Skip next section World Cup: Germany pays for fan travel to group stage game amid high transport costs June 11, 2026
World Cup: Germany pays for fan travel to group stage game amid high transport costs
Germany's World Cup team is subsidizing the travel costs of 600 supporters for their last Group E game against Ecuador in New Jersey on June 25, a media report says.
City authorities at NJ Transit hiked bus and train fares by several times their normal levels, citing increased strain on services.
Amid the ensuing backlash, fares were reduced again, but that did little to mollify the fans who had already paid the gouging fares.
"In light of the high cost of bus and train travel in New York durng the World Cup, the German national team players have organized free transport to the final group match for 600 fans," the BBC quoted the German Football Association (DFB) as saying. "Captain Joshua Kimmich and his teammates are covering the cost of buses to take supporters from New York to the arena in New Jersey for the match against Ecuador."
A round trip by train to the stadium would usually cost $12.90, but NJ Transit initially set it at $150 for World Cup games . It has since reduced it somewhat, to $98, still 7.5 times the normal fare.
Special shuttle bus tickets were originally priced at $80 but now stand at $20. Germany's first group game is in Houston and its second is in Toronto.
Can the FIFA World Cup kick-start the economy?
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Skip next section German brigade holds first drill in Lithuania June 10, 2026
German brigade holds first drill in Lithuania
Germany has set up the tank brigade in response to what it sees as a Russian threat Image: Kay Nietfeld/dpa/picture alliance Germany's new tank brigade in Lithuania has carried out its first combat exercise in the Baltic state.
Commander Christoph Huber said the drill in Pabrade marked a key step toward combat readiness.
Huber said the unit is learning from developments in Ukraine and must prepare for future conflict scenarios, not past wars.
Germany has set up the brigade in response to what it sees as a growing threat from Russia. The unit is due to reach full strength of about 4,800 soldiers and 200 civilian staff by 2027. Lithuania borders Russia's ally Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
Around 2,900 troops and 800 vehicles from eight NATO countries have been taking part in the exercise at the Pabrade training ground, about 15 kilometers from the Belarusian border.
The Bundeswehr has also deployed more than 300 drones as part of the drills, reflecting lessons from modern warfare.
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Skip next section ILA air show opens in Berlin with scrapping of FCAS looming large June 10, 2026
ILA air show opens in Berlin with scrapping of FCAS looming large
This year's show has been overshadowed by the recent scrapping of a Franco-German fighter jet project .
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron said that manufacturers Dassault and Airbus had failed to resolve key disputes.
The Future Combat Air System (FCAS) program, launched in 2017, aimed to build a next-generation fighter to replace Eurofighters and Rafales by around 2040. It would have been one of Europe's largest defense projects.
Eurofighters, seen here at the ILA on Wednesday, have been in service since 2003 Image: Axel Schmidt/REUTERS
The project's failure is a blow to European security cooperation efforts and highlights the difficulties the continent faces in coordinating on military and defense initiatives.
It also comes as Europe seeks to boost its defense capabilities amid the threat from Russia, strained US-NATO ties and the ongoing war in the Middle East.
At the ILA on Wednesday, Merz said German and French defense ministers would outline a reworked collaboration project between the two neighbors on air defense data networks by July.
"Our defense ministers will now work out how this can be implemented in the run-up to the next Franco-German intergovernmental meeting in Germany, which we will be holding in July," Merz said at the Berlin air show.
The pledge to focus on a "combat cloud" — data networks between warplanes and related software — comes after the flagship FCAS project was abandoned this week.
Eight companies, led by Airbus, are set to unveil a new plan for next-generation European fighter jets at the ILA on Thursday, to replace the FCAS, according to the AFP news agency.
Europe's massive defense gamble
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Skip next section Surveillance of 'Maddie' suspect faces legal hurdle June 10, 2026
Surveillance of 'Maddie' suspect faces legal hurdle
A court order allowing police surveillance of the German suspect in the Madeleine McCann case ha…
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