Sports · Monday, 14 September 2026

01 Briefing what happened

Athletics put $10m on three nights in Budapest. Second place there paid more than a world title.

World Athletics ran its first Ultimate Championship, with the best 16 in each event, no limit per country and $150,000 for every winner. It wants a big television event for the one year in four with no Olympics and no World Championships.

$10m

in prize money over three nights, the most ever at one track and field event

each winner took $150,000, and every athlete who competed was paid something [1]

$150,000 vs $140,000

an Ultimate champion's prize, against what a first-round loser earned at this year's US Open

athletics still pays its best far less than tennis does [4]

20,557

people at the sold-out opening night in Budapest

four in ten were visitors from other countries [10]

1 year in 4

has no Olympics and no World Championships

from now on the Ultimate is held in exactly those years, every two years [1]

The lead story — what happened

World Athletics, the body that runs track and field, held its first Ultimate Championship in Budapest from Friday to Sunday. It packed 28 events into three evening sessions. [1][8]
The prize fund was $10m, the most ever offered at a single track and field event. Each winner took $150,000, second place $75,000 and third $40,000, and every athlete who competed was paid. [1]
The reason is television. Olympic and World Championship audiences pass a billion, and one year in every four has neither event. [2]
There were no heats and no limit of three athletes per country, the rule the Olympics uses. Places went by world ranking, plus invitations chosen by World Athletics. [2][1]
Australia's Nicola Olyslagers, the world high jump champion, finished second. She earned $5,000 more than she was paid for winning the world title last year. [4]
Britain's Jazmin Sawyers took $75,000 for second in the long jump. [9] She told Sebastian Coe, who runs World Athletics, that the money means she can stay in the sport for another year. [5]
Track and field is still far behind tennis. A player who lost in the first round of this year's US Open singles earned $140,000. [4]
The opening night sold out, with 20,557 people in the stadium. Four in ten were visitors from other countries. [10]
Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway won the 5,000m after missing nearly a year with an Achilles injury that needed surgery in February. He came in on an invitation, ranked 40th. [11][10]
Switzerland's Audrey Werro beat the Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson in the 800m. [6] The American sprinter Kenny Bednarek won both the 100m and the 200m, worth $300,000. [8][7]
Athletes raced in national team kit, not their sponsors' kit. Coe says a national vest brings more viewers. [5] Britain's Josh Kerr, who won the 1,500m, said athletes make no money wearing their country's colours. [7]
World Athletics is now reviewing the event, and Coe says the list of events can change. The next edition is in 2028. [5][2]

Who is involved

Sebastian Coe

president of World Athletics and a double Olympic 1,500m champion; he built the event and steps down next year [2]
Jakob Ingebrigtsen

Norway's two-time Olympic champion; back from Achilles surgery, he won the 5,000m and $150,000 [10][11]
Nicola Olyslagers

Australia's world high jump champion; her second place paid more than her world title did [4]
Jazmin Sawyers

a British long jumper back from a torn Achilles; she said her $75,000 keeps her in the sport another year [5][9]
Josh Kerr

Britain's former world 1,500m champion; he won the 1,500m and asked to race in his sponsor's kit, not his country's [7][2]

How it unfolded

2023 Budapest's national stadium hosts the World Championships [9]
Thu 10 Sep a red-carpet launch; Usain Bolt says he missed out on this kind of prize money [3]
Fri 11 Sep Ingebrigtsen wins the 5,000m in front of a sold-out opening night [10]
Sat 12 Sep Werro beats Hodgkinson in the 800m [6]
Sun 13 Sep Kerr wins the 1,500m and Bednarek completes a sprint double [7]
2028 the next edition, which may drop or swap events [1][2]

Where this points

The next test is World Athletics' review: whether it keeps the $10m fund and the open fields for 2028, and which events it changes. [5][2]

What is pushing on the whole day

The bar and the word are our reading of how hard each one is pushing today. The arrow is where it is heading. The evidence is in the stories below.

Stars missing through injury High↑

Jannik Sinner, the top-ranked men's tennis player, pulled out of the US Open with a knee injury. [17] Tadej Pogacar, the favourite in the Vuelta, Spain's three-week bike race, crashed out while leading. [40][41] Kyler Murray left his first game for the Minnesota Vikings with a concussion. [31]

Prize money climbing Building↑

The US Open raised its prize money by a fifth this year. [26] Both of its singles champions took $5.5m, the most in Grand Slam history. [17] Track and field's new championship paid $150,000 to every winner. [1]

Officials' rules deciding results Building→

In Madrid, a slow-down period for a stopped car let the drivers behind the Formula One leader change tyres cheaply. [12] At the Vuelta, organisers stopped counting overall times on the last lap because riders said the course was dangerous. [39] In Manchester, the video referee ruled Erling Haaland onside because of where a defender's foot was. [52]

Big contracts under pressure Steady↑

The Indianapolis Colts gave Daniel Jones a two-year, $88m deal, and he threw for 166 yards in a 41-23 defeat. [32] Zay Flowers of the Baltimore Ravens hurt a hamstring a month after signing a $140m extension. [35] Valencia, the Spanish football club, sacked its coach with little money to spend on players. [51]

The rest of the day

20 more stories on this beat.

Each with its own sources. None of these is a link to the story above.

02
Zverev wins the US Open; the American wait goes on

Alexander Zverev of Germany beat the American Ben Shelton 6-3 7-6 5-7 6-2 in the US Open men's final in New York on Sunday. [18] It was his second major title of 2026, after the French Open in June, and it paid $5.5m. [18][17] He was top seed only because Jannik Sinner, the world number one, withdrew with a knee injury. [17][22] Novak Djokovic, chasing a record 25th major title, lost in the first round. [21] No American man has won one of tennis's four biggest tournaments since Andy Roddick in 2003. [19]

Why it matters — The US tennis body rebuilt the way it trains young players in 2008 and is still waiting for a men's champion. [19] Shelton was the first Black American man in the New York final since Arthur Ashe in 1972. [20]
03
Rybakina takes the US Open and the top ranking

Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan beat Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus 6-4 5-7 6-2 in the women's final on Saturday. [23] She becomes world number one on Monday, ending Sabalenka's 99 weeks in a row at the top. [23] Rybakina had withdrawn from a tournament in Cincinnati with a left ankle injury, and she did not touch a racket for seven days before the US Open. [24] In the first set she landed only 27% of her first serves and still won it. [25][23] The title paid $5.5m. [23]

Why it matters — She ended Sabalenka's run of 19 straight wins at the US Open, where Sabalenka had won the last two titles. [23] Rybakina now needs only the French Open to have won all four of tennis's biggest tournaments. [24]
04
A doubles player with eight operations wins at home

The American Christian Harrison and Britain's Neal Skupski won the US Open men's doubles on Saturday, beating Germany's Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz 6-4 7-6. [27] It was their second major title this year. They won the Australian Open in January when they had played only one tournament together before it. [27] They did not drop a set in New York. [27] Harrison had eight operations between 2009 and 2018, including two on his thigh bone, and gave up most singles play because of them. [27]

Why it matters — Only two other teams since 1968 have won the US Open doubles without losing a set. [27] Skupski lost the 2025 US Open and French Open finals with a different partner. [27]
05
A slow-down period decided Madrid's first grand prix

Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes won Formula One's first race at Madrid's new Madring circuit on Sunday, his eighth win of the season. [13] Lando Norris of McLaren, the reigning world champion, started first and led by six seconds. [12][14] On lap 14 of 57 a stopped car brought out a virtual safety car, a period when every driver must slow down. [12] The drivers behind Norris changed tyres while it lasted and lost little time. [12] Norris was already past the pit lane entrance. He stopped a lap later at full speed and came out fifth. [13]

Why it matters — Antonelli now leads his Mercedes team-mate George Russell by 81 points. [14] McLaren's team boss said stopping at this track without the slow-down costs 27 seconds, and Norris wants the rule changed so it treats every driver alike. [13]
06
Drivers ask Madrid to redraw its new track

Drivers said the new Madring track leaves almost nowhere to overtake, and several asked for changes after Sunday's race. [16] Norris said two corners should be removed. [16] Ollie Bearman of the Haas team said it does not take a genius to design a track for overtaking. [15] No driver was asked for feedback while it was designed. [15] Madrid has a 10-year contract to host the race, on a circuit built largely around an exhibition centre. [16] Ferrari's team boss Fred Vasseur said the organisers had asked teams about overtaking during the weekend and are keen to make changes. [16]

Why it matters — Madrid is tied to the race for ten years, so a dull track is its problem as much as the sport's. [16] Gabriel Bortoleto called it a faster Monaco but as boring as Monaco, the street race long criticised for processions. [15]
07
American football's first Sunday scored at a record rate

NFL teams averaged 50.1 points a game in the season's first week going into Sunday night. That was on course to be the highest since the league merged with its rival in 1970. [28] The Chicago Bears beat the Carolina Panthers 59-37, 96 points in all, a record for a season opener. [28][29] Ten teams scored 30 points or more. [28] Twenty-one teams changed the coach who runs their attack before this season. [28]

Why it matters — The old record for an opening week was 49.4 points a game, set in 2012. [28] Carolina spent heavily on two linebackers when players were free to change clubs, then gave up the most points in the club's history. [29]
08
Minnesota's new quarterback lasted one quarter

Kyler Murray left his first game for the Minnesota Vikings in the first quarter on Sunday with a concussion. He was hurt by a hit from Green Bay safety Javon Bullard. [31] Murray signed a one-year contract in March after seven seasons with the Arizona Cardinals. [31] Carson Wentz replaced him. J.J. McCarthy, the Vikings' main starter in 2025, was the emergency third choice. [31] The Vikings still beat the Packers 39-22. [28]

Why it matters — Bullard was penalised 15 yards for unnecessary roughness on the play. [30] Minnesota signed Murray for one season only, so each game he misses uses up part of the only year it paid for. [31]
09
Jones returns 280 days after his Achilles tear

Daniel Jones played for the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, 280 days after tearing his right Achilles tendon. [32] The Colts had re-signed him in the spring on a two-year, $88m deal. [32] They lost 41-23 to the Baltimore Ravens. Jones threw for 166 yards, his lowest in any full game for the club. [32] He said afterwards that it was just not good enough. [32] Baltimore's Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson combined for five touchdowns. [30]

Why it matters — The Colts' head coach and general manager are both under pressure. [32] Whether Jones becomes the club's long-term quarterback depends on how he plays and whether he stays healthy. [32]
10
Cincinnati's new defence won its first game

The Cincinnati Bengals beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 33-27 on Sunday. [33] Tampa Bay lost three fumbles in the first half, and each led to a Bengals touchdown. [33] The Bengals rebuilt their defence this year. They pay Boye Mafe $20m a year, and he forced a late fumble with a sack. [33] Safety Bryan Cook, on $13m a year, forced another. Linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr. ran one fumble back 27 yards for a touchdown. [33]

Why it matters — Nearly every expensive new signing and top draft pick in Cincinnati's defence made a big play. [33] Tampa Bay's rookie Josiah Trotter returned a Joe Burrow interception for a touchdown, and the Cincinnati defence still held the lead. [33]
11
The team tipped to be worst won in Los Angeles

The Arizona Cardinals beat the Los Angeles Chargers 26-14 away on Sunday, in Mike LaFleur's first game as their head coach. [34] Before the season, a projection by The Athletic gave Arizona 4.4 wins, the fewest in the league. [34] A blocked punt set up a touchdown pass from Jacoby Brissett, and an interception of Justin Herbert sealed it. [34] Mike McDaniel, a much-watched hire to run the Chargers' attack, saw it score 14 points. [34][28]

Why it matters — Arizona's general manager did little to strengthen a defence that fell apart late last season, betting on better health instead. [34] That defence forced two turnovers and kept the Chargers scoreless in the fourth quarter. [34]
12
Baltimore won big and lost two receivers

The Baltimore Ravens beat the Indianapolis Colts 41-23 but lost two wide receivers to injury. [35] Zay Flowers hurt his hamstring again after five catches for 150 yards and a touchdown in the first half. [35] A month earlier he had signed a four-year, $140m extension. [35] Rookie Ja'Kobi Lane was ruled out with a wrist injury. That left Baltimore three healthy receivers, one of them mainly a punt returner. [35]

Why it matters — Flowers had recently missed two weeks with the same hamstring injury. He was not listed as injured before the game. [35]
13
The US wins a fifth women's basketball World Cup in a row

The United States beat France 97-79 on Sunday to win the women's basketball World Cup for a fifth straight time. [36] The US has won 36 World Cup games in a row, since losing to Russia in a 2006 semi-final. [36] It trailed France by 14 points in the first half, its biggest deficit in the tournament since that 2006 loss. [36] Breanna Stewart scored 22 points and was named the tournament's best player. [36] Spain beat the hosts Germany for bronze. [38]

Why it matters — France finished second, its best result ever at the event. [36] Thirteen French players played in the WNBA, America's professional women's league, this season. [37]
14
A three-time runner-up wins Spain's bike race

Enric Mas won the Vuelta a Espana, cycling's three-week race around Spain, on Sunday. It was his first win in one of the sport's three big tours. [39] He had finished second in the Vuelta in 2018, 2021 and 2022. [40] Tadej Pogacar, the favourite, crashed out on stage eight while leading Mas by 3 minutes 50 seconds. [40][41] Mas beat four-time winner Primoz Roglic by 2 minutes 15 seconds. [39] Overall times were not counted for the final lap in Granada, after riders said the course was dangerous. [39][41]

Why it matters — Mas is the first Spaniard to win the race since Alberto Contador in 2014. [39] He took the leader's red jersey only after Pogacar crashed, then dropped Roglic on the climbs of stage 20. [41]
15
India won the Asia Cup and refused the trophy again

India's women beat Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the Asia Cup final in Dubai on Sunday, their eighth title in ten editions. [43] They would not take the trophy from Mohsin Naqvi. He heads the Asian Cricket Council and Pakistan's cricket board, and he is also Pakistan's interior minister. [43][42] The ceremony was cut short just before the trophy would have been handed over. [43] India's men did the same after beating Pakistan in last year's final. [43]

Why it matters — India and Pakistan fought a brief military conflict last year, and they now meet in cricket only at multi-nation events on neutral ground. [43] They could meet again at the Asian Games in Japan later this month. [43]
16
England win 3-0 and hand the team to a new coach

England beat Pakistan by eight wickets at Edgbaston on Saturday to win the Test series 3-0. It was their first series win in 19 months. [44] Joe Root was back as captain after Ben Stokes retired from international cricket. [44] The England board sacked Test coach Brendon McCullum this summer. [45] Interim coach Marcus Trescothick now hands over to the New Zealander Stephen Fleming. [44] Pakistan changed seven players after the second Test and sacked their coach, Sarfaraz Ahmed. [44]

Why it matters — Fleming's first job is a three-Test tour of South Africa in December and January, against much stronger opposition. [44] Fast bowler Ollie Robinson took 21 wickets in the series. [44]
17
England's batters kept stopping short of a hundred

By the second day of the final Test, England's batters had passed 50 runs 21 times this summer and turned only one into a century. [46] Ben Duckett's 113 against New Zealand was that one. The rate is the lowest ever for an England home summer of six or more Tests. [46] Jordan Cox made three half-centuries at number three against Pakistan, standing in for the injured Jacob Bethell. [47] When Bethell returns from knee surgery, one of Cox, Emilio Gay and Dan Lawrence will have to make way. [44]

Why it matters — Trescothick said a team may no longer need a specialist opening batter, because players switch between formats so often. [48] Fleming, who missed the Pakistan series, is coming to England to start planning for South Africa. [48]
18
Texas came back from 20 down to beat the top team

Texas beat Ohio State, then ranked first, 24-23 in Austin on Saturday after trailing 23-3. [49][50] It was the largest fourth-quarter comeback ever to beat the top team in the AP poll, the weekly ranking voted by sports writers, according to Sportradar. [50] Quarterback Arch Manning, booed early in the game, led three touchdown drives of 12 plays or more. The last came with 25 seconds left. [49] Texas rose to first in Sunday's poll. [50]

Why it matters — Ohio State dropped out of the top five for the first time in two seasons. Oregon fell 15 places to 21st after losing to a team that had lost 21 in a row against top-division opponents. [50] Michigan, which beat Western Michigan a week ago only after a second was put back on the clock, returned to the poll at 19th. [50]
19
Valencia sack their coach and their football chief

Valencia, the Spanish football club, sacked head coach Carlos Corberan on Sunday. A fourth league defeat in a row had left them bottom of the table after five games, with a single draw. [51] They also parted with their chief of football, Ron Gourlay. [51] Corberan's successor will be the club's 18th permanent head coach since 2012. [51] Under their Singapore-based owner Peter Lim, fans protest regularly and money for new players has been tight. [51]

Why it matters — This is Valencia's last season at the Mestalla, their historic ground. Relegation would mean opening their long-delayed new stadium in Spain's second division. [51]
20
A foot-width video call settled the Manchester derby

Manchester City beat Manchester United 1-0 at Old Trafford this weekend while playing with ten men. [52] Phil Foden was sent off after 23 minutes for kicking out at Bruno Fernandes. [52] Erling Haaland's goal after an hour looked offside. VAR, the video referee, found him onside because of where a United defender's foot was. [52] City have 12 points from their first four games. [52]

Why it matters — About 500 fans protested outside the ground against United's ticket policy. [52] Nearly 700 season ticket holders had to appeal to keep their seats after a crackdown on ticket touting. [52]
21
Liverpool ran out of legs 67 hours after a European night

Liverpool drew 0-0 at home with Fulham, 67 hours after beating Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. [53] Against Atletico their players sprinted a combined 2.3 miles. Against Fulham they managed 1.4 miles, the lowest under manager Andoni Iraola. [53] Iraola said there was a lack of freshness, with only about 60 hours between the two games. [53] His style asks players to run hard in both attack and defence. [53]

Why it matters — The fixture list gets harder from here, with more games away from home squeezed together by November. [53]

02 Lesson why it matters

Why a title goes to the best player still in the race

Stars get hurt, crash or pull out, and the trophy goes to the best of whoever is left, with no mark saying who was missing.

The twist

A trophy goes to the best player still in the event on the last day. Staying healthy enough to be there is part of winning it, not luck on top of it.

How it works

A long season wears bodies down, and the best players play the most
Some favourites get hurt, crash or pull out before the end
The title goes to the best player still in the event
The results table lists the winner, not who was missing
So staying fit enough to be there is part of winning

The same force, elsewhere today

Where this chain is also running, in today's other stories.

Mas wins the Vuelta

Pogacar crashed out on stage eight while leading, and Mas, the best rider left, took the red jersey and kept it to the end.
Zverev wins the US Open

Sinner, the world number one, pulled out with a knee injury, so Zverev became top seed and beat everyone left in the draw.
Murray's concussion in Minnesota

Murray was hurt in the first quarter, and Carson Wentz, the backup, played the rest of the Vikings' win.

Where you've seen this

Elections

when a front-runner drops out, the seat goes to the strongest candidate left on the ballot

School exams

a pupil who is ill on the day gets no grade, however well they knew the work

Business

a shop that survives a bad year picks up the customers of rivals that closed

The catch

It does not make the winner a fluke: Mas and Zverev still had to beat everyone who turned up, and nobody can prove the missing star would have won.

And the whole of it

The results from this weekend do not mention Pogacar or Sinner at all. Anyone who got a team place because a team-mate was injured has been on one side of this, and most people have also been the one who missed out.

03 Truth what's really going on

What is really going on

World Athletics paid $10m for three nights in Budapest because it needs a big television event in the one year in four with no Olympics and no World Championships. [2][1] Even that record fund pays an Ultimate champion $150,000, only $10,000 more than a first-round loser earned at this year's US Open. [4]

Why it works on us — A single big number like $10m sounds huge until it sits beside what tennis pays a player who loses on the first day.

Who gains

Track and field athletes who finish second or third — The Ultimate paid $75,000 for second and $40,000 for third. Olyslagers' second place paid more than her world title did. [1][4]
Kimi Antonelli and Mercedes — The slow-down period gave Antonelli a cheap tyre change, and the win took his lead to 81 points. [12][14]
Enric Mas and his Movistar team — Pogacar's crash removed the rider who was leading Mas by 3 minutes 50 seconds. [40]
Alexander Zverev — Sinner's withdrawal made him top seed, and the title paid $5.5m. [17]
Texas — The comeback lifted it to first in the AP poll, and Ohio State dropped to sixth. [50]

Who pays

Lando Norris and McLaren — Norris was past the pit entrance when the slow-down began, so he lost a six-second lead to a stop at full speed. [12][13]
Spectators at the Madrid race — The race was largely a procession, on a track drivers say has almost nowhere to overtake. [15]
Athletes who earn from sponsors' kit — The Ultimate made them race in national team kit, and Kerr said athletes make no money from that. [7][5]
Liverpool's players — They had 67 hours between two games and ran far less in the second. [53]
Manchester United season ticket holders — Nearly 700 had to appeal to keep their seats after a crackdown on ticket touting. [52]

What nobody knows yet

Open questions from across today’s stories — ours included.

01

How many people the Budapest stadium actually held.

ESPN gave a capacity of about 14,000 [1]. The Athletic reported a 22,000-seat layout that was 75% sold by mid-August [2]. Reuters reported a sold-out crowd of 20,557 on the first night [10]. We could not settle which layout was used.
02

Whether the Ultimate Championship earns back its $10m.

Nobody published the television audience, ticket income or sponsorship for the event, and World Athletics has only said it will review it. [5]
03

Whether Formula One changes the slow-down rule that cost Norris the Madrid race.

Norris said drivers have raised it before, and he also said any change opens other problems, such as what happens in rain. [13]
04

How much overtaking actually happened in Madrid.

The Athletic asked Formula One's owners for the overtaking figures, and had not received them when it published its report. [15]
05

How long India's refusal to take trophies from Mohsin Naqvi goes on.

Reuters asked the Asian Cricket Council for comment and got none, and the two teams could meet at the Asian Games this month. [43] Reports also differ on the delay before the ceremony was cut: nearly 50 minutes [42] or more than an hour [43].
06

How long Kyler Murray will be out.

Minnesota ruled him out of Sunday's game with a concussion and gave no date for his return. [31]
07

Whether Rybakina's ankle holds up.

She calls it a chronic problem that flared up, and she could not practise for a week before the US Open. [24]
08

Who will coach Valencia.

The club named a new sporting director on Sunday but no head coach. [51]
09

Which batter England leave out when Jacob Bethell returns.

Trescothick said that is for someone else to work out, and the new coach, Stephen Fleming, missed the Pakistan series. [48]

04 Hope carry this

Christian Harrison had eight operations in nine years and gave up most of his singles career because of them. On Saturday he won the US Open doubles title in his own country, his second major title this year.

Also true today

Enric Mas finished second in the Vuelta a Espana three times. On Sunday he won it.
Jakob Ingebrigtsen missed nearly a year with an Achilles injury that needed surgery in February. On Friday he won the 5,000m in Budapest in his fastest time in five years.
Jazmin Sawyers came back from a torn Achilles and finished second in the long jump in Budapest. She says the $75,000 prize means she can stay in the sport for another year.
Elena Rybakina could not touch a racket for a week before the US Open because of an injured ankle. She won the title, and she becomes the world's top-ranked woman on Monday.