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Eric Wynalda doesn’t yet know if he will run for president of the United States Soccer Federation next year but he does know something has to change at the top of the sport in America. Wynalda, apparently, is not alone. After 11 unchallenged years as USSF president, incumbent Sunil Gulati will face at least two – and possibly more – declared rivals at an election in February. Wynalda comes with…

In April, when U.S. Soccer and the women’s national team announced they had agreed to terms on a new C.B.A., they ended a public fight that had been framed largely as a dispute over the issue of equal pay. But each side also heralded the deal as something more valuable: the start of a new partnership, one that gave the players a bigger voice in their team’s day-to-day affairs. Now,…

This summer, they stretched the netting at Citi Field halfway into the outfield. In response, Trost offered what amounted to a verbal shrug. “We have fans that are communicating with us that they are upset that we’re even considering it,” he said of any additional netting at Yankee Stadium beyond what Manfred had asked for. Trost’s statement certainly suggested that the Yankees were as mindful of their high-paying fans who…

North Korean athletes prepare to take part in the 2017 Asian Winter Games in Japan.  (Reuters) North Korea complained in newly unearthed letters that U.S.-led sanctions were depriving it’s starving, suffering populace of essential aid and materials — such as ski equipment. A diplomat from the Hermit Kingdom complained about athletes being unable to buy sporting gear in letters that argued for a reduction in sanctions, imploring sports…

While past acquisitions were seen as growth-oriented moves in a business — live sports and broadcasting — that thrived as other forms of media experienced headwinds, even live sports faces a challenging environment now. Dominant companies like ESPN are showing signs of struggle, and according to some industry experts, multimedia marketing has not grown as much as some expected. In that light, the potential merger — which would eliminate duplicative…

PARIS/SEOUL – France’s Winter Olympics team will not travel to the 2018 Games in South Korea if its security cannot be guaranteed, France’s sports minister said on Thursday, the first major doubts by a participating nation about growing North Korean tensions. The games organizer said on Friday that it is closely monitoring the current geopolitical situation with the South Korean government, adding that safety is the top priority. Tensions in…

In April, when U.S. Soccer and the women’s national team announced they had agreed to terms on a new C.B.A., they ended a public fight that had been framed largely as a dispute over the issue of equal pay. But each side also heralded the deal as something more valuable: the start of a new partnership, one that gave the players a bigger voice in their team’s day-to-day affairs. Now,…

A spate of high-profile road accidents involving bikes has sparked a national debate on laws covering reckless cycling. The Government this week announced an “urgent” legal review in the wake of the sentencing of Charlie Alliston, 20, who knocked down and killed 44-year-old mother Kim Briggs while riding a bike with no front brake. The case prompted calls for the introduction of new charges that apply specifically to cyclists who…

PARIS/SEOUL – France’s Winter Olympics team will not travel to the 2018 Games in South Korea if its security cannot be guaranteed, France’s sports minister said on Thursday, the first major doubts by a participating nation about growing North Korean tensions. The games organizer said on Friday that it is closely monitoring the current geopolitical situation with the South Korean government, adding that safety is the top priority. Tensions in…

In April, when U.S. Soccer and the women’s national team announced they had agreed to terms on a new C.B.A., they ended a public fight that had been framed largely as a dispute over the issue of equal pay. But each side also heralded the deal as something more valuable: the start of a new partnership, one that gave the players a bigger voice in their team’s day-to-day affairs. Now,…

In April, when U.S. Soccer and the women’s national team announced they had agreed to terms on a new C.B.A., they ended a public fight that had been framed largely as a dispute over the issue of equal pay. But each side also heralded the deal as something more valuable: the start of a new partnership, one that gave the players a bigger voice in their team’s day-to-day affairs. Now,…

Germany’s Tony Martin didn’t notice the commotion behind him on Wednesday. But the Internet did. (Marit Hommedal/NTB Scanpix via Reuters) Cycling fans at the UCI Road World Championships in Bergen, Norway, beware. Police officers charged with overseeing the race appear to have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to spectators getting too close to riders. On Thursday, during the time trial event, two officers mercilessly tackled a fan, who was…

The Hollywood treatment of the Danica Patrick story hasn’t hit theaters yet. But please believe: it’s coming. Maybe in a year. Maybe in 30. Either way, the creative license is going to be off the charts. It’s not hard to imagine the Danica character, played by a Mara sister or similar “type”, shaving her head or adding bass to her voice or insisting her rival drivers call her “Dan Patrick”….

As NASCAR nears the second round of the Cup Series playoffs and another application of PJ1 TrackBite to improve the racing product at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway, most of the industry has already moved on from another experiment tried earlier this season. Remember when Goodyear offered a softer option tire at the NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway? The set was supposed to produce lap times…

In a rite that traditionally signals the Olympics are drawing near, organizers of the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, have unveiled the medals they will present on the podium in February. The design highlights the host country’s culture in two ways. Hangeul, a Korean alphabet, has been engraved on each piece, with a series of consonants emphasizing the effort that athletes display. A local textile called Gapsa was…

The Hollywood treatment of the Danica Patrick story hasn’t hit theaters yet. But please believe: it’s coming. Maybe in a year. Maybe in 30. Either way, the creative license is going to be off the charts. It’s not hard to imagine the Danica character, played by a Mara sister or similar “type”, shaving her head or adding bass to her voice or insisting her rival drivers call her “Dan Patrick”….

The UCI, world cycling’s governing body, has confirmed the men’s Tour de Yorkshire race will grow from three to four days next year, with the women’s race increasing from one to two days. The 2018 men’s race will take place from 3-6 May – Thursday to Sunday – with the women’s race scheduled for 3 and 4 May. The extra days are a major boost for the organisers, Welcome to…

There’s always room for improvement. So even though the NBA is now a 12-month league that we can’t look away from, we here at The Ringer have a few humble suggestions to make it even greater. Welcome to League Hack Week—the first of four weeklong series leading up to opening night of the 2017-18 NBA season. No U.S. pro sports franchise spends more on training young players than FC Dallas….

Mark Sampson is out as England’s coach. (Daniel Mihailescu/AFP/Getty Images) England’s national women’s soccer team reached new heights under coach Mark Sampson. After never making it past the quarterfinals in three previous appearances, the Lionesses finished third at the 2015 World Cup, and earlier this year they conceded just one goal on their way to the Euro 2017 semifinals before falling to the host Netherlands. But Sampson’s tenure was marked…

(CNN)South Korean President Moon Jae-in hopes his “audacious plan” for the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang can help unite North and South Korea. ‘);$vidEndSlate.removeClass(‘video__end-slate–inactive’).addClass(‘video__end-slate–active’);}};CNN.autoPlayVideoExist = (CNN.autoPlayVideoExist === true) ? true : false;var configObj = {thumb: ‘none’,video: ‘sports/2017/02/09/pita-taufatofua-tonga-olympics-pyeongchang-skiing-alex-thomas-amanda-davies-intv.cnn’,width: ‘100%’,height: ‘100%’,section: ‘international’,profile: ‘expansion’,network: ‘cnn’,markupId: ‘body-text_7’,adsection: ‘const-article-inpage’,frameWidth: ‘100%’,frameHeight: ‘100%’,posterImageOverride: {“mini”:{“height”:124,”width”:220,”type”:”jpg”,”uri”:”//i2.cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/161222082329-pita-taufatofua-oiled-portrait-small-169.jpg”},”xsmall”:{“height”:173,”width”:307,”type”:”jpg”,”uri”:”//i2.cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/161222082329-pita-taufatofua-oiled-portrait-medium-plus-169.jpg”},”small”:{“height”:259,”width”:460,”type”:”jpg”,”uri”:”//i2.cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/161222082329-pita-taufatofua-oiled-portrait-large-169.jpg”},”medium”:{“height”:438,”width”:780,”type”:”jpg”,”uri”:”//i2.cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/161222082329-pita-taufatofua-oiled-portrait-exlarge-169.jpg”},”large”:{“height”:619,”width”:1100,”type”:”jpg”,”uri”:”//i2.cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/161222082329-pita-taufatofua-oiled-portrait-super-169.jpg”},”full16x9″:{“height”:900,”width”:1600,”type”:”jpg”,”uri”:”//i2.cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/161222082329-pita-taufatofua-oiled-portrait-full-169.jpg”},”mini1x1″:{“height”:120,”width”:120,”type”:”jpg”,”uri”:”//i2.cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/161222082329-pita-taufatofua-oiled-portrait-small-11.jpg”}}},autoStartVideo = false,callbackObj,containerEl,currentVideoCollection = [],currentVideoCollectionId = ”,isLivePlayer = false,moveToNextTimeout,mutePlayerEnabled = false,nextVideoId = ”,nextVideoUrl = ”,turnOnFlashMessaging = false,videoPinner,videoEndSlateImpl;if (CNN.autoPlayVideoExist === false) {autoStartVideo = false;if (autoStartVideo…