It’s no secret that the beauty industry is responsible for setting unrealistic standards; find out why

As the women’s game in England continues to grow, so do transfer fees with one Women’s Super League manager describing this summer’s window as “wild” following plenty of big spending. Fifa reported three million US dollars (£2.4m) was spent during the 2023 mid-year transfer window, which was double the amount (£983,000) that women’s clubs outlay across the globe in 2022. While the spending in women’s football is far behind the sums chucked around in the men’s game, the past 12 months in particular has seen spending rise rapidly as more funds are used following a golden period for the Lionesses. The success of Sarina Wiegman’s team at the Euros and this summer’s World Cup has contributed towards the WSL going from strength to strength, with clubs from the division involved in eight of the top-10 transfers in the world. Four of the biggest signings in women’s football occurred this summer with Arsenalreportedly spending more than £300k to sign Australian Kyra Cooney-Cross from Hammarby on transfer deadline day and title rivals Manchester City bringing in Jill Roord from Wolfsburg for a similar amount. Keira Walsh’s £400k move from City to Barcelona last summer remains the record transfer in women’s football, but Arsenal threatened to break that in January when they launched an ambitious attempt to prize away Alessia Russo from Manchester United. United stood strong and turned down a bid close to the £500k mark, but forward Russo signed on a free for Arsenal this summer anyway, with the Gunners not content there and adding World Cup star Cooney-Cross into the mix before they conceded defeat in a pursuit of England goalkeeper Mary Earps. “This has been by far the strongest window for WSL as a league that I have ever experienced,” Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall said. Eidevall is not alone in that assessment and, while City were happy just to bring in Roord, the other members of the big four flexed their muscles. The Red Devils made four signings on transfer deadline day alone, bringing in World Cup golden boot winner Hinata Miyazawa and they shelled out around £250k on Brazil forward Geyse from Barcelona. Chelsea raided France for Ashley Lawrence and Catarina Macario from Paris St Germain and Lyon respectively. Meanwhile, forward Mia Fishel signed from Tigres for in excess of £150k to boost a squad full of stars with Emma Hayes’ side eager to take the final step in the Champions League. Liverpool manager Matt Beard admitted: “You just look at Chelsea’s transfer window and it’s ridiculous. They will have players in there who won’t even be named in their 25-player squad. “We’re still a way from the top teams in regards to expenditure. You just need to look at the Alessia Russo deal and Arsenal looking to spend another record fee on Mary Earps etc. There is still a big gap.” It would be inaccurate to state only the big four were spending in the WSL, though after Tottenham showed their ambition - and fear of relegation - when they parted with £250k to sign Bethany England from Chelsea in January. England immediately flourished, which meant Spurs’ gamble to sign a player for a British record fee paid off after they avoided relegation. The £250k transfer remains the highest between WSL clubs but the other mid-table teams have enjoyed productive summers with Leicester making Janina Leitzig’s move from Bayern Munich permanent. Liverpool broke their club record to bring in forward Sophie Roman Haug, while Brighton convinced two-time Champions League winner Pauline Bremer to swap Wolfsburg for the south coast and Everton made several signings after losing Gabby George to Manchester United in a £150k deadline-day deal. Managerial changes at Tottenham and West Ham saw both make some shrewd additions and newly-promoted Bristol City opted for quantity over quality. Perhaps the winners of the transfer window were Aston Villa, who purchased Ebony Salmon, Adriana Leon and Netherlands stopper Daphne Van Domselaar alongside keeping Rachel Daly. However, Villa boss Carla Ward remains perplexed by the numbers being discussed this summer, even if it shows little sign of slowing. “It’s wild. If you think about a few years ago when players were paying to play and now one transfer of Bethany England going for £250k has inflated everyone’s prices,” Ward explained. “We need to continue to grow off the pitch and transfer fees have to be in line with that. “Some of the transfer fees branded around this summer were quite ridiculous. We got offered a crazy amount for one of our players. “You have gone from your £50k, £60k or £100k bands, to £400k for Keira Walsh which for me is OK because she’s the best midfielder in the world. “But when you’re talking about £400k or £500k for players not at that level, it’s mind-blowing.” Baroness Sue Campbell, the FA director of women’s football, promised some future limits on spending. She said: “The club’s themselves have agreed that we need some cost controls because otherwise, all the money that comes in, ends up getting spent on salaries. “The women’s game requires a lot more investment in infrastructure, a lot more investment in other things.” PA Read More Changes on and off the pitch as a new era approaches for Women’s Super League Aston Villa women ‘dreading’ WSL opener due to ‘wet kit’ design error 5 Women’s Super League players to look out for this season Changes on and off the pitch as a new era approaches for Women’s Super League 5 Women’s Super League players to look out for this season Man City become first WSL club to announce stadium naming rights deal

The Biden administration believes that a Chinese hacking operation which breached US government email systems, including the State Department, gave the Chinese government insights about US thinking heading into Secretary of State Antony Blinken's trip to Beijing in June, according to two US officials.

My mother would say the atrocities are the result of not striving for peace, he tells Jeremy Bowen.

Warren Gatland has again underlined his coaching credentials by leading Wales into a fourth successive World Cup quarter-final, introducing a much-needed clarity to transform a misfiring team into contenders...

Shohei Ohtani is warming up to the East Coast, and now thought to be in-play for a playoff team that could get pushed over the top if they add him.

Five months after scoring the winning penalty in the World Cup final Gonzalo Montiel converted the clinching spot kick in the Europa League final to earn Sevilla a seventh title in the competition at the expense of Jose Mourinho’s Roma

Survivors of Nazi atrocities have joined young Jewish activists in Paris to sound the alarm about resurgent antisemitic hate speech, graffiti and abuse linked to the Israel-Hamas war

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct 12, 2023--

BET won’t be sold after all: Paramount Global decided against selling the majority stake of the network

The office of Special Counsel Jack Smith has argued in a motion that there’s “no valid basis” for Judge Tanya Chutkan to recuse herself after Donald Trump’s legal team argued that she should leave the case because of statements she made when sentencing January 6 rioters. “There is no valid basis, under the relevant law and facts, for the Honorable Tanya S. Chutkan, United States District Judge for the District of Columbia, to disqualify herself in this proceeding,” the special counsel’s office wrote in a 20-page filing on Thursday. “In service of his motion (ECF No. 50) seeking the Court’s recusal, the defendant both takes out of context the Court’s words from prior judicial proceedings and misstates the proper legal standards governing judicial recusals.” The special counsel added that Mr Trump “has failed to identify anything approaching the clear and convincing evidence necessary to overcome the presumption of impartiality”. The office argued that Mr Trump was using “suggestion and innuendo to insinuate something sinister in the Court simply doing its job by addressing sentencing arguments”. More follows...

TNT Sports’ football coverage will be led by four female presenters in the new season as it seeks to “push the boundaries” of sports broadcasting. TNT Sports replaces BT Sport from Tuesday, with Laura Woods confirmed as host of its Champions League coverage alongside Reshmin Chowdhury. Jake Humphrey, who fronted BT’s Champions League coverage last season, announced he was stepping back from his role in May. Lynsey Hipgrave will continue to host live Premier League coverage on TNT Sports, having done so since the start of last season, while Jules Breach replaces Des Kelly as the broadcaster’s pitchside reporter. Ally McCoist joins the TNT punditry line-up for Premier League and Champions League matches, which will still feature the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Peter Crouch and Joe Cole. “We do want to be contemporary, we do want to be bold, we definitely want to push the boundaries of what sports broadcasting has been in this market over the previous years,” Andrew Georgiou, the president and managing director of Warner Bros Discovery Sports Europe, said. “It’s a really good opportunity for us to reflect on what’s happened and it’s almost like, ‘Okay, we’ve got a moment in time to refresh and rethink’.” The rebrand follows the completion of a deal in September last year to form a joint venture that combines the assets of BT Sport and Eurosport UK. We do want to be contemporary, we do want to be bold, we definitely want to push the boundaries of what sports broadcasting has been in this market over the previous years Andrew Georgiou From Tuesday, TNT Sports is available to stream via the discovery+ platform. UK subscribers with a premium plan will be able to access TNT Sports and Eurosport via the discovery+ platform, allowing them to watch both networks’ live sport in the same place as well as discovery+ entertainment content. The cost of the premium plan is £29.99 a month, the same as was previously charged for the BT Sport Monthly Pass. Eurosport’s live rights include the Olympic Games and the Tour de France. Georgiou said TNT Sports would be keenly focused on the Premier League’s invitation to tender for its next set of domestic television rights later this year. “We are a premium sports broadcaster and our 100 per cent stated ambition is to remain a premium sports broadcaster, and reviewing our rights portfolio to make sure that remains (the case) is in the bullseye of our agenda,” he said. “We look at everything that comes up. Obviously the Premier League tender is up at the end of the year. That is a key part of our rights portfolio and something we’re focused on.” The PA news agency understands the new domestic offering will feature at least 60 more live matches than the current deal but split into a smaller number of packages available for broadcasters to buy, from the current seven down to five.