Sports
Verstappen is not afraid of the rain either and stretches his advantage in Canada for the F1 World Cup
The Dutchman Max Verstappen (Red Bull) redeemed himself from sixth place in Monaco two weeks ago by giving a coup of authority in Canada, where he kept the McLarens and the Mercedes at bay to stretch his advantage for the Formula One World Championship in a ‘crazy’ race due to the rain with five dropouts.
After leaving second on the Gilles Villeneuve circuit, Verstappen allied himself with the rain and race incidents and finished with a four-second advantage over the British Lando Norris (McLaren), who finished second and approached the Monegasque Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) in the World Cup, who like the Spanish Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) and the Mexican ‘Czech’ Pérez (Red Bull), had to leave, while the Spanish Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) finished sixth.
It was not easy for the three-time world champion, who had to deal with two safety cars, two steps through ‘boxes’ going up positions and the pace of Norris, who wants to sign up for the World Cup party, but the Dutchman met again with the victory expanding his advantage over Leclerc and also with Norris, who despite suffering to the finish line, contained the British George Russell (Mercedes) and the Englishman Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes).
Caution prevailed during the first third of the race. In the rain none of the first four wanted to risk and while Russell started as a leader and was the only one to have clean air, behind the Australian Daniel Ricciardo (Visa Cash App RB) went wrong and lost three positions with a stroke of the pen.
Alonso benefited from it and, from the first turn, he began a battle that lasted for 25 laps with the British Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), who although he had more race pace, was unable to overtake the two-time world champion, who, however, was overtaken by the Englishman after a bad stop in the Aston Martin garage.
But the battle was ahead. Russell put up with Verstappen, but he couldn’t do anything with the rhythm of the British Lando Norris, who seemed willing to add his second victory and take the taste of the triumph.
Norris warmed up the tires, knew how to take the car on the driest rail of the entire circuit and started to shoot. In fact, he was the one who had the most race pace in the first third of the race and went out of ‘hunting’ for the first two. The first to fall was Verstappen, ahead on lap 20 on the straight before the wall of the champions and, one lap later, repeated play with Russell, race leader.
It seemed that after the storm calm would come, but nothing could be further from the truth. When Norris had already achieved more than six seconds ahead of Verstappen, who took advantage of a mistake from Russell to take second, the American Logan Sargeant (Williams) went off the track and provoked a safety car that disrupted the entire race.
Verstappen, Russell and Piastri stopped, but Norris, calm with his advantage, waited for a lap to go through ‘boxes’ while he saw what wheels his pursuers put. He didn’t know it, but it was a mistake that could have been difficult for him to sign up for the World Cup party.
Norris stopped and came out behind Verstappen and Russell. And the Dutchman started to shoot as soon as the safety car went off the track. He threw and threw as he took advantage of the struggles between the two British to keep taking time.
From behind, everyone was trying to innovate, although almost all recreation went wrong. It was the case of Leclerc, who put hard rubbers when everyone else was going with intermediates because of a small cloud that was going to leave a fine rain for a few minutes.
The Monegasque returned to the intermediates, but it was already too late. He had been doubled by Verstappen and a small engine failure forced him to abandon a race after having reigned in Monaco, achieving the great victory of his career.
But it’s not that things were better for Sainz. With the track wet, he ripped with seventeen laps left and accompanied Leclerc in the paddock, where the drivers piled up to see the resumption of the race with eleven laps left until the end.
An accident of the Thai Alexander Albon (Williams) motivated the departure of a new safety car and from the paddock the two Ferrari drivers, those of Williams and ‘Checo’ Pérez, with the rear wing destroyed, saw a race end in which Verstappen returned to victory after the bitter taste of sixth place in Monaco.
Meanwhile, Piastri was unable to keep up with the Mercedes, who gave a last ‘stint’ that endangered Norris’s second place, which maintained a second place that allows him to continue chasing Leclerc.
Sports
Ancelotti leaves door open for Neymar’s return to Brazil’s 2026 World Cup squad
Italian coach Carlo Ancelotti, current manager of the Brazil national football team, has opened the door to the possibility of Neymar being included in the final squad for the 2026 World Cup, according to an interview published Saturday by L’Equipe.
“At the moment, he is being evaluated by the Brazilian Football Confederation and by me. He still has two months to prove he has the conditions to play in the next World Cup,” Ancelotti said.
Neymar, 34, Brazil’s all-time leading scorer with 79 goals in 128 appearances, was left out of the most recent national team call-up for friendlies against France and Croatia. He is also still working to regain full fitness with Santos FC.
Since returning to his club, Neymar has played only a handful of matches in the Brasileirão and the Copa Sudamericana, including an upcoming match against San Lorenzo on April 28. These games could be key for him to convince Ancelotti ahead of the final squad announcement on May 19.
“Neymar has made and continues to make history in Brazilian football. He is a great talent, and it is normal for people to believe he can help us win the next World Cup,” the Italian coach added.
When asked whether the former FC Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain player must be at full fitness to earn a call-up, Ancelotti admitted he does not have a definitive answer but believes Neymar “is capable of returning to 100%.”
International
Trump Says Iran Is Welcome at 2026 World Cup but Warns of Security Concerns
The President of the United States, Donald Trump, said Thursday that the national football team of Iran is “welcome” to participate in the 2026 World Cup, although he suggested it might be safer for the team not to take part in the tournament.
“The Iranian national soccer team is welcome at the World Cup, but I really don’t think it’s appropriate for them to be there, for their own safety,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.
His comments came a day after Iran’s sports minister, Ahman Donyamali, said that there are currently no conditions for the country to participate in the tournament following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, during a military offensive launched on February 28 by Israel and the United States.
“After the corrupt government killed our leader, there are no conditions that allow us to take part in the World Cup,” the Iranian official said. He added that the country has faced two wars in the past eight or nine months, resulting in thousands of civilian deaths, making participation in the tournament unlikely.
On Tuesday, the president of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, met with Trump at the White House.
Following the meeting, Infantino said that Trump reiterated that Iran’s national team would be allowed to compete in the FIFA World Cup 2026.
“We discussed the current situation in Iran and the fact that the Iranian team has qualified to participate in the FIFA World Cup 2026. During the conversation, President Trump reiterated that the Iranian team is, of course, welcome to compete in the tournament in the United States,” Infantino wrote on Instagram.
Sports
Shakira ignites El Salvador with near sold-out residency at Mágico González Stadium
The recently renovated Jorge “Mágico” González Stadium is rolling out the red carpet for Colombian superstar Shakira, whose string of concerts has sold out almost entirely, confirming the powerful bond between the artist and Salvadoran fans.
The scale of the experience begins as soon as attendees arrive at the venue. Outside the stadium, organizers have installed several photo spots so concertgoers can capture a souvenir from the major event.
Fans attending the Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour will witness a top-tier visual production, where technology and robotic lighting effects will shape an atmosphere that shifts dramatically from one segment of the show to another — moving from the intensity of ’90s rock to the festive explosion of urban pop.
Security and crowd management have been top priorities, with a coordinated operation aimed at ensuring smooth entry and exit, allowing spectators to focus solely on enjoying hits that have defined generations.
Beyond the music, the event marks a milestone for the country’s live-entertainment industry, positioning El Salvador as a destination capable of hosting artist residencies once reserved for cities such as Las Vegas or London.
The excitement is already visible across the capital: hotels are at full capacity and local businesses are riding the wave of enthusiasm sparked by the latest songs from the Colombian star.
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