kings

The Kings League was born in 2023 to put an end to traditional football. Three years later he declared an ERE

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Gerard Piqué built a soccer league for the Twitch generation, and three years later he has cut 50% of his team, closed his leagues in France and Germany with no return date at the moment, and paralyzed the Spanish competition for six months. and the internet numbers and engagement on the internet they were not badbut that wasn’t the problem. The problem is that real football has other places where it reigns without rival. What has happened? Kings League workers published yesterday a statement in which they dismantled the version that the company had leaked to the press two days before starting the ERE negotiations. The company had spoken of a 30% cut in the workforce and the real figure, according to those affected themselves, is 41 layoffs out of 83 workers: almost 50%. At the same time, the French and German leagues are paralyzed with no expected return date, and the Spanish league stops its activity for six months to, in the words of the organization, “prepare the product for the future.” Kings League CEO Djamel Agaoua, incorporated in 2025, admits in the corporate statement that “money has been burned.” The simultaneous expansion to Brazil, Germany, Italy and the MENA region, managed from the offices in Spain, was economically unaffordable. Story of an ambition. The Kings League started on January 1, 2023 with digital audience figures that scared LaLiga. The first day reached an average of 300,000 people watching the matches between the league channel and the streamers on Twitch. They achieved a peak of 800,000 viewers only on the league’s main channel, data similar to the average of all LaLiga matches the previous season. Comparisons were published everywhere: it seemed that Piqué had found the crack in traditional football. Streamer world. Streamers like Ibai Llanos, TheGrefg or Guarnizo were presidents of the teams, and that turned each game into an extension of the entertainment that their communities already consumed. The format had gamified rules, random penalties, special cards. It was soccer 7, but designed for those who have been playing ‘FIFA’ for ten years. The numbers trick. However, Twitch’s numbers don’t exactly measure sustained following. In 2024 the drop compared to the first figures was evident: the decrease was 54% compared to the first months of the competition, with an average of 192,000 spectators at the beginning of that season. That year’s final reached only 258,000 people on average with a peak of 425,000. In the first months of 2023, the same competition had accumulated more than two million viewers at its maximum peak, adding the official channel plus those of each streamer-president. By then, the Kings League had bought into its own narrative, and oversupply compounded the problem. The first split, the second split, the Queens League, the Prince Cup, the Kings Cup, the Queen’s Cup and the Kingdom Cup suffocated the product, and each new tournament diluted attention rather than focused it. One round. In February 2026, with audiences already declining, the Kings League closed an investment round for 53 million euros. The round was led by the American fund Alignment Growth, with the stated objective of expanding the competition globally, with the United States as a goal. With this operation, the Kings League accumulated more than 160 million dollars in total financing since its launch. Four months later the ERE has arrived, and the workers are pointing in that direction: the company has just raised 63 million euros and the savings that justifies dismissing almost half of the workforce is just over two million. A martyrdom The workers’ statement also describes the work culture that prevailed in the company: three years of seven-day weeks, averages of ten hours a day, and overtime systematically above the legal limit of 80 hours per year established by the Workers’ Statute, in most cases without financial compensation or rest. On June 8, the CEO congratulated the entire team on the success of the Queens League final and two days later, the ERE was in the media. Had he left? The question, then, is whether the Kings League has ever had the possibility of competing with football. We have a precedent in American football: in 2001, Vince McMahon and NBC they launched the XFL with the aim of becoming the entertaining alternative to the NFL, with fewer penalties and a format with elements of reality show. The first broadcast achieved 54 million viewers, but by the following week the audience had fallen by 50%, with a continuous decline until the closure after a single season. Apparently, viewers were not interested in a hybrid between sport and wrestling spectacle. Unbeatable football. Spanish football has fans in third regional teams that fill stands with 800 people every weekend. This link does not arise from the product being entertaining, but rather from the fact that it is part of the local identity and, in many cases, family or territorial traditions. A child who grows up watching Rayo Vallecano or Villarreal with his father does not give the same identification value to a streamer. Even though he has a million followers. Football accumulates emotional capital for decades and the Kings League had to build it from scratch. And now? There are some pending issues: the Kings World Cup Clubs in Italy will be held in July 2026, and we will try to move forward with those who are still in the company. Piqué, in turn, publicly tested after the Queens League final the possibility of compressing the entire competition into a format of a few days. That is, a possible solution is to lower the ambition. Maybe it would have been a good exit idea. In Xataka | The Kings League has debuted on traditional television. It has had less audience than a La 2 documentary

They did not need kings or nobles to build them

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Four thousand years ago, on the central plains of China, a community of about five hundred people built something that has taken us millennia to discover: a network of ceramic pipes. Longshan period buried under its streets. They are not the oldest pipes in human history (that honor corresponds to the Temple of Bel in Nippur and in Eshnunna in Mesopotamia), but those of China. Finding such an ancient and complete drainage network is a milestone from an architectural point of view, but the discovery goes one step further: demonstrates that preparedness for natural disasters is truly a lifelong experience. Because the pipelines at the Pingliangtai oilfield were built monsoon-proof. The discovery. The paper published in Nature Water describes the results of excavation and a geoarchaeological study of water management infrastructure, which reveal the operation and maintenance of a well-planned and regulated two-level rainwater drainage system. On the first level there were individual domestic ditches that collected water from each home and on the second a network of ceramic pipes buried under the roads and next to the walls, responsible for channeling the water outside the urban center. The operation is surprisingly modern: each segment of pipe measured between 20 and 30 centimeters in diameter and between 30 and 40 centimeters in length and were assembled together thanks to a recess at one end, so that once joined they allowed water to be transported over long distances. Why is it important. The relevance of the finding has two dimensions, the technical and the social: The Pingliangtai pipe network is the oldest and most complete urban drainage discovered to date in China, making it a reference for understanding Neolithic water engineering in East Asia. Calls into question “hydraulic despotism” theorized by Karl Wittfogel: Historically this type of infrastructure has been associated with centralized states with ruling elites capable of undertaking it, but in Pingliangtai there is no evidence of noble palaces or great social inequalities, which suggests that this sewage network was created through community cooperation. Context. The Longshan period spanned approximately 2600 to 2000 BC About 4,000 years ago, the central plains region of China suffered from an extremely variable monsoon climate: the summer monsoons could download 45 centimeters of rain per month in the region, as evidenced by geological evidence of episodes of catastrophic rains. These seasonal floods constituted a threat to permanent settlements, so in that transition period between the late Neolithic and the early Bronze Age, towns began to build defensive walls, not only against enemies, but against water. Pingliangtai was a perfectly square walled city that housed about 500 people and had protective walls and a moat around it. It is located on the plain of the Upper Huai River, in the vast plain of Huanghuaihai, precisely in that region of China. The drainage system was the technical solution to an existential problem: how to inhabit a flood-prone area without the adobe homes dissolving with each storm. With “up to date” maintenance. The dating of the pipes indicates that they are between 3,900 and 4,100 years old and the ditches showed signs of various repairs and even reconstructions, which shows that there was maintenance. The quality of the ceramic indicates advanced knowledge in clay firing, essential to guarantee the durability and impermeability of the system. And be careful, because the research team found the pipe segments in situ, assembled and structurally intact after 4,000 years, quite an achievement. Given that the slope exists, the design is coherent and the tubes still fit, the hydraulic logic is still intact. Bottom line: if water was introduced into those fragments, it would work. What the discovery reveals about the city and society. What most attracts the attention of the research team from Peking University and the Institute of Archeology at University College London is that the Pingliangtai settlement point to a horizontal and highly organized society. All the houses were uniformly small and not even the cemetery left any clues of social hierarchy, something different regarding the excavations in other nearby cities. Unlike Mesopotamia or Egypt, where these constructions were commissioned by kings, the design of the houses and the distribution of pipes suggest that decisions were made communally. Thus, water management in Pingliangtai gravitated toward shared collective interest in response to frequent environmental contingencies. Additionally, it displays a long-term prevention and maintenance mindset, as the system required constant cleaning to prevent sediment blockages. In Xataka | What we see in Petra is a city “carved in stone”: what it really hides is an amazing water system In Xataka | China has been selling its largest waterfall to tourists for years as a wonder of nature. It is actually fed with a tube Cover | Yanpeng Cao

Five offers in technology and entertainment from MediaMarkt during its Three Kings campaign, today, January 4

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The year 2026 has started almost the same way it ended: with very interesting offers in several of the most important stores. One of them is MediaMarkt, which continues to be active his Kings promoalthough only It will be until next Tuesday at 9 in the morning. Until then, we have a little time to take advantage of their best deals. And there is where to choose. We have significant discounts on mobile phones, consoles, laptops and more. It is difficult to make a selection that everyone likes, but below we leave you a selection of five offers that we find very interesting: Galaxy S25 Ultra by 890.10 eurosa great price for one of the best phones of 2025. Lenovo Legion 5 laptop by 1,299 eurosgaming equipment designed to squeeze out any game at 1080p. Apple Watch Series 11 by 365 eurosone of the best prices for this Apple wearable. PlayStation 5 Slim Digital by 369 eurosthe cheapest of the PS5 along with a card with credit to spend in the PlayStation store. Apple AirPods 4 by 109 eurosheadphones that stand out for offering great sound and good autonomy. Galaxy S25 Ultra It is true that Samsung has its next batch of phones in the oven, but that does not mean that the S25 Ultra be a bad option. Nothing could be further from the truth, and even more so considering that we can get hold of it for 890.10 euros if we register in myMediaMarkt (it’s free and only takes two minutes). As for the phone, there is little that we don’t already know: large screen, good performance and an outstanding camera system, as well as seven years of guaranteed updates. Mobile – Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, Titanium Black, 512 GB, 12 GB RAM, 6.9″ WQHD+, Snapdragon 8, 5000 mAh, Android 15 The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Lenovo Legion 5 laptop With the current price of RAMAssembling a gaming PC in parts is really complicated. As an alternative, we can always buy a complete and pre-assembled device, as is the case with this Lenovo Legion 5 15IRX10. It is a device designed to play at 1080p with outstanding performance, something that we will achieve thanks to its RTX 5060. It also has 32 GB of RAM, 1 TB of SSD and a 15.1-inch OLED screen. It is reduced to 1,299 euros. Gaming laptop – Lenovo Legion 5 15IRX10, 15.1″ WQXGA OLED, Intel® Core™ i7-13650HX, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD, GeForce RTX™ 5060, Windows 11 Home, Black The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Apple Watch Series 11 If we are looking for a new watch and we want something from the Apple ecosystem, this Watch Series 11 has a great price on MediaMarkt: it is reduced to 365 eurosone of its best prices. This version of it, 42 millimeters, uses an OLED screen and mounts the Apple S10 chip, so we will get top performance from it. With it, we will be able to keep track of our training or our health. Apple Watch Series 11 (2025), GPS, 42 mm, Rose gold aluminum case, Blush pink sport band, S/M, Sleep quality, 24h battery life The price could vary. We earn commission from these links PlayStation 5 Slim Digital This MediaMarkt promo also has some interesting offers on consoles. We can get a PlayStation 5 for 369 eurosa good price, but it looks even better if we take into account that it includes a 20 euro credit card to buy in the PlayStation digital store. It should be noted that this is the version without a console reader, although we can purchase it separately whenever we want. Console – Sony PS5 Slim Digital Edition, 825 GB SSD, 4K, D Chassis, White + PS Plus Card €20 The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Apple AirPods 4 To close this selection of offers, we have these AirPods 4 in their most economical version. As usual with Apple headphones, we can expect very good sound from them, IP54 certification against water and dust and an autonomy that goes up to 30 hours of music playback if we add the battery in the case. They are reduced to 109 eurosits historical minimum until today in this store. Apple AirPods 4 (2024 4th gen), Wireless, Bluetooth®, USB-C charging case, H2 Chip, Siri, USB-C, White The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | Purchaseddiction, Samsung, Lenovo, Apple, PlayStation In Xataka | Best wireless headphones. Which one to buy and 21 models from 15 euros to 470 euros In Xataka | The best mobile phones, we have tested them and here are their analyzes

For decades, the “00000” has fascinated Christmas Lottery players. The reason: the King’s Number

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All the Lottery numbers They have the same chance of winning the Christmas prize, but not all of them generate the same interest or are surrounded by the same halo of fascination. Perhaps one of the most enigmatic is the “00000”. And it is because the doubts it raisesquestions that resurface every December just like the nougats in the supermarkets, the perfume ads on TV or the LED lights in Vigo. Does it really exist? Can it be purchased? And above all… Is it true that it is the number that gives Lotteries and Betting from the State to the Royal House? There are those who are so sure of the latter that they even refer to “00000” as “The King’s Number”although (spoiler) it is not actually founded. Is 00000 played? Yeah. In the Christmas raffle they play 100,000 numbers different. From 00000 to 99,999. Both included. In fact, a quick search arrives to confirm that the first issue on the list has been sold this year in half a dozen of branches in Cádiz, Las Palmas, La Rioja, Valencia and Murcia. After all, there is nothing written about tastes (and superstitions): there are those who see 00000 as an ‘ugly’ number, a combination to avoid with little chance of receiving the jackpot, and those who bet their 20 euros on it as the winning horse. Have you ever played? No. Not at least if we’re talking about El Gordo or millionaire prizes, although that doesn’t make 00000 a special number either. Although the National Lottery traces its origins to 1812 (when the biggest prize amounted to 8,000 pesos) and the Christmas draw began to become popular 133 years agoin reality there are not so many numbers graced with El Gordo. That doesn’t mean that 00000 hasn’t made more than one person’s day (or Christmas). In 2014 he achieved a stones of 120 euros. It may not seem like a big deal, but that year the same administration in Logroño had sold 160 lucky tickets, leaving money in the pockets of its clients. 19,200 euros. In 1828 luck also happened to him. That year the lucky number was 00523. To many the figure may not be attractive because it is too ‘low’, but the truth is that the drums do not understand low or high numbers. Lotteries remember that Gordo touched figures between 0 and 10,000 61 times, 70 times to bills from 10,001 to 30,000 and 64 times to combinations ranging from 30,001 to 66,000. The King’s Number? One of the most famous myths about 00000 is that, precisely because it is the first in the numerical sequence, State Lotteries and Betting reserves a special destiny for it: a gift for the Royal House. You don’t have to look hard to find articles that remember a story that in reality is nothing more than that: a story, pure urban legend. “No. It is a baseless rumor. Institutionally, no tenth is given away,” they clarified already in 2011 from Lotteries to the newspaper ABC. It is not the only occasion in which he has had to deny the hoax. “No tenth with the number 00000 is given to the king for the Christmas draw,” insist to RTVE. The best proof is that the tenths of 00000 can be found in various administrations in the country and in 2014 the media even they interviewed to one of the winners with the 120 euro stone. Curiously, she decided to play that number and not another because she was convinced that it was the one they used in Zarzuela. Curious, commented… Feared? 00000 not only generates expectation for its history and myths. There is another detail that arouses the curiosity of Christmas Lottery lovers. In case he wins the first prize, if chance showers him with millions of euros… How the hell would it be sung? Would we hear the children of San Ildefonso hum “zero thousand zero hundred zero zero”? Would you opt for a simpler formula? theEconomist assures that 00000 would simply be sung as “zero”, without further flourishes. Although another thing (of course) is that their nerves play tricks on them on the 22nd. Images | SELAE 1 and 2 and Royal House In Xataka | ChatGPT You have the same chance of hitting the Lottery Jackpot as a witch reading the guts of a crow

The best gifts to include in your ‘beauty’ kings letter

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After several weeks thinking about what gifts we are going to give to our loved ones—and which ones we are going to ask for for ourselves—it is likely that there are many ideas running through our minds. Furthermore, now one of the most important dates is approaching, the long-awaited Three Kings’ night, where the expectations of gifts rise and both the gesture and the emotion of seeing what is behind it become important. of the wrapping paper. And we are not going to fool ourselves, after debating so many days with ourselves about what is the best detail for that special person, finding a gift that lives up to it is mandatory. For this reason—and after many years of experience in shopping malls Christmas—we have the definitive list. As much as for our partner, sister, best friend or for gifts to us. There are gifts of beauty that are pure magic, and once the person who receives them gets hold of them, they will love them for a lifetime. Take note! For them: 1. A fragrance that captures the essence of the Mediterranean Aromas are also a way of traveling, and For those men who present unconditional love to the Mediterranean, give them Acqua di Giò Eau de Toilette It is the best way to ensure that they always carry it. It is not in vain that this fragrance is pure freshness. What we like most are its marine and bergamot notes that take us to the shore. But the Mediterranean is not just the sea, it is also a forest, which is why at its heart we find jasmine, cedar wood and rosemary. As a finishing touch, masculinity, represented by white musks and patchouli—and by its ambassador, actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson. See more photos here © Giorgio Armani © Giorgio Armani 2. A perfume that is pure attraction If you are thinking of giving a gift to a authentic man, self-confident and who likes novelty, you will be right with MYSLF Eau De Parfum. This fragrance is designed for those who define the codes of modern masculinity. As soon as it comes into contact with the skin, we perceive a fresh and vibrant accord of Calabrian bergamot and bergamot vert. At its heart, an ingredient created exclusively for Yves Saint Laurent, Tunisian orange blossom absolute. In the top notes, a woody, sensual and textured accord made of Indonesian patchouli heart and Ambrofix™. It’s no surprise that Yves Saint Laurent’s first woody floral fragrance is Austin Butler’s favorite. © Yves Saint Laurent 3. A scent that encapsulates the power of nature For those men who are passionate about nature and everything it offers, there is a scent called to be theirs, Luna Rossa Ocean Eau de Toilette. And all the fragrances in the Luna Rossa family are a living expression of nature and its elements. Formulas that denote innovation, strength and freshness, and inspired by the high-tech fabrics of the men’s fashion line. Specifically, his Eau de Toilette He has a noble and sensual personality. With olfactory notes featuring lavender, this ingredient is formulated in a more innovative way that exposes its vibrant notes in their best version. For them: 1. A youthful perfume (and with a sensual touch) There is a type of fragrance that I have a weakness for, and they are those that are created around a feminine and liberal woman who goes beyond the canons established. And the thing is, if there is a scent that draws with all its notes this prototype of a woman, it is My Way Nectar Eau de Parfum by Giorgio Armani. An olfactory creation that is born from the exquisite combination of succulent pear and radiant tuberose, formulated with sustainable ingredients that come from all over the world. A perfume that gives off freshness as soon as you remove its cap, and that boasts a floral, fruity, youthful and sensual facet. And no one better than Sydney Sweeney as an image, a reflection of the femininity and free spirit that her notes evoke. See more photos here © Giorgio Armani 2. A dose of happiness made into fragrance Raising our serotonin levels with a daily gesture is possible, you just need a few drops of the appropriate fragrance. And that’s how Life is beautiful L’Elixir Eau de Parfum from Lancôme is going straight to becoming the aroma of happiness before the end of the year. This perfume encourages women to explore themselves, because we are our best way to achieve a permanent state of well-being. A woody floral fragrance gourmandwith the presence of violet leaf, cocoa butter and its signature ingredient, raspberry liqueur. This sweet and enveloping perfume – which becomes addictive – has Julia Roberts as its image, and who better to encourage us to love ourselves? © Lancôme © Lancôme 3. The power of the night transformed into olfactory notes We all have in our lives a woman who radiates empowerment, charisma and confidence; In other words, a woman who does the matches perfect with Black Opium by Yves Saint Laurent. A Eau de Parfum Created for those destined to become queens of the night, each of its ingredients is an impulse to live new experiences. This best seller It marked a milestone in the universe of perfumery by using a high amount of coffee accord in its composition. An ingredient that, together with white flowers, orange blossom absolute, sampaguita and vanilla, creates a fragrance that is pure sensuality. Now I understand why it has been—and continues to be—my sister’s favorite fragrance. for so many years. 4. A ritual that stimulates the shine of our skin If there is something we love in the newsroom this festive season, it is shine, and why not bring it to the skin too? Under this philosophy is how Lancôme has created its gift box Rénergie HCF Triple Serumwhich already captures all our attention by the design of its packagingwork of the French artist Safia Ouares and inspired by the glitter of … Read more

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