Harry Styles has personally reached out to one Wimbledon star after her successful run in the tennis tournament forced her to miss his gig.
Millions of fans in countless countries have had the chance to see the Cheshire-born singer live on stage as part of his major Love On Tour global tour over the last year or so – but unfortunately for tennis player Elina Svitolina, she wasn’t going to be one of them.
If you haven’t been keeping up to date with Wimbledon this year, the 28-year-old Ukrainian wildcard has been one of the unexpected stand-outs so far.
Just this past Sunday, Svitolina made it through to the quarter finals after beating 33-year-old Belarusian Victoria Azarenka in what was an undeniable three-set thriller on Court One, cementing her place as the talk of the tournament – but ahead of that fourth round match, the Ukrainian revealed that her successful run had come at a bit of a cost.
And that cost was missing out on seeing her favourite pop star Harry Styles live in concert.
Svitolina took to social media to reveal that she had bought tickets to go and watch Styles in Vienna as his Love On Tour run arrived in the Austrian capital last Saturday, but due to playing one of the most important matches of her career so far the next day, she was unable to go.
“Hey guys!! I was supposed to go to see my fav @harrystyles concert in Vienna tomorrow,” Svitolina wrote on Instagram.
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“But Wimbledon changed my plans. Someone want to go? I have two tickets.”
Harry Styles on stage on the Love On Tour tour / Credit: Harry Styles (Credit:
After Svitolina’s impressive victory grabbed headlines, thousands of fans headed to social media to congratulate the former world number three on her success – but it appears it wasn’t just tennis fans that reached out.
Harry Styles also personally got in touch with Svitolina to offer her the chance to reschedule her previous gig plans before his tour is over.
Commenting underneath a post about Svitolina missing his Vienna gig on the official Wimbledon Instagram account, Styles wrote: “Congratulations! We have four shows to go, you’re welcome at any of them.
“Good luck with the rest of the tournament. H.”
The remaining dates in Styles’ Love On Tour this month are Barcelona tomorrow (12 July) Madrid on Friday (14 July), Lisbon on 18 July, and Reggio Emilia in Italy on 22 July.
So if Svitolina gets all the way to Saturday’s women’s singles final, then Barcelona and Madrid are of course out of the question, but there’s a chance she could still catch Styles in Portugal or Italy if she takes the singer up on his generous offer.
Manchester Storm offering cut-price tickets for blockbuster quarter-final against Sheffield
Danny Jones
Local ice hockey starts Manchester Storm are taking a hit to their own pocket in an effort to help fans get to as many games as possible this winter by offering cut-price tickets to their upcoming Challenge Cup quarter-final on Thursday, 7 December.
As their exciting 2023/24 campaign continues, the Storm have found themselves amidst a run of home games in the space of a week and besides the test the players are now facing, they also know it presents a challenge to Manchester ice hockey fans who want don’t want to miss any of the action.
That being said, as they prepare to face league leaders Sheffield Steelers in the quarters this week in Altrincham, the Manc skaters have decided to reduce the cost of tickets across the board to pack out their barn as best they can.
It’s sure to be an electric night and a busy month at the Storm Shelter.
🏆 – 𝗤𝗨𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗙𝗜𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗧𝗜𝗖𝗞𝗘𝗧𝗦 𝗢𝗡 𝗦𝗔𝗟𝗘 𝗡𝗢𝗪
The fixture is set to take place Thursday 7th December inside the ‘Storm Shelter’ with doors opening at 6.30PM ready for a 7.30PM start ⤵️
With the big fixture looming, the Trafford-based team are looking to continue their impressive turnouts so far this year and this cut-price rate will certainly help keep that trend going.
Notching the price of adult admission down by a fiver to just £18, the concession prices to just £15 and children tickets to a mere tenner for this highly-anticipated match-up, the Storm Support will no doubt be in full force even on a random Thursday night.
General sale is never that expensive to begin with and the local venue has been one of the most affordable and accessible places to watch live sport in Greater Manchester, but discounts like these make it an even better way to spend an evening midweek.
The home team head into the Challenge Cup quarter-final against the high-flying Yorkshiremen following a 4-3 loss to the Glasgow Clanand will face off against the Fife Flyers just two days later before back-to-back away trips to Belfast in the league on 15 and 16 December.
In just 10 competitive games across all competitions at home this season, Manchester Storm have welcomed over 18,700 supporters through the doors of the Storm Shelter, a.k.a. Planet Ice over in Alty.
With two sellout games already this campaign and plenty of others close to capacity no matter the day of the week, their 60% increase in season ticket sales alone shows just how fast the fan base is growing.
Doors for Storm vs Steelers this Thursday, 7 December open at 6:30pm with the face-off set for 7:30pm — let’s get behind our lads, you lot!
Club de Padel – The world’s fastest-growing sport is finally coming to Manchester this month
Daisy Jackson
The world’s fastest-growing sport is finally about to arrive in Manchester – and in a seriously impressive location.
Club de Padel is taking shape at the foot of the Deansgate Square skyscrapers and has officially locked in a launch date.
With four state-of-the-art panoramic courts, the new sports club will be bringing the global sports phenomenon to the city centre for the first time.
It will also have one of the city’s most popular brunch spots and coffee shops, Federal, on site to provide caffeine, snacks, and a selection of drinks in the evenings.
For those unfamiliar, Padel is a mash-up of tennis and squash, where players are enclosed by walls and can play the ball off any wall.
The sport was first invented in Mexico in the late 1960s but has exploded in popularity across Europe in recent years, drawing legions of famous fans.
Andy Murray, David Beckham, Pep Guardiola and Serena Williams have all declared themselves fans, and Lionel Messi went so far as to install a Padel court at his home.
Co-founder James Wigglesworth says: “We can’t get over the support we’ve had from the city so far, our inbox hasn’t stopped with people asking when we’re opening, when they can book, how they can learn to play – it’s been great.
“We’ve also discovered a hardcore element of ‘paddicts’ who travel miles every week to play and are just delighted that we’re landing on their doorstep.”
Club de Padel is partnering with Adidas and HEAD on its equipment and will have one of the UK’s top padel competitors, Alberto Cubero Torregrosa, as head coach.
Alberto said: “I can’t wait to get started at Club de Padel. Having grown up in Malaga, I have been playing padel for over 25 years, so I’m delighted to see it finally arrive in Manchester, where I now call home.
“It is important to me that everyone can enjoy this amazing sport, so it doesn’t matter if you are a complete beginner or an experienced player, I am committed to helping you improve and have fun while doing it.”
Club de Padel will officially open its doors on Tuesday 19 December, with bookings open from 5 December for Padel+ members and general public bookings from 12 December.
Emily Sergeant -
11th July 2023 
