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For most young basketball hopefuls, the closest they will get to learning from the sport’s biggest names is by watching a YouTube video of them playing or training.

For seven Britons, this week in Manchester has been a rare exception.

From shooting while being marked by Los Angeles centre Ivica Zubac to being guided by Philadelphia 76ers head coach Nick Nurse, the first Basketball Without Borders camp to take place in the UK has the potential to be life-changing.

It was at a camp like this in Latvia where Amari Williams – drafted this year by the Boston Celtics to become only the NBA’s third English-born active player – was discovered.

The camp coming to Britain for the first time was part of the NBA’s continued push to grow the following of and participation in basketball in the country. It also followed last month’s announcement that the UK will host its first NBA regular-season games since 2019 with a match in London in 2026 and Manchester in 2027.

“We can virtually guarantee that a handful or more of the players sitting out there today will be in the [NBA and WNBA],” Nurse told BBC Sport, during the four-day camp where the Britons taking part were among Europe’s 60 highest-rated teenagers.

“It’s an amazing event, it always is. I’ve been fortunate enough to be a part of it before, but when they said they were coming to Manchester, I wanted to be a part of it.

“That’s always exciting to see them at this stage, and then down the line say, ‘I remember we had them in Manchester in the camp’. Always happens. It’s exciting to be among the most talented young players in the world.”

American Nurse played in the British Basketball League for Derby Rams in the 1990-91 season, and had coaching spells at Birmingham Bullets, Manchester Giants, London Towers and Brighton Bears before rising to land NBA posts with Toronto Raptors and the 76ers.

The event in Manchester, in which both current and former players and coaches from the NBA and WNBA were involved, is designed to help aspiring basketball stars of high school ages outside of the United States get valuable first-hand coaching and advice.

Yearly BWB camps also run across Asia, Africa and The Americas. The best performing players from the four camps combined are then selected to attend another BWB camp for the world’s best young players that take place during the NBA and WNBA All-Star weekends.

Almost a decade ago, Los Angeles Clippers centre Zubac was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers having played professionally as a teenager in Serbia and his homeland Croatia.

It is a similar path for many Europeans entering the NBA and WNBA.

One of the camp’s aims is to scout the best talents outside of the US from a young age.

“I never really had a chance to participate [in these camps] as a kid but I would’ve loved to,” said Zubac, 28.

“I think getting advice, knowledge and experience from the NBA players, NBA coaches, all the basketball legends here, some of who have won a lot of championships, it’s very valuable and I think it’s going to be really helpful.”

NBA’s 2024-25 Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is among the current stars who have attended BWB camps, as well as 2022-23 MVP Joel Embiid and 23-year-old Williams.

A total of 129 players who have attended the camps, including 41 currently in NBA starting teams, have gone on to play in either the NBA or WNBA.

Irene Oboavwoduo, from Manchester, hopes this might happen for her too and first aiming for a US college route to help her chances.

“It’s pretty hard because basketball is not as big in England, but basketball is expanding in the UK,” said the 17-year-old. “I’m glad I’ve been able to do this as an experience for exposure.”

Nurse believes the return of NBA matches to the UK can only help the sport grow.

“The NBA and the WNBA are certainly turning into international leagues. There are players from all over the world now,” he said.

“It’s a huge boost. When the NBA brings its brand and brings its star power, bringing NBA players certainly draws a lot of attention.”

Williams’ arrival to the NBA will make him the fourth active Briton in the league alongside OG Anunoby, Tosan Evbuomwan and Jeremy Sochan, although Sochan plays internationally for Poland.

There are currently only two British players in the WNBA – Temi Fagbenle and Elizabeth Williams, who play for the Golden State Valkyries and Chicago Sky respectively,

The topic of top-level basketball heading outside the United States comes in a week where the first WNBA game to be held internationally takes place.

The Atlanta Dream face the Seattle Storm in Vancouver, Canada, on Friday night.

Could that lead to a future WNBA match in the UK?

“That’s always a possibility,” said two-time WNBA champion Sylvia Fowles, who is also part of the BWB’s coaching staff.

“I want to see the WNBA everywhere.

Wrexham have signed Wales international Nathan Broadhead from Ipswich Town on a deal which could eventually be worth £10m.

The versatile forward, 27, who was in the final year of his contract at Portman Road, has signed a four-year deal with the Dragons.

“It’s been a long time coming and I’m delighted to join the club,” Broadhead said.

“Belief is going to be the biggest thing for us this season. We want to get everyone from North Wales down to the Stok Cae Ras and to show that belief in us.”

Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson said: “I’m delighted to welcome Nathan to the club. We’re all looking forward to working with him in the coming seasons.”

While the initial fee is likely to be some way short of the reported £10m figure, Broadhead’s arrival will have shattered Wrexham’s transfer record.

They have broken their transfer record on numerous occasions since Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney took control of the club in 2021.

The previous high mark was believed to be in excess of £3m, which Wrexham paid to sign midfielder Lewis O’Brien from Nottingham Forest last month.

He follows in the footsteps of fellow Wales internationals Danny Ward and Kieffer Moore in making the switch to the Stok Cae Ras.

Forwards Josh Windass and Ryan Hardie, defenders Conor Coady and Liberato Cacace and midfielders George Thomason and O’Brien have also moved to the north Wales side this summer.

Bangor-born Broadhead – who was in Wrexham’s academy as a boy as well as Bangor City – started his professional career with Everton but joined Ipswich permanently in 2023 following loan spells with Burton Albion, Sunderland and Wigan Athletic.

He made two first-team appearances for the Toffees but swiftly became a prominent figure at Ipswich, helping them secure successive promotions from League One to the Premier League.

Broadhead scored two goals in 18 top-flight appearances under Kieran McKenna last season.

He has netted twice in 14 senior outings for Wales, with his first goal coming on debut against Croatia in 2023.

A new takeover deal has been agreed between Morecambe owners Bond Group and prospective buyers Panjab Warriors in a bid to save the beleaguered National League club.

The Shrimps are currently suspended from the league and had their first three games postponed because of concerns about the club’s ability to meet their financial obligations.

Panjab Warriors have previously had their takeover approved by the EFL in June, following the club’s relegation from League Two, but a chaotic summer has followed.

That has included Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy writing to owner Jason Whittingham urging him to sell the Shrimps, while Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer urged everyone involved with the club “to do the right thing”.

“It paves the way for continued stability and a positive future both on and off the pitch.

“Final legal documentation will now be prepared, with immediate steps being taken to inform key stakeholders, including the National League and the club’s management team.

Supporters’ group, the Shrimps Trust, said they understood “that sale and purchase agreements are in the process of being documented for submission to the National League”.

“This represents a significant step forward in the process,” the group said in a statement.

“While we remain cautious until the necessary approvals have been confirmed, all parties have verified this information with us, giving us some assurance that a resolution is in sight.”

Thursday’s announcement comes after the two parties agreed to a mediation session this week, after an initial session failed to take place.

Panjab Warriors, who have been trying to take over Morecambe for more than a year, were joined in a separate bid by businessman Jonny Cato in trying to mount a takeover.

Morecambe closed operations in late July, shortly after their suspension from the National League.

It is unclear from Thursday’s statement when Panjab Warriors’ takeover will be finalised, however.

“We would like to thank all of the staff at the club for their forbearance and can only apologise for the stress this has caused,” added the Bond Group.

Britain’s Matt Richardson and Will Bjergfelt set track cycling world records as Charlie Tanfield fell short in his bid to break the hour record in Konya, Turkey.

Richardson, 26, became the first cyclist to clock under nine seconds in the 200m flying start – doing so in an event set up with British Cycling backing to aim for a number of world records.

His time of 8.941 seconds lowered the time of 9.088 secs, set by Dutchman Harrie Lavreysen at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

“I came here to do that [go sub-nine seconds] and that’s what I did so, it’s a pretty cool feeling to accomplish the one thing that I came out here to do,” said Richardson.

“It was a lot faster [than I’ve previously ridden]. I was basically just a passenger.

“I gave the bike a bit of direction and it was just steering itself almost. I rode of lot of it outside the sprint lane, so I know there’s a bit more there.”

Earlier on Thursday, Bjergfelt, 46, established a new hour record in the C5 classification as he became the first para-cyclist in history go beyond 50km.

He rode a distance of 51.471km to beat the previous mark of 47.569km, set by Italy’s Andrea Tarlao in 2014.

“It’s not quite sunk in yet really,” said Bjergfelt.

“While I was going round the track and everyone was cheering at the end there, it started to hit home. I don’t think it’s quite hit home yet that I’ve smashed the world record on the track and that’s a dream come true.”

In 2015, Bjergfelt was involved in a head-on collision with a car which shattered his right leg and left him with a bleed on his brain.

Having previously ridden for UCI Continental teams, he was given a C5 para-cycling classification when he returned to the sport.

He subsequently became the first para-cyclist to compete in the Tour of Britain in 2021 and took gold in the C5 road race at the World Championships in 2023.

Tanfield was aiming to become the fourth British rider to hold the famous hour record since the UCI, cycling’s world governing body, unified the rules for the event in 2014.

He began preparing for his attempt shortly after last summer’s Paris Games where he won a silver medal as part of Great Britain’s team pursuit squad.

However, despite making a strong start, he was unable to eclipse the 56.792km distance covered by Filippo Ganna in October 2022.

The 28-year-old rode 53.967km during his attempt at 1,200m altitude – 750m higher than the velodrome in Grenchen, Switzerland where the Italian set his benchmark.

The Premier League returns this weekend as reigning champions Liverpool entertain Bournemouth at Anfield on Friday.

A thrilling opening weekend also includes Manchester United hosting Arsenal, before Leeds make their return to the top flight when they welcome Everton on Monday.

It has been a busy summer on and off the field, with Chelsea winning the Club World Cup in the United States after Manchester City went out in the last 16.

Ange Postecoglou said he always won a trophy in his second season in charge of a club and that prediction came true as he guided Tottenham to the Europa League thanks to a 1-0 win over Manchester United in Bilbao, Spain.

That came on 21 May, but it was not enough to keep the Australian in a job as he was sacked 16 days later – with Thomas Frank moving across London from Brentford to replace him.

The Bees then promoted Keith Andrews from set-piece coach to become their new boss.

Liverpool won the Premier League title in 2024-25 to become English champions for a record-equalling 20th time.

However, Arne Slot’s side have been the biggest spenders in the summer with Germany midfielder Florian Wirtz joining for an initial fee of £100m from Bayer Leverkusen, in a deal that could be worth £116m.

The Reds may be set to beat that club record transfer if they are able to sign striker Alexander Isak from Newcastle. Liverpool have also signed striker Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt, left-back Milos Kerkez from Bournemouth and right-back Jeremie Frimpong from Bayer Leverkusen.

Arsenal and Manchester United have both signed strikers as the Gunners bought Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting in a move worth a potential £64m, while United’s fee for Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig could reach £73.7m.

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal, runners-up in each of the past three seasons, have also purchased defensive midfielder Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad and winger Noni Madueke from Chelsea.

Other major moves have seen Manchester United bolster their attacking options with the signings of Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford and Matheus Cunha from Wolves. Chelsea have signed two strikers, Joao Pedro and Liam Delap, from Brighton and Ipswich Town respectively, and winger Jamie Gittens from Borussia Dortmund.

Leeds United and Burnley both reached 100 points in the Championship to finish in the top two and secure returns to the Premier League.

For the Clarets, they were only out of the top flight for one season, but will be hoping to stay in the division for more than one campaign after being relegated in 2021-22, promoted the following year, relegated in 2023-24 and then promoted again.

Leeds had been in the Championship for two seasons before winning the title in 2024-25. The third team to come up was Sunderland as they clinched a dramatic 2-1 play-off final win over Sheffield United at Wembley in May to return to the top tier for the first time since 2016-17.

Tom Watson, who scored the Black Cats’ 95th-minute winner, has since moved to Brighton while midfielder Jobe Bellingham has joined Borussia Dortmund.

However, the newly promoted trio have all spent big in an attempt to stay in the Premier League.

The biggest change means a goalkeeper holding the ball for more than eight seconds will be punished with a corner for the opposition.

It is hoped this will clamp down on time-wasting.

Until now the law had been six seconds and the punishment of an indirect free-kick – but it was barely ever applied.

Referees will warn the goalkeepers with a five-second countdown.

The new law applies across football as a whole and was seen in action at the Club World Cup.

Another change means only captains will be allowed to approach referees during Premier League matches this season.

Yellow cards can be shown to players who approach officials without permission and behave in a disrespectful manner.

If the captain is a goalkeeper, a team can provide an alternate player before kick-off.

Players will be allowed to retake a penalty if they accidental touch it twice while kicking it… so long as the effort went in.

The new law has already been used this summer in the Women’s European Championship final penalty shootout. England’s Beth Mead slipped with a double touch as she scored a penalty in the shootout against Spain – and had to retake it, with her second effort saved by keeper Cata Coll.

In December 2023, the Premier League agreed a new record £6.7bn domestic television deal for Sky and TNT to show up to 270 live games a season, with the BBC continuing to show highlights on Match of the Day.

The deal begins in 2025-26 and covers four years and was described as the “largest sports media rights deal ever concluded in the UK”.

The Saturday 3pm blackout will remain in place, but every 2pm Sunday kick-off will be televised.

Sky were awarded four of the five packages and will show a minimum of 215 matches a season, up from 128 games in 2024-25. That will include Saturday 5.30pm kick-offs, Sunday 2pm and 4.30pm kick-offs, plus evening games on Mondays and Fridays and three midweek rounds.

TNT will show a minimum of 52 matches a season including all 12.30pm kick-offs on Saturdays and two midweek match rounds.

Sky Sports will also broadcast all 10 matches on the final day of each season.

The Premier League will test out referee cameras in selected matches this season.

It is set to be trialled over six to eight weeks, with the idea to make the technology a permanent feature for the rest of the season. It is unlikely to be in place for the first match of the season.

Referees will wear cameras on their shirts during matches and have an ear-piece and microphone attached.

The idea of RefCam is to offer TV viewers a unique view of football action, but no controversial incidents will be shown.

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Brendan Rodgers is “hopeful” he will be able to add to his Celtic squad before the Champions League play-off tie with Kairat Almaty.

The Scottish Premiership winners host the Kazakh side in Wednesday’s first leg, with the return leg six days later.

Last term, Celtic reached the knockout phase play-off.

So far this summer, Rodgers has signed seven players, with three having featured so far this campaign.

“Hopefully would be the answer to that,” said Rodgers when asked about potential captures.

Rodgers pointed out the club have tended to do more business towards the end of transfer windows, with more than two weeks of the summer one still to run.

“I’m philosophical about it,” he added.

“What has gone unnoticed a little bit is that we’ve made a really good start – two really good wins [against St Mirren and Aberdeen], played well, I know we’ll get better.

“I can’t knock the performances over the two games to get the results. Sometimes that has been clouded a wee bit in all the negativity around the transfers. Hopefully, we can come out of the end of the market in a good place.”

Celtic defeated another Kazakh side, Astana, over two legs en route to the Champions League group stages in 2018, during Rodgers’ first spell as manager in Glasgow.

Commenting on the tie with Kairat and the 7,000-trip to Almaty in south-eastern Kazakhstan, Rodgers said: “Everyone would’ve preferred the closer team and not so much journey but it is what it is.

“We’ve been there before and the first leg we want to make a real push to set a standard in that game on Wednesday and we go there the following week and look to qualify. It’s such a huge game, big game and when it comes, we’ll be ready for it.”

Meanwhile, Rodgers is “fairly confident” last season’s top scorer Daizen Maeda will still be in his squad when the transfer window closes.

The 27-year-old Japan forward, who is yet to score this season, has two years remaining on his contract.

“There has been discussions and that going on in the background but I don’t have any updates on it,” Rodgers said, hinting at a possible new deal.