Barcelona routed rivals Real Madrid 5-2 to win a wild Spanish Super Cup final in Jeddah.
It was Barca's first trophy of the Hansi Flick era, a result the German coach described as "unbelievable".
Kylian Mbappe put Madrid ahead but a dominant Barcelona hit five in response before their goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny was sent off in the second half.
Madrid were hoping to avenge their 4-0 home defeat by Barcelona in October's La Liga Clasico but instead were left battered and bruised by their arch-rivals in Jeddah.
After Mbappe's opener, Lamine Yamal levelled and Robert Lewandowski sent Barcelona ahead from the penalty spot, with Raphinha bagging a brace and Alejandro Balde also on target.
Rodrygo Goes pulled one back for Madrid with a free-kick but they could not capitalise further on their numerical advantage in a humiliating defeat for the Spanish and European champions.
"I think today is a good day because we beat one of the best teams in the world, for the second time this season, Real Madrid, and this is unbelievable," Flick told reporters.
"We won a title here and we are really happy ... today is a day to look positively at this team."
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti laid the blame for the heavy defeat on his team's poor defending.
"We defended badly and that cost us the game – they found their goals quite easily," Ancelotti told Movistar.
"We're sad, like all our fans, it's disappointing and we don't have to hide that ... we have to look forwards, there's nothing else we can do."
Despite a strong Barcelona opening salvo it was Real Madrid who took the lead in the fifth minute with Mbappe's brilliant goal on the counter-attack.
The French forward broke loose on the halfway line after Vinicius Jr won the ball back and, after bursting into the area, clipped past Szczesny.
It took a stunning individual goal from 17-year-old Yamal to level the scoreline, with the Spanish winger cutting in from the right before stroking home a low finish inside the near post.
Barcelona kept pushing and moved ahead through Lewandowski's penalty after Eduardo Camavinga carelessly clattered Gavi.
Raphinha soon added Barcelona's third with a header from Kounde's cross from deep and they grabbed their fourth before half time on the break.
Yamal and Raphinha combined and the latter slipped in Balde, who slotted past Courtois.
Barcelona continued in the same vein after the break and Raphinha netted the fifth with a neat dribble and finish after Marc Casado played him in.
The Catalans were reduced to 10 men when Mbappe sped in at the other end, rounding goalkeeper Szczesny, who brought him down outside the area and after a VAR review was dismissed.
Rodrygo, who earlier hit the post, rifled home the free kick past Szczesny's replacement Inaki Pena.
Mbappe brilliantly teed up Jude Bellingham but the England international was denied by a superb Jules Kounde challenge in stoppage time.
The French forward also came close to scoring again himself in a fine individual display but Pena tipped away his effort.
"He was the best [Madrid player]," said Ancelotti.
"We can't always win, if we have to lose a cup, it's better that it's this one," said veteran Madrid midfielder Luka Modric.
Barcelona brought on playmaker Dani Olmo for his first appearance since he was registered to play for the club on a temporary basis, a controversial issue that overshadowed the semi-finals earlier in the week.
However their five-star display offered a host of other talking points as Barca won a record-extending 15th Spanish Super Cup.
"It's really nice, it had been a season since we won a trophy, it's always special and on top of that in a Clasico against Real Madrid," Barcelona defender Kounde told Movistar.
RESULT
Everton 2 Huddersfield Town 0
Everton: Sigurdsson (47'), Calvert-Lewin (73')
Man of the Match: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton)
Manchester United v Liverpool
Premier League, kick off 7.30pm (UAE)
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
The biog
Favourite film: Motorcycle Dairies, Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday, Kagemusha
Favourite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude
Holiday destination: Sri Lanka
First car: VW Golf
Proudest achievement: Building Robotics Labs at Khalifa University and King’s College London, Daughters
Driverless cars or drones: Driverless Cars
IF YOU GO
The flights: FlyDubai offers direct flights to Catania Airport from Dubai International Terminal 2 daily with return fares starting from Dh1,895.
The details: Access to the 2,900-metre elevation point at Mount Etna by cable car and 4x4 transport vehicle cost around €57.50 (Dh248) per adult. Entry into Teatro Greco costs €10 (Dh43). For more go to www.visitsicily.info
Where to stay: Hilton Giardini Naxos offers beachfront access and accessible to Taormina and Mount Etna. Rooms start from around €130 (Dh561) per night, including taxes.
Best Academy: Ajax and Benfica
Best Agent: Jorge Mendes
Best Club : Liverpool
Best Coach: Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Best Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker
Best Men’s Player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Best Partnership of the Year Award by SportBusiness: Manchester City and SAP
Best Referee: Stephanie Frappart
Best Revelation Player: Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid and Portugal)
Best Sporting Director: Andrea Berta (Atletico Madrid)
Best Women's Player: Lucy Bronze
Best Young Arab Player: Achraf Hakimi
Kooora – Best Arab Club: Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia)
Kooora – Best Arab Player: Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al-Nassr FC, Saudi Arabia)
Player Career Award: Miralem Pjanic and Ryan Giggs
Company%20profile
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Profile of Foodics
Founders: Ahmad AlZaini and Mosab AlOthmani
Based: Riyadh
Sector: Software
Employees: 150
Amount raised: $8m through seed and Series A - Series B raise ongoing
Funders: Raed Advanced Investment Co, Al-Riyadh Al Walid Investment Co, 500 Falcons, SWM Investment, AlShoaibah SPV, Faith Capital, Technology Investments Co, Savour Holding, Future Resources, Derayah Custody Co.