Dean Ritchie in the Oz tells us he’s the $90m man heading to Australia on a mission to sell us on flag football.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell ∼ one of the world’s most powerful sporting administrators ∼ will arrive in the next few days for a range of top-level meetings with Australian Olympic officials and Australian tourism.

Goodell’s primary reason for travelling to Australia is to nail down a place for flag football ∼ a tackle-free version of American football ∼ at the 2032 Olympics in Brisbane.

Goodell ∼ who earns an incentive-based annual salary reported to be around $A90m ∼ is also expected to be briefed on how the NFL’s history-making competition game between the LA Rams and San Francisco 49ers at the MCG on September 11 is tracking.

The NFL, through Goodell, has identified Australia as a potential growth market for America’s most popular sport. Goodell oversees a business where the average franchise is worth $7.1 billion.

It is understood Goodell’s main meeting around the Olympics will be held next Thursday in Queensland.

Flag football events are scheduled at Robina on the Gold Coast this Friday, and the following Friday, with suggestions Goodell could arrive from America on Saturday.

The inaugural American football Australian Flag League competition starts in April with men’s and women’s flag football to debut as an Olympic sport at Los Angeles in 2028.

Flag football is one of many sports fighting for inclusion at the 2032 Olympics.

Rugby league nines, Aussie rules, netball, touch football, cricket, lawn bowls and surf life saving are also making a pitch to make the cut for Brisbane.

However, Goodell’s power and influence is almost certain to convince Olympics officials that flag footy be included for 2032.

Still, European shares trimmed losses and U.S. bond prices clawed back gains on renewed hopes of a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran was drafting a protocol with Oman to monitor traffic in the narrow waterway through which a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas is shipped, its foreign ministry said.

Brent crude surged more than 7% a barrel after Trump said in a prime-time address on Wednesday that the United States would hit Iran "extremely hard" in the coming weeks and bring them back to the Stone Ages where they belong.

On Wall Street, stocks were lower on the last trading day of the week, with markets closed for the Good Friday holiday.

Gold prices fell as the U.S. dollar gained.

Government bond yields jumped on expectations that an inflation spike would force central banks to raise interest rates, or at least keep them on hold.

The dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, climbed 0.48%.

Over the past 48 hours, Tehran and Washington have exchanged a cacophony of statements, some suggesting rising odds of de-escalation, BCA Research’s Felix-Antoine Vezina-Poirier said. Our GeoMacro strategists offer simple guidance for weighing volatile headlines: Stick to the facts. First, shipping through Hormuz has picked up over the past few days. Second, Iran is deliberately shifting away from GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) targets toward Israeli ones.

MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe fell 0.59% to 990.80.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.39% to 46,383.81, the S&P 500 declined 0.23% to 6,560.04 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.28% to 21,780.32.

In a closely watched address on Wednesday, Trump said U.S. attacks on Iran would be intensified over the next two to three weeks. That came just a day after he told Reuters the United States would be out of Iran pretty quickly.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index and Europe’s broad FTSEurofirst 300 index both lost 0.2%.

South Korea’s Kospi index (.KS11), opens new tab slid 4.7%.

The only thing that really matters is whether the Strait of Hormuz will open soon, said Prashant Newnaha, senior rates strategist at TD Securities.

Trump earlier said on Wednesday the United States did not need the key oil gateway.

Spot gold dropped 2.15% to $4,654.89 an ounce and U.S. gold futures settled down 2.8% at $4,679.70.

India’s central bank moved to ban trading of so-called non-deliverable forwards in an effort to halt the rupee’s run of record lows. The move sent the currency up 2% , although analysts questioned how long the rebound would last.

Brent futures rallied 7.59% to $108.84 a barrel, as U.S. West Texas Intermediate settled up 11.41% to $111.54.

The fact that we can expect 2-3 more weeks of action, boots on the ground were not ruled out (during Trump’s TV address) and that threats to hit infrastructure were reiterated, will put the market back on the defensive, Pictet Asset Management’s Jon Withaar said.

In a closely watched address on Wednesday, Trump said U.S. attacks on Iran would be intensified over the next two to three weeks. That came just a day after he told Reuters the United States would be out of Iran pretty quickly.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index and Europe’s broad FTSEurofirst 300 index both lost 0.2%.

South Korea’s Kospi index slid 4.7%.

The only thing that really matters is whether the Strait of Hormuz will open soon, said Prashant Newnaha, senior rates strategist at TD Securities.

Trump earlier said on Wednesday the United States did not need the key oil gateway.

Spot gold dropped 2.15% to $4,654.89 an ounce and U.S. gold futures settled down 2.8% at $4,679.70.

India’s central bank moved to ban trading of so-called non-deliverable forwards in an effort to halt the rupee’s run of record lows. The move sent the currency up 2% , although analysts questioned how long the rebound would last.

Brent futures rallied 7.59% to $108.84 a barrel, as U.S. West Texas Intermediate settled up 11.41% to $111.54.

The fact that we can expect 2-3 more weeks of action, boots on the ground were not ruled out (during Trump’s TV address) and that threats to hit infrastructure were reiterated, will put the market back on the defensive, Pictet Asset Management’s Jon Withaar said.

The fuel impost is ratcheting up the pressure on food prices as supermarkets consider the option of passing this on to consumers.

Woolworths and Coles on Thursday confirmed to The Australian that some suppliers have asked for a price increase.

The Australian has been told by a number of suppliers that they will need to ask the country’s largest supermarket chains for a better price for their goods to cope with the leap in fuel charges which is impacting all parts of their business and shaving tens of millions of dollars from their bottom line.

While the number of food and grocery suppliers asking for higher prices for their goods so far only numbers a few dozens across both Woolworths and Coles, that is expected to quickly accelerate as the rising fuel price shows no signs of moderating and other input costs ∼ such as plastic and packaging ∼ also balloons in response to the war in the Middle East.

Under the food and grocery code of conduct ∼ a federal government deal brokered between the nation’s largest supermarket chains and food and grocery suppliers ∼ the supermarket chains have 30 days to respond to a supplier’s request for a price rise. That doesn't mean prices will immediately rise at the checkout, as Woolworths and Coles are able to absorb some of that higher price rather than pass it on to the shopper.

But with cost pressures increasing for the supermarket chains as well their ability to absorb and withstand those price rises, industry analysts believe shelf prices eventually will need to rise.

Woolworths has confirmed that some suppliers have approached it since the war in the Middle East broke out to request higher prices for their goods to cope with the inflated costs associated with transport and logistics to packaging.

In an environment where Aussie families are facing rapidly increasing cost-of-living pressures, retailers and suppliers have a careful job to sustainably manage growing cost pressures, while also trying to reduce the full impact on shoppers, a Woolworths spokesman said yesterday.

We need to strike the right balance of supporting the viability of our suppliers and transport partners while advocating for our mutual customers to help buffer the impact on them at the checkout.

Woolworths is working through requests to increase prices on a case-by-case basis.

Coles has confirmed suppliers have also approached it to request price rises.

We know there is upward pressure across several key agricultural input costs, particularly fuel and fertiliser, which are critical for farming, food production and transport, a Coles spokesman said.

Coles' long-term, direct relationships with suppliers, including Australian farmers, mean we are able to work with them to manage their own cost pressures, support continuity of supply, and smooth the impact on consumers.

We are committed to providing value to our customers. Our first priority will always be to mitigate any change from flowing through to the shelf.

33480 could become the strangest postcode in America: Home to Donald Trump, Donald Trump’s favourite omelette bar, Rod Stewart, and Princess Beatrice.

37-year-old Beatrice could become the latest transplant to end up in the Sunshine State, after the Daily Mailreported that she and her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi are considering a drastic move to kick start their marriage — leaving perfidious Albion behind to start afresh in America.

In good news for matrimonial fans and future SPF sales, the couple are considering a fresh start Stateside in the hope it would get their marriage back on track, with Florida touted as a possible destination.

The claims first emerged last week that things have not exactly been bueno for the couple and for a while. A source told the Mail that she wants to stay together and is desperate to hold things together, while he seems more and more distracted by work and travel. Just when she needs him most, he’s been pulling away.

It’s been a shocker of a year for the gone-to-ground princess; meanwhile her husband has been racking up frequent flyer points and getting his recommended daily dose of rosè.

In February, while Beatrice’s world was falling apart and her dear Daddy, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, was about to be introduced to the back of a police car, property developer and designer Edo was in Palm Beach, Florida topping up his vitamin D levels for what has been called an extended business trip. Just over two weeks later, he returned to Florida to visit another one of his projects.

During both trips, Edo took the opportunity to Instagram merrily away like an influencer worth their spon-conned veneers, including shots of him at the Art Deco Colony Hotel and holding a glass of wine on the rooftop of the Mr C Miami hotel. (His teeth still appear reliably British.)

Many have jumped on this and argued it is less evidence of him being a dedicated CEO and more a ding-a-ling alarm bell that things might not be peachy on the homefront.

While her sister Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank staged a very couple-y paparazzi moment in February, complete with matching lattes and activewear, Beatrice and Edo have not been photographed together in public since December.

Of Bea and Edo, tensions in their relationship took root over the past year, a separate Mail story has claimed.

And what a year’s it’s been: Andrew’s decade-plus friendship with pedophile and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein has erupted like a Krakatoa set on top of a nuclear waste dump, the toxic deluge tainting every member of the House of York. We are still a very long way from the end, with Andrew having been arrested for misconduct in public office and with police set to investigate Andrew over other potential corruption offences, along with a scoping inquiry into alleged sex trafficking, per The Times. (Andrew has previously denied all wrongdoing; there is no suggestion of wrongdoing on the parts of Sarah Ferguson, Beatrice or Princess Eugenie.)

So, Beatrice in all of this? Struggling.

The mother-of-two has been so stressed she can't eat or sleep, according to The Royalist’s Tom Sykes recently.

A royal source has told the Mail that Beatrice not come to terms with her parents' (and the House of York’s) downfall and that She was brought up to believe in dynasty and blue blood.

The princess keeps bursting into tears, which [Edo] finds concerning. (Husband of the year alert!)

Compounding the situation is that Beatrice is lacking much of a support network. She was hyper-dependent on her mother and sister, although they aren't in easy contact just now. She is quite isolated, especially with Edo away just now.'

Edo, however, is said to fear the contagion of the Epstein association.

According to the report, he is said to be sick and tired of the York drama and is determined to distance himself from his toxic in-laws to protect his reputation and business.

Because his business, ever since becoming engaged to his princess wife in 2019, has enjoyed quite the boom. When they first got together, Edo wasn't nearly so successful, a former associate told the Mail. Being adjacent to royalty was transformative.

The media interest that came with his marriage, It was the kind of publicity money can't buy, the associate has said. Would he have got it if he wasn't her [Beatrice’s] husband? Of course not.

Figures reported by the Mail say that Edoardo’s Banda Designs branch went from being $471,000 in the red in 2019 to turning over $2.4 million in 2024.

(Banda and Edo have also got projects in Sydney and the Gold Coast.)

According to the Mail, Beatrice and her husband are at odds over how best to navigate this familial crisis.

While Edo, per the Mail’s source, has been working hard on keeping Bea distant from her parents, the last time she was photographed taking her four-year-old daughter Sienna for a ride at Windsor Castle with Andrew in what looked like an outrageously blatant attempt to buck up the former Duke of York’s decimated image. (As far as repair operations went, it was like using a single Bandaid to try and patch up the Titanic.)

Even since then, Bea is in regular touch with her father, per the Mail, making a a top-secret visit to see him after being banished to the wilds of Norfolk. Said a royal source: Whether or not Edo knew about it is not clear.

There is possibly even more bad news coming down the pike for Beatrice and sister Eugenie.

Beatrice and Eugenie could lose their royal pied-a-terres.

They both still enjoy homes in royal properties ∼ St James’s Palace and Kensington Palace ∼ for which they are believed to face far below market rates. Soon the UK parliament is set to launch an investigation into the peppercorn rents and leasing arrangements of Crown Estate properties. Given the political climate and public feeling about the monarchy, I wouldn't be that certain they will necessarily have these much longer.

Ditto being able to call themselves HRHs and princesses.

There is talk in the Royal Household of what happens next, even down to titles, a source told the Mail. Nothing is guaranteed any more.

So with all of this going in the UK, jumping British ship and heading to some tony bit of Florida sounds like a decent idea. Palm Beach is reportedly a hot new go-to for wealthy Brits — wealthy Brits who probably have the seven and eight figure-budgets for building the marble-laden mega mansions that Edo oversees.

Amid flashing lights and the acrid smell of burning petrol, Highway Patrol officer Kim White noticed the still form of a small child covered with a white blanket on the ground at a crash scene.

Assessing the scene, she was caught off guard and found herself seeing her own three-year-old son in the fragile form lying on the Sydney roadside, while paramedics fought to save the toddler’s baby sibling in the ambulance helicopter.

Their mother was found deceased, trapped inside the family car.

It’s not the most confronting job I've been on but that one incident several years ago resonated with me, said the mother of four, 41, who is trained in crashes and trauma with eight years' experience with the Traffic and Highway Patrol Command.

When I arrived, the ambulance helicopter was there, with the aero medical team, working on the surviving child, a baby, from the collision.

Due to the medical procedure being conducted in the ambulance helicopter on the surviving child, the scene needed to be still, we couldn't move, or talk, or start processing the scene because medical assistance must come first … she said.

I spoke to a witness and looked over to my right and saw a small child underneath a white blanket, it was a really eerie feeling, she recalled.

“Leaving, going back to my office and in the work car, I completely broke down.

“At that time, my son was the same age as the deceased child, who was between two and three.

“You can't help but put your child’s face on that child’s body. You can't help it. And then you sympathise with the feelings of a parent that has just lost their entire family.

It’s difficult to keep your emotions in check so you can complete the job you have to do.

Pausing, she went on: “Any parent, losing a child, is just something that you can't imagine.

For a long time I couldn't talk about it but I learned to deal with it — yet families have to live with it for the rest of their lives, she said.

As a first responder the acting sergeant White’s message to the travelling public over the Easter holiday is slow down, drive safely — not just to avoid fines but to prevent moments like this.

State-wide there were 31 fatalities in February alone, eight more (35%) than in February the previous year, according to Transport for NSW crash data.