In what we can only describe as an equally terrifying and admirable act of bravery, an LGBTQ+ protestor stormed onto the pitch during Portugal vs Uruguay’s World Cup match on Monday night.
Serial pitch invader Mario ‘Il Falco’ Ferri made the bold and immensely dangerous move of not only entering the field of play flying a rainbow flag in protest of the anti-LGBTQ+ state, but he also donned a shirt reading ‘Respect Iranian Women’ on the back and ‘Save Ukraine’ on the front.
While the majority of the nations present at the tournament are united with Ukraine, it was quite the statement to make with Iran still sitting second behind England in Group B, especially in a country where women‘s rights are also suppressed.
Despite receiving cheers from large sections of the crowd, the protestor was also met with a chorus of boos from Qatari locals before he was ultimately tackled to the ground.
World Cup: A protester ran into the game holding a rainbow flag – with a 'Save Ukraine' and 'Respect For Iranian Women' shirt – @OrryLaviepic.twitter.com/s6dIcZLkQz
Despite FIFA making the positive U-turn to allow rainbow flags and bucket hats into the grounds for the remainder of the competition last week, it goes without saying that the organisers will definitely be less lenient with pitch invaders flying pride flags.
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While many supporters were wondering whether this decision might signal the return of the One Love armband, which was banned just before the start of the opening game, however that now seems highly unlikely.
Moreover, while Russia are obviously not at the 2022 World Cup, Qatar and FIFA will also be wary of any and all high-profile political statements against Iran or any other nation, for that matter.
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People watching the live broadcast were also disappointed by the director’s decision to cut away from the scenes, airing nothing more than a glimpse of the protestor before he was removed from the pitch.
Protestor carrying rainbow flag runs onto the pitch during Uruguay Portugal, this is as much of that as the source broadcaster will show pic.twitter.com/SttAQuUHlu
Activist and footballer Ferri has become renowned for stunts like these down the years, making it even more curious how he managed to get in the stadium in the first place.
Back in March, the 35-year-old even helped evacuate Ukrainian civilians escaping the Russian invasion across the Polish border. What an absolutely top bloke.
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It remains unclear whether he was detained by authorities afterwards and what if any punishment he has faced, though some form of action seems inevitable given the stories of their strict policing thus far.
Hundreds of staff at four Greater Manchester hospitals to strike AGAIN next week
Emily Sergeant
Another round of strikes has been called at a handful of major Greater Manchester hospitals.
Amid ongoing disputes following the first set of strikes at the end of last month, it has now been announced that more than 350 Northern Care Alliance Foundation Trust (NCA) employees – including nurses, clinical support workers and housekeepers – who are members of the union UNISON will once again walk out for three days next week.
According to the union, the dispute centres on the NCA’s use of an outside agency called NHS Professionals (NHSP) to manage overtime.
When covering staff shortages, workers are entitled to time-and-a-half pay – however in some cases, staff earn less than they would on a normal shift, and some have even been missing out on more than £80 per shift, the union added.
Operating theatre staff were previously on picket lines in June, and although an option to resolve the row was initially tabled by NCA bosses, this has now fallen through.
Hundreds of staff at four of Greater Manchester’s hospitals are set to strike next week / Credit: Stephen Andrews (via Unsplash)
This means that staff at Salford Royal Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary, and Fairfield Hospital in Bury are walking out next week on Monday 14, Tuesday 15, and Thursday 17 September.
The union’s North West regional organiser, Kevin Dolan, said the trust had given ‘no indication’ that it’s willing to re-enter negotiations, adding that operating theatre services were ‘chronically under-staffed’ and staff were choosing to work extra shifts to cover shortages.
Ahead of the August strikes, the trust declared a critical incident to help it secure extra support and keep urgent surgery running, while also announcing that some procedures would have to be postponed.
Understandably, some disruption is expected at each of the hospitals on strike days.
But Gertie Nic Philib, who is the chief people and strategy officer at the Northern Care Alliance, said that the trust will do ‘everything we can to minimise the impact on patients’ and ‘maintain high standards of care and quality at all times.’
“We also have contingency plans in place for emergency situations,” they concluded.
Featured Image – Pxhere
News
Stockport man jailed for life after kidnapping and sexually assaulting teenage girl
Emily Sergeant
A Stockport man has been sentenced to life in prison after kidnapping and sexually assaulting a teenage girl on her way home from the library.
Paul Sharpe has been sentenced to life imprisonment with an eight-year minimum term in prison after being convicted of a number of offences when subjected a teenage girl to what police called a ‘terrifying ordeal’ that lasted several hours back in May 2026.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) confirmed that the victim had been studying at Sale Library before beginning her journey home with friends at around 5:50pm and contacting her parents at 6:10pm to let them know she was on her way.
Twenty minutes later, she spoke to her boyfriend on the phone and said she was approximately five minutes away from home, but that her phone battery was about to die.
This was the last contact received from the victim that evening.
While walking along Bradgate Road in Altrincham, the victim noticed a grey Ford parked nearby and a man wearing a high-visibility jacket pressing doorbells in the area.
As she walked past, Sharpe approached her from behind, placed her in a headlock and threatened to stab her if she did not get into his vehicle.
Concerned that their daughter had not returned home, the victim’s family contacted police at 9:22pm to report her missing, and officers immediately launched an investigation to locate her.
Over the next several hours, the victim was subjected to and placed in a number of terrifying situations.
Sharpe drove the victim to several locations across Greater Manchester and Cheshire, before police located and arrested him at around 3:40am on 19 May 2026.
Following his arrested, 56-year-old Sharpe was convicted of kidnap, committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence, sexual assault, engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, threats with a bladed article, and administering a noxious substance with intent to injure, annoy or aggrieve.
“This was a terrifying ordeal for a young girl who was simply making her way home,” explained Detective Inspector Karl Perry, from GMP’s Criminal Investigation Department.
“Sharpe targeted a vulnerable victim, subjected her to hours of fear and intimidation, and went on to sexually assault her.
“The victim has shown immense courage throughout the investigation and court proceedings. Through her bravery and actions, she no doubt made it harder for Sharpe to carry out whatever acts he had planned.”
Danny Jones -
29th November 2022 
