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Straits Times
19 hours ago
- Sport
- Straits Times
Tactical tweaks crucial at Women's Euro 2025, says Uefa technical observer
Spain's Aitana Bonmati (in red) in action against Switzerland's Viola Calligaris during their Women's Euro 2025 quarter-final in Bern on July 18. OBERENTFELDEN, Switzerland – Greater tactical flexibility has led to a marked improvement in the ability of teams to change plans mid-game at Euro 2025, former Norway coach Martin Sjogren told Reuters ahead of the semi-finals, which will see Germany take on Spain on July 23. The Swede, who coached the Norwegians at the last Euro and is part of the Uefa group of technical observers scrutinising the games in Switzerland, said many teams had impressed him with how smoothly they changed tack. 'Women's football is developing very quickly, it looks more tactical than what it did in the last championship. There is a trend that there are clear plans for what to do in a given situation,' Sjogren said after landing in Geneva for the July 22 semi-final between England and Italy, which took place after press time. 'If a team needs to close the game to secure the result, then there is a clear plan for what to do, if they need to force a goal, there is a clear plan, so the tactical understanding and the tactical depth in all the teams, you see a clear picture, and that is a development from previous championships.' Sjogren used Switzerland's final group match against Finland, in which the hosts needed a draw and the Finns a win to progress, as an example of the amount of tactical switching that can happen. The Finns took the lead, only for the Swiss to secure a 1-1 draw in second-half stoppage time. 'Finland set up to force a goal and managed to do so, then Switzerland changed, forcing the Finns to switch to try to secure the result, then Switzerland managed to score in one of the last kicks – it's just one example of how things can change in a game,' he said. While impressed by the strategies employed by the Swiss in their quarter-final defeat by Spain, Sjogren said the combination of technical skills and tactical intelligence means the Spaniards, who take on Germany in their semi-final in Zurich, are still the team to beat. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore S'poreans aged 21 to 59 can claim $600 SG60 vouchers from July 22 Singapore Changi Airport's passenger traffic crosses 17.5 million mark in Q2 2025 Singapore 2 charged over alleged involvement in posting of bail for man who subsequently absconded Singapore Teen charged after she allegedly sold vaporisers, put up WhatsApp ad showing e-cigarettes Life Having a workout partner could be the secret to sticking to your fitness goals Singapore 2,500 turtles seized in India and sent back to S'pore, put down humanely after salmonella detected Singapore LTA seeks tailored solutions to improve Bukit Panjang LRT's maintenance inspections Singapore Ports and planes: The 2 Singapore firms helping to keep the world moving 'They (Spain) don't need to play so many other types of football, they are still very secure and good in what they do as a foundation. I still see Spain as the team that looks the most homogeneous, and they are still the best,' he said. Sjogren, who is head coach at Swedish club side Hammarby, and his observer colleagues will meet ahead of the first semi-final to discuss what they have seen, and they will produce a report on the tournament after the July 27 final. 'We'll see what the final report shows, but there's no doubt that women's football will keep developing, definitely,' Sjogren said. REUTERS
The Star
5 days ago
- General
- The Star
European young adults are delaying leaving home due to economic hardships
In Europe, young adults are leaving home later and later. But is this due to chronic laziness or economic constraints? Behind the cliches, lie profound social changes. To separate fact from fiction, online psychology platform Unobravo analysed 10 years of official European data and surveyed 1,500 French people about their attitudes to leaving home. The results of this research challenge preconceived ideas and reveal a Europe of varying shapes and sizes, where gaining independence depends as much on tradition as it does on financial resources. The first finding is that the average age for leaving home is 26.6 in Europe. This average masks huge differences between countries. While young Finns leave the family nest at 21.4, their counterparts in Montenegro wait until they are 33.3. That's a 12-year gap between Northern and Southern Europe. With an average age of 23.5, France is closer to the Nordic countries than to its Mediterranean neighbours. This age has remained stable for 10 years, suggesting that this relative precocity is due to structural factors rather than recent economic fluctuations. Beyond geographical disparities, the study reveals a constant throughout Europe: men consistently stay in the parental home longer than women. In France, this difference is 1.3 years, with men leaving the family home at 24.1 years of age compared to 22.8 years for women. This gap may seem minor, but it reflects the persistence of different social expectations. Women are often pushed towards independence and responsibility at an earlier age, while men benefit from greater family tolerance. Staying in the family home is no longer seen as a personal failure but as a pragmatic choice in a difficult economic climate. Photo: Freepik Money can be a barrier But regardless of gender, the vast majority (59%) of French people surveyed believe that it has become more difficult than before to spread one's wings. This is due to the surge in housing costs. Between 2015 and 2023, real estate prices jumped 50% in the European Union, according to Statista. This is enough to dampen even the most ardent desire for independence. This economic reality explains the contrasting performances of European countries. Finland, where property prices have risen by just 5.4%, can afford to see its young people leave home earlier. It's logical that Spain, with 10.4% unemployment and a 47.7% increase in property prices, is seeing its young people stay in the family home for longer. These economic difficulties are not only prolonging the time young people spend living with their parents. They are also causing unexpected returns to the family home. In France, one in five young people move back in with their parents after having tasted independence. For more than half of them, the reasons are purely financial. For a third, it is loneliness or stress that drives them back to the security of the family home. This phenomenon, amplified by the consequences of the pandemic, illustrates how fragile residential independence remains in the face of economic and personal uncertainties. Fortunately, this change in behaviour is accompanied by a change in attitudes. More than half of French people (55%) believe that society now accepts adults living with their parents more readily. Staying in the family home is no longer seen as a personal failure but as a pragmatic choice in a difficult economic climate. This acceptance is encouraging new family arrangements, where intergenerational cohabitation can offer mutual benefits, such as financial security for young people and support for ageing parents. This survey shows that leaving home is no longer just a matter of personal motivation. Far from the cliches about lazy or spoilt children who refuse to grow up, a generation is emerging that is pragmatically balancing economic constraints with personal aspirations. A generation that proves that when it comes to leaving home, there is no longer just one path, but multiple routes to independence. – AFP Relaxnews
Metro
6 days ago
- Climate
- Metro
Santa's village in the Arctic Circle is hotter than the UK today
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video If anyone needs a clear example of the existence of climate change, this is it. The town of Rovaniemi in Finland, located within the Arctic Circle, is currently experiencing a heatwave. Finns are flocking to the beach to soak up the sun as temperatures have reached highs of 31°C in the Arctic Circle – very different to its usual status as a festive wonderland. Santa's elves and reindeers will be sweating in Father Christmas's workshop, as the town's Santa Claus Village showed the temperature on a digital display. While the weather will of course be warmer in mid-July compared to the Christmas period, normally northern Finland only reaches up to about 20°C in the summer months. Locals certainly weren't expecting the warm weather, with Rovaniemi resident Toivo Koivu saying:It's pretty good. I like it. It's hot. I don't think it's this hot too often here. 'I was on vacation for a few weeks going down through Europe with Interrail with a few of my buddies and it was very hot and we thought that when we would come back to Finland it would be cooler like normally, but no, it's actually the same weather as down south.' Thermostats hitting 30°C is pretty rare within the Arctic Circle, but the phenomenon is becoming increasingly common. According to a study published in the journal Nature, last summer was exceptionally warm in northern Scandinavia and Finland, breaking the June to August record set in 1937. Finland as a whole is experiencing a heatwave at the moment, with its hottest temperature of the summer so far recorded on Monday at 32.4°C. The country's meteorological office warned the heatwave is expected to continue throughout the rest of the week, although southern areas were drenched by a strong thunderstorm and heavy rain earlier this week. Heatwaves are triggered in Finland when daily average temperatures reach 20°C or the country experiences highs of 27°C. More Trending The bulk of the country, aside from a handful of southern regions, is under a yellow heatwave or wildfire warning, with a few coastal regions facing yellow warnings for high winds. While the UK isn't currently in a heatwave, we have seen three heatwaves practically back-to-back, and generally speaking we see warmer temperatures than Finland as we're closer to the equator. Today, however, The Met Office reckons London is the hottest part of the UK, reaching around 25°C, with the rest of the country in the low 20s. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Is it safe to travel to Iceland right now? Latest advice after volcano erupts MORE: How to make a drought-resistant garden because hosepipe bans aren't going anywhere MORE: Pupils hold 'wearing shorts matters' protest in sweltering heatwave
Kuwait Times
15-07-2025
- Kuwait Times
Finns flock to ‘shepherd weeks' to disconnect on holiday
Finnish holidaygoers are clamoring to shell out hundreds of euros to work as shepherds for a week as a vacation, seeking tranquility in nature and a chance to disconnect from their busy lives. Petri Stenberg is enjoying a 'shepherd week' together with his wife Oona and their two children Fia, age 2, and Hugo, 4, on an old farm on an island in the Isojarvi national park in central Finland. The popular holiday scheme, organized by the Metsahallitus company that manages and protects state-owned land and water areas, allows the family to combine recreation and nature conservation. 'We are living very close to nature here. We feed the sheep a couple of times a day, we have been to the sauna, swam and gone fishing,' Oona Stenberg, who works as a physiotherapist, told AFP. 'Not once have I seen any news here. There's no TV here, we haven't browsed our phones. So in a way, my mind has somehow calmed down and I'm just concentrating on being here,' she added. Accessible only by rowboat or on foot through the forest and across a bridge, the old farm is one of around a dozen remote sites across Finland to which Finns can apply for a week-long holiday taking care of sheep. Historically, grazing sheep and other animals have played a crucial role in maintaining biodiversity and habitats for flora and fauna at the various locations. But changed forestry and agricultural practices, including a 'dramatic' decline in the number of small farms in Finland, have seen these traditional biotopes of so-called semi-natural grasslands and wooded pastures become an endangered part of Finland's nature, explained Metsahallitus expert Leena Hiltunen. 'The main purpose of the shepherd weeks is to increase people's knowledge about these traditional biotopes,' Hiltunen said. The vegetation on the Isojarvi island was traditionally kept light and lush as grazing sheep prevented overgrowth, providing the necessary ecosystem for now-endangered plant and insect species. Compared to the 1950s, less than one percent of Finland's traditional biotopes and landscapes remain, according to Metsahallitus, with most of them now located in protected areas. 'Appreciation and protection of nature is so important... So it is really important for all of us to learn about it and for children to learn to appreciate it,' said Oona Stenberg. Petri Stenberg feeds the sheep herd in Isojarvi National Park, Langelmaki, Finland. A sheep stands on a field in Isojarvi National Park, Langelmaki, Finland. A sheep stands on a field in Isojarvi National Park, Langelmaki, Finland. Petri Stenberg prepares coffee inside a rented cottage in Isojarvi National Park, Langelmaki, Finland. The Stenberg family enjoys a break outside their rented cottage in Isojarvi National Park, Langelmaki, Finland. Popular holiday Metsahallitus received 12,764 applications from 2,236 applicants - many applying for more than one site - for this year's summer season. A total of 158 shepherd weeks are selected through a lottery. 'There has been a great deal of interest,' Hiltunen said. The Stenberg family, who lives in Vantaa, just north of Helsinki, applied a few times until they finally got lucky this year. A week typically costs between 400 and 670 euros ($470-$780) at most locations. The housing is spartan and simple, in huts or cottages often lacking running water and sometimes even electricity. 'Some people have asked us why we wanted to pay to herd sheep and do some yard work,' laughed Oona Stenberg. 'But it is really an experience for us, and the kids are loving it,' she added, sipping from her coffee cup outside the family's yellow cottage, surrounded by old wooden outhouses and a sauna overlooking the lake. In Finland, many people spend their summers in rustic countryside cottages. Hiltunen said only Finns could apply for the shepherd weeks because it was crucial to know 'how to manage the modest lifestyle' in nature on one's own. 'We don't have enough resources to advertise it internationally, or have someone there nearby advising how things work,' she said. 'Break from everyday life' On the lakeland island, a sense of complete serenity hung in the air, the grey sky suggesting rain was on its way. The family had been instructed to count the dozen sheep every day 'and make sure their overall health is good, that they are eating enough and checking that the fencing is intact,' said Petri Stenberg, who drives excavators for a living. The small farm was a working farm until 1989 and was bought by Metsahallitus in the 1990s. Flipping through the pages of a notebook inside the house, Petri Stenberg showed writings and a few sketches of sheep from previous visitors who documented their daily life and observations. 'This is a real break from everyday life,' he said. — AFP
Fox Sports
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
Euro 2025: Switzerland riding wild emotions on and off the field into quarterfinals debut
Associated Press GENEVA (AP) — Let's go crazy, Switzerland. The national women's soccer team is riding a wave of passionate support in a country where emotions are typically kept under control. Crucial goals like Switzerland got in the 90th and 92nd minutes of the past two games in sold-out stadiums helped unleash those strong feelings. 'We feel the whole of Switzerland behind us. It's unbelievable,' defender Viola Calligaris said late Thursday after a frantic finish to the 1-1 draw with Finland. The stoppage-time leveler by substitute Riola Xhemaili advanced the Swiss at the expense of the Finns — and earned the hosts a full week of anticipation before its first ever knockout game at a Women's Euros. The wait was a mighty long time — 41 years — and will end next Friday in Bern, likely against world champion Spain. "You have to get crazy" It is what veteran coach Pia Sundhage asked of her players before the tournament, when there was much less public faith in their potential: 'You have to get crazy.' Sundhage saw in her first year in the job that good Swiss players were precise and correct but lacked the risk-taking to reach for greatness. 'Sometimes that is not good enough,' Sundhage, who coached ultra-confident United States players to win two Olympic titles, said in May. 'And that is scary for a Swiss player.' They look fearless now. Fans and team in harmony The noisy crowds in Geneva on Thursday and Bern last Sunday — when Iceland was swept aside 2-0 by a late tide of attacks — have responded to their high-energy team. 'It is so much more fun to coach and play when you have a loud crowd,' Sundhage said in the glow of staying in the tournament. 'The reason we are in the quarterfinal is because we are on home soil.' The 65-year-old Swedish coach perhaps underplayed her own tone-setting role in the late drama. Switzerland needed only a draw with Finland to advance alongside Group A winner Norway on goal difference ahead of its opponent. Yet at halftime of a goalless game, Sundhage rejected caution and went for the win. Top teenage prospects She sent on 19-year-old Leila Wandeler and pushed forward 18-year-old Iman Beney to form an all-teenage attack with Sydney Schertenleib — top talents signed by Lyonnes, Manchester City and Barcelona, respectively. She brought on Switzerland's record goalscorer Ana-Maria Crnogorcevic to play at right-back. Swiss play became faster, more fluid, chances were created and Finland scored only from a 79th-minute penalty that was recklessly conceded. Sundhage then put more attackers on the field, including Xhemaili who was in the Finland goalmouth in stoppage time to score by diverting in Geraldine Reuteler's shot. 'I just saw in everyone's eyes that we would still score this goal,' Reuteler said about the strike that kept Switzerland in Euro 2025. Was this the 'get crazy' moment Sundhage sought, she was asked. 'A little bit of a start, maybe,' she said. 'I try to lead by example. That's why Wandeler, she plays. Iman plays. Sydney Schertenleib plays. It's okay to make a mistake. They go in and they just play.' Finland's goalscorer Natalia Kuikka, the experienced Chicago Stars defender, also saw it. 'They clearly came to the game that they wanted to win and it kind of showed,' Kuikka said of the Swiss. Joyous Swiss A tournament veteran like Sundhage saw the positive signs in camp of what she called 'this phenomenal team coming together.' 'Since we went into the (tournament) bubble I think they've been louder,' she said. 'They are dancing and they are creating this energy which I think helps us when we go on the pitch." 'It is so important to embrace that joy, that is all that matters. And we are not finished yet.' ___ AP soccer:
