AP National Sports

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer Brittney Griner said she’s “grateful” to be back in the United States and plans on playing basketball again next season for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury. Her comments came a week after she was released from a Russian prison, freed in a dramatic high-level prisoner exchange. “It feels so good

By DENNIS WASZAK Jr. AP Pro Football Writer FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Zach Wilson will start at quarterback for the New York Jets on Sunday against the Detroit Lions after Mike White was not cleared by doctors to play. White is dealing with a rib injury that twice knocked him out of the Jets’

LONDON (AP) — Chinese tennis player Baoluo Zheng has been banned for nine months after admitting that he attempted to fix a match. The International Tennis Integrity Agency says the 21-year-old player “approached an opponent and offered money in return for deliberately losing a match at a tournament in Egypt in October 2022.” Baoluo was

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Raphael Varane and Ibrahima Konaté are among five France players who missed training two days before the World Cup final against Argentina. The two center backs have reportedly become the latest members of the France squad to be affected by a virus. Dayot Upamecano, Adrien Rabiot and Kingsley Coman were struck

GRAND BAIE, Mauritius (AP) — Antoine Rozner and Alfredo Garcia-Heredia have moved into a tie for the lead with Sami Valimaki at the Mauritius Open. Rozner shot an 8-under 64 to join Garcia-Heredia and Valimaki in a one-stroke lead after two rounds at Mont Choisy Le Golf on the Indian Ocean island. They are at

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Philadelphia Phillies finalized their deal with Taijuan Walker, agreeing to a $72 million, four-year contract with the right-hander. The 30-year-old Walker went 12-5 with a 3.49 ERA in 29 starts this season for the New York Mets, one of Philadelphia’s biggest NL East rivals. He slots into a rotation fronted by

By GRAHAM DUNBAR AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — FIFA president Gianni Infantino has shared his wish list to create and revamp games and events under the soccer body’s control. They include a 32-team men’s Club World Cup in 2025, a new version of the tournament for women and national teams from different continents

By The Associated Press Musical artist Kelly Clarkson will host the 12th annual NFL Honors awards show Feb. 9 in Phoenix, recognizing the league’s best players, performances and plays from the 2022 season. A spokesperson said Friday that the Emmy and Grammy-award winning artist Clarkson will be the first woman to host the show. The

By ANDREW DAMPF AP Sports Writer ROME (AP) — Former soccer player and coach Siniša Mihajlović has died at 53 after a long battle with leukemia. Mihajlović’s family announced Friday that he died in a Rome hospital. The Serbian had most recently coached Serie A club Bologna for 3 ½ years. He became a sentimental

By HELENA ALVES and LUJAIN JO Associated Press DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Coming from Brazil for the World Cup in Qatar, Daniela Crawford had been worried about conservative dress codes. But like many women attending the tournament, she said she found no problems. “In Brazil people are used to it, but we came here and

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Philadelphia Phillies finalized their deal with Taijuan Walker, agreeing to a $72 million, four-year contract with the right-hander. The 30-year-old Walker went 12-5 with a 3.49 ERA in 29 starts this season for the New York Mets, one of Philadelphia’s biggest NL East rivals. He slots into a rotation fronted by

By ERIC TUCKER and DOUG FEINBERG Associated Press Writers The return of Brittney Griner to the United States in a dramatic prisoner swap with Russia marked the culmination of a 10-month ordeal that captivated world attention, a saga that landed at the intersection of sports, politics, race and gender identity — and wartime diplomacy. Griner

By JOSEPH WILSON Associated Press BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spain midfielder and World Cup winner Sergio Busquets is retiring from international soccer. Spain’s national team announced that Busquets is retiring after 143 appearances. The 34-year-old Busquets captained Spain at the World Cup in Qatar. He was one of three Spain players to miss a penalty

MADRID (AP) — The head of the proposed Super League says the project is still going forward even though the scheme to form a breakaway European soccer competition was dealt a legal blow by the European Union’s legal adviser. Bernd Reichart, the chief executive of the company sponsoring and assisting the creation of the Super

By SUMAN NAISHADHAM Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Qatar’s World Cup is ending on Sunday, but the climate pledges that were central to the gas-rich Gulf nation’s successful bid to host the event are staying in the world of mega sporting events. Scientists, environmental advocates and other experts say that sporting events such as the

By DANIEL POLITI Associated Press ROSARIO, Argentina (AP) — Fernanda Quiroga still remembers how Lionel Messi played soccer in what were then dirt roads around their working class neighborhood in Rosario, Argentina’s third-largest city. “(Messi) was always kicking something, a ball, a bottle cap,” said Quiroga, who at 35 is the same age as the

ST. MORITZ, Switzerland (AP) — The Italian ski team says two-time Olympic medalist Sofia Goggia broke two fingers in her left hand when she hit a gate en route to a second-place finish in a World Cup downhill. The often-injured Goggia broke her index and middle fingers during the race in St. Moritz and was

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Lionel Messi’s last chance. Kylian Mbappé’s shot at emulating Pelé. A third World Cup title for either Argentina or France. Sunday’s final is rich with storylines as the 22nd edition of the World Cup ends with a title match fit for the occasion. Here are

SELVA DI VAL GARDENA, Italy (AP) — A men’s World Cup super-G slated for Friday in Val Gardena has been canceled due to a mixture of fog, rain and warm temperatures. The start of the race was initially postponed while workers cleared 8 inches (20 centimeters) of overnight snowfall off the Saslong course. But then