AI is a crazy thing that continues to freak us out at times and it seems it can do almost anything at this point – including creating unique designs for engagement rings inspired by your favourite football teams, apparently.
If you can think of it, someone’s done it using artificial intelligence.
That’s right, popular bookmakers Betway have created a unique football team-inspired engagement ring design for each one of this year’s 20 Premier League teams and, much to our surprise, a lot of them are actually pretty nice.
For instance, here’s a glimpse at the engagement ring for Manchester City:
A football-inspired engagement ring might sound a bit tacky but that isn’t half bad. (Credit: Betway/Edward Fleming)
Big and bold, just like those who sing ‘Blue Moon’ when their boys are out on the pitch. This design doesn’t have any feature relating to the treble-winning campaign but the centre does give a subtle nod to the Lancashire rose featured on City’s crest and it’s genuinely quite cool overall.
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Another aspect of this AI project that we were quite impressed by, besides the genuinely plausible concept art, is that Betway also worked with jeweller Edward Fleming to reveal the materials, stones and styles of each club in order to create each bespoke ring on request.
Fleming even helped value these hypothetical pieces of jewellery based on their components; for example, Man City’s nine-carat white gold aquamarine ring would come in at just £1,000, whereas if you were to swap the gem for a blue diamond, you’re talking a hundred times that amount.
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But what about the red side of Manchester? Well, United‘s is predictably a much more devilish design with horned elements and ‘gothic’ influences, as well as a dark ruby stone which puts it as the second most expensive ring on the list, valued at around £30,000.
Liverpool boasted the most expensive ring on the list worth around £70k, with West Ham and Fulham coming in joint-third for a £10k rock.
You can see the full list of rings and how they look HERE.
We’ve already seen what AI can drum up when it comes to the greatest Premier League starting 11 of all time, we just never thought we’d be talking about what those teams would look like in jewellery form.
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Technology, eh?
Nevertheless, red, blue or otherwise, if you were ever debating to make somewhat of a Premier League proposal, at least you’ve now got some ideas for what you want the ring to look like.
It’s not the only AI take on something Manchester-related that we’ve been impressed with recently either — it’ll take a crack at anything.
Hello Oriental opens new ‘seriously affordable’ Asian food hall at the Trafford Centre
Emily Sergeant
Manchester gem Hello Oriental is finally opening its new Asian food hall at the Trafford Centre this weekend.
The renowned East Asian street food hub has already taken Manchester city centre by storm since opening its original venue at Circle Square, just off Oxford Road, back in February 2022, and been has receiving rave reviews ever since – with critics notably calling the experience “a lot of fun” and “seriously affordable”.
But now, the Manchester-founded brand has chosen the Trafford Centre as the first UK shopping centre location to bring its trademark street food dining concept to.
There’ll be more than 100 delicious dishes for customers to choose from when the new site opens in the Upper Orient this Saturday.
Hello Oriental has opened a new Asian food hall at the Trafford Centre / Credit: The Manc Group
Hello Oriental owners and childhood best friends, Ricky Yip and Azim Kourah, say they have selected some of the most popular dishes from the Manchester city centre site’s extensive menu for the new Trafford Centre restaurant.
This means diners at the Trafford Centre can enjoy traditional dishes from across East Asia – including a wide range of Dim Sum, hearty main dishes like Taiwanese pork belly with rice, traditional favourites like beef Ho fun, and loads of different Cantonese roast meats.
There’ll also be a wide selection of street food available, like Korean fried chicken, loaded katsu chicken fries, and three varieties of sticky chicken wings.
There’s also plenty for the little Mancs to tuck into too, as there’ll be a full kid’s menu available at the new Trafford Centre site, with options for both those with “adventurous” junior palates, to those who prefer “more familiar” tastes.
“We’re so excited to open in the Trafford Centre and give shoppers the chance to try our dishes from across East Asia,” commented co-owner, Ricky Yip, ahead of the new opening.
“Many of the dishes on the menu were enjoyed by Azim and I growing up, cooked by my family, or served in family restaurants, and it’s wonderful to see other families come to Hello Oriental to enjoy these flavours.”
Hello Oriental will be opening at the Trafford Centre this Saturday (1 February), with thousands of prizes to give away to celebrate Lunar New Year.
Featured Image – The Manc Group
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A coffee shop in Manchester is giving away hundreds of FREE croissants today
Emily Sergeant
Hundreds of croissants are being handed out for free today from a coffee shop in Manchester for a special reason.
In case you didn’t know, today (Thursday 30 January) is National Croissant Day, and apparently, Manchester is a city of serious pastry lovers, as the Cross Street branch of national coffee shop chain, Pret A Manger, is actually the top-selling Pret pastry shop in the whole of the UK – with the Chocolate Croissant, in particular, reigning supreme as the customer favourite.
Pret customers are said to devour around 17 million pastries a year, with the humble croissant being the most popular pick.
So, to celebrate Manchester’s love of sweet flaky pastries, and to mark National Croissant Day itself, Pret will be handing out a whopping 300 croissants for completely free of charge from its store on Cross Street, in the heart of the city centre.
A coffee shop in Manchester is giving away hundreds of free croissants today / Credit: PICRYL
You can claim one of the 300 free croissants with any coffee purchase today, but it’s only while stocks last, so you’ll need to be quick.
There’s three different croissants to choose from – the All Butter, Chocolate, or Almond Croissant.
“At Pret, we pride ourselves on serving our customers pastries freshly baked that same day,” commented Anna Tebbs, who is the UK Head of Food at Pret, ahead of the big giveaway.
“With around 17 million pastries sold each year, it’s clear our customers can’t get enough of these flaky favourites, so we’re thrilled to celebrate National Croissant Day by giving back to croissant fans with a special treat.
They’re only available for one day from Pret on Cross Street / Credit: Supplied
“Whether it’s a classic All Butter or a rich Croissant Almond, there’s a pastry for every taste, and a day like this is all about enjoying them to the fullest.”
To get your hands on a buttery flaky croissant to start your day, all you’ll need to do is visit the Cross Street Pret shop today, the earlier the better to be sure there’s still some left, and order any barista-made coffee drink, then you’ll get to pick which type of croissant you’d like to take away with you.
Danny Jones -
15th December 2023 
