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Good morning! Be like Lane and Pete today. Coming up:
- 🏀 Clark getsanothertech
- 🤝 Golding, Kiffinon good terms
- ⚽ Thelatestsoccer transfers
Strife: An emotional Wednesday
We start this morning with a common human emotion, which can take many forms: conflict. Gripes, longing, anger, frustration, even persecution — they were all present in yesterday’s sports landscape, often off the field.
Frustrated: Caitlin ClarkThe Indiana Fever star picked up her seventh technical foul of the year in a blowout win last night over Sun, which is her second in consecutive games. With 17 games left in the season, Clark is one tech away from serving a one-game suspension.
Clark, meanwhile, has been excellent as Indiana has won five of its last six games. She scored 27 points last night.Read more about the tangle here.
Longing: Jimbo FisherYes, I didn’t expect to write this name anytime soon, either. The former Florida State and Texas A&M coach wants back into college football, he toldThe Athletic’s David Ubben yesterday, saying that he’d even take an offensive coordinator job if the opportunity arose.
The thing I can’t shake with Fisher is how much college football has changed since he left in 2023.The full interview — and context — is here
John Jones / Imagn Images
Persecution: José CaballeroThe Yankees shortstop is in the crosshairs of both MLB fans and umpires, as he continues his perfectly legal-yet-annoying practice of refusing to make eye contact with the pitcher until eight seconds remain on the pitch clock. It’s a stall tactic that’s clearly rankled many.
Caballero earned an automatic strike for the practice yesterday, and it caused benches to clear on Monday.Caballero says he’s been singled out.
Gripe: Casemiro and Inter MiamiInter Miami signed Brazilian midfielder Casemiro on a free transfer yesterday, but MLS will, as a result, investigate potential tampering by the league’s glitziest club. The LA Galaxy had discovery rights on Casemiro, which would prevent Inter from negotiating with the free agent.
It’s alla mess that feels unnecessary, and it was part of an iffy day of PR for the league. As MLS returned to action yesterday — bolstered by its new “We’ll Take It From Here” marketing campaign — this happened in Inter’s win over Robert Lewandowski and the Chicago Fire:
Just how everyone predicted! pic.twitter.com/tzmsY9ERnm
— Chicago Fire FC (@ChicagoFire) July 23, 2026
Yearning: Zinedine ZidaneI added a bonus here because I find Zidane’s story to be so compelling. The most famous soccer player in France’s history, who also became an elite coach at the club level, has spent the last five years away from the sport. The entire time, he’s been tabbed to be France’s next manager.
Now, immediately after Didier Deschamps — a coaching legend — departs, Zidane is ready to take over the program in a month’s time. What kind of coach is he now? And can he steer his home country’s mega-talented roster to prosperity at Euros and the next World Cup?It’s all fascinating.
Quick pit stop with some of the other football:
News to Know
Nathan Ray Seebeck / Getty Images
Golding: I’m good with KiffinOle Miss coach Pete Golding said at SEC Media Days yesterday that he has “no ill will” toward former Rebels and current LSU coach Lane Kiffin, adding that he and Kiffin are still in touch. It was all part of a diatribe from Golding, which touched on the “broken” system of college football, tampering allegations and more.His comments are worth a read
They named a building after the starting QBThis fall, SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings — a preseason Heisman candidate — will receive treatment inside the Kevin Jennings Recovery Center. That’s no typo, and the story is quite heartwarming actually: Jennings has won 20 games in two years as SMU’s starter, including one appearance in the College Football Playoff. As he’s rebuffed offers to leave, SMU’s staff decided to honor his decision by putting his name on a building while he’s still a student.Pretty cool.
More news:
- Fever guard Sophie Cunninghamdoubled down on her stance against trans participation in women’s sports after her comments in an ESPN article sparked outcry.Read yesterday’s quotes here.
- In lighter news,Lynx star Napheesa Collierwas awesome in her season debut, scoring 24 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.Minnesota is a problem.
- TheChiefsreleased newrenderingsfor a$3 billion domed stadiumin Kansas, which is slated to open in 2031. I still can’t believe they’re leaving Arrowhead.See the designs.
- Erling Haaland is officiallythe most expensiveFantasy Premier Leagueplayer in history.
- Royals MVP candidate Bobby Witt Jr.is on theILwith a back tightness.Tough break.
- Charlie Woods, son of Tiger Woods, missed the cut at theU.S. Junior Amateurafter a fan’s phone disrupted his backswing.Brutal.
- Belgian cyclist Jasper Philipsenfinally won aTour de Francestage yesterday.He’s within striking distance of the green jersey.
- USWNTis favored to win the2027 World Cupat the moment, just ahead of defending-champion Spain.See the odds.
📰 Find more news here 24/7
Transfers, Mate: It’s always Chelsea
As the soccer fever forges ahead here, I figured we’d try a new conceit to keep up with things, because like anything in today’s sporting world, the concept of what is possible often outweighs the truth of reality. Free agency, trade deadlines, they’re all our biggest drivers.
Soccer has plenty of it. Two quick updates before we get to the big sheet:
- Aston Villa agreed to acquire Chelsea winger Alejandro Garnacho,still just 22 years old, on loan with a condition to buy if he makes enough appearances at Villa this season. Garnacho struggled to fit in at Chelsea after a big move from Manchester United last fall.There is some baggage present, too.
- The move comes on the heels of an opposite transaction, asChelsea agreed to pay a record $157 million transfer fee for Villa star Morgan Rogers,who played well for England at the World Cup. It came amid tough competition from Arsenal for Rogers’ services.The eye-popping deal came together in just 48 hours.
The transfer window is open until Sept. 1. Our Transfer DealSheet is somewhat of a gateway drug to getting hooked on the world of European soccer.Get the full dossier here.
Almost done:
Watch Guide
📺 MLB: Royals at Tigers6:40 p.m. ET on MLB NetworkDetroit is a fascinating team to watch right now as it struggles toward contention while trying to makean agonizing decisionat the trade deadline. We’ll have more on that this weekend. Every game counts
Pulse Picks
Luke Hales / Getty Images
Andrew Marchand has a strong column about the new era ofESPN, wherelayoffshave cemented a new identity:a place of loud stars that’s no longer invincible.
Imagine being 18 years old and playing in aWorld Cup. Fortunately, someone who did just that —Australia’s Lucas Herrington—wrote a story for us about his experience.
As a final wrap on the World Cup, our soccer writers picked anAll-World Cup Team.Apologies toHarry Kane.
InPortland, the squabble between the city and theTrail Blazersfeels icky and wholly unnecessary. Jason Quick has great insight intohow things have gone wrong.
Law Murray has a valuable guide toNBA Summer League takeaways.Yaxel Lendeborglooks like the real deal.
As is tradition, Dom Luszczyszyn ranked theworst NHL contracts of 2026.See the list.
The return ofNFL footballto our content streams means it’s also time to prep forfantasy.We havebreakout wide receiversfor you today.
Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday:NFL overrated and underrated teams.
Most-read on the website yesterday: ☝️
