Author: News Room

England defender Harry Maguire said Thursday he was “shocked and gutted” to have been left out of Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad. The German coach will name his 26-man squad for the tournament in North America on Friday and began making calls to players the previous day. Manchester United’s Maguire was part of the England squad in March, having received his first call-up under Tuchel, but the 66-cap defender has confirmed he will not be going to the World Cup. The centre-back, 33, posted on social media: “I was confident I could (have) played a major part this summer for…

The Gombe State Police Command has recovered 119 rounds of 7.62mm AK-47 live ammunition concealed in a sack along Kalshingi Road in Kwadon, Yamaltu/Deba Local Government Area of the state. According to a statement issued on Thursday by the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Buhari Abdullahi, the recovery followed credible information received by the Divisional Police Officer of Kwadon Division at about 10:30am on May 19, 2026. Abdullahi said the information indicated that a suspicious white sack had been hidden under a tree opposite a graveyard along the road. “Upon receipt of the information, the Divisional Police Officer promptly led…

The All Progressives Congress in Kano State on Thursday adopted Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf as the consensus Kano Governorship candidate ahead of 2027 general elections. The affirmation held at the Sani Abacha Stadium Kofar Mata witnessed large turnout of party supporters who defied a downpour in order to witness the grand event. Among the prominent personalities that attended the official affirmation included National Assembly members as well as top government functionaries. The chairman of the APC Governorship Primary Election Committee, Muntari Shagari declared that Abba Yusuf, having satisfied the Constitution, hereby affirmed and returned as the sole candidate for the…

Electricity distribution companies have faulted the Lagos State Government’s proposed plan to phase out electricity customer band classification, warning that the move could trigger consumer unrest, worsen market distortions, and lead to blackouts if implemented prematurely. Officials of the power firms, who spoke anonymously with The PUNCH due to the sensitivity of the matter, said the intention of the Lagos State Government was commendable but argued that the state must first guarantee a stable electricity supply across all areas before abolishing the banding structure introduced by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission in 2024. The criticism follows comments by the Lagos…

Stakeholders in Nigerian table tennis have again identified the challenges limiting the performance of the country’s players at global tournaments and highlighted ways to bridge the gap between Nigeria and the world’s top nations, The PUNCH reports. This comes on the heels of Nigeria’s below-par outing at the 2026 International Table Tennis Federation World Championship in London, where both the men’s and women’s teams failed to progress beyond the preliminary and group stages, respectively. While the men’s team, led by Quadri Aruna, managed wins against Saudi Arabia and South Africa in the group stage, they were eliminated by eternal rivals…

Afrobeats star Rema has teamed up with South Korean pop act LISA and Brazilian singer Anitta on Goals, the latest single off the Official FIFA World Cup 2026 Album. The track was released on Thursday via SALXCO UAM and Def Jam Recordings on all major streaming platforms, accompanied by an official music video. Produced by Grammy-winning producer Cirkut, the song draws from Afrobeats, K-pop and Latin pop. FIFA, in a statement, described the album as a unifying platform where music and sport intersect, connecting fans, communities and sounds from around the world. As the Official FIFA World Cup 2026™ Album…

Selling the smart home has been hard. Even Amazon has lost money in the space, despite putting hundreds of millions of Echo devices in people’s homes. Google has also reportedly struggled to turn a profit from its substantial investment in Nest. But now Google is seeing dollar signs in the prospect of selling AI-driven subscriptions in the smart home. And it’s not alone.At Google I/O this week, Google announced it’s expanding its Gemini for Home APIs to allow companies to integrate more of its Gemini-powered smart home features into their own apps. In a blog post, Google’s Ravi Akella, director…

Bitcoin (BTC) focused on $77,000 on Thursday as analysis eyed a minimum 5% BTC price move.Key points:Bitcoin waits for a breakout move as it circles the $77,000 mark.Analysis sees risk in shorting price at current levels, with bears in the firing line.Macro hurdles keep risk assets down across the board, while US bond yields cool.Trader sees 5% BTC price move “soon”Data from TradingView showed BTC price action sticking to a narrow range, with leveraged positions on either side of spot.BTC/USD one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView“Some big clusters right around price. Most notably: the ~$78K area and the $76.5K-$77K area in the…

ABC has ordered a Grey’s Anatomy spinoff set in rural Texas — but how many other follow-up shows have there been? The medical drama, which premiered in 2005, is focused on the personal and professional lives of surgical interns, residents and attendings at the fictional Seattle Grace Hospital a.k.a Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital a.k.a Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. Due to the nature of the show, Grey’s Anatomy has become known for its wild twists that often result in cast exits. The show’s success has also paved the way for several spinoffs including Private Practice and Station 19. In May…

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday turned attention to the peculiar challenges of the elderly people, equipping its staff with the needed skills to protect them. Speaking at the event which took place at the NHRC’s headquaters in Abuja, the Executive Secretary of the commission, Tony Ojukwu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, said the training aimed to enhance staff’s capacity to recognise and addresse violence caused by elder abuse. He said the training also sought to strengthen advocacy skills for effective engagement with the government agencies, civil society and communities and promote a rights-based approach in all interventions…