General Sports 24-Hour Briefing
×Last updated: October 10, 2026, 5:40 AM ET
WNBA Finals
The Golden State Valkyries dethroned espn.com the Aces and became the quickest expansion team to reach the WNBA Finals, doing so in just their second season. Takeaways from the sweep were broken down espn.com by ESPN's analysts. Meanwhile, the Dream edged espn.com the Liberty 85-83 to reach the Finals for the first time since 2013, with Angel Reese scoring 22 points. Reese said the job isn't done espn.com, and her playoff debut has already drawn praise as she plays like a veteran. The Fever, however, face questions espn.com after another early playoff exit despite a dominant offense and Caitlin Clark's return.
College Football
Florida State suffered espn.com an "extremely poor performance" in a 44-20 loss to Louisville, with Mike Norvell shouldering the blame after the Seminoles led 14-0 early. Ahead of Week, Connelly previewed espn.com 32 reasons the sport will get real, including Georgia-Alabama and major Big Ten challenges, while the Big Ten spotlight espn.com falls on Nebraska, Indiana, UCLA and Oregon. Bob Chesney has turned UCLA around espn.com with a 4-0 start. Georgia's Gunner Stockton is eyeing another national title espn.com as a quiet leader, and Alabama believes it has fixed Ryan Coleman-Williams' espn.com drop issues using VR technology. Dickie V's preseason All-Rolls-Royce teams espn.com highlight the returners and young stars expected to lead the season. Trump will skip espn.com the Saturday SEC clash due to Hurricane Isaias, and a watchdog is checking espn.com several Power 4 schools for possible overspending.
NFL
Lamar Jackson and Monangai are out espn.com for Week, with Chase and Jeanty listed as questionable. The week's full slate is laid out in a game guide espn.com covering Bears-Packers and 49ers-Seahawks, while an analysis of the league's wild endings espn.com argues coaches must adapt to late-game scoring decisions. Mike Ditka, who coached the Bears to Super Bowl XX, has died bbc.co.uk at. The 2027 quarterback class is ranked espn.com, and former Eagles star Jason Kelce tried amateur rugby bbc.co.uk in London.
Motorsport
Kyle Busch's celebration of life espn.com drew more than 10,000 fans, with his 11-year-old son leading a burnout. Verstappen claimed sprint pole bbc.co.uk in Singapore ahead of Russell after another settings issue. Toto Wolff rejected bbc.co.uk claims of Mercedes bias against George Russell.
Boxing and Combat Sports
Dana White credited bbc.co.uk Eddie Hearn for bringing Fury-Joshua to the UK, though he said he is bored of the ongoing feud. WBA super-featherweight champion Anthony Cacace is focused on Ball bbc.co.uk despite Lomachenko interest. At WWE, fans can get up to speed with a Money in the Bank guide espn.com, and the ESPN roundtable makes its picks espn.com for ladder match winners.
Tennis and Cricket
Novak Djokovic suffered a surprise loss bbc.co.uk to Hubert Hurkacz in Shanghai. In Australia's Test return against South Africa, Nic Maddinson recorded a 33-ball duck bbc.co.uk, the longest by a Test opener this century.
Rugby
Glasgow ran in five tries bbc.co.uk to beat Connacht 36-19 and stay unbeaten, while Leicester recovered from a poor start bbc.co.uk to beat Gloucester 38-31. Shaun Edwards has joined Argentina's bbc.co.uk defence coaching staff. Aoife Wafer is ruled out bbc.co.uk of Ireland's South Africa Tests, and Joe Carpenter is pushing bbc.co.uk his England case against Furbank.
Football and Other Stories
Republic of Ireland eased past bbc.co.uk Kazakhstan 8-0 to all but assure a play-off final. Coco Gauff stars espn.com in Gunna's "Pop It" video. A Mississippi Valley State player, Qingfang Pang, is in ICE custody espn.com. Wimbledon's boss joked bbc.co.uk that the military would love to sort out influencers. Former Essex cricketer Robin Das faces trial bbc.co.uk on two rape charges. First-timers heading to the State Fair of Texas can use these tips espn.com for Red River's iconic setting. Finally, ESPN's rankings of the 25 best freshmen put a surprise player espn.com at the top.