Global beauty retailer Sephora has announced it is opening two stores in Scotland this summer, with the firm saying it is bringing “double the magic to a country that has long been calling for it”.
The stores in Glasgow’s Silverburn Shopping Centre and Edinburgh’s St James Quarter will mark the company’s first foray into Scotland, some three years after it opened its first UK outlet in London.
The firm said hoardings at both sites will appear “imminently”, featuring the brand’s black-and-white stripe motif complete with “a Scottish nod”.
The Glasgow store is set to boast 5,048 square feet of retail space, while the Edinburgh outlet will measure 4,961 square feet.
Sephora said the stores will give Scots the chance to buy brands including rhode, Haus Labs and Makeup by Mario on home soil for the first time, along with Sephora UK exclusives.
Sephora UK managing director Sarah Boyd said: “The Sephora UK team and I are thrilled to finally reveal that we’re bringing our ‘temples of beauty’ to not one, but two incredible Scottish cities this summer – with fans crying out for a Scottish beauty playground.
“It has been three years since we opened our first UK store; from the very beginning we’ve been searching for the perfect locations for us to open in the region – and we are so happy to have found them in Edinburgh’s St James Quarter and Silverburn Glasgow.
“Opening in both Edinburgh and Glasgow this summer is about bringing double the energy, double the access, and double the magic to a country that has long been calling for it.
“Scotland also steps into a landmark summer, so the timing couldn’t feel more meaningful, and Sephora UK is proud to play a part in a special season that is set to make its mark in the history books.
“We know how eagerly our Scottish customers have waited while we expanded across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and we truly want to say thank you for your patience and loyalty.
“Now, Scotland, let’s get even more bonnie together.”
Sephora was established in Limoges, France in 1969, and has since grown to a global network of more than 3,200 physical stores, along with e-commerce and digital platforms.
The firm said the new Edinburgh and Glasgow stores will open alongside its new small-format “boutique” stores, which were recently announced to debut this summer in London.
St James Centre estate director Anne Ledgerwood described the opening of a Sephora store in the capital as a “major moment for both St James Quarter and Edinburgh’s shopping scene”.
“As one of the most influential names in global beauty, its arrival brings a new retail experience to the city and an exciting addition to St James Quarter’s growing beauty line-up,” she said.
“Sephora’s immersive concept and curated brand offer will our give customers something truly new, whether they are long-time fans or discovering the brand for the first time.”
Silverburn general manager David Pierotti said: “Sephora coming to Glasgow marks such a big moment for the city and the west of Scotland and we are so pleased to be home to its largest store in the country.
“Our commitment to delivering an award-winning, first-class retail experience for our guests is demonstrated through our diverse offering of leading names across fashion, lifestyle and beauty.
“I know our community in Glasgow will be very excited to see another globally recognised brand join us and we look forward to welcoming them to Sephora’s ‘temple of beauty’ here at Silverburn.”
Michael Voepel is a senior writer who covers the WNBA, women’s college basketball and other college sports. Voepel began covering women’s basketball in 1984, and has been with ESPN since 1996.
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The UConn Huskies are the defending national champions and riding a 50-game winning streak. They have the stingiest defense in Division I, allowing just 50.4 PPG, and the second highest-scoring offense at 88.8. They’ve won 12 NCAA titles and gone to the women’s Final Four 24 times. And now they’re the No. 1 overall seed in the 2026 women’s NCAA tournament.
This marks the 10th time the Huskies head into the tournament unbeaten, though the first time since 2018 (they’re 6-3 for titles when entering with a perfect record). For the six teams that would stand in UConn’s way for a title, it will be no easy feat to hold off the Huskies.
How do you begin to contend with coach Geno Auriemma and UConn? We looked for answers, asking current and former Division I and WNBA coaches as well as analysts how they might scout and prepare for the Huskies.
These evaluators, who will remain anonymous, acknowledged the immense difficulty of defeating an ultra-confident team that is 34-0 and seeking the program’s seventh perfect season. Led by national player of the year favorite Sarah Strong and projected 2026 WNBA No. 1 draft pick Azzi Fudd, the Huskies have won by double digits in every game but one this season.
UConn hosts No. 16 seed UTSA on Saturday in the Fort Worth 1 Regional in its NCAA tournament opener. The Iowa State–Syracuse winner awaits in a potential second-round matchup. Either No. 4 seed North Carolina or No. 5 seed Maryland could await in the Sweet 16, with No. 2 seed Vanderbilt or No. 3 seed Ohio State in the Elite Eight if chalk dominates.
The winner of Fort Worth 1 plays the winner of Sacramento 4 in the Final Four, which potentially could be UConn-South Carolina, a rematch of the 2025 NCAA title game.
To snap UConn’s undefeated run will take perhaps the best performance of the season by a team. Here is what the evaluators say might help that happen, and how the teams in the Huskies’ path in the bracket could challenge them.
Don’t lose before you take the court
The Huskies’ reputation doesn’t just precede them — it fills up every arena they enter.
“They win so many games before the tip,” one evaluator said.
First-round foe UTSA, the American Conference champion, is in the NCAA tournament for just the third time, compared to UConn’s 37 appearances. But UTSA’s Karen Aston has faced the Huskies in the NCAA tournament before, back when she was Texas’ head coach in 2015 (Sweet 16 loss) and 2016 (Elite Eight loss). Aston also took Charlotte to the NCAA tournament in 2009, so she has significant postseason experience.
The Roadrunners had a program-record 26 wins last season but were upset in the league tournament and didn’t make the NCAA field. But they did it this year as a No. 6 seed in the American tournament. They are 18-15 and playing their best now.
Is it realistic to think they can challenge UConn? No — only one No. 16 seed has ever defeated a No. 1 seed in women’s NCAA tournament history. But UTSA also has nothing to lose. For UConn, the first game is just about staying healthy and playing sharp.
Stay patient with your game plan
UConn is the best defensive team in the country. They defeated opponents by an average of 38.4 PPG this season and held them to 33.3% shooting, 27.4% from 3-point range. The Huskies make foes work for every point, and it’s exhausting to face.
“Teams get used to thinking, ‘OK, we’ve got our first option and our second option — you’re not going to get those against UConn,” one evaluator said. “You have to be prepared to run through your offense and maybe get your third option. You have to set great screens and be disciplined.”
In the second round, the Huskies would face the winner of No. 8 Iowa State vs. No. 9 Syracuse. The Cyclones, who tied for seventh in the Big 12, revolve around junior center Audi Crooks (25.5 PPG), but they have struggled during stretches and enter the NCAA tournament having lost three of their last four games. Syracuse tied for fifth in the ACC and also has a strong center in Uche Izoje, the ACC freshman of the year.
UConn will make it hard for Crooks or Izoje to get the ball where they want it. That’s where patience is a must.
“You can’t just expect to get open against them,” an evaluator said. “You’re not going to get a pick-and-roll right off the bat. You’re going to have to reverse it, go high-low. If they’re overplaying, you look for backdoors. And if your offense requires a lot of ball screens, you have to know how they’re guarding them.”
“You have to enjoy it. You have to embrace it. You have to like the challenge.”
This goes hand-in-hand with patience. The Huskies show no mercy. They can stretch a lead from 5 to 15 to 25 in what seems like seconds. They will demoralize your defense. They will make your offense disappear.
“A team facing them will be like, ‘Oh, well, here they go again,'” an evaluator said. “You have to do something to slow things down. Call a timeout, although you have to use your timeouts wisely.”
Part of avoiding the panic is not letting the Huskies dictate the pace.
“I’m curious how UConn would handle consistent full-court defensive pressure, like what we see from Texas,” an evaluator said. “UConn’s quarter-court offense is so good and rhythmic; it relies on passes and cuts.
“If a team has the personnel and style to be physical — is allowed to bump cutters — and it denies passing lanes, it could be challenging for UConn.”
The Huskies wouldn’t meet fellow No. 1 seed Texas unless they play for the national championship, but in the Sweet 16, they could face No. 4 North Carolina or No. 5 Maryland. The Tar Heels were third in the ACC in points allowed (59.0) and the Terps were sixth in that category in the Big Ten.
South Carolina, which could be UConn’s national semifinal foe, allows 57.9 PPG, second in the SEC to Texas (56.6).
Avoid turnovers as much as possible
Everything about the Huskies’ offense is scary, but their transition points might be the most frightening. UConn forces 24.5 turnovers per game and scores 33.6 PPG off them.
“UConn is always really good in transition,” an evaluator said. “You have to really focus so much on taking care of the ball.”
The Huskies force turnovers in ways many other teams can’t, with their relentlessness and their ability to take away passing lanes.
“You can try to press them,” one evaluator said. “But then you have to deal with their pressure defense.”
No opposing coach knows how UConn’s defense works better than Vanderbilt’s Shea Ralph, a former star Huskies player and assistant coach. Her No. 2 seed Vanderbilt team could face UConn in the Elite Eight. The Commodores have committed an average of 13.1 turnovers per game this season, fourth in the SEC. Vandy’s turnover margin is plus-7.35, second in the SEC to Texas’ 10.62.
Make 3-pointers — a lot of them
Every evaluator we spoke with mentioned 3-pointers as critically important against the Huskies. UConn leads Division I in 3-point percentage at 39.6. Fudd is the Huskies’ most accurate from behind the arc at 44.6% (104 of 233). Strong shoots 42.7% from 3-point range (53 of 124), and Allie Ziebell 43.2% (57 of 132).
Among the other No. 1 seeds, UCLA shoots 37.5% from 3-point range, South Carolina 37.1 and Texas 33.9. The Longhorns also have the fewest 3s among the No. 1s with 146. UConn has 322, UCLA 242 and South Carolina 206.
If any team can get the upper hand on UConn — either by outshooting them from behind the arc or limiting them there — it could have a chance.
“You want to force them analytically to their weaknesses, if they have any,” an evaluator said. “Don’t let Azzi beat you from outside. Don’t let Sarah beat you. Try to make them give it up.”
It’s not impossible to defeat UConn without excelling from behind the arc, but it makes a hard task even harder. One evaluator pointed out Michigan‘s 12 3-pointers in a 72-69 loss in November, the closest any team has come to UConn this season.
“How are you going to get 3s against them?” the evaluator said. “You have to make some tough, contested shots. That’s what Michigan did.”
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Does UCLA have toughest path to Final Four among No. 1 seeds?
Chiney Ogwumike and Rebecca Lobo break down why UCLA may have the toughest road to the Final Four among the No. 1 seeds.
Take advantage of size inside
The Huskies aren’t just a great 3-point shooting team; they are very good inside, too. But one evaluator pointed out that perhaps a team with a dominant center could pose some problems.
“UCLA may have a chance because of that 6-foot-7 inside,” the evaluator said, referring to senior center Lauren Betts. “They will have to hit from the outside, too, but I think to beat UConn it’s going to take someone who has that kind of skilled big.”
The Huskies and Bruins wouldn’t meet until the championship game this season. In last year’s national semifinals, Betts was the only Bruin who played well against the Huskies in an 85-51 loss. She had 26 points on 11-of-18 shooting.
This season, Betts was Big Ten player of the year, averaging 16.4 points and 8.6 rebounds while shooting a career-high 65.6% from the field. Her teammates have provided a lot of support, with three others averaging in double figures for a team that averages 85.1 PPG.
The bottom line: If anyone is going to defeat UConn, they need for everything to be working at its best.
“UConn usually has five people on court who can hurt you,” an evaluator said. “If you have someone on court who can’t hurt them, they know it. They’re really smart, and they’ll play off them. If one of your people isn’t being guarded, then they better be a great screener.
“Otherwise, you’re just going to start jacking up shots, and that’s it.”
US President Donald Trump on Monday criticised the US Supreme Court’s decision to invalidate his global tariffs, warning that the ruling could cost the United States trillions of dollars. He said that the verdict will benefit foreign countries and companies that have been “ripping off the United States of America” for decades.” Commenting on his tarrif approach, Trump said that he has the right to impose tariff in another form and is preparing to do so.In a series of posts on social media platform Truth Social, Trump said that tariffs were the most important issue at stake in the case and accused the court of undermining his efforts to protect the US economy. “The decision that mattered most to me was TARIFFS!” Trump wrote. “The Court knew where I stood, how badly I wanted this Victory for our Country, and instead decided to, potentially, give away Trillions of Dollars to Countries and Companies who have been taking advantage of the United States for decades.”He added, “Our Supreme Court has made these Countries very happy but, as the Court pointed out, I have the absolute right to charge TARIFFS in another form, and have already started to do so.”He also warned that the hundreds of billions of dollars some US adversaries want repaid should be seen as a symbol of what he described as years of national decline. “But, not anymore,” Trump wrote, adding that the country had “MADE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN” and would soon be “GREATER THAN EVER BEFORE.”Trump also thanked three justices: Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, and Brett Kavanaugh, for “for their Wisdom and Courage pertaining to the TARIFF case, and for understanding, in addition to the Law, that our “Unfriendly Competitors” should not be reimbursed and rewarded for the decades of Damage they have caused THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.”The US president also used the post to criticise the broader functioning of the court. He claimed that while Democratic-appointed justices tend to vote together, “But Republicans do not do this. They openly disrespect the Presidents who nominate them to the highest position in the Land, a Justice of the United States Supreme Court, and go out of their way, with bad and wrongful rulings and intentions, to prove how “honest,” “independent,” and “legitimate” they are.“In a seperate post, Trump went on to criticise Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, accusing him of mismanaging a renovation project at the Federal Reserve complex in Washington, DC. Trump described the project as “a money pit, and embarrassment to our Country for the whole World to see,” alleging that the costs had spiralled billions of dollars over budget.He further targeted US district judge James Boasberg, accusing him of political bias and calling for him to be removed from cases involving Trump or his allies. According to Trump, Boasberg has shown “open, flagrant, and extreme partisan bias and contempt against Republicans and the Trump Administration.”He argued that the judge’s actions in matters related to Powell and other cases were driven more by politics than law. Trump said the recent tariff decision from the Supreme Court itself was an example of how the court system has become highly politicised, calling the ruling “a GIFT to Countries and Companies who have been ‘ripping off the United States of America’ for decades.”The comments come as the Trump administration ramps up efforts to recover roughly $1.6 trillion in tariff revenue after the Supreme Court struck down several of the president’s import duties, according to a report by the Associated Press.Officials are now exploring alternative legal pathways and launching new investigations in an attempt to impose replacement tariffs. The lost revenue had been expected to help offset the multi-trillion-dollar cost of planned tax cuts.Experts say recovering that amount could prove difficult, as the alternative routes for imposing tariffs involve more complex procedures and allow US companies greater scope to seek exemptions. Meanwhile, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the administration will open investigations into 16 economies, including the European Union, to determine whether government subsidies are encouraging excessive factory capacity that harms US manufacturing. The probe will also examine China, South Korea and Japan.A second investigation will review whether dozens of countries have failed to ban goods produced with forced labour, which Washington views as an unfair trade practice. The review will cover the EU and China, as well as Mexico, Canada, Australia and Brazil.
The top of the odds board for the men’s college basketball national championship will feature several blue bloods as it heads into March Madness.
Duke is the favorite to win the NCAA tournament with +330 odds, followed closely by Michigan at +350. Arizona (+400) and Florida (+700) are the other 1-seeds, and Houston (10-1), Iowa State (15-1) and Illinois (19-1) round out the teams shorter than 20-1.
Purdue and UConn at 30-1 and 35-1, respectively, represent two of the teams receiving bigger money in the betting markets. The Boilermakers have the fifth-most handle at DraftKings and have also attracted a $100,000 wager to make the Final Four at BetMGM. The Huskies have garnered several large bets at both books, which both name them as large liabilities.
The bottom of the odds board features 14 teams at 200-1, largely comprised of the lowest seeds.
Dubai International Airport has temporarily suspended all flight operations after a fire broke out close to the airport following a drone-related incident amid rising tensions in Middle Asia. The current disruption has triggered major travel alerts across the region. Dubai Media Office took to X and wrote,
ON CAM: Dubai International Airport Bombed Again; Drone Sparks Fire, Flights Halted | Iran War
“Dubai Airports announces the diversion of some flights from Dubai International Airport (DXB) to Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC).”
x
Later the office reported, “Dubai Civil Defence teams have successfully contained the fire resulting from impact to one of the fuel tanks in the vicinity of Dubai International Airport. No injuries have been reported.”The fire incident The airport authorities have confirmed that a drone struck a fuel tank close to the airport early on 16 March 2026. The incident caused a huge fire and as a precaution, all flight operations at the airport were temporarily suspended for the safety of passengers and staff. The Dubai Civil Aviation Authority has also announced that flights were halted while civil defence teams worked to contain the fire. Officials mentioned that its a precautionary move was purely precautionary. As per current update, fire is under control and authorities confirmed that there were no immediate reports of injuries or casualties.Impact on flights The temporary shutdown of Dubai International Airport had an immediate effect on international air travel. A number of flights headed to Dubai were diverted to nearby airports. Some flights were delayed or cancelled amid the fire incident. Emirates suspends Dubai flights Meanwhile Emirates has temporarily suspended all flights to and from Dubai, asking passengers not to travel to the airport until further notice. The airline said that the safety of passengers and crew is their top priority.Etihad Airways running limited flightsEtihad Airways has issued a list of limited flight schedules, operating to prime destinations from Abu Dhabi. The airline has listed flights for March 16.What travellers should do nowDo not travel to the airport without a confirmed ticketCheck airline updates closely Flight schedules may change depending on the continuously changing situation in the GulfDubai airport serves as a prime international transit hub connecting Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas. The airport handles millions of passengers both national and international annually, and that’s why even the smallest disruption ends up affecting thousands of travellers across the globe.
At just 17 years, three months, and 22 days old, Lionel Messi makes his official league debut for Barcelona, coming on as a substitute late in the game. against Espanyol. At the time, he becomes the youngest player to represent the club in an official game after joining the club’s famed La Masia academy in 2000, moving from Argentine club Newell’s Old Boys as a 13-year-old.
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