Sports Desk

North will link up with the Barbarians squad in London next week after the invitational side have played South Africa on Saturday.

The Wales and Barbarians occasion in Twickenham will be a double-header with the men’s game at 14:00 BST followed by the women’s game at 17:00 BST.

On the previous occasion that Wales men faced the Barbarians, after the 2023 World Cup, Alun Wyn Jones and Justin Tipuric were given a farewell to the Welsh crowd when they lined up for the invitational side at the Principality Stadium.

This time North will be one of the headline acts.

“I have been privileged to enjoy the career I have had, and I have so many unforgettable memories from Wales and friendships to last a lifetime,” said North.

“So to go out against my country, with some of my friends and team-mates playing is so special.

“To also be able to play alongside some of the best and most exciting players in the world, and to enjoy that famous Barbarians spirit is something I couldn’t turn down.

“I can’t wait to link up with the boys next week and hopefully we can do something special.”

The Barbarians fixture is a warm-up for Wales’ Nations Championship Tests against Fiji, Argentina and South Africa in July.

Russell’s case was complicated because his fall down the order was precipitated by a cascading series of events.

He was given the penalty for pit-lane speeding – by just 0.1km/h – before a safety-car period caused by a crash for Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.

Russell pitted to change tyres under the safety car but in the confusion, failed to serve the penalty.

When the safety car pulled in, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc crashed, which led to the race being suspended under a red flag.

During the race stoppage, it was announced that Russell had been given a drive-through penalty for not serving the five-second penalty correctly. He pleaded with officials not to make him serve that penalty when the race resumed and to discuss it afterwards, because the number of penalties suggested something was wrong.

They rejected his argument, and when the race restarted, Russell came in again to serve the drive-through penalty, which is what dropped him out of third place.

Under F1’s rules, Mercedes were able to ask only for a review of the five-second penalty, which they did not actually serve, regardless of whether it was incorrectly awarded.

The drive-through penalty was correctly awarded – on the basis he did fail to serve a penalty. Mercedes have looked into the legal complications around this and concluded there is no remedy for that available to them.

The initial right of review request, lodged at last weekend’s Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, was made to buy Mercedes time to analyse the situation, as the FIA rules dictate a limited time period for teams to make right of review requests.

There is then a longer period during which a party can decide whether to continue with them.

A Mercedes spokesperson said: “It was important for us to explore all available options to address the impact of George’s pit-lane speeding penalty on his race result.

“We had a limited time window in which to apply for the right of review during the race weekend in Barcelona, and did so in order to reserve our position in this regard.

”Our subsequent collaborative discussion with FIA and Formula 1 has shown their determination to review the unique circumstances arising from the Monaco Grand Prix and to proactively address the factors that caused them.

“In the face of this clear determination, we have concluded that further pursuit of our right of review application will not serve our team or the sport and thus we have withdrawn our submission.”

SACRAMENTO — Angels outfielder Mike Trout is back on the injured list.

The team announced before Thursday night’s 5-0 loss to the Athletics that the 11-time All-Star was put on the 10-day IL due to a right hamstring strain. The Angels recalled infielder Christian Moore from Triple-A Salt Lake among a flurry of moves.

Injuries have hindered Trout for much of this decade. Since winning his third AL MVP award in 2019, Trout has played more than 82 games in a season just twice — 119 in 2022 and 130 in 2025.

The 34-year-old Trout had played in 74 of 75 games this year in a resurgent season. He’s batting .234 with an .866 OPS, 17 homers, 36 RBIs and seven steals.

He entered Thursday with an AL-leading 54 runs, a total that was tied for second in the majors behind Washington’s James Wood. Trout’s 66 walks also ranked second in the big leagues, behind the Athletics’ Nick Kurtz.

Trout had the second-highest vote count of any AL outfielder in the All-Star Game balloting totals that were released this week. He grew up near Philadelphia, where this year’s All-Star Game will take place next month.

The injury to Trout created an opportunity for Moore, who was hitting .333 with a .468 on-base percentage, nine homers, 45 RBIs and 10 steals in 51 games at Salt Lake while playing second base, third base and the outfield.

Moore hit .198 with a .284 on-base percentage, seven homers, 16 RBIs and three steals in 53 games with the Angels last season.

In other moves, the Angels recalled right-hander Ryan Johnson from double-A Rocket City, released left-hander Drew Pomeranz and optioned right-hander Brett Kerry and catcher Logan Porter to Salt Lake.

In Thursday’s game, Gage Jump gave up one hit over seven innings, and Shea Langeliers and Tyler Soderstrom hit back-to-back homers in a five-run first for the Athletics.

The first six A’s batters got hits off Johnson, who was recalled before the game.

VANCOUVER, Canada — When the first men’s World Cup game played in Canada kicked off last week, Anthony Totera sat in the stands and wept.

“It was a dream come true,” said Totera, who has spent most of his 57 years on earth promoting Canadian soccer. “I can’t describe the emotions. It was something surreal.”

If the 1994 World Cup, the first held in the U.S., forever altered the direction of American soccer, this summer’s tournament, which Canada is sharing with the U.S. and Mexico, has the potential to do the same for that country.

“This is going to be something monumental,” Totera said. “We’re going to get to another level, another point, where we’re going to say this was when it all turned.”

With an opening draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina last week in Toronto and Thursday’s 6-0 blowout victory over Qatar in Vancouver, this tournament is already the most successful on the field for Canada, which had lost all six previous World Cup games it had played. Now it’s poised to advance to the knockout rounds for the first time ever.

Jonathan David’s three goals were more than Canada had scored in its previous World Cup seven games combined. And former LAFC goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau, who lost his chance to play in the last World Cup when he broke his leg in the MLS Cup final, had no trouble making them stand up, recording Canada’s first-ever World Cup clean sheet.

The hosts outshoot Qatar 32-2 and had 97 touches in the box in one of the most dominant performances in recent World Cup history.

“I really think that we’re a soccer country,” LAFC midfielder Stephen Eustaquio said. “It’s a very special group.”

But the win was a costly one since Canada, which entered the tournament missing three starters to injury, lost another early in the second half when midfielder Ismael Kone was carted off on a stretcher with an apparent broken leg after Qatar’s Assim Madibo clipped him from behind.

And while that success on the field — costly or not — is significant, Steve Reed, the former Canadian Soccer Assn. president who was instrumental in bringing the World Cup to Canada, said the real goal wasn’t to win games as much as it was to win over the public.

“Each time we have hosted major tournaments, we have seen a significant increase in participation and general public interest,” said Reed, who was part of the group that organized the 2015 women’s World Cup in Canada. That tournament produced nearly a half-billion dollars in economic activity, double the original projections. It also boosted investment of soccer infrastructure, including the construction or upgrading of 21 “FIFA-quality” pitches, and surged youth participation numbers. The quarterfinal game between the host country and England drew a record TV audience of 20.8 million Canadians.

“I would say that we have proved that we excel at hosting major events. This will just be reinforced in 2026,” Reed said.

“In terms of expectations,” he continued, “one would be the continued growth of the game, particularly on the men’s side. We have always been great at the grassroots level. But we need to be better at the top end of the game, creating more professional opportunities for players in our domestic leagues and creating a pipeline to bigger clubs in major leagues.”

Canada fans celebrate after a 6-0 win over Qatar at the World Cup on Thursday.

(Kaleb Tatum / Associated Press)

That’s exactly the kind of legacy the 1994 World Cup created in the U.S., where it gave birth to Major League Soccer, a deep lower-tier professional infrastructure and an academy system that has sent players to major teams all over the world. Canada has also benefited from that, with MLS placing teams in Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto. Nine players from the league — including three from LAFC — are on Canada’s World Cup team.

In the last decade, Canada has begun building its own youth development system. It also launched the Canadian Premier League, an eight-team professional league that has already sent 15 players to the national team. Those initiatives had a good foundation to build on since soccer is Canada’s most popular sport in terms of registration and participation and ranks behind only hockey as a spectator sport.

Still, when Victor Montagliani, a former Canadian Soccer Assn. president, first publicly floated the idea of bidding to host the men’s World Cup in 2013, he was lampooned.

“People absolutely laughed at him, all across this country,” said Totera, who is now the grassroots ambassador for the Premier League. “But his closest friends and people that knew him knew he didn’t lie when he said, ‘I want to bring the World Cup to Canada.’ And he brought it.”

Canada had to pair with the U.S. and Mexico to make that happen, with the so-called United Bid beating back a proposal from Morocco thanks in part to some steady diplomacy from Reed, who took over as president when Montagliani was chosen to lead CONCACAF, the governing body that oversees soccer in North America, Central America and the Caribbean.

Canada’s reward was 13 World Cup games — seven in Vancouver and six in Toronto. Mexico gets the same number, while 78 of the record 104 matches will be played in the U.S.

That same year, 2018, Reed and Canada Soccer put the final piece of its World Cup preparations in place when it hired John Herdman to rebuild its men’s team.

In seven years with the country’s women, Herdman had taken a team that finished last in the 2011 World Cup to the quarterfinals of the next tournament, sandwiched between two bronze-medal performances in the Olympic Games. His impact on the men’s team was equally as stunning.

When Herdman took over, it had been 32 years since Canada played in its only World Cup. The country not only returned in its first cycle under the new coach, but it won the CONCACAF qualifying tournament to earn its place in the 2022 tournament.

“Being a Canadian football supporter, the roller-coaster ride has been downward for most of the years,” said Totera, who pulled on his first Canada soccer shirt the year he entered first grade. “But for the last few years, it’s been on on the upswing.”

Herdman found success in part by making the recruitment of dual nationals a priority, starting four of them — including Alphonso Davies, who immigrated to Canada from a refugee camp in Ghana — in Qatar.

Nearly a quarter of Canada’s population was born somewhere else and Herdman leaned into that diversity.

Jesse Marsch, the U.S.-born coach who took over the national team in 2024, followed Herdman’s lead, recruiting six dual nationals to his World Cup team. As a result the 26 players on Canada’s roster, or their parents, come from more than 17 countries — from Iran, Croatia, Jamaica and Barbados to Haiti, Lebanon, Nigeria and the Philippines.

“We’re a melting pot. We embrace it,” said Totera, whose family moved to Canada from Italy. “I look at that team, our team, and they’re from all parts of the world. Not one from one section of the world or the other section. No, all over.

“Amazing.”

Now, with a win and draw in two games, that diverse Canadian team is almost certain to advance out of a World Cup group stage for the first time — just as the U.S. did when it first hosted a men’s World Cup in 1994.

“After ‘94, after the World Cup was there, they took off to bigger and better things,” Totera said. “I believe once we get into the knockout route, we won’t look back.

“We’re on the cusp of something really special in this country right now. And we need to grab it and run with it.”

GUADALAJARA, Mexico — Three and a half years after its biggest failure on the World Cup stage in half a century, the Mexican national team needed only two games to advance to the knockout round of this year’s tournament as winner of Group A.

Mexico’s defense held off a spirited final push by South Korea, earning a 1-0 win on Thursday night at Guadalajara Stadium in front of a fiery announced sellout crowd of 45,522.

Goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu made a mistake in the 50th minute, failing to stop what appeared to be a simple cross and bobbling the ball. That allowed Mexico’s Luis Romo to easily tap the ball into the net and claim a 1-0 lead.

South Korea put pressure on the Mexican team throughout the game. Late in the scoreless first half, Jae-sung Lee came close to giving South Korea the lead. Mexico coach Javier Aguirre hoped his team would shake off nerves following the emotional opener at Azteca Stadium and show more bite in its second game against South Korea, but his team didn’t have much power behind its attack during the game’s first 45 minutes.

Mexico goalkeeper Raúl Rangel blocks a shot from South Korea’s Son Heung-min during their World Cup match at Guadalajara Stadium on Thursday.

(Natacha Pisarenko / Ap Photo/natacha Pisarenko)

The crowd in Guadalajara grew frustrated and began booing the Mexican national team’s performance at the end of the first half.

Mexico, however, won back their cheers when it capitalized on South Korea’s costly mistake and converted it into a goal.

El Tri earned a win without any other goals thanks, in part, to a great night by goalkeeper Raúl Rangel, who stopped a header by Cho Gue-sung in the 87th minute. Captain Edson Álvarez helped turn away South Korea’s attack late, holding up relatively well despite having left ankle surgery during the past year.

LAFC star and South Korea captain Son Heung-min fired one shot over Mexico’s goalkeeper in the first half, but Álvarez cleared it off the line before the referee ruled Son was offsides.

South Korea finished controlling possession 58% of the time, but it only earned two shots on target.

Mexico was coming off a comfortable 2-0 victory over South Africa, while the South Koreans had defeated the Czech Republic 2-1, marking their first World Cup opening-match win since 2010.

During the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Mexico was eliminated in the group stage for the first time since 1978, breaking a streak of seven consecutive appearances in the knockout rounds. However, playing on home soil, the team’s goal is to emulate El Tri’s achievements in 1970 and 1986, when they reached the quarterfinals — the country’s best World Cup finish.

Due to the new 48-team format, Mexico would need to win two knockout-round matches and reach a sixth game to realize its goals.

Mexico’s Luis Romo celebrates with his teammates after scoring during a match against South Korea at Guadalajara Stadium on Thursday.

(Natacha Pisarenko / Associated Press)

After the win over South Korea, Mexico will close out group play against Czechia at Azteca Stadium in Mexico City on Wednesday. El Tri will get to play the first two games of the knockout round — should it win the first one — at Azteca Stadium, a venue where it has never lost a World Cup game.

South Korea has four points and will be favored when it plays South Africa Wednesday in Monterrey. If South Korea wins the match, it would be the Group A runner-up and advance to play the Group B runner-up on June 28 at SoFi Stadium.

Ivan Toney and Morgan Rogers were among the scorers as England recorded a comprehensive 5-1 victory over Major League Soccer side Sporting Kansas City in a practice match on Thursday.

The game, played behind closed doors at England’s Swope Soccer Village training facility, featured the players not used in Wednesday’s World Cup 4-2 win over Croatia and the squad members who did not play significant minutes in Dallas.

Toney scored a hat-trick while Aston Villa duo Morgan Rogers and Ollie Watkins were also on target as England ran out comfortable winners.

Jordan Henderson, Eberechi Eze, Marc Guehi, Dan Burn, Kobbie Mainoo, Djed Spence and Jarell Quansah were among the players also involved in the training game.

The game was broken up into two halves of around 25 minutes each.

BBC Sport revealed on Tuesday that the Football Association had arranged the friendly to get minutes into certain players’ legs.

Having arrived back from Dallas at around 10.30pm local time on Wednesday, England players were afforded most of Thursday off.

Players were allowed to see family and friends immediately after the Group L game against Croatia, and loved ones were given access into the camp on Thursday to spend time with the team before they start preparations for next Tuesday’s game against Ghana in Boston (21:00 BST).

Captain Harry Kane and manager Thomas Tuchel were among a group of players and staff that attended a baseball game between Kansas City Royals and St Louis Cardinals later on Thursday.

Imagine it. A neophyte coach, leading a team for the first time at any competitive level, and it being a high-profile assignment on the biggest of big stages.

A self-assured broadcaster, critical and competitive, having his bluff called, being invited to not just talk about it, but to be about it: Walk the walk, why don’t you?

A former player — scorer, shooter — being challenged to step up and right a listing ship while navigating politics and the push and pull of history and high hopes.

Imagine that guy going: “Bet.”

As in, you betcha. As in, I’d bet on me.

Lakers fans, you’ve seen JJ Redick run this play in the NBA.

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s faithful — who comprised the vocal majority amidst the full house for Thursday’s 4-1 Group B loss to Switzerland at SoFi Stadium — are seeing manager Sergej Barbarez pull the same improbable stunt.

The 54-year-old Barbarez is Bosnia’s national soccer team’s fifth manager since 2022. He’s also a former national team captain turned professional poker player turned broadcaster whose turn coaching this team came as a complete shock.

He might be the most interesting man amidst a mass of most interesting men at the World Cup, and he has Bosnia back on two feet.

And he had them on equal footing Thursday until Switzerland scored the match’s first goal in the 74th minute.

“Maybe our start wasn’t that good,” Barbarez said through an interpreter. “But from the first cooling break until the goal, we were the better players, the better team.

“I don’t like self-pity,” he added. “I entered the dressing room and told them all that they have one hour to cheer up to lift their heads up.”

The loss to the 19th-ranked Swiss was the first in six matches for 64th-ranked Bosnia, following six consecutive 1-1 or 0-0 draws, including their 1-1 World Cup opener against host Canada.

They know they’ll have to win their next match Wednesday against Qatar for an opportunity to reach the knockout stage: “It seemed,” Barbarez said, “from the very beginning that the last game would be the most important one, and it turns out it is.”

And they’ll be ready, he said.

“It’s hurtful; it’s quite painful,” he said. “But this is my job, and trust me, I’ll make sure they will be fine ahead of the next game. We will try to remedy what happened.”

We’d expect to hear something similar from Redick — whose poker face isn’t as good as Barbarez’s, whose small sigh and slight smile betrayed his only emotions during his postgame news conference Thursday.

(As for who wore it better: Barbarez pumping up Bosnian fans in all-black business attire beats Redick’s all-black athleisure.)

Ahead of schedule and happy to be here, Bosnia is playing in the World Cup for the first time in 12 years. Playing hard with house money.

Barbarez spent most of his 14-year professional playing career in the Bundesliga, scoring 105 goals for Borussia Dortmund, Hamburg and Bayer Leverkusen. When he retired, he got his coaching license but didn’t use it until 2024, taking a gamble on a different competitive calling.

He played poker professionally in Europe for a decade, made at least $143,000, according to Cardplayer.com, and reached two final tables in the World Series of Poker.

He also became an unabashed critic of the Football Assn. of Bosnia, which was churning through managers; three of them were hired and fired within months. Beyond failing to qualify for the 2024 Euros, Barbarez admonished the association’s leadership for its 2022 decision to schedule friendlies with Russia soon after it was banned by FIFA and UEFA for invading Ukraine.

And then, in April 2024, he was introduced as the national team manager.

“His energy and authority can be crucial factors in getting the national team back on track for success,” the president of the Football Federation Vico Zeljkovic told reporters.

Also key: “Personality,” Zeljkovic said.

Barbarez maintained from the outset that his goal was to qualify for the Euros in 2028 — and for his players to feel proud wearing Bosnia’s blue, yellow and white.

On Thursday, his players felt it and so did thousands of fans who showed up at SoFi Stadium wearing those colors for a World Cup match. All of them, all in.

“They support us all over the world,” said Ermin Mahmić, who scored his side’s only goal in the 93rd minute. “It’s not normal to be honest, and we’re very thankful for them.”

And surely for Barbarez, who took a path rarely traveled, willing to bet big on Bosnian football.

But the love affair here has gone way beyond baseball, this has been a glorious embracing of two cultures. A point underlined by the news Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has declared a sister city application with Glasgow.

Fittingly, she did so in a Scottish pub wearing a Scotland football jersey.

Tens of thousands of football fans swarming to a city for a major tournament is nothing new, but it is the manner of the revelry here that has set it apart.

At the time of writing, there has not been one arrest of a Scotland fan either in Boston or Providence, another nearby stronghold of the Tartan Army.

The ground work for this Boston bash was laid two years ago in Bavaria. At the last European Championships, Marienplatz felt like it held more Scots within it than Motherwell.

Again, Scotland fans were lauded for their behaviour, generosity and patter.

Alas, the football did its best to ruin the party.

That is perhaps one key difference to this shindig, apart from the obvious step up in excitement from a Euros to their first World Cup in 28 years.

What mood the Tartan Army would have been in if the opener against Haiti had turned into a disaster we will never know. Although, I would say it would not have made a dent.

The team on the pitch have done their bit to keep the party in full swing and a point against Morocco on Friday could trigger a tidal wave of celebration flooding back into Boston that night the likes they have never seen.

The best way to describe it is this has been the trip of a lifetime for people who are still in their 20s. There is a genuine appreciation from Scotland fans that they have waited this long to see their team at a World Cup, that it may be another three decades before it happens again.

And, even if it did, nothing could rival the week in Boston they’ve just had, regardless of what Miami holds.

For near enough a week, Scotland had the city to itself. Now it has become a tapestry of nations settling into one of the warmest, most welcoming place on the Charles River they could have hoped to visit.

Who knows, they may be back here if they are one of the best third-placed teams.

What will be the Tartan Army’s Boston legacy as the sporrans are soon to get packed away and the online check-ins start for flights to Miami?

Their generosity? Their good spirit? Their ability to alert some locals to the fact the World Cup is even happening?

Perhaps all of the above. Just not a haggis supper.

He’s not NBA Finals MVP Jalen Brunson.

He’s not OG Anunoby, whose last-second tip-in will forever be etched into the minds of New York sports fans.

He’s not Karl-Anthony Towns, Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges or any of the other players that helped the Knicks defeat the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals for the organization’s first championship in 53 years.

But, as Tyler Kolek found himself having to clarify on Thursday, “I swear I’m on the team bro.”

That was what the backup point guard wrote on X, followed by three laughing-until-crying emojis, soon after he was stopped by two police officers who apparently did not recognize him as a Knicks player during the team’s championship parade in Lower Manhattan.

A video that has gone viral on social media shows Kolek skipping along the parade route next to a barrier meant to keep fans off that part of the street, using one hand to hold a beer and the other to slap hands with fans.

At one point, an officer stepped in front of Kolek to block his path while another gently grabbed him by the shoulders and motioned for the confused player to go back in the direction from which he came.

An unidentified man who had been accompanying Kolek quickly stepped in, and then officers allowed him to pass.

To be fair to the officers, Kolek — wearing a Knicks hat, Knicks T-shirt and gym shorts — looked like he could have been one of the estimated 2 million fans attending the parade.

And he’s not the most recognizable player on the team. Kolek has made one start in 103 game appearances during his two years with the Knicks, averaging almost 10 minutes a game. He did not make it into an NBA Finals game but played in eight postseason games this year, averaging 3.5 points and 6.6 minutes a game.

It doesn’t appear that the very brief run-in with the law dampened Kolek’s mood, based on the parade videos he posted on his Instagram. One showed his view of the massive crowds on either side of the street; another showed him throwing confetti while singing along to “New York, New York;” and another showed him standing outside the railing on a moving float while dancing and cheering.

And, yes, one showed the incident with parade security, along with the caption “I hoop bro I swear” and four laughing-until-crying emojis.

The Leeds winger’s 25 tries put him nine clear of the next best, Leigh’s Josh Charnley on 16.

In addition to leaving his mark on the game he left plenty on Warrington’s bruised defence, including Josh Thewlis who felt the full force of Sivo as the winger powered past him to score his second.

When Warrington took two points early in the piece, Ewan Irwin kicking the goal, it was presumably in the belief this could have been a tight affair.

But two tries in two minutes from Sivo and Brodie Croft, who has signed a three-year deal with Warrington starting next season, blew that plan out of the water and a third eight minutes later, Harry Newman gathering a high kick as Thewlis hesitated, really put the visitors in command.

Warrington were perhaps a touch unlucky that the Newman try stood with the Leeds centre looking a shade in front of the kicker when the ball went up but had that gone in their favour it would not have made much difference to the result.

Jake Connor kicked two of the conversions to give Leeds a 16-2 half-time lead and the direction of the game was set.

Miller, returning to the side after a three-match suspension was excellent, pulling the strings at full-back.

It was the Australian whose pass put in Chris Hankinson just three minutes after the restart and he then engineered a penalty when blocked by James Bentley two minutes later which Connor converted.

After Sivo secured his hat-trick shortly before the hour, Warrington staged a belated comeback in the final 20 minutes.

Matty Ashton finished off a nice move to give the home side their only try six minutes from time but it was too little too late and proved just a momentary pause in the Leeds celebrations.

Warrington: Thewlis, Ashton, Lindop, Smith, Hopoate, Hayes, Irwin; Thomas, Walker, Byrne, Harrison, Bentley, Currie

Interchanges: Powell, Sipley, Crowther, Tanginoa

Leeds: Miller, Hall, Newman, Handley, Sivo, Croft, Connor; Oledzki, Levi, Palasia, Hankinson, McDonnell, Watkins

Interchanges: Jenkins, O’Connor, Smith, Cassell

Referee: Liam Moore.

Arsenal‘s opening bid for Jeremy Monga rejected by Leicester, Liverpool ready to offer a package approaching £86m for Yan Diomande and Arsenal preparing bid for Bradley Barcola.

Arsenal have had their first bid for Leicester City and England Under-19 winger Jeremy Monga rejected – the 19-year-old one of the Gunners’ long-term targets for the summer. (Telegraph – subscription required) , external

Liverpool are ready to offer a package approaching 100m euros (£86m) for 19-year-old RB Leipzig and Ivory Coast winger Yan Diomande. (Athletic – subscription required) , external

Arsenal are preparing a bid for Paris St-Germain and France winger Bradley Barcola, 23. (Independent) , external

Real Madrid are looking to continue their summer rebuild by signing a midfielder and a centre-back, with Chelsea and Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez, 25, being one of the options highly rated by the club. (ESPN) , external

RB Leipzig have made contact with Everton over 23-year-old France Under-21 striker Thierno Barry. (Times – subscription required) , external

The Toffees are yet to receive a formal offer for Barry, but if a bid arrives from German side RB Leipzig or any other club, Everton‘s football leadership group will decide how to proceed. (Liverpool Echo) , external

Tottenham are firmly in the mix to sign Anderlecht and Belgium midfielder Nathan De Cat, with Manchester United among the 17-year-old’s other admirers from the Premier League. (Teamtalk) , external

Liverpool have reignited their interest in 25-year-old Juventus and France midfielder Khephren Thuram. (Corriere dello Sport via Football Talk) , external

The Reds are also pursuing a central midfielder, centre-back and right-back after triggering 22-year-old Osasuna and Spain winger Victor Munoz’s 40m euro (£34.5m) release clause. (Football Insider) , external

Justin Gaethje waited a long time to become an undisputed UFC champion.

Now the 37-year-old MMA star might have to wait another six months or so before fighting again.

Gaethje upset former two-weight champion Ilia Topuria with a technical knockout in a lightweight unification championship bout at the UFC Freedom 250 event Sunday on the White House South Lawn.

Topuria was a bloody and swollen mess by the time his corner stopped the fight between the fourth and fifth rounds. Gaethje executed a soaring back flip off the cage to celebrate his first undisputed belt, but it turns out that the former two-time interim champion also suffered significant injuries during the bout.

Both Gaethje and Topuria were among the five UFC Freedom 250 fighters who received 180-day medical suspensions from the Association of Boxing and Combative Sports Commissions, according to a list issued by the commissions and viewed by The Times.

Ilia Topuria suffered two broken orbital bones during his loss to Justin Gaethje at UFC Freedom 250 on June 14 in Washington.

(Chris Graythen / Getty Images)

Gaethje’s suspension can be shortened if he is cleared with negative MRIs for his right wrist and left knee. Topuria, who suffered two broken orbital bones, can return early if cleared by a an Oral and Maxillofacial Foundation specialist.

Both men also are required to serve mandatory rest days (45 for Gaethje, 60 for Topuria).

Alex Pereira, who lost his interim heavyweight title bout to Ciryl Gane by TKO, was medically suspended for 180 days or until he’s cleared with a negative maxillofacial CT scan. Undercard fighters Aiemann Zahabi and Steve Garcia also received 180-day medical suspensions.

Topuria won the UFC featherweight championship by knocking out Alexander Volkanovski in February 2024. He vacated that title a year later and in June 2025 defeated Charles Oliveira by knockout to claim lightweight belt.

In November, Topuria announced he was temporarily stepping away from fighting. Gaethje earned the interim lightweight title in January by defeating Paddy Pimblett by unanimous decision.

That set up the unification bout between Gaethje and Topuria, which was the final fight of an elaborate event at the White House held on President Trump’s 80th birthday and billed as part of a summer-long celebration of the country’s 250th anniversary.

Olympic medallist Jenny Simpson is making “encouraging improvement” in hospital after collapsing at an event in Raleigh, North Carolina.

The 39-year-old American was pacing a mile group at a Sir Walter Miler pop-up event on Tuesday when she reportedly collapsed and needed CPR.

Her employer Fleet Feet says she is recovering well.

They said, external: “Jenny received immediate medical attention and was transported to a nearby hospital. Fleet Feet CEO Joey Pointer was also at the event, and stayed with Jenny at the hospital throughout the night as her family traveled to be with her early Wednesday morning.

“While Jenny remains under medical care, she has shown encouraging improvement and continues to exhibit the strength and resilience that have long defined her.

“True to form, she has already asked about her mile time and whether she won.”

Simpson, who retired from competitive running at the end of the 2024 season, won gold in the 1500m at the 2011 World Championships and a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.

Simpson also won silver medals in the 1500m at the 2013 and 2017 World Championships.

Stokes has been named in Durham’s 15-man squad for their County Championship fixture against Northamptonshire, which starts on Friday, but his England future is uncertain.

Botham himself had a reputation as a player who played hard on and off the field.

The 70-year-old said players of his era “used to love going out for a drink” but said they “weren’t quite so obvious” compared to the current generation.

England were dogged with allegations of a drinking culture during the 2025-26 Ashes tour, which they lost 4-1.

Before the Ashes, white-ball captain Harry Brook was punched by a nightclub bouncer in Wellington on the eve of a one-day international against New Zealand.

As a result, England imposed a midnight curfew on all players and staff.

“In Australia, they go down 2-0. What did the team do? Go to Noosa for five days and everyone knows what happened,” said Botham.

“The other night, I was amazed. And what I can’t get my head around is what the security bloke is doing there if he and they know they shouldn’t be there after midnight? He shouldn’t have to overrule him [Stokes], because it shouldn’t happen.”

Former England skipper Botham, who scored 5,200 runs and took 383 wickets in 102 Tests, said he would not be shocked if Stokes quits cricket completely if he is removed from his position.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if Ben was to lose the captaincy, he probably might walk away from the game. But I just don’t know,” added Botham.

“I don’t know where it will go now. I just think something will happen, whichever way it is.

“To be honest with you, it was an unnecessary procedure and one that I think he’ll regret.”

Former Tottenham midfielder Rafael van der Vaart has apologised after saying that Japan players “all look alike” during their 2-2 draw with the Netherlands.

Van der Vaart, 43, was working as a pundit for Dutch broadcaster NOS TV when he made the remark after Micky van de Ven lost Koki Ogawa’s run for Japan’s late equaliser.

“They all look alike, of course, maybe he thought that,” the former Netherlands international said when analysing Van de Ven’s defending.

Van der Vaart, who was capped 109 times and was part of the Dutch team that lost in the 2010 World Cup final, has apologised for causing any offence.

He said: “It was never my intention to offend, hurt, or discriminate against anyone. I oppose racism in all its forms and have respect for people of every background, ethnicity, and culture.

“I understand that some people may have found my words offensive or hurtful. I sincerely regret that.

“If my comment has caused pain or upset, I would like to offer my heartfelt apologies. That was never my intention.”

Anti-discrimination charity Kick It Out criticised Van der Vaart and called for broadcasters to be more careful.

A joint statement from Kick It Out and the Frank Soo Foundation, external, a charity that supports East and South East Asian communities, said: “It’s hugely disappointing to hear former players peddling racist slurs about Japan’s team and then double down by trying to defend the comments as a joke.

“Even if he claims there was no racist intent in what he said, the comments can still have an impact on those involved, and the wider East and South East Asian community, as we have seen with previous examples directed towards players.

“The World Cup attracts massive global TV audiences, so it’s always important that guests are careful with their language and that broadcasters take responsibility for those appearing on their shows, whether that is through additional education or training.”

Argentina’s Lionel Messi isn’t the only one scoring in the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Fox and Telemundo are off to a blazing start in the TV ratings for the quadrennial soccer tournament, delivering big increases over the 2022 World Cup held in Qatar.

Through the first 16 group stage matches, an average of 6 million viewers have watched on Fox and cable network FS1 cable network, a 128% increase over the 2022 FIFA World Cup according to Nielsen data.

The first 12 group stage matches of the tournament drew an average of 7.5 million viewers on the Comcast-owned Spanish language network Telemundo, a 234% increase from four years ago. The Telemundo telecasts are also streamed on Peacock.

The U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team’s opening match against Paraguay held Friday at SoFi Stadium set a record for the most-watched World Cup game on both and English and Spanish language television. The match scored 18 million viewers on Fox and its streaming platforms, while Telemundo’s telecast averaged 9.5 million.

The early ratings show the enduring power of live sporting events and their ability to draw mass audiences at a time when streaming video has splintered viewership . Scripted hit prime time TV shows need seven days or more of viewing on demand to reach the audience levels the World Cup is attracting in real time.

“Having this World Cup in North America clearly has a huge impact on ratings,” said Patrick Rishe, director of the sports business program at Washington University in St. Louis.

World Cup matches held in the U.S. for the first time since 1994 helps — and a competitive USNMT playing in front of home crowds could turbocharge the ratings to even bigger heights. Fox is expecting another record when the team plays its third group stage match in prime time on June 25.

Some sports media pundits have been citing the addition of out-of-home viewing and internet-connected televisions to Nielsen data as the reason sports ratings have been on the rise. But Mike Mulvihill, president of insights and analytics for Fox Sports, asserts that the viewers have been there all along.

“For many years, the numbers were under-counted and what we’re seeing now is a truer representation of the sports audience,” Mulvihill said in a recent interview. “You just cannot overstate what it means to us to be able to capture all that viewing that’s happening at fan fests, in bars and at smaller watch parties.”

Out-of-home viewing boosted the audience levels for Mexico’s inaugural World Cup match on June 11 by 50%, and contributed several million viewers to the total for the USMNT opener.

Mulvihill projects that by the end of the tournament, 150 million people will have watched some portion of Fox’s 2026 FIFA World Cup coverage. The figure approaches the 170 million people Fox reaches with a slate of regular season NFL games.

“For us, it’s like having two NFL seasons in a single year,” Mulvihill said.

Fox will be able to capitalize on the strong numbers for the early matches. Networks typically hold back some commercial inventory for big events in case audience levels fall short of what advertisers are guaranteed. Fox has surpassed those expectations and can now go back into the marketplace to sell available commercials for the later rounds, most likely for more than what was paid before the tournament.

The 2026 World Cup may also be benefiting from a viewing public that wants a distraction from the ongoing political discord in the U.S. and war in the Middle East.

“Sports still remains the one thing we can all kind of talk about and disagree about without it being divisive,” said Lisa Delpy Neirotti, director of the sports management program at the George Washington University School of Business.

Delphy Neirotti believes the World Cup has some momentum from the NBA Finals, which averaged 20.6 million viewers on ABC for the New York Knicks’ triumph over the San Antonio Spurs, The feel-good story of the Knicks winning their first championship in 53 years delivered the most-watched Finals since 1998 and put fans in the mood for more action.

“Fans were already primed up, meeting with friends, watching sports and now they can continue that camaraderie and that collective experience,” Delphy Neirotti said. “They want to be with community.”

The combined numbers for Fox and Telemundo are highest in Los Angeles, which in addition to a large Latino population has 500,000 Iranians. An average audience of 4.7 million viewers watched the Iranian national team play to a 2-2 tie against New Zealand on Monday, the second most-watched match ever on Fox Sports 1.

But there are plenty of World Cup fans in the heartland. Kansas City had the highest local rating for Fox’s coverage of the USMNT’s match, with more than 9% of the market’s homes tuning in.

Kansas City hosted its first World Cup match Tuesday at Arrowhead Stadium, where Argentina’s Messi set a tournament record with three goals in his team’s 3-0 victory over Algeria. The city has cultivated soccer fans with well-attended watch parties held in its Power and Light District.

“The watch parties that they’ve planned out throughout their cities to give people an opportunity to be part of the event, even though they’re not going to the event,” Rishe said. “Whether you’re watching or just walking by, it’s exciting.”

Wilkinson says Wales have learned from their experience at Euro 2025, when they stuggled to make an impact against three of the world’s best teams – Netherlands, France and England.

“I think we all learned a lot through the Euros – myself, my staff, the players,” she said.

“Do I wish I’d coached differently? Parts of it, absolutely. I’m sure they (the players) look back on it and think like ‘what if, what if we could have…’

“But you don’t know until you’ve been to a major event what it’s going to be like, what the pressure feels like, what the stress feels like.

“We talked about it, we prepared for it, and it still blew us away, but there’s confidence that comes from having done it.

“I also look at our last Nations League A campaign – two draws against Sweden, but also keeping the scores really competitive against some top nations.”

Wales will have to improve their away form if they are to get through the play-offs and make it to Brazil.

Wilkinson’s side sailed through their home qualifiers, with a 6-1 mauling of Montenegro, a 4-0 romp past Albania and a 3-1 win over Czech Republic to wrap up the group.

On the road, however, they were fortunate to salvage a draw in the Czech Republic in their opening qualifier in March, then scraped a 1-0 victory in Albania before a shock 1-1 draw in Montenegro in the penultimate match.

“We were a bit frustrated when we played Albania away (in April), but this is a good opportunity to improve our performance against a challenging opposition,” said Wilkinson.

“I thought (Albania) played really well in that second leg, so they’ll be tough. It’ll be a good tactical battle between them and us, and who’s learnt the most.

“It was obvious from our campaign that our away form wasn’t what we wanted it to be. There’s definitely some work to be done away from home.

“It’s about showing up with the best version of ourselves.”

Justin Herbert has a new-look offense

From Joaquin Ruiz: Justin Herbert is starting from the ground up in Mike McDaniel’s new-look Chargers offense.

The 28-year-old quarterback has dedicated much of the offseason to tweaking his footwork — putting his left foot in front of his right from the shotgun, against traditional NFL form — to fit Los Angeles’ new offensive coordinator’s scheme.

McDaniel prioritizes getting the ball to playmakers in space as efficiently as possible, as he did for four seasons as the Miami Dolphins head coach with speedy wideouts Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, and envisions Herbert’s flip in footing accelerating and syncing the timing of passes with receivers’ route breaks.

“If guys train it so that they don’t have to think about it and they can be comfortable, you can do a couple things that put the defense in a bind with how you do your footwork,” McDaniel said at Chargers minicamp in El Segundo. “I don’t mandate it. With Justin, I really just showed him where I thought it would be advantageous, and he didn’t blink for a second and was excited to attack it.”

“The patternization in Mike McDaniel’s system has required some footwork changes,” added head coach Jim Harbaugh. “[Herbert’s] been working very hard, very hard at those. And as you would expect, Justin has picked it up.”

Continue reading here

Freddie Freeman lifts Dodgers over Rays

From Liana Handler: Tampa Bay Rays center fielder Cedric Mullins collided chest first into the blue padding of the center field wall as he made one last-ditch effort to save his team from a Dodgers home run. His glove, though, came up empty.

Not even a leaping Mullins, one of baseball’s veteran home-run robbers, could stop Freddie Freeman from doing what the Dodgers first baseman does best: hitting clutch home runs.

Freeman’s two-run home run in the sixth inning Wednesday, set up by Andy Pages’ double an at-bat earlier, lifted the Dodgers to a 5-4 win that allowed them to maintain a season-high nine-game lead over their closest National League West rival, the San Diego Padres (38-35). For the Dodgers (48-27), it was their sixth sweep of the season — all while surviving a shaky start on the mound by the usually unshakable Shohei Ohtani.

Continue reading here

Dodgers box score

MLB standings

Angels fall to the Diamondbacks

Corbin Carroll hit a grand slam, Eduardo Rodriguez earned his 100th career win on the mound and the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Angels 8-1 on Wednesday.

The Diamondbacks won two of three games in the series.

Carroll’s fifth career grand slam landed just over the right field wall, giving Arizona a 5-1 lead in the second inning. It was the two-time All-Star’s 13th homer of the season.

Continue reading here

Angels box score

MLB standings

World Cup: Mexico faces South Korea in key match

From Eduard Cauich: Goalkeeper Raúl Rangel was 18 years old and playing for Chivas de Guadalajara’s youth academy the last time Mexico faced South Korea in a World Cup match in 2018.

Three years ago, when asked who might be the next great goalkeeper for the Mexican national team, Rangel named himself ahead of veteran Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa. A bold statement for a player who was just making his professional debut.

On Thursday, the 26-year-old goalkeeper will defend El Tri’s goal during his second World Cup match at Guadalajara Stadium — where he usually plays home games with Chivas — when Mexico takes on South Korea at 6 p.m. PDT on Fox/Telemundo in the second match of Group A.

“I told everyone, ‘I see myself at the World Cup.’ Some people laughed,” Rangel recalled. “I’d been picturing myself on the national team for three years.”

Mexico and South Korea won their opening matches — El Tri against South Africa and the South Koreans against the Czech Republic — so the winner of this match will take first place in the group and secure its spot in the next round. The incentive is clear for Mexico, as the group winner will play the next two knockout rounds at Azteca Stadium, where El Tri has never lost a World Cup match.

Continue reading here

Click here for complete TV schedule, groups and players to watch

Wednesday’s World Cup results

Group K
Portugal 1, Congo DR 1
Colombia 3, Uzbekistan 1

Group L
England 4, Croatia 2
Ghana 1, Panama 0

Today’s World Cup TV schedule

All times Pacific
9 a.m., Czechia vs. South Africa, Fox, Telemundo
Noon, Switzerland vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina, Fox, Telemundo
3 p.m., Canada vs. Qatar, FS1, Telemundo
6 p.m., Mexico vs. South Korea, Fox, Telemundo

World Cup Group standings

Group A
Country, W-D-L, Goal Differential, Points
Mexico, 1-0-0, +2, 3
South Korea, 1-0-0, +1, 3
Czechia, 0-0-1, -1, 0
South Africa, 0-0-1, -2, 0

Group B
Switzerland, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Canada, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Qatar, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Bosnia-Herzegovina, 0-1-0, 0, 1

Group C
Scotland, 1-0-0, +1, 3
Morocco, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Brazil, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Haiti, 0-0-1, -1, 0

Group D
United States, 1-0-0, +3, 3
Australia, 1-0-0, +2, 3
Turkiye, 0-0-1, -2, 0
Paraguay, 0-0-1, -3, 0

Group E
Germany, 1-0-0, +6, 3
Ivory Coast, 1-0-0, +1, 3
Ecuador, 0-0-1, -1, 0
Curacao, 0-0-1, -6, 0

Group F
Sweden, 1-0-0. +4, 3
Japan, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Netherlands, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Tunisia, 0-0-1, -4, 0

Group G
Belgium, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Egypt, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Iran, 0-1-0, 0, 1
New Zealand, 0-1-0, 0, 1

Group H
Spain, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Cape Verde, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Saudi Arabia, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Uruguay, 0-1-0, 0, 1

Group I
Norway, 1-0-0, +3, 3
France, 1-0-0, +2, 3
Senegal, 0-0-1, -2, 0
Iraq, 0-0-1, -3, 0

Group J
Argentina, 1-0-0, +3, 3
Austria, 1-0-0, +2, 3
Jordan, 0-0-1, -2, 0
Algeria, 0-0-1, -3, 0

Group K
Colombia, 1-0-0, +2, 3
Portugal, 0-1-0, 0, 1

Congo DR, 0-1-0, 0, 1
Uzbekistan, 0-0-1, -2, 0

Group L
England, 1-0-0, +2, 3
Ghana, 1-0-0, +1, 3
Panama, 0-0-1, -1, 0
Croatia, 0-0-1, -2, 0

The top two teams in each group plus the next eight best third-place teams advance to the next round.

Sparks lose to the Lynx

From Jordan Puente: The Sparks’ defensive struggles continued on Wednesday during a 99-83 loss to the first-place Minnesota Lynx at Crypto.com Arena.

The Sparks (7-7) had trouble containing Lynx rookie Olivia Miles, who finished with a season-high 31 points. Miles helped the Lynx (11-3) clinch a spot in the Commissioner’s Cup championship with the victory.

Sparks guard Kelsey Plum, the WNBA’s leading scorer, missed the game with a lower leg injury. The team also played without forward Cameron Brink, who sprained her ankle on Monday.

Rae Burrell led the Sparks in scoring with 19 points, while Jihyun Park added 13 off the bench. Dearica Hamby was limited to 12 points and nine rebounds, while Nneka Ogwumike added 10 points and eight boards.

Continue reading here

Sparks box score

WNBA standings

This day in sports history

1910 — Alex Smith wins the U.S. Open by beating John McDermont and Macdonald Smith in an 18-hole playoff at the Philadelphia Cricket Club. Smith beats McDermont by four strokes and Macdonald Smith by six.

1921 — The University of Illinois wins the first NCAA track and field championships with 20¼ points. Notre Dame finishes second with 16¾ points.

1941 — Joe Louis knocks out Billy Conn in the 13th round at the Polo Grounds in New York to retain the world heavyweight title.

1960 — Arnold Palmer beats amateur Jack Nicklaus by two strokes to win the U.S. Open.

1967 — Jack Nicklaus shoots a record 275 to beat Arnold Palmer for the U.S. Open. Nicklaus breaks Ben Hogan’s 1948 record by one stroke.

1972 — Jack Nicklaus wins the U.S. Open by three strokes over Bruce Crampton and ties Bobby Jones’ record of 13 major titles.

1972 — UEFA European Championship Final, Heysel Stadium, Brussels, Belgium: Gerd Müller scores a brace as West Germany beats Soviet Union, 3-0.

1975 — Bobby Orr of the Boston Bruins wins the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman for the eighth consecutive year.

1984 — Fuzzy Zoeller shoots a 3-under 67 to beat Greg Norman by eight strokes in the 18-hole playoff at Winged Foot GC for the U.S. Open title.

1990 — Hale Irwin makes an 8-foot birdie putt on the 91st hole to beat Mike Donald in the first sudden-death playoff to decide the U.S. Open. It is the third U.S. Open title for the 45-year-old Irwin, the oldest winner in the tournament’s history.

1992 — Ottawa Senators make goalie Peter Sidorkiewicz their 1st draft pick.

1995 — Michael Johnson becomes the first national champion at 200 and 400 meters since 1899 as he captures both races at the USA-Mobil Championships.

1995 — FIFA Women’s World Cup Final, Råsunda Stadium, Stockholm, Sweden: Hege Riise & Marianne Pettersen score within 3 minutes of each other to give Norway a 2-0 win over Germany.

2000 — Tiger Woods turns the 100th U.S. Open into a one-man show, winning by 15 strokes over Ernie Els and Miguel Angel Jimenez. Woods’ 15-stroke margin shatters the Open mark of 11 set by Willie Smith in 1899 and is the largest in any major championship — surpassing the 13-stroke victory by Old Tom Morris in the 1862 British Open.

2006 — Phil Mickelson’s bid for a third consecutive major ends with a shocking collapse when he bungles his way to a double bogey on the final hole, giving the U.S. Open to Geoff Ogilvy.

2017 — Brooks Koepka breaks away from a tight pack with three straight birdies on the back nine at Erin Hills and closes with a 5-under 67 to win the U.S. Open for his first major championship.

2017 — Diana Taurasi scores 19 points to break the WNBA career scoring record in the Phoenix Mercury’s 90-59 loss to the Sparks. Taurasi finishes with 7,494 points, passing Tina Thompson’s mark of 7,488.

Compiled by the Associated Press

This day in baseball history

1938 — The Brooklyn Dodgers signed Babe Ruth to coach for the remainder of the season.

1947 — Cincinnati’s Ewell Blackwell tossed a 6-0 no-hitter against the Boston Braves.

1950 — In the nightcap of a doubleheader, the Cleveland Indians scored 14 runs in the first inning for an American League record as they trounced the Philadelphia A’s 21-2.

1953 — At Fenway Park, Dick Gernert’s home run highlighted the 17-run, 14-hit seventh inning as the Boston Red Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 23-3. The Red Sox were up 5-3 after 6 1/2 innings. The Red Sox scored the 17 runs on 14 hits and six walks and left the bases loaded. Gene Stephens collected three hits and Sammy White scored three runs and Tom Umphlett also reached base three times in the inning.

1960 — The San Francisco Giants fired Bill Rigney and selected Tom Sheehan as manager. At 66 years, 2 months and 18 days, Sheehan was the oldest man to debut as a manager of a major league team.

1967 — Houston Astro Don Wilson tossed the first of his two career no-hitters by blanking the Atlanta Braves 2-0, facing 30 batters and striking out 15.

1975 — Fred Lynn batted in 10 runs with three homers, a triple and a single in a 15-1 Boston Red Sox victory over the Detroit Tigers. Lynn’s 16 total bases tied an AL record.

1976 — Commissioner Bowie Kuhn voided the sale of Oakland Athletics stars Vida Blue, Rollie Fingers and Joe Rudi. Athletics owner Charlie Finley sold Blue to the New York Yankees for $1.5 million and Rudi and Fingers to the Boston Red Sox for $1 million each. Kuhn ordered the players to return to Oakland on grounds that they would upset the sport’s competitive balance.

1977 — New York Yankees outfielder Reggie Jackson and manager Billy Martin get into a dugout confrontation at Fenway Park that’s seen on national television. Martin removed his right fielder for loafing on a ball hit to the outfield. Jackson questioned Martin in the dugout and the two are eventually separated by coach Elston Howard.

1986 — Don Sutton pitched a three-hitter for his 300th career victory as the Angels beat the Texas Rangers 5-1. The 41-year-old right-hander became the 19th pitcher in baseball history to win 300 games.

2002 — Luis Castillo of the Florida Marlins ties Rogers Hornsby’s 80-year-old record for the longest hitting streak by a second baseman, beating out a dribbler to the pitcher in the 6th inning to make it 33 games in a row. Florida beats the Cleveland Indians, 2 – 1.

2007 — Chone Figgins went 6-for-6 and drove in the game-winning run in the ninth inning to lift the Angels over Houston 10-9.

2011 — Connor Harrell hit the first College World Series home run in the new TD Ameritrade Park to break a sixth-inning tie and first-time qualifier Vanderbilt defeated North Carolina 7-3.

2012 — R.A. Dickey became the first major league pitcher in 24 years to throw consecutive one-hitters and Ike Davis hit a grand slam in the New York Mets’ 5-0 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. The previous pitcher to throw consecutive one-hitters was Dave Stieb for Toronto in September 1988.

2012 — Aaron Hill hit a solo homer in the seventh inning to become the fifth Arizona player to hit for the cycle, lifting the Diamondbacks to a 7-1 win over the Seattle Mariners.

2014 — Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers throws the second no-hitter of the year, shutting out the Colorado Rockies, 8-0. It comes less than a month after his teammate Josh Beckett had pitched a no-hitter on May 26th. He strikes out 15 without giving up a walk, the only baserunner coming on a two-base error by shortstop Hanley Ramirez in the 8th.

2017 — Nolan Arenado completed the cycle with a three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning, and the Colorado Rockies stunned the San Francisco Giants by rallying for a 7-5 victory.

2024 — Hall of Famer Willie Mays, in the conversation for the greatest player ever and one of the last survivors from the Negro Leagues in the days when they were major leagues, passes away at 93.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Not much good comes to mind when you think about the effects of climate change.

Wildfires, floods, melting ice caps, heat waves, the bleaching of ocean reefs.

But then there’s baseball, and one possible silver lining.

Has global warming turned Dodger Stadium into a home run launching pad?

I was watching Monday night’s ESPN telecast of the L.A. game against Tampa Bay when the play-by-play announcer said that once upon a time, it was an article of faith that fly balls didn’t carry far in the heavy night air of Chavez Ravine.

However, the announcer continued, a Dodger executive had told him that over the last several years, “in general, the marine layer is gone, and the ball has started to carry at night, and you can see it now in the numbers. It is a great home run hitters park.”

This is statistically true. Between 2020 and 2025, Dodger Stadium had more home runs than any other major league park, although this year’s total is lagging behind last year’s pace. In all of Major League Baseball, home run totals have fluctuated but gradually increased over the years, with this year’s pace running slightly ahead of last year’s.

That can’t all be attributed to climate change, as retired Dodger great Steve Garvey is going to explain in a minute. When considered city by city and decade by decade, there are lots of factors in home run totals, from ballpark dimensions to playing strategies to the number of long ball hitters in each lineup.

But with Dodger Stadium, the marine layer angle jumped out at me because I’m always on the lookout for relatable ways to tell the climate change story. In the past, I’d written about the gradual demise of Joshua trees, the effect of receding fog and higher heat on the California wine industry, the growing nuisance of backyard bug bites and the gradual migration of juvenile great white sharks up the coast.

And now we have to ask ourselves: Is global warming producing more home runs than steroids did?

The warm-up is real, but it isn’t new. In Game 2 of the 2017 World Series, the temperature at Dodger Stadium topped 100 when the first pitch was thrown, and the ballpark was like a popcorn machine. The Dodgers and Astros combined for a record eight home runs, and The Times’ story quoted a NASA climate scientist who noted that the marine layer was a no-show.

While watching Monday night’s game, I emailed Dodger fan Edgar McGregor, the meteorologist who warned neighbors about the catastrophic weather conditions that resulted in the Eaton fire. I asked what he thought about this theory of a link between a diminished marine layer and the number of home runs.

“There is absolute truth to that,” said McGregor, explaining that “when oceanic temperatures are warmer, the marine layer is weaker.”

McGregor broke down the aerodynamics: “Cold air is dense, so a baseball has to push more atoms out of the way as it travels deep. Warm air has lower density, so balls travel farther.”

UC climate scientist Daniel Swain said this pattern will accelerate “for the rest of our lives as air continues to warm and baseballs continue to meet less and less resistance.”

This doesn’t mean that an infield pop-up will become a home run, but Swain said balls travel four inches farther per 1 degree Fahrenheit increase, “meaning that the average hit goes about 1-2 feet further than it would have in the early 20th century.”

That doesn’t sound like a staggering difference, but with thousands of batted balls over the years, that’s a lot of outs turning into doubles, triples and home runs. Swain sent me a 2023 study from the American Meteorological Society journal titled “Global warming, home runs, and the future of America’s pastime.”

Researchers reviewed data between 2010 and 2019, finding that “higher temperatures substantially increase home runs,” with about 50 per year “attributable to historical warming.” That adds up to about 500 more home runs.

The scientists concluded: “Each degree of global warming is associated with an additional 95 home runs per baseball season.”

Home runs bring fans to their feet, as in Monday night’s game, when Kyle Tucker pumped one that made it just over the right field wall and Miguel Rojas popped the game-winner with a shot that barely cleared the left field fence. So I don’t want to sound like a party pooper, but there is no bigger story in the world than the accelerating destruction of the only sandlot we’ve got.

If the right team hits a homer, feel free to go ahead and cheer. But if the wrong team hits one, you can remind friends and loved ones that each homer is like a fossil fuel bugle call signaling the end of the world as we know it.

Thankfully, the marine layer has not yet disappeared entirely. We still got some May gray this year and some June gloom as well. I wondered, though, if there were any retired Dodgers out there who might be thinking they’d have walloped more home runs if they’d had the advantage of warmer air.

“I do remember some balls just not traveling far, especially compared to day games,” said James Loney, who played first base for the Dodgers from 2006 to 2012 and had 106 career homers with three teams.

Today’s Dodgers hit a lot of home runs primarily because the lineup is stacked, Loney said. But he said he recalled players from visiting teams hammering a long ball and passing him at first base, thinking “they had a home run, and then making a right turn back to the dugout.”

Garvey, also a first baseman, slugged 272 home runs in his 18-year career and told me that if he were playing in this era, “I probably would have hit another 40 or 50 home runs.”

But Garvey, who started with the Dodgers in 1969, said weather is just one of many factors that have led to more home runs in today’s game, which has abandoned finesse in favor of brute force.

Garvey said the bats are harder, the balls are livelier, the pitchers throw harder (more velocity means more pop for batters) and launch angles are talked about more in baseball than at Cape Canaveral.

“We never heard the term ‘launch angle,’” said Garvey, who told me he went up to the plate trying to hit a line drive, not a moon shot.

“My goal used to be a .300 average, 200 hits, 100 RBIs and 20-plus home runs,” said Garvey, who hit 20 or more homers six times, with a high of 33 in 1977.

Today’s Dodgers have plenty of swat in their lineup, ranking behind only the Yankees in home runs so far as they chase a third straight World Series ring. They’re in first place even though one of their biggest bombers, Shohei Ohtani, is about a dozen homers shy of last year’s pace.

But Swain has good news for Ohtani, for Dodger fans and for manufacturers of short-sleeved shirts.

“This year, there is going to be exceptionally high humidity for most of baseball season in SoCal due to the developing very strong El Niño event and record warm coastal ocean temperatures,” he said.

“So, it’s indeed plausible,” Swain continued, “that the combination of long-term warming from climate change, plus shorter-term warming and humidity increase from El Niño and near-shore ocean warming, might increase the number of home runs this season.”

One can only hope the home team does the most celebrating.

Go Dodgers.

steve.lopez@latimes.com

England did not want to go through the play-offs but were given an unkind draw in the qualifying groups when they met world champions Spain.

It does mean, however, that Sarina Wiegman’s side are in a strong position for the play-offs and will fancy their chances with a kind trip to Greece in October.

They beat potential round two opponents Ukraine in both matches in the qualifying group stage, which will give them confidence too.

There is a tricky tie for Northern Ireland, who come up against a talented young squad from Portugal in round one. Portugal twice beat Northern Ireland in Euro 2025 qualifying.

Their task gets trickier if they make it through to round two with potential opponents Iceland proving to be difficult to break down in their matches against England this year.

Scotland are hoping to reach just their second Women’s World Cup finals having failed to qualify in 2023.

They performed well in this year’s qualifying group stages, including draws with Belgium that showed they can compete with Europe’s strongest teams.

They will need to produce their best in round two if they meet big-hitters Sweden, who have been semi-finalists in the past two Women’s World Cup finals.

Wales have never beaten a top-20 ranked nation in a competitive fixture and are likely to need to do so to qualify – and their away form needs improvement.

But Rhian Wilkinson’s side face familiar opponents in round one. They thrashed Albania 4-0 in their qualifying group so who says they can’t do it again?

Meanwhile, having performed superbly in qualifying, the Republic of Ireland have a tricky play-off route with established European opposition Belgium potentially waiting in round two.

First, Carly Ward’s side will have to navigate a 3,100-mile trip to Kazakhstan, against relatively unknown opposition.