England beat Croatia 7-0 in a stadium shut as a punishment for racism, where UEFA's own rules let 6,200 children in free

The rest of the day

30 more stories on this beat.

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

1. 02

   Tom Kim's gold excuses him from army service

   Tom Kim, a South Korean golfer who plays on the PGA Tour, the main US men's tour, won the men's golf gold at the Asian Games in Japan on Saturday. [21] He shot 64 in the last round to win by three shots. [22] Most South Korean men must serve 18 to 21 months in the military before they turn 28. [23] Winners of an Asian Games gold or any Olympic medal are excused, apart from about four weeks of basic training. [21][24]

   4 weeksTom Kim, gold

   vsvs

   18-21 monthsS.H. Kim, team silver

   Why it matters — Kim, 24, would be 28 by the next Asian Games, so this week and the 2028 Olympics were his last two chances. [23] His teammate S.H. Kim gets no exemption, because South Korea won silver, not gold, in the team event. [17]

2. 03

   South Korea's footballers win a fourth gold in a row

   South Korea beat Japan 1-0 in the men's football final at the Asian Games on Saturday. [25] It is their fourth Asian Games title in a row. [25] Yang Hyun-jun, a 24-year-old forward, had a hamstring injury and did not come off the bench in the final. [25] He still earns the exemption from South Korea's 18 to 21 months of military service, once he finishes basic training. [25]

   Why it matters — The same law let Son Heung-min, the former Tottenham forward, serve only three weeks in 2020 after winning the Asian Games two years earlier. [21]

3. 04

   India beat Pakistan for cricket gold, without handshakes

   India beat Pakistan by 19 runs in the men's cricket final at the Asian Games in Japan on Saturday, played as Twenty20, the short form of the game. [26] India made 211 for 6, their highest total against Pakistan in this short format, and Pakistan reached 192 for 6. [12] The two neighbours only meet at tournaments, on neutral ground, because of political tensions between them. [11] The players again did not shake hands, the fifth men's game in a row without them. [12]

   India211 runs

   Pakistan192 runs

   Why it matters — The final was played on a converted baseball field in Japan, while hundreds of millions watched on television at home. [11][27] India finished the Games with 85 medals, 21 of them gold. [28]

4. 05

   Ireland's press conference stopped before the Israel game

   The Republic of Ireland's news conference before Sunday's football match against Israel was cut short on Saturday. [29] An Israeli journalist said Irish players had made racist comments in last Sunday's game. An official of the Football Association of Ireland, the FAI, said that was completely untrue. [10] Ireland won that game 3-0 in Debrecen, Hungary, after the players voted on whether to play at all. [10] The FAI is also investigating reports that Israel fans racially abused Ireland's Adam Idah. [29]

   Why it matters — Sunday's game, with Ireland as the home team, is in Backa Topola, a Serbian town of about 12,000 people, with no fans. [30] The FAI moved it out of Dublin after calls in Ireland for a boycott over Israel's war in Gaza, and said a boycott could bring UEFA penalties. [10]

5. 06

   Wakefield win their first title since 1968

   Wakefield Trinity beat Warrington Wolves 23-10 in rugby league's Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford in Manchester on Saturday. [31][32] It is Wakefield's first league title since 1968. [31] The club was relegated in 2023 and came back up two years ago, when Super League's grading system confirmed its place. [31] Matt Ellis, a lifelong fan, bought the club in 2023 and promised a trophy within five years. [33]

   Why it matters — Wakefield finished fourth this season, then won play-off games against Leigh and at Wigan to reach the final. [31][32] Warrington have now lost five Grand Finals. [32]

6. 07

   Sinfield finishes seven ultramarathons in seven days

   Sir Kevin Sinfield, a former Leeds Rhinos rugby league player, finished his seventh ultramarathon in seven days at Old Trafford on Saturday, before the Grand Final. [34] He ran for people with motor neurone disease, or MND, an illness that wastes the muscles. It killed his teammate and friend Rob Burrow in 2024. [35] He visited all 12 Super League grounds on the way. [36] His challenges have raised more than 13m pounds since 2020. [34]

   Why it matters — This was the last of his seven challenges. [37] His son Jack then kicked a drop goal, a kick at the posts during play, for Wakefield in the final. [32]

7. 08

   Verstappen takes his first pole of the year

   Max Verstappen of Red Bull will start first in Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix, which is being held at Sepang in Malaysia. [13] The race in Bahrain was cancelled in April because of the conflict in the Middle East. [13] It is his first pole position of 2026, the first place on the starting grid, and he was about 0.3 seconds faster than Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari. [38] Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes, who leads the championship, starts third, and his teammate and nearest rival George Russell qualified only eighth. [38][39]

   Why it matters — It was the first pole for a car with a Ford badge on its engine since 1999. [40] Russell starting eighth puts him in danger of losing more points to Antonelli. [39]

8. 09

   F1 says its Gulf races will go ahead

   Stefano Domenicali, Formula One's chief executive, said on Saturday that the season's last two races will go ahead. [41] They are in Qatar on 29 November and Abu Dhabi on 6 December, despite the conflict in the Middle East. [41] The Bahrain race itself has been moved to Malaysia. [41] He said 99% of tickets in Abu Dhabi had been sold. [41] Moving that race to Imola in Italy had been discussed. [41]

   Why it matters — Max Verstappen said this week that F1 should not go when a war is nearby, but that the choice is not his. [41]

9. 10

   A stadium roof turns a home run into an out

   The Milwaukee Brewers beat the San Diego Padres 3-2 in the first game of their National League play-off series on Saturday. [16] In the ninth inning, the Padres' Ty France hit a high ball that struck the roof of Milwaukee's stadium. [42] The ground's rules say a ball hitting the roof over fair ground is still in play, so Jackson Chourio caught it for an out. [16] The Padres challenged the call and lost. [16]

   73 of 100

   Game 1 winners who went on to win the series

   Why it matters — Baseball's ball-tracking system estimated the hit would have cleared the fence in only one major-league ground, Houston's. [42] In these best-of-five series, the Game 1 winner has gone through 73% of the time since 1995. [43]

10. 11

    Rasmussen nearly no-hits the Yankees

    Drew Rasmussen of the Tampa Bay Rays did not allow a hit to the New York Yankees until two outs in the eighth inning on Saturday. [44] The Rays won the first game of their American League series 1-0, with a home run by Jonathan Aranda. [44] Austin Wells ended the hope of a game without a hit with a double, then ran past his coach's stop sign and was thrown out at third base. [45] Rasmussen struck out 10. [45]

    Why it matters — The Yankees were without Aaron Judge, three times the league's most valuable player, who has a calf injury. [45] They had scored 18 runs in two games against Boston in the round before. [44]

11. 12

    Skubal and Taylor win Game 1s

    The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves 5-3 in their first game, which started at 100 degrees Fahrenheit, about 38C. [46][43] Tarik Skubal, the pitcher the Dodgers got from Detroit in a trade this summer, struck out seven in six innings. [43] The Chicago White Sox beat the Cleveland Guardians 3-0, helped by a 440-foot home run from Japan's Munetaka Murakami. [43] Grant Taylor pitched the last four innings without giving up a run. [46]

    Why it matters — The Dodgers have won the last two World Series, and trading for Skubal also kept him away from rivals such as the Braves. [43] Taylor became only the sixth pitcher to earn a play-off save, the credit for finishing off a win, that long. [47]

12. 13

    A 17-year-old scores as the US beat Mexico 3-0

    The United States beat Mexico 3-0 in a friendly in Glendale, Arizona, on Saturday. [48] Cavan Sullivan, 17, scored the second goal and became the youngest man to score for the US. [14] He beat a record set days earlier by his teammate Mathis Albert, also 17. [14] Julian Hall, 18, scored for the third game in a row, in his first three games for the team. [49]

    Why it matters — It was the first US win over a team in the world's top ten since beating Germany in June 2015. [48] The US have won all three games of this break with a young squad full of first-timers and teenagers. [48][50]

13. 14

    Yamal scores early again as Spain stay perfect

    Spain beat Czechia 3-1 in Oviedo, in northern Spain, on Saturday. [51] The teenager Lamine Yamal scored inside six minutes for the third game in a row. [51] Czechia pulled one back and had a late equaliser ruled out for a foul. [51] Spain are now one point from the Nations League quarter-finals. [51]

    Why it matters — Spain lead the group that England and Croatia are in, and only the top two go through. [4][9]

14. 15

    Scotland's new coach gets his first win

    Scotland beat North Macedonia in Skopje in the Nations League on Saturday, with goals from Kieron Bowie and John McGinn. [52][53] It was the first win for Sebastien Pocognoli, Scotland's Belgian head coach. [54] Andy Robertson won his 100th cap, only the second Scotland man to do it after Kenny Dalglish. [52] Scott McKenna was sent off late in the game. [53]

    Why it matters — Robertson is two caps behind Dalglish's record and could pass him in November. [52]

15. 16

    Lewandowski, 38, scores a hat-trick

    Robert Lewandowski scored three times as Poland beat Romania 6-0 in Warsaw on Saturday. [20] Romania had a player sent off in the 22nd minute. [20] Lewandowski, 38, now has 92 goals for his country. [20] In the same group, Edin Dzeko, 40, played his last game for Bosnia-Herzegovina, a 1-1 draw with Sweden. [20]

    Why it matters — Gheorghe Hagi, in his second spell as Romania's manager, is the first to lose his first three competitive games. [20]

16. 17

    Why an NFL owner loses money hosting in London

    The Washington Commanders are the home team against the Indianapolis Colts at Tottenham Hotspur's stadium in London on Sunday. [55] At a normal home game an NFL club keeps about 66% of ticket money, plus most food, parking and premium-seat money. [55] For games abroad, the league pays the home club a set sum instead and covers much of the travel. [55] The owner, Josh Harris, laughed and said the money was not good. [55]

    20153 games

    20269 games

    Why it matters — The NFL plays a record nine games abroad this season, in seven countries, against three in 2015. [55] Early kick-offs abroad also give the league an extra TV slot to sell in the US. [55]

17. 18

    A coach walks out in the middle of a game

    Tyson Summers, the coach in charge of Colorado State's defence, left during Saturday's 56-26 home defeat by Oregon State. [56] Jim Mora Jr., the head coach, had taken away his job of calling the defence's plays in the first half. [18] Mora said afterwards that Summers was no longer with the team. [18] Kenny McClendon takes over the defence, according to CBS Sports. [18]

    Why it matters — A coach leaving his own team during a game is rare. [18] Reports differ on whether Summers was fired or quit. [56]

18. 19

    Belichick's North Carolina lose to Notre Dame

    Bill Belichick's University of North Carolina lost 37-26 to third-ranked Notre Dame on Saturday. [57] UNC trailed 21-7, then a 98-yard kick-off return by Jaden Jefferson cut the gap to 21-20 early in the second half. [57] Notre Dame scored straight back. [57] Belichick said his team must do a better job of coaching and playing. [57]

    Why it matters — Earlier this week Sportico found that almost all of Belichick's staff had signed their exit papers on the day they were hired, which UNC called a mistake. [58]

19. 20

    Jeremiah Smith breaks Ohio State's records

    Jeremiah Smith caught 11 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns as Ohio State beat 14th-ranked Iowa 31-14 on Saturday. [59] His 36th career touchdown is the most by any Ohio State receiver, and he passed the school record of 205 catches. [59] He took 34 games, while the player who held the touchdown record needed 47. [59] He then made the pose of the Heisman Trophy, college football's prize for the best player. [59]

    Why it matters — He is only halfway through his third college season. [59] He is the second player in the Big Ten, a group of US college teams, with 200-yard games back to back. [59]

20. 21

    Silva wins a UFC title on a night of fast knockouts

    Natalia Silva of Brazil beat China's Wang Cong on points to win the vacant women's flyweight title at UFC 332 in Salt Lake City on Saturday. [60] Eleven of the 15 fights ended in the first round, a record for a modern UFC event. [61] Payton Talbott knocked out the former champion Deiveson Figueiredo. [61] The UFC also announced its 12 December card in Las Vegas, with Alex Pereira against Sergei Pavlovich. [62]

    Why it matters — Silva signed with the UFC six years ago and has had injuries and delays since. [60] The card was shown on the CBS network and on Paramount+. [63]

21. 22

    Celtic fans target the club's biggest shareholder

    Celtic fans threw tennis balls at Dermot Desmond, the club's biggest shareholder, while he played in a golf event at St Andrews on Saturday. [19] The balls carried pictures of his face crossed out, and security took him off the course. [19] The Celtic Fans Collective said Desmond uses his wealth to hide from supporters. [19] Celtic said it will ban anyone involved indefinitely and cut its ties with the Collective. [64]

    Why it matters — Fans blame Desmond, 76, for a lack of progress on the pitch. [19] Celtic called the protest planned in advance. [64]

22. 23

    The City leaker offers to help UK authorities

    Rui Pinto, the Portuguese hacker whose leaks started the Premier League's case against Manchester City, is ready to help UK authorities in return for protection, the Guardian reports. [65] A crowdfunding campaign to pay for a new life began on Friday, as he leaves the protection of Portugal's police. [65] A panel found City guilty of more than 100 charges, including sham contracts that inflated income by 900m pounds. [65]

    Why it matters — British authorities could widen the case beyond sport, as Portugal already has with some of his documents. [65]

23. 24

    Bristol beat the champions as Gloucester go top

    Bristol beat Northampton, the English champions, in the Premiership, England's top rugby union league, on Saturday. [66] Louis Rees-Zammit, a Wales wing, scored two tries. [66] Gloucester beat Harlequins 48-0 with eight tries and went top of the table. [67] Leicester won 24-19 at Newcastle, their first win in seven games. [68]

    Why it matters — Harlequins have no league points and sit bottom of the table. [67] Northampton beat Bristol 94-33 last season. [69]

24. 25

    Glasgow and Ulster draw 33-33

    Glasgow Warriors and Ulster drew 33-33 in the United Rugby Championship, a league for clubs from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Italy and South Africa, on Saturday. [70] Glasgow were down to 13 players near the end, and George Horne's late penalty hit the post. [70] In Edinburgh, a try from 19-year-old Rory McHaffie beat the Stormers of South Africa. [15] Edinburgh have won both their games. [15]

    Why it matters — Ulster have not won in Glasgow for more than five years. [70]

25. 26

    Parsons sets Ireland's try record again

    Ireland's women beat Japan 43-19 on Saturday, scoring seven tries, in the WXV Global Series, a set of matches between top women's teams. [71] The wing Beibhinn Parsons scored her 25th try for Ireland, adding to her own record. [71] Ireland had lost to the USA by four points, then beaten Japan 31-24 a week ago. [71] They play two more games in Cape Town next. [71]

    Why it matters — Two new caps scored, which Parsons said is building the squad's depth. [71]

26. 27

    Manchester United beat Liverpool in the WSL

    Manchester United beat Liverpool 1-0 in the Women's Super League, England's top women's league, on Saturday. [72] Julia Zigiotti Olme scored after six minutes, chipping the ball in after Liverpool's goalkeeper Khiara Keating gave it away. [72] It was United's 250th match since the team was re-formed in 2018. [72] Their new coach, Eva Olid, has now won four games in a row. [72]

    Why it matters — United are unbeaten in five games after a shaky start under Olid. [72]

27. 28

    The new world number one loses her first match

    Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, just made the world's top-ranked woman, lost her first match at the China Open to Alina Charaeva, ranked 118th. [73] Britain's Sonay Kartal won 6-3 6-2, in only her second match after six months out with a back injury. [73] In the men's event, Alexander Zverev beat Juncheng Shang 6-0 6-3. [73] Zverev now plays Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals. [73]

    Why it matters — Kartal had dropped to 129th in the world after missing three Grand Slam events this year. [73]

28. 29

    Wu Yize beats Trump to reach the Shenzhen final

    Wu Yize, the 22-year-old world snooker champion from China, beat England's Judd Trump 6-1 in the Shenzhen Open semi-finals on Saturday. [74] He won six frames in a row after losing the first. [74] Wu plays Yuan Sijun, 26, in an all-Chinese final on Sunday, Yuan's first final in an event that counts for the world rankings. [74] Wu will move above Trump to second in the world rankings. [74]

    Why it matters — Trump had beaten Wu in the Shanghai Masters semi-finals and won that event in August. [74]

29. 30

    Humphries reaches a fourth Grand Prix final in a row

    Luke Humphries, the world number two in darts, beat James Wade 5-3 to reach the World Grand Prix final in Leicester. [75] He threw ten 180s, the highest score possible with three darts. [75] He plays Gerwyn Price of Wales in Sunday's final. [75] Humphries won the title in 2023 and lost the last two finals. [75]

    Why it matters — Humphries said four finals in a row mean nothing unless he wins this one. [75]

30. 31

    Whittaker earns a world-title fight

    Ben Whittaker, a British light-heavyweight boxer and Olympic silver medallist, beat Conor Wallace on points in Birmingham on Saturday. [76] Wallace rocked him in the 10th round and nearly turned it round in the 12th. [76] The judges scored it 117-111, 116-112 and 115-113. [76] The win makes Whittaker the official next challenger for the world title of the IBF, one of boxing's four main governing bodies. [76]

    Why it matters — Whittaker, 29, said he started showing off once the fight felt too easy. [76]