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Daily Mirror
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Leyton Orient chairman Nigel Travis sets sights on Wembley redemption
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Leyton Orient return to Wembley this weekend 11 years after their devastating defeat against Rotherham, once again one just one game away from the Championship Sunday will mark 11 years to the day that Nigel Travis was pacing up and down a hotel room in Puerto Rico with the phone pressed to his ear. On the other end of the line, back in the UK, Travis' eldest son was, somehow, trying to summarise all the ecstasy and agony of Leyton Orient's meeting with Rotherham in the play-off final. Despite leading 2-0 at half-time, the O's would succumb to a rousing fightback from their opponents before losing a penalty shootout. Unfortunately for Orient, that Wembley heartbreak turned out to be just a prologue to the darkest chapter in their history. Their downward spiral culminated in them tumbling into the abyss of non-league during the turbulent reign of Francesco Becchetti, their controversial former owner. Even the club's renaissance - which began when Travis and Kent Teague ended the Italian's reign of tyranny in 2017 - has been tinged with turmoil, with their former manager, Justin Edinburgh, tragically passing away just weeks after he had guided Orient back into the EFL. But the east Londoners' story has come full circle; 11 years on from that game at Wembley, Orient are once again just one win away from returning to the second tier of English football for the first time in 43 years. Travis admits that such a feat felt lightyears away back when he and Kent Teague rode in on a white horse to inherit a club who where languishing at the wrong end of the National League without a bank account. "The story of the past eight years has been far better than we ever expected, to be completely honest," Orient's chairman says in the build-up to Sunday's joust with Charlton Athletic. "We're in a great situation now; one which is probably way ahead of what I ever expected when we first bought the club. "We went to Huddersfield on the last day of the season; we were in the National League playing Guiseley when they were in the Premier League. We've come a long way. I'm feeling good about Sunday but you never know in football." On the pitch, Richie Wellens, the head coach who has commandeered Orient's would-be rise from League Two to the Championship, has fashioned a team full of grit and guile. Canny use of the loan market has seen the likes of Josh Keeley, Jamie Donley and Charlie Kelman add 'swagger' to a team few fancied to be slugging it out for promotion. And yet, Orient have blown some of those expected to challenge away this season: only the division's runaway leaders, Birmingham City, have plundered more than the 72 goals Orient chalked up in the regulation campaign. Fittingly, Wellens' men are also well versed in handling - and overcoming - adversity. The O's started December in the relegation zone; they ended the season with the ultimate act of defiance, stringing together six successive wins to gatecrash the play-off party. Off the pitch, Orient are also in rude health. Fresh investment was confirmed in the form of their new majority shareholder, David Gandler, last month with a new stadium and training ground high on the agenda. A site for the former has already been identified. Given hey will be backed by over 30,000 fans at Wembley, it's no surprise to hear Travis say that an upgrade on the club's charming but cramped Brisbane Road home - which holds 9,271 people - cannot come soon enough. And after achieving record season ticket sales off the back of a successful campaign, there is optimism that an afternoon basking in the glow of Wembley stadium's famous arch can further supplement Orient's recent growth spurt. "Hopefully we can turn some casual fans into regular fans," he says. "London is probably the greatest city in the world. Orient is a fantastic club - I'm biased, of course, as I've supported us for 65 years - but everyone who comes here notices that community feel. "They feel special. I know a lot of people who come over and watch Orient [from the United States] then go to a Premier League game on the Sunday before going home on the Monday. They go to the Premier League and it's a bit more distant, a bit less real." Is there a risk, then, that promotion to the next level could lead to Orient losing that special quality that sets them apart? "I don't think we will, no. Partly because of the stadium!", Travis says with a smile. "Having written a book on culture, I firmly believe culture drives everything. As someone famous once said, 'Culture is more important than strategy', and I think we have a great one," he adds. "I think we could continue that environment [in the Championship]." One thing Wellens would like to lose - regardless of whether or not he is a Championship manager next term - is the "little Leyton Orient" tag; he has made no secret of that during his tenure. While Wellens has encouraged fans to embrace a more aspirational mindset, that's easier said than done. After all, we're all guilty of subconsciously reverting to type when it comes to having an inferiority complex over our own club; Orient fans are no different. Would promotion help on that front? After all, the O's are perennial underdogs having graced the top-flight for just the solitary season in their history. And they will head into the weekend as the underdogs to Charlton, who already have two wins over their London neighbours under their belt. "I think we're acting more professionally," Travis says. "If you'd have said to the players, 'Come and have a drink' back when we were in the National League, everyone would have been there. These days, players are so professional they don't drink. "Off the field we've improved dramatically. Our database has shown to be up to date. Internationally, we're getting known [through streaming] so we are gradually losing that 'little old Leyton Orient' tag. But it will take time. You have to remember, too, we're in London; West Ham is two-and-a-half miles away, Arsenal, is a unique city and we have so many big clubs in a small area." Orient's triumph in the play-off semi finals - or ' that night ' at Stockport, as Travis now refers to it - is the latest golden moment from down the years that the O's chairman holds dear. It stands in good company. Among them is a victory against Manchester United during Orient's solitary top-flight campaign. That came after the O's clinched promotion with a 2-0 win over Bury back in the 1961-62 season, which Travis celebrated by cascading onto the Brisbane Road pitch. A standout moment? Too tough to call. "When I was a kid I wanted to be a journalist, so I've always thought about how reporters see games. When we were in Division Two - or now the Championship - I remember us being very consistent. The only way I had access to games was the BBC as they went around the grounds," he recalls. "The world has changed so much with technology; I lived in Miami in 1989 and the only way I got a result was if my dad faxed it to me! The whole world has changed significantly since then. But we were a very consistent Division Two team - that's my main memory from that era." That's once again the goal. And if Orient can achieve redemption at Wembley after 11 long years, then Travis and 30,000 other O's will end the Bank Holiday weekend with a new favourite tale to tell.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
New study reveals unexpected side effects of London's clean air policies: 'Making the case for ... initiatives stronger than ever'
Londoners are breathing easier, according to new research from the University of Bath. The study, published in the Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, revealed that Greater London's clean air regulations are not only helping clear the air but also improving public health and saving the city money. London implemented the Low Emission Zone in 2008 and the Ultra Low Emission Zone in 2019. After analyzing more than a decade's worth of data, researchers discovered these clean air zones had slashed the amount of harmful pollutants, such as nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter, in the areas. In that time, Greater London had 18.5% fewer employees take sick leave, with residents also reporting they were happier, less anxious, and enjoying their lives more. Respiratory illnesses were down just over 10%, and there was a nearly 7% decline in health problems. Thanks to these improvements, the zones are estimated to be saving the city over £37 million each year in public health costs. And not only does the policy improve public health, but reduced air pollution can also help slow down rising global temperatures fueled by the reliance on dirty energy, which are contributing to more extreme weather events such as wildfires and droughts. "These policies are not just environmental wins," said professor Eleonora Fichera of the Department of Economics. "They're also reducing labor market absenteeism and improving Londoners' life satisfaction. Clean air makes for healthier, happier, more productive communities." With so many concerning headlines linking pollution to unhealthy and unhappy communities, this is evidence that policy changes can make a big difference. Many studies have found smart city planning, such as expanding green spaces and making neighborhoods more walkable, can boost community health. According to the World Health Organization, air pollution leads to over 4 million premature deaths each year around the world. These findings offer a compelling case for rolling out similar policies globally, especially in cities with dense populations. "Clean air policy is smart policy," lead researcher Habtamu Beshir added. "It protects health, saves money, and enhances quality of life — making the case for clean air initiatives stronger than ever." Do you think your city has good air quality? Definitely Somewhat Depends on the time of year Not at all Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Scottish Sun
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Inside Tottenham's wild dressing room celebrations as stars down beer, eat pizza and head to hotel to party until 3am
The players well and truly enjoyed ending the club's long wait for silverware PARTY TIME Inside Tottenham's wild dressing room celebrations as stars down beer, eat pizza and head to hotel to party until 3am Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) TOTTENHAM celebrated their Europa League final triumph by partying into the small hours of the morning. Ange Poestecoglou's troops ended the club's 17-year wait for silverware with a 1-0 win in Wednesday's all-English final against Manchester United in Bilbao. 10 Tottenham ended their 17-year trophy drought by beating Manchester United in the Europa League final Credit: AFP 10 Ange Postecoglou's troops celebrated wildly in the dressing room Credit: Instagram 10 Crates of beer and pizza galore were delivered to the north Londoners' dressing room after the match Credit: Instagram 10 Several players took to social media to show off their winners' medals Credit: Instagram A first-half goal from Brennan Johnson handed the north Londoners victory at the San Mames stadium as well as Champions League football for the 2025/26 season. Son Heung-Min sent his team-mates and the thousands of Spurs fans in attendance into a state of ecstasy when he hoisted Europe's secondary club trophy high into the Bilbao sky. But the partying didn't stop there, with the players wildly celebrating in the changing room. Crates of popular Spanish beer Estrella Damm were delivered to the Spurs dressing room for the players to enjoy. READ MORE ON FOOTBALL NEWS SEE RU LATER Amorim offers to LEAVE Utd 'without compensation' after horror Spurs loss As were bottles of champagne, several of which ended up being sprayed as Son re-enacted the trophy lift. But they weren't just given booze in the aftermath of their victory, they also had a boatload of pizza sent their way. Several Spurs players gave an insight into the dressing room celebrations via their Instagram stories. Yves Bissouma went live on the social media platform, showing just how full the dressing room was with booze, pizza and fruit. JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS 10 Destiny Udogie showed off his winners' medal on Instgram Credit: Instagram 10 Goalscorer Brennan Johnson proudly posed with skipper Son Heung-Min Credit: Instagram 10 Yves Bissouma flaunted the trophy during an Instagram Live Credit: Instagram 10 Inside raucous Tottenham dressing room, Credit: Instagram And the midfielder, who was Spurs' best player on the night, hilariously filmed himself eating some well-deserved slices during a near four-minute broadcast with the trophy. The tunes, unsurprisingly, were pumping - with Natasha Bedingfield's 'Unwritten' being blasted over the speakers. Uefa awkwardly RUN OUT of Europa League winners' medals as Son and Romero among Tottenham stars to miss out That was preceded by 'AFRO TRAP Part.3' by MHD, which was an appropriate choice from Bissouma. That's because it's more commonly called 'Champions League' due to its numerous references to Europe's elite club competition, which Spurs are back in. And the competition was firmly on the players' minds as they lined up in the dressing room as the anthem played. Goalscorer Johnson was one of several players to post from the dressing room, sharing a snap of himself and skipper Son. And he mocked the 'Spursy' dig that has been levelled at the club for the last two decades, writing: "So f***ing Spursy." Italy international Destiny Udogie also took to his story, proudly showing off his winners' medal. He wrote across his image: "All glory to God." Spurs continued their celebrations into the early hours of the morning after returning to their team hotel. 10 Yves Bissouma was the life and soul of the party on the way back to the team hotel Credit: Instagram 10 Several players and staff members partied until the small hours of the morning Credit: Instagram The bus journey back to the hotel was equally as jubilant as the dressing room, with Bissouma being the life and soul of the party. Upon arrival at the hotel, Son was seen geeing up fans who had followed them back. Several players and staff members were spotted living it up in their full kits until THREE AM THIS MORNING before deciding to hit the hay. Spurs' European triumph could be the perfect swansong for Postecoglou, who has overseen a woeful domestic season for the north Londoners. But despite having a fairytale exit on the cards, the Aussie seemingly has no intention of moving on. He told TNT Sports: "I don't feel like I've completed the job yet, we're still building. "The moment I accepted the role I had one thing in my head, and that was to win something. "More than anything else, I had that in my head and we've done that now. So I want to build on it."
The Irish Sun
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Inside Tottenham's wild dressing room celebrations as stars down beer, eat pizza and head to hotel to party until 3am
TOTTENHAM celebrated their Europa League final triumph by partying into the small hours of the morning. Ange Poestecoglou's troops Manchester United in Bilbao. 10 Tottenham ended their 17-year trophy drought by beating Manchester United in the Europa League final Credit: AFP 10 Ange Postecoglou's troops celebrated wildly in the dressing room Credit: Instagram 10 Crates of beer and pizza galore were delivered to the north Londoners' dressing room after the match Credit: Instagram 10 Several players took to social media to show off their winners' medals Credit: Instagram A first-half goal from football for the 2025/26 season. Europe 's secondary club trophy high into the Bilbao sky . But the partying didn't stop there, with the players wildly celebrating in the changing room. Crates of popular Spanish beer Estrella Damm were delivered to the Spurs dressing room for the players to enjoy. READ MORE ON FOOTBALL NEWS As were bottles of champagne, several of which ended up being sprayed as Son re-enacted the trophy lift. But they weren't just given booze in the aftermath of their victory, they also had a boatload of pizza sent their way. Several Spurs players gave an insight into the dressing room celebrations via their Instagram stories. Most read in Football JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS 10 Destiny Udogie showed off his winners' medal on Instgram Credit: Instagram 10 Goalscorer Brennan Johnson proudly posed with skipper Son Heung-Min Credit: Instagram 10 Yves Bissouma flaunted the trophy during an Instagram Live Credit: Instagram 10 Inside raucous Tottenham dressing room, Credit: Instagram And the midfielder, who was Spurs' best player on the night, hilariously filmed himself eating some well-deserved slices during a near four-minute broadcast with the trophy. The tunes, unsurprisingly, were pumping - with Natasha Bedingfield's 'Unwritten' being blasted over the speakers. Uefa awkwardly RUN OUT of Europa League winners' medals as Son and Romero among Tottenham stars to miss out That was preceded by 'AFRO TRAP Part.3' by MHD, which was an appropriate choice from Bissouma. That's because it's more commonly called 'Champions League' due to its numerous references to Europe's elite club competition, which Spurs are back in. And the competition was firmly on the players' minds as they lined up in the dressing room as the anthem played. Goalscorer Johnson was one of several players to post from the dressing room, sharing a snap of himself and skipper Son. And he mocked the 'Spursy' dig that has been levelled at the club for the last two decades, writing: "So f***ing Spursy." Italy international Destiny Udogie also took to his story, proudly showing off his winners' medal. He wrote across his image: "All glory to God." Spurs continued their celebrations into the early hours of the morning after returning to their team hotel. 10 Yves Bissouma was the life and soul of the party on the way back to the team hotel Credit: Instagram 10 Several players and staff members partied until the small hours of the morning Credit: Instagram The bus journey back to the hotel was equally as jubilant as the dressing room, with Bissouma being the life and soul of the party. Upon arrival at the hotel, Son was seen geeing up fans who had followed them back. Several players and staff members were spotted living it up in their full kits until THREE AM THIS MORNING before deciding to hit the hay. Spurs' European triumph could be the perfect swansong for Postecoglou, who has overseen a woeful domestic season for the north Londoners. But despite having a fairytale exit on the cards, the Aussie seemingly has no intention of moving on. He told TNT Sports: "I don't feel like I've completed the job yet, we're still building. "The moment I accepted the role I had one thing in my head, and that was to win something. "More than anything else, I had that in my head and we've done that now. So I want to build on it." Tottenham ratings: Bissouma dominates Europa League final as occasion gets to Udogie BRENNAN JOHNSON was Tottenham's hero as they finally ended their 17-year trophy drought in the Europa League final. Despite being without James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski for the clash in Bilbao, Spurs came up with a massive win against Manchester United. Johnson scored the goal as he helped bundle in from a corner in a tussle with Luke Shaw to send fans into dreamland. But Spurs also owe a huge thanks to Yves Bissouma who was totally dominant in midfield. At the other end, Destiny Udogie struggled to get up to the pace of the match as he was up against Manchester United's Amad Diallo. Spurs had just three shots, only 27 per cent of the ball, and completed a mere 115 passes over 90 minutes. But it didn't matter, as United never really looked like finding a leveller to take it to extra time. SunSport's Henry Tomlinson gave his
Daily Mirror
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Tottenham's Europa League parade date, route and time as party plans revealed
Tottenham ended their long wait for a trophy with victory in the Europa League final against Manchester United - and they plan to celebrate in style later this week Tottenham will toast their first major trophy for 17 years with an open-top bus parade through north London on Friday after Ange Postecoglou 's men triumphed in the Europa League final. Spurs met Manchester United in Bilbao with the chance to put a nightmare season in the Premier League behind them. And they did just that courtesy of a scruffy Brennan Johnson goal, which was enough to clinch a 1-0 win over the Londoners' domestic rivals. Jubilant fans will get the chance to pay homage to the team that ended their arduous wait for a trophy ahead of the weekend - and the club's final fixture of the Premier League season. That's because Spurs will embark on a victory parade just 48 hours before their meeting with Brighton on Sunday with the club confirming their plans on Wednesday morning. The parade will start in Edmonton Green at 5.30pm with a DJ, live music and a legend's Q&A keeping fans entertained from 3.00pm. The parade is expected to last for up to 90 minutes and will include the team travelling past the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium towards the end of the route. A staging area will also be erected on the High Road opposite the stadium where Tottenham's players and staff will be presented with the Europa League trophy once again in front of their fans. Tottenham host Brighton on the final day of the Premier League season on Sunday but cannot finish any higher than 17th after a hugely challenging domestic campaign. But Postecoglou's men have made up for that in part by clinching a golden ticket to next year's Champions League courtesy of their victory in Bilbao. Postecoglou himself has faced plenty of scrutiny in the build-up to Wednesday night's final and said of his own future after the match: "I've had such a laser focus on winning this, whatever happens, happens. "I'm the manager of the football club, that decision is not in my hands. All I know is having this [medal] around my neck means we have won a trophy. I don't feel I have completed the job. "We're still building this team. It's a young team, we need to add experience and now we are in the Champions League. I've been trying to build a team that can be challenging for the next four or five years. "Since I came here I had the belief of trying to win something and we have done that and I want to build on it."
