Bobby Witt Jr., Nelson Velazquez and Michael Massey homered, Angel Zerpa gave up one run over four innings and the Kansas City Royals beat the Houston Astros 4-2 on Friday night

Barcelona midfielder Gavi suffered a 'major knee injury' during Spain's Euro 2024 qualifier with Georgia on Sunday night, with reports claiming he may have suffered ACL damage.

Red Bulls interim head coach Troy Lesesne gave thanks to his side's supporters after a difficult 2023 season.

“We’ve been fighting for this for so long,” Ali Riley said, smiling through the tears. The New Zealand captain had waited more than most, winless at her four previous World Cups, part of a run that stretched back even further than that. Without a victory in 15 attempts at the tournament, New Zealand entered their own World Cup with unwanted history hanging over them. Facing Norway in their opening match, that winless run was expected to continue. How Hannah Wilkinson’s goal changed that. In a stunning upset, New Zealand altered the narrative, providing the World Cup with its first shock that will ripple not just in Group A but throughout the tournament. With a victory in their most difficult game of the group stages, New Zealand can now set their sights higher and target a place in the knockouts. They will have momentum on their side when they face Switzerland and the Philippines. Such moments can change expectations, as well as perceptions. It had been noted before kick-off that while pre-tournament excitement and buzz was palpable in Australia, particularly in Sydney ahead of the Matildas’ opening game against Ireland, in New Zealand it was far more low-key. Compared to the neighbours, New Zealand hadn’t generated the same interest in terms of tickets sold across the country. A reason for that is because Australia can win the World Cup. As hosts, they are aware of the opportunity they have to change society, as shown by England’s historic win at the Euros last summer, and are inspired by the chance to provide the country its biggest sporting moment since Cathy Freeman and the 2000 Olympics. Having an international star like Sam Kerr creates hope that such an achievement can be possible. New Zealand aren’t there yet - but they will now believe they can make that change happen, as well. “We had a clear goal that we wanted to inspire young girls, young people in this country and around the world and I think we did that tonight,” the 35-year-old Riley said. A moment such as Wilkinson’s goal, which came after a fine breakaway and cross from the forward Jacqui Hand, can be the spark, and not just for them. There are eight teams who will be making their World Cup debuts over the next week, and with the same fundamentals of organisation and commitment that New Zealand showed in restraining Norway, they too will hope to close the gap to the established nations. New Zealand had the advantage of being a host country, even if preparations for their opening match would have been disrupted by the shocking news of a mass shooting in Auckland on the morning of the tournament. But in front of a sold-out crowd of over 42,000 at Eden Park, New Zealand lived up to the role of underdog hosts superbly. For a team who had gone 10 games without a win until beating Vietnam before the World Cup, they were motivated by the occasion and upset the odds. Norway had the star quality - in Ada Hegerberg, Caroline Graham Hansen, Guro Reiten and Frida Maanum - but New Zealand believed in the collective. Riley led the way as she marked Graham Hansen out of the game - there was only one moment midway through the first half where the Barcelona star found the space to burst away, but the defender tracked it, shutting down the cross. When Norway had other half-chances, New Zealand found the blocks they needed. It’s an upset that asks questions of Norway, of course, after their shambolic group-stage exit at the Euros last summer. Hege Riise was brought in to repair the damage, but Norway were still far too open and unorganised in defence, while lacking cohesion in attack. “There have been a lot of doubters because of the results we had, but we believed,” Riley said. Now others at the World Cup will feel that too. Read More Australia relief after Women’s World Cup opener reveals significance of Sam Kerr injury Women’s World Cup teams: Every squad and key players to watch What TV channel is the Women’s World Cup on? How to watch every match New Zealand squad stayed calm after hearing of Auckland shooting Australia relief after World Cup opener reveals significance of Sam Kerr injury Women’s World Cup teams: Every squad and key players to watch

Longtime college administrator Lew Perkins, who played basketball at Iowa before serving as the athletic director at several universities and taking on an influential role within the NCAA, died Tuesday

Atlanta Braves MVP candidate Ronald Acuña Jr. opted not to participate in the Home Run Derby, much to the dismay of fans around the world.You could probably convince a fair amount of people that Ronald Acuña Jr. is the best offensive player in the world right now. The Atlanta Brave...

Two Manchester United players were not among the group of internationals that returned to training with the rest of the squad on Saturday.

England won despite a red card that ejected star Lauren James to beat Nigeria on penalty kicks and advance to the quarterfinals at the Women’s World Cup

Devin Leary threw for three touchdowns, including one to Ray Davis who added a 55-yard touchdown run, to lead Kentucky to a 35-3 win over Akron Saturday night

The records kept getting set almost as fast as the Miami Dolphins scored last week against the Denver Broncos

The Los Angeles Rams have signed tight end Tyler Higbee to a two-year contract extension through 2025

When Argentina and Inter Miami superstar Lionel Messi will next play after Argentina's victory over Brazil.