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NATO launches biggest war games since end of Cold War NATO launched its biggest exercises since the end of the Cold War on Thursday in Norway. The Trident Juncture war gamesinvolve around 50,000 troops, 10,000 vehicles, 250 aircraft and 65 ships from all 29 alliance members, plus Sweden and Finland. The maneuvers will take place for two weeks in Norway and the air and sea spaces around the country. The goal of the exercises is to test and train NATOʼs Very High Readiness Joint Task Force and follow-on forces. The rapid reaction force is designed to spearhead a defense against an attack on an alliance member within days and is a component of the NATO Response Force. The Very High Readiness Joint Task Force was established by the alliance in 2014 as a deterrent in response to Russiaʼs annexation of the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine and Moscowʼs support for separatists there.

Police investigate packages sent to Robert de Niro and former VP Joe Biden Actor Robert De Niro and former US Vice President Joe Biden were sent suspicious packages on Thursday that were similar to others that contained pipe bombs, according to US media reports. US investigators are said to be focussing on leads from the southern state of Florida. The news followed a series of suspected pipe bombssent to high-profile Democrats andcritics of US President Donald Trump. New York Cityʼs police department responded to reports of a "suspicious package" found in Manhattan that was located in an area where Robert De Niro owns a restaurant.Police later said theyʼd removed the package, but advised locals to expect a large police presence.

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Rome in the crosshairs as Draghi sharpens ECBʼs monetary scissors EU rejects Italyʼs 2019 budget

We don’t know if the rumors that Italyʼs PM checks ItalianGerman bond yield spreads several times a day are true. But as the ECB ends stimulus and Rome refuses to budge on its budget, he might want to start. As expected, the European Central Bank (ECB) on Thursday brushed aside fears of rising inflation and slowing growth, a possible Brexit no deal andItaly’s budget issuesto reaffirm it will end its 4-year €2.5 trillion ($2.85 trillion) stimulus program known asQuantative Easing(QE) at the end of the year. The bank has already halved its monthly bond purchases to €15 billion. "Risks surrounding the eurozone growth outlook can still be assessed as broadly balanced," ECB boss Mario Draghi said. "At the same time, risks relating to protectionism, vulnerabilities in emerging markets and financial market volatility remain prominent," he went on. "Is this enough of a change to make us change the baseline scenario? The answer is ʼNo.ʼ" The ECB has faced calls from Rome to delay the end of QE as the Italian government and European Commission battle it out over the new Italian governmentʼs expansionary 2019 budget. Draghi said at its Frankfurt HQ that the euro-zoneʼs central bank will continue using other instru-

ments after the bond purchase program ends, indicating that monetary policy will remain relatively loose. An ECB statement said interest rates would, for example, stay at historic lows "at least through the summer of 2019" and maybe beyond. The ECBʼs 25-member governing council said it will keep its benchmark refinancing rate at zero and deposit rate at minus 0.4 percent. This leaves the ECB behind the US Federal Reserve, which has started raising interest rates and cut its stimulus program earlier this year. "Once QE support has gone then you will see who is swimming naked," Lars Kalbreier, the chief investment officer at Vontobel Wealth Management told Bloombergʼs recent Invest Summit in London. Some market watchers fear that Italyʼs public spending plans could trigger a re-emergence of the eurozoneʼs debt crisis. With the EU rejecting Italyʼs budget this week, Draghi reiterated on Thursday that no individual member state can expect its help, particularly if they breach EU rules.

Russian general says US plane directed drones towards airbase in Syria The US military helped coordinate an attempted drone attack on Russiaʼs Hemeimeem base in Syria, Russian deputy defense minister Alexander Fomin claimed at a summit in Beijing on Thursday. The alleged attack took place in January 2018. Fominʼs statement marks the first time Russia has directly accused the US of targeting Russian forces. The Russian official said that a coordinated group of 13 drones was directed toward the base while a US Poseidon-8, a high-tech reconnaissance plane, was cruising over the Mediterranean. Once the drones "reached our barrier of radioelectronic interference," they were switched to manual navigation, according to Fomin. "This manual control is not conducted by just some villager, but by a normal, modernized Poseidon-8," Fomin added. "It took on manual control."

Saudi Arabia admits Jamal Khashoggi death was intentional The finding contradicts earlier assertions that Khashoggiʼs death at Riyadhʼs Turkish consulate was accidental. Saudi Arabia is attempting to distance the royal family from the journalistʼs killing. Saudi prosecutors said the alleged killers of Jamal Khashoggi acted intentionally, in comments published by Saudi news agency SPA.

weather today BUDAPEST

8 / 13 °C Precipitation: 3 mm

244/2018 • 26 October, 2018

How extreme poverty is forcing Pakistanis to sell kidneys Muhammad Iqbal (pictured above) is a 44-year-old laborer hailing from eastern Pakistan. He wants to play kabaddi, a wrestling-like traditional sport in South Asia, but his deteriorating health does not allow him to indulge in any activity that is physically straining. A former brick kiln worker, Iqbal is now unable to lift heavy stuff. He was not always so enervated. A wrong decision in 2012 changed his life for the worse. Iqbal regrets making that decision. "In 2012, I was heavily indebted," Iqbal, a father of eight children, told DW. "I was living in a village near Lahore and working at a brick kiln factory. I had borrowed 135,000 Pakistani rupees (€1,603, $1,856) from the kiln owner. I was working round the clock to pay back the loan, but with my meagre salary, I could hardly make both ends meet, let alone repay the loan," Iqbal said. "I was so desperate that I was ready to do anything to get some money," a teary Iqbal told DW. "At the time, my cousin Ashraf came up with an idea — he asked me to sell my kidney and repay the loan."

Nazi hunter Serge Klarsfeld receives top French award French President Emmanuel Macron has presented Nazi hunter Serge Klarsfeld with the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor. Klarsfeld, working with his wife, dedicated his life to bringing Holocaust perpetrators to justice. Klarsfeld, 83, received Franceʼs highest award, while his wife, 79-yearoldBeate Klarsfeld, received the National Order of Merit. She had already been awarded the Legion of Honor in 2014. The Chief Rabbi of France Haim Korsia was among those who attended the ceremony at the Elysee Palace. The event was limited to family and close friends and associates. Serge Klarsfeld was born September 17, 1935, in the Romanian capital of Bucharest. He escaped the Holocaust after his family moved to France but witnessed his father being taken away to die in the Nazi concentration camp of Auschwitz. He became a naturalized French citizen in 1950, and 10 years later, while studying at the prestigious Sciences Po in Paris, he met Beate Kuenzel, the daughter of a former German soldier, on a metro platform. Serge and Beate decided to bring fugitive Nazis to justicetogether, a mission they pursued for more than half a century. "Neither could have succeeded without the other," their daughter Lida once said. 2

UK fines Facebook $644,000 over data breach Facebookʼs faulty practices meant 87 million usersʼ personal data was used without their consent

UN demands more donations for refugees The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is reporting that there is insufficient refugee aid funding from donor countries. There is expected to be a shortfall of 3.7 billion dollars this year, the agency warned on Tuesday in Geneva. "Funding for the worldʼs forcibly displaced and stateless people is becoming increasingly squeezed, with barely more than half of needs being met," UNHCR spokesman Babar Baloch told a press conference. The number of refugees, which include internally displaced people, returnees and stateless persons, is expected to grow by more than 8 million to 79.8 million people in 2018, according to a funding report by the UN agency. Aid money shortage The lack of aid money is particularly acute in hotspots around the world which include Afghanistan, Burundi, Congo, Somalia, South Sudanand Syria, as well as in refugee host countries.

British regulators slapped Facebook with the maximum possible fine for failing to protect user privacy. Britainʼs data protection watchdog fined Facebook GBP 500,000 ($644,000; €565,000) over its role inthe Cambridge Analytica scandalthat saw millions of usersʼ data used without their knowledge. Although the fine is the maximum allowed for the time when the data breach occurred,the embattled social media giantwould have faced a much larger penalty if the breach had occurred after the EUʼs new data protection rules went into effect. The Information Com-

EU court sees discrimination in Catholic hospitalʼs firing of divorced doctor The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled on Tuesday that the head doctor of a Catholic Church-run clinic in Düsseldorf had lost his job due to potential "hidden discrimination" after he was fired for getting married a second time. The ruling, which came after the case had worked its way through the German courts over three years, could influence the relationship between the German state and the church-run employers. Currently, the

missionerʼs Office (ICO) found that between 2007 and 2014, Facebook gave outside app developers unfair access to userʼs personal information without their informed consent.The social media giant also failed to keep personal information secure, leading to at least one developer to harvest information.This personal data was later shared with private firms, including the parent company of political consultancy Cambridge Analytica. German constitution grants the church to right to fire employees who breach its religious laws.Divorced and remarried In the case, the ECJ was looking at EU law to see whether church-related institutions were allowed to impose stricter requirements on their Catholic employees than on those who were members of other religions or non-religious.

World hunger on the rise for a third year One in nine people in the world is affected by hunger. That is what the latest report by the UNʼs Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has found.

Heavy droughts and conflict are some of the main drivers behind the rise. If the trend continues, the FAO warns, the world will fall far short of achieving the UNʼs 2030 goal of eradicating hunger. The report points out that a few advances have been made. Stunting levels in children have for instance decreased and the practice of exclusive breastfeeding has risen in Africa and Asia, while they have declined in North America. DW spoke to Cindy Holleman, a senior economist at the FAO about the report. Cindy Holleman: The key finding thatʼs coming out this year is that indeed world hunger globally is rising for the third year in a row. And this is very worrying because it basically sets us back to the levels of hunger of almost a decade ago. So it is quite an alarming situation.

244/2018 • 26 October, 2018

Nicolas Sarkozy to face trial over illegal campaign financing The former French president has lost an appeal over charges of illegal campaign financing. The conservative leader is facing multiple legal problems, including allegations he accepted funds from Moammar Gadhafi. Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy must face trial for illegal campaign financing after losing a court appeal on Thursday. The "Bygmalion" scandal is just one of several legal problems facing Sarkozy following his unsuccessful re-election bid in 2012. Sarkozy was appealing a 2017 ruling that he and 13 others face trial over the "Bygmalion affair."In 2012 Sarkozy allegedly exceeded the legal limit for election campaign spending.A PR firm called Byg-

South Korea urges for ʼbold decisionsʼ ahead of next TrumpKim summit South Korean President Moon Jaeincalled on both North Korea and the United States on Tuesday to make concrete steps in their stalled negotiations over Pyongyangʼs nuclear weapons program. Moon said the US and North Korea need to "make bold decisions" and that both must communicate more actively with one another. "North Korea must carry out its nuclear dismantling and the United States must take a corresponding step," Moon said, adding that he will continue to act as mediator between the two sides. Moonʼs comments come one week before he is due to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Unfor a summit in Pyongyangthat is due to run from September 18-20. It will be the third summit between the two leaders this year. Improving relations between North and South Korea is largely tied to progress in talks between Washington and Pyongyang. Moon said that his upcoming summit with Kim must include another "big step" towards denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula.

malion was allegedly involved in exceeding the €22.5 million ($25.6 million) limit by almost double via fake invoices. Other legal troubles: Sarkozy is also facing accusations of bribery and illegal influence. In 2014, Sarkozy allegedly obtained secret information from a lawyer general at the Court of Cassation through his legal counsel. He is also under investigation for allegedly accepting campaign financing in 2007 from thenLibyan ruler Moammar Gadhafi.

Never mind Italy, France faces its own fiscal showdown

Only 18 months into his first term, French President Emmanuel Macron may want to lecture Italy on the merits of fiscal fastidiousness all he likes. But Franceʼs budgetary garden doesnʼt look that much rosier. When French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire meets his Italian counterpart Giovanni Tria on Thursday, the more cynical of observers may ask what lessons Rome can draw from Franceʼs example of belt tightening, or more precisely perhaps, the lack thereof. When he last visited Rome inSeptember, Le Maire reportedly intended to tell the new government that Italyʼs budget deficit must not breach any prescribed EU limits. But he left with his

tail between his legs, having had to reassure his Roman hosts that his own countryʼs budget deficit wouldnʼt exceed those very same rules. The European Commission rejected Italyʼs draft 2019 budgetthis week, saying it broke EU rules on public spending and asked Rome to submit a new one within three weeks or face disciplinary action. But Franceʼs budget bill for 2019 unveiled last month has also been criticized for not being brave enough on cutting spending while targeting a deficit for 2019 at 2.8 percent, close to the 3 percent limit set by the EUʼs Stability and Growth Pact. In September, the International Monetary Fund estimated Franceʼs deficit will reach 3.2 percent of GDP in 2019.

US threatens to arrest ICC judges over war crimes probe US National Security Adviser John Bolton on Monday threatened to sanction and prosecuteInternational Criminal Court(ICC) judges ifthe tribunal attempts to charge US service members and intelligence agents with war crimes. "The United States will use any means necessary to protect our citizens and those of our allies from unjust prosecution by this illegitimate court," Bolton said in a speech delivered to the conservative Federalist Society in Washington.

244/2018 • 26 October, 2018

EU subsidy fraud in Slovakia: The dirty fight for arable land

Frantisek Oravec (pictured) always wanted to be a farmer, just like his father and grandfather. The 47-yearold owns an impressive farm in Gynov, a small village in southeastern Slovakia. This farm is practically his lifetime achievement, built up over two and a half decades. Oravec cultivates almost 3,000 hectares (7,400 acres) of land, partially owned by himself, partially leased. During the last three years, however, he hardly found time to cultivate his land or take care of his livestock. Instead, he was studying documents, reading lawyersʼ correspondence, or appearing in courts of law. Or seeking treatment at a hospital. Recounting the incident, Oravec holds up a photo that shows himself, face bleeding, nose broken, having been beaten up on his own arable land. "They are trying to steal my land," Oravec bursts out, both helplessly and resentfully. "I thought we were living under the rule of law and in the European Union?!"

ʼYeah, nahʼ: Kiwi startup defies German giantʼs order to stop saying ʼhelloʼ New Zealand startup My Food Bag, which delivers fresh ready-to-cook ingredients, issued a tongue-in-cheek response to a cease-and-desist notice from Berlin-based Hello Fresh. Hello Fresh had taken issue with its Kiwi competitor using the phrase "Hello Fresh." The letter, published in the New Zealand Herald and other domestic media, is replete with Kiwi colloquialisms and phrases in the countryʼs indigenous Maori language. The response, from Aotearoa, the Maori name for New Zealand, begins with a Maori greeting, to HelloFresh executives Thomas Griesel and Dr. Christian Ries. "Kia ora" is translated as "hello." "Kia ora Herr Griesel and Herr Ries, Greet‐ ings from Aotearoa. We donʼt often get heavyweight German multinational corpo‐ rations taking the time to write to us Kiwis." The letter, published in the New Zealand Herald and other domestic media, is replete with Kiwi colloquialisms and phrases in the countryʼs indigenous Maori language. The response, from Aotearoa, the Maori name for New Zealand, begins with a Maori greet‐ ing, to HelloFresh executives Thomas Griesel and Dr. Christian Ries. "Kia ora" is translated as "hello." "Kia ora Herr Griesel and Herr Ries, Greetings from Aotearoa. We donʼt often get heavyweight German multinational corporations taking the time to write to us Kiwis."

Appleʼs Tim Cook hails EUʼs GDPR, calls for similar US data protection law Tim Cook has warned that internet usersʼ personal data is being "weaponized" by internet giants. His solution is a US data protection law that imitates many of the EUʼs stringent rules. Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook on Wednesday called on the United States to follow the European Unionʼs example by passing a federal data protection law akin tothe blocʼs General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). "We should celebrate the transformative work of the European institutions," Cook told a conference on data protection in Brussels. "It is time for the rest of the world, including my home country, to follow your lead," he said. The GDPR entered

BP buys BHPʼs US onshore oil and gas assets The worldʼs biggest miner BHP has announced the sale of its shale oil and gas operations in the US to the British oil giant BP. The deal means a huge loss for BHP, but a potential windfall for its shareholders. BHP has sold its US onshore oil and gas assets to British oil giant BP for $10.5 billion (€9.03 billion), the two companies announced on Friday, meaning a huge loss for the worldʼs largest mining company. The Anglo-Australian firm spent $20 billion in 2011 to acquire the assets, but the sector later experienced a fall in prices, hammering profits. As a result, BHP had announced last year that it would withdraw from the shale sector. Read more: BP projects oil output to peak in late 2030s "We are pleased that we have agreed to sell all of our shale assets in two simple transactions that provide certainty for shareholders and our employees," said BHP chief executive Andrew Mackenzie. "The sale of our onshore US assets is consistent with our long-term plan to continue to simplify and strengthen our portfolio to generate shareholder value and returns for decades to come."

Hotel Parlament H-Budapest 1054, Kálmán Imre utca 19. T.: +36 1 374 6000 reservation@parlament-hotel.hu www.parlament-hotel.hu

Malaysia says seized items in ex-premier probe valued at €234 million A treasure trove of cash, jewelry, handbags and watches seized in raids last month on properties linked to Malaysiaʼs scandalplagued former prime minister are worth up to 1.1 billion ringgit ($273.3 million/€234.3 million), anti-corruption police said on Wednesday. It took more than 150 officers and experts nearly a month to assess the value of the items seized in the mid-May raids on premises linked to former premier Najib Razak because the "numbers were too huge," said Amar Singh, the head of the police commercial crime division. Cash in 26 currencies worth around €25 million.12,000 items of jewelry with an estimated retail value of €140-187 million.Jewelry items included 1,400 necklaces, 2,200 rings, 2,100 bangles, 2,800 pairs of earrings, 1,600 brooches and 14 tiaras.567 luxury handbags from 37 different brands.

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into force in May. It introduced stringent rules on how businesses around the world collect and use the personal data of people located within the European Union. Companies that break the law risk harsh financial penalties. Cook voiced support for a similar US law to tackle the internet giantsʼ "surveillance" of internet users via the control of massive amounts of personal data. That information, he said, was "being weaponized" against internet users with "military efficiency."

No lack of corporate data breaches this decade

Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific is the latest company to come under pressure to communicate the scope of a data breach following an attack by hackers. The current decade has seen a surge of major data leakages. Cathay Pacific faced a hard time Thursday(October 25, 2018) explaining why it had taken five months to admit it had been hacked, seeing the data of 9.4 million customers compromised. The airline had first discovered suspicious activity on its network in March. Investors noted that customers had missed out on a long period of opportunity to take steps to safeguard their personal data.Also in the news Thursday was Facebook,which was fined by a UK watchdog for processing personal information unfairly by giving app developers access to millions of accounts without the usersʼ consent. Does Cambridge Analytica ring a bell? The political consultancy used data from tens of millions of Facebook accounts to profile voters and help US President Donald Trumpʼs 2016 election campaign.

244/2018 • 26 October, 2018

European Parliament votes for ban on single-use plastic A proposed ban targets the top 10 single-use plastic products that litter Europeʼs beaches

European lawmakers have approved measures to reduce plastics polluting seas and oceans. The European Parliament on Wednesday approved measures that could lead to a ban on single-use plastic items, including straws, cotton swabs and disposable plastic plates and cutlery, by 2021. The parliament backed the proposals with a 571-53 majority. In May, the European Commission proposed EUwide rulesto target the top 10 singleuse plastic items that litter Europeʼs beaches or are found in its seas, as well as lost and abandoned fishing gear. A ban on the use of plastic items like straws, cotton swabs, plastic plates and cutlery, plastic coffee stirrers and plastic balloon holders. EU lawmakers on Wednesday added very lightweight plastic

bags and polystyrene fast-food containers to the list.Reduce the use of plastic food containers, such as the ones used for take-away, and cups for beverages.Producers will help cover the costs of waste management and cleanup as well as raise awareness of the polluting impacts of tobacco products with filters (such as cigarette butts), wet wipes, balloons, plastic bags and candy and potato chip wrappers.Member states should use a deposit refund scheme or any other measure to collect 90 percent of single-use plastic bottles by 2025.Menstrual pads, wet wipes and balloons will be required to add a label indicating how to dispose of the product properly.

the city could see underground water reserves dry up within the next decade. Kabulʼs groundwater levels have already dropped 20 meters (66 feet) in the past five years, according to the Afghanistanʼs urban water authorities. And with a trend toward less rain and snowfall, there is every chance that levels will continue to drop. That is desperate news for the almost 5 million-strong capital, which is considered one of the worldʼs fasting-growing cities.

Can religious leaders help keep Kabulʼs water flowing? Foreign invasions, civil war, terror attacks, competing warlords —fate has not been kind to Afghanistanin the past decades. Now, as many people leave their homes in the countryside for Kabul in search of a better and indeed safer life, the countryʼs capital is facing a threat of an entirely different kind: a severe water shortage. The situation is so dire that Afghanistanʼs National Disaster Management Authority (ANDMA) has warned that increasing demand and use of water in the city could see underground water reserves dry up within the next decade. Kabulʼs groundwater levels have already dropped 20 meters (66 feet) in the past five years, according to the Afghanistanʼs urban water authorities. And with a trend toward less rain and snowfall, there is every chance that levels will continue to drop. That is desperate news for the almost 5 million-strong capital, which is considered one of the worldʼs fasting-growing cities.

World Press Photo exhibition open in Budapest

A heartwarming hug, exploited sex workers and all of the chaos and calamity caused by an increasing terrorist attacks and conflict. The annual World Press Photo travelling exhibition once again portrays milestones from the past year through the best works of photojournalism. The exhibition is on view until October 23rd at the Hungarian National Museum. If you just visit one show in Budapest this autumn, it should be this one.

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Culture

Hungary’s Recirquel to stage Budapest premiere of hit Edinburgh show “My Land” THE SHOW RUNS AT MÜPA BUDAPEST EVERY DAY FROM 16 TO 19 OCTOBER AND ON 21 OCTOBER. From tonight, Budapest audiences can expect gravity-defying acts performed in their purest form, through physical feats of the body. Presented on the stage of the prestigious Müpa Palace of Arts are stunts by globally renowned company Recirquel, whose new ballet-like production “My Land” was top-rated by critics at the 2018 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. We talk to Recirquel founder and choreographer Bence Vági, who has taken acrobatics to new heights. Performers in skintight unitards rise up from a dirtcovered set to share personal stories, their bodies contorted and biceps straining. What unfolds in front of the viewers appear as illusionary images combining light, shadow and reflection – nature’s elements. Tradition, freedom and love all form part of My Land, a real physical feat enacted by a team of Ukrainian artists to traditional Tatar and Moldavian music.

244/2018 • 26 October, 2018

Senegal to become Africaʼs first Olympic host

Senegalʼs President Macky Sall was in Buenos Aires to see IOC members confirm the executive boardʼs preference for his country over the other three candidates. The youth games will be held in three places: Dakar; a new city of Diamniadio, close to the capital; and the coastal resort of Saly. Sall said the government-backed project will build a 50,000-seat Olympic Stadium for the event which will held in May or June, at the end of the dry season, to "greatly reduce the prevalence of tropical diseases," IOC vice president Ugur Erdener told the membership.

Manchester United: Jose Mourinhoʼs players have to stand up - Wayne Rooney

London Broncos have long-term ambition to win Super League title Promoted London Broncos must have the ambition to win Super League in the future, says head coach Danny Ward. The Broncos will be back in the top flight in 2019 afterbeating Toronto Wolfpack 4-2 in the Million Pound Gameon Sunday. "We need to make it work, have a five-year plan of where we want to be," Ward told BBC Radio London. "Next year is going to be tough but we want a long-term vision to make London the best club in the country." He added: "We donʼt just want to compete in Super League, but win it. We are not there just to survive." Ward, who took charge following the departure of Andrew Henderson at the end of last season, described their victory over the Wolfpack in Canada as "one of the proudest moments" of his career. "What a performance, what a day and what an achievement - I am still on a massive high," he said on their return to England. "To lead the club into the Million Pound Game and win promotion is one of my biggest ever achievements."

Bayern Munich chief expects European Super League The Bayern boss said he was happy to not oversee its creation

Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said the prospect of the Super League that featured only the top clubs in Europe would likely hurt domestic leagues. Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge thinks that a European Super League is bound to become a reality in the future. The Bavarian chairman made the remark in an interview this week with German football magazine 11 Freunde. "I suspect that this league will come one day. But donʼt ask me when," Rummenigge said. But in taking part in its creation, the Bayern CEO said no thanks."I am glad that the formation no longer falls under my responsibility as (former) head of the ECA (European Clubs Association)," he em-

phasized. The European Super League idea is centered on narrowing the current Champions League to only the top 16 teams. The proposal has only been discussed, but so far there are no concrete plans to implement it. But the proposal has sparked a debate over the future of European football. In particular, declining viewership of the current Champions League has driven some to support the move. At the same time, the Super Leagueʼs main victims would be smaller teams and domestic federations.

Brooks Koepka: US golfer named PGA Tour player of the year Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is an "easy target" and the players "have to do better", says former Old Trafford striker Wayne Rooney. Mourinho has come under pressure after United made their worst start to a league campaign for 29 years. "The players, the manager, it has been a tough start to the season," ex-England forward Rooney said. "I know Jose is getting a load of stick but I said a few weeks ago, the players have to stand up." 6

Brooks Koepka has been named as the PGA Tour player of the year for 2018. The American this year won the US PGA Championship and became the first golfer since 1989 to clinch backto-back US Open titles. Koepka, 28, won the award ahead of Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Open champion Francesco Molinari, Justin Rose and Justin Thomas. PGA Tour members who have played in at least 15 FedEx Cup events in the 2017-18

season were eligible to vote. Rumours of an argument between Koepka and world number one Johnson at the Ryder Cup, which were denied at the time, have since been confirmed by US captain Jim Furyk. "Whatever altercation started, or what happened, it was very brief," Furyk said. "Theyʼre like brothers. Brothers may argue, brothers get into it. But theyʼre as close as theyʼve ever been, and it really had no effect on either one of them."