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Captain Rajat Patidar thrashed 93 not out from just 33 balls as defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru powered into the final of the 2026 Indian Premier League with a 92-run victory over Gujarat Titans.
RCB were 94-3 in the ninth over, veteran Virat Kohli out for 43, but Patidar hit nine sixes in addition to five fours to power his side to 254-5.
The total was the highest in an IPL play-off with 126 runs coming from the last seven overs.
Gujarat, who were only pipped to top spot in the league phase on net run-rate by RCB, lost key openers Sai Sudharsan and India Test captain Shubman Gill in the third and fourth overs respectively.
Sudharsan, the tournament’s leading run-scorer, was out hit wicket after his bat slipped from his hands playing a cut shot and bounced onto the stumps.
Afterwards, England wicketkeeper Jos Buttler hit four fours and two sixes but was bowled by Australia’s Josh Hazlewood for 29, continuing a sorry slide.
From 88-8, Gujarat limped on to 162 before being dismissed in the final over. Rahul Tewatia made 68 but the match was long decided.
Gujarat still have a second chance to reach Sunday’s final.
They will play the winner of Wednesday’s eliminator between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals.
Scotland striker Lawrence Shankland says he is fulfilling his “dream” of joining “boyhood club” Rangers after completing his transfer from Scottish Premiership rivals Heart of Midlothian.
The 30-year-old, who has agreed a two-year deal at Ibrox with the option of a further 12 months, scored 88 goals in 171 appearances across four campaigns at Tynecastle.
And he captained the Edinburgh side to second place this season, missing out on the title to Celtic on the final day, with Rangers in third, eight points behind Hearts.
Shankland will miss out on Champions League qualifiers with Hearts but told Rangers TV: “Rangers is my boyhood club and it has always been a dream to play here, so I was really keen to get it done.
“The club are in a position where they want to get back to winning silverware more regularly and I want to be a big part of that, so that’s what I have come here to do.”
Shankland was out of contract at Hearts last summer – and was linked with a move to Ibrox then – before signing a three-year deal in late June.
The former Queen’s Park, Aberdeen, Ayr United, Dundee United and Beerschot forward went on to hit 20 goals in 34 games in all competitions, including four against Rangers, as Derek McInnes’ side chased a first title since 1960.
Rangers head coach Danny Rohl said: “He is a player with proven quality, leadership and work ethic – and his goalscoring record in Scotland speaks for itself.
“He understands the demands and expectations that come with playing for Rangers and we believe his character and experience will be a huge asset for the group.”
Immediately after completing his transfer, Shankland, who has scored four times in 18 Scotland outings, will join Steve Clarke’s squad for the World Cup.
“I wish him well at the World Cup this summer and look forward to welcoming him back to Glasgow during pre-season,” Rohl added.
“The thoughts of everyone at the club go out to Victor’s loved ones at this extremely difficult time.”
Udoh joined Antwerp’s academy in 2023 and played 27 times for their ‘Young Reds’ team, scoring 12 goals, and went on to make his first team debut in the same season.
“Our thoughts are with Victor’s family, friends, and loved ones. We wish them much strength, support, and warmth during this particularly difficult time.”
There is a growing expectation Anderson will leave the City Ground this summer.
United are unwilling to overpay, or get drawn into protracted negotiations.
No deal has been struck between Forest and City and the clubs are far apart on their valuation for the 23-year-old, meaning the situation could still change.
There is a sense at Forest that if there is a big sale this summer it will be Anderson, and a fine World Cup with England would put them in a stronger bargaining position.
Following Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Bournemouth, Forest manager Vitor Pereira said Anderson and Morgan Gibbs-White deserve “the top of the world”.
He would prefer to keep both players but it is Anderson who is the more likely to leave currently, especially with no European football at the City Ground next season after they finished 16th in the Premier League.
“I believe if we want to compete for different goals, we need to keep the best players,” said Pereira.
“If not, if you change every season, it is difficult to be consistent and difficult to build something stronger.
“We cannot control the market, of course, but I think we are aligned; what I think and what the club thinks is to try to keep most of them and to try to control the market.”
Anderson, who won the 2025 European U21 Championship with England last summer, joined Forest from Newcastle in 2024 for £35m and has played 92 times, scoring six goals.
Sunday’s game against Bournemouth was his 50th appearance of the season and he was given a standing ovation when withdrawn in the second half.
Norrie’s fitness and stamina have been among his biggest assets during his career – as well as his desire to play as much tennis as possible.
However, after playing in the back-to-back Masters 1000 events in Madrid and Rome across April and May, Norrie opted to go to the Geneva Open in the week leading in to Roland Garros.
He lost his opening match to Argentina’s Mario Navone on Wednesday and said afterwards he “probably should have retired” from it.
“I overdid it with the preparation and not listening to my body and my mind,” he told BBC Sport on Saturday.
“I kept pushing because I had never retired before in a match in my career, so I wasn’t sure what to do.”
That run is now over, but former British number one Annabel Croft believes Norrie made the right choice.
“It’s far better not to exacerbate the injury problem and get back to the UK, have rest and treatment on it, and then start building up to Queen’s Club and Wimbledon,” she said on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra.
“We’ve heard from [Novak] Djokovic that his body doesn’t respond as well as it used to and into his thirties it was getting more difficult for his body to respond.
“This sport is so demanding and I can see why Norrie would have overtrained.”
BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller added: “It is in Norrie’s DNA – he just can’t really leave it alone.
“That is what’s made him the player he is today. He loves being out there.”
Norrie was the last British singles player standing at 14 Grand Slams over the past five years, including the Australian Open in January.
Fearnley begins his French Open campaign later on Tuesday, while Katie Boulter and Francesca Jones have reached the second round in the women’s singles.
The Southern Section finalized its championship schedule for softball this week, and the Division 1 final between La Mirada and JSerra will take place Friday at 7 p.m. at Bill Barber Park in Irvine.
La Mirada is 26-4 and will be facing JSerra pitcher Liliana Escobar, the best in the Southland. La Mirada lost to JSerra 5-2 on March 7. The Matadores have been led by Riley Hilliard, who’s hitting .577 with 10 home runs.
JSerra (24-8), which began the school year winning the Southern Section flag football championship, is trying to end the year on top behind the arm of Escobar, who has 252 strikeouts in 146 innings. The top hitter has been sophomore catcher Annabel Raftery.
The Division 2 final will match Mater Dei against Whittier Christian on Friday at 4 p.m.
The Southern Section is waiting for the baseball semifinals to be played on Tuesday before announcing dates and times. The only certainty is the Division 1 final will be played on Friday at 7 p.m. at Cal State Fullerton unless either of the finalists has a scheduling issue on that date.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
Dodgers ride Kiké Hernández’s emotional comeback, late surge to beat Rockies
Dodgers third baseman Kiké Hernández rounds third during the fifth inning of a win over the Rockies at Dodger Stadium on Monday.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
From Liana Handler: In his first big-league game back since Game 7 of the World Series, Kiké Hernández received playoff-level cheers at Dodger Stadium on Monday night, nearly drowning out his walk-up song as he stepped into the batter’s box against the Rockies in the bottom of the third inning. Some fans tipped their hats. Others joined the rising “Kiké!” chants.
After taking a ball, Hernández sent a four-seam fastball hopping down the left-field line for an RBI double that scored Hyeseong Kim. The crowd of 48,778 exploded.
It was shaping up to be a happy return, but it wasn’t until the seventh inning that the rest of the Dodgers lineup found its footing, taking advantage of some shaky relief pitching to rally for a 5-3 victory over the Colorado Rockies.
Hernández reached on an infield single in his second at-bat before being lifted for a pinch-hitter as the Dodgers began to rally in the seventh.
Hernández’s journey back to the big leagues has been an arduous one. Throughout his two-month stint last year on the injured list, he received seven injections in his left elbow. None worked.
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No. 1 UCLA baseball to host Saint Mary’s; USC and UC Santa Barbara earn NCAA bids
UCLA players celebrate at home plate as Jack O’Connor rounds the bases during the Big Ten tournament.
(Courtesy of UCLA Athletics)
From Joaquin Ruiz: The UCLA baseball team (51-6) is hosting the Los Angeles Regional as the nation’s No. 1 overall seed, and USC (43-15) is headed to the College Station Regional hosted by 12th-seeded Texas A&M, the NCAA announced Monday.
After walking off Oregon 3-2 on Sunday in Omaha to claim their first Big Ten tournament title, the Bruins will defend Jackie Robinson Stadium and push to make their second consecutive College World Series run. UCLA faces Saint Mary’s (seeded fourth in the L.A. regional) in the Westwood opener at noon Friday on ESPNU, while No. 2 Virginia Tech and No. 3 Cal Poly will face off at 5 p.m on ESPN+ to complete the Los Angeles Regional.
If the Bruins advance, they will host a super regional against the winner of the Morgantown Regional hosted by West Virginia.
USC is making its second consecutive NCAA tournament appearance for the first time since 2002. The Trojans are seeded second at College Station and will face 36-24 Texas State at 6 p.m. PDT on Friday at Texas A&M’s Blue Bell Park on ESPN+. The Aggies will face Lamar at 1 p.m. PDT on the SEC Network to open the College Station Regional.
“When you start in August, the goal is to play in Omaha,” USC coach Andy Stankiewicz said, alluding to the home of the College World Series. “But before you get in Omaha, you got to get to a regional. And so, here we are. [We’d] certainly love to be hosting a regional, but it’s OK. We’re on our way to Texas to tee it up against some really good Texas teams. That’s the goal, to be ready to play. Our boys are up here working right now, and they’ll get ready for a great weekend.”
Inside U.S. soccer’s World Cup camp at Orange County Great Park
An aerial view of a U.S. Soccer banner hanging on the exterior of a Great Park balloon ride as crews prepare the training area for World Cup training.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
From Kevin Baxter: On a recent spring morning, Championship Soccer Stadium, which sits in a corner of the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, was quiet and empty save for the dozen sprinklers quenching a newly laid grass carpet.
Normally the well-used stadium is a buzz of activity. But its main tenant, the Orange County Soccer Club, which plays in the second-division USL Championship, has been temporarily evicted, left to train in the nearby park and play its final home game before the World Cup at Eddie West Field in Santa Ana, 12 miles away. (Not that it was necessarily a bad thing since the club drew a home-record crowd of 7,651 to its 3-2 win over Oakland on Saturday, which allowed it to hold onto second place in the Western Conference table.)
During the next month, the nine-year-old venue will have just one occupant, the U.S. national soccer team, which has chosen the stadium as its main training base for the World Cup. The temporary change in ownership is heralded by a giant orange orb the size of a hot-air balloon, adorned with the U.S. Soccer logo and tethered to a rise just outside the stadium.
Why and how the federation wound up in Irvine is unknown; U.S. Soccer declined to respond to multiple requests for comment. But it’s safe to say location was a factor since the Orange County Great Park is the closest World Cup training base to SoFi Stadium, where the U.S. will play two of its three group-stage games.
Lakers hire former Pelicans executive Rohan Ramadas amid front office expansion
From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: The Lakers hired former New Orleans Pelicans executive Rohan Ramadas to fill one of two new assistant general manager roles, The Times confirmed Monday.
Ramadas previously worked as the vice president of basketball operations and strategy for the Pelicans and will be involved in managing the salary cap, analytics and data for the Lakers, who are retooling their front office and basketball operations under new ownership this summer. Speaking at an end-of-season newsconference, GM Rob Pelinka said the Lakers will hire two new assistant general managers, with the other position focusing on pro scouting, draft scouting and player development.
Ramadas, who received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in astronautical engineering from USC, worked at El Segundo-based The Aerospace Corporation for 12 years before jumping to the NBA full-time in 2024.
Knicks return to NBA Finals for first time since 1999 after sweeping Cavaliers
Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns and teammates celebrate after winning the Eastern Conference finals Monday in Cleveland.
(Tim Phillis / Associated Press)
From the Associated Press: Karl-Anthony-Towns had 19 points and 14 rebounds, OG Anunoby scored 17 and the New York Knicks routed the Cleveland Cavaliers 130-93 Monday night to complete a four-game sweep of the Eastern Conference finals and advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999.
Landry Shamet scored 16 off the bench while Mikal Bridges and Jalen Brunson had 15 apiece for the Knicks, who became the fourth team to have an 11-game winning streak during their postseason run. The last to do it was Golden State, which had a 15-game run en route to its second title in three seasons in 2017.
All but one of the Knicks’ wins have been by double digits, with an average margin of victory of 23.7 points.
1925 — In Detroit’s 8-1 win over the Chicago White Sox, Ty Cobb becomes the first to collect 1,000 career extra-base hits. He finished his career with 1,139.
1959 — Harvey Haddix of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches 12 perfect innings before losing to the Milwaukee Braves, 1-0 in the 13th on an error, a sacrifice and Joe Adcock’s double.
1963 — French Championships Men’s Tennis: Australian Roy Emerson beats home favourite Pierre Darmon 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-4.
1963 — French Championships Women’s Tennis: Australian Lesley Turner wins the first of 2 French titles; beats England’s Ann Jones 2-6, 6-3, 7-5.
1972 — Joe Frazier TKOs Ron Stander in 5 for heavyweight boxing title.
1982 — 26th European Cup: Aston Villa beats Bayern Munich 1-0 at Rotterdam.
1983 — LA Lakers set NBA playoff game record of fewest free throws.
1985 — Danny Sullivan misses almost certain disaster and holds off Mario Andretti and the rest of the fastest field in auto racing to win the Indianapolis 500. On the 119th lap, Sullivan spins his racer 360 degrees, narrowly avoiding both the wall and Andretti.
1987 — Boston’s Larry Bird steals an inbounds pass from Detroit’s Isiah Thomas and feeds over his shoulder to a cutting Dennis Johnson for the winning basket as the Celtics pulls out an improbable 108-107 win over Detroit in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
1988 — The Edmonton Oilers, with MVP Wayne Gretzky leading the way, beat the Boston Bruins 6-3 to complete a four-game sweep and win their fourth Stanley Cup in five years.
1991 — Rick Mears passes Michael Andretti with 12 laps to go and wins his fourth Indianapolis 500, by 3.1 seconds. Mears joins A.J. Foyt and Al Unser as the only four-time winners.
1993 — In Major League Baseball, Carlos Martinez famously hits a ball off Jose Canseco’s head for a home run.
1993 — 1st UEFA Champions League Final: Marseille beats Milan 1-0 at Munich.
1994 — Haiti’s Ronald Agenor wins the longest match since the French Open adopted the tiebreaker. Agenor takes the 71st and final game of a second-round match with David Prinosil of Germany. His five-hour, 6-7 (4-7), 6-7 (2-7), 6-3, 6-4, 14-12 victory involves the most games in a French Open match since 1973.
1999 — 7th UEFA Champions League Final: Manchester United beats Bayern Munich 2-1 at Barcelona.
2000 — New Jersey finishes the greatest comeback in a conference final when the Devils win the last three games of the series, beating the Flyers 2-1 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final. Patrik Elias scores his second goal of the game with 2:32 to play for the win.
2004 — Andy Roddick loses at the French Open — to Frenchman Olivier Mutis, who is ranked 125th. With the five-set loss, Roddick joins Andre Agassi and eight other compatriots on the way home, making it the first Grand Slam tournament in more than 30 years without a U.S. man in the third round.
2005 — Americans Andy Roddick, James Blake and Vince Spadea fail to make it through the opening week at the French Open. For the second year in a row — and the second time at a Grand Slam event in more than 30 years — no American man makes it out of the second round.
2008 — Syracuse wins its 10th NCAA men’s lacrosse championship, beating defending champion Johns Hopkins 13-10 behind three goals from Dan Hardy. The crowd of 48,970 at Foxborough, Mass., is the largest to see an NCAA championship outdoors in any sport — the BCS football championship game isn’t an NCAA event.
2009 — NHL Eastern Conference Final: Pittsburgh Penguins beat Carolina Hurricanes, 4 games to 0.
2012 — Toronto FC ends its MLS record nine-game losing streak to open a season with a 1-0 win over the Philadelphia Union on a late goal by Danny Koevermans.
2013 — Tony Kanaan ends years of frustration by finally winning the Indianapolis 500. Kanaan drives past Ryan Hunter-Reay on a restart with three laps to go, then coasts across the finish line under yellow when defending race winner Dario Franchitti crashes far back in the field. The Brazilian finished second in 2004 and twice finished third.
2013 — Senior PGA Championship, Bellerive CC: Kōki Idoki of Japan wins his lone PGA event by 2 strokes from Jay Haas and Kenny Perry.
2015 — Cleveland Cavaliers win the NBA Eastern Conference.
2018 — UEFA Champions League Final, Kiev: Real Madrid beats Liverpool, 3-1 for third straight title. Zinédine Zidane first manager to win 3 consecutive titles.
2019 — Indianapolis 500: 2016 IndyCar Series champion Simon Pagenaud of France finishes just two-tenths of a second ahead of Alexander Rossi for Team Penske’s record-extending 18th victory in the event.
2019 — Senior PGA Championship, Oak Hill CC: American Ken Tanigawa wins his first career major title by 1 stroke ahead of Scott McCarron.
Compiled by the Associated Press
This day in baseball history
1916 — Benny Kauff of the Giants was picked off first base three times by Boston’s Lefty Tyler. The miscues didn’t hurt as New York won its 14th consecutive road victory beating the Braves, 12-1.
1925 — In Detroit’s 8-1 win over the Chicago White Sox, Ty Cobb became the first to collect 1,000 career extra-base hits. He finished his career with 1,139.
1929 — Pinch-hitters Pat Crawford of the Giants and Les Bell of the Boston Braves hit grand slams in New York’s 15-9 victory.
1930 — Joe Sewell of the Cleveland Indians, who fanned only three times in 353 at-bats during the season, was struck out twice in the same game by Pat Caraway of the White Sox.
1937 — Billy Sullivan and Bruce Campbell appeared for the Cleveland Indians as pinch hitters. Each hit a home run, making this the first time two American League pinch hitters hit home runs in the same game. The Indians beat the Athletics, 8-6.
1956 — Cincinnati Reds pitchers John Klippstein, Hershell Freeman and Joe Black combined for 9 2-3 hitless innings, but lost 2-1 in 11 innings to the Philadelphia Phillies.
1959 — Harvey Haddix of Pittsburgh pitched 12 perfect innings before losing to Milwaukee 1-0 in the 13th on an error, a sacrifice and Joe Adcock’s double.
1962 — Sandy Koufax struck out 16 Phillies to lead the Dodgers to a 6-3 victory.
1969 — Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves hits his 500th career double, becoming only the third major leaguer to reach 500 doubles and 500 home runs.
1995 — Southern California and Fresno State combined for an NCAA postseason baseball record of 39 runs in the Trojans’ 22-17 win in the West Regional. USC scored three runs in the top of the ninth to break the record of 37 set by the Trojans and Houston in 1990.
1996 — The Chicago White Sox became the 16th team in AL history to hit four homers in one inning in their 12-1 win over Milwaukee. Frank Thomas, Harold Baines and Robin Ventura hit consecutive homers and Chad Kreuter added another in Chicago’s seven-run eighth.
1997 — Chicago’s Sammy Sosa and the Pirates’ Tony Womack hit inside-the-park homers in the sixth inning of the Cubs’ 2-1 win. It was the first time two inside-the-park homers had been hit in the same inning in 20 years.
2004 — Daryle Ward hit for the cycle and tied his career best with six RBIs in Pittsburgh’s 11-8 win over St. Louis.
2006 — Derek Jeter gets his 2,000th career hit, becoming the eighth player in Yankees history to reach the milestone.
2008 — Chase Utley tied the National League lead with his 16th homer and drove in six runs as Philadelphia routed Colorado 20-5. The Phillies batted around three times and had season-highs in hits (19) and runs.
2011 — The hot-hitting Boston Red Sox routed the Detroit Tigers 14-1 in an eight-inning, rain-shortened game. The Red Sox, who beat Cleveland 14-2 the previous day, scored at least 14 runs in back-to-back games for the first time since 1998.
2016 — Major League Baseball hands out a suspension of 82 games to Braves OF Hector Olivera, following a domestic violence incident in April. It is by far the most severe penalty yet handed out under baseball’s new domestic violence policy.
2018 — Mike Trout has the first five-hit game of his career and drives in 4 runs to lead the Angels to an 11-4 win over the Yankees.
2021 — Commissioner Rob Manfred issues his ruling following the completion of the investigation of allegations of improper behavior towards a number of women against former manager and coach Mickey Callaway. Callaway is found guilty of violating Major League Baseball policies and is declared ineligible for the remainder of this season and all of 2022, after which he may apply for reinstatement. For their part, the Angels fire him from his position of pitching coach, from which he has been suspended since the allegations surfaced in February, and the Indians, who were Callaway’s employer when some of the offensive incidents took place, state that they will take steps to ensure a more respectful environment in which employees feel empowered to denounce workplace harassement in the future.
2023 — Craig Kimbrel becomes the eighth pitcher to record 400 career saves in Philadelphia’s 6 – 4 win over the Braves, barely two weeks after Kenley Jansen became the seventh.
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.
Like Wales, Romania missed out on World Cup qualification after losing their play-off semi-final in March.
The match in Bucharest will be the first meeting between the teams since 1993 when Wales lost at home to Romania to agonisingly miss out on the 1994 World Cup.
This will also be a first home match in charge for the great Gheorghe Hagi, the former Barcelona and Real Madrid playmaker who scored in Cardiff 33 years ago.
Hagi was appointed Romania’s manager for the second time in April, taking over from Mircea Lucescu, who died at the age of 80 following a heart attack.
Ghana, meanwhile, will be facing Wales for the first time and include Manchester City’s Antoine Semenyo in their squad.
Former Manchester United assistant manager Carlos Queiroz was appointed as Ghana’s head coach last month.
The 73-year-old Portuguese has replaced Otto Addo, who was sacked in March after friendly defeats by Germany and Austria.
The Black Stars, who are in the same World Cup group as England, Croatia and Panama, also failed to qualify for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations under Addo.
The matches against Ghana and Romania will serve as preparation for Wales’ return to the top flight of the Nations League in September, where they have been drawn with Portugal, Norway and Denmark.
On a recent spring morning, Championship Soccer Stadium, which sits in a corner of the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, was quiet and empty save for the dozen sprinklers quenching a newly laid grass carpet.
Normally the well-used stadium is a buzz of activity. But its main tenant, the Orange County Soccer Club, which plays in the second-division USL Championship, has been temporarily evicted, left to train in the nearby park and play its final home game before the World Cup at Eddie West Field in Santa Ana, 12 miles away. (Not that it was necessarily a bad thing since the club drew a home-record crowd of 7,651 to its 3-2 win over Oakland on Saturday, which allowed it to hold onto second place in the Western Conference table.)
During the next month, the nine-year-old venue will have just one occupant, the U.S. national soccer team, which has chosen the stadium as its main training base for the World Cup. The temporary change in ownership is heralded by a giant orange orb the size of a hot-air balloon, adorned with the U.S. Soccer logo and tethered to a rise just outside the stadium.
Why and how the federation wound up in Irvine is unknown; U.S. Soccer declined to respond to multiple requests for comment. But it’s safe to say location was a factor since the Orange County Great Park is the closest World Cup training base to SoFi Stadium, where the U.S. will play two of its three group-stage games.
Crews work to prepare the training area for the U.S. soccer team at Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
The U.S. team’s first training session there, on June 8, will be the only practice open to the public. Four days later, the team will open its World Cup schedule against Paraguay in Inglewood, a 45-mile bus ride away. The Americans are one of seven World Cup teams to choose base camps in California. Australia and Paraguay will train in the Bay Area; Switzerland and New Zealand will be in San Diego; and Austria and Qatar will stay in Santa Barbara.
For the Orange County Soccer Club, which has just a humble spot on the U.S. soccer landscape, even a temporary association with the World Cup and the national team is worth celebrating.
“How can you not be excited about the host nation training in your facility when you are a club who prides itself on developing young talent,” said Dan Rutstein, the team’s president of business operations. “Sharing a stadium with the U.S. national team is a great opportunity.”
One that comes with great perks. FIFA, which vetted the location for World Cup teams a couple of years ago, has replaced the stadium’s grass field with one the Orange County team could never have paid for itself and will install security fencing in the next week or so, as it will at all 48 tournament training fields. U.S. Soccer is also expanding and improving the team’s tiny locker room and adding a media work room.
Alvaro Leon, Brian Biniasz, and Joesph Frausto install rubber flooring in the U.S. Soccer World Cup locker room.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
The Orange County Soccer Club is paying for those perks with a little inconvenience, however. The players will have to dress at home for practice, which will be held in the adjoining park. And the club’s next six games will all be on the road. The team also had to take down any signs or placards that mentioned the Orange County Soccer Club; they were replaced with USMNT signage.
“It’s their stadium now,” Rutstein said.
“If you look at what the club is trying to achieve and where we are as an organization, any short-term pain is more than offset by the medium- and long-term benefits of being associated with the World Cup and the U.S. national team,” he added.
The team is trying to sell naming rights to the stadium, for example, and its association with the national team and the World Cup could be a big help in that.
When FIFA first released potential World Cup training sites two years ago, Championship Soccer Stadium was on the list and Rutstein said about a dozen national teams sent representatives to have a look. How many bid on the site is unknown but FIFA rules say if two or more teams make a claim on the same venue, the team with the lowest FIFA world ranking gets first dibs.
The U.S. is ranked 16th, which clearly gave it an edge.
An aerial view of crews preparing the training area for the U.S. soccer team at Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
Besides, Orange County is no stranger to world-class soccer. The only other time the World Cup was hosted in the U.S., in 1994, the American team trained in Mission Viejo. And when European champion Paris Saint-Germain came to Southern California for last summer’s Club World Cup, it trained at UC Irvine.
“Being away from the glare of a big city is appealing,” Rutstein said.
“The World Cup is going to do wonders for soccer in this country, as it did over 30 years ago,” he continued. “And we’re excited to make the most of that growth.”
Do you honestly think Max will quit F1 at the end of the season if the engine changes aren’t coming? – Paddy
There is no questioning the fact that Max Verstappen is being genuine when he says he doesn’t think he can face another year driving the cars as they are.
In Montreal, he made it pretty clear that he does not fancy sticking around if the engine rules don’t change. “It’s just mentally not doable for me to stay like this,” he said. “It’s really not.”
After the race, he admitted he had “enjoyed a lot” his battle with Hamilton. But he also expanded on why he doesn’t like the new cars or, more precisely, the new engines, with their need for constant energy management.
Verstappen said that racing in the Nurburgring 24 Hours had reminded him “how pure motorsport can be”.
In F1, this year, he said: “For me, while driving, it’s all a bit confusing. It’s not what Formula 1 should be about. It’s way too complex.
“Most of the rules, the fans don’t even know what we are dealing with while driving, what is allowed when you’re behind or when you’re the car ahead, what we have to do on a formation lap or what we have to do in an out-lap, or how much battery that we’re allowed to charge.
“It’s just such a shame that we have to deal with all these things. F1 just needs to be more pure and I really hope that what they try to do [for] next year will go through because I think that is necessary, the minimum necessary, to make it a bit more natural and a bit more back to normal, or at least a bit more pure racing.
“As drivers, give us any kind of car, we’ll always race and give good entertainment or a good show. Doesn’t matter that people say, ‘Oh, but look now, the show is great, the cars were fighting.’ But it has nothing to do with the car. It just needs to be more pure.”
Verstappen is the most outspoken, but all the drivers basically feel the same way.
Antonelli said after the race that “still sometimes it triggers you a little bit how the system works”.
And Hamilton said: “It still continues to be a weird feeling”, adding: “You go on the power, you open up the [straight-line mode], and then the power dies halfway down the straight and the RPM starts dropping.
“It doesn’t feel what motorsport should be. The engine should be ringing its neck right to the end of the straight and just pulling and pulling.”
Verstappen is referring to the current attempt by F1 bosses to change the split between internal combustion and electrical power to 60:40 next year rather than the nominal 50:50 (in reality about 54:46) at the moment.
This is likely to be done by increasing the fuel-flow limit, and would reduce the need for energy management, especially in qualifying, and make the driving more “on the limit” again.
The regulators also have a chance to address some of the peculiarities of the new rules which are making the cars and engines extremely difficult to handle on warm-up laps because of the requirement not to go over a particular energy limit.
I won’t go into that here because it’s incredibly complex – but when you hear about what the drivers are having to do, the reaction is to scratch your head and wonder how on earth F1 ended up in this mess.
Although the FIA said more than two weeks ago that there was an “agreement in principle” on the 60:40 move, there has so far not been enough support from engine manufacturers for the changes to go through.
However, bosses are trying to lean on the companies opposed – Ferrari, Audi, Honda and Cadillac. And there is hope that an agreement, with suitable compromises addressing the concerns of, particularly, Ferrari and Audi, can be reached this week.
It’s worth mentioning that the rules have had some superficial positives, mainly to do with racing.
The new cars are lighter, smaller, and more nimble. And ‘overtake mode’ – which gives a car behind an extra 0.5MJ of electrical energy per lap if within a second of the car in front – has led to the multi-lap battles in which cars pass and repass a number of times that have become a feature of this year’s racing.
The hope is to be able to retain this while addressing the concerns about the way the new engines have negatively affected the purity of driving.
A former world junior number one and three-time Grand Slam junior champion, Monfils, by his own admission, perhaps did not fully fulfil his potential in the senior ranks, but he insists his “bucket list is full”.
Over the course of his 23 seasons in professional tennis, he has won 13 ATP titles, reached at least the last eight at three of the four majors – Wimbledon is the exception – and achieved a career-high ranking of sixth in the world.
There were 38 wins over top-10 ranked players, including multiple victories over both Federer and Nadal, and two Davis Cup finals with France.
Such is his longevity, this was his 70th appearance in the main draw of a Grand Slam and 19th at the French Open. He holds the record for most Slam match wins by a male French player in the Open era, even if a major title has been elusive.
But Monfils will be best remembered for his on-court showmanship, athleticism and outrageous shot selection. His near physics-defying slides along the baseline and basketball-like hangtime before smashes have cemented his status as a fan favourite.
“I was never quite good enough to win a Grand Slam,” reflected Monfils before the French Open. “But maybe I won something more important than that – a tennis career I’m proud of.”
In a testament to his popularity on and off the court, the farewell festivities began last Thursday with a charity event on Philippe-Chatrier – fittingly named ‘Gael & Friends’ – featuring appearances from stars such as Jannik Sinner, Djokovic and Naomi Osaka, as well as fellow Frenchmen – both retired – Richard Gasquet and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Gasquet was also in attendance for Monfils’ final bow against Gaston, as were French tennis royalty Mauresmo – the tournament director – and Henri Leconte.
Watch the trailer for a new BBC Sport documentary offering unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to Manchester United and England star Ella Toone as she prepares for her wedding.
Launching on BBC Sport’s YouTube channel and BBC iPlayer on Friday 29 May, 24 Hours With Ella Toone is the first episode of a new BBC Sport digital series which captures a defining 24-hour chapter with some of sport’s most fascinating characters.
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The 29-year-old endured a difficult 2025, dropping from 24th in the world to outside the top 100, and she lost her British number one ranking amid injury issues.
Searching for a fresh start, she split from her long-time coach Biljana Veselinovic and appointed Michael Joyce – the former coach of Maria Sharapova – in early 2026.
After a first-round exit in January’s Australian Open, Boulter returned to the world’s top 100 with a WTA 250 title in Ostrava and a run to the third round in Miami.
But her form remained inconsistent and she had won just three WTA Tour-level singles matches from four clay tournaments in the build-up to the Paris major.
Unforced errors flew freely from both players’ racquets and the pair twice traded breaks in the opening set before Boulter served it out at the second time of asking.
Back-to-back double faults from Boulter put Urhobo on the front foot early in the second, and although Boulter levelled the scores mid-set, the Florida-born player restored her advantage immediately and forced the decider.
Both players raised their level in the third and the quality improved somewhat as Boulter stamped her authority on the contest with a break in the fourth game.
Once again, the Briton failed to serve out the set and she eventually grabbed the win – after two hours and 10 minutes – by breaking Urhobo’s serve for a sixth time.
Ultimately, 58 unforced errors to Boulter’s 35 proved too costly for rising star Urhobo, who broke into the top 200 for the first time earlier this year.
Speaking after the match, Boulter said she was not quite physically at 100% during her first-round contest, adding: “I think it’s just been cumulative over the last few weeks, maybe playing with a bit of an illness.
“I really expected to feel a bit better today walking on the court, but I wasn’t fully there. Whether it was just a little bit of the conditions, a little bit of the last few weeks, I haven’t quite got enough rest, I’m not entirely sure.
“In the last couple of days I’ve been pretty tired going on the practice courts. My goal was just to go out and not overthink it, just try to play, almost forget that I wasn’t feeling amazing and try to do the best I could.”
Injured captain Alphonso Davies is expected to miss co-hosts Canada’s opening World Cup game, but head coach Jesse Marsch believes the full-back will still play a part in the tournament.
Davies, 25, suffered a hamstring injury in Bayern Munich’s Champions League semi-final second leg against Paris St-Germain on 6 May, with the German club saying at the time he was expected to be out of action “for several weeks”.
He only made 13 Bundesliga appearances for Bayern during a campaign heavily disrupted by injuries.
Canada will open their home World Cup campaign against Bosnia-Herzegovina in Toronto on 12 June before meeting Qatar and Switzerland on 18 and 24 June in Vancouver.
“I think Alphonso will play in the World Cup,” Marsch told reporters in Charlotte, North Carolina, where Canada will train this week before their 26-man World Cup squad is announced on Friday.
“I don’t think he’ll be ready quite on June 12… but we’ll see.”
Davies was among 32 players invited to the camp, but Marsch said the Canada skipper would only join the team on the eve of their friendly against Uzbekistan in Edmonton on 1 June.
They will also face the Republic of Ireland in Montreal on 5 June in another World Cup preparation game.
He missed the March 2026 friendlies against Iceland and Tunisia because of a hamstring strain.
The former Vancouver Whitecaps left-back was part of Canada’s World Cup squad in 2022 and scored in a 4-1 defeat by eventual semi-finalists Croatia in the group stage.
Earlier on Monday, thousands of City fans lined the streets of Manchester to bid a final farewell to the departing Guardiola.
This season’s successful men’s, women’s and academy teams were driven on buses to Etihad Stadium, where they were greeted by a waiting crowd, before the entourage made its way to Co-Op Live for the ‘after party’.
All three teams celebrated their trophy victories on stage, with City women’s striker Khadija Shaw making the shock announcement that she has signed a new four-year contract to remain at the club.
Guardiola’s three children, as well as former captain Fernandinho, ex-sporting director Txiki Begiristain and goalkeeper Ederson – who left last summer – helped bring out all 20 trophies won under Guardiola.
Surprise appearances by current Bayern Munich boss Kompany and midfielder Jack Grealish, who spent a season-long loan spell at Everton, were loudly cheered by those in attendance.
Guardiola said goodbye for the final time in an interview with Oasis star Noel Gallagher.
“First of all, thank you so much for coming tonight to say bye,” said Guardiola.
“I feel tonight that really shows the connection this club has. [City chairman] Khaldoon Al Mubarak and all the people and all the City fans that were connected from the first minute.
“Thank you so much, I don’t have enough gratitude. Always, for the rest of my life, I will have you in my heart.”
Tributes were also paid to captain Bernardo Silva and defender John Stones, who will also be leaving the club this summer upon the expiry of their contracts.
Striker Erling Haaland said on stage: “It has been a pleasure to play with Bernardo and John – and of course Pep.
“We won a lot of trophies and I was happy to play with Bernardo and John because they are amazing footballers but even better people deep down.
“It has been an amazing journey, but we need to keep pushing and fighting even without them.”
It was far from a convincing performance against Thistle, hardly surprising given what was at stake, and the relief from fans and players alike was obvious after the game.
“We wanted to make sure the players were remembered as legends at this club after winning the League Cup,” McLeish said.
“We didn’t want that black mark against our name.
“First half was nervy, cagey and full of mistakes. It wasn’t really tactical, just us controlling our emotions. We did that better in the second half.”
McLeish won three of his nine league matches after Robinson left, but he was unable to keep St Mirren out of the play-off spot as Kilmarnock shone after the split.
A change of approach initially yielded an upturn in performances, but results started to slide and a run of four defeats without scoring cost them.
The 36-year-old stand-in boss was unable to completely solve the goalscoring issues that plagued their season.
Key defender Alex Gogic says McLeish could do more with greater time, though, and would be happy for him to stay on.
“Yeah, of course, whatever the club chooses,” Gogic said.
“If he has a pre-season, it will probably be better than what it is. If the club decide to go his way, we’ll all be behind that.”
Former Dundee United and Partick Thistle boss Ian McCall says McLeish has done his chances no harm by steering St Mirren to safety.
“I don’t think he had any chance of getting the job if St Mirren were relegated,” McCall said.
“What he has done is conducted himself really well and given himself a real chance of the job.
“The power-that-be here took a real chance appointing a young lad like that. But he has come through it really well. He has talked really well.
“He came through one dodgy moment when Kilmarnock won here 3-0. But he’s come back from that really strongly.
“It didn’t just plummet when Craig McLeish took over. It was a bad run of results when Stephen Robinson was there after the cup final which brought this on. He certainly has a chance.”
Lionel Messi was substituted during Inter Miami’s latest Major League Soccer match because of “muscle fatigue” in his left hamstring, his club said on Monday.
There had been fears that the 2022 World Cup winner had suffered an injury during Inter Miami’s 6-4 win over Philadelphia Union.
However, the MLS club announced that medical tests showed that it was nothing more than “an overload associated with muscle fatigue”.
“The timeline for his return to physical activity will depend on his clinical and functional progress,” Inter Miami said.
Having set up two of Miami’s four first-half goals on Sunday, Messi clutched his leg in the 73rd minute after taking a free-kick and was immediately withdrawn in the team’s final game before the World Cup break.
The 38-year-old went straight down the tunnel but appeared to be walking normally.
“He really was fatigued,” Miami coach Guillermo Hoyos said after the game when asked about Messi’s condition. “He was tired; the pitch was heavy and when in doubt, the standard approach is always to ensure you don’t take any risks.”
Messi has not formally confirmed he plans to play for defending champions Argentina in the World Cup, which begins on 11 June.
However, he is widely expected to make a record-equalling sixth appearance at a World Cup, with the tournament being co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Argentina’s squad is due to be named next week, with their opening game against Algeria on 16 June.
Since moving to Miami in 2023, the Barcelona legend and eight-time Ballon d’Or winner has carefully managed his workload but has still spent spells out of action with hamstring issues.
He has 12 goals and eight assists in 14 MLS games this season, only one behind the leader in each category, having scored a league-leading 29 goals and assisted 19 times in 28 games during the 2025 regular season.
Tottenham back in for Savinho, Yan Diomande tops Liverpool‘s list of Mohamed Salah replacements, Barcelona keen to make Marcus Rashford move permanent and Arsenal to swoop for Julian Alvarez.
Liverpoolwill prioritise signing a replacement for Mohamed Salah, with RB Leipzig’s 19-year-old Ivory Coast winger Yan Diomande, who has a release clause of £86m, their top target. Newcastle and England winger Anthony Gordon, 25, and Paris St-Germain and France forward Bradley Barcola, 23, are also options. (Telegraph – subscription required, external)
Newcastle‘s Gordon is also wanted by Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich who could use 29-year-old Germany goalkeeper Alexander Nubel as a makeweight in any deal for the 25-year-old winger. (Bild – in German, external)
Barcelona will hold fresh talks with Manchester Unitedbefore the World Cup to try and sign Marcus Rashford, with the Spanish club already agreeing personal terms with the 28-year-old England forward. (Talksport, external)
Roma are keen on Marseille’s English forward Mason Greenwood, 24, Manchester United‘s 25-year-old Netherlands striker Joshua Zirkzee and West Ham‘s 24-year-old Dutch winger Crysencio Summerville as they gear up for the Champions League next term. (La Gazzetta dello Sport – in Italian), external
Julian Alvarez wants to leave Atletico Madrid with Arsenal set to make an aggressive move for the 26-year-old Argentina forward. (Teamtalk), external
Aston Villa are eyeing a move for Newcastle‘s 28-year-old England winger Harvey Barnes as they prepare for the Champions League next season. (Mail), external
Liverpool have entered the race to sign 16-year-old German midfield wonderkid Kennet Eichhorn from Hertha Berlin. (Sky Germany), external
Bernardo Silva has held positive talks with Atletico Madrid as the Spanish giants attempt to hijack Juventus’ move for theManchester City and Portugal midfielder, 31, who is available on a free transfer. (Teamtalk), external
English managers, Scott Parker, 45, who recently left Burnley and Strasbourg’s Gary O’Neil, 43, are of interest to West Ham if they part company with Portuguese boss Nuno Espirito Santo, 52, this summer. (Guardian) , external
AC Milan have approached the representatives of Bournemouth‘s Spanish manager Andoni Iraola, 43, after the Serie A club sacked 58-year-old Italian head coach Massimiliano Allegri. (Sky Sports, external)
