The third-place play-off is the match nobody wants to play. France and England, powers that for centuries have vied for control of oceans and territories across the globe, find themselves chasing a medal that, in football, is worth next to nothing

The French episcopate has reacted with fierce condemnation following the National Assembly’s approval of the end-of-life bill. With just seventy days to go before the visit of Leo XIV, the announced mobilisation is also causing embarrassment for the staunchly Catholic Prime Minister Lecornu.