5 hours ago
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Alimentation Couche-Tard announced on Friday that it planned to buy Żabka, Poland's largest convenience retailer, for about $8.6 billion. If the deal goes through, Żabka's 13,000 stores in Poland and Romania would significantly bolster Couche-Tard's presence in the region.
But what's inside the stores may be just as important for the Canadian retailer. Key parts of the Polish retailer's business could support Core + More, the forward-looking strategy Couche-Tard rolled out earlier this year.
"This is a unique opportunity to invest in a business we deeply admire, one that is already operating at the leading edge of convenience in areas such as food, digital engagement, supply chain and innovation," said Alex Miller, president and CEO of Couche-Tard, in a presentation on Friday. He added, "many of the capabilities we believe will define the future of convenience already exist at scale within Żabka."
When an ******* yst asked if Couche-Tard would proliferate the best parts of Żabka across the rest of its footprint if the deal closed, Miller listed off areas where the European chain could help improve its business in North America and elsewhere.
#couche #business #miller
Alimentation Couche-Tard announced on Friday that it planned to buy Żabka, Poland's largest convenience retailer, for about $8.6 billion. If the deal goes through, Żabka's 13,000 stores in Poland and Romania would significantly bolster Couche-Tard's presence in the region.
But what's inside the stores may be just as important for the Canadian retailer. Key parts of the Polish retailer's business could support Core + More, the forward-looking strategy Couche-Tard rolled out earlier this year.
"This is a unique opportunity to invest in a business we deeply admire, one that is already operating at the leading edge of convenience in areas such as food, digital engagement, supply chain and innovation," said Alex Miller, president and CEO of Couche-Tard, in a presentation on Friday. He added, "many of the capabilities we believe will define the future of convenience already exist at scale within Żabka."
When an ******* yst asked if Couche-Tard would proliferate the best parts of Żabka across the rest of its footprint if the deal closed, Miller listed off areas where the European chain could help improve its business in North America and elsewhere.
#couche #business #miller
13 days ago
The New York Giants are opening their training camp with some good news.
While the team had to place three players on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list ahead of camp opening in West Virginia next week, none of them were star wide receiver Malik Nabers.
Nabers is recovering after undergoing a second surgery during the offseason, in the wake of last season's torn ACL. His status is among the biggest question marks going into this season, as the team has expressed hope he will be ready for Week 1.
Giants head coach John Harbaugh, however, has couched expectations by noting that Nabers' knee injury is "not simple."
Nabers landing on the PUP list would have been a bad sign for his availability, though avoiding it doesn't mean he's 100% healthy either. He's still making his way back and staying off the PUP list means he won't be restricted in practices.
#Giants #week #opening #camp
While the team had to place three players on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list ahead of camp opening in West Virginia next week, none of them were star wide receiver Malik Nabers.
Nabers is recovering after undergoing a second surgery during the offseason, in the wake of last season's torn ACL. His status is among the biggest question marks going into this season, as the team has expressed hope he will be ready for Week 1.
Giants head coach John Harbaugh, however, has couched expectations by noting that Nabers' knee injury is "not simple."
Nabers landing on the PUP list would have been a bad sign for his availability, though avoiding it doesn't mean he's 100% healthy either. He's still making his way back and staying off the PUP list means he won't be restricted in practices.
#Giants #week #opening #camp
1 month ago
It wasn’t just your eyes.
Sometimes, what we feel doesn’t necessarily correspond with reality. Football is an incredibly complicated sport, and 22 players are moving simultaneously on the field at the same time, so the difference between what we observe and what’s actually happening results-wise in any given play/game/season can sometimes be stark.
This is not one of those times.
If you think the Buffalo Bills defense was lousy in late-down situations in 2025, you’re not wrong. Every third-down given up and every fourth down given away led to a collective groan on social media, in the stands, and on couches across the world amongst Bills Mafia. But it wasn’t just a vibes-related phenomenon unsupported by actual data evidence; the Bills really were bad on late downs in 2025 and it’s one of the main things new defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard should be focused on as the team prepares for 2026.
Buffalo was 25th (worst) in EPA per play against their defense in late-down (defined as third and fourth downs) situations in 2025 per SumerSports. Their 0.10 mark in the metric was third-worst among playoff teams (only the Carolina Panthers and Pittsburgh Steelers were worse) and it came alongside a staggering 0.64 EPA per rush against (second worst in the league next to the New York Giants at 0.75). Third and short? No problem for teams running the ball against the Bills? Fourth and inches? Basically a gimme. Whether it was 11 personnel (0.60 EPA per rush on late downs) or 12 personnel (0.77), the Bills were generally ineffective on stopping opposing offenses on third and fourth downs, in large part to their ineffectiveness against the run.
Sometimes, what we feel doesn’t necessarily correspond with reality. Football is an incredibly complicated sport, and 22 players are moving simultaneously on the field at the same time, so the difference between what we observe and what’s actually happening results-wise in any given play/game/season can sometimes be stark.
This is not one of those times.
If you think the Buffalo Bills defense was lousy in late-down situations in 2025, you’re not wrong. Every third-down given up and every fourth down given away led to a collective groan on social media, in the stands, and on couches across the world amongst Bills Mafia. But it wasn’t just a vibes-related phenomenon unsupported by actual data evidence; the Bills really were bad on late downs in 2025 and it’s one of the main things new defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard should be focused on as the team prepares for 2026.
Buffalo was 25th (worst) in EPA per play against their defense in late-down (defined as third and fourth downs) situations in 2025 per SumerSports. Their 0.10 mark in the metric was third-worst among playoff teams (only the Carolina Panthers and Pittsburgh Steelers were worse) and it came alongside a staggering 0.64 EPA per rush against (second worst in the league next to the New York Giants at 0.75). Third and short? No problem for teams running the ball against the Bills? Fourth and inches? Basically a gimme. Whether it was 11 personnel (0.60 EPA per rush on late downs) or 12 personnel (0.77), the Bills were generally ineffective on stopping opposing offenses on third and fourth downs, in large part to their ineffectiveness against the run.
2 months ago
Today is Monday, January 15 and after six months of waiting, the English football transfer window has now officially opened! Premier League clubs are now free to purchase, sell, and formally register players for the upcoming 2026-27 season, which begins Saturday, August 22, 2026.
This is my favorite time of year. I love the summer transfer window, because it’s a time of unbridled optimism. It doesn’t matter what your club did last season, now is a time for future planning — new players in, other players out. The future stretches out before us like a reconstructed hamstring. It’s great!
It’s worth noting to people new to football or who are **** e to forget that the “transfer window” is a bit of misnomer. Technically, football clubs can sell or purchase players at any time during the season, or come to agreements to do so. We see this a lot, but these agreements are always couched with the phrase “when the window opens”. That’s because the transfer window is actually a registration window. Yes, you can purchase a player in October, but they won’t be able to register, train, or play for your club until the window opens. That also goes for player loans — there were a lot of comments about “recalling players” from loan during our injury crisis last season, or bringing in players at the very end to play who had finished their loans and returned home. Unfortunately, you can’t play a player until they’ve been registered with the team for that season, and loanees were registered with their loan clubs, not their parent clubs.
Tottenham Hotspur have already announced the signings of Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi, and those registrations will go through immediately today, making their signings officially OFFICIALLY official. There have been suggestions of full agreement with Manchester City winger Savinho, and the club might now make that official now that the window is formally open. And more players will certainly leave the club this summer. It’s an exciting time.
If you’re new to the sport and how things work, I’ll refer you to this excellent transfer window primer we published a few years back by Sean Cahill. It’s a nice summary of the window, how it works, and how player transfers, acquisitions, and loans function. You should check it out.
This is my favorite time of year. I love the summer transfer window, because it’s a time of unbridled optimism. It doesn’t matter what your club did last season, now is a time for future planning — new players in, other players out. The future stretches out before us like a reconstructed hamstring. It’s great!
It’s worth noting to people new to football or who are **** e to forget that the “transfer window” is a bit of misnomer. Technically, football clubs can sell or purchase players at any time during the season, or come to agreements to do so. We see this a lot, but these agreements are always couched with the phrase “when the window opens”. That’s because the transfer window is actually a registration window. Yes, you can purchase a player in October, but they won’t be able to register, train, or play for your club until the window opens. That also goes for player loans — there were a lot of comments about “recalling players” from loan during our injury crisis last season, or bringing in players at the very end to play who had finished their loans and returned home. Unfortunately, you can’t play a player until they’ve been registered with the team for that season, and loanees were registered with their loan clubs, not their parent clubs.
Tottenham Hotspur have already announced the signings of Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi, and those registrations will go through immediately today, making their signings officially OFFICIALLY official. There have been suggestions of full agreement with Manchester City winger Savinho, and the club might now make that official now that the window is formally open. And more players will certainly leave the club this summer. It’s an exciting time.
If you’re new to the sport and how things work, I’ll refer you to this excellent transfer window primer we published a few years back by Sean Cahill. It’s a nice summary of the window, how it works, and how player transfers, acquisitions, and loans function. You should check it out.
