BBC News Briefing

14 June, 2024

Sofia Lotto Persio

Hello. Germany is hosting UEFA Euro 2024, which kicks off later on Friday. Nick Beake is in Munich, reporting on whether the football tournament can lift the country's fractured mood. In Las Vegas, Emma Vardy hears from superstar Celine Dion on how she's planning her comeback after learning how to manage her autoimmune disease. Finally, the rare birth of twin elephants is celebrated in Thailand, where the animals are considered sacred.

TOP OF THE AGENDA

Can football lift German spirits again?

Young women with German flags painted on their faces react while watching a football match

In 2006, Germany were knocked out in the semi-final against Italy, the eventual World Cup winners. Credit: Ullstein Bild/Getty Images

Germans fondly remember the summer of 2006, when they hosted the men's World Cup, as “Sommermärchen” - a summer fairytale. For the first time in decades, Germans shed their discomfort in waving flags and displaying national colours - a legacy of the country’s troubled 20th Century. The country badly needs another summer like that, writes Nick Beake. Germany’s ruling three-way coalition has passed key legislation, but is unpopular. At last weekend’s European Parliament elections, the far-right anti-immigration party AfD scored an unprecedented success, with a particularly strong showing in the east. The Euros also take place at time of increased tensions internationally and within Germany, which has seen a number of politically motivated attacks recently. Excitement may not yet be at fever pitch, but veteran journalist Philipp Köster says: “If anything can bring Germany, the people here back together, it is football.”

‌

Players to watch: Who will be the tournament's breakout stars? BBC Sport takes a closer look at 24 promising footballers from across Europe.

‌

Opening match: Germany faces Scotland in Munich. Our live page covers the mounting anticipation for the game. For more football coverage, consider signing up to our sister newsletter Football Extra.

‌

Away game: A club in the English county of Yorkshire has been offered their football back, after a ball labelled "Nafferton YFC" was found on a beach on the north east coast of the Netherlands, 400 miles away.

WORLD HEADLINES

Donald Trump: The presidential candidate has met Republican representatives in Congress, returning to Capitol Hill for the first time since the Jan 6 riot - and a fortnight after his criminal conviction for falsifying business records in New York.

#MeToo: Sophia Huang Xueqin, a prominent feminist activist in China, has been handed a five-year jail sentence for "subversion against the state".

Wells Fargo: The American bank has fired a number of employees who allegedly faked keyboard activity to fool bosses into thinking they were working.

Elon Musk: Tesla shareholders have backed a record-breaking pay package for the company's CEO, one of the world's richest people, and also approved a plan to move the firm's legal headquarters to Texas.

Exercise in etiquette: A gym in South Korea has banned misbehaving "aunties", reigniting a debate about age discrimination in the country.

UK ELECTION LATEST

The election campaign has reached a crucial halfway stage, as Henry Zeffman explains in less than 90 seconds. Meanwhile, on social media, Marianna Spring investigates how many pro-Reform UK accounts are real supporters.

AT THE SCENE

Las Vegas, USA

Celine Dion is ready to perform again

A picture of Celine Dion at the Grammy Awards in February this year

The singer made a rare appearance at the Grammy Awards earlier this year. Credit: Getty Images

Since announcing in December 2022 that she was suffering from Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS), Celine Dion has kept a low public profile. After finding a treatment to help her manage the life-long neurological condition, the queen of power ballads is ready to return to the stage.

Emma Vardy, LA Correspondent

As the sun sets behind the mountains in an exclusive neighbourhood 30 minutes from the Las Vegas strip, I can hear a recognisable voice singing behind a closed door. "Is that Celine?" I ask. Her security man guarding the hotel suite nods. I am about to interview a musical megastar, and it sounds like she is in a cheerful mood.

Keep reading

BEYOND THE HEADLINES

From the boxing ring to the war zone

Wladimir (left) and Vitali Klitschko sit in a damaged building for an interview

Vitali Klitschko (right of his brother Wladimir) entered politics as mayor of Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, in 2014. Credit: Sky Documentaries

Ukraine's Klitschko brothers dominated boxing for a decade, both becoming heavyweight champions. After Russia's invasion, the brothers found they could use their fame to drum up support for Ukraine's war efforts - a story told in a new documentary by director Kevin Macdonald.

Find out more

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Keeping it cool

US cities are fighting extreme heat as the planet warms up.

Here's how

And finally...

A 36-year-old Asian elephant in Thailand surprised herself and her caretakers when she gave birth to a set of twins last week, a male and a female. Staff at the Ayutthaya Elephant Palace and Royal Kraal have described the arrival of twins, which occurs in just 1% of elephant births, as a miracle.

The Essential List newsletter

The week's best stories, handpicked by BBC editors, in your inbox twice a week.

Subscribe here

MORE BBC NEWSLETTERS

In History: The past comes to life through the BBC's unique audio, video and written archive, each Thursday. Subscribe.

US Election Unspun: Cut through the noise in the race for the White House, every Wednesday. Subscribe.

Football Extra: Latest news, insights and gossip from the Premier League, weekdays. Subscribe.

Thank you, as ever, for reading. Send us suggestions for topics or areas of the world to cover in this newsletter. Tell your friends and family about it! They can sign up here. You can take a look at all our newsletters here.

By the way, you can add newsbriefing@email.bbc.com to your contacts list and, if you're on Gmail, pop the email into your “Primary” tab for uninterrupted service. Thanks for reading!

– Sofia

You've received this email because you've signed up to the BBC News Briefing newsletter.

Click here to unsubscribe

To find out how we use your data, see the BBC Privacy Policy.

BBC Studios Distribution Limited.

Registered Number: 01420028 England

Registered office: 1 Television Centre, 101 Wood Lane, London, W12 7FA, United Kingdom