Belfast Wolves CEO Neil Maxwell believes the new European T20 Premier League is a "wonderful opportunity" to grow the game across the continent.
A former Fiji international who played his club cricket in Australia and New Zealand, Maxwell has observed the success of the Indian Premier League [IPL] and feels the ETPL can make a similar mark in Europe with non-traditional cricket nations.
The fledgling competition will see six teams, two from each of Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands, battle it out of four weeks to be crowned winners with top team after the round robin advancing to the final, while second will play third to join them.
It all begins on 26 August with Voorburg, Netherlands hosting the first phase before the action moves to Malahide in Dublin from 9 September, all culminating in the final on 20 September.
"It's a way for grassroots cricket to connect with international cricket and an opportunity to bring top-class players to Europe to expose the game to everyone," Maxwell told BBC Sport NI.

#Cricket #league #Europe #international

Halle Berry proved she's embracing 60 in style as she shared another series of stunning snaps from her idyllic tropical getaway.
The Oscar-winning actress, who celebrated her milestone birthday on Friday, August 14 2026, looked incredible in a floaty, semi-sheer white gown as she soaked up a spectacular sunset during her vacation in Fiji.
Halle's barely-there halter-neck dress featured dramatically low-cut sides and an open back, with the lightweight fabric falling loosely to the ground as she strolled barefoot across the sand.
Halle looked stunning in a barely-there white gown (@ Instagram)
In one beautiful shot, the Monster's Ball star sat on a floral blanket with the ocean and golden sunset behind her, smiling towards the camera as she showed off her newly cropped brunette bob.

#looked

Ariana Madix has come a long way from slinging ****** tails at SUR: The Love Island USA host recently landed her first Emmy nomination for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program.
"It felt very surreal," Madix, 41, said of the nomination, according to an article Marie Claire published on Monday, August 3. "It's really going to hit when we start scheduling things closer to the Emmys. Whenever they do billboards for Love Island, I'm always [in Fiji]. If they do something to promote this, I'll probably get very emotional."
Madix has already expanded her résumé beyond reality TV, making her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in Chicago and landing a guest role as Dr. Emerson on NBC's comedy St. Denis Medical. With new opportunities continuing to open up, she is already thinking about what comes next.
"What are the loftiest goals possible? EGOT status is probably the biggest," Madix said, per the outlet.
An EGOT is one of the entertainment industry's most prestigious achievements, earned by artists who have won all four major entertainment awards: an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony.

#host

Nic Vansteenberghe is speaking out about his split from Olandria Carthen, publicly confirming what fans had been speculating about for days.
On Sunday, Vansteenberghe posted to his subscribers-only TikTok account to address the breakup directly. "The rumors are true. I didn't want to give people false hope, so I want to clear the air," he wrote, according to PEOPLE. "We will continue to love each other ALWAYS. It's a sensitive, as well as a private subject, thank you for respecting our privacy."
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PEOPLE reported the split on July 22, reporting the two had parted ways just over a year after leaving Fiji together as runners-up on Love Island USA Season 7. A source told the outlet that distance and packed schedules made the relationship difficult to sustain, but added that the two "still remain close friends" who share "a deep love and respect for each other."
After the show, the two kept their relationship closely guarded. Carthen explained in a June 2026 Cosmopolitan interview: "When you really care about something, you keep it very sacred and close to you." Both had spoken openly about the stress of navigating public attention, with Vansteenberghe telling Glamour in December 2025 that it felt like they were "damned if you do, ***** ed if you don't" when it came to sharing their lives online.

#relationship #close

Team Northern Ireland boxers Michaela Walsh, Kaci Rock and Jon McConnell won their respective semi-finals to move into Saturday's gold medal bouts.
Walsh defeated Fiji's Jasmine Daunakamakama in the women's featherweight by unanimous decision.
The 33-year-old edged a cagey first round with her experience telling in the next two rounds which she also won as she eased to victory.
The Holy Family fighter, who has earned a medal in each of her four successive Games appearances, will look to win back-to-back golds after triumphing four years ago, having won silver in Glasgow in 2014 and at the Gold Coast Games in 2018.
She will face India's Jaismine Jaismine in the final, but plans to enjoy her semi-final win which guarantees at least another silver, by completing her Irish lesson for the day on the language app Duolingo.

#four #final

Team Northern Ireland boxers Michaela Walsh and Kaci Rock won their respective semi-finals to move into Saturday's gold medal bouts.
Walsh defeated Fiji's Jasmine Daunakamakama in the women's featherweight by unanimous decision.
The 33-year-old edged a cagey first round with her experience telling in the next two rounds which she also won as she eased to victory.
The Holy Family fighter, who has earned a medal in each of her four successive Games appearances, will look to win back-to-back golds after triumphing four years ago, having won silver in Glasgow in 2014 and at the Gold Coast Games in 2018.
She will face India's Jaismine Jaismine in the final, but plans to enjoy her semi-final win which guarantees at least another silver, by completing her Irish lesson for the day on the language app Duolingo.

#walsh #games #Gold #silver

Team Northern Ireland boxer Kaci Rock won her women's welterweight semi-final against Scotland's Caitlyn Rainey by split decision after a ferocious fight.
The 23-year-old had work to do after losing the first round at the SEC Centre but she fought back well in a much-tighter second round and pressed on in the third to take a narrow 3-2 victory.
Rock will now move through to Saturday's final for the chance to come away from her first Commonwealth Games with a gold medal, but she is at least guaranteed a silver.
She was the first of five Team NI boxers looking to upgrade on the bronze they have already won.
Michaela Walsh will fight next when she takes on Fiji's Jasmine Daunakamakama in the women's featherweight at 14:30 BST.

#first #fight #round

Love Island USA season 7 alums Clarke Carraway and Taylor Williams have split, PEOPLE confirms
A source close to Carraway says she "made the difficult decision" to separate from Williams, who she coupled up with in Casa Amor last summer
"As she closes out this chapter, she's looking forward to focusing on her growth and what's ahead," the source says
Another Love Island USA season 7 couple has called it quits.
PEOPLE can exclusively confirm that Clarke Carraway and Taylor Williams have separated just over a year after they left the Fiji villa together.

#carraway #source

Michaela Walsh delivered a punch-perfect display to guarantee herself at least bronze, dominating Scotland's Lara Brown in their featherweight quarter-final, but Caitlin Fryers bowed out in the flyweight division.
The defending Commonwealth Games champion put on an exhibition of counter-punching to win every round on all five cards, sweeping into Friday's semi-final where she will face Fiji's Jasmine Daunakamakama.
It is Walsh's fourth Commonwealth Games and the Holy Family fighter has now medalled in each, winning gold four years ago with silvers in 2018 and 2014.
However, it's performance rather than podium which is driving the 33-year-old this time.
"Medals don't define happiness," Walsh told BBC Sport NI.

#michaela

Jason Banks made it two wins from two in the men's singles on a mixed day for Team Scotland in the bowls at the SEC Centre.
Former world number one, Banks, backed up his first group game win on Thursday with another straight sets victory, this time against Pakistan's Mohammed 'Chico' Qureshi - who runs an Indian restaurant in Glasgow.
The 30-year-old stormed to a 16-2 win in the first set, scooping up two full-houses of four bowls in a single end along the way, before a tighter 7-3 victory in the second set.
Banks faces Fiji and Wales over the weekend, before rounding off his Group C campaign against England on Monday morning.
The women's pairs endured the mixed emotions of the tie-break on their first day of action.

#jason

England's young stars Henry Pollock and Noah Caluori are targeting starting for their country after scoring tries in Saturday's 73-8 thrashing of Fiji.
Pollock, 21, claimed a hat-trick after being introduced as a 48th-minute replacement at Hill ****** inson Stadium, while 19-year-old Caluori, making his debut off the bench, set up a score for Henry Slade before diving over himself.
"A big thing for me at the minute is wanting to get that starting shirt," said Pollock, who has started only once in 12 Test appearances for England.
"Steve [Borthwick] said to me before the Fiji game to just go out there and be myself. I hope I did that and hope he saw enough in me."
Pollock acknowledged that England's strength in depth is "crazy good" with Ollie Chessum, Tom Curry, Guy Pepper and Ben Earl also vying for position in the back row.

Josh Adams believes Wales' daunting Nations Championship fixture against South Africa will be the litmus test of their progress under Steve Tandy.
The Welsh squad have travelled to Durban for their final game of the 2025-26 season after suffering a 35-21 defeat by Argentina in San Juan.
Wales took on the Pumas after wins against Italy in the Six Nations and Fiji in the Nations Championship opener, either side of a success against the Barbarians in an uncapped fixture.
They were given a reality check by Argentina and now face the toughest challenge of all when going up against the world champions at Kings Park on Saturday (16:40 BST).
"There's probably no harder test," admitted wing Adams. "It's certainly something that will test this group and it'll probably answer a lot of questions about where we are.

Scrum-half Raffi Quirke has been called into the England squad for their Nations Championship match against Argentina next Saturday.
Quirke, who has signed for Newcastle Red Bulls after moving from Sale Sharks, is a replacement for the injured Alex Mitchell, who was forced off with a hamstring injury in Saturday's 73-8 win over Fiji in Liverpool
The 24-year-old also replaced Mitchell in this year's Six Nations squad when Mitchell was again ruled out through injury.
Quirke has two international caps, becoming England's youngest scrum-half in more than 90 years when he made his debut in 2021.
He also lined out for an England XV against a France XV in a Nations Championship warm-up in France last month.

So that was the reality check most were expecting for Wales.
After back-to-back Test wins against Italy and Fiji, facing Argentina away in San Juan seemed maybe a step too far.
That is how it worked out as the Pumas scored five tries and were more than good value for their 35-21 victory.
Scotland's win in Argentina had given Steve Tandy's side some hope of an upset but this was a different Pumas outfit.
Wales showed no shortage of spirit to stay in the game and give themselves a chance of a pair of bonus points, with this result an improvement on the 52-28 hammering dished out by the Pumas in November 2025 in Cardiff.

The second round of the Nations Championship games brought more high-scoring matches and drama.
Scotland ran South Africa close in a 10-try thriller in Pretoria, Henry Pollock scored a hat-trick as England thrashed Fiji in Liverpool, while Ireland secured a bonus-point win over **** an.
Will Jordan became New Zealand's record try-scorer with a hat-trick in his side's hammering of Italy and France showed their class to ease past Australia.
Argentina made three wins for each hemisphere by beating Wales 35-21 in San Juan.
What is the Nations Championship? Who is winning? And when is next round of fixtures?

"Who else?"
When Jude Bellingham scored an injury-time equaliser against Slovakia to keep England in Euro 2024, the midfielder raced towards the stands shouting that phrase in celebration.
Henry Pollock chose Bellingham's more familiar outstretched-arms celebration to mark his hat-trick in England's 73-8 rout of Fiji, but there was that same feeling of inevitability.
Former England wing Chris Ashton, commentating for BBC Radio 5 Live, had already predicted it.
"A Pollock hat-trick would be a nice way to end this game," said Ashton on air as England prepared for a last-minute line-out just outside the Fiji 22m.

Men's international rugby gets a new look with the launch of the Nations Championship reshaping the July and November Test windows.
The new competition pits the Six Nations sides against the four Rugby Championship competitors, plus **** an and Fiji, across six matches split evenly between the two months.
The results of those games will determine each of the 12 teams' seedings for the finals weekend at Twickenham's Allianz Stadium, with six matches contested over two days and both team and hemisphere silverware up for grabs.
Each entrant will be matched against the equivalent qualifier from the other pool to decide overall placings at the conclusion of a busy year of international action.
Here's the full competition schedule, and how it will all work:

LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — England mollified its critics for a week after smothering a dismal Fiji by a record 73-8 in Nations Championship rugby on Saturday.
Relevant questions about England's lineup, tactics and attitude after the hammering from world champion South Africa in Johannesburg last weekend were pacified somewhat by coming home and posting an equally unsurprising 11-try win against outclassed Fiji.
Fiji struggled for possession and could not handle England's scrum, maul and defense. Under pressure, Fiji conceded 12 penalties — nine by halftime — and a red card to scrumhalf Simione Kuruvoli for lashing out with his boot into the stomach of Ellis Genge.
That meant Fiji played the entire second half down a man and England could play wider and be ruthless. Up 35-3 at halftime, England added six more tries, including a hat trick for replacement flanker Henry Pollock. Fin Smith converted nine.
England tallied a record score against Fiji and its biggest win since beating Chile 71-0 in Lille at the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

Men's international rugby gets a new look with the launch of the Nations Championship reshaping the July and November Test windows.
The new competition pits the Six Nations sides against the four Rugby Championship competitors, plus ****** an and Fiji, across six matches split evenly between the two months.
The results of those games will determine each of the 12 teams' seedings for the finals weekend at Twickenham's Allianz Stadium, with six matches contested over two days and both team and hemisphere silverware up for grabs.
Each entrant will be matched against the equivalent qualifier from the other pool to decide overall placings at the conclusion of a busy year of international action.
Here's the full competition schedule, and how it will all work:

Steve Borthwick has insisted he feels the England supporters' "hurt and pain" as he accepted the scrutiny on his position ahead of a crucial clash with Fiji rugby.
Borthwick's side have lost their last five games, a run that encompassed their worst Six Nations campaign and continued in last week's Nations Championship opener against South Africa.
England were last beaten in six successive Tests in 2006, a run that led to the resignation of Andy Robinson later that year, and face a tough trip to take on Argentina in Santiago del Estero next weekend.
It makes the encounter with Fiji at Everton's Hill ******* inson Stadium vital, with a near-capacity crowd expected in Liverpool for a rare England outing in the north.
Having recalled his first trip to see the side face the All Blacks at Old Trafford as a child, Borthwick embraced the pressure that comes with his position as he seeks an improved showing form his squad.

Centre Henry Slade, who did not play a minute of England's Six Nations campaign earlier this year, has been recalled to the starting line-up to face Fiji on Saturday as head coach Steve Borthwick attempts to avoid a sixth successive Test defeat.
Slade, 33, has previously admitted that he was frustrated to be out of England's midfield equation. He finished the domestic season in excellent form, leading Exeter to the Prem final.
His return means Northampton's Tommy Freeman is deployed in his more accustomed wing position after a year-long experiment to convert him into an outside centre.
Guy Pepper replaces Tom Curry at openside flanker in the other change to the starting XV, while the uncapped trio of Benhard Janse van Rensburg, Noah Caluori and George Kloska are poised to make their Test debuts off the bench.
———————————————————

Men’s international rugby gets a new look with the launch of the Nations Championship reshaping the July and November Test windows.
The new competition pits the Six Nations sides against the four Rugby Championship competitors, plus ******* an and Fiji, across six matches split evenly between the two months.
The results of those games will determine each of the 12 teams’ seedings for the finals weekend at Twickenham’s Allianz Stadium, with six matches contested over two days and both team and hemisphere silverware up for grabs.
Each entrant will be matched against the equivalent qualifier from the other pool to decide overall placings at the conclusion of a busy year of international action.
Here’s the full competition schedule, and how it will all work:

Virimi Vakatawa, who could make his Fiji debut against England on Saturday (14:10 BST), says he never dared to believe he would play international rugby again after a heart condition brought an abrupt end to his 32-cap France career
The 34-year-old centre was barred from playing in France in September 2022 after a panel of doctors said that his cardiac health had deteriorated, leaving him too vulnerable to play elite sport in the country.
While the decision ruled out any return as a key part of France's midfield – where he started the 2019 Rugby World Cup quarter-final against Wales and was a Six Nations regular - it only applied domestically.
Vakatawa played for Bristol for a season, after being reviewed by the Bears' own experts, and signed for the Fijian Drua in January.
He has been called into Fiji's squad as a replacement for Semi Radradra, who injured his knee in defeat by Wales on Saturday.

Wales will arrive in Argentina tired but buoyed by their 39-24 win against Fiji at the Cardiff City Stadium.
It represented a second consecutive international success following the Six Nations finale victory against Italy, and a third successive win including the 33-31 uncapped success against Barbarians.
So what can Steve Tandy's side take from the victory at a half-full Cardiff City Stadium when it comes to trying to tame the Pumas in San Juan on Saturday?
Argentina might have just lost 47-38 at home to Scotland but Wales will remember the 52-28 heavy loss to Felipe Contepomi's side in Cardiff in November 2025.
BBC Sport Wales looks at what Welsh rugby would have learned on and off the field from the victory against Fiji.

Men’s international rugby gets a new look with the launch of the Nations Championship reshaping the July and November Test windows.
The new competition pits the Six Nations sides against the four Rugby Championship competitors, plus ****** an and Fiji, across six matches split evenly between the two months.
The results of those games will determine each of the 12 teams’ seedings for the finals weekend at Twickenham’s Allianz Stadium, with six matches contested over two days and both team and hemisphere silverware up for grabs.
Each entrant will be matched against the equivalent qualifier from the other pool to decide overall placings at the conclusion of a busy year of international action.
Here’s the full competition schedule, and how it will all work:

Ireland and Wales won their Nations Championship openers against Australia and Fiji, while England were comfortably beaten by South Africa at Ellis Park.
New Zealand edged out France in Christchurch while ***** an beat Italy as the new tournament got under way on Saturday.
Scotland are playing Argentina in the final match of the opening round.
What is the Nations Championship? Who is winning? And when is next round of fixtures?
The Nations Championship pits the northern hemisphere teams who compete in the Six Nations - England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France and Italy - against southern hemisphere giants South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and Argentina, plus invited sides Fiji and ***** an.

A fifth Test defeat in a row for England and little evidence of the great reset promised ahead of this Nations Championship opener after their humbling Six Nations campaign. South Africa, in what was their first game since last November, ran in seven tries in a statement victory that ramps up the pressure again on Steve Borthwick and leaves so many questions hanging in the air.
England will arrive back in London on Monday morning, with just six days to prepare for the game against Fiji in Liverpool, knowing that another defeat will not be acceptable.
Losing to South Africa at high altitude at Ellis Park, a mile above sea level, is one thing, losing to Fiji on ‘home’ turf in the seaside port would be a different story altogether.
Once again discipline let Borthwick’s side down, just as it did so often during the Six Nations, as they finished the contest with 13 men following yellow cards for Tommy Freeman and Guy Pepper, and South Africa turned the scoreline into the rout they had promised from early in the first half, finishing with tries by Malcolm Marx and Ben-Jason Dixon.
There was a lack of ruthlessness in England’s finishing, too, and at times they were simply out-powered by the relentless physicality of a Springboks side who were playing their first game together since last November. South Africa were easily able to seize on defensive lapses.

Men’s international rugby gets a new look with the launch of the Nations Championship reshaping the July and November Test windows.
The new competition pits the Six Nations sides against the four Rugby Championship competitors, plus **** an and Fiji, across six matches split evenly between the two months.
The results of those games will determine each of the 12 teams’ seedings for the finals weekend at Twickenham’s Allianz Stadium, with six matches contested over two days and both team and hemisphere silverware up for grabs.
Each entrant will be matched against the equivalent qualifier from the other pool to decide overall placings at the conclusion of a busy year of international action.
Here’s the full competition schedule, and how it will all work:

Every rugby supporter loves watching Fiji.
Ask the players, and they might tell you a different story.
From Waisale Serevi weaving through impossible gaps to Rupeni Caucaunibuca leaving defenders clutching at air, and from the raw power of Semi Radradra and Josua Tuisova to generations of fearless runners willing to attack from anywhere on the field, no nation has blurred the line between beauty and brutality quite like Fiji.
Former Wales captain Sam Warburton once described the 2015 Rugby World Cup meeting as the toughest match of his career. Wales won that day, but only after surviving an 80-minute collision with one of rugby's most unique teams.
The two nations have met only 15 times in official Tests, yet almost every meeting has produced a moment that has become part of rugby folklore.

Finn Russell will not feature in Scotland's opening Nations Championship match of the summer series but could feature against South Africa, says head coach Gregor Townsend, who welcomes back Jonny Gray.
Fly-half Russell, 33, has not fully recovered from the calf injury that kept him out of the latter part of Bath's domestic campaign and was not considered for the match at Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes in Cordoba on Saturday (20:10 BST). The Scots face the Springboks in Pretoria on 11 July then Fiji at Murrayfield on 18 July.
Tom Jordan starts at 10 in Russell's absence, with Fergus Burke among the replacements.
Gray returns against the Pumas, having missed this year's Six Nations, while fellow lock Scott ***** s, 29, and prop Pierre Schoeman, 32, will win their 50th caps.
"Great for [Jonny Gray] to be back in the squad," said Townsend. "Since his move to Perpignan, he's played very well so his form's been rewarded with this opportunity. It's nice obviously nice that him and Scott ***** s are playing together.