Category: Sports News Feed

Less than two weeks after terms of a multibillion-dollar college sports settlement went into effect, friction erupted over the definition of a “valid business purpose” that collectives making name, image likeness payments to players are supposed to have.

The new College Sports Commission sent a letter to athletic directors last week saying it was rejecting deals in which players were receiving money from collectives that were created solely to pay them and don’t provide goods or services to the general public for profit.

A lead attorney for the players responded by saying those instructions went against settlement terms and asking the CSC to rescind the guidance.

“This process is undermined when the CSC goes off the reservation and issues directions to the schools that are not consistent with the Settlement Agreement terms,” attorney Jeffrey Kessler wrote to NCAA outside counsel Rakesh Kilaru in a letter obtained by The Associated Press.

Yahoo Sports first reported details of the letter, in which Kessler threatens to take the issue to a judge assigned with resolving disputes involved in the settlement.

Kessler told AP his firm was not commenting on the contents of the letter, and Kilaru did not immediately respond to AP’s request for a comment.

Yahoo quoted a CSC spokesman as saying the parties are working to resolve differences and that “the guidance issued by the College Sports Commission … is entirely consistent with the House settlement and the rules that have been agreed upon with class counsel.”

When NIL payments became allowed in 2021, boosters formed so-called “collectives” that were closely tied to universities to work out contracts with the players, who still weren’t allowed to be paid directly by the schools.

Terms of the House settlement allow schools to make the payments now, but keep the idea of outside payments from collectives, which have to be approved by the CSC if they are worth $600 or more.

The CSC, in its letter last week, explained that if a collective reaches a deal, for instance, for an athlete to appear on behalf of the collective, which charges an admission fee, that collective does not have a “valid business purpose” because the purpose of the event is to raise money to pay athletes, not to provide goods or services available to the general public for profit.

Another example of a disallowed deal was one an athlete makes to sell merchandise to raise money to pay that player because, the CSC guidance said, the purpose of “selling merchandise is to raise money to pay that student-athlete and potentially other student-athletes at a particular school or schools, which is not a valid business purpose.”

Kessler’s letter notes that the “valid business purpose” rule was designed to ensure athletes were not simply being paid to play, and did not prohibit NIL collectives from paying athletes for the type of deals described above.

To prevent those payments “would be to create a new prohibition on payments by a NIL collective that is not provided for or contemplated by the Settlement Agreement, causing injury to the class members who should be free to receive those payments,” Kessler wrote.

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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports

MIAMI (AP) — Former NFL quarterback Teddy Bridgewater said he has been suspended from coaching his former high school team in Miami because he provided players with financial benefits that he says he’d reported to the school.

The 32-year-old Bridgewater publicized action taken against him by Miami Northwestern High School in a social media post in which he also reaffirmed his desire to continuing coaching the team for which he once played.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Bridgewater’s social media post said. “And if it comes down to it, I will volunteer from the bleachers like I used to in 2018 and 2019 when no one had a problem.”

A message left for school administrators on Monday was not returned.

Last fall was Bridgewater’s first season coaching his former school, which he led to a Class 3A state championship before signing with Detroit in late December to serve as a backup for the playoff-bound Lions.

He wound up seeing his only action in the postseason, completing his only pass for 3 yards in a divisional-round loss to Washington.

Bridgewater had written in an earlier social media post that he paid for rides, meals and treatment for players last season. This year, he solicited donations to help cover those costs.

He said in his more recent post that he reported those payments to the school.

Drafted 32nd overall out of Louisville by Minnesota in 2014, Bridgewater appeared in 79 regular-season NFL games during 10 seasons split among the Vikings, New Orleans, Carolina, Miami, Denver and Detroit.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

When Yoshinobu Yamamoto makes his All-Star Game red carpet debut Tuesday, stylist Whitney Etoroma expects the Dodgers’ pitcher to shine just as much as he does on the mound.

“I think it will be a moment,” she told The Associated Press.

The pair are making a final decision on what he’ll wear, but Etoroma is pushing for a Thom Browne runway look that will “push the envelope.”

As part of a program created in 2019, MLB provided stylists for the red carpet to Yamamoto, Seattle catcher Cal Raleigh, Detroit pitcher Tarik Skubal and Cubs’ outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong as baseball aims to raise its fashion profile and highlight the style of some of its biggest stars.

Yamamoto won’t pitch in the All-Star Game after throwing seven scoreless innings for the Dodgers on Sunday but will participate in the festivities leading up to it. He’s in his second season in the majors after signing a 12-year, $325 million contract following a seven-year career with the Orix Buffaloes in Japan.

Etoroma, who has styled scores of professional athletes, said designers have been particularly interested in Yamamoto, which she believes is because of his cool look and international appeal.

“I’m excited because fashion actually really cares about Yoshi, which is kind of a rarity,” she said. “I will say with other players in the past, they haven’t been as excited, but with Yoshi, it’s something special, something different.”

Though she has 15 different looks for Yamamoto to choose from, she’s hoping to steer him to the Thom Browne look because of the exclusivity of the brand.

“I’ve been like look, this is gonna be incredible,” she said she told him. “If you do Thom Browne, game over, that’s actually a huge level up in fashion. They don’t say yes to anybody. It has to be a very specific person and so hopefully we do that. But I’m not gonna push too much (and) if not I’m happy to go with the classic look.”

Whatever suit he chooses, it will be accessorized with David Yurman jewelry.

Wearing a visionary designer like Thom Browne might be a bit much for Yamamoto, who calls Nike his favorite designer.

“Being honest, I’m not that into fashion, but I appreciate (being called stylish),” he said in Japanese through a translator Monday.

He did say that he’s looking forward to the red carpet, but wouldn’t give any hints as to what he’s leaning toward wearing for the event.

“That’s a secret, I’m not telling,” he said.

Melanie Boppel, who recently styled Jalen Hurts and his wife Bryonna for the Met Gala, is dressing both Raleigh and Skubal for this year’s red carpet.

Skubal, a two-time All-Star who is starting for the American League on Tuesday night, has been working with Boppel to curate a look that will make him feel confident on the red carpet.

“What’s going to be really important are accessories,” she said. “He really wants to tie in Detroit, since that’s the team he plays for and he also wants to tie in the city of Atlanta since the All-Star game will be taking place in Atlanta. So, I hope to bring out those two ideas he has through accessories. We’ll see how that pans out. It might be through his wardrobe as well.”

Boppel hopes the momentum gained from Tuesday’s red carpet style will trickle down to create more interest among fans in what they’re wearing all season like there is for basketball and football.

“The day of the red carpet, there is a lot of focus on the athletes, but it’s just the longevity of style being at the forefront of the players throughout the rest of the season that’s the hard part,” she said. “There’s so many games, they’re traveling so it’s just hard to continue that. But they do get a lot of recognition for the red carpet and All-Star and that whole weekend and I hope at some point it does continue to stick and there is consistency there.”

Raleigh, who leads the majors with a career-high 38 home runs, describes his style as “very bland,” and added: “I’m not the style guy.”

But he is looking forward to sprucing up Tuesday night.

“I like looking good,” he said at All-Star media day. “I think everybody does, right? You want to look good. Especially on the red carpet. I like looking professional and putting together a good fit.”

The catcher said working with a stylist for the event has been great for him.

“I don’t love shopping too much, so it’s nice having somebody that can just throw something on, and I just can pick it and it’s easy,” he said.

And for someone who earned the nickname “Big Dumper” for his generous backside, there’s one must-have for him when it comes to clothes.

“As long as it stretches, I like it,” he said.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB

ATLANTA (AP) — National League All-Star manager Dave Roberts said including Milwaukee rookie right-hander Jacob Misiorowski on his team was “an easy answer” despite complaints from some players over his inclusion after just five big league appearances.

“If it brings excitement, attention to our game, then I’m all about it,” Roberts said before Monday’s Home Run Derby.

“I think for me, kind of my North Star is the All-Star Game should be the game’s best players,” the Los Angeles Dodgers manager added before also addressing the other side of the argument by adding “It’s about the fans and what the fans want to see.”

Misiorowski has pitched in only five games, a record low for an All-Star, creating a debate between those who say the game is for the most deserving players and those who say the game is for the fans.

The 23-year-old created an instant stir when he threw a 100.5 mph fastball for his first pitch in the big leagues. Oh, and for good measure, he opened that debut on June 12 against St. Louis by throwing five no-hit innings before leaving with cramping in the Brewers’ 6-0 win.

The 6-foot-7 rookie is 4-1 with a 2.81 ERA and has 33 strikeouts with only 12 hits allowed in 25 2/3 innings. It’s an impressive debut, but some players still believe the right-hander hasn’t been in the game long enough to merit All-Star consideration over more established players.

Philadelphia’s Trea Turner was outspoken in his criticism of the decision to add Misiorowski to the team when Phillies’ left-hander Cristopher Sánchez, who is 8-2 with a 2.50 ERA, didn’t make the team. The Phillies also lobbied for left-hander Ranger Suárez (7-3, 1.94).

“What a joke,” Turner told reporters.

Misiorowski said Monday he wasn’t offended.

“They’re not upset with me,” he said, adding he is as surprised as anyone to find himself in Atlanta for Tuesday night’s game.

“The last five weeks have been insane,” Misiorowski said. “I thought the All-Star break would be a chance to sit down and reflect. Now we’re here.”

Turner’s teammate, All-Star Kyle Schwarber, said Monday the attempt by Phillies players to speak up for Sánchez and Suárez “was not an attack at Misiorowski by any means. It’s an honor for him that he’s here and it should be an honor for him. It’s not his fault that he’s only pitched five games and he got named.”

Schwarber said Misiorowski could be an All-Star “every year that he pitches. It’s just more of the fact of our guys were having some really good years and some pretty good every day starts and numbers. You want them to feel like they’re gonna get represented the way that they should be.”

Schwarber added that he would likely talk to Misiorowski during All-Star week and would tell him “he’s doing a great job at what he’s doing and he’s going to be a perennial All-Star for years to come.”

Roberts said he plans to bring Misiorowski into the game as early as the fifth inning. “And it’s going to be electric,” Roberts said. “So the fans, the media, you’re going to love it.”

Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw, 37, is on his 11th All-Star roster, this time as a legend pick by commissioner Rob Manfred. When asked about the conflicting opinions about Misiorowski, Kershaw said “I don’t think it’s conflicting. I think everybody wants the best players here.”

San Francisco right-hander Robbie Ray, 33, said Misiorowski has “an electric arm. He’s a special talent and I’m excited to watch him pitch.”

Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker, who is serving on Roberts’ staff and has experience selecting an All-Star roster, said there’s room for a player as inexperienced as Misiorowski to find a spot in Tuesday night’s showcase.

“You know what? It’s an exhibition game,” Snitker said. “He’s another great talent. … There are some guys that are very deserving. It is what it is.”

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Jets and wide receiver Garrett Wilson have agreed on a four-year, $130 million contract extension, a person familiar with the situation said Monday.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not been announced.

Wilson, drafted 10th overall in 2022, was the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year that season and has more than 1,000 yards receiving in each of his first three years — the first player in franchise history to do so.

In all, Wilson has caught 279 passes for 3,249 yards and 14 touchdowns.

The extension represents a significant commitment from general manager Darren Mougey and new coach Aaron Glenn, who have focused on making the roster younger in their first offseason together in New York.

They picked up the fifth-year options on Wilson, Sauce Gardner and Jermaine Johnson during this past offseason, setting the stage for Wilson’s new extension, which runs through the 2030 season.

“I’m hopeful I’m a Jet for life,” Wilson said in May. “And that we get this thing rolling and that all of our best days are ahead of us.”

Wilson had two years and $20.3 million remaining on his rookie deal. With the extension, he’s now under contract for six seasons at $150.3 million.

Next up for extensions could be Gardner and Johnson. Gardner has said earlier that negotiations between his representatives, which include agent AJ Vaynerchuk, and the Jets already have begun.

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AP Pro Football Writer Dennis Waszak Jr. contributed to this report.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

ATLANTA (AP) — Southeastern Conference Commissioner Greg Sankey said Monday that despite frequent conversations with Big Ten counterpart Tony Petitti, the two leagues have yet to agree on the College Football Playoff format after this coming season and could leave it at 12 teams.

The disagreement doesn’t stem from a lack of communication. Sankey said he spoke with Petitti four times last week.

“We had a different view coming out of Destin around the notion of allocations,” Sankey said. “The Big Ten has a different view. That’s fine. We have a 12-team playoff, five conference champions. That could stay if we can’t agree.”

The Big Ten, which has won the last two national championships, favors a 4-4-2-2-1 format, giving four automatic bids to the SEC and Big Ten and awarding the ACC and Big 12 two bids apiece. The SEC, originally thought to be on the same page, switched gears at its spring meetings in Destin, Florida. The SEC favors five conference champions and 11 at-large bids, which would presumably favor the top conferences most seasons.

The CFP announced in May that teams in the upcoming playoff will be seeded strictly on where they are ranked instead of moving pieces around to reward conference champions. Last season’s jumbled bracket, the first with 12 teams, gave byes to Big 12 champion Arizona State and Mountain West champion Boise State, even though they were ranked 12th and ninth, respectively, by the playoff selection committee.

That system made the rankings and the seedings in the tournament two different things. The five highest-ranked conference champions will still be guaranteed spots in the playoff.

While the CFP contract from 2026 through the 2031 season requires the SEC and Big Ten to consult other leagues about prospective changes to the playoff system, it also provides them with the ability to impose changes they both want.

Now it’s a matter of getting on the same page.

“I think there’s this notion that there has to be this magic moment and something has to happen with expansion and it has to be forced — no,” Sankey said. “When you’re given authority, you want to be responsible in using that authority. I think both of us are prepared to do so. The upfront responsibility in this, maybe where some of the confusion lies, is we have the ability to present a format or format ideas, gather information, see if we can all agree within that room. We don’t need unanimity.”

Sankey stands firm on the 8-game schedule

One of the major complications in the College Football Playoff conversation is the SEC’s schedule. Three of the four power conferences play nine league games. The SEC isn’t one of them.

Sankey isn’t denying the fact that the SEC plays one less league game, but he won’t allow the narrative that it gives his conference an advantage.

“It is absolutely fully 100 percent correct that in the SEC, we play eight conference games while some others play nine conference games — never been a secret,” Sankey said. “It’s also correct that last season, all 16 members of the Southeastern Conference played at least nine games against what you would label ‘power opponents.’”

He doubled down.

“I don’t believe there’s anyone looking to swap their conference schedule and its opponents with the opponents played by SEC conference teams in our conference schedule, be it eight or nine.”

A decision on adding a ninth game may be coming soon, but Sankey wasn’t overly eager to reveal a timeline.

“It won’t linger terribly much longer. We have to make decisions about the ’26 season and adjust. If we’re going to go to nine games, then there have to be games moved or rescheduled. If we stay at eight, probably a little easier on that part of the logistics.”

Adapting to the new normal

Sankey addressed the media-packed room two weeks after the NCAA settlement officially went into effect, launching a long list of changes, including the introduction of revenue sharing.

Most Power Four institutions have had carefully crafted post-settlement plans in store for months. But according to Sankey, even deep-pocketed, well-resourced conferences have struggled to adapt.

“We’re in the middle of change, and in the middle of anything significant, it will get messy. That doesn’t mean you leave. In a marathon, it doesn’t mean you step off the course because myself, as poorly as I may have felt sometimes after two or three miles, recall that those moments might actually produce the best efforts,” he said.

But in a time when many have been quick to call college sports a dying breed, Sankey begs to differ.

“Let me be clear. From my perspective, college athletics is not broken,” he said. “It is under stress. It is strained.”

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

An expanded Club World Cup marked by empty seats, slashed ticket prices, searing heat, weather-delayed matches and a criticized field surface ended in a surprise victory by Chelsea, the fourth-place team in the Premier League.

Among the lasting lessons was FIFA’s decision to dramatically drop ticket costs as some kickoff times approached, which could impact decisions by fans thinking of attending next year’s World Cup. FIFA lowered the cost to attend the Chelsea-Fluminense semifinal at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, to $13.40 from $473.90, then dropped the Chelsea vs. Paris Saint-Germain final from $330 to $199.60.

There will be 104 matches at next year’s expanded 48-nation World Cup and many are likely to be on weekday afternoons. FIFA has not said whether it will use dynamic pricing at the tournament and has declined to comment on discounting.

The 63 matches drew 2.49 million, about 62% of the listed capacity. FIFA didn’t disclose tournament capacities of venues, focusing on tickets sold rather than about 1.5 million unfilled seats, and would not address price cuts.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino assessed the expanded tournament he championed, saying: “It is already the most successful club competition in the world.”

Former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp was less enthusiastic, telling the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag it was “the worst idea ever implemented in football” because of demands on players as a result of the extended season.

PSG played its 65th competitive match and Chelsea its 64th since starting in mid-August. Each team will have 33-35 days off before 2025-26 openers.

“I told my players that I had the feeling that this competition will become just as important or even more important than the Champions League,” Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said.

Maresca described the heat as dangerous. Borussia Dortmund coach Niko Kovač said the grass at MetLife Stadium, site of next year’s World Cup final, was so short “it’s more a golf green, so you can putt here.”

Tiny US television audience

The streaming service DAZN bought world rights and sublicensed 24 of the 63 matches to TNT Sports, which averaged 418,000 viewers for the first 23 matches with English-language commentary on TNT, TBS and truTV. Seventeen matches sublicensed to TelevisaUnivision with Spanish commentary averaged 551,000.

By comparison, NBC’s networks averaged 510,000 viewers per match window for the Premier League in 2024-25, regular-season Major League Baseball is averaging 1.841 million this year on Fox and 1.74 million on the cable network ESPN. The NFL averaged 17.5 million during the 2024 regular season.

DAZN has not yet released figures but says it will during the week.

Hot seat

The temperature was over 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) for many matches, with humidity that made it feel more than 100 F (38 C).

“Honestly, the heat is incredible,” Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez said. “Playing in this temperature is very dangerous.”

Six games were delayed by weather for a total of 8 hours, 29 minutes, raising questions over the suitability of the U.S. for next year’s World Cup during a time of global warming. Only four of the 11 U.S. World Cup venues have roofs, including one that isn’t temperature controlled.

“Players have played in these conditions before, but I think it doesn’t make it easy and it doesn’t make it as enjoyable, for sure,” said former Wales captain Gareth Bale, a DAZN commentator who attended the semifinals and final. “It’s one of those things and there’s no real way around it.”

At the 1994 World Cup in the U.S., just seven of 52 games had night local time starts in order to broadcast matches during evenings for Europe television.

Missing champions

While FIFA hyped the tournament as a competition of the best teams in the world, it didn’t include the current champions of England (Liverpool), Spain (Barcelona), Italy (Napoli) and Portugal (Sporting Lisbon) among the dozen European clubs in the 32-team field. Instead of inviting the latest league winners, FIFA’s rules based entry primarily on continental titles won over four years and ranking points, with some limits on clubs from the same nation.

Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami got an invite even though it has never won the MLS title.

Player welfare

For the top players, the Club World Cup meant they likely faced three consecutive years of summer tournaments, following the European Championship and Copa America last year and leading to the World Cup for national teams in 2026.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said the impact of the new tournament might not be known until midway through next season.

“I may say: ‘So listen, we are a disaster. We are exhausted. The World Cup destroyed us,’” he admitted.

Bayern Munich and Germany star Jamal Musiala likely faces months out of action after sustaining a fractured fibula and broken and dislocated ankle in his team’s quarterfinal loss to PSG.

A global game

FIFA wanted the Club World Cup to help grow the sport globally and shine a light on clubs outside of Europe’s most popular leagues.

Brazilian teams excelled, with all four entrants advancing to the knockout stage. Botafogo produced one of the upsets of the tournament by beating PSG in the group phase, while Fluminense reached the semifinals.

Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal advanced to the quarterfinals and ousted Manchester City.

Lionel Messi led Inter Miami to the round of 16, including Major League Soccer’s first competitive win against European opposition, defeating Porto in the group phase.

The other U.S. teams, the Seattle Sounders and Los Angeles FC, were less impressive — with both exiting at the group stage, winless.

New Zealand’s Auckland City lost 10-0 to Bayern, while a game between South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns and South Korea’s Ulsan drew just 3,412 fans.

A question of quality

Messi produced moments of magic, but a bout of acute gastroenteritis limited Kylian Mbappe’s involvement.

While many matches in the group stage, in particular, were competitive, only a few games will be remembered for iconic moments.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer