UK entry. ETA implementation started in January this year. Larson was refused travel despite lobbying to the Home Office from the PGA Tour and the R&A. English tied 22nd in Scotland and finished second in the Open. Caddies typically receive around 10% of their player's winnings; English earned more than £1.8m from his UK trip. As things stand, Larson will encounter the same situation in 2026. The American bodies will point to the fact that Donald Trump's ban on citizens from a dozen countries entering the US – another seven have been served with restrictions – contains an exemption intended to apply to players, staff or associated families linked to the 2026 Fifa World Cup or the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. No such leeway exists presently for the UK border. 'Sporting bodies are now asking the UK to apply sporting exemptions on this system,' a senior figure within US sport said. The Home Office did not offer comment on whether it has already been asked to apply sporting exemptions on the ETA and what any response towards this might be. A source with knowledge of the Home Office position said: 'Each application for a decision outside the rules is considered on its merits but informed by previous examples and precedents.' The same source confirmed the 'mandatory and automatic refusal of entry clearance for individuals who have received a previous custodial sentence of at least 12 months'. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion The NFL will return to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for matches on back-to-back weekends in October. The NBA announced last week that games will be staged in London in early 2026 and Manchester the following year. An obvious anomaly with the UK's present stance can be demonstrated within golf. Ángel Cabrera received a multiyear prison term for crimes against women. The former Masters champion, from Argentina, played in the Senior Open at Sunningdale in July. The Australian Ryan Peake participated in the Open at Royal Portrush, six years after being released from jail on a serious assault conviction. Peake is understood to hold a UK passport.
Daily Mail
39 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Man United 'increasingly confident of beating Newcastle to the signing of Benjamin Sesko and believe the RB Leipzig striker only wants Old Trafford move'
Manchester United are increasingly confident of beating Newcastle to the signing of RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko and believe the 22-year-old 'only want to join' the club, a report has claimed. The Red Devils finally made their interest in the Slovenian striker concrete on Tuesday, with a £73.8million bid, slightly less than the improved offer worth a total of £78.2m that rivals Newcastle tabled on Monday night. While the Magpies remain in the hunt for the forward as they look to secure a replacement for their wantaway star Alexander Isak, there is a feeling that United would not have made an official approach if they had not received encouragement from the player's camp. According to Fabrizio Romano, United's confidence in completing a deal has only grown 'stronger' following the submission of their bid and the club are of the belief that Sesko only has eyes for Old Trafford. Furthermore, he claims that the club have forwarded an official contract proposal to the player while they 'keep negotiating' with Leipzig. The Bundesliga outfit have yet to respond to United's bid, but Sesko will make the final decision over his future and is now considering his options with the club and his representatives. United remained in the background while Newcastle made two attempts to strike a deal for the 22-year-old before officially entering the bidding on Tuesday, although sources are remaining tight-lipped over the move. They hope that Sesko's preference to move to Old Trafford will tip the balance in their favour even though the current offer appears to be marginally smaller. United chiefs believe their price matches the player's market value. On Tuesday, bookmakers Betfair suspended all bets for the Slovenian to move to Manchester United or Newcastle. Sam Rosbottom, a spokesperson from the bookies, has said: 'Having been odds-on 8/15 favourites to sign Benjamin Sesko on Monday, betting is now suspended for Man United to seal a deal for the 22-year-old Slovenian. 'United have already secured deals for Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha to boost their attacking ranks this summer. With his future looking unlikely, Rasmus Hojlund is 3/10 to join RB Leipzig, heading in the opposite direction to Sesko.' United have been keen to sign a centre-forward this summer after seeing No.1 target Liam Delap opt for Chelsea, and Hugo Ekitike and Viktor Gyokeres go to Liverpool and Arsenal. They have already spent more than £130m on Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha to support a new centre-forward, with Rasmus Hojlund set to leave if a new signing comes in. Newcastle, meanwhile, want Sesko to replace Isak who is intent on joining Liverpool. The Merseysiders have already had a £110m bid for Isak rejected and are unlikely to return with a better offer until Newcastle have a new striker in place. Mail Sport previously reported that Sesko became United's No 1 choice should they sign a new striker this summer, ahead of Aston Villa frontman Ollie Watkins. Leipzig have an informal agreement in place to allow Sesko to go should they receive a suitable package from the right club, and talks were held with the Slovenian and his agent Elvis Basanovic over the weekend to discuss his next steps.
The Guardian
39 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Premier League 2025-26 preview No 5: Brighton
Guardian writers' predicted position: 8th (NB: this is not necessarily Ed Aarons' prediction but the average of our writers' tips) Last season's position: 8th Although Brighton missed out on qualifying for Europe again, there was a sense of optimism rather than disappointment at the end of Fabian Hürzeler's first season at the helm. Had it not been for a costly loss of form in the spring that brought one point from four league games and a defeat by Nottingham Forest on penalties in the last eight of the FA Cup, the German head coach might even have matched his predecessor, Roberto De Zerbi's achievement of finishing sixth. After a raft of injuries to key players all season and with several signings from a summer spending spree of almost £200m struggling to settle, it was to Hürzeler's credit that his team ended only one point short of Brighton's record points tally from 2023 after three wins to round off the campaign. Now, in the words of chair Tony Bloom, with the youngest permanent Premier League manager having gained a year's experience, 'we are hoping for more next season'. Brighton scored 66 goals – the joint fifth-highest in the division – so much will depend on strengthening a defence that conceded 59, with the emphasis this summer on finding a long-term replacement for the veteran captain Lewis Dunk as he enters the last year of his contract. Diego Coppola, an Italy Under-21 centre-back, and Olivier Boscagli, who arrived on a free transfer from PSV, will be joined by the exciting Belgium left-back Maxim De Cuyper as Hürzeler hopes to build a more settled unit. The departure of João Pedro, who became the latest Brighton player to join Chelsea, has been offset by the signing of the highly regarded 18-year-old striker Charalampos Kostoulas. His fellow Greece Under-21 international Stefanos Tzimas and Sunderland's playoff hero Tommy Watson will provide more attacking options for a squad that still includes the outstanding Kaoru Mitoma despite speculation he could depart and looks equipped to maintain a sustained push for Europe. Hürzeler is guaranteed to wear his heart on his sleeve and has proved a hit with Brighton's supporters after the popular De Zerbi's departure. In an interview with British GQ in April, the 32-year-old revealed that he loves watches and Coldplay but never sits down in front of the television because there 'are so many better things to do'. 'I'm a big believer that the limit for our body is really high, and I think we don't always try to push our limits,' he said. Brighton's players should be well prepared for the start of the season in that case. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion After a record-breaking 2022-23 that yielded profits of £112m, Brighton announced a £73.3m profit in March – largely a result of receiving another large chunk from the British record sale of Moisés Caicedo to Chelsea. João Pedro's departure for £60m will help to balance the books after last summer's massive outlay made them the biggest net spenders in Europe. Bloom, who bought 29% of the Scottish club Hearts in June, is estimated to have invested more than £400m at his home-town club since becoming chair in 2009. In April, the long-serving chief executive, Paul Barber, committed his future until 2030. Much is expected of Kostoulas after Brighton saw off interest from several other clubs, including Chelsea, to snap him up for an initial fee of almost £30m that could rise by £2m to make him the most expensive Greek player in history. Represented by the same agent who took Giannis Antetokounmpo to the NBA, he became the youngest player to make a professional appearance for Olympiakos when he represented their B team at 15 years and seven months, before he was part of the side that won the prestigious Uefa Youth League last year. Kostoulas will learn plenty from the evergreen Danny Welbeck, who finished as last season's joint top scorer and turns 35 in November. Bart Verbruggen, having strangely alternated with Jason Steele under De Zerbi, was preferred between the sticks by Hürzeler last season but the Dutchman made several costly errors. Nonetheless, a recent survey by the Swiss research group CIES Football Observatory identified the 22-year-old as potentially the world's most valuable goalkeeper with a projected fee of £54m. Verbruggen, who joined Brighton in 2023 from Anderlecht for £16m, will need to show more consistency to retain Hürzeler's faith, although the England Under-21 goalkeeper James Beadle was allowed to join Birmingham on loan rather than provide more competition for the Netherlands international.
