Author: Associated Press

Vinicius Junior squandered a penalty, and Real Madrid conceded a dramatic injury-time goal in a stunning 2-1 home defeat to Valencia, denting their La Liga title hopes on Saturday. Hugo Duro, coming off the bench, scored a header that silenced Santiago Bernabéu, netting the winner deep into stoppage time. Goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili denied Vinicius’ early penalty, and just minutes later, Mouctar Diakhaby’s header in the 17th minute put Valencia ahead. Vinicius equalized in the 50th minute with a close-range strike, but Mamardashvili and Valencia’s defense held firm until Duro’s late goal secured the team’s first away win of the season.…

Fenerbahçe has accused Galatasaray coach Okan Buruk of theatrically throwing himself to the ground as if “shot” after an incident in which Jose Mourinho appeared to pinch his nose, sparking fresh controversy in Turkish football. Following Galatasaray’s 2-1 victory over Fenerbahçe in the Turkish Cup on Wednesday, Mourinho, Fenerbahçe’s legendary coach, reached out from behind Buruk and made contact with his nose. Buruk collapsed to the ground, clutching his face, before Mourinho was escorted away. In a lengthy statement posted on the social media platform X, Fenerbahçe accused Buruk of provoking Mourinho by making “disrespectful hand gestures” toward him after…

Stephen Curry poured in 37 points, Brandin Podziemski added a career-high 28, and the Golden State Warriors held off the Los Angeles Lakers 123-116 on Thursday night, extending their win streak to four in what could be a preview of a first-round playoff matchup. Podziemski nailed eight 3-pointers, while Curry connected on four of 11 attempts from beyond the arc, fresh off a 52-point performance, including 12 3-pointers, in Memphis on Tuesday. LeBron James led the Lakers with 33 points and nine assists, while Austin Reaves contributed 31 points, including nine 3-pointers. Rui Hachimura added 24 points, and Luka Doncic…

Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff are among 20 top tennis players who signed a letter urging Grand Slam leaders to increase prize money and give athletes a stronger voice in decisions that “directly impact us.” A copy of the letter, dated March 21 and obtained Thursday by The Associated Press, requests an in-person meeting at this month’s Madrid Open with representatives of the four majors: Craig Tiley (Australian Open), Stephane Morel (French Open), Sally Bolton (Wimbledon) and Lew Sherr (U.S. Open). Handwritten signatures include 10 of the top 11 women from the March 3 rankings –…

FIFA is expected to announce on Thursday that the U.S. and the U.K. will be selected as hosts for the expanded Women’s World Cup, which will grow from 32 to 48 teams. FIFA President Gianni Infantino informed European football officials that the U.S. is the only nation to express interest in hosting the 2031 edition, with the potential for other CONCACAF countries, likely including Mexico, to join the bid. Infantino also said FIFA has received just one “valid bid” to host the 2035 edition, from the British member federations, centered on England. Spanish football officials said last week they hoped…

No one understands better than Liam Lawson how quickly fortunes can shift in the high-stakes world of Formula One. Just last week, the New Zealander was unexpectedly relegated to Racing Bulls after struggling in his first two races with the top-tier Red Bull team in Australia and China. Lawson started the season with a disappointing 18th-place qualifying position at the Australian Grand Prix before crashing out of the race. In China, he qualified at the back for both the sprint and main events, finishing 14th and 12th, respectively. Meanwhile, Japanese driver Yuki Tsunoda, who missed out on a promotion when…

Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart has been hit with a two-game suspension, while four other players from the Pistons and Timberwolves received one-game bans for their roles in an on-court altercation earlier this week, the NBA announced Tuesday. Citing Stewart’s “repeated history of unsportsmanlike acts,” the league handed him the harshest penalty. One-game suspensions were issued to Detroit’s Ron Holland II and Marcus Sasser, along with Minnesota’s Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo. All five were ejected from Sunday’s game, along with Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff and Timberwolves assistant Pablo Prigioni. “Obviously, things went too far,” Bickerstaff said after the game. “But what…

Bayern Munich legend Thomas Muller may be nearing the end of his illustrious career, with media reports suggesting the club will not extend his contract beyond this season. The 35-year-old’s current deal expires in June, and both SportBild and Kicker magazine report that Bayern is likely to prioritize savings over offering him a new contract. Muller, who made his Bayern debut under Jurgen Klinsmann in 2008, rose to prominence under Louis van Gaal the following season. Since then, he has become the club’s all-time appearance leader, with 742 matches across all competitions, including 247 goals, as well as multiple Super…

Bronny James got the surprise call to play in the first quarter for the Lakers and finished with the first serious playing time of his NBA career. It wasn’t great. Bronny took off on a fast break and his shot was rejected by Adam Bona. He got torched by 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey any time they were remotely matched up. His box score, well, it wasn’t any better: Bronny was scoreless for the Lakers in their 118-104 loss to Philadelphia on Tuesday night. He missed three 3-pointers, all five shots overall and had three turnovers. Bronny played 15 minutes just…

Bronny James got the surprise call to play in the first quarter for the Lakers and finished with the first serious playing time of his NBA career. It wasn’t great. Bronny took off on a fast break and his shot was rejected by Adam Bona. He got torched by 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey any time they were remotely matched up. His box score, well, it wasn’t any better: Bronny was scoreless for the Lakers in their 118-104 loss to Philadelphia on Tuesday night. He missed three 3-pointers, all five shots overall and had three turnovers. Bronny played 15 minutes just…