London Pulse secured top spot at the end of the Netball Super League regular season – and with it home advantage for the major semi-final in the play-offs.
Pulse led Loughborough Lightning by two points going into the final round of games and were given a helping hand.
It came from Birmingham Panthers who caused a surprise in their coach Jo Trip’s final game in charge by achieving a 67-58 success over Lightning, who have won three of the past four Grand Finals, to ensure Pulse finished top.
Antonia Mitchell had 42 goals for Panthers who pulled clear in the second quarter against a Lightning side who lacked fluency and will have plenty to think about before the play-offs.
Pulse then ensured they go into next weekend’s game against Lightning on a high with a comfortable 67-44 victory over bottom side Cardiff Dragons, helped by 36 goals from Olivia Tchine.
The winner of the major semi-final goes straight to the Grand Final while the loser will face the winner of the minor semi-final between third and fourth – Manchester Thunder and London Mavericks – to determine the other finalist.
Thunder and Mavericks lined up for a dress rehearsal on Saturday with the Manchester side winning 67-45 at Wembley Arena, led by 50 goals from Elmere van der Berg.
In the weekend’s final game on Sunday, the sport will say farewell to one of its greatest players.
Iran’s official news agency IRNA says Iranian forces are carrying out a hybrid attack with drones accompanying the missiles targeting Israeli cities, with explosions heard in Israeli cities.
Israel’s Channel 13 cites “initial reports” late Saturday that Iranian missiles have hit the northern coastal city of Haifa and neighbouring town of Tamra. Videos posted to social media, and verified by Al Jazeera’s Sanad, showed Iranian cruise missiles in the skies of northern Israel.
The Israeli military, in the meantime, says it is now attacking military targets in Iran’s capital, Tehran.
Earlier on Saturday, Iran said that Israel intensified its military campaign against it for a second consecutive day, targeting key infrastructure and dealing another blow to the country’s struggling economy, as the conflict spirals towards a potential sustained all-out war.
Iranian officials confirmed that a blaze had erupted at the South Pars gas field – one of the country’s most vital energy sources – after it was struck by Israeli forces on Saturday.
Production from part of the field has been suspended, with state-affiliated media reporting that 12 million cubic metres (423 million cubic feet) of gas from Phase 14 have been temporarily halted. Though Iranian authorities later said the fire had been extinguished, the scale of the disruption remains unclear.
An Israeli official stated the strike was intended as a direct warning to Tehran. The message appears to be part of a broader strategy to cripple Iran’s economic and military capabilities, according to Fox News. The Israeli Broadcasting Authority cited an official as saying, “We attacked another Iranian gas field after Bushehr, and national infrastructure is on the list.”
Energy expert Manouchehr Takin told Al Jazeera that targeting South Pars – crucial for domestic consumption and commercial use – would deepen Iran’s internal energy crisis. “This is an attempt to paralyse Iran’s economy,” Takin said. “The domestic gas network was already under pressure due to sanctions and mismanagement.”
Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh, reporting from Amman, said the move marked a shift in strategy. “Israel has previously targeted Iran’s military infrastructure, nuclear scientists and missile facilities. Now it’s going after civilian economic assets,” she said, warning that the economic impact could be severe if damage is extensive.
Iran reels from civilian toll and pledges retaliation
Tehran reported at least 80 people killed and more than 320 injured, including women and children, following Israeli strikes on both military and residential sites across the capital.
Among the dead are reportedly nine nuclear scientists. Iran hit back with a barrage of missiles that penetrated Israel’s high-tech missile defence system, with at least four deaths and more than 200 injuries recorded in Israel since Friday.
Iranian state media also claimed the downing of an Israeli F-35 fighter jet, one of the most advanced aircraft in Israel’s arsenal. While several Iranian news outlets have cited a military statement confirming the incident, there is no official footage or visual evidence, and Israeli officials have dismissed the reports as fabricated.
Reporting from Tehran, Al Jazeera’s Tohid Asadi noted growing public anger. “Many Iranians are frustrated that non-military targets were hit,” he said. “There had been hope weeks ago with talks on the table. Now, there’s only uncertainty and fear of escalation.”
The cancelled talks were originally set to take place in Oman on Sunday.
US President Donald Trump had tied the diplomatic effort to Iran’s agreement to roll back its nuclear programme. But Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said negotiations were off the table while “barbarous” Israeli attacks continued.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military claimed to have struck more than 150 Iranian targets and warned its operation could continue for weeks. Defence Minister Israel Katz issued a stark warning: “If Khamenei continues to fire missiles at the Israeli home front, Tehran will burn.”
Israeli search and rescue team conducts an operation amid the rubble of a destroyed building after the Iranian attacks following the launch of large-scale Israeli strikes against Iran, in Rishon LeZion, Israel, on June 14, 2025 [Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu Agency]
Global leaders alarmed as fears of wider war grow
The prospect of full-scale regional war loomed large, as global leaders issued warnings.
Iran hinted at a potential closure of the Strait of Hormuz – a crucial oil shipping lane – should the conflict deepen. Tehran also warned that any foreign military bases aiding Israel could face retaliatory strikes.
Iran’s capacity for external retaliation, however, has weakened. After nearly two years of war in Gaza and last year’s conflict in Lebanon, its key regional allies – Hamas and Hezbollah – are significantly depleted, narrowing Iran’s military options.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by phone with both Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian. In both calls, Erdogan blamed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for fuelling the crisis.
According to a statement from Erdogan’s office, he told bin Salman that Israel poses the greatest threat to regional stability and urged an immediate halt to its actions. “The only way to resolve the nuclear dispute is through negotiations,” Erdogan said, warning of a potential refugee crisis if the situation spirals further.
The Turkish president also accused Israel of using attacks on Iran to distract from what he labelled a genocide in Gaza. “Netanyahu is trying to set the region on fire and sabotage diplomatic efforts,” Erdogan said, according to the statement.
As international concern mounts, US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a 50-minute call on Saturday.
While Trump praised Israel’s strikes and warned Iran of harsher consequences, Putin expressed grave concern and called for a halt to the military campaign. Both leaders, however, left the door open to a possible return to nuclear talks.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke to his Iranian and Israeli counterparts and made clear Beijing’s support for Tehran.
Freshly crowned kings of Europe, Paris Saint-Germain arrived this week in the United States for the Club World Cup and are treating FIFA’s lucrative new competition not as a nuisance at the end of an exhausting season but as a serious objective.
“I think it is an incredible competition,” PSG coach Luis Enrique said of the Club World Cup in the immediate aftermath of his team’s UEFA Champions League triumph in Munich two weeks ago.
“Our aim is to be competitive and try to win a fifth trophy of the season.”
The Qatar-backed French giants could be forgiven for wanting some time to bask in the glory of their 5-0 victory over Inter Milan in Munich, which allowed them to finally win the Champions League for the first time in their history.
There had been numerous agonising failures in Europe’s elite club competition, as well as billions of euros spent on transfer fees on stars like Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, before captain Marquinhos raised the trophy aloft.
“We have made history for the club, for the city and for the whole country,” defender Lucas Hernandez told sports daily L’Equipe after the PSG squad paraded their trophy down the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, attended a reception with President Emmanuel Macron and celebrated with almost 50,000 fans at their Parc des Princes stadium.
PSG have played 58 matches since last August and also swept all the available domestic trophies in France this season, as has become the norm in recent years.
READ ALSO: Five Things To Look Out For As Club World Cup Kicks Off
No Time to Stop
Paris Saint-Germain’s French defender #21 Lucas Hernandez (R) holds the UEFA Champions League Trophy during a parade on the Champs-Élysées avenue in Paris on June 1, 2025, a day after PSG won the 2025 UEFA Champions League final football match against Inter Milan in Munich. (Photo by Thibaud MORITZ / AFP)
But there is simply no time to stop and reflect.
Many of their players, including Champions League final hero Desire Doue, spent last week on international duty before returning to their club and departing for Los Angeles, where they will begin their Club World Cup adventure this weekend.
“The tournament itself is a really attractive prospect,” Luis Enrique told FIFA.com.
“We have to strike the balance between managing the physical and mental fatigue we’re experiencing now at the end of a long season and harnessing the motivation that comes with being involved in the competition.”
PSG’s opening game will be against another European heavyweight as they take on Antoine Griezmann’s Atletico Madrid at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, just outside Los Angeles, on Sunday.
They will then also face South American champions Botafogo, of Brazil, before moving north to take on Seattle Sounders in their remaining Group B matches.
Expected to qualify for the knockout phase without too many issues, PSG could end up playing a total of seven matches if they make it to the final in New York on July 13 — just a month before their scheduled first game of next season in the UEFA Supercup against Tottenham Hotspur.
The strain of such a long campaign is telling, with Ousmane Dembele — their top scorer this season with 33 goals — struggling with an injury picked up playing for France last week.
They did not manage to add any new players to their squad during the brief transfer window that opened at the start of this month ahead of the tournament — reported interest in Bournemouth’s Ukrainian defender Illia Zabarnyi did not turn into anything concrete.
But the rewards for success in the Club World Cup are enticing and should be enough to keep Luis Enrique’s squad focused on their objective, with up to a stunning $125 million in prize money on offer for the best-performing European team if they manage to go all the way.
Leinster captain Jack Conan says winning the United Rugby Championship helped his side “silence a few critics”.
Leo Cullen’s team won the competition for the first time since 2021 – and ninth time overall – after a comfortable 32-7 victory against the Bulls at Croke Park.
And Conan was pleased with the success after the Irish side’s recent shortcomings in European deciders.
“Definitely feeling a bit of relief, just so delighted for everyone who has put in so much work the last few years,” he told TG4.
“I’m glad we showed up and performed and were able to silence a few critics.”
Conan, who will now link up with the British and Irish Lions for their summer tour of Australia, revelled in winning the trophy at the GAA headquarters and in front of a crowd as Leinster’s last triumph in the competition four years ago was behind closed doors due to Covid.
“It’s incredibly special and not something you dream of growing up or even in the last few years it’s been a while since we played here,” he added in the post-match press conference.
Leinster led 19-0 at half-time and Conan believes the strong defensive effort to shut out South African visitors Bulls after racing into the lead helped his side over the line in the second half.
“To hold them out at half-time, credit to the lads for putting their heads in where you wouldn’t put a shovel, the mental lift that gave us was huge,” he admitted.
“Before the game we spoke about taking it moment by moment and not getting ahead of ourselves. We knew it was going to be unbelievably physical and there was no point focusing on the bigger picture, but we dealt really with how direct they were.
England’s Luke Humphries and Luke Littler are out of the World Cup of Darts after suffering a shock defeat by hosts Germany in the last 16.
The German pair of Martin Schindler and tournament debutant Ricardo Pietreczko took advantage of a string of missed doubles and some sloppy play by the top two players in the world to win 8-4 in Frankfurt.
Humphries and Littler, who both became MBEs on Saturday in the King’s Birthday Honours, were aiming to lead England to a record-extending sixth World Cup crown – with Humphries partnering Michael Smith to victory last year.
But playing together for the first time, the tournament favourites looked far from comfortable from the start as Germany broke throw in the opening leg, cheered on by a home crowd.
The English pair recovered to level the match at 2-2, but it was then Germany who rose to the occasion with some brilliant play, winning the next five legs to leave them on the brink of a famous victory.
“We believed in ourselves and we put in a solid performance, and the double 16s that Ricardo threw were so important,” said Schindler, the world number 18, praising his 28th-ranked partner.
“We are delighted to go through. German darts is in good shape right now and we will continue to push forward.”
Schindler and Pietreczko will next meet Australia’s Simon Whitlock and Damon Heta, the 2022 winners, after they defeated debutants Argentina 8-1.
Former World Championship finalist Whitlock said afterwards that England’s defeat had not been a surprise to him.
Heta added: “They probably relied on each other, thinking ‘Oh, he’ll do the business’.
“But the conditions weren’t great. The crowd was all for Germany so it was probably brutal out there for them, but they will take it as another learning curve and probably get stronger – unfortunately for the rest of us.
“Fair play to Germany, they played good darts, but we are just worried about us and what we have got to do.”
The Netherlands, represented by Danny Noppert and Gian van Veen, advanced with an 8-0 whitewash of Scotland’s Gary Anderson and Peter Wright, while Wales’ two-time winners Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton were 8-2 victors over the Philippines.
Northern Ireland’s Josh Rock and Daryl Gurney, the fourth seeds, defeated South Africa 8-2 to set up a last-eight tie against 2019 runners-up Republic of Ireland, who are represented by William O’Connor and Keane Barry.
Teenager Carolina Stutchbury has become Great Britain’s first woman fencer to win a European Championship silver medal.
The 19-year-old reached the individual women’s foil final in Genoa after strong performances throughout the day, but suffered a 15-13 loss to France’s world number nine Eva Lacheray.
It meant United States-based Stutchbury went one better than last year when she took European bronze.
That had made her the only British female fencer to have claimed a place on the podium since the event was re-established in 1981.
“To medal twice in a row gives me confidence in my ability to perform consistently at major events and I am looking forward to the World Champs in Tbilisi in July.”
