Italians will once again be forced to watch a World Cup from the sidelines after another play-off disaster highlighted just how far one of the great footballing nations has fallen.
Tehran was rocked by a fresh wave of explosions Wednesday, as US President Donald Trump said the war with Iran could be over in two or three weeks.
A study commissioned by Greenpeace said on Wednesday that oil companies have been making more than 80 million euros a day in "war profits" in the European Union since the start of the war in the Middle East.
- Australia PM warns months ahead 'may not be easy' due to Mideast war
- Fiji part with coach Byrne 18 months before Rugby World Cup
Economy
Equities rallied and oil tumbled Wednesday after US President Donald Trump said the Middle East war would be over in up to three weeks and his Iranian counterpart said Tehran had "the necessary will" to bring it to an end.
April 01, 2026
RECENT NEWS
Divorcing parents in Japan can opt to share custody starting Wednesday, ending a system both criticised for encouraging parental child "abductions" and defended as a safeguard for domestic abuse survivors.
April 01, 2026
RECENT NEWS
The NFL will not scrap pro-diversity policies that require teams to interview minority candidates, despite legal pressure from Florida's Republican attorney general, commissioner Roger Goodell said Tuesday.
April 01, 2026
Delirious football fans took to the soaked streets of the capital Kinshasa and danced into the night in the rain after the Democratic Republic of Congo reached the World Cup for the first time in 52 years.
April 01, 2026
Super Mario's creator Shigeru Miyamoto told AFP he had never imagined that the "little character I drew would become so big", bouncing through the decades from pixellated New York sewers to a silver-screen space epic.
April 01, 2026
Boulevard
President Donald Trump will watch the US Supreme Court hear a landmark case Wednesday weighing the constitutionality of his contentious bid to end birthright citizenship -- an extraordinary and possibly unprecedented move for the nation's highest office.
April 01, 2026
RECENT NEWS
Young opening batsman Sam Konstas and veteran all-rounder Glenn Maxwell were axed Wednesday as Cricket Australia announced a list of 21 nationally contracted players for the 2026-27 season.
Brazil bounced back from last week's friendly defeat to France to score a 3-1 victory over Croatia in their World Cup warm-up game in Orlando on Tuesday.
Asian stocks rallied Wednesday after US President Donald Trump said the Middle East war would be over in up to three weeks and his Iranian counterpart said Tehran had "the necessary will" to bring it to an end.
Spain's football federation and coach Luis de la Fuente condemned anti-Muslim chants that marred the 0-0 draw with Egypt in Barcelona on Tuesday in a pre-World Cup friendly.
April 01, 2026
Nature
Hong Kong's beloved kapok trees are not blooming the way they used to, drawing concern from conservationists who see it as a sign that nature is falling out of sync as the climate warms.
April 01, 2026
RECENT NEWS
On Wednesday three men and one woman are set to embark on the first crewed journey to the Moon since 1972, a landmark odyssey that aims to launch the US into a new era of space exploration.
Lionel Messi scored one goal and set up another as Argentina thrashed Zambia 5-0 on Tuesday in the South Americans' final game on home soil before launching the defense of their World Cup crown.
As the Middle East war drives up oil prices, the UK's main opposition Conservative party is urging the government to restart drilling in the North Sea -- echoing repeated calls from US President Donald Trump.
In the 1960s Ed Dwight was the first Black astronaut candidate -- but he never got his chance to go to the Moon.
April 01, 2026
- Supreme Court weighing Trump challenge to birthright citizenship
- US auto sales seen falling as car market awaits war impact
- Kast putting conservative stamp on Chile in first 30 days
- Portugal down US 2-0 as World Cup hosts again fail to shine
- AI giant Anthropic says 'exploring' Australia data centre investments
- Tuchel faces World Cup selection dilemmas after England falter
- Trump says Iran war could end in 'two weeks, maybe three,' to address US
- US Army helicopter pilots cleared after Kid Rock flyby