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Iowa will attempt to set the all-time women’s basketball attendance record when it hosts DePaul in an outdoor exhibition at 69,000-seat Kinnick Stadium on Oct. 15

The NFL is making additional moves to reach more fans with direct-to-consumer offerings

Manchester United face a decision whether to keep Dean Henderson after their third-choice goalkeeper Tom Heaton was ruled out for several weeks. United have been in talks with Nottingham Forest for weeks and were willing to allow the England international to leave after signing Andre Onana. But the veteran Heaton was injured in training and, while United are waiting to discover the full extent, he is certain to miss their first few fixtures. United said in a statement: “Tom Heaton is out of Manchester United’s Premier League season opener against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Old Trafford on Monday. “The experienced goalkeeper sustained an injury in training that is still being assessed but he is expected to be unavailable for the first few weeks of the season.” If Henderson joins Forest, Heaton’s absence would leave United short of cover for Onana, with Matej Kovar expected to join Bayer Leverkusen. Forest manager Steve Cooper said that signing of Arsenal goalkeeper Matt Turner would not stop him in his attempts to bring Henderson, who was on loan last season, back to the City Ground. United have been discussing a loan with an option for a permanent deal. Read More West Ham agree deals for England pair Harry Maguire and James Ward-Prowse Wozniacki returns to tennis and new Man Utd threads – Tuesday’s sporting social Erik ten Hag wants two more signings as Manchester United reject £60m double offer

Somewhere in a castle in Finland on Saturday night, five minutes removed from beating Mika Mielonen, Robert Helenius was posed a question. “Dillian Whyte is out; are you in?” Fighting Anthony Joshua in London on seven days’ notice was the proposition, and it was one that Helenius accepted with little hesitation. Four days on, he casually tells reporters in the English capital: “Nobody will remember a coward.” Few would have labelled Helenius as such, had he decided not to take this fight with Joshua in the wake of Whyte’s failed drug test, but the Finn himself would have lived with regret. That said, there was more to Helenius’s decision than just that. “Of course I think he’s vulnerable,” the 39-year-old says of Joshua, with whom he sparred in 2017. “I wouldn’t be here otherwise. I think I’d find easier jobs to do. I’m gonna take my chances and say now is the best time to fight him.” While Helenius fought just last Saturday, stopping Mielonen in the third round, Joshua enters the O2 Arena this week on the back of a points win over Jermaine Franklin. That victory came in the same venue, four months ago, and saw the Briton bounce back from two straight losses to Oleksandr Usyk. Helenius’s win against Mielonen also marked an upturn in form, as the “Nordic Nightmare” responded positively to a first-round loss to Deontay Wilder. That knockout last October left Wilder in tears and Helenius pondering retirement. “I didn’t think about boxing for about six months,” Helenius says. “I just did some bag work now and then, and mainly strength training. I was weighing a lot in the wintertime...” Then came Saturday’s bout with Mielonen at Savonlinna’s opera venue, and the Anthony Joshua call. Helenius’s manager Markus Sundman says a deal was struck within 24 hours, with much of the negotiating done from a zoo in Finland. Sundman in fact got the call on Saturday morning but did not wish to bother Helenius until after the heavyweight had fought that evening. Did they accept the first offer they got? “No comment,” Helenius and Sundman laugh, though the boxer admits this is not the biggest payday of his career, with funds around this weekend’s event having been hit by Whyte’s exit. Another intriguing factor is the fighters’ past as sparring partners, when “AJ” prepared for his clash with Wladimir Klitschko in 2017. How did Helenius rate Joshua, now 33, at the time? “Hard hitter, good technicals, a little bit robotic. I felt pretty confident.” Helenius also acknowledges that Joshua has looked somewhat hesitant in his last three fights, saying: “I’ve seen that change, but he didn’t get knocked out against Usyk or in his last fight, he showed he’s still got it. You have to overcome the gun-shyness after you get knocked out. I’ve been knocked out three times, and I think the first time was the bad one; I was probably depressed for a few months after that. “But I think his last fight, he made a good fight. I have to be awake and nimble, explosive. I hope he’s coming for me [from the first bell]. I am looking forward to this. I’m here to win.” Helenius is serious. Ahead of his fight last week, the Finn had planned a family holiday to Lapland – a trip that is now on hold. “They understand, they’ve been all their life with me,” Helenius says of his children, who are 15, 13 and 10 years old and prefer football to boxing. And what did his wife think? “I can’t ask permission from home to do what I do,” Helenius says. “They either accept it or they don’t. Sometimes, of course, [I think about the dangers of boxing]; I would be stupid not to. And, of course, I’ve been thinking about having a normal life after boxing and not having any brain damage, but boxing is always boxing. And I love it, I love the adrenalin. The [concerns] don’t outweigh the feeling of getting a really good win.” Such a win would also make Helenius the sportsperson of the year in Finland, he and Sundman believe. “When this match got announced, it was in every newspaper and on TV – all the time for maybe 24 hours,” Helenius says. This is a huge occasion – for Joshua, for Helenius, and for Finland. Saturday’s card is an event that Helenius saved after Whyte’s “adverse finding”, and as the Finn prepares for his showdown with AJ, he warns: “My doping is that I have a really high level of Viking blood in me...” Watch Joshua vs Helenius live on Dazn by clicking here. We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. Read More It’s time to stop taking Anthony Joshua for granted Joshua vs Helenius live stream: How to watch fight online and on TV this weekend ‘We need to get it at the root’: Anthony Joshua and Robert Helenius on boxing’s doping ‘problem’ Anthony Joshua reveals which of his three defeats hurt the most Derek Chisora and Robert Helenius call for severe punishments for doping cheats Anthony Joshua and Robert Helenius go in-depth on boxing’s doping ‘problem’

Terrell Williams’ stint as the Tennessee Titans’ acting head coach is more than just for their preseason opener Saturday in Chicago

Eric Bieniemy is bringing a vocal approach and two Super Bowl rings to his new job as Washington Commanders offensive coordinator

Carolina Panthers coach Frank Reich has informed his players that nearly all should expect to play in Saturday's preseason home opener against the New York Jets

Suspended NASCAR driver Noah Gragson has asked Legacy Motor Club to release him from his contract so he can work through the series' reinstatement process

Taxi Fountas and D

An airport has marked Luton Town’s return to the top flight with a giant message that plane passengers can read as they fly in. The huge painting is under Luton Airport’s flight path at Stockwood Park in the Bedfordshire town. It features midfielder Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu - who has played for Luton Town throughout their journey from non-league to the Premier League - and a message that reads: “Pundits, prepare to eat your hats. Luton Town FC has landed.” The black, white and purple painting took more than two days to finish and used about 500 litres of environmentally friendly paint.

The Sidemen are back with another massive game for charity this year, and it’s set to be bigger than ever before. The collective have hosted a match to raise money for a good cause since back in 2016, and last year’s event proved to be one of the most entertaining moments in the YouTube calendar. The game was hosted at Charlton Athletic's The Valley. It saw The Sidemen beat the YouTube Allstars 8-7, with the event raising an incredible £2m for charity. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter This year, things are going up a notch – here’s everything you need to know. When is the 2023 Sidemen charity match? This year’s Sidemen match will take place on Saturday, September 9. A kick-off time has yet to be confirmed, but it’s expected to be at 3pm. Where is it being held? The 2023 match will take place at 62,500-capacity London Stadium in Stratford, London. Given the success of last year, it’s not surprising to see the event take place in a bigger venue. Graham Gilmore, CEO of London Stadium, said after the venue was announced: “This event goes from strength to strength, with the move to London Stadium demonstrating the success The Sidemen have built over recent years, not only in bringing so many great names together, but raising money for important charities too. "In addition, we will be delighted to welcome the huge global audience on streaming and digital channels, who will be joining the 60k plus fans in the Stadium!” Who is playing this year? The official line-up has yet to be announced, but the Sidemen members will be taking part. The group includes KSI, Behzinga, Miniminter, Vikkstar123, Zerkaa, TBJZL and W2S. As ever, the YouTube Allstars will likely be made up of some of the most popular names on the platform and it has been confirmed that MrBeast will play. More names will be announced in due course, although the likes of Chunkz, Mr Beast, iShowSpeed and Yung Filly all took part last year, while Mark Goldbridge was their manager. Rapper Aitch will also be performing at halftime during the show this year. Are tickets still available? Unfortunately, no tickets are available after all 62,000 tickets sold in less than 90 minutes after going on sale earlier this year. How can I watch? Details have yet to be confirmed, but the game was streamed for free via The Sidemen's YouTube channel last year. Which charities are being supported? Charities being supported this year include Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM), Teenage Cancer Trust and Rays of Sunshine. "This is a major milestone for us," Zerkaa said. "When we first set up this event back in 2016, we never thought we'd be playing in a stadium of over 62,000 people. "Not only are we able to give back to our loyal fans, but being able to raise further funds for charities that are so close to our hearts give us a lot to be proud and thankful for. We can't wait to see all of you in September." Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

American cyclist Chloe Dygert's comeback from a career-threatening injury culminated with a world title in the women's time trial on Thursday