When did you last read a good news story about classical music? Think of the stories that have made the headlines in recent years: funding cuts to national opera companies, closure threats to university music departments, councils axing local provision, classroom music-making in decline. Successes reported only tend to be reprieves or salvages in the face of such crises, fought for by a sector running out of fuel to keep defending itself.
It's been a big couple of years for "Biz Nasty." Earlier this week, it was announced that ex-NHL player/ Arizona Coyotes broadcaster Paul Bissonnette would receive a multi-year contract extension to keep him on the same in-game panel as the likes of Wayne Gretzky. The news of the extension was first announced by Front Office Sports. Alongside his continued work on the pregame and intermission panel for TNT, Paul Bissonnette will also earn some time as an in-game commentator.
Man United vs Man City: key information Date: Saturday 17 January 2025 Kick-off time: 12:30pm GMT / 07:30am ET Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester TV & Streaming: Sky Sports (UK), USA Network (US), Stan Sport (Australia) Watch from anywhere: Get 70% off NordVPN The 198th Manchester derby takes place today as Manchester United hosts Manchester City. The Red Devils appointed former captain Michael Carrick as Ruben Amorim's replacement, after the 40-year-old was sacked earlier this month.
The calendars have been flipped for a few days now, but before we dive headlong into the 2026 sports media scene, your semiloyal scribe (that's me) wanted to jot down a few national and local people, places, and things that I enjoyed or appreciated from the past year on this beat. Twenty-six of them, in fact ... · NBC Sports Boston's "Quick Slants," especially Tom E. Curran's good-natured "Irrelevant Questions" segments with Patriots players. · Phil Perry's knack for good-naturedly shutting down Felger-generated Patriots hot takes with facts and insight. · Lou Merloni's #walkthedog social media clips that never fail to offer clear-eyed assessments of the state of the Red Sox.
Born in Cumbria, Helen Skelton, 42, began her broadcasting career at BBC Radio Cumbria and Newsround. From 2008 to 2013, she was a Blue Peter presenter. Her other credits include reporting on the London 2012 Olympics and presenting Countryfile and BBC Morning Live; she also voices Annie in Fireman Sam. In 2023, she published her autobiography, In My Stride. A new series of her show Lost and Found in the Lakes starts on 5 January on BBC One.
Gabon vs Ivory Coast will be shown live in the UK on 4seven and the Channel 4 streaming service, with kick-off at 19:00 GMT. It will also be available for free on the Channel 4 Sport YouTube channel. Channel 4 has the rights to AFCON this year, so you can watch every game free in the UK. Coverage is geo-restricted, but you can use a VPN to get your usual access if you're away from the UK right now
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... The San Francisco 49ers take on the Chicago Bears at 5:20 p.m. Pacific Time on Sunday, Dec. 28 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara. It's a must-win game for the 49ers on the road to capturing the NFC West crown and No. 1 seed in the playoffs. They may be without star tight end George Kittle and receiver Ricky Pearsall, who are battling injuries.
FourFourTwo brings you all the details on live streams and TV channels, wherever you are in the world. Fulham and Nottingham Forest will do battle on Monday Night Football in the Premier League this evening. The Cottagers did the double over the Tricky Trees last season and will be hoping for more of the same this term. Forest have risen up the table following Sean Dyche's arrival, winning four of their last six games in all competitions.
Iceland has become the fifth country to boycott next year's Eurovision song contest after Israel was given the go-ahead to compete, deepening the crisis facing the competition. The board of the national broadcaster, RUV, voted on Wednesday not to participate, meaning Iceland will join Spain, Slovenia, the Netherlands and Ireland in neither participating in nor broadcasting the event, which is scheduled to take place in Vienna.
Fifa has yet to reveal the venues, which may have an effect on ticket sales. Arsenal, Corinthians (the Copa Libertadores holders) and Gotham FC (the Concacaf champions) have qualified for the semi-finals. The Chinese club Wuhan Jiangda beat Auckland United in October to progress to this month's playoff against the Moroccan side AS FAR for the right to face Arsenal. The second semi-final will be between Gotham and Corinthians.
Watch the 2025 FIFA Arab Cup for an international tournament between teams in the Middle East and North Africa this December, with all the broadcast information right here in this guide. FIFA Arab Cup: Key information Dates: December 1-18, 2025 Location: Qatar Broadcasters: beIN Sports, Abu Dhabi Sports TV, AlKass FREE stream: Abu Dhabi Sports TV via StarzPlay Watch from anywhere: Grab this NordVPN deal
