Friday night, partly cloudy skies this evening. Increasing clouds with periods of showers late. Low 51F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%. Saturday, sunshine and clouds mixed. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 71F. Winds light…
Friday night, rain showers this evening with overcast skies overnight. Low 48F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%. Saturday, cloudy skies with a few showers later in the day. High near 60F. Winds SSW at…
As a record number of Americans hit the road for the Fourth of July, Alaskans are celebrating in their own unique ways—from beach trips and backyard fireworks to the famous Glacier View car launch. Safety remains a top priority, with…
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas has participated in three Super Bowl parades and one World Series parade celebrating his hometown Chiefs and Royals.
None compared to when Netherlands fans marched through downtown Kansas City, Missouri, ahead of their team’s June 25 game at Arrowhead Stadium.
“It is special and different,” Lucas said, with a politician’s reluctance to get on the wrong side of a beloved hometown team.
Kansas City will host its knockout round game Friday: a match between Colombia and Ghana. Lucas was instrumental in making it happen, a key player in Kansas City’s bid to bring the World Cup to Missouri. Now he is basking in the moment — dancing to “Links Recht” with the Dutch, waving around an Ecuadorian flag and dancing with Mexican fans.
Like nearly every host city, Kansas City faced criticism ahead of the games over the challenging logistics of herding thousands of fans to a stadium that’s used to tailgaters instead of international tourists, the sky-high price of tickets and underwhelming hotel bookings.
Those concerns appear to have dissipated with the arrival of thousands of fans, which brought forth a cultural exchange that inspired the University of Kansas marching band to memorize the Algerian national anthem; caused Boston cops to stand by as Scotsmen decorated the city’s statues with traffic cones; and left Frenchmen puzzled as to why “Go Birds” comes at the end of interactions in Philly.
“I think it’s a huge win for us,” Lucas said. “I know there’s some discourse and scuttlebutt on the wisdom or not of some American cities, and not applying to be World Cup host countries. I have never regretted it, and I certainly don’t regret it right now.”
Kansas City is the only Midwestern city to host games, after Chicago passed on making a bid. Lucas said the experience of serving as the representative for the middle of the country has allowed Kansas City to be “central diplomats” for the United States, welcoming in foreign fans with barbecue and block parties.
“Say what you will about what happens in corridors in Washington, Brussels or beyond,” Lucas said. “We’ve had the chance to share the best of America. And I think the best of America is its welcoming environment.”
Politics
NEW YORK — New York City has begun one of the busiest weekends in its history — Taylor Swift’s wedding celebration at Madison Square Garden today, a series of air, land and water celebrations for America’s 250th birthday tomorrow and a World Cup match in northern New Jersey on Sunday.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and a top Coast Guard official outlined their weekend plans Tuesday by sharing heat advisories, noise warnings, road closures and security precautions for land, air and sea.
“We have a comprehensive security plan in place for each of these events to ensure that everyone can enjoy the festivities safely,” Mamdani said.
Mamdani and Tisch, standing side by side, said that there are no specific or credible threats against the city but that they’re operating in a “heightened threat environment.” The comments came shortly before a couple scaled the top of the Empire State Building and unfurled a banner.
Police will be out in force and on 12-hour shifts. They’ll be deploying bomb-sniffing dogs, conducting security screenings at designated viewing areas and continuing to use anti-drone technology, which has so far intercepted nearly 100 drones that have flown into restricted air space since the World Cup’s outset.
The NYPD expects to spend about $92 million in overtime and other expenses for major events this summer. During the press conference at police headquarters, Mamdani ducked a question about whether Swift should be picking up the security tab for her wedding. Tisch described it as “an event that we are tracking” and said the “NYPD will, of course, have a detail in place.” Swift canceled a series of concerts in Austria in 2024 because of a terrorist plot.
It will be unusually noisy. A naval review Saturday morning, which Vice President JD Vance is expected to attend, will include a series of warships that will each conduct a 21-gun salute. The Macy’s fireworks show will be the biggest ever, with 85,000 fireworks shells, Tisch said.
It will also be hot. Mamdani has separately announced a plan to help cope with record temperatures expected to hit the city in coming days — officials have warned it may feel as hot as 112 degrees. The city plans to open cooling shelters across the five boroughs, along with a first-ever fleet of vans to help people get to them.
The weekend will be capped by Sunday’s knockout match between Brazil and Norway at MetLife Stadium, although the attendant celebrations by the winning team’s fans will probably cross the Hudson River. Some may even try to row.
Politics
SEATTLE — It is exceedingly rare for a player who has been robbed of the opportunity to compete in the biggest match of his life — in this case, the U.S. men’s national team’s round of 16 match against Belgium at the FIFA World Cup — to chat with a horde of reporters about that heartbreak. It’s more impressive still that Folarin Balogun did just that on Friday, his 25th birthday, without displaying even a hint of frustration or anger. Yet there was the star USA striker flashing his 1000-watt smile just after being informed by a team staffer that FIFA had issued just a one-game suspension for the controversial red card he picked up after scoring the game-winning goal vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina two nights earlier in Northern California. “That’s good,” Balogun deadpanned before grinning widely as the assembled media members erupted in laughter. With three goals in the three games he’s played at this World Cup, Balogun has emerged as one of the faces of the national team over the last few weeks. He’s possibly the most complete striker the U.S. has ever had, and Mauricio Pochettino’s side will miss him mightily against the Belgians, FIFA’s 10th-ranked squad. Making it worse is the fact that the play that saw Balogun sent off following video review should never have been flagged to referee Raphael Claus under FIFA’s own protocols. Standing just yards away, Claus didn’t even issue Balogun a yellow card for his inadvertent, accidental step onto the ankle of Bosnian defender Tarik Muharemovic. The Brazilian official flashed the red only after seeing the slow-motion replay. “For me, it’s important to be fair, even when I’m giving my opinion,” Balogun said. “There’s scenarios that you simply can’t avoid, and that has to be taken into context when it’s being reviewed. I felt it wasn’t on this occasion.” “There’s nowhere else to put your leg,” he added. “It’s going to be unavoidable … I think a yellow card would have been fair.” U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino defended Balogun passionately in his post-game press conference. So did every one of his teammates. None of it matters. FIFA doesn’t allow true appeals of red cards; only if Balogun had been hit with a longer ban than the automatic one-match given for a red card would the U.S. Soccer Federation had any recourse to ask soccer’s governing body to reconsider. Even in the moment, though, Balogun barely protested. “I never want to react out of anger and out of emotion,” he said. “There’s still lots of people we’re inspiring — little kids, boys and girls who are watching, you know, and you have to show them the correct way to handle things, even when you think it’s unjust. So I felt I did that.” “I’m happy with the support I’m receiving from the team,” he continued. “We’re all looking forward to seeing what we can do against Belgium.” Without Balogun, an already tall task becomes harder. The other two strikers on the roster, Ricardo Pepi and Haji Wright, have different qualities. Pepi is a lethal finisher but not quite as adept at holding off opposing center backs with his back to the goal. He has started two games without scoring. Wright, six inches taller, is better in the air and has experience playing as a winger for Premier League-bound Coventry City, but isn’t quite as effective combining with others in open play. Pochettino could start Christian Pulisic up top, as he did in a March exhibition against Portugal. But the coach would then have another hole to fill in a playmaking role, and there’s no obvious candidate who can also press defensively the way the hard-running Pulisic does — especially against a foe that is expected to have the bulk of the possession. “When you miss a player like Balo, obviously things change a little bit,” said U.S. midfielder Tyler Adams. “But we’ve been flexible. Guys have shown that they’re ready to play, if it’s Pepi, if it’s Haji, if we go a different direction. Who knows? I’m not the coach. But it should be an exciting opportunity for whoever has to step up.” That’s what Pepi did when Pulisic was forced to sit out the group stage win over Australia because of a calf injury, helping create space for Balogun in the build up to the own goal that stood up as the eventual winner. The good news is that Balogun will be rested to face either Portugal or Spain if the Americans can advance to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2002. From the bench, Balogun will be their biggest fan. “My role is just to continue to support everybody, to keep morale high,” he said. “The team comes first whether I’m out there or not.”Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
This world leader visited his team’s dressing room after an epic victory that helped send them to the elimination rounds.
That’s Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who paid the team a visit after their 6-0 win against Qatar in Vancouver on June 18. Canada plays Morocco in Houston on Saturday.
Politics
A “formal invitation” for Goldbelt Inc. to discuss taking over operations at Eaglecrest Ski Area has been offered by city leaders, who say the two key conditions are the city must retain ownership of the land and any deal can’t be tied to approval of the company’s proposed cruise port in West Douglas.
“Aside from these non-negotiables for CBJ there are almost endless variations of what a partnership could look like,” an undated letter from City Manager Katie Koester and Eaglecrest Board Chair Brandon Cullum to the company states.
Goldbelt President and CEO McHugh Pierre, in a brief June 17 response, states “Goldbelt welcomes the opportunity to engage with the City Manager and the Eaglecrest Board Chair regarding the future of Eaglecrest.”
“As a first step, I’d like to suggest an informal meeting where Goldbelt can learn about Eaglecrest’s needs, CBJ’s goals, and expectations to achieve desired results for the community,” he wrote.
An update about the offer is scheduled to be presented to Eaglecrest’s board of directors during its meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday. The board is also scheduled, after that presentation, to interview Julie Jackson Piper as its only finalist to be the ski area’s new general manager after Craig Cimmons announced his resignation in January.
Eaglecrest has operated at a loss for many years, with the city providing funding to help balance the books. But those losses have increased in recent years due to extensive maintenance needed to aging infrastructure at the 50-year-old ski area, extended periods of poor snow conditions and other factors.
A plan to achieve long-term stability by installing a used gondola, thus allowing an expansion into year-round operations that would include mass tourism during summer from cruise passengers, fell through earlier this year due to project costs being far higher than initially estimated. The Juneau Assembly, as part of its abandonment, refunded a $10 million payment provided by Goldbelt (plus more than $2 million in interest) to help with the project.
However, city and ski area leaders said they remained interested in Goldbelt — and/or other entities — reaching a new agreement on a gondola and possibly taking over some or all operations at Eaglecrest. Initial discussions this spring included the possibility of the city turning over some land to the Alaska Native corporation as part of a deal.
The recent invitation by Koester and Cullum spells out more specifics about what is and isn’t acceptable. An outright sale of the property is deemed “expensive and time…(and) not in the public interest,” although “a long term lease that meets the fiscal needs of investors in the property” is agreeable.
Described in more detail are considerations involving Goldbelt’s plans to build a private two-berth cruise dock on land the company owns along the west coast of Douglas Island, with the hope of opening it for the 2028 cruise season. Pierre has said the port, which might receive up to 500,000 passengers a year, could be the first phase of development on a larger section of land the company owns there.
“The City appreciates that for Goldbelt the success of Eaglecrest summer operations (and therefore the ability to provide winter operations) is deeply connected with Goldbelt’s proposed cruise ship dock development on West Douglas,” the letter by Koester and Cullum states. “However, the City cannot make one (taking over Eaglecrest) conditioned upon the other (approval of the West Douglas development). The project is currently under review by the Community Development Department for a conditional use permit. In CBJ code the Planning Commission has the sole authority to approve or deny this permit.”
Another issue is how the port will affect the overall volume of tourism in Juneau. The city has voluntary agreements with the industry imposing a five-ship-a-day limit and a daily limit of 16,000 passengers (12,000 on Saturdays). But whether Goldbelt’s new port will result in up to seven ships a day arriving or redirect a significant percentage of traffic away from downtown is an open question.
“There is strong public interest in a Master Planning process that demonstrates the impact of the development on the greater Juneau community,” the letter by Koester and Cullum states. “The number one priority for respondents to CBJ’s 2026 Tourism Impact survey was to maintain the 5-ship limit within the boundaries of the CBJ.”
The post Juneau extends ‘formal invitation’ to Goldbelt to discuss Eaglecrest takeover appeared first on Chilkat Valley News.
If you want to trace Cape Verde’s emergence as a soccer power, you might go back to 2009, when the country beat Portugal on its way to a gold medal at the Jogos de Lusofonia.
The Lusofonia Games were a junior varsity Olympics for remnants of a common empire, an effort by the 12-country Association of Olympic Committees of Portuguese-Speaking Countries to mimic the Commonwealth Games or Jeux de la Francophonie, an upstart competition for former French colonies. On its face, all of these competitions were an experiment in geographically unlikely camaraderie — could tae kwon do artists from Equatorial Guinea bond with East Timorese ping-pong players? — but beneath, they were an exercise of raw global sports politics.
ACOLOP, as the association is known by its Portuguese abbreviation, was created in 2004 and hosted its first, nine-sport Jogos de Lusofonia the next year in Macau, the Chinese region that was a Portuguese colony until 1999. Around the business meetings that accompanied the second games in Lisbon, the conversation among the national Olympic officials who ran ACOLOP focused on Brazil’s effort then underway to claim both the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics for Rio de Janeiro, the first in South America. Both successful bids were built on a Portuguese-speaking coalition that crossed the traditional geographical bases within FIFA and the International Olympic Committee.
The next Lusofonia Games were held in 2014 in Goa, the Indian city where Portuguese traders planted their flag in the 16th century. Then the games stopped, leaving behind a series of canceled plans for follow-up encounters and an archipelago of never-updated web pages.
“To be honest, I think the games ended,” João Malha, a Lisbon-based sports communications specialist who served as press officer for the 2009 games, told POLITICO. “At least, I’ve never heard anything about them since Covid.”
Their legacy roars to life again this week, when Cape Verde enters the knockout rounds in its first World Cup, the smallest country ever to reach that stage.
This era of competitive Cape Verde soccer — which has twice reached the quarterfinals of the African Cup of Nations — can be traced to the 2009 Lusofonia Games in Lisbon. The under-21 Cape Verdean side began with a bang: a 1-0 victory over host Portugal, from which the small Atlantic island nation had won its independence in 1975. It then stampeded through the five-country, round-robin tournament, defeating Mozambique and drawing against Angola en route to the country’s only gold medal, a task made admittedly easier by the fact that Brazil didn’t compete in soccer even as it was the leading medalist across the games.
For those of us who were at the José Gomes Stadium, the most eye-catching player on the pitch that month for Cape Verde was Ianique “Stopira” Tavares, a 21-year-old left back who rampaged down the opposition flank. Three years later Stopira — nicknamed for a French great — moved to a Hungarian club where he spent most of his career. He retired in 2023 and then reversed himself a year later so he could help Cape Verde qualify for the World Cup.
Stopira’s return was a success by any measure, marked by critical goals at every stage despite never having been much of a goal-scorer prior to his retirement. His winner helped second-tier Torreense defeat heavyweights Sporting Clube de Portugal in Portugal’s Taça cup final, becoming the first non-top flight club to reach the UEFA Europa League in its current incarnation. And last October, Stopira scored the most celebrated goal in his country’s history — an extra-time strike which sealed the win over Eswatini that sent Cape Verde to a World Cup for the first time.
Today, the team faces Argentina, and 38-year-old Stopira is likely to start on the bench, as he did in the three group-stage matches. But for at least one more day Stopira’s Cape Verde stands where the Jogos da Lusofonia imagined the country belonged: as a sporting peer to Portugal and Brazil.
Politics
When FIFA President Gianni Infantino visited the Oval Office last August, he presented President Donald Trump with a giant oversized ticket to the World Cup final.
It turns out 10 real ones accompany it, raising anticipation around the White House for a much-coveted invitation to the July 19 match at MetLife Stadium, not far from Trump’s golf club in northern New Jersey.
Two people who have attended sporting events with Trump, granted anonymity to speculate on a sensitive matter, say they expect the coveted seats to go to family members and a handful of West Wing aides. Those on the hunt for an invitation might find White House FIFA World Cup Task Force czar Andrew Giuliani helpful, according to one of the people we spoke to, but he might steer inquiries to FIFA.com or to the White House Cabinet Affairs to adjudicate.
Trump’s latest financial disclosure report reveals this is something of a standard gift from Infantino, who also gave Trump 10 tickets to the final match of last summer’s FIFA Club World Cup, also at MetLife Stadium. Trump valued them at a combined $15,000 — tickets to the World Cup final will almost certainly be worth many multiples of that.
Politics
