Benfica’s Prestianni provisionally suspended by Uefa after Vinícius incident

• Benfica appeal against ban from Real Madrid second leg

• Vinícius alleged he was racially abused by Argentinian

Uefa has provisionally suspended Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni for Wednesday’s Champions League playoff match against Real Madrid after allegations that he racially abused Vinícius Júnior during last week’s first leg.

The ban has been imposed pending the completion of a Uefa investigation and Benfica said they would appeal against the decision. The Portuguese club said they regretted being “deprived” of the player while the process was continuing but acknowledged their appeal was unlikely to prevent Prestianni from being suspended for the return in Madrid.

Published: February 23, 2026, 2:27 pm

Winter Olympics were again unrelatable and ‘useless’ and yet utterly astounding to watch | Andy Bull

The Games offer little fame or fortune but the purity of the athletes and their stories made them great

It was the Olympics of politics and penises, of JD Vance being jeered and of Ukrainian bobsledders being banned from the competition, of a convicted criminal beating the teammate she was guilty of defrauding, of Lindsey Vonn crashing out 12 seconds into the race and of Ilia Malinin making one mistake too many, of the internet became momentarily obsessed with slow‑motion videos of a Canadian stroking a curling stone with the tip of his finger, and it was the Olympics where the Norwegian ski‑jump team refused to dignify questions about whether or not they were injecting acid into their genitals.

Like I said right at the beginning, Pierre de Coubertin never wanted a Winter Olympics. If that line sounds a little familiar it might be because you read it here a fortnight or so ago. “The great inferiority of these snow sports is that they are completely useless,” Coubertin wrote, “with no useful application whatsoever.” But it’s true, too, that over time he changed his mind. And by the end of the International Olympic Committee’s very first Olympic “winter sports week” at Chamonix in 1924 he gave a speech in which he told his audience that “winter sports are among the purest”.

Published: February 23, 2026, 8:00 am

Mercedes magic and Ferrari’s rapid starts: what we learned from F1 testing

George Russell has been purring in a balanced car in pre-season while Aston Martin are still hunting for power

The big four – Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren – have been at pains throughout testing to claim they are not the top dog, in something of an inverse Mexican standoff, each decrying their own strengths. Undeniably, however, Mercedes emerge from the three pre-season tests looking strong.

Published: February 23, 2026, 8:00 am

Fatigue has shaped the balance and madness of today’s Premier League | Jonathan Wilson

The ever-increasing number of games, combined with financial regulation, has produced flat play on the field but a tighter table overall

• Sign up for Soccer with Jonathan Wilson here

A constant feature of this season has been the background grumble of dissatisfaction. You don’t have to spend long on social media to see moans about the quality of play, the sense that everything has somehow gone backwards since the tactical focus began to shift away from the pure possession and positional football of the peak Pep Guardiola years to something more direct and focused on set plays.

And yet, as we enter the run-in, there appears to be a proper Premier League title race. There is an extremely competitive battle to finish in the top five and qualify for next season’s Champions League and, although Wolves and Burnley are probably doomed, there are four teams scrapping to avoid that last relegation slot with another three glancing a little nervously over their shoulders.

Published: February 23, 2026, 4:00 pm

Mexico erupts and World Cup security fears rise after a cartel boss’s killing

The fallout from the operation that took out ‘El Mencho’ has already led to the cancellation of football matches. Could the World Cup be affected too?

• Violence erupts after Mexican forces kill cartel boss ‘El Mencho’

• Who was ‘El Mencho’, the former police officer who co-founded an ultraviolent cartel?

There is just one road that leads to the Estadio Akron, the stadium home to Mexican club Chivas de Guadalajara, which is scheduled to host four group matches at this year’s World Cup. As the tournament approaches, traffic has been the main concern about the stadium.

On Sunday, there was a different issue. A little more than a mile away, near the go-kart track named for Mexican Formula One driver Sergio “Checo” Pérez, a burning bus blocked the road.

Published: February 23, 2026, 12:51 pm

Lindsey Vonn says she almost had leg amputated after crash at Winter Olympics

• 41-year-old developed compartment syndrome

• Skier credits Team USA surgeon with saving leg

Lindsey Vonn says she came close to having her leg amputated in the aftermath of her crash during the Olympic downhill earlier this month.

The 41-year-old suffered a complex tibia fracture to her left leg in the crash and underwent multiple surgeries in Italy before being flown back to the US for further treatment last week. But in an Instagram post on Monday, the American said the crash also led to compartment syndrome in her leg. The condition occurs after traumatic injuries such as falls from heights and car crashes. According to the Cleveland Clinic, “compartment syndrome happens when there’s too much pressure around your muscles. The pressure restricts the flow of blood, fresh oxygen and nutrients to your muscles and nerves. Compartment syndrome is extremely painful.” The lack of blood flow can lead to permanent damage to patients.

Published: February 23, 2026, 3:51 pm

Highs, lows and halfpipes: the Guardian’s most memorable Winter Olympics moments

Curling cursing, podium camaraderie and stunning speed on skis linger for our writers after an astonishing Games

Best moment Matt Weston winning double gold. It was so well deserved. He fought hard for the victories and the emotions afterwards showed how much it meant to him.

Biggest disappointment Seeing the second GB skeleton relay team, Freya Tarbit and Marcus Wyatt, take fourth place. The sense of almost getting that medal, the sadness was so visible. I was so impressed by their performance, I wanted to hug them both.

Published: February 23, 2026, 3:01 pm

Trump invites US Olympic hockey heroes to State of the Union in locker-room call

• Trump invites Olympic champions to State of the Union

• FBI director Kash Patel joins locker-room revelry in Milan

Donald Trump made a congratulatory phone call to the United States men’s hockey team after their dramatic win over Canada in the Olympic gold medal game on Sunday afternoon, praising what he called an “unbelievable” performance and inviting the players to Washington DC this week.

The US president addressed the team by speakerphone shortly after their 2-1 overtime victory, telling them they had delivered a moment the country would remember for decades.

Published: February 23, 2026, 12:56 pm

Crampons, crashes and creativity: Tom Jenkins’ best photos from the Winter Olympics

Our photographer shares his favourite images from the Games in Italy

I’ve been lucky enough to attend six summer Olympic Games, but I’d never before photographed a Winter Olympics. They’ve always been too far away and the UK has never been a major snowsport country, which has limited their news appeal. This time it was different. With Team GB anticipating a record medal haul and the Games staged in northern Italy, I headed off with nervous excitement, lured by the promise of fast action sports occurring amid beautiful snowy vistas. I covered ski jumping, big air, ice hockey, biathlon, curling and much more. A lot of it was alien to me but it was very enjoyable. There were new rules to learn, new challenges to face – I’ve certainly never had to wear sharp crampons at a football match.

The Games were full of contrasts. From a sporting perspective, the gentle gracefulness that I observed at the figure skating was offset by the full-on brutality of ice hockey brawls, while the delicate precision of curling was juxtaposed by the frantic chaos of short-track speed skating. From a geographical and cultural perspective, Livigno, which is perched high up in the Alps close to Switzerland, seemed like a giant playground for modern snow sports – geared towards those who like to twist and twirl high in the sky – while Cortina, in the Dolomites, was far more old-fashioned and populated by the traditional skiing establishment. Milan, meanwhile, featured a cluster of modernist, edge-of-town arenas, with international fans happily catching the metro to and from the events. But, in my experience, transportation wasn’t always so convenient. The huge amount of travelling between venues – I went to all but one – was exhausting and getting a late night bus over the mountains between Livigno and Bormio in a blizzard felt a bit hairy.

Published: February 23, 2026, 1:54 pm

‘Hockey’s not hockey any more’: did three-on-three overtime ruin Canada’s Olympics?

Two Olympic finals between Canada and the US were settled by sudden death. The format made the showpieces feel more like a coin toss than a climax

Two Olympic finals against the US, two strong performances, two sudden-death losses. Canada is so over overtime.

While all good things must come to an end, it’s hard to fathom why hockey’s international rule-makers think that the very best things – huge clashes that were some of the hottest tickets of the entire Olympics – should be ended using three-on-three golden-goal overtime, a concept beloved only by people with a train to catch or firm dinner reservations.

Published: February 23, 2026, 12:05 am

Premier League: 10 talking points from the weekend’s action

Rio Ngumoha lifts Liverpool, the tussle to be Harry Kane’s England deputy and Chelsea self-destruct

Tottenham weren’t quite as dreadful as they were in losing 4-1 to Arsenal in November, but they were still extremely so, devoid of wit, energy, solidity, creativity, quality, and everything else one would hope to see in a football team. Make no mistake, they are in serious danger of going down and, assessing their fixtures, it is not easy to see where they might win enough points to stay up – all the more so given the form of West Ham and Nottingham Forest who are both playing well. Spurs, on the other hand, haven’t won a league game in 2026 and look like they’ve forgotten how – partly, it must be said, because of an awful injury list. So, where does Igor Tudor go from here? It may well be that his only option is to pick both Dominic Solanke and Randal Kolo Muani, get balls into the box, and hope they can make enough of them to save him – which might not be The Tottenham Way^TM, but is a lot better than relegation. Daniel Harris

Published: February 23, 2026, 8:00 am

LAFC’s dominant win over Inter Miami showed the value of comfort and continuity

Three thoughts on the opening weekend of MLS in 2026, including a new Galaxy forward to fear and a pointed celebration in DC

You know a situation is dire when it casts Luis Suárez as its level-headed participant.

Such were the scenes after Inter Miami opened their MLS Cup defense with a pitiful 3-0 defeat at Los Angeles FC. Through 90 minutes, with LAFC coming off a midweek continental match, both team’s stars stuck it out to try starting the 2026 season on the right foot. Son Heung-min made it 89 minutes, subbed out when the result was beyond doubt. Lionel Messi played every minute but was held without a goal contribution, failing to place either of his shot attempts on target and seeing all three created chances go uncashed by his teammates.

Published: February 23, 2026, 11:00 am

Norway (population: 5.7m) beats US (342m) to top Winter Olympics medal table

• Country wins most golds (18) in Winter Games history

• USA, GB and Australia also set team records

• Norwegians put emphasis on participation

Norway has once again topped the Winter Olympics medal table, surpassing countries with far larger populations.

The Scandinavian country won more gold medals (18) and more total medals (41) than the US, who came second in both categories (12 golds and 33 total medals). Norway’s 18 golds were the most by a country in Winter Olympics history, while their cross-country skiing hero Johannes Høsflot Klæbo accounted for six golds on his own, more than the all but seven other countries at this year’s Games.

Published: February 22, 2026, 4:24 pm

China’s Eileen Gu soars to ski halfpipe gold but controversy surrounds Zoe Atkin’s bronze

• Gu and Li Fanghui take Winter Olympic gold and silver

• Atkin’s bronze matches that of sister Izzy in 2018

Say what you like about Eileen Gu. Plenty have since she switched allegiances from the US to China in 2019. But the most compelling athlete at these Winter Olympic Games sure knows how to deliver. On the slopes. In front of the world’s media. And especially in the blazing heat of competition.

On the final run of a women’s halfpipe final that many in Livigno reckoned was the greatest in history, Gu stepped up again, sliding down a 22-foot wall of ice before twisting and spinning her body high into the brightest of blue skies to become these Games’ alpha female yet again – just as in Beijing four years ago.

Published: February 22, 2026, 12:30 pm

Police investigate racist abuse aimed at four Premier League players

• Incidents occurred across most recent weekend

• Prime minister and Kick It Out call for action

Police have warned anyone directing online racist abuse at Premier League footballers that they cannot “hide behind their keyboards” after opening investigations into four separate incidents over the weekend.

The prime minister’s spokesperson has called for social media companies such as Meta – which owns Instagram – to help identify the culprits after the Wolves forward Tolu Arokodare and the Sunderland midfielder Romaine Mundle revealed they had been sent abusive messages after their matches on Sunday. That came after Chelsea’s Wesley Fofana and Burnley’s Hannibal Mejbri had also reported racist messages that were sent to them on Saturday.

Published: February 23, 2026, 1:53 pm

‘Most of us spoke’: crunch talks fired up Arsenal for derby win, reveals Gyökeres

• Team meeting led to ‘honest’ exchange, says striker

• Arsenal five points clear but City have game in hand

Viktor Gyökeres has revealed that Arsenal’s brutally honest team discussions after the draw at Wolves last Wednesday brought renewed purpose and helped them to Sunday’s restorative win at Tottenham.

Gyökeres produced arguably his best performance for Arsenal in the 4-1 derby victory, threatening from start to finish and scoring two goals. It was the perfect way for Arsenal to respond to the Wolves game, when they surrendered a 2-0 lead for a 2-2 stalemate.

Published: February 23, 2026, 2:00 pm

Women’s FA Cup talking points: Kerr shows the way and Liverpool resurgence continues

Sam Kerr is ready for business end of season, Chatham’s goalkeeper made to work and Kim Little continues to shine

It has not been the easiest season for Sam Kerr. After missing 20 months with an anterior cruciate ligament injury, she has had her time limited to just a handful of starts across all competition – mainly the cups. She may not have scored the winner that sent Chelsea through to the Women’s FA Cup quarter-finals but her goal that gave the Blues the lead against Manchester United felt almost inevitable. Within six minutes of entering the pitch, the Australian produced an instinctive finish that will have gone some way to quieten questions about whether she could rediscover her top form. “It’s been a bit tough with many things, like not getting the minutes she wanted,” Sonia Bompastor said. “It was also a bit difficult emotionally with the decisions that have been made. [Today] will have been great for her confidence and I know she will be ready for the business end of the season.” Sophie Downey

Match report: Chelsea 2-1 Manchester United

Match report: Birmingham 8-0 Chatham Town

Published: February 23, 2026, 11:43 am

Milan lose more ground on Inter as Loftus-Cheek suffers World Cup blow

Defeat to Carlos Cuesta’s Parma leaves Rossoneri 10 points off top spot as England midfielder suffers broken jaw

These were supposed to be the weeks when Milan held the upper hand over their Serie A rivals, granted six days to prepare for a home game against bottom-half opposition while the likes of Inter, Juventus and Atalanta dragged themselves back exhausted from European away trips. Demoralised, too, after losing to Bodø/Glimt, Galatasaray and Borussia Dortmund by a combined 10 goals to three.

It was a grim week for Italian football, the sort that provokes another round of sad think-pieces about whether the nation’s teams will ever again be competitive in the continent’s biggest tournament. A discourse which often seems to skim over the fact one of them has gone to the final twice in the past three seasons.

Published: February 23, 2026, 1:33 pm

Falling giants? Werder Bremen, Wolfsburg and Gladbach circle Bundesliga drain

Threat of relegation looms over former league champions who can still be accused of living off past glories

“We currently have zero self-confidence,” lamented Marco Friedl, “and it shows.” Werder Bremen had just come to the end of a 13th successive winless game and there was a sense that they didn’t realise that the bottom was quite this low – if indeed they are quite there. “I often have the right words, but today I’m pretty much speechless because I couldn’t have imagined the game ending like this.”

It is difficult to predict quite how this season will finish at the bottom of the Bundesliga but it feels like it has a big ending in store, with at least one big name set to tumble. This felt like a big moment for Bremen, the 2004 double winners, in freefall for months and unable to find the decisive moment away to St Pauli as Sunday evening drew in.

Published: February 23, 2026, 12:54 pm

Bruno Fernandes is back in his best position and more effective than ever

In another season of change at Manchester United, the playmaker has been as consistent as ever

By WhoScored

Turmoil has been no stranger to Old Trafford in recent years; the club has employed 10 managers since Alex Ferguson left in May 2013. Their 15th-placed finish last season – their lowest since they were relegated in 1974 – was a new low. But there has been one bright spot through all the disappointments: Bruno Fernandes playing world-class football and reminding everyone what United can be at their best. This season, at 32, he continues to stand out.

In November, he revealed the club had been open to the idea of him moving to Saudi Arabia. “The club wanted me to leave,” he said. “From the club I felt: ‘If you go it’s not that bad for us.’ It hurts me a bit. I decided not to go, not only for family reasons, but because I genuinely like the club.” Fans will be delighted he stayed.

Published: February 23, 2026, 8:00 am

Farhan has Hundred hopes despite Indian owners not signing Pakistan players

• Sahibzada Farhan ‘very hopeful’ of securing a deal

• 63 Pakistan players on the 710-player auction longlist

Pakistan’s Sahibzada Farhan has said he remains hopeful of securing a contract to play in the Hundred this year, despite reports that the tournament’s four Indian-owned teams will not consider signing players from the country, but he admitted that selection decisions are “not in our hands”.

Farhan, who is the leading run-scorer at the T20 World Cup, is one of 63 Pakistani players on the 710-name longlist put forward for the men’s auction on 12 March. Despite the rumours, more Pakistani players have made themselves available than those from any other foreign nation with all but two of the country’s 15-man World Cup squad hoping for a deal.

Published: February 23, 2026, 3:09 pm

England T20 series in South Africa scrapped due to franchise schedule clash

• England tour to feature three Tests and three ODIs

• ODIs will be at smaller grounds due to SA20 bookings

England’s planned Twenty20 series in South Africa next January has been scrapped owing to a clash with the domestic SA20 tournament in the latest indication of the growing primacy of franchise cricket.

The Guardian revealed earlier this month that the white-ball leg of England’s tour was under threat as a result of a scheduling clash with SA20, which was due to run from 9 January until 14 February 2027.

Published: February 23, 2026, 11:39 am

Dick Advocaat resigns as Curaçao head coach before country’s first World Cup

• Dutchman steps down for personal reasons

• Caribbean island only has population of 150,000

Dick Advocaat led Curaçao to their first World Cup but will not be charge of the team at the tournament itself after resigning from the head coach’s post for personal reasons.

“Dick Advocaat has stepped down with immediate effect as head coach of the national football team of Curaçao,” the country’s football federation confirmed on social media, the statement going onto say that the 78-year-old will “devote his full attention to his daughter, who is facing health issues”.

Published: February 23, 2026, 11:31 am

Michael Carrick says he has not spoken to Jim Ratcliffe since last month

• Manchester United manager last saw Ratcliffe on 25 January

• ‘I’m fine with that,’ says Carrick, in buildup to Everton game

Michael Carrick has revealed he and his Manchester United squad have not received an apology or a message of any sort from Sir Jim Ratcliffe after his claim that the United Kingdom has been “colonised by immigrants”.

Ratcliffe, United’s largest single shareholder and head of the club’s football policy, made the comments during a Sky News interview on 11 February. The outcry was strong and immediate, leading the 73-year-old to say the next day he was sorry if his “choice of language has offended some people in the UK and Europe”.

Published: February 22, 2026, 10:30 pm

‘The Brits are coming again’: Team GB hail their greatest ever Winter Olympics

• ‘Historic’ Games leaves Britain 15th in medal table

• ‘We can all get excited for 2030 and for Los Angeles’

Team GB have hailed a “historic” Winter Olympics after Britain’s greatest performance in the 102 years of the Games left them 15th in the medal table – and warned their rivals the “Brits are coming again”.

Zoe Atkin’s women’s halfpipe bronze medal on Sunday ensured that Britain left Milano Cortina with five medals – equalling the tally from Sochi in 2014 and Pyeongchang in 2018. However, Team GB also won a record three gold medals with Matt Weston winning two of them in the individual skeleton and the mixed event with Tabitha Stoecker. Charlotte Bankes and Huw Nightingale also took gold in the mixed snowboard cross, while the men’s curling team won silver.

Published: February 22, 2026, 10:13 pm

Winter Olympics 2026 come to a close at Verona Arena after Norway top medal table – as it happened

The Milano Cortina Winter Olympics closed in style amid a fanfare of opera, dance and song in the Verona Arena as Norway topped the medal table

We’re heading over to Livigno shortly for the women’s halfpipe. Team GB’s Zoe Atkin qualified first but there is plenty of competition, not least from China’s Eileen Gu.

Some big news coming out of the 50km women’s cross-country skiing, with Frida Karlsson pulling out. The Swede was the gold meal favourite having won the skiathlon and the 10km intervals, as well as a silver in 4x7.5km relay.

Published: February 22, 2026, 10:11 pm

Schoolgirl Indra Brown soars as freeski’s superstar predicts 16-year-old’s ‘time will come’

• Freestyle skier finishes fifth in halfpipe final at Milano Cortina

• Eileen Gu says Australian ‘has many, many, many medals in her future’

Melbourne schoolgirl Indra Brown missed out in her quest to become Australia’s youngest Winter Olympic medallist at just 16, ending up fifth in a spectacular final of the freeski halfpipe on the last day of the Milan-Cortina Games.

The teenage prodigy, who has soared from nowhere to top the World Cup standings this season, had been hoping to provide a glorious flourish to Australia’s most successful winter Games by landing medal number seven on Sunday.

Published: February 22, 2026, 9:28 pm

‘He is an animal’: Jack Hughes loses teeth then scores Olympic ice hockey winner for US

• Center secures first men’s title for US since 1980

• Americans break Canadian hearts in overtime

It might not have been a shocker on the order of a bunch of scrappy college kids toppling the polished Soviet juggernaut at Lake Placid. But 46 years to the day of the Miracle on Ice, it often felt that way as another underdog United States men’s hockey team ended their Olympic gold drought in a white-knuckle contest dominated by Canada until Jack Hughes’ seismic overtime winner.

Call it the Marvel in Milan.

Published: February 22, 2026, 9:12 pm

Lionel Messi’s referee confrontation in tunnel did not violate policy, MLS says

• Miami star confronted officials in a doorway after 3-0 loss

• League determined area was not off-limits to players

• MLS has suspended players for entering officials’ room

Major League Soccer has cleared Lionel Messi of wrongdoing after the Argentinian appeared to pursue match officials after Inter Miami’s season-opening loss to LAFC on Saturday evening.

In a video posted to X by Síntesis Deportes reporter Giovanni Guerrero, Messi appears to confront match officials as they entered a doorway within the LA Coliseum after the match, a 3-0 win for LAFC. Miami forward Luis Suárez is seen restraining Messi, who slips out of his teammate’s grip and disappears behind a door. He emerged seconds later and retreated with Suárez to Miami’s locker room.

Published: February 22, 2026, 8:23 pm

Lindsey Vonn hits back at ‘haters’ who questioned her place at Winter Olympics

• American fractured tibia in downhill last week

• Skier is recovering from injuries in US

Lindsey Vonn has hit back at the “haters” who were critical of her decision to take part at this year’s Winter Olympics.

The American crashed out early in her run during the women’s downhill competition during the opening weekend of this month’s Games. She suffered a complex tibia fracture and underwent multiple surgeries in Italy before being flown back to the US for further treatment earlier this week.

Published: February 22, 2026, 5:16 pm

Winter Olympics men’s ice hockey final: USA beat Canada in overtime to end 46-year wait for gold – as it happened

Team USA are the men’s Olympic champions for the first time since 1980 after Jack Hughes scored a dramatic winner

• Medal table | Full game report | Results | Briefing

Away we go …

What else has happened at the Games today? And what were some of the highlights of the past two weeks and change? Check our multisport coverage:

Published: February 22, 2026, 4:15 pm