That’s just in Rome. Elsewhere in Italy, educators must contend with a soaring dropout rate; at some universities, two out of three entering students never receive a degree. And universities in just about every other country in the world are struggling with their own assortment of intractable problems. In Japan and South Korea, the issue is too few students. Educators in both countries worry about a dwindling population of young people and a drastic decline in qualified applicants....

‘Ozil needs to buck his ideas up’ - Wright Sunday’s damaging Premier League loss to Manchester City at the Etihad was an example of how social media has the ability to alter and influence people’s opinions far too easily. A 10-second clip of Ozil walking around the pitch at 2-1 down while City’s defenders kept possession between them prompted reactionary tweets labelling the German international “lazy” and were quickly used to justify why the Gunners should not reward the 28-year-old with a bumper £250,000-a-week deal....

The USMNT got just what it needed with 38th-minute goal from midfielder Christian Pulisic, who knocked in a go-ahead goal vs Iran that, at the moment, kept alive United States’ hopes of advancing to the knockout stage. Pulisic’s goal came from a a fantastic assist from Sergiño Dest, and gave U.S. soccer a 1-0 lead over Iran (which needed only a draw to become the second team to advance from Group B, alongside group winner England)....

With all the talk about James’ next landing spot, he really had just two options: stay in Cleveland or head to Hollywood. The appeal of Los Angeles and the opportunity to build a contender alongside Magic Johnson was too much for James to turn down. But as James heads out West to make the Lakers relevant again, there is another team that is celebrating. And it happens to be the franchise that Lakers fans love to hate....

In the final regular-season game of Dwyane Wade’s 16-year career, his best friends — LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul — were courtside. The trio traveled to Brooklyn to see Wade off one last time. James played with Wade in two stints — including the 2010-2014 seasons in Miami, winning two NBA championships together — and said Wednesday they couldn’t miss this moment. “We all started this journey together — obviously CP (Paul) came into the league a couple years after us — but we have a brotherhood that’s so much more than basketball,” James said....

James shows that he enjoys Newton’s confidence. He seems fine with the one-liner, even as he denies it. But pedantry persists: “I’m not a power forward, though,” James says. “And I’m not slowing down any time soon, so I like being a wing guy.” Then, as though to defuse any tension here in Charlotte, N.C. — Newton’s town — he adds, “It’s cooler.” MORE: 23 most hated players in NBA history...

While LeBron James’ agent Rich Paul has reportedly been meeting with teams in Cleveland this week, the rapper Q-Tip took to Twitter Friday afternoon with a little inside information of his own. Well, OK then. If you want to get happy, Cleveland Cavaliers fans, no one’s going to stop you. But at the same time, no one really knows who these “inside sources” are, not to mention how connected they may or may not be to James’ camp....

“We haven’t done anything,” he said (via ESPN) after losing 104-99 to the Pistons. “We didn’t win anything. We lost. We lost in the Finals. So that’s enough motivation for myself. I think we need to understand that. Like, we lost in the Finals. We didn’t win. And the team that beat us looks more hungry than we are. So it shouldn’t be that way.” MORE: Classic photos of LeBron James | Kevin Durant to the Warriors would be the rest of the NBA’s nightmare...

James has opted out of the final season of his contract with the world champion Cavaliers and will become a free agent on Friday, ESPN’s Chris Broussard reported Tuesday night, citing James’ agent Rich Paul. MORE: Classic photos of LeBron James The move will help James, 31, maximize his pay when the NBA’s salary cap balloons to about $94 million this offseason. Broussard broke down the numbers on Twitter:...

The main source of anger from James and his partner, Maverick Carter, comes from Jackson’s use of the word “posse” to describe the friends of the Cavs star. James had remained quiet on the issue until he was asked about it Tuesday. “To use that label, and if you go and read the definition of what the word ‘posse’ is, it’s not what I’ve built over my career. It’s not what I stand for,” James said....

Obama spoke with LeBron James, Chris Paul and several other players by phone Wednesday night as they sought his advice following a tense meeting among NBA players, many of whom were not pleased with the Bucks unilaterally deciding earlier in the day to walk out of their playoff game. MORE: Adam Silver ‘wholeheartedly’ supports NBA, WNBA players Obama advised James, Paul and the other the players on the call that they should play and to express what actions they wanted to see taken so they could return, sources told Charania....

Then James hoisted the depleted Cavaliers onto his aching, aging back and showed why he’s allowed to draw those parallels. MORE: All-time leading NBA scorers | Classic photos of Jeremy Lin It was another classic case of James taking over a game while his inferiors looked on. He fell one rebound shy of a triple-double, which would have been his first of the season, scoring 33 on 12-of-17 shooting with 11 assists and nine boards....

“I’m not a 31-, 32-minute guy. That’s just not, that ain’t me,” James said, via Cleveland.com. “I’m playing at a high level. I’m shooting the ball extremely well and I’m not hurting my team when I’m on the floor. If I’m hurting my team, then I should be sitting down. But I feel good. MORE: Classic photos of LeBron James | Fire and Ice: Nike Basketball’s 2015 Christmas collection...

James has checked every box. All of the individual and team accolades are there on his resume. He has already solidified his place in basketball lore and created a legitimate debate as to whether he will go down as the greatest player of all time. But just this once, it’s fine to put away the talk about James’ status among the NBA’s elite and just appreciate what he has accomplished this season....

Lee’s management agency, Story J Company, revealed Monday that the pair will be getting married next month, according to Korean media reports. The celebrity couple will be getting married in a “small wedding” on Jeju Island—the largest of South Korea’s more than 3,000 islands—this Christmas on December 25, 2021, according to the agency. Here’s everything we know so far. Seo Ji Seung and Lee Si Eon’s Wedding Plans The ceremony is expected to be a modest affair, inviting only a few guests, such as close family members and relatives, according to the agency, reported South Korea’s Dong-A Ilbo....

The Championship side revealed a new badge on Wednesday, with the revamped design featuring the so-called ‘Leeds Salute’ — thumping the chest with a clenched fist — underneath Leeds United in bold letter. But social media users hit out at the club crest, with some comparing it to a design for a video game, while others labelled the badge “atrocious” and “like a school homework project”. Leeds insisted more than 10,000 people — including “legends, current players, club staff, the owner, partners and representatives from the Leeds and Yorkshire communities” — were consulted before unveiling the design....

The Premier League champions beat Liverpool by the same scoreline on Monday in their first game since the controversial sacking of Ranieri. Yet they seemed set to come back down to earth after 14 minutes on Saturday, Sam Clucas’ close-range effort putting Hull ahead. However, the two stars of Leicester’s incredible title-winning campaign under Ranieri had a hand in what could prove to be a crucial comeback. First, Jamie Vardy set up Christian Fuchs to level the scores midway through the first half....

Leicester City are yet to win in the 2022/23 Premier League and failed to capitalise against opponents who spent more than an hour down to 10 men in their 2-1 defeat at Chelsea on Saturday. United were not entirely convincing in their 1-0 win at Southampton but the result was all that mattered as their run of seven away defeats ended and Erik ten Hag won his first game on the road as manager and his second match in a row following that 2-1 victory over Liverpool....

Zieler joined then-champions Leicester from Hannover a year ago, but could not usurp Kasper Schmeichel as first choice under Claudio Ranieri or his successor Craig Shakespeare. Shakespeare: Mahrez must perform The Germany international made 13 appearances for the Foxes, the bulk of which came when Schmeichel suffered a broken hand in November. He becomes Stuttgart’s fifth signing since winning 2.Bundesliga, but is their most experienced to date. He told Stuttgart’s official website: “I am glad that the move to Stuttgart has been successful....

Dortmund & Legia make CL history The Leicester of last season were back on show against Club Brugge, with only Kasper Schmeichel and the departed N’Golo Kante missing from the XI that started the majority of the Foxes’s matches last term. Andy King – who played his own part in Leicester’s success in 2015-16 – was drafted into midfield, and after a poor run of results domestically, the Foxes of old were suddenly on show again....