Geordie presenters Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly were excited to join the Newcastle United team on their Carabao Cup parade as they celebrated a historic first domestic trophy win in 70 years
Ant and Dec excited as they prepare for Newcastle’s trophy parade
Geordie duo Ant and Dec were swarmed as they arrived at St James’ Park ahead of a historic day for Newcastle United. The TV presenters were announced as special guests at the huge celebrations after the Toon Army’s monumental Carabao Cup final win over Liverpool.
The victory marked Newcastle’s first domestic trophy in 70 years, sending fans on Tyneside into overdrive. Now, as the city comes to a standstill, they welcomed the Britain’s Got Talent presenters with open arms. The duo posed for selfies as fans swarmed them after they arrived at the club’s stadium in the city centre with cup fever ringing clear two weeks on.
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And the TV stars took to Twitter /X to share their own excitement ahead of the day’s events from the Gallowgate End terraces. An excited Ant shouted: “Alreeeet,” at the camera before Dec said: “Hello cheesebags. Us here.”
Fans rushed to get selfies with Ant(Image: Simon Greener/Newcastle Chronicle)
Ant went on: “W’ere very, very, very, very, very excited today”, before Dec jumped in laughing: “That’s a lot of verys”. Ant added: “We’re very excited today”.
“We are going on an open top bus parade today with Newcastle United players and the Carabao Cup”, Dec revealed while Dec screamed in the background.
“Ant’s been screaming like a girl for most of the day”. As Ant couldn’t hide his excitement as his dreams as a fan of the team come true, Dec went on: “We’re going to be interviewing the players on the parade and then ending up on the Town Moor where they are going to lift the trophy in front of everybody and we’re going to enjoy the day”.
Dec was swarmed by fellow Toon Army fans(Image: Simon Greener/Newcastle Chronicle)
The Geordie duo revealed they will keep their fans updated on the way around, with Ant admitting he felt like he was going to faint as he beamed with ecstasy. “Oh, my legs are all jelly”, Ant added as he collapsed to the floor with Dec in fits of laughter.
The club had been in talks with Newcastle City Council and Northumbria Police during the week to organise the momentous event. The team bus was to depart from St James ‘ Park, travel through Gallowgate and Percy Street, and head towards the Town Moor.
In an official statement, the club said: “Newcastle United has confirmed further plans for the club’s Carabao Cup celebrations, with the team set to have a bus parade before an event on the Town Moor.
” Eddie Howe’s side will celebrate their recent cup win with a city centre open top bus on Saturday 29 March, which will start at St. James ‘ Park, before making its way to the Town Moor for the celebration event.
Extensive work and long-term planning behind the scenes have continued with Newcastle City Council, Northumbria Police, Freemen of Newcastle, the North East Combined Authority, NE1, Nexus and the emergency services. “
There is expected to be over 100, 000 fans piled into the Town Moor to watch the celebrations.
It was a rollercoaster week for football fans in Nigeria. A 90th-minute goal by Zimbabwe dented the country’s hopes of reaching next year’s World Cup.
That game shaped the week for Nigerian sports fans. But the news of Dani Alves’s freedom, the adjusted transfer window in England, and the announcement of new hosts for the U-20 AFCON all made headlines in the last seven days.
From UEFA’s bid to probe Real Madrid stars Vinicius and Mbappe to preparations for the National Sports Festival, First 11 will explore the biggest sports stories this week.
Nigeria’s World Cup Dreams In Tatters
Nigeria are at risk of missing out on two consecutive World Cups. Photo: X@NGSuperEagles
Starting from home, Nigerians are still reeling in the pains of a crushing 1-1 draw against Zimbabwe in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, further jeopardizing the Super Eagles ‘ dreams of playing in the competition. The draw condemns Nigeria to fourth in the six-team group, six points below leaders South Africa in the race for an automatic qualification to the World Cup.
With four matches to go, Nigeria’s road to the US, Canada, and Mexico looks narrower. They will hope for results to go their way in other games in the group , – including winning their own – to have a hope of making the competition or a playoff spot.
Four More Countries Qualify for World Cup
The Fifa World Cup trophy is displayed ahead of the draw for the 2026 Fifa World Cup European qualifiers at the FIFA headquarters in Zurich, on December 13, 2024. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
As Nigeria struggle to get a ticket, Argentina joined the early birds for the tournament after the latest round of qualifiers. Others are Japan, Iran, and New Zealand who have now joined the hosts US, Mexico, and Canada, for the Mundial
Adjusted Transfer Window
Manchester City’s English midfielder #47 Phil Foden (R) celebrates scoring the team’s third goal with Manchester City’s Norwegian striker #09 Erling Haaland during the English Premier League football match between Manchester City and Chelsea at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, north west England, on January 25, 2025. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP)
In England, the Premier League will have two transfer windows this summer. This is to allow Manchester City and Chelsea to register players for the Club World Cup.
Clubs in the English top flight will now be able to recruit and retain players in a special window between June 1 and 10. The exceptional registration period was approved by FIFA last October and is open to any national association that has teams involved in the new expanded Club World Cup, which starts in the United States on June 14.
A Lion’s Share
New FIFA Club world cup trophy
Meanwhile, the winner of this year’s expanded Club World Cup will get up to $125 million in prize money.
FIFA said a total prize fund of $1 billion for the event, which runs from June 14 to July 13, had already been made public, but the world football governing body has now broken down the sums for the 32 participating teams. Each team will share in the $525 million pot for participating.
A further $475 million will be distributed according to performance in the tournament.
Blatter, Platini Cleared
Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter gives a thumbs-up as he leaves Switzerland’s Federal Criminal Court after the verdict of his trial over a suspected fraudulent payment in the southern Switzerland city of Bellinzona, on July 8, 2022. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
Still in football. Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter and ex-UEFA chief Michel Platini have been acquitted on appeal by a Swiss court in a long-running corruption case that shattered their careers as the most powerful figures in world football.
Former UEFA president Michel Platini looks on when leaving the courthouse after the verdict of an appeal by the Swiss Attorney General’s office against former UEFA and FIFA presidents over a suspected fraudulent payment in Muttenz near Basel, on March 25, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
Blatter, 89, and Platini, 69, listened in silence as the Extraordinary Court of Appeal clerk in the town of Muttenz, near Basel, read out a decision identical to the one handed down in 2022, which had initially cleared them. Prosectors had requested suspended sentences of 20 months for the pair, but charges of fraud, for which they risked five years ‘ imprisonment, as well as disloyal management, breach of trust and forgery of documents were all dismissed.
Egypt To Host U-20 AFCON ,
Returning home to Africa, Egypt have been awarded the hosting rights for the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), days after Cote d’Ivoire pulled out as host nation.
The West African nation pulled out from hosting the tournament, citing “unforeseen circumstances”, according to CAF.
But the football body said Egypt will now host the competition billed for Sunday, 27 April 2025, to 18 May 2025.
Alves Freed
(FILES) Prison workers unions ‘ members protest over the killing of a cook by an inmate the week before, as convicted rapist and former Brazil international football player Dani Alves (R), flanked by his lawyer Ines Guardiola, leaves Brians 2 prison in San Esteban Sasroviras, near Barcelona, on March 25, 2024. (Photo by LLUIS GENE / AFP)
In Spain,  , an appeals court has overturned former Brazil international footballer Dani Alves ‘ rape conviction. It held that his trial was marked by “shortcomings” and “inaccuracies”.
Alves was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in jail in February last year for raping a young woman in the VIP bathroom of a Barcelona nightclub on December 31, 2022.
Tinubu Lights NSF Torch
PRESS RELEASE
PRESIDENT TINUBU FLAGS OFF TORCH OF UNITY MOVEMENT FOR 22ND NATIONAL SPORTS FESTIVAL
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has officially flagged off the Torch of Unity movement, marking the commencement of the 22nd National Sports Festival, tagged Gateway 2025.
The… pic. twitter.com/FpNnsNEv6O
On the homefront, President Bola Tinubu flagged off the Torch of Unity Movement for the 22nd National Sports Festival.
During a brief event at the State House in Abuja on Tuesday, Tinubu says sports is a unifying factor and a growth catalyst.
The Gateway Games will be held in Ogun State from May 16 to 30, 2025.
World Athletics Approves Swab Test ,
A nurse swabs the nose of a patient as he administers a COVID-19 test in Ljubljana on December 22, 2020, as nationwide mass free rapid testing for the novel coronavirus Covid-19 starts. Jure Makovec / AFP
Meanwhile, World Athletics has approved the introduction of a cheek swab test to determine if an athlete is biologically female.
According to Sebastian Coe, the head of the international track and field federation, the decision taken by the body’s decision-making Council was a “really important” way of protecting the female category.
UEFA Opens Probe Against Mbappe, Vinicius, Others
Real Madrid’s Brazilian forward #07 Vinicius Junior (R) celebrates scoring his team’s second goal during the Spanish league football match between Real Madrid CF and Girona FC at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid on February 23, 2025. (Photo by Pierre-Philippe MARCOU / AFP)
Back to football! UEFA says it has opened an investigation into four Real Madrid stars, including Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior, for an alleged “indecent conduct” during their Champions League last 16 win over Atletico Madrid.
Madrid’s two superstar forwards, as well as defender Antonio Rudiger and midfielder Dani Ceballos, face potential punishment ahead of their quarter-final first-leg clash at Arsenal on April 8.
NBA To Review European League Proposal
Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors drives to the basket during the game against the Sacramento Kings on March 13, 2025, at Chase Center in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Noah Graham / NBAE / Getty Images / Getty Images via AFP)
Lastly, the NBA will review a proposal to create a European basketball league. An NBA spokesperson said the new competition could feature up to 10 teams.
League owners will consider a plan that includes eight to 10 franchises, including up to four teams who already play in the EuroLeague — Europe’s top club competition. The proposed league would also feature new franchises in cities such as London and Paris, which could be worth as much as $500 million, Sportico reported, citing a source with direct knowledge of the plans.
An Israeli filmmaker uncovers seized PLO archives, raising questions about Palestinian heritage and identity.
Was Palestinian history carefully recorded by the earliest 20th-century filmmakers as a way of preserving their heritage? Or were they, as some Israelis claim, simply disorganised amateurs operating on basic equipment in a primitive society?
Comedian and former Strictly Come Dancing star Seann Walsh has announced the birth of his second child, Casper, with partner Grace Adderley after the pair chose to keep the pregnancy a secret
Strictly star announces birth of second child after partner’s hidden pregnancy
Strictly Come Dancing star Seann Walsh has revealed that he’s recently become a father again. The comedian, 38. took to social media to share the news of their new arrival, after keeping his partner Grace Adderley’s pregnancy under wraps.
The couple, who have maintained a low profile, welcomed a baby girl in February 2023. However, Seann seemingly confirmed they are now parents of two when he posted a photo on Instagram.
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Alongside the image of his daughter covered in food, Seann shared, “My first five minutes of being left alone with Wylda and our newborn Casper. S*** just got real”.
Fans were taken by surprise when Seann later admitted he fainted during Grace’s first labour. The comedian revealed the news in a video from the hospital, expressing gratitude for the “amazing” hospital staff who helped them.
Seann announced that he is now a dad-of-two(Image: Instagram/ @seannwalsh)
He also gave an amusing account of his own reaction to the situation, writing: “I passed out during the birth. Of course I did. The nurse’s response? ‘ Men. ‘ Fair”.
The comic has been in a relationship with dance teacher Grace, 32, since 2018. This is shortly after his controversial appearance on Strictly, where he made headlines for kissing his married dance partner, Katya Jones.
Seann and Grace first shared the pregnancy news during an Instagram Live while on tour. Seann also became a first-time dad shortly after finishing 5th on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here in 2022.
Last year, Seann revealed that he still suffers from the after effects of his time on the BBC show where he was embroiled in a cheating scandal. When he appeared on the hit show, he was caught kissing his professional dancer Katya Jones and this caused a ripple effect of destruction.
Seann shared some sweet family snaps(Image: Instagram/ @seannwalsh)
Katya split from her husband and professional dancer Neil Jones, while Seann’s relationship with Rebecca Humphries also came to an end. Soon after news broke of the cheating scandal, Seann spiralled out of control and suffered with depression and panic attacks.
Seven years later, he is still not fully recovered. Speaking of his post-traumatic stress, he said in a recent interview: “I do not dance. What it is more actually is when you turn up to any car park or something, and it says, ‘ Strictly No Parking’. I still just go, ‘ Arghh’, every time I see it”.
In a candid chat with fellow comedian Russell Howard on his Wonderbox podcast, he added: “I can hear the word — like a dog hearing something — I can just hear the word strictly and I still go, ‘ Arghh! ‘”
Seann and Katya found themselves in a controversy(Image: BBC)
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Desperate to put the ordeal behind him, Seann decided to jump straight back into stand up shows and performing. But now on reflection, he admitted it was too soon. He continued: “I went back too soon — that’s for sure. You’ve got to kind of let audiences, or the public, almost let them get over it.
” But I wanted to kind of fight it. I didn’t want this thing that was happening to my life to take away the only thing that I had. “Seann rebuilt his life and in 2022 he quit alcohol and went on I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here – in the hope of changing public opinion.
Hundreds of Muslim worshippers are feared to be among the more than 1, 600 people who died in a powerful earthquake which struck central Myanmar when they had gathered at mosques for prayers during Ramadan.
According to the shadow National Unity Government, more than 50 mosques across the country also sustained damage when the magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck on Friday.
Htet Min Oo was performing ritual ablutions before Ramadan prayers at a mosque next to his house in Mandalay.
His home collapsed along with part of the mosque, trapping half his body with the rubble of a wall that buried two of his aunts. Residents raced to pull them out, he said, but only one survived.
The 25-year-old told the Reuters news agency, that his two uncles and his grandmother were also trapped under piles of concrete. With no heavy equipment available, he tried desperately to clear the rubble with his hands but could not shift it.
“I don’t know if they are still alive under the debris. After so long, I don’t think there’s any hope”, he said on Friday.
“There’s too much rubble and no rescue teams have come for us”, he added, his voice shaking as he broke into tears.
A 39-year-old resident of the Mandalay region described harrowing scenes as he tried to save a man trapped under the debris of a collapsed mosque in Sule Kone village but had to flee because of strong aftershocks.
“I had to leave him behind … I went in a second time to try to save him”, he told Reuters, declining to be identified. “I retrieved four people with my own hands. But unfortunately, three were already dead, and one died in my arms”.
The resident said 10 people had been killed there, and they were among 23 who died at three mosques that were destroyed in the village. Government restrictions had prevented them from being upgraded, he said.
Damaged pagodas are seen after an earthquake in Naypyitaw, Myanmar]File: Aung Shine Oo/AP]
Muslims are a minority in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar and have been repressed and marginalised by successive governments, while ultranationalist groups have in recent years incited violence.
The Rohingya, a large Muslim minority, have been among the most persecuted groups by the Myanmar authorities, suffering mass deaths and expulsion.
Myanmar authorities have for decades also made it difficult for Muslims to obtain permission to repair or build mosques, according to a 2017 report by the US Department of State, which said historic mosques have deteriorated because routine maintenance was denied.
One man, Julian Kyle, appealed on social media for heavy equipment to lift concrete pillars after the quake destroyed another Mandalay mosque.
“Underneath the rubble, my family members and others were crushed and lost their lives”, he posted. “We desperately want to recover their bodies”.
A resident from the town of Taungnoo, about 370km (230 miles) away, said he was praying when one side of the Kandaw mosque caved in on two rows of men seated before him.
“I saw so many people carried out from the mosque, some of them died right before my eyes”, he said. “It was truly heartbreaking”.
Citing a local newspaper, Al Jazeera’s Sanad agency said that the collapse of mosques on Friday also increased fears of more buildings falling, especially older ones that are more than 150 years old and have not received the necessary permits for renewal, according to government regulations.
Buddhist buildings were also badly hit by the earthquake, with 670 monasteries and 290 pagodas damaged, according to the military government. It did not mention any mosques in its damage report.
So far, the quake has also destroyed other buildings, bridges and roads across swaths of Myanmar.
But many believe the true scale of the disaster has yet to emerge due to patchy communications in remote areas.
Harry Roberts, a Bangkok-based volunteer, said the situation in Myanmar was likely to be “very complex” and “really serious” considering the government’s rare appeal for international help.
“That request must trickle down to immigration and customs, so nongovernmental organisations like ourselves can get the immediate aid in there”, Roberts said.
France overcome a resilient Scotland with an impressive second-half performance to secure their second victory in the opening two games at the Women’s Six Nations.
MATCH REPORT: France dominate in second half to beat Scotland
