VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Australia coach Tony Popovic has signed a contract extension through early 2027 on the eve of his team's World Cup opening match against Turkey on Saturday.
Football Australia said Friday that the 52-year-old Popovic's deal now extends through the Asian Cup, which will take place in January and early February in Saudi Arabia.
The former Australia international was hired in September 2024 and led the Socceroos to qualification for the 48-team tournament.
“I’m proud to lead my country into a World Cup, but most importantly, I want to ensure that our team is fully prepared and focused on our group matches against Turkey, the United States, and Paraguay,” he said of Australia's opponents in Group D.
AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup
Australia manager Tony Popovic greets players after an international friendly soccer game against Switzerland Saturday, June 6, 2026, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
BERLIN (AP) — The humpback whale that kept Germany spellbound for months likely lived for roughly five days after the final controversial rescue attempt failed to guide it back to its natural habitat in the Atlantic Ocean, officials said Friday.
The whale, nicknamed “Timmy” and “Hope” by German media, was found dead on May 14, stranded just off the small island of Anholt in the Kattegat, the broad strait between Denmark and Sweden that connects the Baltic Sea to the North Sea.
The discovery of the body ended months of a spectacular and contentious rescue effort that culminated May 2, when the mammal was transported toward the North Sea in a barge in the final rescue attempt. Scientists, government officials, the public and a private initiative sparred over whether it was more humane to let the weakened and sick animal die on its own or continue the rescue efforts.
Data from a tracking transmitter attached to its dorsal fin shows that the whale’s death likely occurred on May 6 or 7, according to Till Backhaus, the environment minister for the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
It had swum roughly 215 kilometers (134 miles) over the five days and was heading back toward the Baltic Sea, which is the wrong direction for it to reach the Atlantic Ocean.
The data shows that the whale likely drifted aimlessly after that — or the transmitter's signal was lost, Backhaus said Friday during a news conference.
Timmy was first spotted off the German coast on March 3, prompting a media frenzy that included push alerts and updated live blogs with the status of its health.
It’s not clear why it swam into the Baltic Sea, which it wasn’t suited to, although some experts said it may have lost its way while swimming after a shoal of herring or during migration.
An autopsy of the carcass has not yet determined the cause of death, Backhaus said, though officials were able to figure out that “Timmy” was a female whale, after months of assumptions that it was male.
The minister said no serious injuries were discovered during the autopsy, as well as no indication of violence or any items that would have caused its death.
“Did it have any nets or other foreign objects on its body, in its mouth or on its body?” Backhaus said. "Nothing was found.”
Some of the remains will be turned into biodiesel in Denmark, according to German news agency dpa. Some of the bones will go to a Danish museum.
Till Backhaus (SPD), Minister of Agriculture, Environment, and Climate Protection for Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, answers questions from media representatives at a press conference to present the tracking data from the humpback whale, in Schwerin, Germany, Friday, June 12, 2026. (Jens Buettner/dpa via AP)
Till Backhaus (SPD), Minister of Agriculture, Environment, and Climate Protection for Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, answers questions from media representatives at a press conference to present the tracking data from the humpback whale, in Schwerin, Germany, Friday, June 12, 2026. (Jens Buettner/dpa via AP)
FILE - The humpback whale recovered from a shallow bay off Wismar is being transported towards the North Sea in a flooded cargo ship just before the Danish border in Fehmarn, Germany, April 29, 2026. (Philip Dulian/dpa via AP, File)
FILE - The humpback whale lays in a washed-out tub off the island of Poel, Germany, April 22, 2026. (Philip Dulian/dpa via AP, File)
