CNN
 — 

Liverpool has been crowned Premier League champion after its decisive 5-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

Liverpool’s nearest rival, Arsenal, could only manage a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace on Wednesday, leaving the Reds a point away from securing the Premier League title.

Spurs struck first with a goal from Dominic Solanke in the 12th minute to cast a shadow of doubt over the sunny afternoon in Liverpool. But Luis Díaz answered just four minutes later to quickly bring the match back to level.

And goals from Alexis Mac Allister, Cody Gakpo, Mohamed Salah and Destiny Udogie secured Liverpool’s top of the table finish and clinched the title in front of its own fans at Anfield.

It is Liverpool’s 20th top-flight league title, becoming England’s joint-most successful club in domestic league competition alongside Manchester United.

WE’RE PREMIER LEAGUE CHAMPIONS! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/2IbnXCX4mF

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) April 27, 2025

Liverpool had won 18 First Division titles prior to the competition’s rebrand as the Premier League in 1992. The club won a further league title in 2020, with supporters forced to celebrate in their homes due to the Covid-19 lockdown.

With the last of Liverpool’s First Division titles coming in 1990, the city is gearing up to properly enjoy a league title for the first time in 35 years.

The Reds’ success this season has come as a surprise to some given it is manager Arne Slot’s first year as head coach in Merseyside.

“When the season started, everybody would have been happy if we were in the top four, if we managed to get champions league next season again,” he said after the match. “But I don’t think that was fair to our players because they are much better than that and that’s what they showed this season.”

Slot becomes the first Dutch to win the Premier League.

Last summer, Slot replaced club legend Jürgen Klopp – who won one Premier League, one Champions League, one FA Cup, two EFL Cups, one FIFA Club World Cup, one UEFA Super Cup and one Community Shield during his almost nine-year stint at Liverpool.

Despite bookmakers considering Liverpool third favorite for the title at the beginning of the season – behind Manchester City and Arsenal – Slot has made a mockery of the suggestion that Klopp’s shoes were too big for him to fill.

Spurred on by Premier League leading scorer and top assist-maker Salah and iconic club captain Virgil van Dijk, Liverpool has been top of the table since early November and, in truth, no other team has looked capable of catching up since then.

Salah said this title is better than the one Liverpool earned five years ago.

“Incredible. To win the Premier League here with the fans is something special, you saw that today and you saw that every game,” Salah said. “You have a different group now, different manager, so you showed that you’re able to do it again, that’s something special.”

As for Arsenal, the Gunners endured a frustrating domestic campaign despite having made it through to the semifinals of the Champions League, while Manchester City has suffered an unlikely drop in form after winning four straight Premier League titles between 2021 and 2024.

Vatican City
CNN
 — 

The bells of St. Peter’s Basilica tolled to mark the end of the funeral of Pope Francis in Vatican City, where tens of thousands of mourners gathered to give a final send-off to a pontiff who was celebrated during the service as a champion of migrants and the poor.

His funeral Mass was held on the steps of the basilica, one of the Catholic Church’s most important sites, with more than 50 world leaders and 11 reigning monarchs in attendance. They included US President Donald Trump, and former President Joe Biden, Argentine President Javier Milei, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., head of the largest Catholic nation in Asia. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky also attended and met with Trump before the funeral.

The crowds that flocked to St. Peter’s Square for the Mass watched mostly in silence, breaking it only to sing and follow along with prayers, and to applaud when they saw Francis’ coffin.

The modest coffin was carried back into the basilica for a final time at the end of the roughly two-hour-long service, which saw him praised as a “pope among the people.” It was then taken in procession across the River Tiber to the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore for burial, passing Rome’s ancient Colosseum on the way.

“I loved him from the very first moment, because he was human, with such an open heart,” said Anita Althaus, from Germany, just as the funeral Mass ended. She’d driven overnight to make it in time. “He had love always.”

More than 250,000 people participated in the service in St. Peter’s Square, according to the Vatican. About 150,000 more lined the 6-kilometer (3.7-mile) procession route from Vatican City through Rome to his final resting place.

Many more of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics watched the funeral for the first Latin American pope on TV.

Pope Francis died at the age of 88 after suffering a stroke on Easter Monday, just one day after he appeared in the same square to offer a blessing to the faithful at the high point of the Christian calendar.

In the days that followed, about 250,000 mourners came to pay their final respects as his body lay in state inside St. Peter’s Basilica. His coffin was officially sealed on Friday night in a liturgical rite led by the Cardinal Camerlengo Kevin Farrell, the acting head of the church.

As sunlight gleamed off the massive travertine columns of St. Peter’s Square on Saturday morning, the funeral Mass opened with the chant, sung in Latin: “Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.”

Giving the homily, Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, said Francis’ “gestures and exhortations in favour of refugees and displaced persons are countless. His insistence on working on behalf of the poor was constant.”

The cardinal continued that, during his time as head of the Church, the pope had faced “raging wars, with their inhumane horrors” and had “incessantly raised his voice imploring peace… and inviting honest negotiation to find possible solutions.” He recalled that “build bridges, not walls” was an exhortation Francis repeated many times.

Cardinals also delivered a short prayer in multiple other languages, including French, Arabic, Portuguese, Polish, German and, for the first time, Mandarin, fitting for a pope who sought to reach out to followers in all parts of the globe.

In keeping with tradition, Holy Communion was distributed first among the cardinals and then among the crowd in the square. The mood became uplifting as people turned to one another to offer handshakes of peace, and crowds moved out of the way to let others pass for communion.

Francis approved the order of the day back in June 2024. Some elements were pared back, as he had sought to “simplify and adapt” proceedings, so that the papal funeral is “that of a pastor and disciple of Christ, and not of a powerful person in this world,” according to Vatican officials.

Francis, who chose his name in honor of St. Francis of Assisi, with his commitment to poverty, peace and nature, also wanted to reflect his own dedication to the homeless and disadvantaged in the day’s events.

He believed “the poor have a privileged place in the heart of God,” a Holy See statement said. “For this reason, a group of poor and needy people will be present on the steps leading to the papal Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore to pay their last respects to Pope Francis before the burial of his coffin.”

At his “insistence,” groups of people Francis felt were marginalized were also invited to watch the service in St. Peter’s Square. Those involved were chosen by the charity Sant’Egidio, and they included the homeless, migrants, the impoverished and a group of transgender women who live in a convent in Rome.

Francis will be the first pope in more than three centuries to be buried at Santa Maria Maggiore, with the interment taking place away from the public eye.

Sister Evelyn told CNN she chose to come to Santa Maria Maggiore on Saturday instead of the Vatican because the pope’s real work was among the people.

“I work in the periphery and when Pope Francis recognized us, we felt heard,” she said of his recognition of the African church. “We are seen. Will the new pope still see us? That question will come after today.”

Francis was a pope of many firsts – the first Latin American pontiff, the first of the Jesuit order and the first modern-day pope born outside of Europe.

Elected in 2013 as an outsider candidate from Argentina, Francis went on to usher in progressive reforms, including the promotion of women’s roles in the church.

But his 12-year leadership was not without criticism. He took some important steps to address the Catholic Church’s clerical sexual abuse scandals, but campaigners and survivors say there is still much more to do.

Divisions within the Church over same-sex relationships also persisted throughout his papacy. When asked about his position on sexual orientation, the pope famously said, “Who am I to judge?” He went on to authorize the blessings of same-sex couples, although he did not formally change the Church’s doctrine.

And his record was disparaged by some of the more conservative cardinals and members of the Church.

Francis issued a rebuke of the Trump administration’s immigration policy earlier this year, and criticized Vice President JD Vance’s use of theology to defend its approach. Vance was one of the last people to meet with the pope, in a brief encounter on Easter Sunday.

The next pope will be chosen by cardinals from around the world in conclave, a closed-door process that may see a battle play out between those who want to continue Pope Francis’ progressive path and those who want to reverse it.

Candela Rodríguez, a university exchange student studying in Rome but from Seville, Spain, told CNN she hoped the next pope would be “similar to Francisco and not extravagant. And close to the people, as he was.”

Pope Francis “did a good job of bringing religion closer to young people… he was very progressive and tried to make the Church closer to everyone,” the 21-year-old said, adding that she felt “very fortunate” to be in Rome for the funeral.

Catholics throughout the world have differing opinions, but many believers gathered in Vatican City this week told CNN that they are proud of Francis’ record.

“The pope did a lot to put marginalized people first,” said Federico Burlón, from Argentina, as he waited to enter the colonnade of St. Peter’s Square early on Saturday. “It’s very sad, but it’s a celebration of his life. And I hope the next pope will continue his way of turning the Church back to poor people.”

“He was a very simple man, who loved other people,” said Sister Luisa, a nun from Munich. “We feel very blessed, but also deep sorrow.”

CNN’s Sophie Tanno, Christopher Lamb, Antonia Mortensen, Barbie Latza Nadeau, Lauren Said-Moorhouse and James Frater contributed to this report.

CNN
 — 

US President Donald Trump questioned whether Russian leader Vladimir Putin wants a peace deal, shortly after meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky in the heart of the Vatican minutes before the start of the funeral of Pope Francis on Saturday.

Saturday marked the first face-to-face encounter between Trump and Zelensky since a disastrous White House meeting in February, when the president and other US officials publicly berated Zelensky for being insufficiently grateful for US support and briefly suspended arms shipments and intelligence sharing.

The White House has since mounted an increasingly urgent push to strike a peace deal in Ukraine.

Photographs released by the Ukrainian presidency showed the two leaders huddled in close discussion without aides in the ornate surroundings of St. Peter’s Basilica.

Zelensky thanked Trump for the “good meeting” in a post on social media.

“We discussed a lot one on one. Hoping for results on everything we covered,” Zelensky wrote. “Protecting lives of our people. Full and unconditional ceasefire. Reliable and lasting peace that will prevent another war from breaking out. Very symbolic meeting that has potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results.”

A White House spokesman accompanying Trump said that the two leaders “met privately today and had a very productive discussion.” Officials from both Zelensky’s camp and Trump’s said the meeting lasted for about 15 minutes, and the leaders agreed to continue talks.

In a Truth Social post sent as he returned from Rome after the meeting, Trump raised the prospect of applying new sanctions on Russia after its assault on Kyiv last week, questioning whether Putin is interested in peace.

“There was no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days,” Trump wrote. “It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!”

The meeting occurred just outside the Baptistry Chapel, which is inside St. Peter’s Basilica near its entrance, and the talk hadn’t been telegraphed in advance.

Ahead of the US president’s brief visit to Rome, officials had downplayed the prospect he would meet with Zelensky or any other world leaders, pointing to the truncated time frame for the trip and its solemn purpose of memorializing the late pope.

Trump had originally selected Saudi Arabia for his first stop abroad of his new term and will visit there next month. But when Francis died those plans changed, and instead Trump made his first foreign stop in Europe, a continent he’s railed against frequently.

The seating chart and crush of fellow leaders made brief interactions possible, including with leaders Trump had seemingly been avoiding since taking office. He engaged briefly with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, with whom he hadn’t spoken at all since returning to office amid trade and defense disputes with the European Union.

The seating protocol — arranged alphabetically by country name in French — dictated Trump’s position alongside the Estonian and Finnish leaders, with whom he interacted briefly.

In other cases, Trump exchanged pleasantries with other leaders who have been working on parallel efforts to help resolve the Ukraine war. He shook hands with French President Emmanuel Macron during the funeral mass’s sign of the peace (Ukraine’s Foreign Minister also posted a photo of Macron and Zelensky meeting Saturday).

The US has been applying more pressure on Ukraine after threatening last week it could walk away from the talks “within days” if it becomes clear a deal cannot be reached.

Trump said Friday that Russia and Ukraine are “very close to a deal” that would end the conflict, which Russia launched in 2014 and escalated with its full-scale invasion of its neighbor in 2022.

The president’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin for three hours on Friday, according to Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, who said the talks were “constructive and very useful.”

Before leaving Kyiv for Rome on Friday, Zelensky suggested a number of compromises with the goal of advancing peace talks.

“In the coming days, very significant meetings may take place — meetings that should bring us closer to silence for Ukraine,” he said.

“We are ready for dialogue, I emphasize again, in any format with anyone,” he said, but “only after a real signal that Russia is ready to end the war. Such a signal is a complete and unconditional ceasefire.”

Kyiv and Moscow have not met directly since the early weeks of Moscow’s February 2022 invasion of its smaller neighbor. Any direct talks would likely require further discussion and add delay to the diplomacy the Trump administration has hoped will yield results in a matter of days.

Accepting that Ukraine would not join NATO in the foreseeable future, Zelensky said: “I think we have to be pragmatic. We have to understand what security guarantees Ukraine needs.”

Zelensky said those guarantees might include a military contingent from Europe and what he called a “backstop” from the United States.

“For us, the backstop does not necessarily have to be boots on the ground in Ukraine,” Zelensky said, but could include cyber defense “and above all Patriot air defense systems.”

On Thursday, Kyiv was hit by the largest wave of Russian missile strikes since July last year. Twelve people were killed.

Zelensky also spoke Friday of what he called “constructive” proposals drawn up in London this week between Ukrainian and European officials.

A copy of those proposals was obtained by Reuters. Titled “Ukraine Deal Framework,” it proposes a full and unconditional ceasefire in the sky, on land and at sea, as Ukraine has previously agreed to.

Monitoring of the ceasefire would be led by the US and supported by third countries, according to the draft obtained by Reuters. CNN has confirmed its contents.

The draft proposed Ukraine would receive “robust security guarantees including from the US … while there is no consensus among Allies on NATO membership.” Those would be similar to those in NATO’s Article 5, under which all members are obliged to assist an attacked nation.

One part of the draft that is likely to be opposed by Moscow says that “the guarantor states will be an ad hoc group of European countries and willing non-European countries.” There would be “no restrictions on the presence, weapons and operations of friendly foreign forces on the territory of Ukraine,” nor on the size of the Ukrainian military.

The draft says negotiations on territory would begin after the ceasefire comes into effect, and their starting point would be the current frontlines. But it adds that Ukraine would regain control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which has been occupied by Russian forces since March 2022.

On the proposed minerals agreement between the US and Ukraine, which would give the US access to billions of dollars-worth of rare metals, the draft says Ukraine will be fully compensated financially, including through Russian assets that will remain frozen until Russia compensates damage to Ukraine.

Moscow is also likely to oppose that.

The draft obtained by Reuters does not specifically mention Crimea. Witkoff’s plan proposed the US recognize Crimea as part of Russia, but did not suggest that Ukraine also had to. Recognizing Russian control of Crimea, which Moscow illegally annexed in 2014, would cross a major red line for Ukraine and its European allies, and would be in breach of established international law.

Zelensky rejected the idea, saying there was “nothing to talk about” as such a recognition would be against Ukraine’s constitution. He told reporters Friday: “I agree with President Trump that Ukraine does not have enough weapons to regain control of the Crimean peninsula by force of arms. But the world has sanctions opportunities, other economic pressure.”

CNN reported this week that Trump was getting frustrated with the stalling talks and has privately told advisers that mediating a deal has been more difficult than he anticipated.

Saturday’s talks came as Putin announced that Russia has regained control of Kursk, the border region where Ukraine launched a surprise offensive last year.

“The Kyiv regime’s adventure has completely failed,” Putin said, congratulating the Russian forces that he said defeated the Ukrainian military in the region.

But the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces said in a Telegram post that Putin’s claim was “not true.”

“The defensive operation of the Ukrainian Defense Forces in the designated areas in Kursk region continues. The operational situation is difficult, but our units continue to hold their positions and perform their assigned tasks,” the Telegram post said.

CNN is unable to independently verify battlefield reports.