Nottingham Forest won their first Premier League home game for 23 years with a 1-0 success over West Ham on Sunday.
The City Ground had not hosted a top-flight match since 1999 and Taiwo Awoniyi ensured it was a winning homecoming for Forest with his first-half goal.
The striker, who until Saturday night was the club’s record signing this summer, bundled home from close range to become the first Forest player to score a Premier League goal since Chris Bart-Williams all those years ago.
It got them up and running after defeat at Newcastle on the opening weekend and, on this evidence, Steve Cooper’s men are going to be a welcome addition to the top flight.
However, they did have goalkeeper Dean Henderson to thank for keeping the three points as he saved Declan Rice’s second-half penalty.
He also made several other saves while Pablo Fornals and Said Benrahma both hit the underside of the crossbar for the luckless Hammers, with the latter also seeing an opening goal ruled out by VAR in the first half.
Boss David Moyes will be left scratching his head as to how his side were on the losing side, but with two defeats from two, the Hammers will need to kickstart their season soon.
Forest fans had waited 8,492 days to sing their famous anthem ‘Mull of Kintyre’ ahead of a Premier League match and they put in a performance worthy of the wait, producing a spine-tingling atmosphere.
And their side fed off that as they made an electric start in the opening 15 minutes, playing with high intensity and surging forward at speed.
West Ham goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski had to be alert to tip over Vladimir Coufal’s clearance that went wrong before Awoniyi flashed a header just wide from a fine Neco Williams cross.
The Hammers were in danger of being overran, but were able to get a foothold in the game and thought they had taken the lead in the 42nd minute, only for VAR to intervene.
Breaking quickly from a Forest set-piece, Rice slipped in Benrahma and he slotted home into the bottom corner.
But Forest felt Orel Mangala was impeded in the build-up as did VAR official Michael Salisbury and then, after viewing the pitchside monitor, referee Robert Jones agreed and the goal was chalked off.
Perhaps inevitably, just minutes later Forest went ahead in first-half stoppage time.
There was nothing picturebook about it as it was a scrappy mess, but having had to wait so long for this moment, no one dressed in red cared.
Harry Toffolo surged into the area and cut back perfectly to Jesse Lingard, who looked destined to score against his old club, but he scuffed his shot.
Luckily Ben Johnson diverted it on to the knee of Awoniyi and the ball ended up in the bottom corner.
West Ham were millimetres from levelling within 25 seconds of the restart as Fornals sent a curling 20-yard effort crashing into the underside of the crossbar, with Tomas Soucek seeing his header from the rebound saved by Henderson.
But Forest rediscovered their verve and soon suffered their own VAR misfortune as they had a goal disallowed.
Mangala barged through and played in Brennan Johnson to poke home, but from an offside position.
It was 100mph stuff and West Ham were again a lick of paint from an equaliser as Benrahma was denied by the woodwork, when his 20-yard free-kick hit the underside of the crossbar and into the grateful hands of Henderson.
West Ham thought their moment had finally come midway through the second half as they were awarded a penalty.
Having broken at speed, Soucek’s goalbound shot hit the arm of Scott McKenna and after another lengthy check at the monitor Jones pointed to the spot.
However, Henderson, who is notoriously good at saving penalties, got down low to keep out Rice’s effort.
Forest then needed Williams to clear Kurt Zouma’s header off the line as West Ham pushed for a leveller, but nothing was going to stop this being Forest’s day.
Results
Women finals: 48kg - Urantsetseg Munkhbat (MGL) bt Distria Krasniqi (KOS); 52kg - Odette Guiffrida (ITA) bt Majlinda Kelmendi (KOS); 57kg - Nora Gjakova (KOS) bt Anastasiia Konkina (Rus)
Men’s finals: 60kg - Amiran Papinashvili (GEO) bt Francisco Garrigos (ESP); 66kg - Vazha Margvelashvili (Geo) bt Yerlan Serikzhanov (KAZ)
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
More coverage from the Future Forum
Persuasion
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8 UAE companies helping families reduce their carbon footprint
Greenheart Organic Farms
This Dubai company was one of the country’s first organic farms, set up in 2012, and it now delivers a wide array of fruits and vegetables grown regionally or in the UAE, as well as other grocery items, to both Dubai and Abu Dhabi doorsteps.
www.greenheartuae.com
Modibodi
Founded in Australia, Modibodi is now in the UAE with waste-free, reusable underwear that eliminates the litter created by a woman’s monthly cycle, which adds up to approximately 136kgs of sanitary waste over a lifetime.
www.modibodi.ae
The Good Karma Co
From brushes made of plant fibres to eco-friendly storage solutions, this company has planet-friendly alternatives to almost everything we need, including tin foil and toothbrushes.
www.instagram.com/thegoodkarmaco
Re:told
One Dubai boutique, Re:told, is taking second-hand garments and selling them on at a fraction of the price, helping to cut back on the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of clothes thrown into landfills each year.
www.shopretold.com
Lush
Lush provides products such as shampoo and conditioner as package-free bars with reusable tins to store.
www.mena.lush.com
Bubble Bro
Offering filtered, still and sparkling water on tap, Bubble Bro is attempting to ensure we don’t produce plastic or glass waste. Founded in 2017 by Adel Abu-Aysha, the company is on track to exceeding its target of saving one million bottles by the end of the year.
www.bubble-bro.com
Coethical
This company offers refillable, eco-friendly home cleaning and hygiene products that are all biodegradable, free of chemicals and certifiably not tested on animals.
www.instagram.com/coethical
Eggs & Soldiers
This bricks-and-mortar shop and e-store, founded by a Dubai mum-of-four, is the place to go for all manner of family products – from reusable cloth diapers to organic skincare and sustainable toys.
www.eggsnsoldiers.com
The specs
Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder and 3.6-litre 6-cylinder
Power: 220 and 280 horsepower
Torque: 350 and 360Nm
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Price: from Dh136,521 VAT and Dh166,464 VAT
On sale: now
A Long Way Home by Peter Carey
Faber & Faber
North Pole stats
Distance covered: 160km
Temperature: -40°C
Weight of equipment: 45kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 0
Terrain: Ice rock
South Pole stats
Distance covered: 130km
Temperature: -50°C
Weight of equipment: 50kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 3,300
Terrain: Flat ice
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
If you go
The flights
There are various ways of getting to the southern Serengeti in Tanzania from the UAE. The exact route and airstrip depends on your overall trip itinerary and which camp you’re staying at.
Flydubai flies direct from Dubai to Kilimanjaro International Airport from Dh1,350 return, including taxes; this can be followed by a short flight from Kilimanjaro to the Serengeti with Coastal Aviation from about US$700 (Dh2,500) return, including taxes. Kenya Airways, Emirates and Etihad offer flights via Nairobi or Dar es Salaam.
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday Stuttgart v Cologne (Kick-off 10.30pm UAE)
Saturday RB Leipzig v Hertha Berlin (5.30pm)
Mainz v Borussia Monchengladbach (5.30pm)
Bayern Munich v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm)
Union Berlin v SC Freiburg (5.30pm)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (5.30pm)
Sunday Wolfsburg v Arminia (6.30pm)
Werder Bremen v Hoffenheim (9pm)
Bayer Leverkusen v Augsburg (11.30pm)
