jollibee 9th ave
jollibee 9th ave
Fifa today confirmed that Saudi Arabia will host the 2034 World Cup, underlining the Gulf kingdom’s growing influence in world sport despite criticism of the country’s human rights record. At the same time, a virtual Congress of world football’s governing body confirmed that Morocco, Spain and Portugal will be joint hosts of the 2030 World Cup, in which three games will also be played in South America. The Saudi bid was waved through by acclamation during the meeting of Fifa’s 211 national member associations, with no rivals standing in its way. “It is a proud day, a day of celebration, a day that we invite the entire world to Saudi Arabia,” said Abdulaziz bin Turki bin Faisal al Saud, the Saudi Minister of Sports. “We intend to have an extraordinary version of the World Cup in our kingdom.” However, there was immediate condemnation from rights groups who insisted that handing the organisation of the tournament to the country puts the lives of construction workers at risk and “marks a moment of great danger”. Fifa had invoked its principle of rotating the World Cup between continents, which meant only bids from Asia or Oceania were welcome for 2034. The unprecedented organisation of the 2030 tournament will involve three continental confederations in Europe, Africa and South America, while the next World Cup in 2026 -- the first involving 48 teams - will take place across North America. Controversially, the body gave potential bidders barely a month last year to submit candidacies, and Australia and Indonesia quickly abandoned their interest. That left Saudi Arabia as the sole candidate, clearing the way for the World Cup to return to the Gulf region so soon after Qatar hosted in 2022. The kingdom’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has been using sport for some time to amass influence and improve its global image -- critics, though, say he is effectively “sportswashing” by diverting attention from Saudi Arabia’s rights record. Introducing the hosts for the next two editions of the @FIFAWorldCup ! 🏆 Morocco, Portugal and Spain will host in 2030, with centenary celebration matches in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. Four years later, Saudi Arabia will host the FIFA World Cup 2034TM. pic.twitter.com/WdOEdNEVxH December 11, 2024 The awarding of the World Cup to Saudi will make the issue of human rights a major talking point again, just as it was two years ago. “We are inclusive and we are non-discriminatory, and we want to obtain positive social impact,” Fifa president Gianni Infantino said in closing remarks. “We are of course aware of critics and fears, and I fully trust our hosts to address all open points from this process and deliver a Fifa World Cup which meets expectations.” He added that “social improvements and positive human rights impacts” are “responsibilities of hosting a World Cup.” Rights groups highlight mass executions in Saudi Arabia and allegations of torture, as well as restrictions on women under the conservative country’s male guardianship system. Free expression is severely restricted too. Fifa’s decision to award the tournament to Saudi Arabia “despite the well-known and severe risks to residents, migrant workers and visiting fans alike, marks a moment of great danger,” Amnesty International and 20 other organisations said in a joint statement. “Based on clear evidence to date, FIFA knows workers will be exploited and even die without fundamental reforms in Saudi Arabia, and yet has chosen to press ahead regardless,” said Steve Cockburn, Amnesty’s Head of Labour Rights and Sport. The 2030 tournament will mark a century since the first World Cup was held in Uruguay, and as a result the unrivalled joint bid by Morocco, Spain and Portugal will also see the South American nation handed one game along with Argentina and Paraguay. Fifa confirmed over a year ago that the joint proposal led by Morocco, Spain and Portugal was the sole contender for 2030, with all other potential candidacies having fallen by the wayside. Four South American countries launched a joint bid in 2019, convinced that the centenary World Cup should entirely take place on the same continent where it all began. Meanwhile, Morocco replaced Ukraine as a partner for Spain and Portugal, while South America agreed to step aside in exchange for hosting three games. Following these “centenary celebrations” in the southern hemisphere winter, the six teams involved will cross the Atlantic to play the rest of the tournament. Spain, which hosted the 1982 World Cup, should be the centrepiece as it boasts 11 of the 20 proposed stadiums. Morocco - after failing on five previous occasions to be awarded the staging of the tournament - will become the second African nation to host the competition after South Africa in 2010. Potential venues for the July 21 final include the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid and Barcelona’s renovated Camp Nou as well as the planned Hassan II stadium between Casablanca and Rabat, set to boast a capacity of 115,000.
BUFFALO, NY. (WKBW) — With the bye week winding down for the Buffalo Bills let's recap the last 11 weeks and crown some midseason MVPs. Offense What if I didn't say Josh Allen? It'd be crazy but don't worry Bills Mafia, Allen is 1000% the offensive MVP so far this season and not just because of the insane game-sealing touchdown run he had against Kansas City last week. Allen's 2024 stats so far - 2,543 passing yards, 18 touchdowns, 5 interceptions - 316 rushing yards, 5 touchdowns No one can single-handedly change the game like 17 can. As the front-runner for the NFL's MVP award, it'd be crazy to leave him off the team list. Defense It was difficult to pick just one person for this one. Taron Johnson, Christian Benford, and Greg Rousseau have all stood out to me with big-time plays and performances throughout the season, but the guy I'm going with for MVP is Terrel Bernard. As evident from the game last week when Bernard is on the field he takes the Bills' defense and raises it a notch. You can make a similar argument for the players I listed above but TB's command of the defense and awareness to always be in the right place at the right time is so valuable and it's proven time and time again. Special Teams Football is three phases so of course I'm going to show some love to the special teams unit. My MVP is Cam Lewis who has built his reputation and career as a Bill off of top-notch special teams play. From downing punts to making immediate tackles off of kickoffs and punts, Lewis is truly the Swiss army knife of luxury for Matthew Smiley and this unit. My honorable mention is punter Sam Martin because despite the fact no one likes seeing the punt unit come onto the field I think Martin has been consistent and effective when needed. For that reason, I'm also giving a nod to Brandon Codrington, a rookie who has yet to run back a kick for a touchdown but has shown flashes that he may not be too far away from making that happen.
A report this week indicated Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins was set to miss time with a knee sprain and it will be at least a four-game absence from the lineup. The Chargers announced that Dobbins has been placed on injured reserve on Saturday. Safety Alohi Gilman, who has a hamstring injury, was also moved to that list. Dobbins has been enjoying a strong season after three injury-plagued years with the Ravens. He has 158 carries for 766 yards and eight touchdowns, but the Chargers will have to go with Gus Edwards, Hassan Haskins, and Kimani Vidal for the time being. The Chargers filled one of the open roster spots by signing veteran safety Tony Jefferson to the active roster. They also called up cornerback Dicaprio Bootle and linebacker Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste from the practice squad on a temporary basis.NoneBy MARC LEVY HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania conceded his reelection bid to Republican David McCormick on Thursday, as a statewide recount showed no signs of closing the gap and his campaign suffered blows in court in its effort to get favorable ballots counted. Casey’s concession comes more than two weeks after Election Day, as a grindingly slow ballot-counting process became a spectacle of hours-long election board meetings, social media outrage, lawsuits and accusations that some county officials were openly flouting the law. Republicans had been claiming that Democrats were trying to steal McCormick’s seat by counting “illegal votes.” Casey’s campaign had accused of Republicans of trying to block enough legitimate votes to prevent him from pulling ahead and winning. In a statement, Casey, a stalwart of Pennsylvania’s Democratic establishment and the state’s longest serving Democrat ever in the Senate, said he had just called McCormick to congratulate him. “As the first count of ballots is completed, Pennsylvanians can move forward with the knowledge that their voices were heard, whether their vote was the first to be counted or the last,” Casey said. Casey’s campaign said the last of the ballots cast before polls closed on Nov. 5’s Election Day had finally been counted Thursday. The Associated Press called the race for McCormick on Nov. 7, concluding that not enough ballots remained to be counted in areas Casey was winning for him to take the lead. As of Thursday, McCormick led by about 16,000 votes out of almost 7 million ballots counted. That was well within the 0.5% margin threshold to trigger an automatic statewide recount under Pennsylvania law. But no election official expected a recount to change more than a couple hundred votes or so, and Pennsylvania’s highest court dealt Casey a blow when it refused entreaties to allow counties to count mail-in ballots that lacked a correct handwritten date on the return envelope. Casey in the meantime had won efforts to get counties to tabulate thousands of provisional ballots that might otherwise have been thrown out because of an error by an election worker. That included voters whose registrations hadn’t been properly processed, the campaign said. But the campaign lost other efforts to get counties to count ballots that were disqualified over garden-variety errors that voters made, like not signing a provisional ballot in two places or not putting the ballot into an inner “secrecy” envelope. Republicans will have a 53-47 majority next year in the U.S. Senate. McCormick, 59, recaptured a GOP seat in Pennsylvania after Republicans lost one in 2022, paying off a bet that party brass made when they urged McCormick to run and consolidated support behind him. It was McCormick’s second time running, after he lost narrowly to Dr. Mehmet Oz in 2022’s GOP primary. McCormick, the former CEO of the world’s largest hedge fund , drew on tens of millions of dollars in campaign cash from allies from across the worlds of hedge funds and securities trading to help make the race the nation’s second-most expensive in the campaign cycle. ___ Follow Marc Levy at twitter.com/timelywriter
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Titans ' most consistent scoring threat in an ugly season now is on the injury report, and that's why they brought back a player for a bit of insurance. Kicker Nick Folk worked through some soreness, making a pair of field goals for Tennessee's only points last week in the Titans' loss to the Jaguars , his longest a 46-yarder. Both Folk and Brayden Narveson were on the field Wednesday during the portion of practice open to reporters, though the Titans listed Folk among six who did not practice. Coach Brian Callahan said it was just some “general soreness" for Folk. But as good as Folk has been this season, he turned 40 last month. So the Titans (3-10) signed Narveson to the practice squad Tuesday after he spent training camp with them in case they need an option Sunday when they host Cincinnati (5-8). “You’re always mindful of it with kickers and that kind of leg soreness," Callahan said. "So he finished the game but was sore. ... He doesn’t do anything on Wednesdays anyway. He’ll try to kick (Thursday), and we’ll see where he’s at. So I don’t really know how to feel about it either way. I just know he’ll kick tomorrow, and then we’ll have a better feel for his status after that.” Folk has an NFL record streak of 85 consecutive field goals made on attempts from less than 40 yards, which included a 39-yarder that put the Titans up 6-0 last week. He ranks 14th in NFL history with 403 field goals and trails Arizona kicker Matt Prater by just four. Prater, who has 407 field goals, currently is on injured reserve. The kicker signed a new deal this offseason after New England traded him to Tennessee in 2023 with Folk going on to lead both the NFL and set a franchise record, making 96.7% of his field goals (29 of 30). Folk has been nearly perfect this season, making all 22 extra point attempts and is 21 of 22 on field goals, including matching his career-long with a 56-yarder earlier this season. Narveson had an impressive preseason for Tennessee, letting Folk focus on preparing for the regular season. The rookie from N.C. State was 6 of 7 on field-goal attempts, including a 59-yarder. He also made a 46-yard attempt as time expired in a 16-15 victory over the Seattle Seahawks. His lone miss was a 58-yarder at the end of the Titans' preseason finale that was nearly returned for a touchdown. He made his first try only to have it nullified because a timeout had been called. Green Bay claimed Narveson when Tennessee waived him at the final roster cutdown. The Packers waived Narveson in October after the kicker missed a league-high five field-goal attempts. “If for some reason he can’t go Sunday, Brayden will be ready to roll in and he’ll kick and do all that,” Callahan said of Narveson. "So obviously it’s nice to have some familiarity with him, and he’s here in case we need him.” Among the Titans who practiced fully Wednesday was quarterback Will Levis . He said after the loss to the Jaguars that he played the second half after getting a shot after aggravating his right, throwing shoulder. He sprained the AC joint in that shoulder early in a win over Miami on Sept. 30 and later missed three games with the injury. “Feel good,” Levis said after a 75-minute practice. “Just going to see how the week goes and see how the body responds, but I definitely feel better than the last time I nicked it up.” AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nflIceland votes for a new parliament amid disagreements on immigration, energy policy and the economy
Oldest college football coaches: Where Bill Belichick ranks with North Carolina hiring
Alphabet Inc. ( NASDAQ:GOOG – Get Free Report ) shot up 0.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $171.14 and last traded at $170.82. 12,433,371 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 19,605,984 shares. The stock had previously closed at $170.62. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth GOOG has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on Alphabet from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Alphabet from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Alphabet from $182.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $187.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $200.56. Check Out Our Latest Research Report on GOOG Alphabet Price Performance Alphabet ( NASDAQ:GOOG – Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $86.39 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 27.74%. The business’s revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.55 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Alphabet Dividend Announcement The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.61%. Insiders Place Their Bets In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 441 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.06, for a total value of $75,437.46. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,490 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,820,779.40. The trade was a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink . Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,835 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.53, for a total value of $429,587.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,421,948.46. The trade was a 8.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 206,795 shares of company stock valued at $34,673,866. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock. Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alphabet Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Weiss Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Alphabet by 9,200.0% during the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 186 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the period. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the third quarter worth $33,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the second quarter worth $37,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet in the second quarter valued at $40,000. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Alphabet Company Profile ( Get Free Report ) Alphabet Inc offers various products and platforms in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and Latin America. It operates through Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets segments. The Google Services segment provides products and services, including ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for Alphabet Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Alphabet and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .
How Donald Trump's Mexico tariffs may hurt Elon Musk's TeslaIndependence Blue Cross launches Epic Payer Platform to transform care coordination and boost member health outcomes
Football: Overton topples Mart, 31-30, in area championshipBeyond Bank Australia leverages Cognizant's expertise to modernize IT infrastructure and enhance operational resilience. SYDNEY and TEANECK, N.J. , Dec. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) has announced a collaboration with Beyond Bank Australia , one of Australia's largest customer-owned banks, to help revolutionize the digital banking experience. The collaboration aims to enhance operational resilience, streamline processes and improve customer experience through the implementation of innovative technology solutions. Cognizant's engagement is expected to uplift Beyond Bank's End User Compute (EUC) teams, automate patching processes, enable self-service and extend the value of existing licenses. These initiatives aim to create an even more resilient and secure environment for Beyond Bank's operations. Additionally, this collaboration seeks to modernize the bank's IT infrastructure, establish a Security Operations Centre (SOC) and strengthen vendor assurance frameworks to help align with the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) standards. Beyond Bank's digital transformation focuses on several key workstreams, including cloud and API architecture modernization and an enterprise-wide Windows 11 migration. These integrations will be designed to be flexible, scalable and secure technology ecosystems that enable the introduction of new products with enhanced speed to market, further preparing Beyond Bank for future growth. Cognizant will also help develop a comprehensive data and information management strategy for Beyond Bank. Leveraging AI, this strategy aims to optimize structured data from core banking systems and organize unstructured data from knowledge management sources for organization-wide insights, enabling more tailored services for its customers. Leveraging Cognizant's deep banking expertise, Beyond Bank will introduce new products and services designed to better serve a younger demographic, while simultaneously enhancing the overall service experience for all customers. "Our partnership with Cognizant is pivotal in advancing our digital transformation," said Stevie-Ann Dovico , Chief Information Officer, Beyond Bank Australia. "Their expertise allows us to modernize our IT infrastructure and enhance security, aligning with our values as a customer-owned bank. Cognizant's comprehensive approach makes them the ideal partner to help us better serve our customers." "Beyond Bank is a lighthouse client for us in the customer-owned banking sector," said Rob Marchiori , Australia Country Manager at Cognizant. "By enhancing their digital capabilities, we will help them provide better services to their customers and support paving the way for a resilient banking model that addresses current and future market demands." The customer-owned banking sector is navigating increased regulatory burdens, economic pressures, and the need for digital transformation. With increased cost-to-income ratios and net interest margins, banks need to modernize operations and enhance customer engagement through innovative technology. The collaboration between Beyond Bank and Cognizant highlights the importance of strategic partnerships in supporting innovation and maintaining service standards in the evolving financial sector. About Cognizant Cognizant (Nasdaq: CTSH) engineers modern businesses. We help our clients modernize technology, reimagine processes, and transform experiences to stay ahead in our fast-changing world. Together, we're improving everyday life. See how at www.cognizant.com or @cognizant. About Beyond Bank Australia Beyond Bank is one of Australia's largest customer-owned banks with branches and offices in New South Wales , South Australia , Western Australia , ACT and Victoria . We partner with more than 6000 community organisations around the nation to create and return value for our customers and communities. Beyond Bank is a B Corp, a business that is certified as meeting high standards of social and environmental impact, ensuring their practices benefit people, communities and our planet. To learn more, visit beyondbank.com.au For more information, contact: globalcommunications@cognizant.com View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/beyond-bank-and-cognizant-join-forces-to-lead-the-future-of-customer-owned-banking-302328856.html SOURCE Cognizant Technology Solutions
Barrick Gold Corp ( NYSE:GOLD – Get Free Report ) (TSE:ABX) shot up 0.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $17.75 and last traded at $17.57. 21,836,268 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 1% from the average session volume of 21,586,721 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.56. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several brokerages have commented on GOLD. Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on shares of Barrick Gold from $37.00 to $38.00 in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered shares of Barrick Gold from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $23.00 to $22.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC downgraded Barrick Gold from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Raymond James decreased their target price on Barrick Gold from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts lowered Barrick Gold from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Barrick Gold has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $25.60. Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on GOLD Barrick Gold Stock Up 0.1 % Barrick Gold Announces Dividend The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Barrick Gold’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.01%. Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barrick Gold Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GOLD. DCF Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Barrick Gold by 48.3% during the second quarter. DCF Advisers LLC now owns 107,500 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $1,793,000 after purchasing an additional 35,000 shares during the period. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 2,317,580 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $46,097,000 after acquiring an additional 413,012 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Barrick Gold in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,711,000. Aigen Investment Management LP raised its stake in Barrick Gold by 330.5% during the 3rd quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 99,240 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock worth $1,974,000 after acquiring an additional 76,186 shares during the period. Finally, Evexia Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Barrick Gold during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,382,000. 62.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. About Barrick Gold ( Get Free Report ) Barrick Gold Corporation is a sector-leading gold and copper producer. Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GOLD and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ABX. In January 2019 Barrick merged with Randgold Resources and in July that year it combined its gold mines in Nevada, USA, with those of Newmont Corporation in a joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines, which is majority-owned and operated by Barrick. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Barrick Gold Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Barrick Gold and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .None
jollibee 9th ave
Fifa today confirmed that Saudi Arabia will host the 2034 World Cup, underlining the Gulf kingdom’s growing influence in world sport despite criticism of the country’s human rights record. At the same time, a virtual Congress of world football’s governing body confirmed that Morocco, Spain and Portugal will be joint hosts of the 2030 World Cup, in which three games will also be played in South America. The Saudi bid was waved through by acclamation during the meeting of Fifa’s 211 national member associations, with no rivals standing in its way. “It is a proud day, a day of celebration, a day that we invite the entire world to Saudi Arabia,” said Abdulaziz bin Turki bin Faisal al Saud, the Saudi Minister of Sports. “We intend to have an extraordinary version of the World Cup in our kingdom.” However, there was immediate condemnation from rights groups who insisted that handing the organisation of the tournament to the country puts the lives of construction workers at risk and “marks a moment of great danger”. Fifa had invoked its principle of rotating the World Cup between continents, which meant only bids from Asia or Oceania were welcome for 2034. The unprecedented organisation of the 2030 tournament will involve three continental confederations in Europe, Africa and South America, while the next World Cup in 2026 -- the first involving 48 teams - will take place across North America. Controversially, the body gave potential bidders barely a month last year to submit candidacies, and Australia and Indonesia quickly abandoned their interest. That left Saudi Arabia as the sole candidate, clearing the way for the World Cup to return to the Gulf region so soon after Qatar hosted in 2022. The kingdom’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has been using sport for some time to amass influence and improve its global image -- critics, though, say he is effectively “sportswashing” by diverting attention from Saudi Arabia’s rights record. Introducing the hosts for the next two editions of the @FIFAWorldCup ! 🏆 Morocco, Portugal and Spain will host in 2030, with centenary celebration matches in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. Four years later, Saudi Arabia will host the FIFA World Cup 2034TM. pic.twitter.com/WdOEdNEVxH December 11, 2024 The awarding of the World Cup to Saudi will make the issue of human rights a major talking point again, just as it was two years ago. “We are inclusive and we are non-discriminatory, and we want to obtain positive social impact,” Fifa president Gianni Infantino said in closing remarks. “We are of course aware of critics and fears, and I fully trust our hosts to address all open points from this process and deliver a Fifa World Cup which meets expectations.” He added that “social improvements and positive human rights impacts” are “responsibilities of hosting a World Cup.” Rights groups highlight mass executions in Saudi Arabia and allegations of torture, as well as restrictions on women under the conservative country’s male guardianship system. Free expression is severely restricted too. Fifa’s decision to award the tournament to Saudi Arabia “despite the well-known and severe risks to residents, migrant workers and visiting fans alike, marks a moment of great danger,” Amnesty International and 20 other organisations said in a joint statement. “Based on clear evidence to date, FIFA knows workers will be exploited and even die without fundamental reforms in Saudi Arabia, and yet has chosen to press ahead regardless,” said Steve Cockburn, Amnesty’s Head of Labour Rights and Sport. The 2030 tournament will mark a century since the first World Cup was held in Uruguay, and as a result the unrivalled joint bid by Morocco, Spain and Portugal will also see the South American nation handed one game along with Argentina and Paraguay. Fifa confirmed over a year ago that the joint proposal led by Morocco, Spain and Portugal was the sole contender for 2030, with all other potential candidacies having fallen by the wayside. Four South American countries launched a joint bid in 2019, convinced that the centenary World Cup should entirely take place on the same continent where it all began. Meanwhile, Morocco replaced Ukraine as a partner for Spain and Portugal, while South America agreed to step aside in exchange for hosting three games. Following these “centenary celebrations” in the southern hemisphere winter, the six teams involved will cross the Atlantic to play the rest of the tournament. Spain, which hosted the 1982 World Cup, should be the centrepiece as it boasts 11 of the 20 proposed stadiums. Morocco - after failing on five previous occasions to be awarded the staging of the tournament - will become the second African nation to host the competition after South Africa in 2010. Potential venues for the July 21 final include the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid and Barcelona’s renovated Camp Nou as well as the planned Hassan II stadium between Casablanca and Rabat, set to boast a capacity of 115,000.
BUFFALO, NY. (WKBW) — With the bye week winding down for the Buffalo Bills let's recap the last 11 weeks and crown some midseason MVPs. Offense What if I didn't say Josh Allen? It'd be crazy but don't worry Bills Mafia, Allen is 1000% the offensive MVP so far this season and not just because of the insane game-sealing touchdown run he had against Kansas City last week. Allen's 2024 stats so far - 2,543 passing yards, 18 touchdowns, 5 interceptions - 316 rushing yards, 5 touchdowns No one can single-handedly change the game like 17 can. As the front-runner for the NFL's MVP award, it'd be crazy to leave him off the team list. Defense It was difficult to pick just one person for this one. Taron Johnson, Christian Benford, and Greg Rousseau have all stood out to me with big-time plays and performances throughout the season, but the guy I'm going with for MVP is Terrel Bernard. As evident from the game last week when Bernard is on the field he takes the Bills' defense and raises it a notch. You can make a similar argument for the players I listed above but TB's command of the defense and awareness to always be in the right place at the right time is so valuable and it's proven time and time again. Special Teams Football is three phases so of course I'm going to show some love to the special teams unit. My MVP is Cam Lewis who has built his reputation and career as a Bill off of top-notch special teams play. From downing punts to making immediate tackles off of kickoffs and punts, Lewis is truly the Swiss army knife of luxury for Matthew Smiley and this unit. My honorable mention is punter Sam Martin because despite the fact no one likes seeing the punt unit come onto the field I think Martin has been consistent and effective when needed. For that reason, I'm also giving a nod to Brandon Codrington, a rookie who has yet to run back a kick for a touchdown but has shown flashes that he may not be too far away from making that happen.
A report this week indicated Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins was set to miss time with a knee sprain and it will be at least a four-game absence from the lineup. The Chargers announced that Dobbins has been placed on injured reserve on Saturday. Safety Alohi Gilman, who has a hamstring injury, was also moved to that list. Dobbins has been enjoying a strong season after three injury-plagued years with the Ravens. He has 158 carries for 766 yards and eight touchdowns, but the Chargers will have to go with Gus Edwards, Hassan Haskins, and Kimani Vidal for the time being. The Chargers filled one of the open roster spots by signing veteran safety Tony Jefferson to the active roster. They also called up cornerback Dicaprio Bootle and linebacker Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste from the practice squad on a temporary basis.NoneBy MARC LEVY HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania conceded his reelection bid to Republican David McCormick on Thursday, as a statewide recount showed no signs of closing the gap and his campaign suffered blows in court in its effort to get favorable ballots counted. Casey’s concession comes more than two weeks after Election Day, as a grindingly slow ballot-counting process became a spectacle of hours-long election board meetings, social media outrage, lawsuits and accusations that some county officials were openly flouting the law. Republicans had been claiming that Democrats were trying to steal McCormick’s seat by counting “illegal votes.” Casey’s campaign had accused of Republicans of trying to block enough legitimate votes to prevent him from pulling ahead and winning. In a statement, Casey, a stalwart of Pennsylvania’s Democratic establishment and the state’s longest serving Democrat ever in the Senate, said he had just called McCormick to congratulate him. “As the first count of ballots is completed, Pennsylvanians can move forward with the knowledge that their voices were heard, whether their vote was the first to be counted or the last,” Casey said. Casey’s campaign said the last of the ballots cast before polls closed on Nov. 5’s Election Day had finally been counted Thursday. The Associated Press called the race for McCormick on Nov. 7, concluding that not enough ballots remained to be counted in areas Casey was winning for him to take the lead. As of Thursday, McCormick led by about 16,000 votes out of almost 7 million ballots counted. That was well within the 0.5% margin threshold to trigger an automatic statewide recount under Pennsylvania law. But no election official expected a recount to change more than a couple hundred votes or so, and Pennsylvania’s highest court dealt Casey a blow when it refused entreaties to allow counties to count mail-in ballots that lacked a correct handwritten date on the return envelope. Casey in the meantime had won efforts to get counties to tabulate thousands of provisional ballots that might otherwise have been thrown out because of an error by an election worker. That included voters whose registrations hadn’t been properly processed, the campaign said. But the campaign lost other efforts to get counties to count ballots that were disqualified over garden-variety errors that voters made, like not signing a provisional ballot in two places or not putting the ballot into an inner “secrecy” envelope. Republicans will have a 53-47 majority next year in the U.S. Senate. McCormick, 59, recaptured a GOP seat in Pennsylvania after Republicans lost one in 2022, paying off a bet that party brass made when they urged McCormick to run and consolidated support behind him. It was McCormick’s second time running, after he lost narrowly to Dr. Mehmet Oz in 2022’s GOP primary. McCormick, the former CEO of the world’s largest hedge fund , drew on tens of millions of dollars in campaign cash from allies from across the worlds of hedge funds and securities trading to help make the race the nation’s second-most expensive in the campaign cycle. ___ Follow Marc Levy at twitter.com/timelywriter
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Titans ' most consistent scoring threat in an ugly season now is on the injury report, and that's why they brought back a player for a bit of insurance. Kicker Nick Folk worked through some soreness, making a pair of field goals for Tennessee's only points last week in the Titans' loss to the Jaguars , his longest a 46-yarder. Both Folk and Brayden Narveson were on the field Wednesday during the portion of practice open to reporters, though the Titans listed Folk among six who did not practice. Coach Brian Callahan said it was just some “general soreness" for Folk. But as good as Folk has been this season, he turned 40 last month. So the Titans (3-10) signed Narveson to the practice squad Tuesday after he spent training camp with them in case they need an option Sunday when they host Cincinnati (5-8). “You’re always mindful of it with kickers and that kind of leg soreness," Callahan said. "So he finished the game but was sore. ... He doesn’t do anything on Wednesdays anyway. He’ll try to kick (Thursday), and we’ll see where he’s at. So I don’t really know how to feel about it either way. I just know he’ll kick tomorrow, and then we’ll have a better feel for his status after that.” Folk has an NFL record streak of 85 consecutive field goals made on attempts from less than 40 yards, which included a 39-yarder that put the Titans up 6-0 last week. He ranks 14th in NFL history with 403 field goals and trails Arizona kicker Matt Prater by just four. Prater, who has 407 field goals, currently is on injured reserve. The kicker signed a new deal this offseason after New England traded him to Tennessee in 2023 with Folk going on to lead both the NFL and set a franchise record, making 96.7% of his field goals (29 of 30). Folk has been nearly perfect this season, making all 22 extra point attempts and is 21 of 22 on field goals, including matching his career-long with a 56-yarder earlier this season. Narveson had an impressive preseason for Tennessee, letting Folk focus on preparing for the regular season. The rookie from N.C. State was 6 of 7 on field-goal attempts, including a 59-yarder. He also made a 46-yard attempt as time expired in a 16-15 victory over the Seattle Seahawks. His lone miss was a 58-yarder at the end of the Titans' preseason finale that was nearly returned for a touchdown. He made his first try only to have it nullified because a timeout had been called. Green Bay claimed Narveson when Tennessee waived him at the final roster cutdown. The Packers waived Narveson in October after the kicker missed a league-high five field-goal attempts. “If for some reason he can’t go Sunday, Brayden will be ready to roll in and he’ll kick and do all that,” Callahan said of Narveson. "So obviously it’s nice to have some familiarity with him, and he’s here in case we need him.” Among the Titans who practiced fully Wednesday was quarterback Will Levis . He said after the loss to the Jaguars that he played the second half after getting a shot after aggravating his right, throwing shoulder. He sprained the AC joint in that shoulder early in a win over Miami on Sept. 30 and later missed three games with the injury. “Feel good,” Levis said after a 75-minute practice. “Just going to see how the week goes and see how the body responds, but I definitely feel better than the last time I nicked it up.” AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nflIceland votes for a new parliament amid disagreements on immigration, energy policy and the economy
Oldest college football coaches: Where Bill Belichick ranks with North Carolina hiring
Alphabet Inc. ( NASDAQ:GOOG – Get Free Report ) shot up 0.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $171.14 and last traded at $170.82. 12,433,371 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 19,605,984 shares. The stock had previously closed at $170.62. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth GOOG has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on Alphabet from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Alphabet from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Alphabet from $182.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $187.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $200.56. Check Out Our Latest Research Report on GOOG Alphabet Price Performance Alphabet ( NASDAQ:GOOG – Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $86.39 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 27.74%. The business’s revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.55 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Alphabet Dividend Announcement The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.61%. Insiders Place Their Bets In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 441 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.06, for a total value of $75,437.46. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,490 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,820,779.40. The trade was a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink . Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,835 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.53, for a total value of $429,587.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,421,948.46. The trade was a 8.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 206,795 shares of company stock valued at $34,673,866. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock. Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alphabet Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Weiss Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Alphabet by 9,200.0% during the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 186 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the period. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the third quarter worth $33,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the second quarter worth $37,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet in the second quarter valued at $40,000. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Alphabet Company Profile ( Get Free Report ) Alphabet Inc offers various products and platforms in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and Latin America. It operates through Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets segments. The Google Services segment provides products and services, including ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for Alphabet Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Alphabet and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .
How Donald Trump's Mexico tariffs may hurt Elon Musk's TeslaIndependence Blue Cross launches Epic Payer Platform to transform care coordination and boost member health outcomes
Football: Overton topples Mart, 31-30, in area championshipBeyond Bank Australia leverages Cognizant's expertise to modernize IT infrastructure and enhance operational resilience. SYDNEY and TEANECK, N.J. , Dec. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) has announced a collaboration with Beyond Bank Australia , one of Australia's largest customer-owned banks, to help revolutionize the digital banking experience. The collaboration aims to enhance operational resilience, streamline processes and improve customer experience through the implementation of innovative technology solutions. Cognizant's engagement is expected to uplift Beyond Bank's End User Compute (EUC) teams, automate patching processes, enable self-service and extend the value of existing licenses. These initiatives aim to create an even more resilient and secure environment for Beyond Bank's operations. Additionally, this collaboration seeks to modernize the bank's IT infrastructure, establish a Security Operations Centre (SOC) and strengthen vendor assurance frameworks to help align with the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) standards. Beyond Bank's digital transformation focuses on several key workstreams, including cloud and API architecture modernization and an enterprise-wide Windows 11 migration. These integrations will be designed to be flexible, scalable and secure technology ecosystems that enable the introduction of new products with enhanced speed to market, further preparing Beyond Bank for future growth. Cognizant will also help develop a comprehensive data and information management strategy for Beyond Bank. Leveraging AI, this strategy aims to optimize structured data from core banking systems and organize unstructured data from knowledge management sources for organization-wide insights, enabling more tailored services for its customers. Leveraging Cognizant's deep banking expertise, Beyond Bank will introduce new products and services designed to better serve a younger demographic, while simultaneously enhancing the overall service experience for all customers. "Our partnership with Cognizant is pivotal in advancing our digital transformation," said Stevie-Ann Dovico , Chief Information Officer, Beyond Bank Australia. "Their expertise allows us to modernize our IT infrastructure and enhance security, aligning with our values as a customer-owned bank. Cognizant's comprehensive approach makes them the ideal partner to help us better serve our customers." "Beyond Bank is a lighthouse client for us in the customer-owned banking sector," said Rob Marchiori , Australia Country Manager at Cognizant. "By enhancing their digital capabilities, we will help them provide better services to their customers and support paving the way for a resilient banking model that addresses current and future market demands." The customer-owned banking sector is navigating increased regulatory burdens, economic pressures, and the need for digital transformation. With increased cost-to-income ratios and net interest margins, banks need to modernize operations and enhance customer engagement through innovative technology. The collaboration between Beyond Bank and Cognizant highlights the importance of strategic partnerships in supporting innovation and maintaining service standards in the evolving financial sector. About Cognizant Cognizant (Nasdaq: CTSH) engineers modern businesses. We help our clients modernize technology, reimagine processes, and transform experiences to stay ahead in our fast-changing world. Together, we're improving everyday life. See how at www.cognizant.com or @cognizant. About Beyond Bank Australia Beyond Bank is one of Australia's largest customer-owned banks with branches and offices in New South Wales , South Australia , Western Australia , ACT and Victoria . We partner with more than 6000 community organisations around the nation to create and return value for our customers and communities. Beyond Bank is a B Corp, a business that is certified as meeting high standards of social and environmental impact, ensuring their practices benefit people, communities and our planet. To learn more, visit beyondbank.com.au For more information, contact: globalcommunications@cognizant.com View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/beyond-bank-and-cognizant-join-forces-to-lead-the-future-of-customer-owned-banking-302328856.html SOURCE Cognizant Technology Solutions
Barrick Gold Corp ( NYSE:GOLD – Get Free Report ) (TSE:ABX) shot up 0.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $17.75 and last traded at $17.57. 21,836,268 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 1% from the average session volume of 21,586,721 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.56. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several brokerages have commented on GOLD. Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on shares of Barrick Gold from $37.00 to $38.00 in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered shares of Barrick Gold from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $23.00 to $22.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. CIBC downgraded Barrick Gold from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Raymond James decreased their target price on Barrick Gold from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts lowered Barrick Gold from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Barrick Gold has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $25.60. Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on GOLD Barrick Gold Stock Up 0.1 % Barrick Gold Announces Dividend The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Barrick Gold’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.01%. Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barrick Gold Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GOLD. DCF Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Barrick Gold by 48.3% during the second quarter. DCF Advisers LLC now owns 107,500 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $1,793,000 after purchasing an additional 35,000 shares during the period. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 2,317,580 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $46,097,000 after acquiring an additional 413,012 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Barrick Gold in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,711,000. Aigen Investment Management LP raised its stake in Barrick Gold by 330.5% during the 3rd quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 99,240 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock worth $1,974,000 after acquiring an additional 76,186 shares during the period. Finally, Evexia Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Barrick Gold during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,382,000. 62.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. About Barrick Gold ( Get Free Report ) Barrick Gold Corporation is a sector-leading gold and copper producer. Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GOLD and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ABX. In January 2019 Barrick merged with Randgold Resources and in July that year it combined its gold mines in Nevada, USA, with those of Newmont Corporation in a joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines, which is majority-owned and operated by Barrick. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Barrick Gold Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Barrick Gold and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .None
-
">
-
"> -
">
-
">
