The next presidential election in Brazil is shaping up to be the country’s closest and most consequential political contest in decades. But a “two-man race” has “increasingly become a three-way fight” involving Donald Trump, said The Wall Street Journal. 

Who’s in the race?
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (pictured above) is seeking reelection for the center-left Workers’ Party and has vowed not to let the “shameless” right-wing return to power. If the 80-year-old wins, Brazil would be the only left-wing major economy left in South America.

His chief rival will be Flávio Bolsonaro, the 45-year-old son of populist and former President Jair Bolsonaro, who’s serving a 27-year prison sentence for attempting a coup after losing office in 2022. The younger Bolsonaro is considered to be “running as the political heir to his father,” said The Wall Street Journal.

What’s the likely outcome?
If no one wins more than 50% of the votes on Oct. 4, the two front-runners will progress to a second-round runoff on Oct. 25. A recent poll suggests that a runoff would see Lula get 47% and Bolsonaro with 44%.

Bolsonaro’s campaign “took a mighty blow in May,” when leaked recordings revealed that he had asked for money from a “disgraced banker at the heart of Brazil’s largest-ever bank fraud,” said The Economist. Lula’s approval ratings are high, but he’s “seen as weak” on corruption and crime, both of which are top voter concerns.

What’s Trump’s involvement?
Lula has accused President Donald Trump of trying to interfere in the October election on behalf of Bolsonaro, as “tit-for-tat visa disputes and U.S. tariffs” plunge U.S.-Brazil relations to their “lowest point in years,” said The Wall Street Journal.

Trump has recently “turned up the heat,” said The Guardian. He has proscribed Brazil’s two biggest criminal groups as terrorist organizations in a move that some observers fear could be laying the groundwork for a “U.S. military intervention.” This reflects a “dangerous convergence between Washington’s long-standing interventionist instincts in Latin America” and the “interests of Brazil’s far-right,” said Raphael Tsavkko Garcia at Al Jazeera.

Mark Walter promised a bright future when he bought the Los Angeles Lakers last year. But that future is already passed. Walter flipped the team to new owners this month, netting a reported $2.5 billion profit. Dollar signs have always dominated the big leagues, but sports ownership is increasingly reserved for corporations, private equity and super-rich investors. 

‘Highly sticky consumer base’
Jerry Buss and his children ran the Lakers as the “NBA’s version of a mom-and-pop shop” for decades before last year’s sale to Walter, said Benjamin Wilhelm and Samuel Agini at the Financial Times. But the days when a local businessman would buy and run a team as a sort of community trust are over. 

The “shock sale” of the Lakers demonstrates how pro teams are “no longer treated as vanity assets but legitimate investment vehicles,” said the Financial Times. The new generation of sports owners are “billionaire financiers” who see sports as a business sector “resistant to potential disruption from AI.”

Sports are good business thanks to a “highly sticky consumer base” of die-hard fans and “contractual revenue streams” for broadcast rights that produce massive revenues, said Kurt Nye, of MAI Capital Management, to Investment News. Pro teams are thus selling at prices that “would have seemed implausible a decade ago,” said the outlet.

The Buss family announced this week it’s selling its remaining minority stake in the Lakers, said The Athletic. But the sale is opposed by Jeanie Buss, who led the franchise in recent years. And the dispute between Buss and her siblings could end up in court.

Fans charged ‘vulgar amounts’
Team owners are “flush and want to be even flusher,” said Mike Lupica at the New York Daily News. The “sure thing” profits from ownership come in part because owners like Walter and the Knicks’ James Dolan “charge vulgar amounts for ticket prices.” Many Knicks fans could not even afford tickets to Madison Square Garden during the team’s recent championship run. 

The Lakers sale is “exactly why we need publicly owned sports teams,” said Dave Zirin at The Nation. Franchises belonged to their communities “spiritually, psychologically, personally” before they became “just another asset” in private equity portfolios. 

A woman dressed as Cruella de Vil walks her robot dalmatians in between other costumed performers at the 2026 World Robot Conference in Beijing, China. Last month, the FCC banned “imports of new foreign-made humanoid robots” in a “move targeting China” and citing “national security risks,” said The Associated Press. 
Andres Martinez Casares / EPA / Shutterstock

All the signs that summer is winding down are here — kids heading back to school, days getting shorter, and Halloween decorations taking over stores. Before giving in to fall’s arrival, enjoy a last beachy thrill at one of these seaside escapes.

Islamorada, Florida
South of Miami and north of Key West, Islamorada is the “perfect blend of Old Florida charm and salty barefoot luxury,” said Travel and Leisure. It’s known for excellent sport fishing, a vibrant arts enclave and the “state-of-the-art” Florida Keys History & Discovery Center. Learn about the area’s complex history through exhibitions on “Indigenous peoples, Spanish treasure fleets, Henry Flagler’s railway, and the 1935 Labor Day hurricane.”

Pacific Grove, California
Spend any amount of time in Pacific Grove, and you will likely start daydreaming about living in this idyllic town. Victorian homes dot the landscape, and the views of Monterey Bay and its wildlife, including otters, whales and seals, can’t be beat. Lovers Point Park is a great spot for swimming and picnicking, while Asilomar State Beach gets you close to tide pools.

Yachats, Oregon
Forget about racing around and trying to pack a ton of activities into your visit. Yachats is all about slowing down, connecting with nature and enjoying the scenery. The best place to do this is Cape Perpetua, where the forest meets the sea. Nearby is Thor’s Well, a stunning collapsed sea cave also known as the Drainpipe of the Pacific.