gshc2020.com

Ezri Konsa: Really dependable as always and the performance showed why he has become such an important fixture in this England team. Solid defensively but maybe lacked going forward, which is to be expected as it's not his natural position. A good performance at right-back. One pass to John Stones that put him in trouble and nearly gifted Norway a chance. 7

Marc Guehi: Did a good job in marshalling the dangerous Erling Haaland and it was even more impressive considering the centre-back has been nursing a hamstring issue. Guehi is always dependable but had more of the ball than England would have liked as Norway defended deep. 8

John Stones: Reads the game incredibly well and made a crucial interception that would have resulted in a Haaland chance if he hadn't made it. Got caught on the ball after taking it in a difficult area and was lucky to get away without Norway scoring. 7

Nico O'Reilly: Has grown in confidence as the tournament has gone on. The Manchester City player is asked to do an incredibly complex job with being the team's left-back, while also providing another option in the left-sided number 10 space when England are in possession. Pinned by Alexander Sorloth and was nearly punished for it when the striker shot over. 7

Elliot Anderson: Anderson started the game in a more advanced position and it was his driving run with the ball that started the move when England made it 1-1. He was then moved back to his familiar number six role when Rice went off. 7

Declan Rice: Moved to be England's deepest midfielder. Could have been due to the illness he had this week or to protect the back four from the threat of the long ball into Haaland and Sortloth. Rice didn't look 100% and was taken off at half-time. 6

Jude Bellingham: Has been dragging England through tough moments throughout this whole tournament and he stepped up again to score both goals. In this form the Three Lions always have a chance and Bellingham has gone to another level during this World Cup. 9.5

Noni Madueke: A few good early opportunities to take his man on but did not make the most of them. A disappointing first half and taken off at half-time. 5

Anthony Gordon: The winger's first thought was to always go forward. Gordon brought energy to the England attack even in the sweltering heat and provided the assist for Bellingham's equaliser. 8

Harry Kane: The England captain was not given any space at all by the well-coached Norway defence. Had a goal ruled out for offside in the first half. Kane went deep in search of the ball and also held it up when he could. 6 %!s()

On Saturday, Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island released a letter addressed to the Kennedy Center’s leadership, conveying the accusations.

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They include claims that the Kennedy Center, under Trump, bypassed standard procedures for awarding government contracts and approved unnecessary — or faulty — projects.

“These are not isolated lapses but a single pattern that runs counter to everything the Center has told Congress it would do with the public’s money,” Whitehouse wrote.

“Instead of pursuing renovations tailored to the building’s actual needs, the Center rushed a series of renovations driven by the President’s aesthetic whims and his desire to star in a series of televised events in December.”

That month, Trump had hosted the FIFA World Cup final draw, which helps determine the group-stage matches for the football tournament.

The draw doubled as a ceremony to celebrate Trump himself, who was awarded the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize by the organisation’s president, Gianni Infantino.

Two days later, on December 7, Trump again took the stage to emcee the Kennedy Center Honors, an annual ceremony that recognises lifetime contributions to US art and culture. Trump was the first president to host the award show, and he said he was “very involved” in the honourees’ selection.

To prepare the Kennedy Center for those dates, its officials worked “in unusually close consultation” with Trump’s White House, according to the whistleblower report Whitehouse obtained.

Located in Washington, DC, the Kennedy Center serves as the national performing centre for the US.

Established by an act of Congress, the theatre complex also acts as a living memorial to slain President John K Kennedy, who was assassinated while in office in 1963.

But since taking office for a second term, Trump has sought to exert influence over the arts centre and other government institutions that had previously operated independently from the president.

Shortly after his 2025 inauguration, Trump fired most of the Kennedy Center’s board and replaced the terminated members with allies. He also announced himself as its incoming chair, a proposal his hand-picked board subsequently voted to approve.

Saturday’s whistleblower disclosure sketches what happened afterwards.

It explains that Trump objected to the gold-coloured columns outside the theatre complex, designed to look like strings on a musical instrument. He preferred that they be painted white, to match the marble of the building.

But, as Whitehouse’s letter conveys, “Trump’s preferred contractor cut corners when repainting the Center’s columns”, resulting in the steel columns “rusting through the new white paint”.

Whitehouse also notes that the painting began in August “with no written contract in place” — and a $4.4m deal only awarded afterwards. He estimates the repairs will cost $1.5m.

In another case, Whitehouse said the Kennedy Center’s Trump-appointed leadership ripped up newly installed bathroom tiles because the president “didn’t like the color”.

Another example that Whitehouse cites mirrors Trump’s ongoing struggles with the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, which has been criticised for its algae bloom and peeling paint after a Trump-approved renovation.

The Kennedy Center has its own, smaller reflecting pool. But it “is now unevenly painted and rusting” after the Kennedy Center board pushed ahead with a hasty “cosmetic revamp”, according to the whistleblower disclosure.

Whitehouse wrote that the Kennedy Center’s management “set aside contracting rules to hit the President’s deadlines, telling staff, ‘We’ll deal with the lawsuits later.'”

“Longstanding federal contracting controls were set aside, no-bid contracts were awarded, and superficial cosmetic work was performed that staff warned would have to be redone,” Whitehouse explained.

One contractor, he added, did not appear to have any experience working on concert halls, despite being awarded $8m to do so.

Whitehouse accused the Trump administration of wasting taxpayer money and called for a full accounting of the renovations and their costs — including the price tag for affixing Trump’s name to the side of the building.

A court later ruled in May that Trump’s name had to come off the building, citing Congress’s authority over the Kennedy Center.

“Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it,” Judge Christopher Cooper wrote at the time.

The Trump administration has long argued that the Kennedy Center was in a state of disrepair and called for the arts complex to be closed for two years, following backlash over attempts to rename the building.

The fight over the Kennedy Center, however, is part of a larger battle over Trump’s efforts to reshape Washington, DC.

In addition to his work on the Kennedy Center and the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, Trump has demolished the White House’s East Wing, sought to build a triumphal arch, and proposed painting the historic Eisenhower Building white, despite concerns about its granite exterior.

Whitehouse, who serves on the Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works, issued a warning against any half-baked projects, though.

“Public funds ought to be spent lawfully, prudently, and in service of the institution, not on the stylistic whims of the current President,” he wrote. %!s()

Girls and women who have their mother's names do not face the same censure - and often when they marry may opt to take their husband's first name as their surname.

Some say the growing trend of men having female surnames reflects changing attitudes to women and their influence in what is a patriarchal society; others are critical of those who have been given - or in some cases opt to take - their mother's name.

It used to be rare to see men in prominent positions with a female surname, but now there are even several politicians who have them - like MP John Njũgũna Wanjikũ.

Brought up by a single mother, he was first elected in 2021 and goes by the nickname "Ka-Wanjikũ", meaning child of Wanjikũ.

Some like Wanjikũ were given their female surname at birth, but others have chosen theirs to honour their mothers.

One of the earlier personalities to break the norm over male surnames was Peter Kĩgia, a Kenyan musician who chose his mother's name as his stage name.

Kĩgia wa Esther (son of Esther), now in his 60s, is known for playing benga - fast, rhythmic guitar folk music with lyrics in Kikuyu.

"When you take your mother's name, it means you love and respect her," he told the BBC, saying he had even registered his record company as Wa Esther Productions.

It now comes with a certain cachet in the music industry, with other younger male musicians following in his footsteps. Posters advertising performers with their mother's surname, such as Waithaka wa Jane and 90K Ka Msoh, are often plastered to hoardings in the capital, Nairobi.

Though in these cases the formal names of these artistes remain male.

Journalist Simon Macharia Wangũi told the BBC he decided to deliberately choose his mother's name as his official surname.

"Why give somebody credit where it does not exist?" he says of his father, who was absent for most of his life and about whom he has "only heard rumours of his existence".

Mostly raised by his grandmother, he was 12 when his mother died in 2003. He had no surname until his final year of high school, when he applied for a birth certificate.

Some Kenyans still think that a child raised by a single parent "lacks certain morals", explains Evans Kibe Waceke, a broadcaster who bears a female surname.

"People perceive you as undisciplined, especially when you are raised by a single mother," he tells the BBC.

A heated debate over the pros and cons of having a female surname began two years ago when prominent motivational speaker Robert Burale said it undermined men's masculinity.

This prompted TV personality Fred Mũitĩrĩri to go public about the difficulties of having a female surname - and how he ended up dropping his mother's name, deciding to use his English and Kikuyu first names only.

"Do you know how embarrassing it is for a boy to be called out, in a room full of kids, [with] a girl's name?" he wrote on Facebook - talking about his low self-esteem.

"From some of those experiences, I developed depression at the age of 23," he said.

Wairimũ Mũkũrũ, a young Kikuyu cultural expert with a large social media following, says the rise of female surnames is largely down to the fact that single-mother families have become much more common.

Still, she adds, it is a cultural anomaly as even sons of unmarried women are usually given male surnames.

"In the event that your mother doesn't tell you who your dad is or he rejects you, your mother's eldest brother takes up that role," she tells the BBC.

However, Mũkũrũ explains that there may sometimes be reluctance to do this as it gives a child the right to inherit property.

Mũgwe wa Njũhĩ, an official of the Kikuyu cultural group Kiama Kĩa Ma, agrees male relatives of single mothers may deny the use of their name to avoid inheritance disputes.

But he also argues that there should not be such disdain for female surnames given that, according to legend, the Kikuyu trace their lineage from the 10 daughters of the community's first couple - Gikũyũ and Mũmbi.

"I am Mũmbũi by clan [derived from Wambũi, one of the daughters]. We have always aligned ourselves with women, from the very beginning," he tells the BBC.

In fact, the Kikuyu are often referred to as the House of Mũmbi, after their mythological founding mother.

Wa Esther, the veteran musician, agrees that people from other communities who criticise the use of female names by Kikuyu men do not understand "our way of life".

Academic George Gathigi explains that while Kikuyu men may have traditionally identified themselves through their mothers, that was always informal, with formal adoption of female names being a new phenomenon.

When polygamy was more commonly practised, for example, children were identified by their mother's names in large groups to avoid confusion - as culturally too there is only a small pool of first names in each family.

Late Kenyan author Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, whose father Thiong'o wa Ndūcũ had four wives, wrote in his memoir Dreams in a Time of War that while growing up he was generally known as Ngũgĩ wa Wanjikũ – his mother's first name.

Gathigi, who lectures at the University of Nairobi and commentates on Kikuyu social issues, believes the adoption of female surnames reflects the "strength of women" in modern society, particularly in situations where men have been abandoning their responsibilities.

"Culture changes and you now have to deal with the modern realities in division of labour," he tells the BBC, noting that women have increasingly been taking up roles that had been seen as male.

He says that in such cases, when the children "don't get that advantage of being brought up by their father… the mother becomes both the mother and the father".

He sees this as a "bad thing that it is being normalised".

Such attitudes may explain the continuing backlash - one blog has described the practice of using female surnames as "a yoke around men's necks" while another says it is an effort to "womanise the Kikuyu man and make him weak".

While journalist Wangũi acknowledges it may not always be easy to have a female surname and it brings with it a certain "identity crisis", he is proud of his decision.

And he says that if you end up being successful, despite the name, "people will see you as having beaten the odds to get to where you are". %!s()

"I place it on the testicles in order to preserve high sperm count," he says.

He believes the heat helps him sweat out toxins, improving his sperm function - but says he must take care to protect his testicles from the excessive heat.

The 28-year-old from Miami gets daily sunlight exposure, exercises regularly, only drinks filtered water and wears cotton boxer shorts - all part of a fertility-focused health regime which he follows despite any medical evidence to prove it works.

There is an element of truth behind these claims - environmental pollutants and heating the testes can impact sperm quality.

But it's unlikely these steps Simon takes will make a massive difference to his fertility, although exercising will improve general health.

He is part of a growing number of men paying close attention to their fertility. On TikTok and Instagram, hashtags such as #malefertility, #semenanalysis and #sperm attract hundreds of millions of views, while online communities dedicated to improving sperm health have grown rapidly.

Simon is not planning to have children any time soon and doesn't have a partner - he is more concerned with whether a low sperm count could affect his health.

He worries if he has low fertility it could affect something called the endocrine system, a network of glands and organs in charge of releasing hormones in the body.

But there isn't evidence this is the case.

A low sperm count won't trigger endocrine problems, although they may happen together in some people.

'I choose to protect my fertility'

Male fertility experts around the world say they have seen an increase in the number of men requesting semen analysis and expressing concerns about their future fertility.

The experts believe this is partly due to concerns about the impact of testosterone replacement therapies (TRT), steroids and certain environmental toxins all of which can adversely impact hormones responsible for sperm count.

UK-based fertility expert Prof Suks Minhas says that there are pros and cons to the increased discussion around declining sperm and male fertility.

"It is important to raise the profile of male infertility. But are we fuelling that worry unnecessarily?"

Meanwhile, an industry of influencers and products are emerging in response, capitalising on this anxiety, he adds.

Like many others, Simon first became interested in fertility through social media, where influencers speaking about declining sperm counts sparked his concern. Yet he has never had a semen analysis and has no specific reason to think he has a fertility problem.

"It's something that I'm generally scared of, so I choose to protect my fertility," he says.

It was content from influencer Bryan Johnson that led to Simon "really caring" about his fertility.

Johnson, an ex-Silicon Valley billionaire, gained fame for wanting to live forever. He has been self-experimenting using controversial methods in an attempt to extend his lifespan for the last five years.

He claims he has four times the average sperm count according to five lab tests over the space of three months.

He promotes the unproven sauna and ice pack protocols to increase testosterone and sperm count, which Simon follows.

Johnson's content - followed by more than six million people - drives his followers back to his website, Blueprint, where he sells supplements.

He is far from the only voice. Other protocols promoted by influencers without medical evidence have included certain supplements, red light therapy, and donating blood to "filter out" microplastics.

Declining birth rates

This kind of influencer content comes in the wake of wider discussions about declining birth rates.

Globally, birth rates have dropped from 4.9 babies per woman in 1950 to 2.2 in 2025, with 106 countries now below the replacement rate of 2.1, external, according to the UN World Population Prospects in 2025.

The US Secretary for Health, Robert F Kennedy Jr, who has promoted some unproven health claims, recently spoke of a "fertility crisis", arguing that in 1970, "men had twice the sperm count as our teenagers do today".

Large-scale analyses have suggested a significant global drop in sperm count, external and quality since the 1970s, but it isn't easy to make a direct comparison between young men today and the older men in the 1970s, age was not a focus of the study.

Overall, there is consensus that sperm count and quality is in decline, but some data suggests the decline may not be as drastic as feared.

According to a 2023 meta-review of falling sperm counts, external, the area is under-researched with the causes of sperm count decline and the impacts on birth rates remaining unclear.

Studies from 2024 , externaland 2025 , externalwhich looked at more localised populations in the USA and Denmark found no such drop in sperm count, and called for further research.

• Watch: Sperm count anxiety: The unproven hacks men are using to try and boost fertility - BBC World Service, external

Meanwhile, manosphere-adjacent influencers like Andrew Huberman have discussed declining male sperm counts on their podcasts, with Joe Rogan warning of an impending "population collapse".

But there are many non-biological reasons for the birth rate decline. According to the UN's 2025 state of the world population report, 39% of people cited financial reasons for not having the number of kids they wanted, while one in five cited environmental and political instability., external

Prof Channa Jayasena, a reproductive endocrinologist at Imperial College, London, believes there is room for valid concern around falling sperm counts, but says claims about male fertility problems are overblown on social media.

"There are certain challenges out there, but it's far from clear what those causes are," he says.

Despite the unclear picture when it comes to the causes of male infertility, unproven solutions are being sold across social media.

Naturopath Lucas is one of the health influencers whose content includes warnings about fertility rates.

"We're seeing a worldwide epidemic, a decrease in fertility across the board," he tells the BBC.

But Lucas's concern comes with some misleading claims - for example, he told his YouTube audience that men would be infertile in 33 years, which is unsupported by scientific evidence.

He sells online courses, provides 1:1 coaching, and sells supplements for men looking to increase testosterone and fertility.

His social media content, which promotes some unproven fertility protocols, has gone viral.

"I recommend to guys to apply an ice pack up against his underwear, two to three times a day for about 10 to 15 minutes," he says, claiming clients have told him their partners have fallen pregnant after trying this.

"This is more preliminary. I do think that it's a viable enough strategy to give it a shot," he claims.

When questioned about the unproven nature of his advice, Lucas said he believed icing the testes was a "promising intervention" but added that he would like to see more research.

NHS guidance on low sperm count , externaldoes say tight underwear can increase the temperature of your testicles which may affect the quality of your sperm.

Lucas also advises followers and clients about healthy eating, sleep and exercise - steps which do have a strong evidence base.

Prof Jayasena recommends lifestyle changes to improve fertility.

"If there are any reversible things such as [quitting] smoking, such as [losing] weight and increasing physical activity," he says, "that's by far the best thing you can do."

This increase in fertility advice from influencers comes alongside a rise in the number of men taking testosterone-boosting drugs.

But taking steroids and testosterone can damage male fertility.

To try to reverse this damage, influencers promote "stacks" of different medications - which they often sell on their websites.

These include fertility medications HCG and HMG. While these drugs are sometimes given for specific medical reasons, they are not designed for other people to use to "switch on" fertility."

They can have dangerous side effects and can cause permanent harm when taken without medical guidance.

"It's incredibly dangerous," Jayasena says. "[Some] can cause blood clots, it can actually cause breast growth, which can be disfiguring if not treated promptly."

We spoke to seven different men around the world who were all consuming fertility "stacks" to get their fertility back after taking TRT. Because it is illegal to buy drugs like steroids online, they requested anonymity.

One man told me he thought he would father "many children" once he "blasted HMG and HCG".

Jamal, not his real name, took high doses of testosterone and steroids for bodybuilding, which lowered his fertility markers. He stopped late last year when he and his partner started to think about having kids.

He found fertility advice from men who were having the same experience on online forums and YouTube, with many suggesting "fool-proof fertility stacks".

After these did not help, he sought professional help and met reproductive endocrinologist Jayasena. Until then, he was not aware that taking these fertility "stacks" unmonitored could be dangerous.

Jamal has ceased all medication, including the fertility stack, under Jayasena's advice. Six months later, his natural testosterone levels are improving, however, the hormone which stimulates sperm production is still low. He and his specialist are hopeful it will improve.

While increased awareness of male fertility is positive, it's created a vacuum of information, Jayasena warns - meaning men like Jamal take advice from influencers because experts are not always accessible.

"It could, at the very best, actually distract them from doing the things that might actually help, but at worst it could actually get them to do things that are harmful," he adds. %!s()

Written and directed by Barker, Obsession was released on May 15 after being acquired by Focus Features at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival. Michael Johnston plays Bear, a music store employee who has a hopeless crush on his co-worker Nikki.

Forbes‘Obsession’ Star Inde Navarrette Discusses Her Spellbinding Performance In Hit Horror ThrillerBy Tim Lammers

When it becomes apparent to Bear that Nikki just wants to remain friends, he uses a novelty item called a “One Wish Willow” to wish Nikki would love him more than anyone in the world. When Bear’s wish comes true, all seems blissful at first for the couple, but it quickly escalates into Nikki (aka “Freaky Nikki”) displaying deadly, obsessive behavior around her new boyfriend and others.

Made for $750,000 and acquired by Focus for about $15 million, Obsession earned over $17 million in its opening weekend and established a dominant presence throughout the summer. Over the July 4th holiday weekend, Obsession crossed the $400 million mark at the worldwide box office and as of Saturday, the film’s global tally stands at $408.9 million.

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Now, as Obsession continues to bring crowds into theaters and develops a following digital streaming, Funko is granting fans’ wishes for a Nikki collectible by manufacturing a Pop! figure of Navarrette’s character. Funko recently announced that it is making the Pop! Nikki (Bloody) figure, which depicts the character during the film’s horrific party scene.

The Funko Pop! figure of Nikki is holding a One Wish Willow package, even though the character was not holding the item in the movie. It seems to be a logical substitute for the broken bottle used to produce her bloody wounds in the shocking scene in the film.

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Funko’s POP! Nikki Figure From ‘Obsession’ Is Available For Pre-Order

The vinyl figure, which is 4 inches tall, retails for $14.99 and is available for pre-order on Funko’s retail site. Only a concept 2D rendering image of the Pop! Nikki figure has been released by the company so far.

Funko noted on its product page that Pop! Obsession Nikki (Bloody) figure is estimated to ship on Dec. 15.

Since the Funko Pop! line began in 2010, the company has produced tens of thousands of vinyl figures from the brand depicting celebrities from the world of pop culture, including movies, television, celebrities, sports and more.

Just recently, the company announced the production of Heated Rivalry Funko Pops! figures of Connor Storrie’s Ilya Rozanov and Hudson Williams’ Shane Hollander from the HBO Max streaming sensation Heated Rivalry.

Rated R, Obsession — which also stars Cooper Tomlinson, Megan Lawless and Andy Richter — is playing in theaters and is available on digital streaming.