This is no different to the app blackouts imposed by dictatorships elsewhere in the world.

GM Javokhir Sindarov now has 5.5 points our of a possible 6 in the Candidates tournament, 3 out of 3 with black. This is the equivalent of a bowler taking five wickets in an over, the sixth ball being a dot. In an Ashes decider. In other words, it barely makes sense. www.chess.com/events/2026-...

Wonderful news, and all the very, very best for the future to the fearless @mariaressa.bsky.social and the @rappler.bsky.social team.

I only rarely watch games on non-British networks these days, purely for reasons of convenience. To those who do, a question: do continental summarisers/commentators rely as much on the regurgitated figures and stats they've been fed before kick-off to keep going?

Wirtz - Ekitike is the kind of partnership you build a team around. Gorgeous to watch.

[after getting 8 likes on a post about Dracula having sex with Bigfoot] I love Bluesky, but this isn't sustainable

I reached 30k followers on Bluesky today, which is a significant threshold. It is less than one-fifth of the number I had on Twitter when I deleted my account there, but the level and quality of interaction here is so, so much better. So thank you for bearing up with me. x

Saw this beauty in the last section of the British Museum's superb "Samurai" exhibition. A poster commissioned by Fifa and designed by Tenmyouya Hisashi for the 2006 World Cup, which certainly beats the horrors now visited upon us thanks to Gianni Infantino.

Many thanks to all those who recommend I should buy/download records from the artists rather than stream them. Yes, I am aware of this. In fact- you can buy *my* records (sixteen albums and counting) here: louisphilippe1.bandcamp.com All tracks are streamable for free to start with. Bisous!

Ahead of the new season, Cricket Starter Packs Part 1 - the original go.bsky.app/Uq6tVD6 Part 2 - the follow-on go.bsky.app/12FSHyh *New for 2026* - England and Wales Domestic Cricket go.bsky.app/Ha3F5UP You don't have to be a member to follow. Recommendations welcome

Using Spotify is just as bad as using X, in some aspects, even more consequential: Spotify is actively killing music, not just exploiting musicians. All other streaming platforms are better, and have as wide a choice. Migrating your playlists is dead easy. Please leave that evil platform - now.

As patently absurd as Descartes's divagations on "animal machines", but borne out of ignorance, greed and self-justification, not a misguided sense of inquiry when confronted to an unknown.

New column, en français, for Eurosport. De Zerbi is adept at using chaos to his advantage when he creates it. How will he cope with the chaos he landed in? www.eurosport.fr/football/pre...

Enough. Enough. ENOUGH. inside.fifa.com/tournament-o...

What DJT wants is a MAGA version of Roland Freisler, who was deliciously crushed to death when the tribunal where he'd sent thousands to their deaths collapsed on him, as beautiful an act of divine retribution as history has kept track of.

This kind of footage is more difficult to defend than images of the victims of US and Israeli strikes in Iran and Lebanon. Public interest is zero, unlike the latter - which we do not get to see. We can be voyeurs, but we should be protected from the impact of what our countries do. Really?

These are strange times. All the people I talk to in the world of finance (including football finance) are terrified of letting others know how terrified they are. So everyone pretends nothing is happening. Yet everyone is trying to get out of that unholy mess asap, thinking no-one will notice?

Superb OSINT analysis by @bellingcat.com of the UAE's attempts to hide the true extent of the impact of Iranian strikes by drones and missiles on their infrastructure. A chilling read.

Hip hip hurrah! Congrats to everyone at the @sheffieldtribune.bsky.social

I wonder if this nonsense is put out by Marche with the sole purpose of generating publicity, provoking a (totally deserved) pile-on and then milk the attention to boost the sales of his putrid confections. Whatever it is, he can go do whatever he fancies with himself.

A true managerial great says goodbye to football at the grand old age of 80.

Happy birthday to one of the greatest. ❤️ This album gets me every time. A genuine emotional roller coaster. (Six years ago Gil Scott-Heron’s estate wanted me to direct a documentary about him. Wherever that project is today I hope and wish a heartfelt doc will be made.)

A terrific article, but one that, again, makes me wonder why Hollis has acquired an aura which is not commensurate to the quality of the music he actually produced, as if fans were fantasising about records he never made. Now donning tin hat and retreating to foxhole.

A thread which should be read in its entirety.

New, wild story for @josimarfootball.bsky.social, in collaboration with @bellingcat.com: how did a computer science academic from Zagreb end up representing illegal bookmaker Z6 when it signed a sponsorship deal with the Croatia national football team? josimarfootball.com/2026/04/01/m...

"Alexander Smith" was the representative of illegal bookmaker Z6 when they signed a deal with the Croatian national team. But "Alexander Smith" does not exist. So who is this man? A (wild) joint investigation by @josimarfootball.bsky.social and @bellingcat.com. josimarfootball.com/2026/04/01/m...

Thank you to all those who replied with mentions of similar initiatives abroad, especially in Australia, where it seems you can travel to your destination for free in most urban centres at the moment!

Today’s poem is about trying to get around the UK by train. It’s called ‘The Poet Now Standing at Platform 3A’. brianbilston.com/2026/03/31/a...

Lithuania's response to the hike in petrol prices: slashing train fares by half for two months.

Senegalese parliament votes in favour of a new law which punishes homosexuality ("unnatural acts") by sentences of five to ten years in prison. www.lemonde.fr/internationa...

Still time for Brian to do a hamstring and miss out on the trip.

NEW A failed military police investigation? The Afghan war crimes inquiry continues to throw light on alleged crimes by UK special forces and their possible cover-up By me, at @prospectmagazine.co.uk www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/law/th...

That'll go down well. www.skysports.com/football/new...

Great to have cricket tragic, grandmaster and three-time candidate for the world title @polborta.bsky.social analysing the current Candidates tournament on Bluesky. A must-follow for all lovers of the game on this platform.

Grim but necessary read on the forthcoming 2026 World Cup, by @amnesty.org. This link will take you to the full version of the report. www.amnesty.org/en/documents...

"Every week, hundreds of people line up to fill a plastic container with food in an unlikely place: the humble ​home where Argentine soccer legend Diego Armando Maradona was born". With thanks to @christianrad.com for the heads-up. www.reuters.com/sports/socce...

Absolute disgrace to see that the first item on the agenda of the gaming industry's big SBC jamboree in Lisbon will be a discussion on the opportunities offered by the - mostly illegal - African market.

Magnifique, this, by social psychology lecturer Eric La Blanche for @liberation.fr. A "con" is not a "connard", and Trump is the latter. www.liberation.fr/idees-et-deb...

David Squires on … Roy Hodgson staying down with the kids on his return to Bristol City

Ah, Les Cactus...As famously mentioned by the Général de Gaulle in a press conference.

Today's chess puzzle in The Times. White to play and draw, the best that can be hoped for in such a position. Not that easy a first move to find at all, but a beautiful one. Clue: it is all about interference.

I wonder if @barcajim3.bsky.social is aware of the existence of this account and, if yes, if he has ever been involved in attempts of statistical manipulation.

By @sportingintel.bsky.social for @playthegame-org.bsky.social. "Use burner phones. Beware of your social media. Have contingency plans". In Trump’s America, nothing can be ruled out.

Superb investigation, laying bare how Britain is happy to take its cut of the proceeds of crime.

A catastrophic move, the impact of which would be immeasurable. That madman is pressing all the wrong buttons. Well, let's not hope *all* of them.

FIFA World Cup 2026: In Trump’s America, nothing can be ruled out. A piece for @playthegame_org about this summer's tournament. www.playthegame.org/news/fifa-wo...

Getting ready to chat with Hawksbee & Jacobs about one Kylian Mbappé on @talksport.com. Many thanks for having me, gents!

“Police say there were regular attempts to steal KitKats prior to 2001, but they were all foiled.”

And that was lovely. A double for Doué, but it's all about Akliouche, Cherki and Thuram combining, first touch, fluid, efficient, gorgeous.