Sports

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Italian referee Daniele Orsato has been chosen to handle the opening game of the World Cup. Host country Qatar will play Ecuador on Sunday. That is three days before Orsato’s 47th birthday. FIFA previously imposed a mandatory age limit of 45 on match officials for international games. Orsato was a video

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Bellator mixed martial arts promotion will make its network television debut on CBS with Fedor Emelianenko taking on heavyweight champion Ryan Bader on Feb. 4. The show will be held at the Forum in Inglewood, California. The light heavyweight belt is also expected to be on the line with Yoel

By JAMES ROBSON AP Soccer Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — England goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale is hoping his team can lift the spirits of soccer fans after beer sales were banned at World Cup stadiums in Qatar. Like by winning matches. Ramsdale says hopefully England can “perform on the pitch to give them that sort of

By PETE IACOBELLI AP Sports Writer CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Zia Cooke scored 15 points and Aliyah Boston added 12 points and six rebounds in No. 1 South Carolina’s 85-31 victory over Clemson on Thursday night. It was the Gamecocks’ 12th straight win over their rival. Cooke and the Gamecocks used smothering defense and accurate

AMHERST, N.Y. (AP) — The University at Buffalo’s football game against Akron has been postponed due to a lake-effect snowstorm hitting the western New York region. Officials are considering shifting the game from Saturday to Sunday pending travel conditions. The National Weather Service has a lake-effect storm warning that’s now extended through Sunday afternoon, with

By DENNIS WASZAK Jr. AP Pro Football Writer FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Veteran guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif has signed with the Jets’ practice squad. He stepped away from football after spending the last two months of last season with the Jets so he could focus on working on his medical residency program at a Montreal-area

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer For the first time in 12 years, USA Basketball is not atop the world men’s rankings. FIBA, the sport’s governing body, has updated its rankings — and Spain is in the top spot, a sliver ahead of the U.S. The four-time defending Olympic champion Americans moved into the top

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Sports Writer NAPLES, Fla. (AP) — More than $100 million will be awarded to LPGA players for the first time in 2023. That’s an increase of about 18% over what was planned for this season and more than doubling what was paid out on the tour just a decade ago. A

FRANKLIN, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Todd Downing is free on bond after he was arrested on charges of speeding and driving under the influence early Friday morning. Downing was released from the Williamson County Jail just before 7 a.m. CST on $2,500 bond after being booked into the jail at 4:39 a.m.

MADRID (AP) — Spain has called up Barcelona defender Alejandro Balde to replace injured left back José Gayà less than a week before the team’s opening World Cup match against Costa Rica. The 19-year-old Balde has had a breakout season playing for Barcelona. He is now set to make his senior debut after having debuted

By JAMES ROBSON AP Soccer Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — England goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale says Arsenal teammate Bukayo Saka has put the racist abuse he experienced at last year’s European Championship behind him. The forward was targeted on social media after missing a penalty in his shootout loss to Italy in the Euro 2020 final.

By CIARÁN FAHEY AP Sports Writer BERLIN (AP) — Normally when the World Cup comes around, Germans happily wave their country’s flag and enthusiastically back their team. Not this time. Anyone walking around Berlin just days before the World Cup starts in Qatar on Sunday will struggle to notice any sign that the tournament is

By GRAHAM DUNBAR AP Sports Writer DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Qatar banned the sale of beer at World Cup stadiums on Friday, a sudden U-turn on the deal the conservative Muslim emirate made to secure the soccer tournament with only two days to go before the opening game. The move was the latest sign of

By The Associated Press DUBLIN — Led by Wheza Panzo’s 15 points and five rebounds, Stetson beat Rider Broncs 78-68 on Friday in the MAAC/ASUN Dublin Challenge in Ireland. Mahamadou Diawara broke a 15-all tie with a 3-pointer with 9:13 remaining before halftime and Stetson led for the rest of the game.

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Formula One is launching a new racing series for female drivers that will start next year. The series will be known as the F1 Academy and will be subsidized by F1. It is likely to be a support series for one weekend of the F1 season. F1 said