If I told you there was a new professional sports league in the US where the teams were named the Tornadoes, the Colts, the Grizzlies, the Crushers, the Knights, and the Dragons, what sport would you think of? The US big four sports certainly come to mind. And the new LIV Golf tour has team names like that. Pickleball and Padel are growing fast, but they are not really fierce enough to warrant names like that, are they? So, what sport could it be, maybe they are rugby team names.
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| The view greeting you when you fly in to Bermuda |
The SailGP season is exciting and complicated. The most recent leg in Christchurch, New Zealand, saw the Black Foils (the home team) win and take the top spot on the leaderboard from Australia. The US team lies 6th after 9 events. There are only 4 more events this season, all 4 of which are in the North America region, so at least one is a drive or short flight from you if you are based in the US or Canada.
"Rise: A Siya Kolisi Story" is a powerful and inspiring documentary that chronicles the journey of Siya Kolisi, the first Black captain of the South African national rugby union team, the Springboks. The film delves into Kolisi's remarkable rise from poverty and adversity to become a national hero, leading the Springboks to a historic victory in the 2019 Rugby World Cup. He also led the team to victory in the subsequent Rugby World Cup last year in 2023. He is one of only two captains to have achieved this in the history of the sport of rugby.
The FA Cup, also known as the Emirates FA Cup due to sponsorship, is a storied knockout tournament in England. It's the oldest national football competition in the world, dating back to 1871.
The FA Cup is unique and distinct from the Premier League itself in that it involves professional teams from both the Premier League and English Football League, but also some semi-professional clubs. That means hundreds of teams vying for glory!
This Saturday is the fifth and final round of the 2024 Six Nations matches. The firm favorite to win this year are Ireland. They face Scotland at Dublin's Aviva Stadium. England face France in Lyon a few hours after the Dublin match. The Ireland-Scotland rugby match holds immense significance for the home team, with the entire Championship title on the line.
Lionel "Leo" Messi may be a global icon today, but once upon a time he was a young boy with big dreams in a small town in Argentina called Rosario. At that time Argentinian economy was not doing well and the people were suffering. In Rosario itself the unemployment rate around then was at least 20%. Messi was born in 1987, the third child out of four in his family. His parents both had blue collar jobs and they lived a humble life. Young Leo followed his brother and cousins to play football (soccer) every day. It was Messi's grandmother that eventually bought the young man his first football boots when he was 8 years old.
Hamilton is not the first world champion to move to Ferrari with grand ambitions. But history offers mixed results for such high-profile moves. Let us take a walk down memory lane shall we.
The Ferrari team boasts an illustrious and successful history in Formula One, it has 16 World Constructors' Championships, the most in F1 history. And it has 15 Drivers' Championship wins.
The confetti still shimmers in Las Vegas, and the roar of Arrowhead Stadium echoes in the hearts of Chiefs fans everywhere. Yes, the Kansas City Chiefs have done it again, securing their second consecutive Super Bowl title with a thrilling 25-22 overtime victory over the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII. This was only the second time in history that overtime was played in a Super Bowl, and the first time under the new rules.
Sevens rugby is coming Los Angeles early, 4 years before it appears in the LA 2028 Olympic Games. The HSBC Sevens Series is the premier sevens rugby tournament in the world, featuring the best 12 men's and 12 women's teams. The Los Angeles leg of the series is always a popular event, and this year's tournament is shaping up to be even bigger and better than ever before.
The 2024 Australian Open that wrapped up this weekend was a thrilling tournament that saw some unexpected results. On the women's side, Aryna Sabalenka successfully defended her title, defeating Qinwen Zheng in the final. Sabalenka is now a two-time Grand Slam champion and has established herself as one of the best players in the world. In the men's singles final, 22-year-old Jannik Sinner staged a remarkable comeback to defeat Daniil Medvedev in five sets, claiming his first Grand Slam title. Sinner became the youngest Australian Open champion since Pete Sampras in 1994.
SailGP is revolutionizing the world of sailing, taking it to exhilarating new heights. Just imagine Formula One cars moving on water. The speeds are terrifying to an observer. The closer you are the crazier it is. To those on the boat its insane. They are not riding aboard a sailboat, they are riding flying machines that skim across waves at breakneck speeds, hulls mere inches above the water.
A few days ago Jon Rahm seriously shocked the entire golf world by announcing he had quit the PGA Tour and had joined LIV Golf. Rahm is not just a PGA Tour pro. He is the reigning Masters champion, a long-time world number 1, and current number 3 behind Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy. He is an in-form golfer and is one the highest paid players on the PGA tour right now. And for years now, Rahm has been publicly expressing his loyalty to the PGA Tour. And, at the same time, he has been criticizing the Saudi-backed LIV Golf tour. Hence everyone's surprise at this news.
Yesterday, December 10th 2023, beautiful Cape Town, South Africa, hosted the final day of the second leg of the HSBC Sevens Series Rugby in perfect weather. All the Men's and Women's teams played quarterfinals, semis and finals rugby matches on Sunday in front of a boisterous rugby-mad crowd.
The landscape of professional sports is constantly evolving, and with it comes new opportunities for athletes to invest in their future. One such opportunity is the Avenue Sports Fund, a recently launched investment vehicle that aims to provide athletes with access to a diverse portfolio of sports-related assets. Founded by Marc Lasry, the chairman and CEO of Avenue Capital Group, the Avenue Sports Fund is targeting athletes who are looking to diversify their portfolios and take a more active role in the future of sports. The fund's investment strategy focuses on three key areas:
In 2022, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) made a landmark decision that has fundamentally changed the landscape of college sports. The NIL rule change, which allows student-athletes to profit from their name, image, and likeness (NIL), has ushered in a new era of opportunities and challenges for athletes, universities, and companies alike.
Yesterday was the much-hyped relaunch of Formula 1 racing in Las Vegas, after a wait of 40 years. It was a star-studded affair as you can imagine, with the likes of Shaq, Rihanna, Kylie Minogue, Gordon Ramsay, Usain Bolt, Lindsey Vonn, and Lupita all there for the event. The race did not disappoint. Current world champion, Max Verstappen, emerged victorious in a thrilling race that featured plenty of overtaking and drama. The Dutchman overcame a five-second time penalty to beat rivals Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez to the checkered flag.
The Oakland A's have followed in the footsteps of the Raiders and joined the Las Vegas exodus. The Major League Baseball team announced its relocation to Las Vegas in November 2023, marking another major blow to the Bay Area's sports landscape.
World Rugby Classic Bermuda is a unique event that brings together former international rugby players, most of whom are over 33 years old, for a week of intense competition and camaraderie. Taking place annually over the week of Veteran's Day/Remembrance Day, the tournament provides a stage for these legends to relive their glory days while showcasing their enduring passion for the sport. This year, the competition was fiercer than ever, with teams from France, USA, Canada, Ireland, Argentina, Italy, the British Lions, and South Africa battling it out for the coveted trophy.
In a historic five-game series that ended yesterday, November 1st 2023, the Texas Rangers defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks to claim their first-ever World Series title. The Rangers, who entered the playoffs as a wild card team, defied all odds to make their way to the Fall Classic. They then proceeded to dominate the Diamondbacks, winning four of the five games by an average margin of three runs.
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