Latest news with #Eur
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Tesla Delivery Estimates Cut at Oppenheimer Amid Key Market Weakness, Expected Removal of EV Credits
Tesla's (TSLA) deliveries in 2025 and 2026 will likely take a hit amid weakness in China and the Eur
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ollie Madden Exiting Film4/Channel 4 To Join Netflix As Director Of UK Film; Farhana Bhula & Gwawr Lloyd Upped At UK Broadcaster
Ollie Madden, Director of Film4 and Channel 4 Drama, is leaving the broadcaster after an eight-year stint to join Netflix as Director Of UK Film. The news was relayed to Channel 4 staff this morning via a memo, which you can read below. Madden is leaving in October. More from Deadline Nicole Clemens Joins Amazon To Head Up International Originals Channel 4 Boss Alex Mahon Hits Back At 'Excitable' Wayne Garvie's Criticism Of In-House Plan Netflix EMEA Chief Puts 'Mr Bates' Debate To Bed: "We Absolutely Would Have Commissioned It In The UK" Madden, who will report to Anne Mensah, VP Content at Netflix, will lead Netflix's UK film slate and act as the primary UK contact for films on Dan Lin's slate where the IP, talent, and production are based in the UK (with the exception of family films for US and Canada, including Narnia and Dahl, which will continue to be overseen by Racheline Benveniste). He will also develop a handful of filmmaker-led series. Teresa Moneo, the Netflix vet who served as Director, International Original Film, and had assumed the head of UK film role since last year, quietly left the streamer earlier this year but will continue to work with them on Peaky Blinders. Back at Film4/C4, Farhana Bhula, Film4's Head of Creative and Deputy Director, will take over as interim Director of Film4 effective from 1st July. Gwawr Lloyd, Commissioning Editor, Drama, will become Interim Head of Drama reporting to Ian Katz and will join his HoDs from 1st July. We've asked whether there will be any formal interview process for other candidates but have not heard back so it sounds like (and reading between lines of the memo below) that barring any setbacks the plan is for Bhula and Lloyd to continue in these roles longer term. Per the memo below, Madden will continue to oversee the delivery of projects until October. Bhula and Lloyd will oversee their respective teams alone but will work together to maximise talent relationships and will co-exec Molly Manning-Walker's new show with A24, which we announced yesterday. It's a time of flux and challenge at Film4/C4. Madden's exit comes just one month after news that Channel 4 boss Alex Mahon would also be stepping down after eight years at the helm. Channel 4's content chief Ian Katz admitted to his team at the end of April that his own future was uncertain. In recent years the broadcaster has had to contend with more than 250 layoffs, further moves to digital and the channels' relocation out of London. More recently, plans to grow an in-house production business have ruffled feathers, while latest annual results showed a decline in content spend but a surge in executive pay. Madden's combined film and TV role was an unusual one in the business. Bhula and Lloyd now return to a more traditional structure. It has been a meteoric rise for the former in particular. Bhula worked in development and production at UK indies between 2012-2019 but has scaled the ranks in six years since then to assume one of Europe's top film industry posts. Madden continued Film4's impressive history of awards contenders and critical hits. His slate included Oscar-winning films Poor Things, The Zone of Interest and The Favourite. His series commissions were just starting to really ramp up and include work from writers such as Russell T Davies, Jack Thorne, Daisy Haggard, Roy Williams, Caroline O'Donoghue and James Graham. The drama division had been relatively quiet for a period but suddenly found its stride in the past year with a string of buzzy commissions that will now mostly air under new leadership. Internal message to C4 and Film4 staff from this morning Hello everyone, We are writing to let you know that after a remarkable eight years at the channel Ollie Madden, Director of Film4 and Channel 4 Drama, will be leaving us in October. Under Ollie's leadership Film4 has backed a string of critical and commercial hits from many of the most exciting directors working today. He has overseen scores of award-winning films including 9 Oscar wins for The Favourite, The Father, Poor Things and The Zone of Interest, and 24 BAFTA wins for Beast, The Favourite, The Father, Rocks, Poor Things, The Zone of Interest and Earth Mama. Ollie's commitment, passion and reputation for nurturing talent has seen Film4 not only work with some of the best-known writers and directors in the UK and Ireland but also cement our industry reputation as a huge champion of new talent, backing over 27 debut films and five series by debut writers throughout his Film4 tenure, including Molly Manning-Walker's How to Have Sex and Rose Glass' Saint Maud. We are thrilled that Farhana Bhula, Film4's Head of Creative and Deputy Director, will take over as interim Director of Film4 effective from July 1. Farhana has worked alongside Ollie to create a culture of ambition, collaboration and artistic excellence, enhancing Film4's reputation as one of the most pioneering and dynamic teams in the business. With a current slate that epitomises everything Film4 stands for, the team will go from strength to strength under Farhana's leadership. Since taking on Channel 4 Drama early in 2024, Ollie and the team have commissioned one of the strongest drama slates in Channel 4's history, making good on our promise to offer viewers brilliant original drama every month from the start of next year. Stories from each nation of the UK written by diverse talent – both established and new – will be coming to screens soon. Major new shows from Russell T Davies, Daisy Haggard, Jack Thorne, Molly Manning-Walker and Roy Williams, with more to be announced soon, demonstrate Channel 4 at its best, supporting great artists and great work. With our longstanding reputation as a champion of the most original writers and directors and a slate of shows that will play out through 2026 and 2027, Channel 4 Drama is brilliantly placed for success in the years ahead. Gwawr Lloyd, Commissioning Editor, Drama, has been working closely with Ollie this past year and has been with the channel for over five years, overseeing acclaimed shows including The Gathering and Somewhere Boy. We are delighted that Gwawr will become Interim Head of Drama reporting to Ian Katz and will join his HoDs from July 1. Gwawr is passionate about our mandate to take risks and has a clear vision of how Channel 4 Drama will continue to work with the very best British talent as we roll out our new drama slate. Ollie will continue to oversee the delivery of projects until October, working alongside Farhana and the Film4 team and Gwawr and the Channel 4 Drama team. While Farhana and Gwawr will oversee their respective teams alone, they will continue working closely together to maximise the synergy between talent relationshipson both sides and will co-exec Molly Manning-Walker's new show, which we announced only yesterday. Ollie has been an inspiring creative force, great colleague, and a champion and friend to countless filmmakers. We're incredibly grateful for his exceptional contribution and wish him all the best for the future, and congratulate Farhana and Gwawr as they build on this remarkable body of work. Best of Deadline 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More Everything We Know About 'Nobody Wants This' Season 2 So Far List Of Hollywood & Media Layoffs From Paramount To Warner Bros Discovery To CNN & More
Hindustan Times
29-05-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Man Utd stretch loyalty of 'numbed' Chinese fans to the limit
Yan Gang speaks for many Manchester United fans when he says: "We've been numbed by performances over the past few seasons." Manchester United once claimed to have more than 100 million followers in China, Yan among them, but like supporters of the club everywhere their loyalty is being put severely to the test. As an illustration of United's fall from grace in China and beyond, tickets for Friday's friendly at the 40,000-capacity Hong Kong Stadium against the city's representative team were still available on Thursday afternoon. Tickets also appeared on resale websites with their prices slashed 50 percent. United were beaten 1-0 in Malaysia by a Southeast Asian XI on Wednesday and booed off, a fresh low in a dismal season for Ruben Amorim's bedraggled men. "Every season ends with the same old story with no sign of recovery," said Yan, a supporter for 23 years and organiser of a United fans' association in Shenzhen, just across the border from Hong Kong in mainland China. Amorim's side left for Asia on Sunday, hours after concluding their worst season since 1974, to play friendlies in Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong. The Old Trafford club made no attempt to hide the motivation for flying across the world straight after a draining and demoralising campaign that saw them come 15th in the Premier League and fail to lift a trophy. "Tour fixtures drive significant additional revenue which help make the club stronger, allowing us to keep investing in success on the pitch," chief executive Omar Berrada said. This week's Asia visit will generate about $10 million for United, the BBC reported. China has the world's second-biggest economy and second-biggest population, making it a vital market. United's finances are under scrutiny with co-owner Jim Ratcliffe implementing steep cuts since buying a minority stake just over a year ago. The club recently announced a further 200 redundancies were planned after 250 jobs were cut last year. Ratcliffe claimed in March that the Red Devils would have "run out of money at Christmas" otherwise. From Kuala Lumpur, where it was 32 Celsius at kickoff on Wednesday, it is a four-hour flight to a similarly sticky Hong Kong. July friendlies in the city between Tottenham and Arsenal, and Liverpool and AC Milan, sold out within hours of going on general sale. No such luck for United for their exhibition match with the Hong Kong team, and with a day until kickoff they face the ignominy of playing in front of empty seats. The 39-year-old fan Yan said that the United supporters club in Shenzhen has about 2,000 members. That number has hardly grown in the past few years, he said. Older fans make up the vast majority of members. "I can't think of any words we can use to attract new fans because the team has a bad record and no standout stars to recruit younger fans," said Yan. He Zhiyi, a United fan for more than a decade, is flying to Hong Kong from the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu. She had hoped to see the squad parade the Europa League trophy, but Amorim's side lost 1-0 to Tottenham in the final. With it went United's hopes of sneaking into the Champions League, which would have brought badly needed revenue, prestige and pulling power. "The team is all over the place players, coaches and management are not moving in one direction," said the 32-year-old He, a football content creator and author. "It feels like the team is killing the enthusiasm of the fans, as if the romance can't be sustained anymore." Zhang Chongqian, also from Chengdu, said United's "spirit and traditions" have been lost. "In recent years, our fans gradually stopped watching Manchester United or even football," the 38-year-old lifelong supporter said. Zhang will not join those fans abandoning his side, even after the poorest season in the club's recent history. "Manchester United have been experiencing a period of sinking," he said. "But there are still so many fans who will never give up on them." pst/dh Manchester United TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
How ‘scandalous' Europa League final left Tottenham and Manchester United fans scrambling
It is 7am on Sunday morning at Gatwick airport, three days before the Europa League final, and there are already a lot of Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur shirts. Some are travelling to Bilbao this early because flights are almost a thousand pounds cheaper. A few have friends on connections hundreds of miles in the opposite direction, through Malaga and even Marrakesh. A group are getting the 35-hour ferry from Portsmouth. Some are only in Bilbao for the game itself, due to a total lack of accommodation. Even hostels are going for £550. Spurs fan Adam Nathan talks of 'spending the best part of another season ticket to attend the game'. 'Planning the trip was made difficult by the scandalous pricing of direct flights and limited accommodation,' adds Dale O'Donnell, a United fan. 'We looked at all the routes, before deciding to fly to Bordeaux. We'll leave in the early hours after the game.' Bilbao is simply a brilliant city, as well as a brilliant football city, with a great stadium too. But its infrastructure isn't quite equipped for 80,000 fans, or more, arriving. That's almost a quarter of its own population. Bilbao could be overwhelmed, diluting much of its good. And while prices are always going to rise for major events, this has been up there with the worst in recent years. That's all the more remarkable given this is a trip to northern Spain. 'There is profiteering everywhere but, with so little time to book, it's just wrong that this happens every final,' says Barney Chilton of the Red News fanzine. 'I'm not sure what Uefa can do, but surely something. The majority get royally done over just wanting to see their team in a rare European final.' While much of this is just 'demand', why not stage potentially mass-attended finals where there is more supply? It certainly raises the key question of why supporters so often have to bear the cost of decisions taken way above their heads, not to mention about the nature of those decisions. Numerous sources describe host selection processes as 'not very transparent'. For Uefa's part, there is obvious merit to spreading such showpieces around Europe. English fan groups like the Football Supporters' Association naturally agree 'it's important to remember the wider continental dynamic'. That's all the more pointed when one view within Uefa is that 'it's usually just the English clubs who complain'. That's partly true, but only because their sheer sizes mean tens of thousands are always guaranteed to travel for finals. Given the Premier League's modern strength, too, Uefa's more noble intentions must surely be tempered by health and safety concerns as well as some duty to fan loyalty? 'Football asks so much of fans to create atmosphere, and you're always reminded how little they care about you,' Nathan says. None of this is new, either. There was 'great concern' within Uefa last year, when it became clear Dublin would have struggled with the 200,000 Liverpool fans who planned to travel for the Europa League final, and what might have been Jurgen Klopp's last game. That anxiety only rose when it looked like Rangers or West Ham United might meet them there. None of them got that far, and Dublin ended up being ideal for Atalanta and Bayer Leverkusen. That's the other side of this. Bilbao would have had no issue with Lyon against Eintracht Frankfurt, either. This will to spread the fixture is also deepened by the awareness that the Champions League final is now such a mega-event that there are currently probably only seven cities with the scale to stage it: London, Berlin, Munich, Madrid, Barcelona, Lisbon and now Budapest. Paris has the necessary 70,000-seater stadium in St Denis, but 2022 was a near disaster so it won't be used for some time. Istanbul's Ataturk involved similar issues in 2023 and Italy doesn't have stadiums that are modern enough. Russia has obviously dropped from potential options, too. That leaves many cities pitching for the Europa League, which then encounters problems when its final takes on Champions League scale. Uefa obviously don't know whether that's going to be the case in the semi-finals, let alone four years before, when the hosts are usually chosen. Bilbao was awarded this one in a 2021 settlement, after Covid restrictions meant it was removed as a host city of Euro 2020. There hasn't actually been a vote for the Europa League final since 2018, which was for the 2022 showpiece in Seville. Even those are naturally conditioned by politics. Many football executives remain exasperated by how much of the game is still influenced by who gets to host what. A final can make a huge difference for a national association's leadership, which can in turn ensure loyalty to the Uefa hierarchy. Such processes, as well as the apparent lack of checks and balances amid potential clientelism, have repeatedly been questioned by reformers. Insiders similarly talk of how there often feels a 'one for me, one for you' approach. Wembley generates by far the most income, for example, even though there is little 'political' benefit to giving finals to the FA. That year's revenue then leaves other fixtures freer to be chosen for more football or political reasons. A Conference League final in Tirana encourages genuine 'legacy' investment from local authorities, so the game's infrastructure is improved. Istanbul 2023, which was initially 2020, was seen as a political vote. Such politics can go even deeper. Uefa love the Spurs and Arsenal stadiums, but it is the national football associations that submit bids, and the FA naturally have an interest in promoting Wembley. The Bernabeu is meanwhile unlikely to be used for some time due to Uefa's dismal relationship with Real Madrid. All of these form reasons why Uefa insist it is impossible to move finals at short notice. There are just too many agreements and works. While many naturally point to the precedents of the 2020, 2021 and 2022 Champions League finals being moved, they were down to exceptional circumstances. Turkey's own Covid restrictions saw Istanbul's final switched twice, while St Petersburg was stripped of 2022 after the invasion of Ukraine. Fan cost doesn't meet such criteria, something a little ironic when one of the arguments against moving finals is that cities themselves spend huge amounts on applications. They also require numerous agreements with local authorities, especially on security. Uefa themselves need to ensure accommodation for huge workforces, as well as sponsors. The latter is unlikely to generate much sympathy. Even if a final was moved at short notice, though, the same venue could just have the same problem the next year. Some in Uefa feel the clubs could charter more flights. Eintracht Frankfurt planned to do exactly that for the controversial 2019 final in Baku, only to fall short at the semi-finals. The Azerbaijani capital was one venue that did prompt more serious talk about moving the final, given the logistical difficulties Chelsea and Arsenal fans endured. Such discussions haven't actually happened for Bilbao. There is nevertheless an acceptance within Uefa that this is something they have to start thinking about more, especially given the strength of the Premier League. The governing body has generally had to be more proactive, given the many self-inflicted issues through a series of finals over 2021 to 2023. Internal concerns about a loss of expertise have increased. While such issues have calmed over the last year, there is a definite trepidation in Bilbao about the volume of fans arriving. This needs to go well. The city deserves it, but not as much as fans who have spent so much.
Business Recorder
01-05-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Ukraine, US sign minerals deal sought by Trump
KYIV/WASHINGTON: Ukraine and the U.S. on Wednesday signed a deal heavily promoted by U.S. President Donald Trump that will give the United States preferential access to new Ukrainian minerals deals and fund investment in Ukraine's reconstruction. The two countries signed the accord in Washington after months of sometimes fraught negotiations, with uncertainty persisting until the last moment with word of an eleventh-hour snag. The accord establishes a joint investment fund for Ukraine's reconstruction as Trump tries to secure a peace settlement in Russia's three-year-old war in Ukraine. The agreement is central to Kyiv's efforts to mend ties with Trump and the White House, which frayed after he took office in January. Ukrainian officials have hoped that the deal would ensure continued U.S. support for Ukraine's defence against Russia. Ukraine international bonds rally after Kyiv and Washington sign minerals deal U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Ukrainian First Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko were shown signing the agreement in a photo posted on X by the Treasury, which said the deal 'clearly signals the Trump Administration's commitment to a free, sovereign, prosperous Ukraine.' Svyrydenko wrote on X that the accord provides for Washington to contribute to the fund. 'In addition to direct financial contributions, it may also provide NEW assistance - for example air defense systems for Ukraine,' she said. Washington did not directly address that suggestion. The U.S. has been Ukraine's single largest military donor since Russia's 2022 invasion with aid of more than 64 billion euros ($72 billion), according to the Kiel Institute in Germany. Before the signing, Trump repeated on Wednesday that the U.S. should get something for its aid to Kyiv, thus the effort to secure a deal for Ukraine's plentiful deposits of rare earth minerals. In announcing the deal, the U.S. Treasury said the partnership recognized 'the significant financial and material support that the people of the United States have provided to the defense of Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion.' Russia's Medvedev says Ukraine minerals deal means Trump has forced Kyiv to pay for US aid Ukraine controls extraction decisions Svyrydenko said the accord allowed Ukraine to 'determine what and where to extract' and that its subsoil remains owned by Ukraine. Ukraine is rich in natural resources including rare earth metals which are used in consumer electronics, electric vehicles and military applications, among others. Global rare-earth mining is currently dominated by China, which is locked in a trade war with the U.S. after Trump's sharp tariff increases. Ukraine also has large reserves of iron, uranium and natural gas. Svyrydenko said Ukraine has no debt obligations to the United States under the agreement, a key point in the lengthy negotiations between the two countries. The deal also, she said, complied with Ukraine's constitution and Ukraine's campaign to join the European Union, key elements in Ukraine's negotiating position. The minerals deal and U.S. peace efforts have been negotiated separately but reflect Washington's approach to Ukraine and Russia. Trump has upended U.S. policy by softening the U.S. stance toward Russia and sometimes falsely blaming Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy for the war. U.S. peace proposals have called for recognition of Russia's claim to Crimea, which it seized from Ukraine in 2014, and potentially four other Ukrainian regions. Zelenskiy has said Kyiv would never do so because it would contravene Ukraine's constitution. 'Importantly, the Agreement sends a signal to global partners that long-term cooperation with Ukraine - over decades - is not only possible but reliable,' Svyrydenko said on X. A draft of the U.S.-Ukraine agreement seen by Reuters earlier on Wednesday showed Ukraine secured the removal of any requirement for it to pay back the U.S. for past military assistance, something Kyiv had staunchly opposed. The draft did not provide any concrete U.S. security guarantees for Ukraine, one of its initial goals. Separately, Ukraine has discussed with European allies the forming of an international force to help ensure Ukraine's security if a peace agreement is reached with Russia.
