Sports

PARIS, France — This group of Springboks are the masters of fine margins. Three one-point knockout stage wins, the narrowest trio of victories led to Siya Kolisi lifting the Rugby World Cup for the second time in succession. Bottle the mental strength behind their 12-11 win over New Zealand in this incredible final and you’d

Tom Hamilton, Senior WriterOct 29, 2023, 02:36 PM Close • Joined ESPN in 2011• Covered two Olympics, a pair of Rugby World Cups and two British & Irish Lions tours• Previously rugby editor, and became senior writer in 2018 Open Extended Reactions England” catch=”” coach.=”” courtney=”” cup=”” cup.=”” dan=”” day=”” de=”” defeating=”” dependable=”” depths=”” do=”” down=”” eked=”” england=””

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterOct 30, 2023, 09:21 AM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Open Extended Reactions After this past weekend, Francis Ngannou might be the most interesting athlete in the world. There is nothing like Ngannou in sports right now. He left the

Associated Press Oct 29, 2023, 10:36 AM ET Open Extended Reactions DOHA, Qatar — Sami Välimäki beat Jorge Campillo in a playoff to win the Qatar Masters on Sunday for his second career victory on the European Tour. Välimäki started the final round a shot behind leader Campillo but caught up on the back nine

NBA Insiders Oct 27, 2023, 08:00 AM ET Open Extended Reactions The NBA is back in action! Less than one week into the season, things are looking good for the defending champions Denver Nuggets after having dispatched LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in the season opener. No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama made

Marc Raimondi Brett Okamoto Close Brett Okamoto ESPN Staff Writer MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Oct 28, 2023, 03:16 PM ET Open Extended Reactions Tyson Fury kept his undefeated record intact, but the star of the show on Saturday night was Francis Ngannou. The MMA heavyweight,

NFL Nation, ESPNOct 27, 2023, 06:45 AM ET Open Extended Reactions The Week 8 NFL schedule for the 2023 season is stacked with great matchups, and we’ve got you covered with what you need to know heading into the weekend. Our NFL Nation reporters bring us the biggest keys to every game and a bold

Oct 27, 2023, 08:00 AM ET Open Extended Reactions Earlier this season, the Pac-12 looked like a conference sure to land a team — or multiple teams — in the College Football Playoff. Times have changed. The Allstate Playoff Predictor now has pegged the Big Ten as the conference most likely to have a team

Kristen Shilton, ESPN NHL reporterOct 27, 2023, 08:00 AM ET Close Kristen Shilton is a national NHL reporter for ESPN. Open Extended Reactions With a little more than two weeks of the season in the books, some early problems have emerged for each club. In this week’s edition of the NHL Power Rankings, we identify

Jesse Rogers, ESPN Staff WriterOct 26, 2023, 07:31 PM ET Close Jesse joined ESPN Chicago in September 2009 and covers MLB for ESPN.com. Open Extended Reactions ARLINGTON, Texas — The Arizona Diamondbacks have defied the odds every step of the way in making it to the World Series, using naysayers’ doubts as fuel. “If you’re

Ryan McGee, ESPN Senior WriterOct 26, 2023, 09:32 AM ET Close Senior writer for ESPN The Magazine and ESPN.com 2-time Sports Emmy winner 2010, 2014 NMPA Writer of the Year Open Extended Reactions To celebrate NASCAR’s 75th anniversary, we’re detailing our 75 favorite things about the pinnacle of stock car racing. Illustration by ESPN We are

Oct 24, 2023, 11:41 AM ET Open Extended Reactions The Major League Soccer regular season? It’s over. Decision Day? Come and gone. That leaves the MLS Cup playoffs, which kick off Wednesday with the wild-card round. The wild card sees the eighth and ninth seeds in each of the Eastern and Western conferences square off

Tom Hamilton, Senior WriterOct 23, 2023, 11:24 PM Close • Joined ESPN in 2011• Covered two Olympics, a pair of Rugby World Cups and two British & Irish Lions tours• Previously rugby editor, and became senior writer in 2018 Open Extended Reactions Editor’s note: This story includes graphic descriptions of a suicide attempt. If you or someone you

Brett Okamoto, ESPN Staff WriterOct 21, 2023, 04:36 PM ET Close MMA columnist for ESPN.com Analyst for “MMA Live” Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun Open Extended Reactions ABU DHABI — The first fight between Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski in February was a classic, five-round affair that saw both men enjoy a lot of

D’Arcy Maine, ESPN.com Oct 24, 2023, 09:42 AM ET Open Extended Reactions It’s hard to fully capture Ben Shelton‘s incredible, meteoric year in words. Playing in his first full season on the ATP Tour, the 21-year-old former NCAA champion opened 2023 by reaching the quarterfinals at the Australian Open during his first trip outside of

Jeff Wagenheim, ESPNOct 23, 2023, 09:24 AM ET Open Extended Reactions Tyson Fury, the greatest heavyweight boxer in the world, will step in the ring on Saturday (2 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV) for a meeting with the other greatest heavyweight in the world, Francis Ngannou. But to portray this matchup in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia,

As the NBA enters its 77th season and fans anticipate another exciting campaign, there’s always an additional buzz surrounding the significant milestones and anniversaries that are set to unfold in 2023-24. Fans and players wait for the Damian Lillard and James Harden trade requests to be resolved. Both All-Stars are also chasing milestones as Lillard,

Open Extended Reactions The Week 7 NFL schedule for the 2023 season is stacked with great matchups, and we have you covered with what you need to know heading into the weekend. Our NFL Nation reporters bring us the biggest keys to every game and a bold prediction for each matchup. Additionally, ESPN Stats &

Open Extended Reactions Week 8 is here and the number of undefeated teams keeps dwindling, so which ones will be left standing at the end? Well, nine of 11 unbeaten teams are in action this weekend, including Penn State at Ohio State, where one of those squads will suffer its first loss of the season.

Buster Olney, ESPN Senior WriterOct 20, 2023, 07:00 AM ET Close Senior writer ESPN Magazine/ESPN.com Analyst/reporter ESPN television Author of “The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty” Open Extended Reactions ARLINGTON, Texas — In the worst of times for Jose Abreu, among the many days and weeks of professional failure for someone who had had