Tottenham Hotspur have moved one step closer to signing Jan Paul van Hecke from Brighton and Hove Albion after he agreed to join, according to Voetbal International.

The summer transfer window doesn’t open for another week, but Tottenham have already been busy in the market as they look to ensure they don’t repeat the two 17th-placed finishes in the Premier League in the last two seasons.

Andy Robertson has already completed his free transfer move to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium having already agreed to join in the January transfer window, while Marcos Senesi will also join for nothing imminently, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Having got two free transfers over the line for Roberto De Zerbi, attentions are turning to big-money signings for the Italian that will transform a squad that has struggled domestically for two years now.

De Zerbi has already hinted that big changes are needed in the squad if they are to turn their fortunes around, and they will have the benefit of having no European football to contend with during the 2026-27 season.

Last season, Manchester United finished third without the distractions of Europe, and Tottenham will be hoping for a much stronger campaign too.

Van Hecke Decides He Only Wants to Join Tottenham

Brighton CEO Paul Barber revealed over the weekend that the Seagulls have already rejected two bids from Tottenham for their Dutch defender, who is said to be rated around the £70m mark.

Spurs are clear in their bid to land the 26-year-old, but the south coast side also will only sell if their valuation of the player is met.

According to Voetbal International, despite interest from other Premier League clubs and contact with Liverpool previously, Van Hecke has decided he only wants to join Tottenham to link up with De Zerbi for a second time following talks with the Italian manager.

The report says that he has already agreed personal terms to join Spurs, and the only thing missing now is a club-to-club agreement.

Van Hecke is said to want the move completed soon so he can focus on the World Cup with the Netherlands knowing where he will be playing next season.

Savinho Also Agrees Personal Terms With Tottenham

Tottenham are looking to strengthen multiple areas of the pitch as they look to freshen up the squad ahead of next season, including in attack.

According to Romano, Spurs are progressing with a deal to sign long-term winger target Savinho from Manchester City, a year after they attempted to bring him to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

A fresh claim from a journalist in Italy says that the Brazilian has agreed personal terms to join the north Londoners on a five-year contract already, with the club-to-club agreement the only thing missing, like in the case of Van Hecke.

Savinho primarily plays on the left-hand side but is able to feature from the right too, meaning he would be competing with the likes of Mathys Tel and Dejan Kulusevski for a spot in De Zerbi’s starting XI.

UFC Freedom 250 at the White House is facing a legal challenge that could stop the fight card going ahead as a federal lawsuit claims the event is “deeply corrupt.”

The UFC‘s headline event on the White House South Lawn is planned for the 14th of June and would mark the first time in history that a live sporting event has been held on the White House grounds. However, legal action has been filed in the District of Columbia against the National Park Service and the Department of the Interior by two Virginia residents.

The lawsuit argues federal law and National Park Service regulations strictly limit private use of the capital’s national monuments and that the claw structure being used to host the fights is causing significant damage to the White House grounds. Dana White has estimated that it will cost $700,000 to repair the South Lawn alone, it says.

The claimants argue that President Trump is giving Dana White and the UFC unfettered access to the White House and Lincoln Memorial to stage a private, for-profit sports event, with all the associated promotional and branding opportunities.

The suit claims the UFC is selling VIP packages for between $1 million and $1.5 million per person and that the event is favourable to the UFC’s broadcast partner, Paramount Skydance, which is run by two other Trump allies, Larry and David Ellison. Trump is also said to have bought $50,000 worth of stock in UFC owner TKO earlier this spring.

What’s Been Said in the Lawsuit

“The event, scheduled for June 14, was conceived by President Trump and organised by UFC CEO Dana White, a close personal ally of Trump, and will benefit both men financially,” writes Samuel T. Ward-Packard of the Public Integrity Project, the lead attorney on the case.

“The President arranged to hand two of America’s most cherished monuments to a private corporation so he and his allies could profit from them. That is corruption,” plaintiff Susan Douglas stated.

UFC Freedom 250

Ceremonial weigh-ins and face-offs are set to take place at the Lincoln Memorial and pre-fight walkouts are expected to start from the Oval Office.

The fight card is being headlined with a bout for the lightweight championship between Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje. The co-main event will see Alex Pereira move up to heavyweight as he looks to win a belt in a third weight class against France’s Ciryl Gane.

A World Cup star was left with little choice but to confront US police officers on the pitch during Ecuador’s 3-0 friendly win over Guatemala on Sunday night. Boasting one of the youngest squads heading into this year’s tournament, the South American nation are unbeaten in their last 19 matches.

During that run, they have held Morocco and the Netherlands to draws, while also beating reigning world champions Argentina as recently as last September. With just four days to go until the start of football’s flagship event, there is growing belief that Ecuador could emerge as one of the surprise packages in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

However, while their preparations on the pitch have largely been smooth sailing, an incident during their final warm-up match before next week’s Group E opener against Ivory Coast has reignited concerns over police conduct in the host nation.

World Cup Star Confronts US Police on Pitch During Friendly

Ecuador dominated their way through to a convincing win at the Ohio Stadium this weekend, with Jordy Caicedo, Nilson Angulo, and Pervis Estupinan getting in on the goals. However, post-match discussion has been more interested in a moment of madness that saw Premier League midfielder Moises Caicedo intervene with the police’s aggressiveness towards a pitch invader.

Late into the match, a Guatemala fan ran onto the pitch, which saw US police use excessive force to detain him, with several officers taking him down to the ground. Caicedo stepped in and tried to protect the fan, before complaining and arguing with the police over the violent way they handled the situation. Watch the incident below:

The Chelsea star’s actions have been widely praised on social media, while those inside the stadium on Sunday night appeared to boo the police’s heavy-handed involvement in videos that captured the moment. No statement of any kind has been released about the incident at the time of writing.

Safety Concerns Heading into 2026 World Cup

Sunday night’s events appeared to echo many of the fears matchgoing supporters had when they first learned of the USA’s hosting rights for the tournament. While ICE’s well-documented actions and Donald Trump’s hardline immigration policies have drawn significant scrutiny, they have also shone a light on some of the concerns facing travelling supporters heading stateside.

Even setting those issues aside, the USA’s long-standing problem with mass shootings remains an obvious source of alarm. On the same day as Ecuador’s final warm-up match, a shooting near England’s intended training base in Kansas City left nine people injured, further highlighting the security concerns that have surrounded the tournament.