(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Thursday’s sports events:
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Golden Knights 2, Hurricanes 4 (Stanley Cup Final – Game 5, CAR leads series 3-2)
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
Diamondbacks 0, Marlins 2
Twins 0, Tigers 11
Cardinals 4, Mets 5
Rangers 4, Royals 2
Cubs 9, Rockies 3
Dodgers 8, Pirates 6
Mariners 5, Orioles 7
Braves, White Sox (POSTPONED)
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
(NEW YORK) — The top national soccer teams from countries around the world have traveled to North America for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which kicks off Thursday, and are preparing for a packed schedule of matches in cities across the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
As Argentina looks to defend their championship title and fans prepare to watch all the on-pitch action for the expanded 48-team tournament, here’s a rundown of what you need to know about the draw format, host cities, schedules and more.
How many teams are competing in World Cup?
There are 12 groups of four teams representing 48 nations — 16 more than the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
When do World Cup matches start?
The group stage begins Thursday, June 11, when Mexico hosts South Africa for the World Cup opener at the historic Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
There will be an opening ceremony at 1:30 p.m. local time, and the match kicks off at 3 p.m.
There are 104 games to be played throughout the tournament, spanning 39 days.
The U.S. Men’s National Team plays its first 2026 World Cup game against Paraguay on Friday, June 12, with a 6 p.m. scheduled kickoff time at SoFi Stadium in California.
What are the U.S. host cities for FIFA World Cup?
Atlanta; Boston; Dallas and Houston, Texas; Kansas City, Missouri; Los Angeles; Miami; “New York New Jersey” (East Rutherford, New Jersey); Philadelphia; Seattle; and the San Francisco Bay Area will all play host to the 2026 World Cup.
World Cup draw explained: Format, groups and schedule
At the World Cup draw in December, teams were separated into 12 groups, labeled A-L.
The U.S. was placed into Group D alongside Australia, Paraguay, and Turkey, which earned the final spot in the group after a win over Kosovo in the UEFA playoffs in March.
In the group stage of the tournament, all teams are guaranteed three matches — one against every team in its group — with the top two teams from each guaranteed to advance. The eight best third-place teams will also advance. Other teams are eliminated.
With the expanded tournament this year, 32 surviving teams will make it out of the group stage and into single-elimination series of winner-take-all matches, known as the knockout round, all the way to the final.
In this stage, matches that result in a tie after full time will have 30 minutes of added time split in two 15-minute halves and a penalty shootout decider.
The round of 16 will take place July 4-7.
The first quarterfinal match is at Boston Stadium on July 9 in Foxborough, Massachusetts, followed by a match at SoFi Stadium Inglewood, California, on July 10. July 11 will see quarterfinal matches at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, and Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.
Semifinals matches will be played July 14 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, and July 15 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
When is the World Cup final?
The World Cup final will take place July 19 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, at MetLife Stadium, referred to in this tournament as New York New Jersey Stadium.
Who are the defending World Cup champions and favorites to watch this year?
Argentina, led by star forward Lionel Messi, is currently ranked No. 1, according to FIFA.
Spain, France, England and Portugal follow in sequence to round out the Top 5 spots ahead of the World Cup kickoff.
According to the latest expert power rankings released by ESPN on Tuesday, which were assembled by a 20-person voting panel, Spain — with its 18-year-old phenom Lamine Yamal — is the top team to watch this year.
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
(NEW YORK) — The New York Knicks pulled off a record comeback against the San Antonio Spurs in Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday, overcoming a 29-point deficit to win by a single point.
The win — one of the biggest comebacks in NBA finals history — spurred celebrations in star-studded Madison Square Garden and on the streets of New York City where large crowds had gathered to watch.
The Knicks’ return to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999 has transformed each game into one of the hottest tickets in New York, attracting actors, musicians, athletes and other public figures eager to witness the action in person.
Among those spotted inside the sold-out arena was Taylor Swift. The singer traveled cross-country from Los Angeles — where she performed live at the world premiere of “Toy Story 5” on Tuesday night — to New York to attend the game.
Wednesday night’s game marked the second NBA playoff game Swift has attended this postseason.
She and her fiancé, NFL star Travis Kelce, sat courtside at a May 23 Eastern Conference finals game in Cleveland between the Knicks and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Also in attendance at MSG were Michael J. Fox and his wife Tracy Pollan, Ben Stiller, Tracy Morgan, Adam Sandler and Nas.
The crowd’s energy extended beyond the game itself as fans packed the Garden for another memorable Finals atmosphere.
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Wednesday’s sports events:
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Spurs 106, Knicks 107 (NBA Finals – Game 4, NY leads series 3-1)
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
Red Sox 5, Rays 7
Yankees 8, Guardians 4
Nationals 10, Giants 11
Reds 4, Padres 5
Mariners 2, Orioles 7
Diamondbacks 0, Marlins 8
Dodgers 8, Pirates 9
Twins 6, Tigers 4
Phillies 7, Blue Jays 4
Cardinals 9, Mets 2
Braves 1, White Sox 2
Rangers 6, Royals 4
Cubs 2, Rockies 3
Brewers 3, Athletics 4
Astros 2, Angels 3
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Tuesday’s sports events:
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Hurricanes 5, Golden Knights 3 (Stanley Cup Final – Game 4, series tied 2-2)
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
Mariners 6, Orioles 5
Diamondbacks 6, Marlins 10
Red Sox 3, Rays 4
Dodgers 12, Pirates 3
Twins 4, Tigers 10
Yankees 3, Guardians 2
Phillies 2, Blue Jays 3
Cardinals 7, Mets 0
Braves 5, White Sox 6
Rangers 3, Royals 5
Cubs 3, Rockies 7
Astros 1, Angels 10
Reds 5, Padres 3
Nationals 6, Giants 3
Brewers 5, Athletics 7
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
(LONDON) — Serena Williams received a hero’s welcome on Tuesday as she made her first competitive appearance since the 2022 U.S. Open.
Dressed in a pink skirt with matching pink shoes, the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion walked onto a packed center court at Queen’s Club in London to loud cheers from fans eager to see the tennis legend back in action.
Queen’s Club, a historic and relatively intimate venue in west London, was filled to capacity for the occasion. By the time Williams stepped onto the court, there was not an empty seat in the house.
Williams, 44, teamed up with Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko, 19, in the first round of the HSBC Championships women’s doubles tournament. The pair faced the No. 3-seeded team of American Nicole Melichar-Martinez and New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe.
Despite her lengthy absence from competition, Williams and Mboko battled through a tightly contested opening set before winning the tiebreak 7-2 to take the set 7-6.
Williams stepped away from competition after the 2022 U.S. Open but never formally announced her retirement.
Williams owns 23 Grand Slam singles titles and 14 Grand Slam doubles titles with her sister, Venus Williams. She has also won seven singles and seven doubles titles at Wimbledon.
Her return comes as the grass-court season ramps up ahead of Wimbledon later this month. Williams is also entered in doubles at the Berlin Open, where she is expected to continue her comeback to competition.
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Monday’s sports events:
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Spurs 115, Knicks 111 (NBA Finals – Game 3, NY leads series 2-1)
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
Mariners 6, Orioles 3
Red Sox 1, Rays 3
Yankees 7, Guardians 5
Phillies 5, Blue Jays 2
Astros 5, Angels 4
Reds 2, Padres 6
Nationals 4, Giants 3
Brewers 15, Athletics 14
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
(NEW YORK) — The Las Vegas Golden Knights and Carolina Hurricanes are in the midst of a baby boom as they battle for the Stanley Cup title, according to the NHL.
Several of the Golden Knights and Canes players are either expecting fathers or have recently welcomed babies with their partners.
They include the Golden Knights’ Noah Hanifin, Mark Stone, Nic Dowd, Jack Eichel and Shea Theodore.
Hanifin, the 29-year-old Golden Knights defenseman, told the NHL that he and his wife, Monique Hanifin, are “excited” about the imminent arrival of their second child.
“We have an 11-month-old now, so I’m a little nervous about having two under 1, that’s for sure,” he said. “But no, I’m excited. With the games going on right now obviously it’s close, but we’ll see what happens. It’s kind of out of our control.”
On the Hurricanes front, K’Andre Miller, Sean Walker and Jalen Chatfield all are dads to babies born during this postseason.
According to the NHL, Miller and his girlfriend, Addison, welcomed son Kashton back on May 2, on the same day the Canes took on the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Second Round, which saw Miller take to the ice.
Just a few days later, teammate Walker and his wife, Taylor Walker, said hello to their baby daughter Quinn, ahead of Game 4 in that series on May 9.
Walker reflected on the close coincidence on the NHL’s “The Rink” podcast.
“We were both like, ‘What’s going on? This is crazy,'” Walker said. “We were just hoping it wasn’t going to line up on the same night. Again, what are the chances that it worked out perfectly? No one had to miss a game. Everyone was able to get where they had to be. Quite a whirlwind.”
The Golden Knights and Hurricanes face off again Tuesday in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup in Las Vegas.
The Vegas team looks to advance their 2-1 lead while the North Carolina team looks to tie up the best-of-seven game series.
Game 4 of the Stanley Cup airs June 9 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
ABC News has reached out to the Golden Knights and the Hurricanes for comment.
The Walt Disney Co. is the parent company of ABC and ABC News.
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Sunday’s sports events:
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
Red Sox, Yankees 6
White Sox 5, Phillies 9
Pirates 2, Braves 3
Orioles 4, Blue Jays 6
Mariners 4, Tigers 5
Rays 1, Marlins 4
Athletics 5, Astros 0
Royals 6, Twins 5
Reds 3, Cardinals 5
Guardians 0, Rangers 10
Brewers 12, Rockies 4
Nationals 1, Diamondbacks 5
Angels 13, Dodgers 5
Mets 7, Padres 3
Giants 2, Cubs 1
French Open Finals
Women’s Final: Mirra Andreeva beats Maja Chwalińska (6-3, 6-2)
Men’s Final: Alexander Zverev beats Flavio Cobolli (6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-1)
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Thursday’s sports events:
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Golden Knights 3, Hurricanes 4 (Stanley Cup Final – Game 2, Series tied 1-1)
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
Padres 4, Phillies 6
Orioles 8, Red Sox 2
Guardians 1, Yankees 2
Giants 12, Brewers 9
Blue Jays 7, Braves 2
Royals 8, Twins 6
Athletics 6. Cubs 7
Pirates 5, Astros 1
Dodgers 2, Diamondbacks 3
Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.