Paris kicked off the 2024 Olympic Games by making history with the first opening ceremony to be held outside on a rainy night in France.

It is the first time in 100 years that the Games have been held in the French capital, and despite the constant showers, thousands of Olympians from the 205 delegations celebrated as they travelled down the River Seine on boats and barges.

During the nearly four-hour sprawling ceremony, spectators were treated to performances by Lady Gaga, Aya Nakamura and Celine Dion as the city showed off the story of France while commemorating Olympic history.

On a tour of the city, Paris' most well-known landmarks, including the Louvre and Notre Dame Cathedral, were on show as fans packed in around the parade route to get a glimpse of the showcase.

The Olympic flag was delivered to the Eiffel Tower on the back of a mechanical horse travelling down the river, while a masked individual carried the torch across the city.

An incredible light show on the Tower then restarted the torch relay, as Zinedine Zidane reappeared to hand it to two-time gold medallist Rafael Nadal.

The Spaniard, with the help of fellow tennis icon Serena Williams, American sprinter Carl Lewis and Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci carried the torch back down the river on its way to the cauldron.

Some of France's best Olympians helped carry it the rest of the way before judoka Teddy Riner and sprinter Marie-Jose Perec lit the flame in the hot air balloon cauldron, which rose high above the Parisian sky, to officially mark the start of the Games.

More than 10,500 athletes will compete across 32 sports at the Games, which will close on August 11.

Lando Norris admitted he was "not comfortable" despite being fastest in the Belgian Grand Prix second practice.

McLaren finished first and second on Friday, with Norris finishing just 0.215 seconds ahead of team-mate Oscar Piastri.

Max Verstappen finished third, but despite an impressive performance, his 10-place grid penalty will affect his result.

Norris finished second in the Hungarian Grand Prix last week, behind Piastri, in a race overshadowed by a radio spat between the Brit and the pit wall.

Having put that behind him, even after a confident practice session on Friday, Norris is not willing to rest on his laurels with Red Bull showing their threat.

"Red Bull are very quick at the minute," Norris said. "So, tricky, but I've just not felt very comfortable today with the car.

"So hopefully I just wake up [on Saturday] and feel a bit more comfortable with it. But we'll try and improve a few things and see again.

"I know it looked good on the timesheets, but I've not felt super comfortable in just going out and doing it. So, hopefully, I can just get in a bit more of a rhythm and feel a bit better out there."

Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton finished in 10th after struggling to match the pace set in the second session.

Mercedes have been credited for their improvement in recent weeks, with Hamilton winning at Silverstone before finishing third at Hungaroring last Sunday.

However, he was also left disappointed on Friday and said he was hoping for the forecast rain over the rest of the weekend to give the team more of an edge.

"It was a pretty bad day," Hamilton said.

"I don't really know what to say! Obviously, it's been feeling great in the past couple of races, but it just felt completely different today.

"We worked on it. The first session was not great, but then in the second session we made some changes, and it started off great, and then when I got to the soft tyre I just couldn't improve and there were a bunch of balance issues we had through the lap.

"It was better through this session, but everyone else went even better. So, to be 1.2s behind is not great.

"If it rains, then that opens it up a little bit and, hopefully, we can do a better job. I think the car should be better in the wet than it is in the dry."

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall believes new Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca will "surprise a lot of people" when they watch the Blues this season.

The Italian led Leicester City straight back to the Premier League as Championship winners in his only season in charge and succeeds Mauricio Pochettino at Stamford Bridge.

The Foxes topped the second division table with 98 points, with Dewsbury-Hall a key figure in his squad as he netted 12 goals and provided 14 assists last season – his best tally in a single campaign.

Dewsbury-Hall was also named Leicester's Player and Players' Player of the Year.

The midfielder made the switch to West London earlier this month for £30million and is confident that Maresca will have Chelsea challenging for trophies in no time.

"The manager was a big catalyst in wanting me to come," Dewsbury-Hall told BBC Sport.

"I knew from Leicester, a club that went down and had a lot of problems, how he managed to galvanise that if everyone manages to buy into the system.

"I genuinely think in a short space of time we can be pushing for minimum top four - but more than that.

"He may be unknown for a lot of people, but he is top, top level. He will surprise a lot of people."

Chelsea's pre-season got off to a frustrating start as they were held to a 2-2 draw by League One side Wrexham in Maresca's first game in charge on Wednesday.

Dewsbury-Hall did not play in that match but is training with the squad in the United States and could feature in their next outing against Celtic on Saturday.

The 25-year-old is confident the manager's tactics will come across soon, with the players buying into his style.

"We've only been doing it for two or three weeks, but the combination plays are really quick and tidy," he added.

"That's after two weeks. I remember he said to us at Leicester after six months or a year, there might be teething problems at the start, but it will improve.

"Within the first week at Leicester, I was convinced this was top, top level. I felt a bit stupid; I thought I knew a lot about football, but he was teaching me things on a daily basis that I didn't really know before. He has an aura, he can be strict, or gentle and soft - he has both sides.

"I am getting the same feedback here with the lads. They've bought into it here from minute one which is exciting. With a system and philosophy, you need everyone to buy in because, if they do, you can really achieve something."

Ederson has hit out at reports of a rift between himself and fellow Manchester City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega.

The Brazilian was substituted after suffering a fractured eye socket in City's penultimate game of the Premier League season, a vital 1-0 win over Tottenham. 

Ortega replaced him and made a brilliant save to deny Son Heung-min as City maintained their slender lead over Arsenal at the top of the table, sealing an unprecedented fourth straight title by beating West Ham five days later. 

Ortega was widely lauded for his role in that triumph, and an article published by The Athletic this week suggested Ederson took issue with that praise.

However, the goalkeeper – who missed the Copa America as a result of his injury – has now moved to shut down those suggestions with a post to his Instagram story.

"I would like to clarify that the note published by The Athletic yesterday, referring to my alleged dissatisfaction with a co-worker, is completely false," he wrote. 

"The alleged day reported was, without a doubt, one of the most difficult days of my career, when I suffered a fracture that prevented me from playing in the final stretch of the season and, consequently, from representing my country in the Copa America.

"At the time of the injury, my only thought was to continue in the match, defending City in the fight for the title. 

"But the emotion of the match would be greater than the reality and, inevitably, I would not be able to continue as I would have liked due to the damage it caused, completely blocking my field of vision. I remain focused on preparing for the season."

Ederson has been linked with a transfer in recent days, reportedly attracting interest from Saudi Pro League clubs.

Gary McAllister says Arne Slot must be prepared to aim high by targeting trophies if he is to be successful with Liverpool.

The Dutchman is set to begin his first season in charge of the Reds after being appointed as Jurgen Klopp's successor in May.

Liverpool enjoyed a trophy-laden spell under the German, winning their first-ever Premier League title, as well as a Champions League, a Club World Cup, a Super Cup, an FA Cup and two EFL Cups.

However, Slot was no stranger to success while at Feyenoord, leading the team to the Eredivisie title in 2022-23 before lifting the KNVB Cup in April during his final season with the club.

McAllister, who won five trophies in the two years he spent at Liverpool, says Slot's success will be determined by the silverware he collects.

"Liverpool is a club that's synonymous with winning, and when you don't win you fail," McAllister told Stats Perform.

"When there's a new management team, you're given a little bit more time, but the facts are Liverpool's target, I felt, and as a player that played against them for most of his career, the targets that Liverpool set, you go into every tournament looking to win it.

"You try to win every game and that's the expectation of the club and that's what makes it a very special club."

Klopp spent nine years at Liverpool, breaking club records as his team pushed for trophies on a regular basis.

The Reds enjoyed a club-record 68-match unbeaten run at Anfield over nearly four years in the Premier League between April 2017 and January 2021.

Klopp also oversaw three of the four most prolific seasons in Liverpool's history, including the club-record total of 147 goals scored in 2021-22.

Slot has admitted he has "big shoes to fill", but McAllister believes the 45-year-old will be able to live up to the high expectations left behind by Klopp.

"Arne arriving at the club, following Klopp, realising that it's such a difficult job anyway, but to follow somebody who's done particularly well at the club over an eight, nine-year period is going to be tough, and I don't think the new manager is under any illusions," he added.

"What I would say is he's a man that seems to be a very strong character, good personality, and he's just got to come in and be his own man and trust what he does.

"He's done very well in his previous managerial career and coming to Liverpool I feel is a natural progression in the levels of the game that he's worked at.

"So, everybody at the club will be deeply backing him and be right behind him, he'll have amazing support."

Liverpool's first pre-season game under Slot ended in a 1-0 defeat to Preston North End last week before the players flew out to the United States for a three-game tour.

They are also only one of two Premier League clubs yet to conduct any business in the transfer window so far, but McAllister urged fans to be patient with Slot while he gets settled in his new role.

"Whenever there's a change at a club, I think the fans have got to realise that it does take time for a new manager, a new coaching group to come in and get their ideas over to the players," he said.

"There's got to be a modicum of patience, but at Liverpool, expectation levels are very, very high and sometimes, in professional soccer, in elite soccer, patience is something that most managers don't get.

"As much as the fans have got to be aware that everything is new and there are new ideas, Arne and the players will want to get off to a quick start.

"I feel that this pre-season tour is going to help them start the season against Ipswich Town very strongly. I feel the games that they've got here in the US, here in Pittsburgh against Betis, and then we go to play Arsenal and Manchester United, the build-up is pretty good."

Thiago Motta's first game in charge of Juventus ended in defeat as an unfamiliar Bianconeri side was thrashed 3-0 by 2. Bundesliga outfit Nurnberg on Friday.

The likes of Timothy Weah, Nicolo Fagioli and Dusan Vlahovic were limited to substitute roles as Motta selected a young side at Max-Morlock-Stadion, with the latter hitting the post with a second-half penalty at 1-0.

Caspar Jander had earlier given Nurnberg a 19th-minute lead, and they put some gloss on the scoreline with two late strikes after Vlahovic's missed spot-kick.

Substitutes Dustin Forkel and Tim Janisch both converted from inside the penalty area in the final four minutes as Motta's reign began in disappointing fashion.

The Bianconeri are next in action versus Brest on Saturday, with a further friendly against Atletico Madrid in the diary before they begin their Serie A campaign at Como on August 19.

Data Debrief: Juve's second string miss their chance

It's fair to say few of the youngsters selected by Motta made a big impression, with the Bianconeri only managing two shots to Nurnberg's seven before they rang the changes at half-time.

No Juventus starter created a chance in Bavaria, and things did not get much better when Motta made his changes, with Vlahovic in particular enduring a disappointing outing. 

He only had 18 touches, one of them coming when he struck the woodwork from 12 yards.  

Curtis Jones says he is "probably the happiest he's been" since Arne Slot's arrival at Liverpool.

Jones was first promoted to the first team by Jurgen Klopp in September 2019, but despite going on to make 133 appearances for his boyhood club, he failed to nail down a place in the German's starting line-up after that.

Last season, the 23-year-old made 36 appearances in all competitions, more than in any other season, netting five goals as Liverpool won the EFL Cup and finished third in the Premier League.

Now, with a new manager at the helm, Jones believes Slot's more patient approach will suit him better, allowing him to secure a regular starting spot.

"[Slot's] amazing. It's probably the happiest I've been," Jones told reporters during their pre-season camp.

"As a style of play, it suits me. It is a clear plan. Arne is fully involved in the training, he coaches us a lot, he's big on the finer details.

"He knows it's going to take a bit of time because it's a big change. I came around the team as a young lad. I always had a way of playing, but I had to adapt and change.

"It wasn't anything I couldn't do. But this now is more me. I can get on the ball more. I can 'do me' more.

"My way of playing has always been to get on the ball and play, help the team, and be comfortable on the ball.

"I then came around a team who had world-class lads on the wing and up front. The centre-mids were always more like runners, more disciplined.

"Now the midfielders are going to be the heart of the team. In terms of our build-up, we have to be more calm and play more as a team.

"We're not in a rush to attack. We want to have the ball and just break teams down. In the past, it was kind of a rush. It was a bit too direct; it was up and down. Now Arne wants us to have all the ball and completely kill teams."

Liverpool are in the United States for their three-game pre-season tour, starting with Real Betis on Friday.

Ange Postecoglou has urged Tottenham fans to have patience when it comes to bringing new players in during the transfer window.

Spurs have signed just two new faces so far, with Archie Gray joining from Leeds United in a deal reportedly worth up to £40million, and Lucas Bergvall signing from Djurgardens.

Alongside the two 18-year-olds, Timo Werner has also been resigned on loan for the upcoming season. He enjoyed an impressive start after initially joining in January, as he contributed two goals and three assists, but his season was ended prematurely by injury. 

While the Spurs faithful are keen for their club to bring more reinforcements, Postecoglou asked for their trust as the club works towards adding to the squad.

"At this time of year, it's pretty hard for supporters because they don't have all the information, and it's fair to say there's plenty of misinformation out there," he said in a press conference.

"We're working hard to bring players in, and it's a process that you sometimes have to be patient with. But in terms of what we set out to do, that's still the plan, and you have to stay disciplined with that.

"Sometimes the timings don’t work out, and it doesn’t happen as quickly as you want, and you don't get them [players] in at the right time, but I think it's really important you stay disciplined and not run off and chase other things.

"So, what we started with at the start of summer is still there, and I wouldn't want to put timelines on it. A lot of that is out of our control, and we just need to be patient.

"From where I sit, at the moment, we're still in that phase where what we identified is still what we're after."

Spurs will face Japanese side Vissel Kobe in their next pre-season match on Saturday.

Sergio Perez is confident he will still be at Red Bull after this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix regardless of the result.

There has been a lot of speculation over the Mexican's future in recent weeks following a series of poor results at recent races, despite him signing a two-year extension with the team just last month.

Since coming fourth at the Miami Grand Prix in May, Perez's best finish has been seventh, both in Austria and Hungary, and he failed to advance beyond Q1 in four of the last six races.

His drop in form has allowed McLaren to close the gap to Red Bull in the constructors' championship to just 51 points.

With the four-week break soon approaching, both RB driver Daniel Ricciardo and Red Bull's reserve driver Liam Lawson have been linked with Perez's seat.

However, the 34-year-old is certain he will still be competing alongside Max Verstappen when the season resumes.

"I am 100% sure," Perez said.

"Because I know basically what's in my contract and I know what the team trusts in me. And I know where is the main focus, which is on delivering on the track.

"It's no different to what it was in Hungary or [at the first race] in Bahrain or how it will be in Zandvoort or the rest of the year," Perez said.

"Every single weekend we've got to deliver the maximum, especially now that, with McLaren catching up in the constructors, it's really important to put everything together if we can achieve it.

"I'm not worried about it. Like I said, I know where I stand. That's not my concern. My only concern I have is to get my season back on track. The rest, I'm pretty chilled about."

Bologna chief executive Claudio Fenucci has revealed the club have offered Mats Hummels a contract as they seek to replace Arsenal-bound centre-back Riccardo Calafiori.

Bologna finished fifth in Serie A last season, qualifying for the Champions League as a result of Italian clubs' impressive performances across UEFA's competitions.

There has been plenty of upheaval for the Rossoblu since then, however, with coach Thiago Motta leaving for Juventus and former Fiorentina boss Vincenzo Italiano taking his place.

Calafiori, meanwhile, is set for a medical with Arsenal after helping Bologna keep 17 clean sheets in Serie A last term, a tally only bettered by Inter (21) and Torino (18).

With the Italy international on his way out, Bologna have turned to a player with vast Champions League experience in their bid to replace him.

Speaking at the unveiling of recently-signed forward Thjis Dallinga on Friday, Fenucci revealed Bologna are working on a deal to sign Hummels, who left Borussia Dortmund on a free after their Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid last month.

"The departure of Calafiori forces us to look for a new central defender," he explained.

"Why does Hummels take some time? It's very normal, we spoke to him recently. It is right that he thinks about it, to arrive with the right motivations.

"We don't have to talk here about our conversations with Hummels, but we explained the project and the city to him. 

"Many players have finished their careers here, the city has this attraction, it seems.

"There is no deadline, but if there are no conditions we have to look at other players as well."

Hummels excelled as Dortmund reached their third Champions League final last term, leading all players in the competition for tackles won (29), interceptions (25) and total recoveries (81).

Only eight players in the tournament, meanwhile, played more passes than his 676 throughout BVB's run to the Wembley Stadium showpiece.