Monaco Journal - News from Monaco, Monte-Carlo and the world

From dueling AI giants to Budweiser's Clydesdale horse mascots bonding with a bald eagle, the commercials vying for attention during Sunday's Super Bowl are shaping up as one of the most star-studded — and contentious — advertising battles in years.

The Dow surged above 50,000 points for the first time Friday, shrugging off worries connected to artificial intelligence companies while traders focused on the prospects for US growth and Federal Reserve interest rate cuts.

China's freestyle ski star Eileen Gu has admitted that injuries "damaged her confidence" before she hit top form again as she prepares for a shot at Olympic triple gold.

UK police probing Britain's former ambassador to the United States Peter Mandelson searched two properties on Friday, authorities said, following fresh revelations in the Epstein files.

Chelsea Women's manager Sonia Bompastor extended her contract until 2030 on Friday, despite the defending champions' recent struggles.

The Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics opened on Friday with a glittering ceremony at the San Siro stadium echoed by celebrations at Games venues across the Italian Alps.

A French yoga teacher who was held in a blood and feces-stained Venezuelan jail on suspicion of being a US spy described how guards put him "through hell" in an attempt to break him.

Sam Underhill said Friday there will no complacency from England when they begin their bid for a first Six Nations Grand Slam in a decade against struggling Wales at Twickenham.

Al Nassr fans showed their support for Cristiano Ronaldo on Friday as the Portuguese star missed a second straight game after reportedly growing frustrated over transfers.

Nearly two years after it was created to restore order in impoverished, violence-ravaged Haiti, the transitional council is ending its work -- with no end to the crisis in sight.

Hundreds of people protested in Milan on Friday ahead of the Winter Olympics as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni hosted world leaders including US Vice President JD Vance.

A drug trafficker linked to the 1994 murder of Colombian football star Andres Escobar has been killed in Mexico, President Gustavo Petro said Friday.

Colombian national team captain James Rodriguez has signed a short-term contract with Minnesota United ahead of the 2026 World Cup, the MLS club announced on Friday.

Aaron Wainwright believes there is still an intense rivalry between England and Wales despite the gulf in recent results.

The United States has withheld $3.6 million in annual dues for a second consecutive year to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), which says it remains financially strong despite the move.

France has detected a Russia-linked disinformation effort alleging President Emmanuel Macron's involvement with convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a government authority said Friday.

The curtain will rise on the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics on Friday, with a star-studded ceremony at the San Siro stadium echoed by celebrations at Games venues across the Italian Alps and the Dolomite mountains.

President Donald Trump shared a post with a racist video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as monkeys, sparking outrage across the US political spectrum Friday before deleting it in a rare backtrack.

French food giant Danone recalled batches of infant formula in Britain, Spain, Croatia and Slovenia over the possible presence of a toxin, food safety authorities said on Friday, expanding the measure across Europe.

President Donald Trump shared a post with a racist video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as monkeys, sparking outrage across the US political spectrum Friday before deleting it in a rare backtrack.

Colombian national team captain James Rodriguez has signed a short-term contract with Minnesota United ahead of the 2026 World Cup, the MLS club announced on Friday.

UK police probing Britain's former US ambassador Peter Mandelson were searching two properties on Friday, London's Metropolitan Police said, following fresh revelations in the Epstein files.

A Russian drone blasted into an animal shelter in southern Ukraine early Friday, killing at least 10 rescue dogs and injuring multiple others, according to staff.

The United States on Friday urged three-way talks with Russia and China to set new limits on nuclear weapons, as it accused Beijing of conducting secret nuclear tests and dramatically swelling its arsenal.

Up-and-coming cyclist Paul Seixas is hoping to hit the ground running when he opens his season in the Algarve and is also dreaming of racing in the Tour de France this summer.

France has detected a Russia-linked disinformation effort alleging President Emmanuel Macron's involvement with convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a government source told AFP on Friday.

European nations voted Friday to allow for chemical recycling to play a larger role in the production of plastic bottles, overcoming reservations about the energy-intensive technology.

A worshipper at the Shiite mosque in Islamabad where dozens of people were killed in a suicide blast on Friday described an "extremely powerful" explosion ripping through the building just after prayers started.

Iran on Friday said it expected to hold more negotiations with the United States, hailing a "positive atmosphere" during a day of indirect talks in Oman but warning against threats after Washington raised the spectre of new military action.

A suicide blast at a Shiite mosque in Islamabad killed at least 31 people on Friday, with 169 more wounded in the deadliest attack in Pakistan's capital since the 2008 Marriott hotel bombing.

One of the "key participants" behind the 2012 attack on the US mission in Benghazi that left the ambassador and three other Americans dead has been arrested, officials said Friday.

Bitcoin, the world's biggest cryptocurrency, sank this week, wiping out gains sparked by Donald Trump's presidential election victory in November 2024.