The Olive Press - Olive Press News Spain

Ex-Premier League footballer arrested on the Costa del Sol: Brit, 47, accused of drug trafficking after ‘police discover marijuana and knives in shop raid

DRUGS, cash and packaging equipment uncovered in Riviera del Sol shop raid expose suspected trafficking operation linked to ex-Premier League player. The 47-year-old British man

19 Mar, 2026 @ 20:00

Costa del Sol·Crime & Law·Lead

Cocaine traces in Barcelona’s wastewater nearly triple as four Spanish cities come in the European top 15 – while another refused to join study after years of topping Spain’s charts

COCAINE use in Barcelona has surged dramatically, with wastewater data from 2025 showing levels nearly tripled compared to the previous year, according to a Europe-wide

19 Mar, 2026 @ 18:45

Barcelona·Health·Lead

Spain is a ‘role model in weathering Iranian oil shocks due to its speedy rollout of renewables’, according to the FT

SPAIN has managed to shield its consumers from soaring electricity costs despite global energy turmoil, thanks to a rapid expansion of solar, wind, and hydro

19 Mar, 2026 @ 17:23

Green·International Affairs·Lead·Nature

The disappearance of American spring breaker James Gracey in Barcelona as his wallet is found – a timeline of what we know

MYSTERY surrounds the timeline of events leading up to the vanishing of a 20-year-old American university student in Spain. James ‘Jimmy’ Gracey has not been

19 Mar, 2026 @ 17:20

Barcelona·Crime & Law·Lead

Hacienda horror stories: Spain’s entrepreneurs reveal their worst encounters with Spain’s ‘vindictive and mafia-esque’ tax agency

IF there’s one thing that unites both Spaniards and expats alike, it is their burning hatred for the country’s national tax agency. Whether it is

19 Mar, 2026 @ 17:07

Business & Finance·Lead·Other News

How will recent geopolitical tensions roil the mortgage outlook for foreign buyers eyeing up Spain?

THE escalation of tensions in the Middle East is adding volatility to global energy markets, and financial markets are beginning to price in the uncertainty

19 Mar, 2026 @ 16:59

Business & Finance·Other News·Property·Sponsored·Sponsored Article

Estepona to plant nearly half a million flowers to live up to its name as the ‘Garden of the Costal del Sol’

ESTEPONA will plant over 400,000 flowers during a spring-summer campaign to maintain its reputation as the ‘Garden of the Costa del Sol’. The planting began

19 Mar, 2026 @ 16:56

Costa del Sol·Environment·Lead·Nature

Tragedy as worker is crushed to death and another gravely injured after a wall collapses in Malaga town

A TRAGEDY has occurred in a Malaga town after a worker was crushed to death by a collapsed wall a worker being crushed to death

19 Mar, 2026 @ 15:47

Costa del Sol·Lead·Malaga

Forget about that summer holiday? European jet fuel prices DOUBLE as airlines start raising prices and cancelling routes

EXPATS looking forward to their summer getaways may face a looming headache after jet fuel prices suddenly doubled across Europe. The aviation sector is under

19 Mar, 2026 @ 15:00

Business & Finance·International Affairs·Lead·National News·Travel News

British tourists made up over half of Benidorm's hotel bookings during early March in something 'not seen for a long time'

British tourists make up over half of Benidorm’s hotel bookings in something ‘not seen for a long time’

BRITISH tourists helped Benidorm’s hotels boost their occupancy rates to 77.9% in the first half of March- up by 0.7% on a year ago. The

19 Mar, 2026 @ 14:00

Benidorm·Costa Blanca·Lead·Travel News·Valencian Community

Divers and drones deployed in search for missing American tourist – as police reveal he didn’t leave Barcelona night club alone

UPDATE: Divers have found Gracy’s wallet in the sea THE search for a missing American university student in Barcelona has taken a dark turn after

19 Mar, 2026 @ 13:58

Barcelona·Lead

UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves rolls into Madrid to sign series of deals including €20bn investment plan

BRITISH Chancellor Rachel Reeves has travelled to Madrid as part of an economic push to strengthen ties with Spain and the broader European Union. The

19 Mar, 2026 @ 13:15

Business & Finance·Lead

Energy shock fears mount after Iranian attack on vital Qatar plant sends gas prices soaring by 25%

THE price of oil and gas has climbed steeply yet again as the ongoing war in Iran continues to spook global markets and raise fears

19 Mar, 2026 @ 12:56

Business & Finance·International Affairs·Lead

Ukraine signs deal with Spanish defence company to build air defence missiles after Pedro Sanchez makes €1 billion investment pledge

PRIME Minister Pedro Sanchez met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Madrid on Wednesday with Spain announcing a new €1 billion military aid package. Alongside financial

19 Mar, 2026 @ 12:00

International Affairs·Lead·Madrid·Politics

Spain named third worst in EU for train track maintenance as spending per passenger falls by over a quarter

SPAIN has become one of the EU’s lowest spenders on railway maintenance, with investment per passenger falling by more than 25 per cent since 2019.

19 Mar, 2026 @ 11:20

Lead·Travel News

Underworld crime figures wanted for murder in Turkey and Ukraine are arrested at police checkpoints in Estepona and Marbella

TWO foreign fugitives have been arrested by the Policia Nacional in Estepona and Marbella at routine checkpoints. International Arrest Warrants had been issued for the

19 Mar, 2026 @ 11:04

Andalucia·Costa del Sol·Crime & Law·Estepona·Lead·Marbella

WATCH: Skiers get a fright as mother bear and two cubs run across Spanish slope after awaking from winter hibernation

SKIERS in Catalunya captured a group of three bears running across the slopes, indicating an unusually early end to hibernation. Skiers were in for an

19 Mar, 2026 @ 10:25

Animals·Catalunya·Lead

WATCH: Real Madrid fans taunt Manchester city centre with chants of ‘Gibraltar español’ before Champions League tie

REAL Madrid fans visiting the north of England for a crunch Champions League tie used the opportunity to taunt the locals with chants of ‘Gibraltar

19 Mar, 2026 @ 10:10

Gibraltar·Lead·Sport

Fears mount for missing American tourist who vanished from a Barcelona nightclub while on spring break

Have you seen Jimmy, or know something about his whereabouts? Get in touch newsdesk@theolivepress.es MYSTERY surrounds the disappearance of a American university student who vanished

19 Mar, 2026 @ 10:03

Barcelona·Lead

2 bedroom Bungalow for sale in San Miguel de Salinas with pool – € 249,900

New residential of semi-detached houses, bungalow type with 2 and 3 bedrooms, distributed in ground floors with terrace or upper floors with private solarium. Completely

19 Mar, 2026 @ 10:01

Featured Property by ThinkSPAIN

Canary Islands gang dumped mountains of old fridges, engines and other hazardous waste in African countries

A CRIMINAL gang shipped hundreds of tonnes of hazardous waste, including old fridges and engines, from the Canary Islands to African countries, Spanish have authorities.

19 Mar, 2026 @ 09:00

Crime & Law·Lead·Tenerife

How did two Germans come to build a tourist flat empire spanning thousands of properties across Spain in the middle of a housing crisis?

AS a generation of young Spaniards find themselves locked out of the property market, two German entrepreneurs have quietly built a sprawling tourist flat empire

19 Mar, 2026 @ 08:30

Lead·Property

Spain is booming – but behind the dazzling GDP figures lies a winner-takes-all economy driven almost solely by immigration

SPAIN is currently the darling of Europe. Its economy grew faster than any G7 nation last year, unemployment is steadily falling, and Pedro Sanchez’s government

18 Mar, 2026 @ 18:30

Business & Finance·Lead·Must Read

The €100,000 mistake: Why moving to Spain has become a legal minefield for Brits thanks to post-Brexit red tape

FOR many Britons, Spain represents the life they’ve always wanted: sunshine, space, culture, community, and a slower pace that feels worlds away from the UK’s

18 Mar, 2026 @ 18:00

Business & Finance·Sponsored·Sponsored Article

Spain enters unchartered territory with arrival of record-breaking 19th storm – and just two names left before list runs out

SPAIN faces uncharted territory it approaches the end of the storm name list, with just two left in mid-March. Spain recorded its 19th named storm

18 Mar, 2026 @ 17:55

Environment·Green·Lead·Weather

Spaniards abroad: Four Spanish graffiti artists are locked up in Poland for vandalising metro

FOUR Spanish tourists were arrested in Poland and are now facing two months of pre-trial detention after getting caught vandalising a local metro. A group

18 Mar, 2026 @ 16:50

Crime & Law·International Affairs·Lead

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