U.S./World Sports category, Page 139
Ronaldo linked with Saudi club as future still uncertainVideo
DOHA, Qatar — The noise surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo shows no sign of quietening amid widespread speculation that Saudi club Al Nassr is trying to sign the five-time Ballon d’Or winner. But Portugal, which has secured its place in the knockout stages of the World Cup with a game to spare,...
Iran win another step as U.S. soccer tries to boost interestVideo
DOHA, Qatar — American soccer hopes to be ascendant, to challenge the NFL, MLB and the NBA in the competition for U.S. market share. Reaching the final 16 with Tuesday night’s 1-0 win over Iran was another step for a team for which success is measured in television viewers and...
Christian Pulisic listed as day-to-day with pelvic injury at World Cup
DOHA, Qatar — U.S. forward Christian Pulisic is listed as day to day after sustaining a pelvic injury during his team’s 1-0 World Cup win against Iran that sent the Americans to the round of 16 of the tournament on Tuesday. Pulisic scored the 38th-minute winning goal against Iran, but...
Blue Jays hire Don Mattingly as bench coach
TORONTO — Don Mattingly is joining the Toronto Blue Jays as bench coach to manager John Schneider, the team announced Wednesday. The former New York Yankees slugger, a six-time All-Star, joins the Blue Jays after seven seasons as manager of the Florida Marlins, where he won NL Manager of the...
Social media makes Jada Williams face of high school NIL
SAN DIEGO — It’s the middle of the afternoon and Jada Williams begins a live stream on Instagram. In a heartbeat, more than 1,000 of her 671,000 followers join the broadcast and begin typing in questions and comments. Williams does her best to follow along as the comments and questions...
Former NFL QB Dilfer leading candidate to become UAB coach
Former NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer, who has been coaching a high school team in Tennessee for the last four years, is the leading candidate to become the new coach at UAB, a person with knowledge of the search told The Associated Press on Tuesday night. The person spoke on condition...
Ohio State is 5 in second-to-last CFP rankings behind USC
Ohio State was No. 5 on Tuesday night in the second-to-last College Football Playoff rankings, positioned to possibly take advantage if one of the top four slips up on championship weekend. Georgia (12-0) was No. 1 again. No. 2 Michigan (12-0) and No. 3 TCU (12-0) moved up a spot...
Christian Pulisic’s goal helps U.S. beat Iran, advance in World CupVideo
DOHA, Qatar — Christian Pulisic scored while crashing headfirst into the goalkeeper in the 38th minute, and the United States advanced to the knockout round of the World Cup with a 1-0 win over Iran on Tuesday in a politically charged rematch of their famous meeting a quarter-century ago. Pulisic,...
England and Wales players take a knee in World Cup match
AL RAYYAN, Qatar — The players for both England and Wales took a knee before their final World Cup group game on Tuesday. The teams made the gesture as a sign of solidarity in the fight against discrimination. England and Wales were among seven European nations that had intended to...
Qatar says worker deaths for World Cup ‘between 400 and 500’
DOHA, Qatar — A top Qatari official involved in the country’s World Cup organization has put the number of worker deaths for the tournament “between 400 and 500” for the first time, a drastically higher number than any other previously offered by Doha. The comment by Hassan al-Thawadi, the secretary-general...
Iran-U.S. World Cup clash rife with political tension
DOHA, Qatar — The last World Cup clash between the United States and Iran 24 years ago is considered one of the most politically charged matches in soccer history. This time, the political overtones are just as strong and relations perhaps even more fraught as the U.S. and Iran face...
Middle Tennessee to play San Diego State in Hawaii Bowl
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee will play San Diego State in the Hawaii Bowl on Dec. 24 on the campus of the University of Hawaii after the bowl game was canceled in 2020 and 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Blue Raiders (7-5) announced Monday they have accepted an...
U.S. has clear World Cup task against Iran: win or go home
DOHA, Qatar — The task is clear for the United States: beat Iran in a politically charged World Cup match or go home. “We have to get out of our group by all means,” U.S. captain Tyler Adams said Monday. “It would feel like a success for us when we...
Houston reaches No. 1 in AP poll for first time since 1983
Make some room, Phi Slamma Jamma. Another Houston team has reached the top of men’s college basketball. Nearly four decades after Clyde Drexler and Akeem Olajuwon took the Cougars to No. 1, the latest bunch led by Marcus Sasser and star freshman Jarace Walker took over the top spot in...
South Carolina tops women’s AP Top 25; Stanford, UConn next
South Carolina remained the unanimous No. 1 choice in The Associated Press women’s basketball poll released Monday as the Gamecocks keep close watch on the foot injury of reigning Player of the Year Aliyah Boston. The Gamecocks received all 29 first-place votes in the poll released Monday, a day after...
AP Top 25: Michigan up to No. 2 behind top-ranked Georgia; Penn State moves up to No. 8
Michigan moved up to No. 2 in The Associated Press college football poll Sunday, with TCU at No. 3 and Southern California at No. 4 behind top-ranked Georgia after four top-10 teams lost on the final day of regular-season games. The Bulldogs (12-0) are No. 1 for the eighth straight...
Norwin grad Katelyn Kauffman helps Florida Gulf Coast reach NCAA Tournament
Katelyn Kauffman wanted a change of scenery. After spending her freshman year at Pitt, the former Norwin soccer standout realized the novelty of playing close to home had worn off. She wanted a new experience. She wanted to contend for a championship, something that was going to be difficult to...
No. 3 Michigan keeps title hopes alive with rout of Ohio St.Video
COLUMBUS, Ohio — After Michigan beat Ohio State with stunning ease for the second straight year, Wolverines defensive lineman Cam Goode grabbed a huge maize-and-blue flag and rushed with teammates to the block “O” in the middle of the Ohio Stadium turf. They planted that flag and mugged for a...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: If you don’t like soccer, go watch the boring NFL
The United States tied England in World Cup group play 0-0. The usual American outrage immediately began to flow. It mostly revolves around not enough goals and a game concluding in a tie. “Why would I watch a game that ends 0-0?” The easy answer: don’t. Soccer is popular far...
U.S. earns respect at World Cup, but wins remain elusive
AL KHOR, Qatar — Respect achieved. Wins await. American players wanted more than a 0-0 draw with England on Friday night, likely the most-watched match of their lives. The U.S. shut out a European opponent in the World Cup for the first time since 1950 yet left the tent-like stadium...
England wary of World Cup upset against USVideo
DOHA, Qatar — England scored six goals in its opening World Cup game against Iran, but it was the two it conceded that concern coach Gareth Southgate and provide hope for the United States. “By the end we looked sloppy,” said Southgate of the 6-2 win over Iran on Monday....
Iranian soccer player arrested amid World Cup scrutiny
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran arrested a prominent former member of its national soccer team on Thursday over his criticism of the government as authorities grapple with nationwide protests that have cast a shadow over its competition at the World Cup. The semiofficial Fars and Tasnim news agencies reported...
LSU jumps to 5th in CFP rankings behind Georgia, Ohio State, Michigan and TCUVideo
LSU moved up to fifth and Southern Cal was sixth Tuesday night in the College Football Playoff rankings behind Georgia, Ohio State, Michigan and TCU. The top four remained the same for the third straight week, but the teams chasing changed order after Tennessee lost to South Carolina on Saturday...
Cristiano Ronaldo to leave Manchester United ‘with immediate effect’
DOHA, Qatar — Cristiano Ronaldo will leave Manchester United “with immediate effect,” the Premier League club said Tuesday, days after he gave an explosive interview criticizing manager Erik ten Hag and the club’s owners. It wasn’t known where the 37-year-old Ronaldo will go next next after failing to secure a...
NCAA awards Final Four to Las Vegas for 1st time
The Final Four is headed for the first time to Las Vegas, where wagering on the NCAA Tournament has long been a staple of March Madness revelry, after the NCAA awarded the men’s national semifinals and championship game to Allegiant Stadium for the 2027-28 season. The NCAA also announced Tuesday...
