Midwest

German soccer team Werder Bremen cancels Minnesota trip over Trump immigration enforcement: report

Published

4 weeks ago

February 22, 2026

German soccer team Werder Bremen cancels Minnesota trip over Trump immigration enforcement: report

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German soccer team Werder Bremen canceled its planned trip to Minnesota, citing unrest caused by recent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions there, reports said.

The Bundesliga club was expected to visit Minnesota and Michigan in May to play exhibition matches, according to the BBC.

“Playing in a city where there’s unrest and people have been shot, that does not fit with our values here at Werder Bremen,” Christoph Pieper, the club’s head of communications, told Politico. “Furthermore, it was unclear for us which players could be able to enter the United States due to the stricter entry requirements.”

“We as a club, we have clear values,” Pieper reportedly added Friday. “Our club stands for an open, pluralistic and united society. We are committed to ensuring that all people — regardless of their origin, skin color, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or disability — are naturally included and have a firm place in our community.”

HOMAN ANNOUNCES DRAWDOWN OF FEDERAL PRESENCE IN MINNESOTA, HAILS ‘UNPRECEDENTED COOPERATION’ FROM LOCAL POLICE

Justin Njinmah of Werder Bremen controls the ball during the Bundesliga match against Bayern München on Feb. 14, 2026, in Bremen, Germany. (Oliver Kaelke/DeFodi Images/DeFodi via Getty Images)

A spokesperson for the club also told Reuters, “It is correct that we cancelled a planned trip to Minnesota in the United States,” and, “There were sporting, economic and political reasons for this.”

President Donald Trump’s border czar Tom Homan announced last week that the administration is winding down Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis.

NEYMAR SAYS RETIRING IN 2026 IS ‘POSSIBLE’ WITH WORLD CUP STATUS UNCERTAIN

Federal agents shoot pepper balls at protesters outside an ICE facility during a demonstration in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Jan. 11, 2026. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The city has seen frequent anti-ICE demonstrations surrounding the shootings of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent and Alex Pretti by U.S. Border Patrol.

Werder Bremen, meanwhile, has been trying to stave off relegation from the Bundesliga, the top tier of German soccer.

Werder Bremen fans are shown before a game on Feb. 14, 2026. (Fabian Bimmer/Reuters)

As of Saturday, the club is in 16th place, one point behind Wolfsburg — and guaranteed safety.

Greg Norman is a reporter at Fox News Digital.

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Indiana

Indiana led U.S. in February foreclosure rates, Indy among worst metros

Published

6 minutes ago

March 20, 2026

Press Room

Indiana led U.S. in February foreclosure rates, Indy among worst metros

Indiana’s foreclosure filing rate was worst in the nation last month, with two of the state’s metros struggling most.
Rising property taxes and insurance costs have inflated monthly payments.
Gov. Mike Braun and top Republicans say reforms to property taxes and housing will help.

At a time when “affordability” is the watchword in politics nationwide, recent data shows that Hoosiers faced more risk of losing their homes last month than residents in any other state.

Indiana reported the nation’s highest foreclosure filing rate in February, according to real estate data company ATTOM. What’s more, the Indianapolis region ranked among the worst-performing major metro areas.

The findings contradict the view of Indiana and the Indianapolis region as affordable havens where residents can more easily own homes. Experts say that home prices remain low compared with other states but have risen steeply since 2020, increasing property taxes. Upticks in other expenses like homeowners’ insurance and utilities, along with stagnant wage growth, have put an increasing number of Hoosiers at risk of losing their homes.

“This is a bad look for us in general, and it does indicate that our affordability problem is kind of reaching a crisis,” said Sara Coers, associate director of the Indiana University Center for Real Estate Studies. “We have a lower natural ceiling on what we can afford because of the wages that we receive here.”

What Indiana foreclosure data shows

Last month, about one in every 1,600 housing units in Indiana had a foreclosure filing, which means lenders took legal action against a homeowner who failed to keep up with their monthly mortgage payments. That foreclosure filing rate was the worst in the nation and more than twice as high as the average U.S. rate, the data shows.

The situation is even worse in the Indianapolis metropolitan area, which landed at No. 3 among metros with over 200,000 people with the worst foreclosure filing rates.

In the Indianapolis region, roughly one in every 1,250 housing units had a foreclosure filing — about three times worse than the national average. Evansville was the only other Indiana metro to make the list, right behind Indy at No. 4.

The problem isn’t new, but it’s growing worse. After falling between 2020 and 2021 thanks to pandemic relief programs, Indiana’s foreclosure filing rates have since rebounded. Throughout 2025, Indiana consistently ranked among the 10 worst states, according to the Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana.

What’s behind the affordability crisis

Experts like Coers and FHCCI Executive Director Amy Nelson say the recent spike in foreclosure filings is in part due to rising escrow amounts — monthly payments for property expenses like taxes and homeowners’ insurance.

From 2019 to 2025, Indiana’s average escrow payment rose more than 50%, according to data analytics company Cotality. Today, about one-third of the money that Hoosier homeowners send to lenders each month goes toward those escrow costs, rather than paying down the home loan itself.

Beyond those property costs, residents are consistently spending more money on electricity bills, groceries and now gasoline, because of the war in Iran.

Higher costs especially strain residents in Indiana, a state where wage growth has lagged further behind the U.S. average in recent years, IU’s Indiana Business Research Center reports. More Hoosiers work lower-wage jobs in manufacturing or transportation than the national average, Coers said, and therefore they struggle to weather economic crises.

“Credit card usage is way up, savings rates are way down, and people just don’t have anything to back them up if things don’t go perfectly,” Coers said. “And if your expenses keep rising, but your wages are not keeping pace, it’s just really hard to stay abreast of your own household expenses.”

Households can often avoid foreclosure proceedings by being upfront about their financial struggles with lenders and finding alternate payment plans, said Trevor Meeks, chief consumer solutions officer for the Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership. Instead of losing the home through foreclosure, they might be able to sell it to help cover housing costs while they recover.

He said he’s worked with local families who found themselves in financial crises after losing jobs or working reduced hours. He mentioned one single-parent household that was forced to choose between paying for their child’s college tuition and paying the mortgage.

“Our mortgage borrower made the very difficult decision to cover the cost of tuition themselves and jeopardized their ability to make the mortgage payment on time,” Meeks said.

How Indiana leaders are responding

Indiana lawmakers in both political parties have increasingly called affordability a top concern, including Republican Indiana Gov. Mike Braun.

In a March 19 interview with IndyStar, Braun noted that Hoosier homeowners will soon get some relief as his sweeping property tax reform law, Senate Enrolled Act 1, takes effect this year. Two-thirds of homeowners are projected to see a lower property tax bill in 2026 than last year, mainly through tax credits that will save households up to $300.

With policies like this year’s House Enrolled Act 1001, Republicans also took steps to reduce the cost and regulatory burden on homebuilders so they can build more housing to help ease prices, Braun said.

To tackle the other side of the issue and boost wages, the governor said he’s pushing the Indiana Economic Development Corp. to create 100,000 more high-wage jobs in agricultural and life sciences in Indiana over the next decade. He said the state will commit $1 billion to that goal.

Braun’s property tax reforms have been criticized for offering meager savings to homeowners while sapping revenue from local governments, likely forcing leaders to make cuts to services like education and infrastructure unless they impose higher income taxes.

But Braun said Indiana’s staggering foreclosure filing rate shows that households need relief and local governments need to make do with less.

“I think if local governments are complaining about revenues being too slim, well, that obviously would be something that’d be hard to square with the fact that property tax payers, specifically as it relates to homes, are having trouble making ends meet,” Braun said. “So that means something’s got to give in the middle.”

Email Indianapolis City Hall Reporter Jordan Smith at JTSmith@indystar.com. Follow him on X @jordantsmith09 and Bluesky @jordanaccidentally.bsky.social.

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Iowa

FDU women relishing underdog role vs. Iowa in NCAA Tournament

Published

12 minutes ago

March 20, 2026

Press Room

FDU women relishing underdog role vs. Iowa in NCAA Tournament

Fairleigh Dickinson coach Stephanie Gaitley is headed back to where it began.

Three years ago, Gaitley’s first game on the sidelines for FDU was at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. Caitlin Clark’s team torched the Knights by nearly 60 points.

“Our kids, kind of their eyes were in the headlights, so to speak,” Gaitley told The Post. “And they just kind of weren’t sure what was going to hit them with that sellout crowd.”

Gaitley doesn’t anticipate the same lopsided outcome Saturday when 15th-seeded FDU takes on second-seeded Iowa in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Sportsbooks favor the Hawkeyes by more than 30 points. But Gaitley views Saturday’s game as an opportunity to measure FDU’s monstrous growth over the past three seasons.

“Three years ago … we were a completely different team,” Gaitley said. “We’re going in with a different type of mentality right now because of the fact that we built what we built this year and I think the kids are going in with a lot of confidence. They know the task at hand is a difficult one, but they’re welcoming the opportunity and they have, as always, played with that chip on the shoulder.”

FDU experienced a lot of turnover from last year’s team, which went dancing for the first time in program history. Three of the Knights’ starters were seniors; another, Lilly Parke, suffered a torn ACL over the summer.

Sophomore Ava Renninger is the lone starter to return this season.

The Knights stumbled out of the gates, suffering back-to-back losses to Purdue and Notre Dame. Those defeats, while disappointing in the moment, ultimately helped FDU grow together.

Once NEC play came around, the Knights seemingly picked up where they left off.

FDU is starting to build a reputation as the NEC’s undisputed heavyweight champ. They haven’t lost a conference game in more than two years. They joined UConn in being the only Division I program to go undefeated in league play in back-to-back seasons.

Sophomore Ava Renninger is the lone starter to return for FDU this season. Getty Images

Rennington, now a leader on the team, said this season “was even harder” than the last.

“Obviously, the 18-0 looks easy to everyone,” Rennington said. “It was a dogfight.”

There’s a mentality switch for teams such as FDU heading into March Madness. For the majority of the season, the Knights shouldered the pressure of being the team to beat in their conference. They were the vanquishers, the ones expected to win every game.

Come Saturday, FDU is freed of those expectations.

“It’s kind of a pressure cooker when you’re building up from winning 18-0 and then you got to win three more against three teams that you’ve already beaten twice,” Gaitley said. “And so I think this is kind of a relief, switching that role of being the Goliath to being the David.”

FDU head coach Stephanie Gaitley said her team is relishing its underdog role vs. No. 2 seed Iowa. Getty Images

This is the second consecutive season FDU is headed to the NCAA Tournament. Last year, the Knights, then a 15 seed, were blown out by second-seeded TCU in the Round of 64.

Rennington remembered being “shell-shocked” last year. FDU was just happy to be included in the NCAA Tournament.

The excitement is still there this time around, but there’s also an eagerness to surprise some people.

Iowa enters March Madness coming off a 51-point loss to UCLA in the Big Ten Tournament’s championship game.

The Hawkeyes’ size could be a problem for FDU.

Iowa boasts a dominant frontcourt, anchored by sophomore center Ava Heiden (17.4 points and 7.3 rebounds) and senior forward Hannah Stuelke (13.4 points and 8.5 rebounds). They’re surrounded by steady shooters, including Chazadi Wright, who’s converting on 45.2 percent of attempts from deep.

But FDU is scrappy, confident and playing freely — a dangerous combination in March.

“We want to show them how good we are,” Rennington said. “A lot of people obviously are going to see us as an underdog, as a 15 seed, and I prefer that perspective than a Goliath because they’re not expecting you to come out. They’re like, ‘Oh, you’re a good team,’ but, like, as an underdog, you can come out and shock a lot of people by coming out and playing Iowa really well.”

“Our kids, they’re fighters,” Gaitley said. “I don’t think these kids are afraid at all. I think they’re just excited about the opportunity.”

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Michigan

Michigan vs. Saint Louis scouting report, prediction for March Madness second round

Published

48 minutes ago

March 20, 2026

Press Room

Michigan vs. Saint Louis scouting report, prediction for March Madness second round

James Hawkins of The Detroit News breaks down Michigan’s second-round opponent in the NCAA Tournament and predicts the outcome:

Michigan vs. Saint Louis scouting report

▶ Saint Louis (29-5) set a school record for victories in a season in dominate fashion. The ninth-seeded Billikens shot 58% from the field and set numerous program marks for an NCAA Tournament game in Thursday’s 102-77 shellacking of No. 8 seed Georgia, including points scored, field goals (42), assists (27) and margin of victory. Per KenPom’s rankings, the Bulldogs (No. 37) are the highest-rated team that Saint Louis has beaten this season and just the third top-50 team, after Santa Clara (No. 38) and VCU (No. 42), who both made the Big Dance.

▶ The Billikens rank in the top 15 nationally in numerous offensive and defensive categories. On offense, they’re second in 3-point shooting (40.2%), sixth in field-goal percentage (50.9%), 10th in made 3-pointers (10.9) and assists (18.3) per game, 10th in scoring offense (87.2 points) and 11th in 2-point shooting (59.6%). On defense, they lead the nation in opposing field goal percentage (37.9%), rank fifth in 2-point field goal percentage (44.6%) and are seventh in 3-point field goal percentage (29.8%).

▶ Redshirt junior guard Kellen Thames and redshirt sophomore guard Trey Green led the Atlantic 10 in 2-point shooting (67.8%) and 3-point shooting (45.7%), respectively. Green’s 3-point mark also ranks third in the nation and headlines a long-range attack that features four Billikens who are shooting at least 40% from deep on 50-plus attempts. The others are forward Brady Dunlap (44.1%), guard Ishan Sharma (42.8%), center Robbie Avila (41.6%) and guard Dion Brown (40.4%). Saint Louis has made as many as 19 3-pointers in a game this season and has drained at least 10 deep balls 22 times across 34 contests.

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Michigan vs. Saint Louis prediction

Saint Louis, the Atlantic 10 regular-season champion, carved up and dissected Georgia’s defense in a blowout win. The Billikens will provide much more of a test than Howard did, and Michigan is going to need to be locked in defensively from the start.

The Wolverines have struggled to guard stretch fives (see both Wisconsin games) and Saint Louis just so happens to have a big man — the bespectacled Robbie Avila — who shoots 40% from deep. If Michigan can find a way to solve that defensive dilemma, it should be Sweet 16-bound in its seventh straight NCAA Tournament appearance, though it might not come comfortably. Pick: Michigan, 84-78

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