If the Chicago Cubs want to build their best possible starting rotation, they ought to take some notes, courtesy of Craig Counsell.

Pep Guardiola believes Arsenal are "back" ahead of Man City's Premier League clash on Sunday.

Week 3 of the 2023 NFL season came and went. It's now Week 3 and by this time, there should be a clear idea who is ready to play and who is not.

Teenager Yamine Lamal has helped Barcelona fight back to win a 4-3 thriller at Villarreal in the Spanish league

Designated runner Tim Anderson stole third and scored the winning run on a Seattle throwing error — all on a failed pickoff play — as the Chicago White Sox snapped the Mariners’ season-best eight-game winning streak with a 5-4, 10-inning victory

Borderline uncanny.

Premier League clubs and other senior football figures have increased pressure on the Department of Culture, Media and Sport over state ownership in the English game, raising specific questions about whether a distinction will be drawn between revenue and equity when it comes to testing the liquidity of clubs. There is a feeling that a more general framing of the rules could have the unintended consequence of diminishing competitive balance, while also worsening the very issue the independent regulator is being set up to tackle. The Saudi Arabian takeover of Newcastle United has made the majority of the Premier League clubs - sometimes described as “the other 18” in this context - more attuned to the potential issues that come with state ownership, and it is understood that the topic was constantly raised in the initial talks that informed the content of the landmark White Paper on football. The issue wasn’t even mentioned in the eventual document, though, despite it representing a significant factor that greatly influences all of the problems that the regulator is supposed to cover - primarily club sustainability and systemic sustainability - through the raising of the financial threshold. The absence of reference was largely put down to the Conservative government’s concern for geopolitics, and another example of how this is affecting the game. Scrutiny on the subject has continued into the formation of the independent regulator, with football officials pressing DCMS on exactly how the body will test the solvency of clubs. The White Paper has made the financial sustainability and resilience of the sport its “primary strategic purpose”. “To support this purpose, it will have 3 specific primary duties,” the paper read. “Club sustainability - the financial sustainability of individual clubs. Systemic stability - the overall stability of the football pyramid. Cultural heritage - protecting the heritage of football clubs that matter most to fans.” Within that, the regulator will be empowered to determine the liquidity requirements for clubs based on the business plans. Other football officials are concerned that, if the framing of the questions around club sustainability only go as far as liquidity and does not have more specific terms relating to whether potential income is revenue, it could end up favouring state-owned or state-linked clubs. The argument is that, since state-owned clubs would easily pass all the solvency tests due to the fact their ownerships have virtually unlimited money and no financial risk, it would further skew the market. They would have complete freedom, while rival clubs had to be more conscious of the parameters when it comes to spending. A fear is that rivals just won't be able to keep up. The issue of revenue and equity is covered by the Premier League’s Financial Fair Play rules, and has informed part of the charges against Manchester City, but club officials are insisting that the independent regulator should be just as rigid on this and ensure all regulations covering the game are as tight and consistent as possible. A comparison has been raised with a similar system in French football, where Paris Saint Germain’s mega sponsorship deal with the Qatar Tourism Authority saw the club easily pass the domestic rules, only for Uefa to subsequently write it down. One of the core issues in the City case is whether money from sponsors Etihad and Etisalat actually came from the owner, Sheikh Mansour, and consequently represented equity disguised as revenue. The case is ongoing as City insist upon their compliance with the rules. Many football figures also raised it as regards Newcastle United's new sponsorship deal with Saudi Arabian company Sela, pointing to a unique question that comes from states with such centralised structures. Read More Welcome to Wrexham’s biggest heroes are neither the A-list owners nor the players How the Champions League lost its spark and led to the end of an era European football is ignorant to the march of the Saudi Pro League Man City scandal is not about fair play – it’s about fraud UEFA warns clubs against overspending in ‘reckless pursuit of success’ Sportswashing is about to change football beyond anything you can imagine

Sean Strickland and Abus Magomedov will square off in a meeting of middleweight contenders this weekend, as the pair clash in a UFC Fight Night main event. American Strickland, 32, is looking to make it back-to-back wins, having beaten Nassourdine Imavov on points in January, following two straight losses last year. Meanwhile, Russian Magomedov, also 32, enters Las Vegas on the back of a three-fight win streak, with all of those wins having come via stoppage. Strickland sits at No 7 in the middleweight rankings as he bids to re-enter the title picture, and he is risking his place in the top 10 here as he faces an unranked opponent in Magomedov. Here’s all you need to know. When is it? The event will take place on Saturday 1 July, at the UFC Apex institute in Las Vegas. The prelims are set to begin at 9pm BST (1pm PT, 3pm CT, 4pm ET). The main card is then due to follow at 12am BST on Sunday 2 July (4pm PT, 6pm CT, 7pm ET on Saturday). How can I watch it? The card will air live on BT Sport in the UK, with the broadcaster’s app and website also streaming the fights. In the US, ESPN+ will stream the action live, as will the UFC’s Fight Pass. Full card (subject to change) Main card Sean Strickland vs Abus Magomedov (middleweight) Damir Ismagulov vs Grant Dawson (lightweight) Max Griffin vs Michael Morales (welterweight) Ariane Lipski vs Melissa Gatto (women’s flyweight) Ismael Bonfim vs Benoit Saint-Denis (lightweight) Brunno Ferreira vs Nursulton Ruziboev (middleweight) Prelims Kevin Lee vs Rinat Fakhretdinov (welterweight) Joanderson Brito vs Westin Wilson (featherweight) Yana Santos vs Karol Rosa (women’s bantamweight) Guram Kutateladze vs Elves Brener (lightweight) Ivana Petrovic vs Luana Carolina (women’s flyweight) Alexandr Romanov vs Blagoy Ivanov (heavyweight) Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More UFC schedule 2023: Every major fight happening this year Ilia Topuria makes bold Alexander Volkanovski claim after dominating Josh Emmett Elon Musk picks UFC legend to train him for Mark Zuckerberg fight What time does Strickland vs Magomedov start in UK and US this weekend? How to watch Strickland vs Magomedov online and on TV this weekend When is the next UFC event?

Kadarius Toney had some fun at his former team -- the New York Giants -- expense despite some critical drops for the Chiefs last Thursday.

WWE presents its 37th annual Survivor Series event on Saturday, November 25th from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. The year's event sees the return of the WarGames match with the top male and female stars entering the two rings and cage in an attempt to claim supremacy over their respective divisions. The WarGames match made its main roster debut in WWE last year with Team BelAir and The Bloodline winning their respective matches. Several superstars from those matches including Sami Zayn, Drew McIntyre, Bianca BelAir, Becky Lynch and Damage CTRL will once again be entering the match. The show will also see the long-awaited return of 14-time world champion Randy Orton who has been out with an injury since May 2022. Only five matches have been announced for the card so far with the Intercontinental and Women's World Championships being defended at show, with the final match being between Carlito and Santos Escobar following the latter's attack on Mysterio and turning on his fellow Latino World Order members. How to watch Survivor Series will be available on Peacock in the United States and on the WWE Network elsewhere in the world. The show will also be available on TNT Box Office in the UK. United States: Peacock, PPV UK and Ireland: WWE Network/TNT Box Office Australia: Foxtel/Kayo & Binge Rest of the World: WWE Network Times United States: 8pm ET/ 5pm PT UK and Ireland: 1am GMT Australia: 11am AEDT Match card War Games: Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins, Jey Uso, Sami Zayn and Randy Orton vs The Judgment Day (Finn Balor, Damien Priest, Domink Mysterio, JD McDonagh) and Drew McIntyre War Games: Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Bianca BelAir and Shotzi vs. Damage CTRL (Bayley, Asuka, Iyo Sky and Kairi Sane) Intercontinental Championship: Gunther (c) vs The Miz Women's World Championship: Rhea Ripley (c) vs Zoey Stark Carlito vs Santos Escobar Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings

Player ratings from the clash between Real Madrid & Rayo Vallecano in La Liga.

A lot of modern football grounds look like they could have been designed by the same person, often lacking in character and hard to pick apart. The same definitely cannot be said for Luton Town’s Kenilworth Road. The ground, which was built in 1905, has always been a point of curiosity for football fans, mainly thanks to its unique entrance. Rather than a conventional walkway and set of turnstiles, fans attending Luton games find themselves walking through what initially appears to be someone’s house, with a row of terraces on either side. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter What looks like an otherwise quiet residential street is actually hiding a football stadium holding more than 10,000 people. With Luton performing strongly this year and reaching the playoff final, people have been focusing on the unique entrance more than ever. With the side taking on Coventry in the play-off final, there’s a very real chance that the club will be experiencing Premier League football next year. @jordanevans1606 Everyone should experience Kenilworth Road at least once in their life ? #luton #lutontown #kenilworthroad #football #footballstadium While it remains one of the great curiosities in British football, a whole lot of changes to the ground are being planned for next year if they get to the Premier League. The owners of Luton Town have released details of planned upgrades, with the Bobbers stand set to be knocked down and the capacity upgraded to 19,500 – and a further 4,000 seats or safe standing section to be added in a second phase of upgrades. Luton CEO Gary Sweet, said: “We're delighted the infrastructure element is underway allowing us to develop the detail of the stadium's design and, in particular, work hard to capture the core characteristics that makes Kenilworth Road so atmospheric, so intimate and so special to us. “This season, perhaps more than any other, has demonstrated the incredible relationship we all have with The Kenny and that has been the driving force behind our design work… We know everyone is desperate for the new stadium to open – as are we! “It's clearly a hugely complicated project but the main aim has always been to maintain the architectural quality and to deliver a stadium that replicates an essential, unique character we are all so familiar with but also fit and ready to grace the Premier League stage.” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.