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CFL, nine member clubs donate over $4.5 million to grassroots football programs

The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

CFL, nine member clubs donate over $4.5 million to grassroots football programs

The Canadian Press 4 minute read Friday, Sep. 19, 2025

TORONTO - The CFL and its nine member clubs invested over $4.5 million into amateur football last year.

The league announced Friday that it and the nine franchises combined to donate $4,518,900 to grassroots football initiatives, projects and programs throughout Canada in 2024.

"The community involvement of the CFL, its clubs and players is something that sets us apart from other leagues," said CFL commissioner Stewart Johnston. "To be able, among all of the clubs in the league, to donate over $4.5 million is encouraging participation and exposure to the game and ultimately having kids fall in love with the sport.

"That's wonderful for a number of reasons, one of which is the game of football teaches such great skills that can be applied to life."

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Friday, Sep. 19, 2025

Flin Flon, Man., virtually deserted, thousands more evacuees expected as fires rage

The Canadian Press 6 minute read Preview

Flin Flon, Man., virtually deserted, thousands more evacuees expected as fires rage

The Canadian Press 6 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

WINNIPEG - Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew says thousands more evacuees are expected and the city of Flin Flon is virtually deserted as wildfires continue to rage in his province.

Kinew told a Friday news conference that the mayor, councillors, health-care staff and other officials have had to depart Flin Flon.

"The only folks remaining on the ground are firefighters and folks in the office of the fire commissioner and RCMP, who are there to battle the blaze," Kinew said.

"We do expect some very, very challenging conditions in Flin Flon and in the surrounding community."

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

Jennifer Chretien and her husband Rob Burroughs sit with their dogs Taco and Gunner on their truck outside of a reception centre for evacuees of the wildfires in northern Manitoba at the Century Arena in Winnipeg, Thursday, May 29, 2025. The couple drove from Flin Flon as evacuations were ordered, and will be spending the night at the community centre. THE CANADIAN PRESS/David Lipnowski

US inflation gauge cools with little sign of tariff impact, so far

Christopher Rugaber, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

US inflation gauge cools with little sign of tariff impact, so far

Christopher Rugaber, The Associated Press 5 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — A key U.S. inflation gauge slowed last month as President Donald Trump’s tariffs have yet to noticeably push up prices. Spending by Americans slowed despite rising incomes, potentially an early reaction to higher prices on some imported goods.

Friday’s report from the Commerce Department showed that consumer prices rose just 2.1% in April compared with a year earlier, down from 2.3% in March and the lowest since September. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core prices rose 2.5% from a year earlier, below the March figure of 2.7%, and the lowest in more than four years. Economists track core prices because they typically provide a better read on where inflation is headed.

The figures show inflation is still declining from its post-pandemic spike, which reached the highest level in four decades in July 2022. Economists and some business executives have warned that prices will likely head higher as Trump’s widespread tariffs take effect, though the timing and impact of those duties are now in doubt after they were struck down late Wednesday in court.

On a monthly basis, overall prices and core prices both increased just 0.1% from March to April. The cost of big-ticket manufactured goods rose a hefty 0.5%, though that increase was offset by a 0.1 decline in other goods, such as groceries. The cost of services rose just 0.1% from March to April.

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

A shopper surveys goods on display in a Costco warehouse Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Lone Tree, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

RioCan REIT asks court to put joint venture with Hudson’s Bay into receivership: docs

Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

RioCan REIT asks court to put joint venture with Hudson’s Bay into receivership: docs

Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

TORONTO - RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust is pushing to put a joint venture it owns with Hudson's Bay into receivership.

A motion filed late Thursday from the real estate firm asks the Ontario Superior Court to appoint FTI Consulting Canada Inc. receiver of the companies that span the venture.

“The proposed receivership proceedings will provide the appropriate forum to protect the interests of the stakeholders of the joint-venture entities and maximize value,” RioCan’s chief financial officer Dennis Blasutti said in an affidavit filed alongside the motion.

Receivers are empowered by courts to take control of a company’s assets, oversee their liquidation and repay creditors.

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

People cycle past the Hudson's Bay department store in downtown Montreal on Monday, March 17, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi

Floods kill at least 111 as northern Nigeria battles climate change, dry spells and heavy rainfall

Taiwo Adebayo, The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview

Floods kill at least 111 as northern Nigeria battles climate change, dry spells and heavy rainfall

Taiwo Adebayo, The Associated Press 2 minute read Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Torrents of predawn rain unleashed flooding that killed at least 111 people in a market town where northern Nigerian farmers sell their wares to traders from the south, officials said Friday, predicting the death toll would grow.

The Nigerian Hydrological Services Agency did not immediately say how much rain fell after midnight Thursday in the town of Mokwa in the state of Niger more than 180 miles (300 kilometers) west of Abuja, the capital of Africa's most populous nation.

Communities in northern Nigeria have been experiencing prolonged dry spells worsened by climate change and excessive rainfall that leads to severe flooding during the brief wet season.

In videos and photos on social media, floodwaters covered neighborhoods and homes were submerged, with their roofs barely visible above the brown colored waters. Waist-deep in water, residents tried to salvage what they could, or rescue others.

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Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025

The map above locates Mokwa, Nigeria, where floods have submerged the town and caused at least 100 deaths. (AP Graphic)

Laurentian Bank reports $32 million Q2 profit as work continues on strategic plan

Ian Bickis, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Preview

Laurentian Bank reports $32 million Q2 profit as work continues on strategic plan

Ian Bickis, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

Laurentian Bank of Canada says it's making progress on its turnaround efforts as it marks a year of working through its strategic plan.

"We've taken meaningful steps to transform our organization and are making steady progress toward generating efficiency," said chief executive Éric Provost on an earnings call Friday.

"While we're still in the early stages, we are satisfied with the progress we have made."

The bank has been working to boost its dealings in the specialized commercial sector while maintaining consumer deposits, as well as boosting technology investments for a bank that until recently didn't offer a smartphone app.

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

A Laurentian Bank sign is seen in Montreal, Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi

New Zealand hails ‘breakthrough’ in trade talks with India, but no timeline for deal

The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview

New Zealand hails ‘breakthrough’ in trade talks with India, but no timeline for deal

The Associated Press 2 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

NEW DELHI (AP) — New Zealand’s deputy prime minister said on Friday that talks over a free trade agreement between his country and India were ongoing, but he didn't provide a timeline for when the two nations could eventually sign a deal.

Winston Peters, who is on a two-day visit to India, said that the negotiations were “going with real meaning now," calling them “a breakthrough in our economic relationship.”

India and New Zealand began negotiations in March for a trade pact, and had aimed to sign a deal in 60 days. The deal will significantly bolster economic ties between the two countries, but it has faced delays because of differences over tariffs on dairy products.

Bilateral trade between India and New Zealand stood at $1.7 billion in the 2023-24 financial year.

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar, right, climbs a staircase with New Zealand's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters in New Delhi, India, Thursday, May 29, 2025. (Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar on X, via AP)

Bank of Canada expected to hold key rate after surprise Q1 GDP jump

Craig Lord, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

Bank of Canada expected to hold key rate after surprise Q1 GDP jump

Craig Lord, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

OTTAWA - The Canadian economy got a boost to start the year as businesses rushed to get ahead of tariffs, and some economists believe that lift will be enough to keep the Bank of Canada on the sidelines at its interest rate decision next week.

Real gross domestic product rose 2.2 per cent annualized in the first quarter of 2025, Statistics Canada reported Friday, up a tick from 2.1 per cent in the fourth quarter.

The first quarter figures topped StatCan’s flash estimate for annualized growth of 1.5 per cent and beat calls for 1.7 per cent from a Reuters poll of economists.

"We did get a better number, overall," said CIBC chief economist Avery Shenfeld.

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

Statistics Canada released real GDP figures for the first quarter of 2025 on Friday. A worker uses an angle grinder on a vessel under construction at Seaspan Shipyards, in North Vancouver, B.C., on Thursday, October 10, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Judge wrestles with far-reaching remedy proposals in US antitrust case against Google

Michael Liedtke And Alan Suderman, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Judge wrestles with far-reaching remedy proposals in US antitrust case against Google

Michael Liedtke And Alan Suderman, The Associated Press 5 minute read Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — The fate and fortunes of one of the world’s most powerful tech companies now sit in the hands of a U.S. judge wrestling with whether to impose far-reaching changes upon Google in the wake of its dominant search engine being declared an illegal monopoly.

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta heard closing arguments Friday from Justice Department lawyers who argued that a radical shake-up is needed to promote a free and fair market. Their proposed remedies include a ban on Google paying to lock its search engine in as the default on smart devices and an order requiring the company to sell its Chrome browser.

Google’s legal team argued that only minor concessions are needed and urged Mehta not to unduly punish the company with a harsh ruling that could squelch future innovations. Google also argued that upheaval triggered by advances in artificial intelligence already is reshaping the search landscape, as conversational search options are rolling out from AI startups that are hoping to use the Department of Justice’s four-and-half-year-old case to gain the upper hand in the next technological frontier.

It was an argument that Mehta appeared to give serious consideration as he marveled at the speed at which the AI industry was growing. He also indicated he was still undecided on how much AI’s potential to shake up the search market should be incorporated in his forthcoming ruling. “This is what I’ve been struggling with,” Mehta said.

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Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai speaks at a Google I/O event in Mountain View, Calif., Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Trump says US Steel will keep HQ in Pittsburgh in a sign he’ll approve bid by Japan-based Nippon

Marc Levy And Paul Wiseman, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Trump says US Steel will keep HQ in Pittsburgh in a sign he’ll approve bid by Japan-based Nippon

Marc Levy And Paul Wiseman, The Associated Press 5 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Friday that U.S. Steel will keep its headquarters in Pittsburgh as part of what he called a “planned partnership” that seemed to signal that he’ll approve a bid by Japan-based Nippon Steel to make a big investment in the iconic American steelmaker, if not buy it outright.

Still, Trump's statement left it vague as to whether he is approving Nippon Steel's bid after he vowed repeatedly to block the deal to prevent U.S. Steel from being foreign-owned.

More recently, Trump suggested that Nippon Steel would invest in U.S. Steel, not buy it, and one union official suggested Friday that the federal government will have a role in the company's management going forward. But investors seemed to take Trump's statement as a sign that he's approving some sort of merger, sharply pushing up U.S. Steel's shares, and the companies issued approving statements.

Nippon Steel said the partnership is a “game changer — for U.S. Steel and all of its stakeholders, including the American steel industry, and the broader American manufacturing base.” U.S. Steel said it “will remain American, and we will grow bigger and stronger through a partnership with Nippon Steel that brings massive investment, new technologies and thousands of jobs over the next four years."

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

President Donald Trump boards Air Force One to depart Joint Base Andrews, Md., Friday, May 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

See a penny, pick it up? In the future, probably not as often – and, some say, that matters

Deepti Hajela, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

See a penny, pick it up? In the future, probably not as often – and, some say, that matters

Deepti Hajela, The Associated Press 5 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Ask someone for their thoughts: Could it now cost you a nickel? If you want to call somebody stingy, would you say they're a quarter-pincher? And if they spend money unwisely, are they now dime-wise but pound-foolish?

OK, maybe those are some minor, small-stakes, dare we say penny-ante concerns in the wake of the U.S. Treasury confirming Thursday that it will stop making shiny new penny coins after the current production run is complete.

But it is the end of an era in the United States. While there will still be over a billion already existing pennies in circulation, rattling around in jars, gathering dust under the sofa cushions and waiting to be picked up from sidewalks, no new cents will be joining their ranks for the first time in more than two centuries.

Answering advocates' demands to abandon the coin

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

FILE - Freshly-made pennies sit in a bin at the U.S. Mint in Denver on Aug. 15, 2007. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

‘Soup Nazi’ actor dips ladle for victims of Vancouver festival attack

The Canadian Press 3 minute read Preview

‘Soup Nazi’ actor dips ladle for victims of Vancouver festival attack

The Canadian Press 3 minute read Tuesday, Sep. 23, 2025

VANCOUVER - "Soup Nazi" actor Larry Thomas, best known for his guest role as a strict soup seller on the sitcom "Seinfeld," will be picking up his ladle again to raise money for victims of last month's attack on Vancouver's Lapu Lapu Day festival.

The Los Angeles-based actor said he will be serving at the Greens And Beans Deli in New Westminster, B.C., on Sunday as part of the restaurant's fundraising efforts.

Thomas said the April 26 attack that killed 11 people was a "terrible thing," prompting him to reprise his fundraising relationship with the deli that stretches back 20 years.

Leona Green, owner of the deli, first reached out to Thomas to ask him to serve soup at a fundraiser for the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.

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Tuesday, Sep. 23, 2025

People hold a candlelight march during a vigil on the street where a vehicle-ramming attack occurred at the Filipino community's Lapu Lapu Day festival last week in Vancouver, on May 2, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

The road back to respectability proving to be a long one for Toronto FC

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

The road back to respectability proving to be a long one for Toronto FC

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

TORONTO - A record 6-1 win at rival CF Montreal last time out and the possible return of captain Jonathan Osorio from injury for Saturday's visit by Nashville SC offer hope for beleaguered Toronto FC fans.

But the road back to respectability is proving to be a long one for Toronto (3-7-4).

Saturday's game is the 600th regular-season outing for the franchise, which has compiled a 180-264-155 record since entering Major League Soccer in 2007. Eighty-five of those wins came between 2015 and 2020, when Toronto made the playoffs five out of the six seasons — its only post-season appearances to date.

Toronto reached the MLS Cup final in 2016, '17 and '19, hoisting the trophy in 2017 when it also won the Canadian Championship and Supporters' Shield (for the best regular-season record).

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

CF Montreal's Samuel Piette (right) knocks Toronto FC's Jonathan Osorio (21) off the ball during first-half Canadian Championship preliminary round soccer action in Toronto on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn

Inquiry must be called to get answers on sand mine scandal

Tom Brodbeck 5 minute read Preview

Inquiry must be called to get answers on sand mine scandal

Tom Brodbeck 5 minute read Friday, May. 23, 2025

It’s pretty clear by now that an inquiry should be called into the Sio Silica scandal.

Ethics Commissioner Jeffrey Schnoor released his long-awaited report into the matter this week. He found that former premier Heather Stefanson, then deputy premier Cliff Cullen and then economic development minister Jeff Wharton, violated the province’s Conflict of Interest Act by attempting to approve a licence for a controversial silica sand mining project after their government was defeated in the Oct. 3, 2023 provincial election.

All three ministers pushed to have a Class 2 licence under the Environment Act approved for Sio Silica, days before the new NDP government was sworn into office.

They did so even though they knew, or ought to have known, that it violated the “caretaker convention,” a longstanding constitutional principle in Canada that prohibits governments from making major policy decisions once a general election is called (unless it’s related to an urgent matter of public importance).

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Friday, May. 23, 2025

MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS FILES
Ethics Commissioner Jeffrey Schnoor found that former premier Heather Stefanson, then deputy premier Cliff Cullen and then economic development minister Jeff Wharton, violated the province’s Conflict of Interest Act.

Brazil great Ronaldo sells stake in Valladolid

The Associated Press 1 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

MADRID (AP) — Brazil great Ronaldo is selling his controlling stake in Valladolid, the Spanish soccer club said on Friday.

Valladolid, which will play in the second division next season, said in a statement that Ronaldo informed it of a deal to sell to a “North American investment group with backing from a European fund.”

The club said it would offer more details in the coming days.

Ronaldo acquired 51% of Valladolid in 2018.

Lawyer challenging Trump’s trade war says tariffs are ‘illegal and abusive’

Kelly Geraldine Malone, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Lawyer challenging Trump’s trade war says tariffs are ‘illegal and abusive’

Kelly Geraldine Malone, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Friday, May. 23, 2025

WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump's global trade war is an "illegal and abusive" use of power, said a lawyer representing small businesses who are challenging the tariffs.

George Mason University law professor Ilya Somin, along with the Liberty Justice Center, represents five American small businesses who had a hearing before the U.S. Court of International Trade last week in an effort to block Trump's sweeping "reciprocal" tariff agenda.

"He's sort of breaking various precedents and doing things which are highly illegal and obviously our contention is that this is highly illegal," Somin said in an interview Thursday.

The president is facing at least seven lawsuits that argue Trump has acted beyond his powers by wielding tariffs through the International Economic Emergency Powers Act of 1977.

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Friday, May. 23, 2025

President Donald Trump speaks during an event to announce new tariffs in the Rose Garden at the White House, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Strike threat could push more customers away from struggling Canada Post

Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

Strike threat could push more customers away from struggling Canada Post

Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

MONTREAL - Canada Post customers may face delays as tens of thousands of workers swear off overtime shifts, though a much bigger disruption was averted after the union backed down from a strike threat.

Nonetheless, the possibility of escalating job action could continue to scare off customers who pulled their shipments over the past couple of weeks, draining more business from the cash-strapped organization.

“I’m scared for the future,” said Edmonton mail carrier Dustin Ellis, who recently went on leave to study for a new career in social work.

He said the union should show more flexibility on key sticking points such as part-time weekend work and "dynamic routing" — where the path carriers take can vary day to day.

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

A Canada Post employee returns to a delivery depot in Vancouver, B.C., Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

What issues to watch as ‘big, beautiful bill’ moves to the Senate

Mary Clare Jalonick, Matt Brown And Joey Cappelletti, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

What issues to watch as ‘big, beautiful bill’ moves to the Senate

Mary Clare Jalonick, Matt Brown And Joey Cappelletti, The Associated Press 6 minute read Friday, May. 23, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans were jubilant after muscling through President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful” tax and immigration package by a single vote. But across the Capitol, senators were more cautious.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune can afford to lose three Republican senators and still pass the bill, and there are more than that, right now, who have problems with it. Like the House, he will have to balance the concerns from moderate and conservative members of his conference.

Republicans’ aspirational deadline is July 4, ahead of a potential debt default. Thune said groups of senators had already been meeting to discuss the legislation and that they would want to take some time to review it. “And then we’ll put our stamp on it,” he said.

“We’ll see how it goes,” Thune said. “What does it take to get to 51?”

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Friday, May. 23, 2025

File - The Capitol is seen in Washington, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Trump threatens 50% tariffs on EU and 25% penalties on smart phones as his trade war intensifies

Josh Boak, The Associated Press 8 minute read Preview

Trump threatens 50% tariffs on EU and 25% penalties on smart phones as his trade war intensifies

Josh Boak, The Associated Press 8 minute read Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Friday threatened a 50% tax on all imports from the European Union as well a 25% tariff on smartphones unless those products are made in America.

The threats, delivered over social media, reflect Trump's ability to disrupt the global economy with a burst of typing, as well as the reality that his tariffs have yet to produce the trade deals he is seeking or the return of domestic manufacturing he has promised voters.

The Republican president said he wants to charge higher import taxes on goods from the EU, a longstanding US ally, than from China, a geopolitical rival that had its tariffs cut to 30% this month so Washington and Beijing could hold negotiations. Trump was upset by the lack of progress in trade talks with the EU, which has proposed mutually cutting tariffs to zero even as the president has publicly insisted on preserving a baseline 10% tax on most imports.

“Our discussions with them are going nowhere!” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Therefore, I am recommending a straight 50% Tariff on the European Union, starting on June 1, 2025. There is no Tariff if the product is built or manufactured in the United States.”

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Sunday, Sep. 21, 2025

President Donald Trump attends a Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission Event in the East Room of the White House, Thursday, May 22, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Demonstrators demand overpass at dangerous Carberry intersection

Alex Lambert 5 minute read Preview

Demonstrators demand overpass at dangerous Carberry intersection

Alex Lambert 5 minute read Friday, May. 23, 2025

CARBERRY — More than 150 people stood near the Trans-Canada Highway and Highway 5 to denounce the preferred option for a redesign of the intersection in response to a collision two years ago that killed 17 people.

They carried signs that read “safety not shortcuts,” and “how many more accidents before they listen.” The group opposes a U-turn option, which is called an RCUT.

Jordan Dickson, 31, one of the organizers, said the RCUT model isn’t safe for the farmers and truckers who live in the area.

“There’s hundreds, if not thousands of trucks … plus all the other everyday passenger traffic coming through here,” she said.

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Friday, May. 23, 2025

More than 150 people gathered to protest proposed changes for the Trans-Canada Highway and Highway 5, where 17 people died in a crash in June 2023.

More than half of Canadians say they understand Alberta separatism: poll

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

More than half of Canadians say they understand Alberta separatism: poll

Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Sunday, May. 25, 2025

OTTAWA - A new poll suggests more than half of Canadians say they understand why Alberta might want to split from Canada — even if almost two-thirds say they don't want that to happen.

The Leger survey, which polled 1,537 Canadians between May 16 and 18, suggests that 55 per cent of Canadians understand Albertans' desire for independence.

Because the poll was conducted online, it can't be assigned a margin of error.

Seventy per cent of Albertans said they understand why their province might want to become an independent country.

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Sunday, May. 25, 2025

People gather in support of Alberta becoming the 51st U.S. state during a rally at the Legislature in Edmonton, on May 3. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson

College Football Playoff shifts to straight seeding model, no automatic byes for top league champs

Eddie Pells, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

College Football Playoff shifts to straight seeding model, no automatic byes for top league champs

Eddie Pells, The Associated Press 4 minute read Thursday, May. 22, 2025

The College Football Playoff will go to a more straightforward way of filling the bracket next season, announcing Thursday that it will place teams strictly on where they are ranked instead of moving pieces around to reward conference champions.

Ten conference commissioners and Notre Dame’s athletic director came to the unanimous agreement they needed to shift the model that drew complaints last season.

The new format will no longer guarantee an opening bye week for the four highest-ranked league champions, reserving that benefit for the four top-ranked teams in general. The change was widely expected after last season’s jumbled bracket gave byes to Big 12 champion Arizona State and Mountain West champion Boise State, even though they were ranked 12th and ninth, respectively, by the playoff selection committee.

That system made the rankings and the seedings in the tournament two different things and resulted in some matchups — for instance, the quarterfinal between top-ranked Oregon and eventual national champion Ohio State — that came earlier than they otherwise might have.

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Thursday, May. 22, 2025

FILE - The College Football Playoff National Championship Trophy on display before the Ohio State Buckeyes National Championship celebration at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, Sunday, Jan. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Joe Maiorana, File)

Kashmir tourism bears the brunt after tourist massacre and India-Pakistan military strikes

Aijaz Hussain, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Kashmir tourism bears the brunt after tourist massacre and India-Pakistan military strikes

Aijaz Hussain, The Associated Press 5 minute read Monday, Sep. 22, 2025

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — There are hardly any tourists in the scenic Himalayan region of Kashmir. Most of the hotels and ornate pinewood houseboats are empty. Resorts in the snowclad mountains have fallen silent. Hundreds of cabs are parked and idle.

It’s the fallout of last month’s gun massacre that left 26 people, mostly Hindu tourists, dead in Indian-controlled Kashmir followed by tit-for-tat military strikes by India and Pakistan, bringing the nuclear-armed rivals to the brink of their third war over the region.

“There might be some tourist arrivals, but it counts almost negligible. It is almost a zero footfall right now,” said Yaseen Tuman, who operates multiple houseboats in the region’s main city of Srinagar. “There is a haunting silence now.”

Tens of thousands of panicked tourists left Kashmir within days after the rare killings of tourists on April 22 at a picture-perfect meadow in southern resort town of Pahalgam. Following the attack, authorities temporarily closed dozens of tourist resorts in the region, adding to fear and causing occupancy rates to plummet.

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Monday, Sep. 22, 2025

Rows of empty houseboats in Dal lake, one of the major tourist destination seen from a mountain in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, India, Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

Trump hosts top crypto investors as some industry leaders fear he’s putting personal profits first

Will Weissert And Alan Suderman, The Associated Press 8 minute read Preview

Trump hosts top crypto investors as some industry leaders fear he’s putting personal profits first

Will Weissert And Alan Suderman, The Associated Press 8 minute read Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump rewarded top investors in one of his cryptocurrency projects with a swanky dinner on Thursday night, an event that showed the ascendance of an emerging financial industry — and also the president's willingness to mix public office with personal profit.

Some 220 of the biggest investors in the $TRUMP meme coin were invited to Trump's luxury golf club in Northern Virginia, where they dined on filet mignon and halibut. According to participants' posts on social media, Trump spoke for about half an hour before dancing to the song “YMCA.”

Despite the White House insisting that Trump would be attending the event “in his personal time,” he stood behind a lectern with the presidential seal as he touted an industry that's generating profits for his family business.

After feeling unfairly targeted under President Joe Biden, the crypto industry has quickly become a powerful political force, donating huge sums to help Trump and friendly lawmakers. The U.S. Senate is advancing key pro-crypto legislation while bitcoin prices soar.

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Saturday, Sep. 20, 2025

January 15, 2026