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Mountaineer Nirmal Purja among those feared missing after avalanche hit Broad Peak, Pakistan alpine club says.

Ten climbers, led by renowned Nepali mountaineer Nirmal Purja, are feared missing after an avalanche in northern Pakistan where they were on a climbing expedition, the country’s alpine club said.

“The Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP) has received deeply concerning reports of an avalanche that struck a team of climbers on Broad Peak (8,047m) in the Karakoram mountain range,” the club said late on Thursday, adding that the team was led by Purja and could not be reached since the incident.

Broad Peak is the 12th-highest mountain in the world.

The ACP said the expedition comprises 10 people, including five from Nepal, one from Pakistan, one from Oman, one from China, one from the United States, and another foreign climber whose nationality it did not disclose.

“The entire team has reportedly been out of communication since the avalanche,” the club said.

“Every possible effort is being made to ensure that helicopter support and all available rescue resources are mobilised at the earliest opportunity, subject to weather and operational conditions,” it added.

Purja, 43, also known as Nims Dai, has broken multiple climbing records since becoming a full-time mountaineer and tour guide in 2018, after leaving the British military.

He climbed all 14 “eight-thousanders” (peaks above 8,000 metres, or 26,000 feet) in six months and six days between April and October 2019, a record at the time.

In 2021, Purja completed the first winter ascent of K2 as part of a team of nine other Nepalese climbers.

CHICAGO — The stage was set this past summer, and Lincoln Riley was a ball of nerves.

The USC coach should’ve been used to weathering pressure by that point. After all, his previous four seasons spent coaching the Trojans had been nothing short of a powder keg, filled with ups and downs, as well as a constant undercurrent of tension and uncertainty. But in this particular case, success was out of Riley’s control. He wasn’t even near a football field.

Rather, he was sitting in the audience of a local dance recital, waiting on his two young daughters, Sloan and Stella, who were each making their solo dancing debut with their company.

“This was the first year, stepping out on their own, no one else to rely on,” Riley said. “But they told me, ‘Dad, we’ve got it.’”

Entering his fifth and most pivotal season yet at USC, their father can relate to that sentiment. While the spotlight burns brighter than ever and the collective college football world is spinning 2026 as a make-or-break moment for Riley, the coach had never sounded so confident that his Trojans had turned a corner than he did Tuesday.

“I’ve felt the pressure to win every single year here,” Riley said during Big Ten media days. “What does feel different is that I think our opportunity to do that is greater than what it has been. It just flat out is. The things you need to win, we have more of than we had in the first four years.”

Riley, of course, has made that case before. After each of the last two seasons, in fact. But it’s never been quite as compelling as it is now.

As the coach sees it, USC now boasts more depth on both sides of the ball than at any point in his tenure, in large part because of bringing in the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation in January. Riley also added a Hall of Fame coach at defensive coordinator in hopes of stabilizing matters on that side of the ball. And 10 days earlier, the program moved into its new, state-of-the-art football facility, with all the amenities anyone could ask for.

“It’s just a culmination of all of it, you know?” Riley said. “It is just so much more well-equipped to win consistently right now. It’s so different.”

That’s never been a question for Riley’s offenses at USC, and this year should be no different, with third-year starter Jayden Maiava returning at quarterback and a two-pronged backfield in Waymond Jordan and King Miller leading the way in the run game. The offensive line also looks like Riley’s strongest unit yet in five seasons.

The doubts, per usual, are on defense, where the Trojans are not the most seasoned group.

“The entire defense is just very young compared to last year,” defensive tackle Jide Abasiri said.

Riley is also now working with his third defensive coordinator in five seasons. And one who hasn’t coached in five years, at that.

Gary Patterson does have an impressive resume, with years of top-tier defenses at Texas Christian. And he continues to get rave reviews from Riley, who called the Hall of Famer “one of one” on Tuesday.

“You really have somebody that is like a head coach in that room,” Riley said. “The guy’s one of the most experienced, accomplished coaches in the game. Like, it just is what it is.

“I think just my confidence level and, you know, what’s being handled, how it’s being handled, how we’re developing, how we’re using our roster … is just really, really high right now.”

It better be at this point, considering all that USC has invested in Riley and his total teardown and rebuild of the Trojan football program. Across the city, billboards declaring “THE TIME IS NOW” make abundantly clear just how urgent this season will be at USC.

At the start of his fifth season, Riley is convinced the Trojans are right on schedule.

“All the things that help you win are better,” Riley said. “And that’s gonna give us more chances to win. That’s where my optimism comes from.”

If there’s a day of uncontaminated enthusiasm on the NFL calendar it’s the first day of training camp. Everyone’s healthy, everyone’s hopeful, and the Super Bowl is seemingly in reach for everyone.

A few thousand Chargers fans were at the team facility Wednesday to watch the inaugural practice, and afterward coach Jim Harbaugh and many of the players stuck around to sign autographs, pose for selfies and make small talk. It was the kind of scene unfolding all around the NFL.

“It was amazing,” said All-Pro safety Derwin James of the practice. “Kind of like the first day of school.”

Were they to receive a grade for their first two seasons under Harbaugh, the Chargers might get an incomplete. They played well enough to make the playoffs in both seasons — overcoming a dizzying array of injuries on the offensive line a year ago — yet failed to show up in the postseason, suffering lopsided losses at Houston and New England.

Harbaugh said the first day of camp feels like “Christmas morning” to him. When asked whether the entire team was full speed and ready to go, he made the analogy of an airplane gathering speed down a runway before achieving flight. There’s a deliberate ramp-up to the intensity of training camp, he said.

So now it begins again, and with a rebooted offensive line with two of the most promising bookend tackles in the game, first-round picks Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt, both of whom were sidelined for most or all of last fall.

Slater suffered a season-ending knee injury in training camp. Alt missed three games with a high-ankle sprain in Week 4, then suffered a more severe injury to the same ankle upon his return.

For those players in particular, each medically cleared to return, every day off crutches is a good day.

That said, Slater is determined not to dwell on what happened a year ago.

Chargers fan Christian Cavanias cheers while attending the team’s training camp in El Segundo on Wednesday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

“I’ve been injured before in the NFL, and I learned a lot from that experience,” he said. “I don’t think analyzing it any deeper than what it was is really worthwhile. I attacked the rehab and moved on, didn’t really give any thought to it. Trying to set the tone for the season, show up and be the best version of myself I can be.”

A healthy offensive line isn’t the only big change for the Chargers. They have a new offensive coordinator in former Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel, and a new defensive coordinator in Chris O’Leary, who is replacing his mentor, Jesse Minter, new coach of the Baltimore Ravens.

McDaniel began making small adjustments to Justin Herbert’s footwork during organized team activities, and those changes have become second nature for the Chargers quarterback.

“I’ve had a few weeks as well to work on it when I was back home,” Herbert said. “I thought it was a great time to be able to master my footwork, and then to come back out and just play fast and not have to worry about it.”

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert speaks during a news conference at training camp on Wednesday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Like Harbaugh, McDaniel has the kind of boundless energy that almost has him looking like a player when the team is running drills.

“He’s all hands on,” James said of McDaniel. “I feel like he’s almost out there running the route, how close he is to the receiver sometimes.”

McDaniel needles the other side of the ball too, James said, warning defenders to be ready for a deep pass before hitting them with a quick out.

“He’s playing some mind games,” James said with a smile. “It’s cool, though.”

Chargers free safety Derwin James speaks to reporters at training camp on Wednesday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

There was a bit of buzz at camp about Herbert getting engaged to girlfriend Madison Beer, with the couple posting photos Tuesday of the proposal, complete with the quarterback dropping to a knee to pop the question.

Harbaugh called the development “awesome” and said the coaching staff didn’t know in advance. He said Herbert had mentioned earlier in the summer that a proposal was coming, but didn’t let the coaching staff know about the particulars until after it happened.

For his part, Herbert conceded that he was more nervous about proposing than he was before the first start of his NFL career. Then again, he had a lot more time to dwell on asking his girlfriend than he had to prepare for playing, as he was immediately pressed into action on the Sunday of his NFL debut.

Do you think the Rams have a tracker at their headquarters for how many days it’s been since Puka Nacua’s last embarrassing incident?

They might. Because we all remember how frequently the self-inflicted damages were occurring during that bizarre and jarring stretch starting late last year.

We had the biting incident and alleged antisemitic comments on New Year’s Eve. Before that, we had the Rams’ star receiver making antisemitic gestures on a livestream with a couple of controversial streamers.

We also had him publicly calling out NFL officials on a stream and in a social media post sent from the locker room, and getting fined $25,000 by the league for that. We had his weird post on X — a laughing emoji and “sam darnold” — after the Seattle Seahawks’ quarterback led his team to the Super Bowl LX championship on Feb. 9, when Nacua also was recorded stumbling and dancing in a San Francisco street after the game.

We had this all within just a couple of months. So we had to replace the image we previously had of Nacua as a jolly, smiling football star with a new one: a picture of teeth marks on a woman’s skin.

Ick.

Rams receiver Puka Nacua signs autographs during training camp at Loyola Marymount University on Sunday.

(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)

Nacua said Wednesday that he’s trying to be better, to do better.

“Definitely trying to take accountability for the things that I know that I can continue to change,” the 25-year-old said at Rams’ training camp at Loyola Marymount.

We should all hope so.

There’s enough at stake, don’t you think?

For Nacua, there’s the proverbial bag to secure. For the Rams, there’s the Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium, which everyone believes should be theirs for the taking. And there’s what winning will mean for the franchise’s stature in L.A., a city that’s impressed by little that’s short of championships.

Don’t mess this up, Puka.

No one wants the distraction of bizarre and disturbing behavior, of internet idiocy or civil lawsuits. (Nacua’s attorney, Levi McCathern, said the alleged bite was the result of “horseplay” and the Los Angeles city attorney’s office indicated last week that the matter was on track to be resolved through a program that allows eligible defendants to avoid criminal prosecution and jail time.)

No one wants to wonder what could have been if it turns out quarterback Matthew Stafford can’t count on Nacua getting open and punishing defenders downfield.

And no one should want to see the Rams’ sure-handed wide receiver let generational wealth slip through his fingers.

Nacua is one of those athletes who you trust on the field to make the play, but all his off-field shenanigans gave the Rams reason to doubt him, to make him skip his turn at the big payday.

He was up for a contract extension that could have paid him as much as $160 million over four years, instead he’ll be earning $5.8 million this season. He’ll have to prove himself to the Rams as a reliable investment.

But that’s OK, Nacua said. He’s happy to be back at work.

Rams receiver Puka Nacua tries to slip past defensive back Trent McDuffie during training camp at Loyola Marymount University on Sunday.

(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)

“There have been things outside of my control that I think have impacted the way I’ve been able to kind of focus and enjoy this game of football,” he said. “But coming out here and seeing that jersey No. 12 hung up in my locker is something that I don’t take for granted … the level of connection that I feel like I have with all the guys out there, [it] has never crossed my mind that I don’t want to be out here.”

One of the Rams’ primary weapons on offense, a barefooted Nacua went on the charm offensive after practice Wednesday, opening his media scrum by joking with reporters, asking how his hair looked and whether he had any boogers visible in his nose.

He looked fit, like he’s been taking care of himself. He said he was mostly laying off McDonald’s, seeing a therapist and appreciating football as a safe space. The dad of a baby boy, he spoke about that too.

He said he’s closed his “circle of trust” and expressed regret for actions that, he said, “haven’t been the truest reflection of the person I feel like I am, and how my mother raised me.”

“There’s definitely been conversations with her to apologize, but also for her to say that she supports me,” Nacua said of his mom, Penina, who brought up Puka and his five siblings as a single parent after her husband, Lionel, died in 2012.

“And also my brothers are, I think, my biggest critics as well,” Nacua said. “So there were some intense conversations, but loving conversations, in order to see improvement.”

Nacua is one of the Rams’ best players and absolutely their most popular. The loudest roar at Wednesday’s practice was when he showed up on the sideline with fellow receiver Davante Adams. When it was over, the sound of children shrieking “Puka!” reverberated off the bleachers.

The Rams are fans, too. Nacua isn’t tolerated for his talent; he’s adored for his spirit.

Coach Sean McVay loves the guy, a fifth-round draft pick out of BYU who broke a 63-year-old record for the most receiving yards by a rookie in NFL history: “You know how much I love him and the heart that he has,” McVay said Wednesday. “And I’ve been really proud of what he’s been doing and how he’s taking accountability for some of the things that we can learn from.”

Nacua said he was buoyed by messages from teammates during this turbulent offseason, in which he checked himself into a Malibu rehab facility to, as attorney McCathern said, “focus on his health, personal growth and overall development.”

We all know how valuable Nacua is on the field, but now we’re going to find out how much he values this opportunity, getting to take another rep to repair his reputation.

We’re going to find out if this man of many routes can run straight-and-narrow. Whether the slow-moving train wreck can get back on track. Whether he can keep stacking incident-free days.

Nacua says he can. “I feel,” he said, “very confident about that.”

The WNBA has deleted a social media post that appears to show two of its star players, Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers, making a $400 bet with each other on their teams’ game — an act that seems to be in violation of the league’s collective bargaining agreement.

The post was made Wednesday afternoon on X ahead of that night’s game between Reese’s Atlanta Dream and Bueckers’ Dallas Wings in Arlington, Texas, and deleted soon after. It featured a video that showed Bueckers talking to a reporter, who mentions that “at All-Star weekend, you and Angel made a bet with each other on this game.”

Bueckers appears to jokingly play dumb. “We did?” she asked.

The video then cuts to footage of Reese and Bueckers, apparently at practice during last weekend’s All-Star festivities in Chicago, joking around and making a friendly wager with each other on the Dream-Wings game later that week.

“If y’all win, you get your 400,” Reese appears to say before adding that if Atlanta wins, “you owe me 400.”

A WNBA spokesperson said in a statement emailed to The Times: “While the social media post was intended to be lighthearted, WNBA players are well aware of the league’s policies prohibiting betting on WNBA games and receive training every year reinforcing those policies. We recognized that the post missed the mark, removed it shortly after it was published, and addressed the matter internally.

“We will also use this as an opportunity to reemphasize with the players involved that conversations about wagering on WNBA games, even when intended as a joke, can have negative consequences.”

Reese had 22 points and 12 rebounds in her team’s 82-81 victory against the Dream. During a postgame news conference, Reese laughed out loud when a reporter made reference to the wager she had with Bueckers.

“Yeah, I’ll be requesting my Apple Pay after this,” Reese said.

Reese also apparently was alluding to the bet when she added the hashtag #cuatrocientos (Spanish for four hundred) to an X post later that night.

Bueckers, who had 16 points in the loss, was not asked about the bet after the game.

According to Article XIV, Section 5(c) of the league’s CBA, “Any player found by the Commissioner after a hearing to have been guilty of wagering (directly or indirectly), or of offering or attempting to wager, money or anything of value on the outcome, score, or any other aspect of any WNBA Competition shall, in the sole discretion of the Commissioner, be subject to a fine, suspension, and/or dismissal and disqualification from any further association with the WNBA.”

The Women’s National Basketball Players Assn., the Wings and the Dream did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

In the latest twist in Shohei Ohtani’s battle with left knee discomfort, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts held him out of the lineup Thursday against the Seattle Mariners.

Ohtani reported soreness Wednesday night in his left knee, which he treated over the All-Star break with a lubricating orthovisc injection and rest. So the Dodgers’ athletic training staff recommended a day off.

“I expected him to play,” Roberts said. “I appreciate him saying that there’s some soreness to then allow me to make a decision of what is in his best interest, and that’s what we’re doing.”

Roberts said he’s “very confident” that Ohtani will be in the lineup Friday when the Dodgers open a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox.

But the Dodgers previously believed only pitching aggravated the injury. Ohtani hasn’t pitched in a game since July 3, and he hasn’t thrown off a mound in a little over a week. He’s been running through weighted plyo ball drills to keep his arm in shape without putting pressure on his knee.

It raises questions about how to best manage Ohtani for the rest of the season.

“I’m trying to restrain from a forecast of what’s going to happen, as opposed to just reading and reacting,” Roberts said. “Three days ago, we just had an off day, and to say there’s some soreness certainly is different than what we’ve done the last two weeks. Is it a trend? I hope not. But if it is, then we just got to manage it.”

Roberts said he didn’t believe any specific incident Wednesday aggravated Ohtani’s knee.

“The last couple days he’s been on base a lot more,” Roberts said. “So I think that’s been a good thing in one sense, whereas the last part of the road trip he wasn’t, so there might have been a little something to that.”

Ohtani also mentioned earlier this week that his biceps problem, which flared for the second time this season on July 3 during his last at-bat, has not completely subsided. But the Dodgers have downplayed the severity of that ailment and are under the impression that throwing doesn’t hurt it.

When asked if the team would consider shutting down Ohtani for 10 days to help him fully recover, Roberts said: “That’s a hard question and I understand the thought behind it. But it’s gotten better over the last few weeks, markedly. He’s been a very productive player. … You trust him. He feels like he can go.

“He’s not 100%; very few players are 100%. Then what is it? Is it 70%, is it 80%, is it 90%? For me, there’s still that conversation, where he understands the most important part of the season is to come, and he understands his value with our team.”

It doesn’t seem like the Dodgers are ready to put Ohtani on the injured list just yet. Roberts said he hopes Ohtani will start playing catch this weekend or next week.

The Dodgers, however, had expressed hope that the injection and time off over the break would prevent Ohtani from having to manage the problem. That no longer seems to be in play.

“We’re talking about this constantly, we are,” Roberts said. “And nothing should be off the table and nothing is set in stone. So I think it’s more of how he feels. This surprised me. So now with this new information we’ve got to have new conversations.”

Given Keith herself was a tad surprised she scooped up a medal here, her grandad’s take on the event ought to be a good one.

The 10,000m is her preference, but the longer distance final did not go to plan on Monday and she finished seventh.

The Inverness athlete said she was faced with the ‘can Megan win a medal?’ talk earlier this week, but with that weight of expectation lifted – combined with experience of the home crowd and “the help of two other Scots in the race” – she was freed from the shackles to soar to a classy and courageous run.

“If you look at Monday on paper, that was pretty disappointing,” the 24-year-old added.

“I don’t think you’d put me in the running for a 5km medal since the 10km is normally closer to being my strength, so that definitely helped, the removal of that pressure.

“I think I knew if I felt horrendous and dropped out or fell off the pace again it wouldn’t really matter so I may as well shoot my shot.”

And shoot she did. Biding her time in the middle of the congested pact, Keith made her move with four laps to go, weaving past early pacesetters from Kenya and Uganda.

She was afforded a bit of breathing space with two hurls around the track to go. But as expected, the exceptional Australian duo of Rose Davies – who made it a double gold at these Games with her 10km – and Jessica Hull, the 1500m Olympic silver medallist, entered another gear in the final lap.

While the cameras focused on the tremendous tussle between the pair in the matching yellow vests, the majority of the crowd had their eyes a wee bit further back, bawling at Keith on the final stretch.

She was home safe and sound. And swiftly searching for a saltire.

Once that was draped over her shoulders, and she’d caught up with fellow Scots Eloise Walker and Laura Muir, who finished 15th and 16th respectively, she was darting back around the track – the wrong way, this time – in search of her grandad.

He was eventually found for a quick hug, but a bigger debrief – and the declaration, surely, that this topped any other Scotstoun occasion – is still to be had.

GENEVA — European nations agreed Thursday to boycott the World Cup and all other FIFA competitions to protest Gianni Infantino’s plan to sell stakes in soccer’s biggest tournament to private equity investors. The North American soccer body rejected his plan later the same day.

“UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions,” the European soccer body said after an urgent online meeting of its 55 member nations.

The next scheduled FIFA tournament is within weeks in Europe — the Women’s Under-20 World Cup hosted by Poland from Sept. 5 — and the four British federations comprise FIFA’s only bidder to host the 2035 Women’s World Cup. That decision is due Nov. 23.

“Some things are simply too important to sell,” UEFA said in a statement. “The FIFA World Cup belongs to football. It always will. And so long as Europe has a voice, it will never be for sale.”

The strategy meeting was called to counter FIFA president Infantino’s offer of $20 million to each of FIFA’s 211 global members that has to be accepted by mid-September.

Later Thursday, the 41-member Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Assn. Football (CONCACAF) met and announced it rejected Infantino’s plan.

In a statement, CONCACAF said members “expressed deep concerns about the lack of due process surrounding the proposal, the artificially short deadline imposed, and the absence of any review or approval by the relevant FIFA governance bodies.” It also questioned the need for outside investment “following the most profitable FIFA World Cup in history.”

Infantino’s secret project was revealed Tuesday to spin off its commercial operations in a new $20-billion subsidiary called FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) 20% owned by private investors. The core investor would be a New York investment firm created by Joshua Kushner, the brother of U.S. President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

Infantino wrote Tuesday to the 211 members — already the effective owners of FIFA as a nonprofit association under Swiss law — that if they approve FFE their promised $10-million basic funding for the next four years will double to $20 million. He projected their FIFA funding through 2038 would be $86 million each, instead of about $36 million.

“This is not merely a profound failure of leadership, but an abdication of FIFA’s duty as the custodian of world football,” said UEFA, where Infantino was a longtime staffer and its CEO-like general secretary when he was first elected to lead FIFA in 2016.

Infantino’s presidency at risk?

Infantino’s high-stakes financial gambit now could threaten his previously secure 11-year presidency of FIFA as anger and frustration with him rises among soccer stakeholders including three of the six continental bodies.

FIFA has set a Nov. 18 deadline for potential candidates to declare in a presidential vote of the 211 members scheduled next March in Rabat, Morocco.

Infantino had seemed — 11 days ago after the World Cup final in East Rutherford, N.J. — to have a clear path to being reelected unopposed for a fourth and final term in office through 2031, despite a furor over letting United States forward Folarin Balogun play against Belgium despite a red card in his previous game.

Soccer officials have said privately Infantino has eyed a lucrative commissioner-like role at the FFE spinoff beyond 2031.

“Game over, Gianni #InfantinOUT,” the Football Supporters Europe group, which advises UEFA on fan issues such as ticket prices, posted after the boycott threat.

Soccer’s concern at investor pressure

UEFA detailed Thursday why soccer officials fear external investors owning a stake of the global game’s biggest events, including World Cups and Club World Cups for men and women.

“The moment external investors acquire ownership interests in FIFA competitions, football changes forever,” UEFA said. “Commercial return becomes a permanent obligation. Investor expectations become a daily pressure.”

Infantino has presented the private equity offer as a chance to “turbocharge” funding development of soccer across the world, where a majority of the 211 FIFA members rely on its funding.

Officials from about 40 UEFA members spoke at the urgent meeting, with anger expressed that FIFA is not using some of its multi-billion reserves to fund extra development programs.

“As a result of today’s discussion, no UEFA national teams will participate in any FIFA competition for so long as these proposals remain alive,” the European soccer body said, “unless this proposal has been abandoned in its entirety and binding assurances have been given that FIFA will never again open its governance or competitions to private ownership.”

Asia adds rare criticism of Infantino

On a seismic day in soccer politics, a traditional bedrock of support in Asia for FIFA and Infantino had earlier Thursday been shaken.

“FIFA’s unilateral actions appear to undermine the very foundations of continental football,” the Asian Football Confederation president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa said in a letter to its 46 members of FIFA, warning of risks to their own competitions.

Sheikh Salman, an ally to Infantino since losing the FIFA presidential election to him in 2016, wrote “such an initiative will not succeed without the support of all the confederations, which is not the case now.”

In a video message published Wednesday by FIFA, Infantino insisted spinning off its money-making operations was “an offer, not an obligation.”

A FIFA presentation for its members, co-written with its banking advisors from J.P. Morgan and seen by the Associated Press, set a goal for FFE as “commercial rigor and expertise to better capitalize on broadcast rights, sponsorships and a growing tournament portfolio.”

FIFA squeeze on continental games

That growing portfolio probably would include adding more teams to FIFA competitions such as the World Cup and Club World Cup for men and women, and potentially staging them more often than every four years, including in the U.S.

FIFA adding teams, games and competitions would squeeze the value, status and space in the congested global fixture calendar for those that fund and are organized by the six continental soccer bodies like UEFA and the AFC. Those include World Cup qualifying games, continental tournaments and Champions Leagues.

“It is important that the AFC family has a complete understanding,” Sheikh Salman wrote, “of how such an initiative may affect key areas of global and Asian football, including the sustainability of confederation and [domestic] competitions, as well as the organization and commercial landscape surrounding the AFC’s activities.”

UEFA’s previous boycott threat

A threatened World Cup boycott from Europe helped derail Infantino’s plan in 2021 to play World Cups every two years instead of four.

Dunbar writes for the Associated Press.

Tuli Tuipulotu wants to get paid.

Although Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh expected everyone to be full-go for training camp, the fourth-year edge rusher is holding in amid contract negotiations.

Tuipulotu, who was a full participant in minicamp, did individual work off to the side during Wednesday’s practice and was in general workout attire rather than in a helmet, jersey and football pants like his teammates. On Thursday, Tuipulotu suited up normally and participated in drills alongside fellow defensive linemen but didn’t participate in team sessions.

A hold in is one way players can exercise leverage during contract negotiations. Hold-in players fulfill basic requirements outlined in the collective bargaining agreement — such as attending meetings and doing individual work — to avoid mandatory fines from teams for not reporting to training camp.

“We keep it rolling in practice,” Chargers defensive coordinator Chris O’Leary said. “You know, you get into a game, and you spend a little bit more time game planning and figuring out how to fill that void. … So we haven’t felt it as much. Obviously, we miss [Tuipulotu] out there. We miss how vocal he is and plays that he makes. But for us, we’re just keeping it rolling with the guys we got out there.”

The No. 54 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft, Tuipulotu has steadily climbed into a key role in the Chargers’ defense and is coming off a career year.

He collected 13 sacks in 2025 as a pivotal part of former defensive coordinator Jesse Minter’s system, which helped the Chargers finish the season fifth in yards allowed per game (285.2) and ninth in points per game (20.0).

“I just let my agent — let the guys — handle that,” Tuipulotu said during minicamp in June. “I’m just trying to be here with the team, you know what I’m saying? Be close with the guys.”

Tuipulotu, a Hawthorne native, has earned 26 sacks and 144 tackles over 36 starts with the Chargers. He made 16 starts last season.

“It’s just the process of it, man,” said Chargers safety Derwin James, who has earned a pair of hefty paydays after a training camp hold in of his own four years ago. “We love Tuli. Like, I knew the team loved me too when I had [a] similar situation.

“Sometimes, that stuff takes longer to iron out. But man, everyone knows we love Tuli here. … And he loves the team. So it’ll get worked out. … I can’t wait to have him out there. It’s just part of the business, man.”

James, a five-time Pro Bowl selection set to earn more than $24 million this season, is someone Tuipulotu can lean on during his hold in. Another is fellow edge rusher and future Hall of Famer Khalil Mack, who has mentored Tuipulotu.

The two said they discussed Tuipulotu’s situation privately. Like James, Mack is seasoned in contract negotiations, having famously signed a record six-year, $141-million extension with the Bears in 2018 after a holdout with the Raiders had him shipped to Chicago.

“I would be doing [Tuipulotu] an injustice not to talk to him about business or just life in general, of how to handle your business off the field and on the field,” Mack said, referencing Raiders teammates such as Charles Woodson and Justin Tuck who helped him navigate his early NFL years. “He kind of bounces questions off of me, and I say what I did or what I saw other people do — just give the best example or the best advice I can. But every situation is different.”

“I just hope you know everything works out in his favor,” Mack added. “And whatever works in his favor works in the organization’s favor as well.”

Tuipulotu said he didn’t have a timeline for his contract negotiations, but reiterated he’d show up.

But as a key cog in the Chargers’ defense who loves practice and training camp, the Chargers won’t feel quite complete on the field until Tuipulotu is practicing with his teammates again.

“There’s always something to get better at,” Tuipulotu said. “There’s always something you miss. Man, I love practice, you know what I’m saying? I bring the juice during practice.”

BUENOS AIRES — After a bruising World Cup defeat gave way to what many Argentines saw as a sweeping wave of hatred against their country, Argentine President Javier Milei on Thursday signed an emergency decree empowering the government to deny entry to or expel foreigners who incite discrimination or violence against Argentines because of their nationality.

The measure adds new grounds to Argentina’s immigration law, allowing authorities to bar, deport and revoke visas of people found to have promoted hatred against Argentines in spoken or written statements or who have desecrated national symbols.

“In light of recent displays of hostility toward the Argentine Republic and Argentines, the national government reaffirms that the defense of the nation, its citizens and its symbols is non-negotiable,” the president’s office said. “Anyone who attacks the Argentine Republic is not welcome in our country.”

The move marks a sharp shift for a country that has long prided itself on welcoming immigrants. Argentina’s Constitution explicitly encourages immigration, and for decades the country has offered foreigners broad civil rights and relatively easy access to legal residency, public education and healthcare.

Milei’s office cast the decree as a response to weeks of criticism from celebrities, opposing fans and social media users after controversial refereeing decisions fueled speculation that FIFA had tilted the tournament in favor of the reigning champions and superstar Lionel Messi.

Condemnations of occasionally aggressive Argentine fans and the team’s roughhousing on the pitch soon broadened into attacks on Argentine society as a whole, amplifying long-standing criticism that Argentines view themselves as culturally and economically superior to their Latin American neighbors. Online petitions to expel Argentina from the World Cup drew hundreds of thousands of signatures.

The backlash intensified when Argentina players and staff became involved in a post-match brawl with Spanish opponents after the World Cup final.

FIFA, global soccer’s governing body, on Wednesday opened disciplinary proceedings against the Argentine Football Assn. over the scuffle, as well as over alleged racist abuse and fan misconduct. Players also faced a FIFA investigation into their parading of a banner that asserted Argentina’s claim to the British-controlled Falkland Islands after the team’s semifinal victory over England.

Milei, a close ally of President Trump’s, has described the torrent of criticism as an “anti-Argentina campaign.” He alleged without evidence last week that the left-wing governments of Brazil and Mexico and the U.S. Democratic Party had financed the effort to stigmatize Argentina to discredit his libertarian government.

His accusations and insults triggered a diplomatic crisis with neighbor Brazil, which recalled its ambassador to Argentina last weekend.

Thursday’s decree says the punishments don’t apply to ideological disagreement or political, academic or civic criticism protected under Argentina’s Constitution.

But it leaves unanswered how officials will distinguish protected speech from prohibited hate speech, whether immigration authorities will review foreigners’ social media activity and how aggressively the new powers will be enforced against tourists and longtime residents.

Debre writes for the Associated Press.

Billy Ray Smith Jr. became embedded in the San Diego sports community as an exceptional linebacker who lived up to his billing as a first-round draft pick and played all of his 126 NFL games with the Chargers from 1983 to 1992, long before the franchise moved to Los Angeles.

Despite being Texas-raised and Arkansas-educated, Smith Jr. became synonymous with San Diego by spending the rest of his life in the sunny SoCal city as a sportscaster, radio host and big-hearted, larger-than-life personality.

Smith Jr. died Wednesday at age 64, his family saying in a statement that he “faced his long journey with dementia caused by CTE with unmatched bravery, dignity, and strength.”

“It is with profound sadness that we share the loss of our beloved Billy Ray Smith Jr., who passed away peacefully surrounded by family,” the statement said. “Billy Ray brought so much joy, light, and laughter to the world as a devoted father, husband, son, and loyal friend.”

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a progressive brain disease characterized by mood disturbances and cognitive decline. It is linked to repeated head impacts and traumatic brain injuries, and has been found posthumously in numerous athletes in contact sports.

According to the Mayo Clinic, CTE cannot be diagnosed definitively during life. However, clinical criteria has been developed for traumatic encephalopathy syndrome (TES), symptoms that occur together and are associated with CTE.

A diagnosis of CTE requires evidence of degeneration of brain tissue that can only be seen during an autopsy. Through 2022, the Boston University CTE Center studied the brains of 376 former NFL players and diagnosed 345 with CTE, a rate of 91.7%.

The list of former NFL players diagnosed with CTE includes another legendary Chargers linebacker, Junior Seau, who died in 2012 of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at 43. Smith played alongside Seau from 1990-1992.

Their friendship endured after Smith Jr. retired and moved into broadcasting. He was a speaker at Seau’s public memorial service.

Smith Jr. was born Aug. 10, 1961, in Fayetteville, Ark., the son of longtime NFL defensive lineman Billy Ray Smith, and grew up in Plano, Texas. The year he was born, his father registered a career-high 13.5 sacks for the Baltimore Colts.

Smith Jr. followed his father’s footsteps to the University of Arkansas, and was twice named a unanimous All-American and voted into the College Football Hall of Fame. The Chargers drafted Smith Jr. with the fifth overall pick in 1983.

He moved from defensive end to linebacker in San Diego and by 1987 was named the team’s most valuable player. Smith Jr. finished his career with 26.5 sacks, 15 interceptions and 14 fumble recoveries.

He soon moved behind a microphone, teaming with Scott Kaplan on a popular radio show on the Mighty 1090, a station that went off the air in 2019.

“He loved being part of San Diego,” Kaplan told the San Diego Union-Tribune. “Yeah, he was the fifth overall pick and he played 10 years and, yeah, was the face of the defense before he handed it off to Junior Seau. But he was the guy who never left San Diego.

“He was loved because people knew Billy Ray. It wasn’t like other star athletes; they knew him because they had seen his whole life, from the time he was in his early 20s, play out on local television. And he never left.”

Smith Jr. worked on TV as a sportscaster and sports director for KGTV while also making appearances on Fox Sports and local Chargers broadcasts.

He met his wife, broadcaster Kimberly Hunt, during a United Cerebral Palsy telethon while still a Chargers player. They married in 1990, had a daughter, Savannah, two years later and celebrated their 36th anniversary in June. Hunt, an Emmy Award winner, is currently in her 18th year as the KGTV news evening anchor.

The couple was active in charities for decades and this year was given the San Diego Nice Guy of the Year Award.

“Through decades of volunteer service and charitable leadership, Billy Ray has generously supported youth programs, veterans, healthcare initiatives, and numerous nonprofit organizations, helping strengthen the fabric of the San Diego community,” the San Diego Nice Guys said earlier this year.

“Together, Kimberly Hunt and Billy Ray Smith represent the very best of San Diego —individuals whose professional excellence is matched only by their kindness, humility, and dedication to improving the lives of others.”

Smith Jr. came to San Diego as a fearsome linebacker who made two Pro Bowls, yet he transcended football through his infectious personality and devotion to his adopted city.

“He had that big smile, that huge laugh, that rip-your-arm-off handshake,” Kaplan said. “B.R. did everything right. There was not one part of him that was a lie, a secret, not one skeleton in the closet. He really, really lived a life that he could be very proud of.”

Hearts’ players were on the brink of history and immortality. It was nine minutes away.

Four decades of Old Firm dominance was that close to toppling. The season-long league leaders were drawing with holders Celtic in Glasgow as the game crept into the 87th minute.

It looked like they were just about to hold until Daizen Maeda struck to trigger bedlam in Paradise.

Ugly scenes followed Celtic’s third deep into injury time as Hearts headed straight for the team bus, eventually reemerging outside Tynecastle with tears spilling from their faces.

Since then, the backbone of that team has been deconstructed. Boss Derek McInnes has departed for Tynecastle, taking with him captain and talisman Lawrence Shankland, as well as midfield controller Cammy Devlin.

Wouter Vrancken has arrived from Sint-Truiden and the Belgian has suffered a tumultuous start.

A 6-0 hiding from Sturm Graz sent Hearts tumbling out of Champions League qualifying, with the Tynecastle support looking at the club’s analytical approach to signings to somehow hoist them back to the lofty heights they hit last term.

“Hearts just look as if it’s just a new squad flung in together, with the manager too, trying to find their way,” said former striker Ryan Stevenson.

“You don’t get time in football, it’s game after game after game.

“If you don’t get results, we all know what Tynecastle is like. It can be electric, but can they deal with the stadium turning? Are they big enough characters to deal with that?

“If they don’t play well, I would give it to mid-September, and it would not be nice.”

Uefa’s 55 member associations have voted to boycott the World Cup if Fifa proceeds with its plan to sell stakes in its competitions to private investors.

The decision was made at an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the proposals announced by Fifa – world football’s governing body – on Tuesday.

Uefa, which governs European football, had made its opposition clear by releasing two damning statements about the plans – and that strength of feeling has now been reaffirmed.

The boycott would cover all Fifa competitions, including the men’s and women’s World Cups and Club World Cup and be triggered if Fifa president Gianni Infantino’s proposals are voted through by member associations.

The first time this stance will be tested is October, when the Women’s World Cup play-offs are due to be held.

More to follow.

South Africa defender Olwethu Makhanya has become Rangers’ eighth summer signing, joining for an undisclosed fee from Philadelphia Union.

The 22-year-old centre-back played for the Major League Soccer side 53 times after breaking into the first team last year.

He has signed a four-year deal at Ibrox with the option of a further year.

“I can’t even explain how I am feeling right now, it is honestly a big honour and a huge blessing for me to join such a big club with so much history. I can’t wait to get started,” Makhanya said.

“For me, it has always been a dream to play football in Europe, ever since I was a kid, so to be here is a dream come true.”

Makhanya, who started his career with Stellenbosch in his homeland, was rewarded for his impressive club form by being included in South Africa’s 2026 World Cup squad.

The defender did not play at this summer’s finals, but Rangers boss Derek McInnes feels he has all the tools to thrive in Scotland.

“He’s got a lot of athleticism and good potential,” McInnes said prior to his side’s Scottish Premiership opener at Dundee United on Friday.

“And while he’s coming from the MLS, to a different country and a different type of football, we feel he’s got the attributes that can cope with that.”

Dodgers defeat the Mariners

From Maddie Lee: Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman all but confirmed Wednesday that the team would be in contact with the Tigers to gauge their asking price for reigning AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.

“There just aren’t that many star-level players in the game,” Friedman said Wednesday afternoon when asked how aggressive the Dodgers would be in pursuing big-name players. “Any time one is available, we’re always going to participate in those conversations. We’ve shown to be very aggressive in the past. … We’ve traded a lot of really talented young players.

“But we’re able to be in those conversations because of the incredible work by our scouts and our front office and our player development group that has our farm system in such a strong spot to be able to talk to any team basically about any player.”

All that was expected. Checking in is simply due diligence.

Friedman avoided showing his hand when asked the odds of the Dodgers (68-40) acquiring a player like that at the Aug. 3 deadline.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I’m not in the handicapping business.”

Before the Dodgers’ 4-2 win against the Mariners on Wednesday, they activated closer Edwin Díaz and designated left-hander Charlie Barnes for assignment. Díaz earned the save in his first major-league appearance since undergoing surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow in late April, giving up two hits and a run.

Continue reading here

‘Do we consider pushing this?’ Shohei Ohtani’s return to the mound remains unclear

Dodgers box score

MLB standings

Angels trade O’Hoppe, Silseth

The Angels traded reliever Chase Silseth and struggling catcher Logan O’Hoppe to the Texas Rangers for minor league third baseman Angel Arredondo on Wednesday night.

The deal, announced a few minutes before the Angels’ series finale against the Houston Astros, could mark the beginning of an extensive rebuilding process for the Angels, who entered play Wednesday with an American League-worst 42-66 record and 13 1/2 games behind the Rangers in the AL West.

“We know we have to start shaking up this roster, and today was day one,” Angels interim general manager John Mozeliak said. “Clearly, where the Angels are at right now, we need to do things differently.”

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Angels are swept by the Astros

Shaikin: Can a new minor league team in Irvine attract fans if the Angels are so affordable?

Angels box score

MLB standings

Update on how to get Olympics tickets

From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: After 4 million tickets sold and maybe a million more headaches, the Olympic ticket booth opens again this week.

LA28 sold a record number of tickets during its first drop in April, signaling unprecedented interest in the Olympics as they return to Southern California for the first time since 1984. High prices, service fees and unavailable seats frustrated fans but did not deter them. In fact, interest in the Games has only grown since April’s first drop.

LA28 announced Wednesday that more than 12 million people from more than 200 countries have registered for tickets, a dramatic increase from the 5 million registrants the organizing committee boasted in late February before the first ticket drop.

Sports from the traditional standbys (artistic gymnastics) to the newest additions (flag football, lacrosse and squash) all sold through their first-drop availability. The second drop that begins Wednesday offers “refreshed inventory across all Olympic sports,” LA28 said.

Here’s what to know about the next ticketing phase:

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Bob Chesney is ready to win

From Ryan Kartje: In the nearly nine months since he was hired as head coach at UCLA, Bob Chesney has won over a lot of hearts and minds with his unwavering sense of belief.

First, he won over his star quarterback, Nico Iamaleava, who opted to stick with the Bruins after a 3-9 season a year ago. He won over 45 new transfers, who came to UCLA as part of the portal’s 11th-ranked class and seems to be winning over recruits, too, with UCLA currently ranked in the top 10 among 2027 classes. He even won over once-dormant Bruin donors, who, according to the school’s athletic department, have now poured over $41 million in private support into UCLA athletics over the last fiscal year, an increase of 80% from the previous year.

“It’s his energy, man,” Iamaleava said. “He brings a different type of energy.”

At this point, the only thing it seems Chesney hasn’t won yet at UCLA is an actual football game.

He couldn’t do anything about that Wednesday from the podium at Big Ten media days. But as the season draws nearer and a new era of Bruin football begins, all the enthusiasm does beg the question: What does a successful debut actually look like for Chesney at UCLA?

Chesney said Wednesday he had no interest in setting those expectations or “in putting artificial limits on ourselves.”

“Outcomes have to be earned,” he said. “And I think in the end, potential is a gift, right? The work is becoming. That’s the work.”

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It’s time for the Sparks to trade Kelsey Plum

From Bill Plaschke: Another failed summer. Another broken promise.

The most underachieving team on the Los Angeles sports landscape is embarrassingly stumbling through another season.

The Sparks stink. Again.

They’re not making the playoffs. Again.

There’s no reason to watch them even though there’s more than a month left on their schedule. Again.

For the sixth consecutive season, one of the WNBA’s legacy franchises has come apart at the seams, tattering the franchise’s three-championship history with a sordid record that mandates a clear response.

Trade your best player.

Trade Kelsey Plum.

The trade deadline is Sunday so do it quickly, and do it boldly, sending her to the sort of playoff contender who would find her worthy of young talent and draft picks.

Trade KP and do it now.

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Chargers feel good as camp opens

From Sam Farmer: If there’s a day of uncontaminated enthusiasm on the NFL calendar it’s the first day of training camp. Everyone’s healthy, everyone’s hopeful, and the Super Bowl is seemingly in reach for everyone.

A few thousand Chargers fans were at the team facility Wednesday to watch the inaugural practice, and afterward coach Jim Harbaugh and many of the players stuck around to sign autographs, pose for selfies and make small talk. It was the kind of scene unfolding all around the NFL.

“It was amazing,” said All-Pro safety Derwin James of the practice. “Kind of like the first day of school.”

Were they to receive a grade for their first two seasons under Harbaugh, the Chargers might get an incomplete. They played well enough to make the playoffs in both seasons — overcoming a dizzying array of injuries on the offensive line a year ago — yet failed to show up in the postseason, suffering lopsided losses at Houston and New England.

Harbaugh said the first day of camp feels like “Christmas morning” to him. When asked whether the entire team was full speed and ready to go, he made the analogy of an airplane gathering speed down a runway before achieving flight. There’s a deliberate ramp-up to the intensity of training camp, he said.

Continue reading here

This day in sports history

1870 — Monmouth Park opens with a five-day meet.

1930 — Host Uruguay beats Argentina 4-2 for soccer’s first World Cup in Montevideo.

1932 — The 10th modern Olympic Games open in Los Angeles.

1961 — Jerry Barber edges Don January by one stroke in a playoff to win the PGA title at Olympia Fields in Illinois.

1966 — England beats West Germany 4-2 at London’s Wembley Stadium to capture soccer’s World Cup.

1971 — In the NFL Chicago All-Star Game, the Baltimore Colts beat the All-Stars 24-17.

1976 — Bruce Jenner sets the world record in the Olympic decathlon with 8,618 points, breaking Nikolai Avilov’s mark by 164 points.

1984 — Michael Gross of West Germany sets a world record in the 200-meter freestyle with a time of 1:47.44 at a meet in Munich.

1996 — The American softball team wins the gold medal, beating China 3-1 behind a controversial two-run homer from Dot Richardson in the first Olympic competition in that sport.

2009 — Seven more world records on the fifth night of the world swimming championships in Rome are set, pushing the total to 29 and moving past last summer’s Beijing Olympics. Ryan Lochte gets things rolling by breaking Phelps’ mark in the 200-meter individual medley. The Chinese women finish it off, eclipsing the 800 freestyle relay mark by more than two seconds, with the Americans also breaking the previous record but only getting silver.

2012 — In London, Missy Franklin, a 17-year-old from Colorado, wins the women’s 100-meter backstroke. Franklin has a brief 13-minute break after taking the final qualifying spot in the 200 freestyle semifinals before she had to get back into the water for the backstroke final. Ruta Meilutyte, 15, becomes the first Lithuanian to win an Olympic swimming medal by holding off a late charge from world champion Rebecca Soni of the U.S. in the 100 breaststroke.

2013 — Katie Ledecky crushes the world record in the 1,500 freestyle for her second gold medal at the world swimming championships in Barcelona, Spain. The 16-year-old American finishes with a time of 15:36.53 to beat the previous mark by more than 6 seconds — Kate Ziegler’s 15:42.54 in 2007.

2015 — North Korea wins its first gold medal at the world aquatics championships through 16-year-old Kim Kuk Hyang in women’s 10-meter diving. In her first international competition, Kim produces a stunning final dive, earning two perfect 10 scores from the seven judges, for a total of 397.05 points. On the next dive, the leader up to that point, world champion Si Yajie of China, makes an error to drop to fourth.

2021 — South African swimmer Tatjana Shoemaker sets a new women’s 200m breaststroke world record of 2:18.95 at the Tokyo Olympics.

Compiled by the Associated Press

This day in baseball history

1917 — Ty Cobb, Bobby Veach and Ossie Vitt, each went 5-for-5 in Detroit’s 16-4 romp over Washington.

1933 — Dizzy Dean struck out 17 Cubs for the St. Louis Cardinals, who beat Chicago 8-2.

1947 — The New York Giants defeated Ewell Blackwell and the Cincinnati Reds 5-4 in 10 innings, ending Blackwell’s 16-game winning streak.

1959 — Willie McCovey had four hits in four at-bats in his major league debut, with the San Francisco Giants. His hits included two triples in a 7-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies.

1962 — The American League, led by homers from Leon Wagner, Pete Runnels and Rocky Colavito, powered past the National League 9-4, in the second All-Star Game of the year. Wagner of the Angels was named MVP.

1968 — Washington shortstop Ron Hansen pulled off an unassisted triple play, but the Cleveland Indians still won the game 10-1.

1969 — Houston, behind grand slams by Denis Menke and Jim Wynn, scored 11 runs in the ninth inning to pound the New York Mets 16-3 in a doubleheader opener at Shea Stadium. Mets pitchers Cal Koonce and Ron Taylor gave up the slams, marking the first time this century that two grand slams were hit in the same inning of a National League game.

1973 — Jim Bibby of the Texas Rangers pitched a 6-0 no-hitter against the Oakland A’s.

1980 — Houston Astros pitcher J.R. Richard had a stroke during a workout at the Astrodome and underwent surgery to remove a blood clot behind his right collarbone.

1982 — The Atlanta Braves returned Chief Noc-A-Homa and his teepee to left field after losing 19 of 21 games and blowing a 10½-game lead. The teepee was removed for more seats. The team recovered to regain first place.

1988 — John Franco of the Cincinnati Reds set a major league record with 13 saves in one month. Franco was tied with Sparky Lyle, Bruce Sutter and Bob Stanley.

1990 — George Steinbrenner was forced to resign as general partner of the New York Yankees by Commissioner Fay Vincent.

2008 — Kelly Shoppach of Cleveland tied a major league record with five extra-base hits, including a game-tying homer in the ninth, but Detroit beat the Indians 14-12 in 13 innings. Shoppach had two homers and three doubles.

2011 — The New York Yankees broke loose for 12 runs in the first inning of the nightcap of a day-night doubleheader, setting a franchise record en route to a 17-3 rout of Baltimore.

2012 — Kendrys Morales homered from both sides of the plate during a nine-run sixth inning, capping the burst with a grand slam that sent the Angels romping past the Texas Rangers 15-8. Morales became the third switch-hitter in major league history to homer as a lefty and righty in the same inning. Carlos Baerga did it for Cleveland in 1993 and Mark Bellhorn of the Chicago Cubs duplicated the feat in 2002.

2017 — Jeff Bagwell, Tim Raines and Ivan Rodriguez are inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

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.

Matthias Jaissle is the surprise favourite to take over as Newcastle head coach as Eddie Howe’s replacement – and would arrive with a strong recent record of success.

Howe, 48, is set to leave St James’ Park after nearly five years. He had been in charge since November 2021 when he replaced Steve Bruce and took the Magpies to their first domestic trophy in 70 years by winning the Carabao Cup in 2025.

Former RB Salzburg boss Jaissle, currently in charge of Saudi Arabian side Al-Ahli, is noe expected to come in.

The 38-year-old German was a centre-half, progressing through the Stuttgart youth system before playing senior football for Hoffenheim from 2007 to 2014.

He represented Germany at Under-21 level, but was forced to retire through injury at the age of 25.

Jaissle took his first coaching steps as assistant manager of Danish club Brondby between 2017 and 2019. He then took over RB Salzburg’s Under-18 academy team before becoming a head coach for the first time at Liefering in Austria’s second tier.

He guided them to a second-placed finish, the club’s joint best-ever position, and that achievement helped him become RB Salzburg manager in 2021, replacing Jesse Marsch, who would later manage Leeds United and then Canada at the 2026 World Cup.

In two seasons with RB Salzburg, Jaissle won the Austrian Bundesliga twice and also the Austrian Cup once.

Their team included Benjamin Sesko and Brenden Aaronson, who now play in the Premier League with Manchester United and Leeds United respectively, and German forward Karim Adeyemi, now at Barcelona.

Jaissle joined Saudi club Al-Ahli in 2023 and led them to consecutive Asian Champions League titles in 2025 and 2026. Such success would have been noted by Newcastle‘s Saudi ownership in the event of Howe leaving St James’ Park.

Magpies supporters will be encouraged by Jaissle’s methods – his teams play high-pressing attacking football. He demands they show intensity and force turnovers as high up the pitch as possible.

CHICAGO — In the nearly nine months since he was hired as head coach at UCLA, Bob Chesney has won over a lot of hearts and minds with his unwavering sense of belief.

First, he won over his star quarterback, Nico Iamaleava, who opted to stick with the Bruins after a 3-9 season a year ago. He won over 45 new transfers, who came to UCLA as part of the portal’s 11th-ranked class and seems to be winning over recruits, too, with UCLA currently ranked in the top 10 among 2027 classes. He even won over once-dormant Bruin donors, who, according to the school’s athletic department, have now poured over $41 million in private support into UCLA athletics over the past fiscal year, an increase of 80% from the previous year.

“It’s his energy, man,” Iamaleava said. “He brings a different type of energy.”

At this point, the only thing it seems Chesney hasn’t won yet at UCLA is an actual football game.

He couldn’t do anything about that Wednesday from the podium at Big Ten media days. Though, as far as first impressions go in this conference, Chesney certainly had a leg up on his predecessor, who stumbled through his own opening address two years ago.

But as the season draws nearer and a new era of Bruin football begins, all the enthusiasm does beg the question: What does a successful debut actually look like for Chesney at UCLA?

Chesney said Wednesday he had no interest in setting those expectations or “in putting artificial limits on ourselves.”

“Outcomes have to be earned,” he said. “And I think in the end, potential is a gift, right? The work is becoming. That’s the work.”

Considering UCLA’s recent history, you can understand why Chesney wouldn’t want to wade too far into setting expectations. Hope, after all, may be his most valuable resource at the moment.

The Bruins are coming off a season in which they won just three games, their fewest in more than 54 years. They’ve reached the nine-win mark once in the past decade. And just two UCLA coaches in a half-century — Jim Mora and Terry Donahue — have clocked a winning campaign in their debut seasons with the Bruins.

“There’s no better place I’d rather be at this moment in time,” Chesney said. “I strongly believe in the power of what UCLA is.”

The collective Big Ten media seems less convinced, having voted the Bruins to finish 13th in their preseason conference poll. That’s exactly where they finished last season.

But there are some things working in Chesney’s favor. For one, a schedule that includes just four opponents picked to finish in the top half of the Big Ten.

It doesn’t hurt, either, that his quarterback got a full spring and summer under his belt as a Bruin. Iamaleava didn’t join the program until late in the process last season after his transfer portal drama dragged out through the spring and summer. Then once he started to find his bearings, UCLA’s coach was fired.

There was no such uncertainty this offseason, as Chesney moved to quickly retain Iamaleava.

“It was a matter of making sure he understood we had a plan,” Chesney said. “That was the most important thing we could do to make sure he stuck around and he did.”

Not only was Iamaleava impressed with his plans to prepare him for the NFL, but he found himself right away swept up in the coach’s personality.

“When you first talk to him,” Iamaleava said, “it kind of sounds like you’re talking to a poet or something, the way the words roll off.”

Chesney is counting on Iamaleava to make things move smoothly for UCLA’s offense this season. But the most marked difference for the Bruins on that side of the ball should be the ground game.

The Bruins boasted one of the least dynamic rushing attacks in the Big Ten a season ago, as Iamaleava led the team with just 505 rushing yards. Their lead running back, Jalen Berger, rushed for a meager 364 yards over the course of the season.

Meanwhile, at James Madison, Chesney had three running backs with as many yards last season. The Dukes rushed for the fifth-most yards (3,381) of any Football Bowl Subdivision team.

Their lead rusher, Wayne Knight, followed Chesney to UCLA and should step in as one of the best backs the Bruins have had in years. Of the 30 backs in college football with over 200 carries, Knight averaged the most yards per carry last season (6.63).

“There’ll be a commitment to playing that style of football,” Chesney said.

The rest is mostly just a projection, a fact that Chesney openly acknowledges.

“Everything here is ultimately conceptual,” he says.

But one change has already taken hold, if you ask Iamaleava. One that might appear unrecognizable from recent history at UCLA.

“He’s definitely changed the mindset in there, just how you feel. I don’t know how to explain it,” Iamaleava said.

“When Ches walks into a room, he just brings that winning mentality.”

Newcastle spent in the region of £240m on new players 12 months ago, but Howe was left frustrated by the departure of striker Alexander Isak to Liverpool.

Howe has lost two key players this summer – Sandro Tonali to Tottenham and Anthony Gordon to Barcelona, while Arsenal are chasing captain Bruno Guimaraes.

Howe replaced Steve Bruce as manager in November 2021, and ended Newcastle‘s 70-year wait for a major domestic trophy by winning the 2025 Carabao Cup.

He led the Magpies to Champions League qualification in 2023 and 2025.

Last season, Newcastle reached the last-16 of the Champions League before losing 8-3 on aggregate to Barcelona.

Their EFL Cup defence ended in the semi-finals, but their league performance was severely underwhelming after finishing fifth in 2024-25.

Newcastle won 84 of their 179 Premier League games under Howe, drawing 38 and losing 57.

He oversaw more Premier League wins than any other Newcastle manager. His Premier League win percentage of 46.9% at the club is bettered only by Kevin Keegan.

Saudi Arabia has hosted the last two Asian Champions League Elite finals and has now been confirmed for the next three.

Saudi ‌Arabia will organise the next three ⁠editions ⁠of the Asian Champions League Elite finals after the Asian Football Confederation’s ⁠executive committee confirmed the country’s provisional hosting rights had been made permanent.

The Saudis have hosted the first two editions of the event, which sees the quarterfinals, semifinals and final played in ‌a centralised venue, since the continent’s premier club competition was restructured before the 2024/2025 season.

Jeddah-based outfit Al-Ahli have won the title on the two occasions the city has hosted the ⁠finals, defeating Japan’s Kawasaki ⁠Frontale in 2025 before beating Machida Zelvia, also from Japan, in May.

The upcoming edition of the tournament, which ⁠features the domestic champions of the leading competitions from ⁠the region, will ⁠see the league phase expanded from 24 to 32 teams.

The qualifying rounds will start on August 11, ‌with the draw for the league phase to be held in Kuala Lumpur ‌on ‌August 18 and play commencing on September 14.

Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli completed their back-to-back victories with a 1-0 win after extra time against Machida Zelvia, of the Japanese J1 League, in last year’s final.

Fellow Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal are the record winners of the competition with four wins from nine appearances in the final – which is also a record.

Japan’s Urawa Red Diamonds and South Korea’s Pohang Steelers have each lifted the trophy twice, having both appeared in the final on three occasions.

As Wrexham unveiled their new 2026-27 home shirt while ringing the Nasdaq bell in New York’s iconic Times Square, there was little doubt that the club’s stock has never been higher.

Icons from the past such as Mickey Thomas, Steven Fletcher, Ben Tozer and Ben Foster were among those in The Big Apple proudly adorning the club’s red jersey.

It formed part of the launch of their new home kit, complete with their newest sponsor – yet another global brand.

Which is all in keeping with their cross-Atlantic profile, one unlike any other in the Championship or even many in the Premier League.

“Each time Wrexham has come to the U.S., we’ve been blown away by the reception,” co-owners Rob Mac and Ryan Reynolds told Sports Illustrated, external.

“The support has continued to grow, and it felt important to come back and connect with those fans in person.”

The Red Dragons are more than halfway through their pre-season tour of the United States, the third time in four summers they have travelled across the Atlantic.

It is a far cry from the summer of 2021 – Phil Parkinson’s first pre-season in north Wales – when Wrexham faced the likes of Burnley’s Under-23s, Tamworth, a Fleetwood Town XI, Spennymoor Town and Curzon Ashton.