MUNICH (AP) — Manuel Neuer was sent off for the first time and Bayern Munich crashed out of the German Cup in the third round with a 1-0 loss at home to defending champion Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday. The 38-year-old Neuer was never before sent off over a long career including 124 games for Germany, but the Bayern captain was shown a straight red card in the 17th minute for taking out Jeremie Frimpong with a body check when the Dutch winger was almost through on goal after a long pass from Johnathan Tah. Bayern’s players protested but there had been no attempt from Neuer to play the ball. Leverkusen needed patience to take advantage against a riled-up Bayern team that created better chances in the first half. The home team was without Harry Kane, injured over the weekend against Borussia Dortmund. Bayern confirmed a right hamstring injury and said the England captain will be out “for the time being.” Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso sent on Patrik Schick for the second half, but the in-form Czech forward limped off with what looked like a left calf injury after less than 15 minutes. Nathan Tella replaced Schick in the 61st, then scored eight minutes later with a header to Álex Grimaldo’s perfectly positioned cross. “The first title of the season is gone, and that hurts,” Bayern midfielder Joshua Kimmich said. Alonso, a former Bayern midfielder, has never lost in five games against his former club while Leverkusen coach. Bayern was knocked out in the second round last season. Also, Werder Bremen defeated second-division side Darmstadt 1-0. Earlier, 2022 finalist Freiburg was knocked out in a 3-1 loss at third-division team Arminia Bielefeld, and Stuttgart won 3-0 at Jahn Regensburg. AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccerMissing 31-year-old man found safe: Ottawa police

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The very close election for a North Carolina Supreme Court seat heads next to a hand recount even as election officials announced a machine recount of over 5.5 million ballots resulted in no margin change between the candidates. The statewide machine recount — in which ballots were run again through tabulators — that wrapped up this week showed Democratic Associate Justice Allison Riggs with a 734-vote lead over Republican challenger Jefferson Griffin, who is a Court of Appeals judge. Most county election boards reported minor vote changes from the machine recount requested by Griffin. But State Board of Elections data showed the post-recount lead exactly the same as what Riggs held after all 100 counties fully completed their ballot canvass in November. Griffin led Riggs by about 10,000 votes on election night, but that lead dwindled and flipped to Riggs as tens of thousands of qualifying provisional and absentee ballots were added to the totals through the canvass. Griffin, who already has pending election protests challenging the validity of more than 60,000 ballots counted statewide, has asked for a partial hand-to-eye recount, which county boards will start Wednesday or Thursday. The partial hand recount applies to ballots in 3% of the voting sites in all 100 counties, chosen at random Tuesday by the state board. Once the partial recount is complete, a statewide hand recount would be ordered if the sample results differ enough from the machine recount that the result would be reversed if the difference were extrapolated to all ballots. Riggs, who was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2023 and now seeks an eight-year term, again claimed victory Tuesday. In a campaign news release, spokesperson Embry Owen said Griffin “needs to immediately concede – losing candidates must respect the will of voters and not needlessly waste state resources.” Riggs is one of two Democrats on the seven-member court. Through attorneys, Griffin has challenged ballots that he says may not qualify for several reasons and cast doubt on the election result. Among them: voter registration records of some voters casting ballots lack driver's license or partial Social Security numbers, and overseas voters never living in North Carolina may run afoul of state residency requirements. State and county boards are considering the protests. Griffin's attorneys on Monday asked the state board to accelerate the matters before it and make a final ruling early next week. "Our priority remains ensuring that every legal vote is counted and that the public can trust the integrity of this election,” state Republican Party spokesperson Matt Mercer said in a news release. Final rulings by the state board can be appealed to state court. Joining Griffin in protests are three Republican legislative candidates who still trailed narrowly in their respective races after the machine recounts. The Supreme Court race and two of these three legislative races have not been called by The Associated Press. The key pending legislative race is for a House seat covering Granville County and parts of Vance County. Republican Rep. Frank Sossamon trails Democratic challenger Bryan Cohn by 228 votes, down from 233 votes before the recount. Sossamon also asked for a partial hard recount in his race, which was to begin Tuesday. Should Cohn win, Republicans will fall one seat short of the 72 needed in the 120-member House to retain its veto-proof majority — giving more leverage to Democratic Gov.-elect Josh Stein in 2025. Senate Republicans already have won 30 of the 50 seats needed to retain its supermajority in their chamber. The AP on Tuesday did call another legislative race not subject to a protest, as Mecklenburg County GOP Rep. Tricia Cotham won her reelection bid over Democrat Nicole Sidman. A machine recount showed Cotham ahead of Sidman by 213 votes, compared to 216 after the county canvass. Cotham’s switch from the Democrats to the Republicans in April 2023 secured the Republicans' 72-seat veto-proof majority so that Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s vetoes could be overridden by relying solely on GOP lawmakers. Gary D. Robertson, The Associated PressTitle: A Baby's Rollercoaster of Emotions in Just a Few Seconds of Getting a ShotThe Ministry also stressed the importance of peaceful dialogue and diplomatic solutions to resolve conflicts and disputes. Taiwan advocates for peaceful coexistence and constructive engagement with its neighbors, and believes that dialogue and cooperation are the key to maintaining stability and prosperity in the region.Don't miss out on this opportunity to be part of the excitement and celebration of the TGA Player's Choice Awards Final Nominees. Get ready to witness gaming history in the making and see which games will be honored for their exceptional achievements in the industry. Let the countdown to the TGA awards begin!

The highly anticipated sequel to the popular action role-playing game "Path of Exile" has taken the gaming world by storm as it continues to break records and exceed expectations. Developed by Grinding Gear Games, "Path of Exile 2" has reached impressive milestones in terms of sales and revenue since its early access release on Steam.Gophers linebacker Cody Lindenberg declares for NFL draft

Neuer gets sent off for 1st time and Bayern Munich exits German Cup early again