26 Page 8 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

NFL players have had it with artificial turf and you can’t blame them
NFL Players Association executive director Lloyd Howell told the media on Tuesday that 92 percent of NFLPA members want to play on natural grass, citing rates of injuries, general soreness and burns as the reason most of the union wants to move away from artificial turf. ...

The NHL is back in the Olympics for 2026, 2030
The NHL will announce its official return to the Olympics, according to TSN and Chris Johnston. The move marks the league’s first time back in the games since 2014. ...
![92 percent of players prefer grass over turf: NFLPA [Updated]](https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/e57da684ba20d8cb65d03d6156acee40.jpg)
92 percent of players prefer grass over turf: NFLPA [Updated]
NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell continued the turf field debate Wednesday at the NFLPA news conference, pointing out that a vast majority of the player’s union wants to play on natural grass fields. ...

USMNT gets an OK Copa America draw
Every tournament draw show is just about the biggest, “This could have been an email” event on the planet. Yes, the World Cup, Copa America or the Euros only come around every four years so they want to stress their significance by having as much pomp as they can. But anyone watching the Copa Americ...

Gary Bettman teases NHL changes
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman addressed the media at the conclusion of the NHL’s Board of Governors’ annual meetings. Bettman teased some big changes to the league in the near future, the biggest of which would be an in-season international tournament....

The USMNT looked terrible against Canada, and it doesn’t matter
It took until the 88th minute for the United States men’s national team’s C-squad to score a goal on home soil in a major-tournament quarterfinal and 15 seconds after play resumed for the offense to take place that gave Canada a golden opportunity to take it away. An uninspired first half, saved by ...

The United States men’s national team’s Gold Cup squad lacks stars, serves better long-term purpose
It’s clear by interim United States men’s national team head coach B.J. Callaghan’s 23-man roster for this summer’s CONCACAF Gold Cup that winning the tournament isn’t the only priority. How else do you explain giving players like Christian Pulisic a pass? It’s not a break as he barely played at Che...

Putting the World Cup Final in New Jersey would be great, if you like cruel and unusual punishment
The states of New York and New Jersey launched a joint successful campaign to be a host city for the 2026 World Cup a while back. And yeah, of course the world’s biggest individual sporting event couldn’t have the most populous region of the country left out when the United States, Mexico, and Canad...

Turns out the Nikola Jokić kicks a LOT of balls
Nikola Jokić possesses the most versatile skill set in the entire league. Assists — he’ll dish him. Points — he’ll score ‘em. Rebounds — he’ll grab ‘em in droves. His defensive impact is questionable, despite what metrics might imply, but there’s one area where his game-changing skill has translated...

The 2026 World Cup is swole as fuck
Despite being shoved into the middle of the season and in a country that was in no way up to the standards of hosting such a thing, the last World Cup ended up being a hit for what went on on the field. Exciting conclusion to the group stages, classic games in the knockout stages, and a memorable wi...

Qualifying for Copa America 2024 should only help the USMNT
Here’s a compliment sandwich. The 2024 Copa America, South America’s premier international soccer tournament, will again be played in the United States after America hosted the showcase for the first time in 2016. Despite being the host nation, the USMNT hasn’t directly qualified to play in the even...

Jose Mourinho would be a disaster as USMNT’s next coach
Gregg Berhalter’s days are numbered at the helm of the United States men’s national team. The Yanks didn’t win a knockout stage game in Qatar and Berhalter is under investigation from a domestic violence incident that occurred 31 years ago, where he admitted to kicking his now wife. US Soccer only l...

What’s next for the USMNT?
You know it’s over when your star midfielder is showing up courtside at Miami Heat games. Or the rumors of contract talks with the manager are heating up, while he tries to gain leverage by whispering about European club jobs. Time to call for the Lyft officially....

Gregg Berhalter deserves a lot of credit… and the exit door
At the top, we should refresh the list of things Gregg Berhalter can’t help. Everyone knows this list by now, but it deserves reinforcing. He can’t help that the US doesn’t have a genuine striker. He’s hardly the only international manager affected by such a thing. They’re just not that common. Spai...

Did Qatar even want the World Cup?
The small Middle Eastern country — known for its poor human rights record — is the World Cup host, but did Qatar actually WANT it to begin with? Whichever government officials were responsible for bringing the world’s biggest sporting event to their country must’ve wanted it enough to take the initi...

Do Americans really care about soccer? We’ll find out
The unbearable heat of Qatar pushed the FIFA World Cup out of the summer months for the first time in the tournament’s history. In 2022, the quadrennial footballing soccer showcase won’t crown a new champion before jackets come out of closets across America. The upcoming global event will run from N...

Pump the brakes on the Arch Manning hype
Everything is bigger in Texas, including the hype. Arch Manning’s Texas commitment has the Longhorns dreaming of national championship glory again. By the time Manning 3.0 is eligible for the 2026 NFL Draft, it will have been 20 years since Vince Young painted his Jackson Pollack on the Rose bowl tu...

American Athletes who gave their lives in service
It may be rare these days, but there was a time when some of the best athletes in America went off to fight in wars. Some did so willingly, others were drafted....

I want my win in the Azteca, Gregg Berhalter
Right off the bat, I know all the logic the US might keep something in reserve tonight at the Azteca vs. Mexico. The USMNT has not been able to thread the three-matches-in-seven days windows all that well. The Panama game is the real crunch one of the three this time, as a win there basically guaran...

Oh, damn, MLS started this weekend
Part of it was due to still being on vacation, and the other part was my general obliviousness. But I only realized at the last minute that MLS started its season this weekend, about 12 minutes after the last one ended with NYCFC’s manager in his undies in the rain in Portland, thanks to having to w...