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  • Hollywood

Why Ben Affleck replaced Jennifer Garner in his Netflix thriller Animals

Ben Affleck replaced Jennifer Garner in his new Netflix film Animals, and the reason says a lot about how a real relationship

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Amina Taher is the new Chairwoman
  • Arab Fashion Council

Amina Taher is the new Chairwoman of the Arab Fashion Council, and the fit reads clean. The appointment took effect on 9 July 2026. Taher spent two decades leading brand and communications across aviation, fintech, media and sport. She earned an MBA from London Business School and a master’s from Harvard. Now she takes the top governance seat at a body that speaks for fashion across the 22 nations of the Arab League. Known in the UAE business scene, and her name is familiar. She served as Vice President of Marketing at Etihad Airways, where she helped shape the airline’s global identity. From there, she moved into fintech as Chief Marketing Officer of Wio Bank. That career sits at the crossroads of money, media and brand, which is close to where fashion is heading.

What the Arab Fashion Council built

The Arab Fashion Council spent the past decade turning a thin fashion scene into real infrastructure. It co-founded Dubai Fashion Week with Dubai Design District, and grew it into a platform buyers and press now track. That event sits on the international calendar next to New York, London, Milan and Paris. The Council also pushed Arab designers onto runways that once looked past them. Picture laying track before the trains arrive. The rails are down, and traffic is building. What matters now is speed and direction, and that is where the new leadership comes in.

The gap Taher steps into

Great institutions hit a ceiling when they lean on passion alone. What the Council needs next is weight: government backing, diplomatic reach, and partnerships measured in years rather than seasons. Taher has built that kind of trust across her career, working with public bodies and global brands alike. Founder and Chief Executive Officer Jacob Abrian called her arrival a sign of how far the Council has come, not a shift in course. “Amina Taher’s appointment is not a change of direction,” he said. His point was that the move reflects the standing the Council now holds, and a promise to hold it with more seriousness. That is the room Taher walks into.

What Amina Taher wants for Arab designers

Taher points her focus at the next wave of talent. She wants more room for young Arab designers to reach a global audience and build real businesses. “I am honoured to build on that strong foundation,” she said, crediting the institutions, partnerships and credibility built over the past decade. Her goal is a wider creative economy and more open doors for people entering the field. Amina Taher is the new Chairwoman at a moment when the region’s fashion voice carries serious reach, and she plans to push it further. Growth in the creative economy tends to follow the money and the platforms, and the Council now has both.

What comes next

Taher will present her vision at an invitation-only gala in September 2026. Until then, the plan stays in outline, with the full manifesto still to come. One thing is clear already. In choosing her, the Council made it official: Amina Taher is the new Chairwoman, and she builds for the present and what comes after.

  • 3 min read
Messi equals Maradona
  • Sports

Messi equals Maradona on one of the World Cup’s harder statistical tests, a comparison that returned after Argentina beat England 2-1 to reach the World Cup 2026 final. A dribble, in match data, counts each time a player takes the ball past a direct opponent while keeping control. Opta logs every successful take-on. By that measure, Messi delivered one of the knockout stage’s clearest individual displays.

How Argentina beat England

England led first. Anthony Gordon scored in the 55th minute of the Argentina vs England World Cup 2026 semifinal. Messi then set up both Argentine goals. Argentina trailed until the 85th minute, when Enzo Fernandez equalized, and Lautaro Martinez won it deep into stoppage time, in the 90th minute plus two. At 39, Messi became the oldest outfield player to appear in a World Cup semifinal, per Opta. His two assists carried Argentina into another final.

Where Messi equals Maradona

The claim rests on Opta match data. Against England, Messi completed 10 dribbles, and Opta noted he became the second player in the last 60 years to reach that figure against England in a World Cup match. The other was Maradona, in 1986. A dribble counts only when a player beats a direct opponent while keeping the ball, which makes double figures in one game rare. That shared line is where Messi equals Maradona in the record books, and it points back to the fixture that shaped Maradona’s 1986 title run. The 10-dribble tally also extended the Messi dribbles record at the World Cup. Messi set up both Argentine goals as well, lifting his creative numbers further. Across World Cup history, he has moved ahead of Maradona on chances created, 99 to 71. He is tied for most goals at the 2026 tournament, with eight, and holds 33 goal contributions in 33 World Cup matches, the highest total on record. Mbappé sits next with 25.

The Spain vs Argentina final

Spain stands between Argentina and a title defense. Opta rates the Spain vs Argentina final at 56.05 percent in Spain’s favor, with Argentina at 43.85 percent. Those figures are projections and can shift on the day. Luis de la Fuente coaches Spain, whose squad Transfermarkt values at 1.22 billion euros. Argentina’s squad carries a value of 807.5 million euros. The three host nations, the United States, Mexico and Canada, share the tournament, and the final closes it. Messi equals Maradona in reaching a World Cup final as the central figure of an Argentine side, a role Maradona held in 1986.

Head-to-head history

Spain and Argentina have met 14 times. Each nation has won six, with two draws. Only one meeting counted as a competitive fixture, at the 1966 World Cup group stage, where Argentina won 2-1. The rest, played between 1952 and 2018, were friendlies. Their last meeting ended 6-1 to Spain. That scoreline came in a friendly, not a tournament match, which limits its weight for the final. The 1986 reference still frames Argentine expectations, since Maradona scored twice against England in that tournament, drove his team past the quarterfinal, and lifted the trophy. Argentina will try to close 2026 the same way.

  • 3 min read
BRIDGE Summit 2026
  • BRIDGE Summit

BRIDGE 2025 was a large debut media-and-content summit in Abu Dhabi that functioned as both a conference and exhibition for the broader media, creator economy, music, gaming, technology, marketing, and film ecosystem. It was held at ADNEC from December 8–10, 2025, and its organizers framed it as a long-term platform for building a global media hub in the UAE.

What happened in 2025

The event’s headline themes were AI, creator monetization, media credibility, and cross-border dealmaking. Coverage from the opening day said the summit mixed keynote talks, hands-on sessions, and partnership-building, with discussions around how AI is changing storytelling, how creators get paid, and how media organizations rebuild trust.

The summit also emphasized business outcomes, not just panels: organizers and reports described it as a marketplace for MoUs, studio deals, investment, and partnerships across the content economy.

Biggest speakers, Attendance and Scale

Among the most visible names reported around BRIDGE 2025 were Idris Elba, Gary Vaynerchuk, Alexis Ohanian, and Priyanka Chopra. Idris Elba got notable attention for discussing African creators, financial barriers to payment, and his creator platform Akunna.

Other heavily promoted high-profile participants included former UK cabinet ministers and global media CEOs.

Attendance figures vary by source because some numbers were updated before and after the event. Pre-event reporting projected about 60,000 participants from 132 countries and 430 speakers, while post-event coverage said the debut edition drew more than 40,000 participants from 182 countries, with 1,276 business meetings and 48 agreements/partnerships reported in one follow-up summary.

BRIDGE 2025 was a very large first edition, with tens of thousands of attendees, 400+ speakers, and a strong business-and-networking component.

BRIDGE Summit 2026

The Company behind it

The summit is driven by the BRIDGE ecosystem, closely tied to the UAE’s National Media Office and the broader BRIDGE Alliance. Public descriptions say BRIDGE Summit is a first-of-its-kind event that combines a conference and exhibition for media and entertainment industries, while the National Media Authority also describes it as a platform bringing together media experts, innovators, CEOs, policymakers, and thought leaders.

In practical terms, the “company behind” it is best understood as a government-backed media platform rather than a private trade show brand. That matters because it gives the event policy weight, access to major institutions, and a strategy-oriented positioning inside Abu Dhabi’s broader economic agenda.

The second edition is confirmed for November 28 to December 2, 2026, and it is moving from ADNEC to Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. Organizers said the expansion to five days is meant to support bigger exhibitions, more programming, and deeper business engagement.

As of the latest available information, no full named speaker roster appears to be publicly fixed yet, but the 2026 program is already expected to keep the same seven core sectors: media, creator economy, technology and artificial intelligence, marketing, gaming, music, and filmmaking.

What visitors will find at BRIDGE Summit this year

People attending BRIDGE will likely find keynote talks, panel discussions, workshops, exhibitor zones, networking sessions, and structured business meetings. The event is designed to be more than a stage program; it is built as a deal-making environment where creators, media companies, investors, agencies, and technology providers can meet directly.

For someone interested in media intelligence or brand building, that mix is valuable because it combines thought leadership with commercial access to decision-makers, production partners, and distribution channels.

BRIDGE is part of Abu Dhabi’s effort to position itself as a serious business and media hub, not just a regional conference destination. The event’s scale, government backing, and relocation to Yas Island all signal an attempt to build a durable ecosystem around media, creative industries, and investment attraction.

That positioning also fits Abu Dhabi’s broader playbook: use major institutional events to attract global talent, capital, and strategic partnerships into the emirate.

  • 4 min read
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