The Irish Press - News from Dublin, Kilkenny, Waterford, Drogheda, Galyway, Ireland and the world

Aston Villa reached their first European final for 44 years in memorable style with a 4-0 demolition of Nottingham Forest in the Europa League semi-finals on Thursday.

President Donald Trump and his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Thursday hailed a positive three-hour meeting in Washington, as the ideological opposites sought to smooth tensions.

Colombian pop idol Shakira on Thursday teased the new official song for the 2026 World Cup, releasing a brief video of the track filmed at Brazil's iconic Maracana Stadium.

Crystal Palace swept past Shakhtar Donetsk 5-2 on aggregate to reach their first-ever European final on Thursday, giving manager Oliver Glasner the chance of a fairytale end to his golden reign.

The price of a roundtrip rail ticket from New York to the nearby stadium that will host the final and seven other matches at football's World Cup is being cut from $150 to $105, following outrage from fans, an official said Thursday.

Global stocks mostly fell Thursday as US indices pulled back from records while Washington awaited Tehran's response to a US plan to end the Middle East war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Aryna Sabalenka breezed into the third round of the Italian Open on Thursday with a straight-sets win over Barbora Krejcikova, 6-2, 6-3.

President Donald Trump on Thursday said the European Union must ratify its trade deal with the United States by July 4 or face "much higher" tariffs, after European officials fell short of agreement on the pact.

A total of 30 passengers left the hantavirus-stricken Hondius during its call at the remote British island of Saint Helena, the cruise ship's Dutch operator said Thursday.

Real Madrid said they would punish midfielders Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni after a clash on Thursday at the club's training ground which left the former needing hospital treatment.

France's parliament on Thursday definitively adopted legislation to simplify the return of artworks looted during the colonial era to their countries of origin.

Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti is set to be handed a four-year contract extension taking him through to the 2030 World Cup, the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) said Thursday.

Abdoulaye Diarra was beaten and burnt alive near his home in the Malian capital, wrongly accused of being a "terrorist" because of his shabby clothes and long hair.

The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on a Cuban military conglomerate that controls nearly 40 percent of the island's economy, as well as a Canadian mining company, as part of a mounting pressure campaign.

Australia's Mitchell Marsh hit 111 to set up a tense nine-run win for Lucknow Super Giants in a rain-hit IPL clash against defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Thursday.

Google faces a fresh UK lawsuit accusing it of abusing its dominance in online display advertising, the claimants announced Thursday, in the latest antitrust action against the US tech giant.

The New York Yankees' Jasson Dominguez was injured slamming into a wall as he took a superb leaping catch in the first inning on Thursday, eventually leaving the field on a medical cart.

New York will invest $12 million of settlement funds from opioid manufacturers to recruit 500 specialists to help treat people battling addiction, the city's mayor said Thursday.

President Donald Trump said in an interview published Thursday that he would not pay the $1,000-plus ticket price for the United States' first World Cup match, piling pressure on FIFA over its sky-high costs.

Daniel Dubois is determined to make the "trash" Fabio Wardley eat his words when he faces the reigning champion in an all-British bout for the World Boxing Organization heavyweight title in Manchester on Saturday.

France will ban the sale of cannabidiol (CBD) edibles from May 15, while still allowing it to be sold to be smoked, AFP learnt from several sources on Thursday.

Two attacks in central Mali claimed by Al-Qaeda-linked jihadists have killed more than 30 people, local, security and administrative sources told AFP on Thursday.

More than 75 survivors have been awarded "full compensation" for suffering sexual abuse at the hands of late Harrods owner Mohamed Al-Fayed, and nearly another 200 claims are being processed, a company scheme told AFP Thursday.

The fuel blockade imposed on Cuba by the United States amounts to "energy starvation", and has "grave consequences" for human rights and development, three UN special rapporteurs said Thursday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday warned allies of Russia against attending its May 9 WWII victory parade, as Moscow doubled down on its threat to strike Kyiv on the day.

Millwall head into the English Championship play-offs with their sights set on a "fairytale" return to the top-flight after 36 years, while Southampton, Middlesbrough and Hull hope to end much shorter exiles from the Premier League.

The hantavirus that has broken out on the cruise ship MV Hondius is much less transmissible than Covid, the head of the Dutch unit treating one of the patients told AFP Thursday.

Israeli and Lebanese envoys will sit down for a fresh round of peace talks in Washington next week, even as Israel presses its campaign against the militant group Hezbollah in spite of a ceasefire.

Six years after registering Spain's first Covid case, the Canary Islands are awaiting the arrival of a cruise ship struck by a deadly hantavirus outbreak that is reviving painful memories.

The IOC on Thursday lifted its ban on Belarusian athletes competing in the Olympics, although restrictions on Russian athletes remain in place.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned on Thursday of the risks to global financial stability posed by cyberattacks powered by advanced artificial intelligence tools, calling for greater international cooperation on the issue.

Brighton manager Fabian Hurzeler has agreed a new three-year contract extension which will keep him with the Seagulls until at least 2029, the Premier League club announced Thursday.