Month: August 2023

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Technology

Airbus joins transatlantic mission to construct ISS alternative

Airbus joins transatlantic mission to build ISS replacement

As the International Space Station approaches retirement, a transatlantic team is creating a replacement: Starlab.

Airbus and US startup Voyager this week announced a joint venture for the project. The two companies will develop, build, and operate Starlab, which aims to further unite the US and Europe in space.

“This pioneers continued European and American leadership in space that takes humanity forward,” said Jean-Marc Nasr, Head of Space Systems at Airbus. “Together our teams are focused on creating an unmatched space destination both technologically and as a business operation.”

The US-led venture plans to produce a commercial successor to the ISS, which is due to de-orbit in 2031. The new space station would serve both Nasa and the European Space Agency.

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“We are establishing this joint venture to reliably meet the known demand from global space agencies while opening new opportunities for commercial users,” said Matthew Kuta, President at Voyager Space.

Starlab is one of several projects competing to replace the ISS. Its main challengers are Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, which envisions a “mixed-use business park” called Orbital Reef, and Northrop Grumman, which wants to build a modular, free-flying space station.

Nasa has provided funding for all three concepts. In December 2021, the space agency awarded $160mn (€146mn) to the Voyager venture, $130mn (€119mn) to Orbital Reef, and $125.6mn (€115mn) to Northrop Grumman’s project.

As a condition of Nasa’s support, every proposal had to be commercially viable. The space agency will now determine which of the contenders merit further backing.

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Entertainment

‘Teen Mother 2’ Alum Jenelle Evans Celebrates Son Jace Turning 14

'Teen Mom 2' Alum Jenelle Evans Celebrates Son Jace Turning 14

Jenelle Evans, who rose to prominence for her role on 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom 2, recently acknowledged her firstborn son, Jace, turning 14 years old!

RELATED: Former ‘Teen Mom 2’ Star Jenelle Evans Regains Custody Of Son Jace After Nearly 13 Years

Jenelle Praises Jace For “Growing Into Such A Polite Young Man”

On Wednesday (Aug. 2), Jenelle shared a photo of her and Jace on Instagram to mark the occasion.

They showed off their smiles while posing in front of a small pond, suggesting that they were out and about while enjoying a nice summer day.

After wishing Jace a happy birthday in her caption, Jenelle wrote, “You’re growing into a such polite young man. I’m happy as long as you’re happy!”

Check out the upload down below.

Jenelle Evans Regained Custody Of Jace Earlier This Year

This post comes a little over four months after Jenelle Evans regained custody of Jace after nearly 13 years, as The Shade Room previously reported.

She shared the news via Instagram on Mar. 18, showing her making the matter official before tearfully proclaiming, “It’s done.”

In a statement to Us Weekly, Jenelle said that the move was a major step in her and Barbara building their mother-daughter relationship.

“My mom and I decided together to grant full custody back to me because we want to build our relationship back as mother and daughter.”

Jenelle was sure to add that Barbara “agrees it’s time” for Jace to live with his mother, stepfather, and siblings. She noted that her husband, David Eason, would help Jace “learn ‘boy things’ and have ‘men talk.’”

“Also, my mother agrees it’s time for Jace to be back with his siblings and living with a mother and father. She also thinks it’s important for Jace to be around a father figure to learn ‘boy things’ and have ‘men talk.’ She has seen the way David parents my children and she knows we’re able to handle it.”

As Teen Mom 2 fans will remember, a massive argument broke out in the very first episode of the series when Barbara filed to take custody of Jace.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPC1L3WjlFw

While the pair had an up-and-down relationship over the years, it looks like they’ve mended fences now that they’re out of the spotlight.

RELATED: Khloé Kardashian Shares Rare Photos Of Son Tatum As She Wishes Him A Happy First Birthday
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Health

Moderna (MRNA) Q2 earnings report 2023

Moderna (MRNA) Q2 earnings report 2023

Artur Widak | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Moderna on Thursday hiked its full-year outlook for its Covid vaccine, its only marketable product, despite reporting a loss and sharp drop in revenue for the second quarter.

Here’s what Moderna reported compared with Wall Street’s expectations, based on a survey of analysts by Refinitiv:

  • Loss per share: $3.62, vs. $4.04 expected
  • Revenue: $344 million, vs. $319.6 million expected

The biotech company generated second-quarter sales of $344 million, with sales of its Covid shot dropping 94%. Total revenue plunged from the $4.75 billion it recorded in the same period a year ago, when Covid cases still trended higher in the U.S. 

Moderna posted a net loss of $1.38 billion, or $3.62 per share, for the quarter. That compares with $2.20 billion in net income, or $5.24 per share, reported during the same quarter last year.

But Moderna hopes to end the sales slump on strong demand for its updated Covid vaccine targeting the omicron subvariant XBB.1.5. The company is slated to roll the shot out this fall in the U.S. commercial market, but is still waiting for the Food and Drug Administration to approve the jab.

Moderna expects $6 billion to $8 billion in sales for its Covid shot this year, up from its previous forecast of $5 billion. 

The “biggest factor” that will determine whether sales are within that range is vaccination rates in the U.S. from September to December, Moderna’s chief commercial officer, Arpa Garay, said during an earnings call.

She noted that the company expects U.S. demand of 50 million to 100 million doses this fall, but acknowledged that it’s “difficult to accurately predict market volumes and predict how many Americans will come in this fall for their shots.”

The new sales forecast includes around $4 billion in previously announced Covid vaccine purchase agreements and $2 billion to $4 billion in “signed and anticipated” contracts in the U.S. and other markets like Japan and the European Union. 

The company is in talks with other purchasers in the U.S., EU and other parts of the world for more potential orders. However, Moderna said $1 billion in previously anticipated 2023 sales from signed government contracts was pushed to 2024.

Moderna’s stock price closed flat on Thursday. The Massachusetts-based company’s stock has dropped more than 38% this year, putting its market value at around $42 billion. 

Cost of sales for the quarter came in at $731 million. That included a $464 million write-off for vaccines that have exceeded their shelf life and a $135 million charge from unused manufacturing capacity, among other expenses.

The charges were primarily driven by a shift in product demand to the monovalent XBB.1.5 shot, which rendered the remaining inventory of Moderna’s previous bivalent vaccine obsolete. Bivalent means the shot targeted two strains of the virus, while a monovalent jab only targets one. 

Moderna, Pfizer and Novavax have all seen sales of their Covid-related products plummet as much of the world moves on from the pandemic and depends less on protective vaccines and treatments. 

But people are still dying from Covid every day and the virus isn’t fully going away anytime soon, so the drugmakers are investing in new products to fight it. 

This fall will be an important milestone for Moderna and its rivals.

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The U.S. government will shift Covid products to the commercial market, which means drugmakers will start selling vaccines and treatments directly to health-care providers rather than to the government.

Pfizer on Tuesday warned that Covid shot sales in the commercial market are uncertain, adding that vaccination rates will help the company better predict sales for 2023 and beyond.

Pfizer, Moderna and Novavax haven’t disclosed when they expect their new shots to be available to the public.

But new CDC Director Mandy Cohen told NPR on Monday that the new vaccines could be available by the “early October time frame.”

Moderna has said it hopes to offer a new set of lifesaving vaccines targeting cancer, heart disease and other conditions by 2030.

That lineup includes Moderna’s experimental vaccine that targets respiratory syncytial virus. The company expects to file for full approval of the shot for adults age 60 and older this quarter. 

The pipeline also includes Moderna’s personalized cancer vaccine, a highly anticipated mRNA shot being developed with Merck to target different tumor types, along with a flu vaccine. 

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Science

Repeat of 2013 high-profile Sierra Membership polar bear assault, this time with Inuit victims • Watts Up With That?

Gute Klimanachrichten für 2022, die Ihnen die MSM nicht gesagt haben

From Polar Bear Science

Susan Crockford

Almost 10 years later to the day, another polar bear attack resulting in serious injury has taken place in the northern Labrador/Quebec region of Eastern Canada. Remember the Sierra Club lawyer snatched, tent and all, in the middle of the night on 24 July 2013, in an almost-fatal attack that was reported around the world, see here and here? This time virtually the same thing happened to two Inuuk campers on July 26, in the same general area, as reported last week by Nunavut News. This will undoubtedly renew concerns that Davis Strait Inuit have raised about their safety in the face of high population numbers of polar bears (Tomaselli et al. 2022).

Sea ice conditions were similar in both attacks. In 2013, the attacking bear appeared to be a fully adult male in good condition that had been watching the hiking party since the previous day but this year the predatory bear was described as a small “young adult” animal, suggesting it could have been a 3-4 year old female or perhaps a 2 year old male.

Location

The Davis Strait polar bear subpopulation region encompasses most of Eastern Canada from the southeastern shore of Baffin Island to Newfoundland, as the map from the Dyck et al. 2021 report shows (see below).

The approximate locations where the attacks took place were on opposite sides of the land mass that separates Ungava Bay, Quebec from the Labrador Sea: on the Labrador Sea side in 2013, in Torngat Mountains National Park, and the Ungava Bay side in 2023, marked on a map from the first report on bears of this region (Stirling and Kiliaan 1980), where the big arrows indicate the direction of ocean currents:

2023 Attack

Quotes below are from the Nunatsiaq News report (27 July 2023). Note the community of Kangiqsualujjuaq is marked as “George River” on the map above (my emphasis):

A 70-year-old man and his son and daughter survived a polar bear attack in their tent Wednesday night [July 26] near Kangiqsualujjuaq, the village’s mayor says.

Kenny Assevak and his daughter Siqua Baron, 25, were taken to Kuujjuaq’s hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. Assevak’s 35-year-old son, Neekallak Baron — who killed the bear — was not injured, said Kangiqsualujjuaq Mayor Maggie Emudluk.

It happened about 140 kilometres northeast of Kangiqsualujjuaq, where the attack victims live. At around 3 a.m. Wednesday, Emudluk received a call saying three people who were travelling toward Killiniq had been attacked by a polar bear.

That morning, thick fog covered the community, meaning helicopter rescue was out of the question.

At around 4 a.m., a boat rescue team was mobilized and at 6:15 a.m., they arrived at the scene where they took both injured victims. …

The two victims made it back to the community at around 8:15 a.m.., where both were immediately medevaced to Kuujjuaq. Assevak was then transported to Montreal for treatment of his injuries.

…

“It was not even a big polar bear,” Emudluk said, “it was a young adult polar bear.”As the Canadian Ice Service weekly stage of development chart below shows, sea ice had been present offshore as recently as the first week of July and only recently retreated from the area near the attack, which means the bear had likely only been onshore a few weeks at most. Although most polar bears are in the best condition of the year when they come off the ice, young bears are the exception.

Because young bears are unable to successfully compete with older bears for prime hunting habitat, they are likely to be in less than ideal condition in early summer and therefore most likely to initiate predatory attacks on people (Amstrup 2003; Wilder et al. 2017). A young bear was responsible for a similar early-morning fatal attack on a camper in 2020.

2013 Attack

The account summary below is from my 2014 blog post on the Torngat Mountains attack on Maine lawyer Matt Dyer, who ultimately had to be air-lifted to Montreal for medical treatment:

Seven hikers set out on a two week long adventure organized by the Sierra Club.

The mauling happened in the middle of the night of the third day, about 2:30am, despite the electric perimeter fence they had in place.

The group assumed the bear that attacked the victim (Matt Dyer) was the same big male that had advanced on their campsite the afternoon before. The bear had come within 30-50 yards but retreated when the group fired some flares at it. But the bear stayed nearby, watching.

The hikers knew he was there but apparently were not especially concerned. The bear attacked Dyer tent and all: it just pounced on the one-man tent and hauled the whole package away down the beach. The other hikers fired off some flares. The bear dropped Dyer and left.

The bear was not pursued in the days afterward and was not shot.

As the ice chart below shows, sea ice had only retreated from the Labrador coast at the time of the attack, since thick ice was still present offshore during the first week in July:

Most odd about this 2013 account is that no photos of the bear that attacked Dyer have ever been made public. I find it implausible that no photos exist, given the circumstances, but quite possible that the group agreed to suppress any images taken of the bear because it was in excellent condition and not the starving polar bear of the climate change narrative they later concocted (Crockford 2015).

Polar bears reestablishing former northern Labrador territory

Back in the 1970s, when polar bear numbers in Davis Strait were low (Stirling and Kiliaan 1980), there were few records of bears spending the summer and denning along the shores of northern Labrador and northeast Ungava Bay, Quebec, see circled region on map below.

However, according to the latest survey, that has changed now that the population has rebounded (Crockford 2023; Dyck et al. 2021; Peacock et al. 2013). The island in the middle of Ungava Bay is a major denning area for pregnant polar bears and some may now den along the mainland coast as well.

From Dyck et al. 2021, tip of Ungava Peninsula marked by me.

References

Amstrup, S.C. 2003. Polar bear (Ursus maritimus). In Wild Mammals of North America, G.A. Feldhamer, B.C. Thompson and J.A. Chapman (eds), pg. 587-610. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.

Crockford, S.C. 2015. “A Harrowing Encounter.” Range Magazine, Spring: 42-43.

Crockford, S.J. 2023. The Polar Wildlife Report. Global Warming Policy Foundation Briefing 63, London. pdf here.

Dyck, M., Dunham, K.D., Ware, J.V., et al. 2021. Re-estimating the abundance of the Davis Strait polar bear subpopulation by genetic mark-recapture. Final Report [amended 9 May 2022], Government of Nunavut, Department of Environment, Iglulik. pdf here.

Peacock, E., Taylor, M.K., Laake, J., and Stirling, I. 2013. Population ecology of polar bears in Davis Strait, Canada and Greenland. Journal of Wildlife Management77:463–476.

Stirling, I. and Kiliaan, H.P.L. 1980. Population ecology studies of the polar bear in northern Labrador. Occasional Paper 42, Canadian Wildlife Service. pdf here.

Tomaselli, M., Henri, D., Pangnirtung Hunters and Trappers Organization, et al. 2022. Nunavut Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit on the health of the Davis Strait polar bear population. Final project report, Government of Nunavut. pdf here.

Wilder, J.M., Vongraven, D., Atwood, T., et al. 2017. Polar bear attacks on humans: implications of a changing climate. Wildlife Society Bulletin 41(3):537-547. https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.783

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Sport

WWE’s Vince McMahon served with subpoena by federal brokers

WWE's Vince McMahon served with subpoena by federal agents

Federal law enforcement agents executed a search warrant and served a federal grand jury subpoena to WWE executive chairman Vince McMahon last month, according to a regulatory filing.

McMahon is also taking medical leave from the sports entertainment company following major spinal surgery nearly two weeks ago, CEO Nick Khan announced Wednesday. The duration of his leave was not specified.

WWE said in the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that while government investigations into McMahon remain ongoing, no charges have been brought in them.

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The company said it has received voluntary and compulsory legal demands for documents, including from federal law enforcement and regulatory agencies, concerning the investigation and related subject matters.

“WWE has cooperated throughout and fully understands and respects the government’s need for a complete process,” the company said in a statement.

The Wall Street Journal had reported last year that the WWE was investigating an alleged $3 million payment from McMahon to a departing female employee following an alleged affair. WWE’s investigation into the misconduct allegations was completed last year.

“In 2022, WWE formed a special committee to review allegations of misconduct against me,” McMahon said in a statement. “That review was concluded in November 2022 following an extensive investigation. Throughout this experience, I have always denied any intentional wrongdoing and continue to do so. I am confident that the government’s investigation will be resolved without any findings of wrongdoing.”

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Entertainment

Justin Trudeau and Sophie Grégoire Separate After 18 Years of Marriage

Justin Trudeau and Sophie Grégoire Separate After 18 Years of Marriage

The following month, he also praised Grégoire, 48, for the impact she’s had raising their three kids.

“To all of the moms out there: I hope you can spend this day with your loved ones,” he wrote in an Instagram post in honor of Mother’s Day. “To my own mom, and to Sophie: You are two of the strongest, bravest, and greatest people we know. The kids and I love you both so very much.”

As for the former television host, she’s also publicly praised her husband over the years, especially for his role as a dad.

“This man could carry the love he has for his kids anywhere,” she captioned a June Instagram post for Father’s Day. “Dads, never underestimate your role as mentors in your family for your sons and your daughters. Be kind to yourselves, check on your mental well-being, slow down in silence when needed… and most of all, take the risk of loving with everything you got.”

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Health

GSK sues Pfizer claiming RSV vaccine patent infringement

GSK sues Pfizer claiming RSV vaccine patent infringement

Jun Li | Istock | Getty Images

GlaxoSmithKline on Wednesday sued Pfizer in U.S. court, alleging patent infringement over Britain-based GSK’s respiratory syncytial virus vaccine. 

GSK claims New York-based Pfizer’s RSV vaccine, Abrysvo, infringes on four of its patents related to the antigen used in its own shot.

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“Upon information and belief, Pfizer knowingly uses GSK’s claimed inventions in Abrysvo without permission,” GSK wrote in a scathing complaint filed in federal court in Delaware.

Both vaccines were approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in May for use in adults 60 and above. Some doses are already available to the public at retail pharmacies like Walgreens.

RSV is a common respiratory infection that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms, but more severe cases in older adults and children. Each year, it kills 6,000 to 10,000 seniors and a few hundred children younger than 5, according to CDC data.

GSK is demanding a jury trial and seeking monetary damages, including lost profits and royalties resulting from Pfizer’s alleged patent infringement. 

The British drugmaker is also asking a judge to prevent Pfizer from manufacturing and selling Abrysvo in the U.S. for adults 60 and older.

GSK said it is not seeking to limit the use of Abrysvo for preventing RSV in infants, a separate shot specifically designed to protect newborns. The FDA is expected to make a final decision on that vaccine in August. 

CNBC Health & Science

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A Pfizer spokesperson said it is “confident in its intellectual property position and will strongly defend its right to bring its innovative” RSV shot to patients. 

The lawsuit noted that Pfizer began working on its RSV vaccine program as early as 2013, at least seven years after GSK started its own program. 

The suit alleges that Pfizer knew of GSK’s patented technology since at least October 2019, when Pfizer began challenging the validity of European versions of the patents. 

It’s not the first time GSK has waged a legal battle against Pfizer over patent rights. 

GSK in 2016 sued Pfizer in Ireland court, alleging patent infringement over GSK’s meningitis vaccine.

Moderna last year also sued Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech for patent infringement over its Covid vaccine. 

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Science

Watch the Mars Pattern Return Mission Check the Rocket That’ll Leap off the Floor of Mars

Watch the Mars Sample Return Mission Test the Rocket That'll Leap off the Surface of Mars

The Mars Sample Return (MSR) has been going through a rough patch lately. We recently reported on reports coming out about Congress restricting its budget and potential cost overruns. However, like any good government program, progress continues toward the goal of bringing samples until there is a clear order to stop or the money drives up. That wasn’t the case back in March and April when NASA successfully tested two engines that will be used in the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV).

Designed to get the samples back off Mars and into Martian orbit, the MAV will be a two-stage system like many of its Earth-based predecessors. Known as SRM1 and SRM2 for the two different stages, each will take responsibility for a different phase of the MAV’s ascent flight.

SRM1 is the bigger of the two. Its goal is to get the samples off the ground and into the air, so it has to pack more of a punch than the SRM2. It also contains a novel feature called a supersonic splitline nozzle, or SSSL.

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Testing of the SSSL and the rest of the SRM1 engine was performed at Edwards Air Force Base on April 7th. Part of a spectacular video NASA released provides details about the experiment, including that the SRM1 testing took place in a vacuum chamber, so there’s no sound to pick up on. Also, the corrective movements of the SSSL during the video seem particularly precise. The test was completed successfully, and the engineer is moving on to the next testing phase.

SRM2, on the other hand, is responsible for boosting the MAV into orbit, where it will rendezvous with the spacecraft that will take it back to Earth. Another challenge represented in its test video is that it will have to deal with spin.

On the test bench, which was not in a vacuum chamber and could be heard warming up, the rocket engine spun at 200 rotations per minute (RPM). Its performance appeared remarkably steady in the video, with little evidence that spinning like this is uncommon in rocket engines.

Fraser discusses the details of MSR, some of which are still in flux.

Both the SRM1 and SRM2 had another requirement for their test chambers – they had to be right around -20 degrees C. While the SRM2 test was performed outside at a Northrupp Grumman test facility in Maryland in March, it wasn’t cold enough in the exposed outside, so they had to cool the test chamber to the appropriate temperature.

Overall, both engines seemed to pass all the metrics required by their test plans, allowing them to move on to the next stage of development & testing. However, the project’s financial and administrative future remains up in the air, so it is unclear if either rocket will make it much further in development. But NASA is also particularly good at recycling technologies developed for other projects, so it can likely find a use for these functional rocket engines, whether they go on the MAV or not.

Learn More:
NASA Marshall Space Flight Center – NASA Mars Ascent Vehicle Continues Progress Towards Mars Sample Return
UT – The Mars Sample Return Mission is Starting to Look Expensive
UT – The Mars Sample Return Mission Will Take Two Helicopters to the Red Planet to Help Retrieve Samples
UT – Plans for a Mars Sample Return Mission Have Moved to the Next Stage

Lead Image:
Still shot of the video showing the testing of the SRM2 rocket.
Credit – NASA’s Marshall Spaceflight Center YouTube Channel

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Technology

UK chipmaker Arm targets $60B-plus valuation for September IPO

UK chipmaker Arm targets $60B-plus valuation for September IPO

British chip maker Arm is targeting an initial public offering (IPO) at a valuation of between $60bn and $70bn as early as September, amid surging demand for semiconductors for cloud computing, AI, and EV applications.  

The roadshow is scheduled to start the first week of September with pricing for the IPO the following week, Bloomberg reports, citing people familiar with the matter. A roadshow in this context is a series of lead-up events that give a company the chance to showcase its value proposition, wow potential investors, and ultimately, increase their buy-in.   

Arm looks to raise as much as $10bn at its debut into the public market. This would make it one of the biggest-ever IPOs in the history of the tech industry, third only to Alibaba in 2014 and Meta in 2012.    

Earlier this year, bankers valued the chipmaker at between $30bn and $70bn. Arm executives may still be gunning for a valuation as high as $80bn, but the odds of achieving this are “uncertain,” said Bloomberg’s source. 

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Arm has been planning the IPO for a while now. In April, it confidentially filed with regulators for a US stock market listing, after turning down the British government’s request to list its shares in London.   

Often described as the UK’s leading IT company, Cambridge-based Arm designs energy-efficient computer chips. The company’s architectures are found in endless applications, from smart cities to laptops, but they’re best known for powering mobile devices. Around 95% of the world’s smartphones use its technology.

Arm’s designs are used to manufacture chips made by most of the world’s major semiconductor companies, including Intel, AMD, Nvidia, and Qualcomm. Both Nvidia and Intel are now in talks to become anchor investors in the British firm.   

“Arm has had a hugely important but behind-the-scenes and not-very-well-understood role for a very long time,” Bob O’Donnell, president of TECHnalysis Research, told Bloomberg. “There’s this raised awareness now of what Arm does and the role that it plays.”  

Since taking over last year CEO Rene Hass has been working to branch out beyond the smartphone market, targeting more advanced computing applications, such as those for cloud computing and AI applications. The firm has also made strides in the automotive sector, where it has more than doubled its revenues since 2020. Going public could be the funding boost Arm needs to further exploit these rapidly emerging markets. 

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Sport

Ladies’s World Cup Day by day: USWNT advances by width of a publish

Women's World Cup Daily: USWNT advances by width of a post

The 2023 Women’s World Cup is in full swing, and these daily files give you the latest reporting from around the tournament as well as betting lines, what-to-watch-for information and best reads. Check in with ESPN throughout the tournament as we bring you the latest from Australia and New Zealand.

The lead: USWNT advances by the width of a post

AUCKLAND, New Zealand — The U.S. women’s national team was inches from seeing its Women’s World Cup end in catastrophe — until the loud clank of the ball hitting the post.

With the USWNT facing elimination with a loss to Portugal and the score tied 0-0 in stoppage time, Portugal’s Ana Capeta got onto the end of a long lofted ball and fired from inside the box. USWNT goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher dove, but she couldn’t reach it. Instead, the near-side post made the save.

“It was a beautiful sound to hear it hit the post, that’s for sure,” Naeher said afterward. “But that’s something we talked about — we knew they were good on the counterattack and they like to get in behind.”

Naeher gave credit to Naomi Girma for tracking Capeta’s run and blocking off the far post, forcing the shot to the near side, where it went barely wide. Girma, a center back, was arguably the USWNT’s best player all night.

– Women’s World Cup: Landing page | Schedule | Rosters | News
– How teams can qualify for the round of 16

Now, with the USWNT finishing second in their group, a date awaits with Sweden in the round of 16. It’s surely a path the USWNT would want to avoid — it was only two years ago that Sweden demolished the USWNT in the Tokyo Olympics.

Striker Alex Morgan said the draw to Portugal was not the performance the USWNT wanted, but the players still have faith.

“I know this team and I know what we’re capable of, and just because it hasn’t clicked every moment on the field and we’re not putting the goals in the back of the net doesn’t mean these aren’t the right players for the job,” Morgan said. “The confidence is there and now we just have to prove it out on the field.”

Asked whether Sweden will be the favorites heading into the round of 16, Morgan’s response was succinct: “No.” –Caitlin Murray

The United States did just enough to progress but came so close to a shock exit when a Portugal shot hit the post late on. Robin Alam/USSF/Getty Images

News of the day

– The 2023 Women’s World Cup saw its 1 millionth fan pass through the turnstiles at the match between Portugal and the United States at Eden Park. Rebecca Sheely from Colorado was the millionth fan to come through the gates at the 10 venues across Australia and New Zealand, and was greeted by tournament mascot Tazuni. With the final still 19 days away, and 22 matches to be played after Tuesday’s games, FIFA remains firmly on target to host the biggest standalone women’s sport event ever.

– Canada became the first reigning Olympic champions to be bundled out in the group stage of the subsequent World Cup, with a 4-0 defeat to Australia on Monday. Canada coach Bev Priestman said after the game: “These moments define you, I know that from [the] Tokyo [Olympics]. That result, they’re [Australia] going to be riding a massive high. They’ve turned things around in one game, and they were brave and they went for it and changed things. Australia is a top, top side and I’ve said that from the start. There’s nothing stopping them from pushing through this because they should be probably in the top four of a World Cup.”

Today in USWNT camp

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USWNT ‘survives’ group stage, but it won’t be enough vs. Sweden

Alexis Nunes reports from Auckland as the USWNT advances through the World Cup group stage in underwhelming fashion.

Vlatko Andonovski, 4 — In his prematch news conference, the U.S. coach said he doesn’t read or listen to any of the media coverage surrounding the team, but it feels like he got word that everyone was clamoring for Lynn Williams to start. She was bright in getting into the box and finding chances, but she suffered from the same finishing yips that have affected the rest of the team.

Most concerning, rather, is that the USWNT didn’t seem to have a cohesive game plan, and again it was up to individual moments to decide the match. But that’s nothing new in this era of the USWNT under Andonovski.

At least he remembered he could use subs this time. The USWNT switched to a double-pivot late to hang on for the draw.

Caitlin Murray gives us her manager and player ratings for the USWNT against Portugal.

Sights and sounds

England in cruise control

ADELAIDE — If you’d asked Sarina Wiegman to describe an ideal evening for England in Adelaide then she’d have imagined a performance a little like the one the Lionesses put together in their eventual 6-1 win over China. It was a demolition as they made it three from three with Lauren James at the forefront of everything they did well. She’d finish with two goals and three assists as England completely dominated every facet of the match.

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Wiegman deployed a new-look 3-5-2, with James in the No. 10 role, as she made three changes from the team that beat Denmark 1-0. It was a night where they ticked the necessary boxes, but there were added bonuses: both Alessia Russo and Lauren Hemp needed goals, and answered that with a first-half strike apiece; James added further fuel to the warranted hype around her with a magnificent performance where she teed up both Russo and Hemp’s goals before adding one of her own — a majestic first-time strike off Alex Greenwood’s free kick. James had another wondergoal disallowed as Lucy Bronze was harshly judged to be offside in the build-up while the referee also missed Russo having her hair pulled in the 35th minute.

Wiegman took off Georgia Stanway at half-time — protecting her as the midfielder has a yellow card against her name — and the second half started a little slower. China got on the scoresheet with a 55th minute penalty from Wang Shuang, after a dubious VAR-aided handball call against Bronze. But China’s hopes were soon extinguished by another outstanding goal by James as she hit a perfectly weighted first-time volley into China’s far corner.

And they had time for two more — James again the architect for the first — as her lofted through ball was missed by keeper Zhu Yu leaving Chloe Kelly an empty net to tap home. Rachel Daly scored England’s sixth with a brilliant close-range volley, a reminder of her striker’s instincts having been deployed as left wing-back. — Tom Hamilton

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Explaining why VAR denied James another stunning goal vs. China

Dale Johnson explains why Lauren James was denied an excellent goal vs. China after Lucy Bronze was controversially deemed to be offside.

Netherlands scores seven

Knowing the top spot in Group E could come down to goal difference, Netherlands showed no mercy against World Cup debutantes Vietnam as it racked up a 7-0 win in Dunedin. Lieke Martens opened the scoring in the eighth minute, and three more goals followed in the next 15 minutes, with Katja Snoeijs, Esmee Brugts and Jill Roord all on target.

The effort from Brugts, a 20-year-old whose goal qualified the Oranje for the finals, was the pick of the bunch, a fine strike from 25 yards. Danielle van de Donk added the fifth on the stroke of half-time, with Brugts completing her brace after the break. That allowed for the introduction of teenager Wieke Kaptein, who at 17 years and 337 days old became the youngest player ever for Netherlands at a men’s or women’s World Cup. Roord then added a seventh in the 83rd minute.

It was a brutal performance from Andries Jonker’s side, who with the top spot will, save a remarkable goal-difference turnaround in Wednesday’s games, avoid Sweden in the next round. Not much was said about the Dutch before the tournament in comparison to some of the other favourites, but after topping a group that included the USWNT, the 2019 runners-up go into the knockout rounds full of confidence. — Sam Marsden

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Recapping Australia’s incredible night vs. Canada

Marissa Lordanic looks back on a huge night for Australia as they beat Canada 4-0 to advance to the knockout stages of the World Cup.

The emotion of knockout football

There are stereotypical photos we expect from knockout sporting events that juxtapose the two extremes of emotion that sport can push a person to. In the foreground there will be celebrations, tears of joy falling, jubilant roars of relief held frozen in time. Then, beyond the euphoria, there are the players lying motionless on the turf, physically spent and emotionally torn open.

As we travel deeper into the stage of the World Cup where teams’ respective journeys come to an end, these images will multiply, showcasing the gamut of the human condition. In Melbourne on Monday night, the cliché was working overtime as co-hosts Australia snatched victory — and an imperious 4-0 victory at that — from the jaws of national humiliation and the biggest anticlimax in Matildas history. On the other side, Olympic champions Canada, who have been in a feud with their federation, crashed out of the tournament. Tears of joy and misery fell throughout the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium; players and fans alike all shared in the emotional roller coaster.

It is the beauty and the misery of tournament football and, as the last of the group games wrap up, it is only just the beginning. Tissues at the ready, everyone. — Sophie Lawson

Jamaica’s secret weapon: The home of the Matildas

MELBOURNE, Australia — Standing on the precipice of more history, Jamaica might have a secret weapon in its efforts to advance to the knockout stages at the expense of Brazil. One of three teams based in Melbourne during the World Cup, the Reggae Girlz have trained out of the Victorian State Football Centre — otherwise known as “The Home of the Matildas” — throughout a World Cup journey that began with a famous 0-0 draw with France and continued with a 1-0 win over Panama, the nation’s first-ever victory on this stage.

The product of the largest investment ever made by any level of government for a football-specific project in Australia, the first phase of the Bundoora-based facility opened just prior to the World Cup as the Matildas prepared for the final warm-up fixture against France. But with the Matildas opting to base themselves in Brisbane for the tournament, Jamaica were afforded the opportunity to use it to bolster their campaign.

“I tell you what, I say this to all my Reggae Girlz, I wish that we could take you back to Jamaica with us,” Jamaica coach Lorne Donaldson said. “It’s the most fantastic place, in terms of training facilities, that I have ever seen in the world. It’s better than most men … and it’s not [even] done yet, it’s not complete. We have enjoyed it, the staff has been excellent with us, it has everything for us to train. I think it’s fantastic stuff. To give it to the Matildas, and you know what, I praise them for fighting for it and we need something like that [in Jamaica], it would be fantastic.”

Though he declined to discuss his own side’s struggles with their federation for resourcing, Donaldson also issued a rallying cry when quizzed on the platform the World Cup was supplying rising nations such as Morocco, Philippines and Colombia.

“You talk about smaller women’s football countries, and the growth has been tremendous,” Donaldson said. “The smaller countries now will realise there’s a platform out there [as will] young women and girls all over the world. All these governments and everybody, it’s time to step up. Cut the bullcrap. Step up and support women’s football. And let’s move along.” — Joey Lynch

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‘Under-appreciated no more!’ Nigeria book knockout spot

Brittanny Mitchell reports Nigeria earning their way through to the last 16 after goalless Ireland draw.

Match previews for Aug. 2

Odds via Caesars Sportsbook.

Group G: South Africa vs. Italy – (Wellington Regional Stadium, Wellington; 7 p.m. local / 3 a.m. ET / 8 a.m. BST)

Odds: South Africa +400, Draw +280, Italy -160

The scenario is simple for Italy: win and they will make the round of 16. A draw should also be enough to help it through, although it would be dependent on Argentina not beating Sweden. If they did, Italy and Argentina would be tied on four points but the Albiceleste would have the better goal difference.

Making Italy’s task harder is that South Africa is also very much alive. A win is likely to see it advance, although its fate in the competition would come down to goal difference if Argentina also wins. Coach Desiree Ellis says she is hoping her side’s luck will turn in their final group game, lamenting a lack “rub of the green,” as it gave up leads in its opening games against Sweden and Argentina. — Sam Marsden

Group G: Argentina vs. Sweden – (FMG Stadium Waikato, Hamilton; 7 p.m. local / 3 a.m. ET / 8 a.m. BST)

Odds: Argentina +525, Draw +310, Sweden -205

With a thorough dismantling of an Italy team that simply did not know how to defend whipped corners, Sweden has already secured its place in the round of 16. But it will have one more chance to build momentum going into the knockouts and prove the last victory wasn’t just a one-off. Argentina, to its credit, has shown growth over its two games and knows that nothing short of a win will be enough in Hamilton. But it will need to get numbers forward early to ask questions of a Sweden back line that hasn’t looked overly stable so far. — Sophie Lawson

Group F: Panama vs. France – (Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney; 8 p.m. local / 6 a.m. ET / 11 a.m. BST)

Odds: Panama +5500, Draw +1400, France -8000

Les Bleues will not just be looking to qualify for the round of 16 and confirm their place as group winners, they will want to go from strength to strength. The performance in the 2-1 win over Brazil was much better than it was against Jamaica in their opening 0-0 draw. They need to build on that.

Coach Herve Renard is likely to make changes in his starting XI, but Kadidiatou Diani will lead the line up front and, after getting better since the start of the tournament, will be looking for her first World Cup goal. Renard will want intensity, goals, a clean sheet and statement displays from the players coming in. France need to finish the job without taking this game for granted, while for Panama, after two losses and five goals conceded, the aim will be to frustrate their opponents for as long as possible and try to get a historic point. — Julien Laurens

Group F: Jamaica vs. Brazil – (Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, Melbourne; 8 p.m. local / 6 a.m. ET / 11 a.m. BST)

Odds: Jamaica +1100, Draw +470, Brazil +450

After the highs of their opening 4-0 win over Panama, Brazil’s 2-1 loss to France in their subsequent fixture puts the onus well and truly upon them in their clash with Jamaica in Melbourne. Pia Sundhage’s side must win to progress to the knockout stages, with a draw or loss — short of Panama pulling off one of the greatest upsets of all time against France — meaning the Selecao would be going home. Sundhage wouldn’t be drawn on what kind of role 37-year-old iconic talisman Marta would have against the Reggae Girlz in her prematch news conference, only going so far as to say: “This old lady is very important for us.”

Jamaica, for its part, will be boosted by the return of Manchester City star Khadija “Bunny” Shaw for the contest after she was suspended for its history-making 1-0 win over Panama, but still remains the underdogs. Not that coach Lorne Donaldson sees that as a bad thing. “This is when you go enjoy it,” he said. “What the hell do we have to lose?” — Joey Lynch

Features of the day

Meet Beverly Ranger, forgotten superstar of the women’s game
Jamaica’s Beverly Ranger was a soccer star in 1970s Germany, but today the players who made the 2023 Women’s World Cup squad barely know her story.

World Cup debutante Zambia is leaving on a high note
Despite an early exit at the 2023 Women’s World Cup, a tournament debut for Zambia is a victory in itself.

What pressure? Matildas answer every question asked of them
In the afterglow of the victory, as fans flooded out of Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, positively buoyed by the spectacle that had unfolded before them, thousands of questions filled the air: How did the Matildas do it?

And, finally …

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Is this Australia’s luckiest football fan?

Marissa Lordanic catches up with Emily, a Matildas fan who was given Sam Kerr’s jersey after Australia’s 4-0 win vs. Canada.

While it never saw the pitch, Sam Kerr’s jersey is still one of the most coveted objects at this tournament.

After the Matildas’ 4-0 win over Canada in Melbourne, young fan Emily found herself in possession of the shirt. Following the match, Kerr spotted Emily in the crowd and made a beeline for her, taking off her shirt and placing it in her hands in what will be a core memory for the youngster.

Emily had tears in her eyes while recounting the story to ESPN postmatch. While the whole nation is in love with Kerr and Emily is so grateful and overwhelmed by Kerr’s generosity, the Aussie skipper is only her second favourite player: the top honour belongs to Mary Fowler. — Marissa Lordanic