Lancashire’s Joe Moores was out for “obstructing the field”, becoming only the 43rd player in first-class cricket history to be dismissed that way. He had played a ball from Procter into the ground and caught it as it bounced up in order to prevent it going anywhere near the stumps. The Northamptonshire fielders appealed confidently, the umpires consulted, Moores was on his way for two, leaving Lancashire 82-7.

Rory McIlroy has been putting a putter grip on his other clubs. At the BMW Championship, he revealed that both his lob wedge and 7-iron had putter-style grips. His explanation is essentially that it helps him keep his right arm structure and improve control. He stressed it isn't necessarily permanent.

At the Vuelta a España, Britain’s Ethan Hayter was riding in the breakaway when his skinsuit became so tight around his legs that he took scissors to it during the stage. His explanation: it was “cutting the blood” from his legs. He carried on racing.

#onthisday in 2004, Britain had a remarkable final day at the Athens Olympics. Kelly Holmes won the women's 1500m, adding to her 800m gold; Britain also won the men's 4×100m relay in a dramatic finish. It was one of the great days of the British Olympic campaign.

We’ve got a great subscription offer. You can now subscribe to Pitch magazine for just £10 an issue, saving £4.99 on the newsstand price. There are some amazing editions coming up - celebrating the FA Cup, F1 and the Tour de France. Move now to take advantage of this great offer!

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The annual event in Alberta, Canada is often used as a qualifier for the prestigious Boston Marathon. But a number of frustrated runners voiced concerns online after the race, noting that the distance on their GPS running watches was over 26.22 miles.

Organisers initially dismissed complaints but in a statement on Wednesday, they admitted an extra 674.7 metres (0.41 miles) was mistakenly added to the course. Race director Tom Keogh said: “We do not take this lightly. We hosted the nation’s best athletes and their finishing times did not truly reflect their amazing performances. Keogh added that organisers “did not deliver the standard participants deserved”.

On the first day of the Headingley test v. Pakistan, Ollie Robinson and Josh Tongue both took five-wicket hauls, and the groundsman cut the match ball in half so each could have a piece.

An AFL player sniffed all 13 match balls before kick-off. Gold Coast Suns star Matt Rowell (above) was filmed on all fours going through the Sherrin footballs one by one. This is apparently the next evolution of his already eccentric routine, which has included eating grass and crouching barefoot on the pitch.

TNT Sports will make the first 30 minutes of their live Premier League broadcasts available on YouTube this season starting with Manchester United’s visit to Hull tomorrow. The pre-Premier League show EKO – Early Kick Off – will be available free-to-air for the first time, as well as on TNT Sports and the streaming service HBO Max.

On this day, in 1965 – at the Giants v Dodgers game: one of baseball's most infamous fights erupted at Candlestick Park when Juan Marichal struck Dodgers catcher John Roseboro with a bat, sparking a 14-minute brawl.

The new issue of PITCH. With a Texan thread running throughout, we’ve an extended look at how, and why, the Dallas Cowboys became a global super-brand. Paul Simpson then places the NFL in a broader all-American context through Elvis and Nixon before we follow the money...

Moving House charts why billionaire owners have moved – and continue to move – franchises across state borders. And we take a look at the architecture that has literally supported the league’s sustained success with global design firm Populous – creators of the Buffalo Bills’ new mega complex.

At the back, three-time World Sports Photographer of the Year, Kevin Sabitus, contributes his portfolio documenting eight years in the NFL. We’ve a European’s guide to following Gridiron from overseas, and on top of all that a feature on the cyclical nature of the Superbowl, and what it tells us about the game itself.

GET THE NEW ISSUE HERE

At the back, three-time World Sports Photographer of the Year, Kevin Sabitus, contributes his portfolio documenting eight years in the NFL. We’ve a European’s guide to following Gridiron from overseas, and on top of all that a feature on the cyclical nature of the Superbowl, and what it tells us about the game itself.

ORDER YOUR COPY HERE

With summer well and truly here and destined to go on for who knows how long, the sunny days and long nights provide plenty of opportunity to dig out the golf clubs and get putting. But if your local course has become more of a grind than a good time and you’re looking for fresh inspiration to reignite your love of the game, Jeff Thoreson has you covered in The Golf Bucket List.

Predominantly aimed at those who already play, there are sections for spectators and armchair fans too that cover the best tournaments to see and golf books to read. But, in the main, this is all about the courses, holes and countries to sample, beginning with the ten tee shots you need to hit, which includes the celebrated 1^st hole at Machrihanish Golf Club in Scotland. A rocky outcrop that requires a drive across the Atlantic Ocean, the first tee has been lauded by Jack Nicklaus as the top opening hole in the world – endorsements don’t get much better than that.

From individual holes, the book also features the top ten European and top ten international courses to play, which offer readers up courses from Utrecht and Norway to the Dominican Republic and Japan. The final bucket list items pull together something for the golfer who has done everything in the list of ten daring adventures you should try, featuring the ‘Extreme 19^th’ – a tee accessible only by helicopter.

So whether you’re up for the Hanglip mountain challenge or prefer a watching brief at the Aundi Evian Championship, now is as good a time as any to start ticking off the bucket list.

BUY THIS BOOK

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OUR NEXT ISSUE

With a Texan thread running throughout, we’ve an extended look at how, and why, the Dallas Cowboys became a global super-brand. Paul Simpson then places the NFL in a broader all-American context through Elvis and Nixon before we follow the money...

Moving House charts why billionaire owners have moved – and continue to move – franchises across state borders. And we take a look at the architecture that has literally supported the league’s sustained success with global design firm Populous – creators of the Buffalo Bills’ new mega complex.

At the back, three-time World Sports Photographer of the Year, Kevin Sabitus, contributes his portfolio documenting eight years in the NFL. We’ve a European’s guide to following Gridiron from overseas, and on top of all that a feature on the cyclical nature of the Superbowl, and what it tells us about the game itself.

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Whether it’s fans talking among themselves, commentators on TV or YouTube highlights reels, we’ve all heard footballers being compared to superheroes. Messi’s trickery, Mbappe’s speed, Pele’s goals, they all belong to another realm, more akin to the world of Marvel and DC and the supernatural gifts of Spiderman and Superman than anything possible from us mere mortals. So it should come as little surprise that there’s now a book dedicated to reimagining some of football’s greatest superstars as superheroes, thanks to the creative vision of Mahamadou Traore.

Although one might be forgiven for thinking such a book is aimed at kids, with players spanning the generations and a very sophisticated quality to the art style and designs, there is definitely a huge appeal for older football fans. The chosen players are by necessity largely predictable, with a few less obvious choices, and a couple of the real ‘superstars’ are included twice, which does feel a little as if the book misses out on including other players, but all in all, the book covers a lot of ground in celebrating some of the most iconic football players of all time, from goalkeepers through to strikers.

The real draw of this book is undoubtedly, however, its artwork and creativity. Each player is given a double-page spread, with a short bio and stats on one page, while the second page consists of a full-page poster piece in the A4-sized tome. The style, colours and vision of every design are striking, from Beckham’s ‘The Spice Boy’ to Benzema’s ‘Ramadan Karim’, while Lev Yashin’s ‘The Black Spider and Edgar Davids’ ‘The Pitbull’ really pull off the superhero aesthetic. The book succeeds in creating high quality, iconic, comic book-inspired imagery that brings the individual players and their ‘superhero’ essence to life. A real artistic tour de force.

BUY THIS BOOK AT BOOKSHOP.ORG

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Flash sale!

It’s getting exciting - the final 8 of the World Cup is taking shape. Celebrate with our brilliant World Cup Collector’s Edition : great stories and memories, facts and features to feed your World Cup fever.

SAVE £4.99 and GET YOUR COPY HERE

Brit Arthur Fery, ranked well outside the world’s elite, has stormed into the semi finals of Wimbledon after entering as a wildcard. He grew up just minutes from the All England Club and had won only a couple of Grand Slam matches before this run. He plays Alex Zverev in the semis today (Friday)

Shane Lowry landed in Scotland carrying bottles of Irn-Bru and joking that it was his “Scottish Open preparation.” Photos quickly spread on social media ahead of next week’s major championship.

China's "Village Super League" keeps getting stranger—in a good way. Amateur football teams representing villages continue to attract crowds that many professional clubs would envy. Halftime entertainment has included traditional dancing, local food competitions and livestock parades. The league has become a tourist attraction as much as a football competition.

WORLD CUP EDITION: JUST £10

Our World Cup Collector’s Edition, including a comprehensive timeline of the Copa Mundial, mapping nearly a century of history and covering the birth of modern football, plus profiles and interviews. Now just £10.

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#onthisday in 1877, the first-ever Wimbledon Championships begin at the All England Croquet Club in London. It featured only the men’s singles event, with 22 competitors. Spencer Gore would go on to win the title 10 days later

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Depeche’s fifth installment once again challenges conventions of what a golf publication can be. Brimful of personal stories, unique artworks and fabulous photography, issue 5 is the ideal read for people passionate about golf and curious for a shift in perspective. Titled 'Home', the issue looks into places and ideas related to the concepts behind the word. We headed up to St Andrews, where the historic home of golf is constantly changing; we made the road our home for a wild summer of golf in Ireland and visited the Engadine Golf Club in St Moritz, a mountain town widely seen as the Swiss home of golf. We portrayed the guys from our home course down the road and went on a quest for the vanishing greens of Singapore. We were guests at the world’s oldest building used as a club house and visited an artist in New Zealand who built an unplayable golf course through his hometown Christchurch. We dove into the philosophy of home and considered the nature of the flag. We went looking for Missing Links in the far-east, had a lesson with the Old Pro and learnt there is finally a doctor on the course, while our Photographer in Residence brought us views of other people’s homes and courses. This game deserves more. Grab your copy of issue 5 here, or subscribe to never miss a future issue.

Use PITCH20 - 20% off issue 5 and/or a subscription.

Flash sale!

It’s getting exciting - the final 16 of the World Cup is taking shape. Celebrate with our brilliant World Cup Collector’s Edition : great stories and memories, facts and features to feed your World Cup fever.

SAVE £4.99 and GET YOUR COPY HERE

Robot tennis servers at Wimbledon. Visitors have been trying to return serves from a robot programmed to mimic professional players' deliveries, creating one of the more entertaining attractions away from Centre Court. Joe Marler had a go, attempting to return serves from the machine’s imitation of the serves of Jannik Sinner, Aryna Sabalenka, Teodora Kostovic and Miomir Kecmanović.

Two boa constrictors found on the same golf course—in one week

Blackwell Grange Golf Club in Darlington had to deal with not one but two escaped boa constrictors. The first was discovered after a 12-year-old girl’s golf ball landed next to it during a junior lesson. A second snake turned up days later, leaving members wondering if someone nearby had lost a very unusual collection of pets.

Mexico’s World Cup mascot banned from a match

Merlin, Mexico’s duck mascot, was unable to attend a World Cup match because stadium rules prohibited animals. Merlin had previously made headlines for reportedly biting Mexico’s president.

Cyclist fined for wearing the wrong clothes—in a heatwave

During a 30°C time trial, cycling star Mathieu van der Poel was fined after officials ruled his clothing breached race regulations, despite competitors desperately trying to stay cool.

Four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome has brought an end to his illustrious career in professional cycling.

The 41-year-old British rider has not raced since a serious crash in August 2025 when he collided head-on with a road sign at more than 30mph and suffered five broken ribs, a collapsed lung and a lumbar vertebrae fracture.

“Unfortunately, there was that crash last summer - that was not the way I wanted it to end. But even then, I knew it was over,” Froome told Belgian broadcaster Sporza.

Formula One drivers are set to trade their usual high-performance vehicles for an altogether more whimsical mode of transport this Sunday, as they embark on a unique parade lap at Silverstone in mini-cars constructed entirely from Lego bricks. It’s the latest in a series of collaborations between the Liberty Media-owned sporting organisation and the Danish toymaker.

When Henri Desgrange conceived of the Tour of France at the start of the twentieth century, few could imagine just how massive and legendary the competition would become. Yet a week out from the Grand Depart of the 113^th Tour, it is staggering to look back on the history of a competition that began all the way back in 1903 with just six stages and sixty starters. Throughout the ensuing 123 years, the Tour has witnessed the best and worst of sport and humanity, controversies and comebacks, incredible physical feats and tragic fatalities, and continues to enthral and amaze in the twenty-first century. Each edition has given spectators, fans and riders something new to appraise as the Tour has continued to innovate and break new ground, metaphorically and literally, as Ellis Bacon explores in the superb Mapping Le Tour.

Starting with the inaugural event in 1903, the coffee-table-sized book dedicates a double-page spread to each edition, with one page detailing the facts and history of that particular race and the opposing page reserved for a map charting that year’s route. We meet the heroes and villains of the Tour’s history, from Maurice Garin, the first ever winner in 1903, through to current luminary Tadej Pogacar. There’s the first ever wearer of the yellow jersey, Eugene Christophe in 1919, who eventually finished third on the podium, and the first British rider to wear the famed maillot jaune, Tom Simpson, in 1962, who five years later would tragically lose his life whilst riding the Tour. We discover the inclusion of the first Pyrenees climbs in 1910 and the longest ever Tour in 1926. Sadly, there’s no escaping the murky shadows of the Festina Affair or the Lance Amstrong scandal, but there’s plenty to be celebrated too and the book provides a superb companion to this year’s race.

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An infamous death, a career as one of Britain’s greatest ever road racers, and a personality to match his talent, Paul Simpson writes about the life – and passing - of cyclist, Tom Simpson.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

The International Olympic Committee has broken with 130 years of tradition by deciding to pay athletes to compete at the Olympic Games.

Starting with the recent Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, all competitors will be entitled to a $10,000 (£7,600) grant from the IOC regardless of their current income. About 14,000 athletes from the Summer and Winter Games are eligible for the payment, at a cost to the IOC of about $140m. Athletes would receive the money six months after competing, provided they did not fail a doping test or violate the Olympic charter.

“This grant will be available to every Olympian,” said Pau Gasol, the head of the IOC’s athletes’ commission. “Not just medal winners, not just athletes from certain countries, every Olympian. Because while every athlete’s journey is different, every Olympian has made sacrifices to reach the Olympic stage, years of dedication, years of hard work, years of believing in a dream.”

Soccer reaches boiling point

The year is 1994 and America is preparing to host its first World Cup. The soccer kind. Football writer Robert Wilson pens a tribute to the time, and it all begins in Rotterdam. With a team otherwise uninvolved. Was this to be a World Cup that changed everything or just another fork in the road? You can read everything about this wonderfully winding tale in print, and now online. Enjoy.

Today’s odds on who will win the World Cup

• France 4/1

• Spain 11/2

• Argentina 13/2

• England 13/2

• Portugal 10/1

• Brazil 12/1

• Germany 12/1

• Netherlands 14/1

Wimbledon stopped by its own technology

Qualifying at Wimbledon was interrupted for about an hour when the electronic line-calling system failed after a power outage. The irony is that Wimbledon replaced human line judges with the automated system. The breakdown came during a London heatwave, leading to plenty of jokes about AI needing a drinks break.

Title fight abandoned by a thunderstorm

A European boxing title fight in Madrid was halted by lightning and torrential rain. The outdoor ring became unsafe, the TV feed failed, and the bout was declared a “no contest” because it hadn’t progressed far enough. It’s rare enough for a championship fight to end because of weather; rarer still for the broadcast to disappear at the same time.

On This Day in 1969 – Wimbledon marathon
At The Championships, Wimbledon, Pancho Gonzales defeated Charlie Pasarell in what was then the longest men's singles match in Wimbledon history, lasting 112 games and more than five hours. The match remains legendary because:

• Gonzales was 41 years old.

• He trailed by two sets to love before mounting a comeback.

• The final score was 22–24, 1–6, 16–14, 6–3, 11–9.

• The contest lasted 112 games and more than 5 hours, making it the longest Wimbledon match at the time.

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Our 16th magazine takes the planet’s most-watched tournament and quite deliberately shoots around the edges of what you’ll find elsewhere.

To kick things off, a comprehensive timeline of the Copa Mundial maps nearly a century of history and covers the birth of modern football at USA ’94.

There’s a strong Scottish thread running throughout this celebratory magazine, inspired by an interview with 1978 World Cup skipper Don Masson and a lyrical profile of Napoli’s Scott ‘McFratm’ McTominay.

Elsewhere, we meet the first-time qualifiers – there’s four of them – before taking a broader look at football across the Americas, with postcards from Clube Atlético Mineiro to boot.



That covers the good, we’ve also the ‘bad’ in an extract from No Show: The World Cups that Never Were, and the ‘ugly’ as Paul Simpson writes about five World Cup campaigns that turned sour.

There will be 104 games at the 2026 World Cup. Consider this your invitation to join us for the journey.

SAVE 20% : Use SUBSTACK20 code

With the summer now upon us, the World Cup having kicked off and Father’s Day lined up this weekend, there’s every excuse (as if one was needed) for a tipple, or two. But if you’ve had enough lager to last you a lifetime and your beer has past its best before, why not rustle up something a little different in the way of a cocktail. And if you’re looking for inspiration, you need look no further than Chris Vola’s Drink One for the Team, which brings together seventy-five cocktail recipes inspired by sporting events, including the World Cup.

Two ounces of gin, some simple syrup, five cucumber slices, four lime wedges, a pinch of salt, a pinch of black pepper and Bob’s your uncle when it comes to making a Gordon’s Cup, which is the cocktail of choice for the Fifa World Cup, according to this vibrant guide, which has your sporting beverage needs covered for everything from the Baseball World Series (Grand Slam) to the X Games (Heaven in a Half-Pipe). Whether it’s a Super Sunday Punch (think Bourbon, applejack and sweet tea) for the Super Bowl, an Azalea Cocktail (vodka, pineapple juice and grenadine) for the Masters, or a Pat Cash Grand Slam (rum, orange juice, pomegranate syrup) for the Australian Open, you’ll find the right mixer for every sporting moment. Horseracing and motorsports, regattas and rugger are all given their cocktail accompaniment, with the summer, winter and paralympics covered too, although you may not want to wait every four years for a Winter Buck. Fans of darts, ten-pin bowling and pickleball aren’t left out either.

With a Sumo Sidecar or Bitter Giuseppe to look forward to, it gives a whole new meaning to the idea of sports hydration. Bottoms up!

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Give Dad more than just a gift. Give him stories he’ll remember. A Pitch Magazine subscription brings top-notch sports storytelling, famous athletes, and great photography right to his door. From Formula 1 legends to Super Bowl heroes and cycling greats, each issue is filled with inspiration, passion, and performance for the sports fan who enjoys the deeper side of the game. It’s perfect for Father’s Day and meant to be collected.

The next four issues, starting with in August.

Saving £5 an issue PLUS free p&p.

What’s included:

-4 printed issues per year

-Free UK delivery

-Exclusive long-form sports journalism

-Coverage of iconic athletes, teams, and events

-Premium “coffee-table” quality print design

Father's Day offer here

Commentator suspended after confusing the teams

A veteran Turkish broadcaster covering Iran vs New Zealand reportedly spent several minutes describing the wrong side, having mixed up which team was wearing which colours. The error went viral and resulted in his suspension from World Cup duty.

A 50-1 shock winner

Ten Bob Tony stunned punters at Ascot this week by winning the Queen Anne Stakes at odds of 50-1, becoming the longest-priced winner of the race since 1950. Even jockey Kieran Shoemark admitted the performance surprised him

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Plans to limit how far golf balls can fly in the professional game have been put on hold by the R&A and United States Golf Association, and other options are being considered to try to solve the game’s distance problem, says BBC Sport

There remains a lack of consensus among golf’s stakeholders including the leading tours, their players, manufacturers and governing bodies who have been anxious to implement change.

For the past eight years the R&A and USGA have been examining ways to counter the massive length modern players such as Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler can generate, especially with their tee shots.

This weekend, in 1960, Arnold Palmer shot a final-round 65 at Cherry Hills Country Club in Colorado to capture the U.S. Open. The tournament featured three generations of golf greats: Palmer, Ben Hogan and amateur Jack Nicklaus.

Celebrate the World Cup in style with Football Finery’s collection of authentic international football shirts from tournaments past and present.

Whether you’re backing your nation this summer or simply looking for a classic piece of football history, we’ve got hundreds of genuine international shirts available online and in-store at our Cambridge shop.

Browse the collection here:

https://www.footballfinery.co.uk/collections/international-shirts

As a Pitch Magazine reader, you can enjoy 10% off using discount code: PITCHMAGAZINE10

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Give Dad more than just a gift. Give him stories he’ll remember. A Pitch Magazine subscription brings top-notch sports storytelling, famous athletes, and great photography right to his door. From Formula 1 legends to Super Bowl heroes and cycling greats, each issue is filled with inspiration, passion, and performance for the sports fan who enjoys the deeper side of the game. It’s perfect for Father’s Day and meant to be collected.

The next four issues, starting with in August.
Saving £5 an issue PLUS free p&p.

What’s included:

-4 printed issues per year

-Free UK delivery

-Exclusive long-form sports journalism

-Coverage of iconic athletes, teams, and events

-Premium “coffee-table” quality print design

Father's Day offer here

+++

Our 16th magazine takes the planet’s most-watched tournament and quite deliberately shoots around the edges of what you’ll find elsewhere.

To kick things off, a comprehensive timeline of the Copa Mundial maps nearly a century of history and covers the birth of modern football at USA ’94.

There’s a strong Scottish thread running throughout this celebratory magazine, inspired by an interview with 1978 World Cup skipper Don Masson and a lyrical profile of Napoli’s Scott ‘McFratm’ McTominay.

Elsewhere, we meet the first-time qualifiers – there’s four of them – before taking a broader look at football across the Americas, with postcards from Clube Atlético Mineiro to boot.

That covers the good, we’ve also the ‘bad’ in an extract from No Show: The World Cups that Never Were, and the ‘ugly’ as Paul Simpson writes about five World Cup campaigns that turned sour.

There will be 104 games at the 2026 World Cup. Consider this your invitation to join us for the journey.

SAVE 20% : Use SUBSTACK20 code

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Sports Book Of The Week

While the prospect of a World Cup jointly held in the United States, Canada and Mexico may have at first been less divisive than recent editions of the tournament, it perhaps isn’t quite the glorious idyll that it appears to be – ‘The party is really being organized by the United States. Canada is bringing the potato salad and Mexico is bringing the drinks.’ Mexican writer Juan Villoro tackles the Mexico/US relationship and the pressing matter of the imminent World Cup in just one of many insightful essays in his new book, The Game at The End of The World.

The son of a philosopher and himself a playwright and novelist, amongst many other talents, Villoro approaches the world of football through a beautifully poetic lens in some 18 extended meditations. Although, by the very nature of a compilation of this sort, some chapters may not hit as well as others for individual readers, there is plenty of quality writing here to get stuck into, whether it be goal celebrations, the passion of fans or the relationship between Shakira and Gerard Pique… There are moving reflections on the tragedy of Robert Enke and the so-called Death Match in 1942, a personal reflection on the women’s game and a pinpoint assessment of VAR: ‘VAR presses pause on epic occurrences like someone answering the phone in the middle of making love’.

From fandom to shirts, rivalries to catastrophes, Villoro delivers an erudite, engaging opinion that has its finger in the pulse of football’s current climate.

BUY THIS BOOK

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Take out an annual subscription to The Blizzard, Jonathan Wilson’s quarterly magazine, and receive a FREE copy of Whatever will be, will be: A Matter of Life and Football by Felix White!

What’s more, you’ll save over 10% on the magazine’s cover price.

About the book: On the brink of turning 40, Felix White (of The Maccabees and Tailenders fame) sets out on a moving and often hilarious journey to watch a match from every round of the 2024/25 FA Cup. As he travels the country, football becomes a way to explore memory, identity, grief, joy, and growing up.

https://forwardpress.imbmsubscriptions.com/BLZFELIX26

If you’re not familiar with Art But Make It Sports, get ready for your new online obsession. In 2019, LJ Rader set up an account whereby he finds an art equivalent to a sports image and posts the results and what follows is a rabbit hole sports fans will have lots of fun falling down. Once you’ve seen Pep Guardiola and Erling Haaland as Ossian and Malvina by Johann Peter Krafft, you won’t be able to unsee it. Welcome to the madcap world of Art But Make It Sports, which is now celebrated in Rader’s first book.

From abstract artists like Kandinsky to classics such as Caravaggio, Rader trawls through the archives to bring together sporting moments with their artistic doubles. While some have an uncanny similarity, such as WNBA star Paige Bueckers and a sixteenth-century self-portrait by Sofonisba Anguuissola, and Rory McIlroy’s pose after winning the 2025 Masters and an early-twentieth century sculpture, the majority have more of an abstract, but nonetheless intriguing, connection. But the real magic happens when the meaning behind an artwork and a sports image collide in astonishing unity. And few quite hit that mark as well as a 2022 shot of Roger Federer being held aloft by his fellow tennis professionals after his final competitive event and the aptly named ‘Diagoras carried in triumph by his sons to Olympus’.

Whether you’re here for the awe-inspiring or simply here for the humour (see Jason Kelce/The Feast of Bacchus), there’s something really addictive about Art But Make It Sports that means you won’t quite be able to look at a sports image the same way again.

BUY THIS BOOK AT BOOKSHOP.ORG

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Give Dad more than just a gift. Give him stories he’ll remember. A Pitch magazine subscription brings top-notch sports storytelling, famous athletes, and great photography right to his door. From Formula 1 legends to Super Bowl heroes and cycling greats, each issue is filled with inspiration, passion, and performance for the sports fan who enjoys the deeper side of the game. It’s perfect for Father’s Day and meant to be collected.

The next four issues, starting with our Summer issue
Saving £5 an issue PLUS free p&p.

What’s included:

-4 printed issues per year

-Free UK delivery

-Exclusive long-form sports journalism

-Coverage of iconic athletes, teams, and events

-Premium “coffee-table” quality print design

SHOP NOW

The Enhanced Games held its first major event in Las Vegas this week and instantly became one of the most controversial stories in sport. The competition openly allows athletes to use performance-enhancing drugs under medical supervision, arguing that modern sport already operates in a grey area of hidden doping and biohacking. Backers include tech investors and longevity enthusiasts who frame the event as a showcase for “human enhancement” rather than traditional clean competition.

The biggest headline came from Greek swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev, who swam 20.81 seconds in the men’s 50m freestyle, faster than the official world record. However, the swim will not count as an official world record because the event permits banned substances and non-approved equipment, including polyurethane suits. Organizers awarded him $1 million for the performance.

Despite all the hype, only one “world record” was beaten, and several non-enhanced athletes reportedly defeated drug-assisted competitors in other events. Sprint races were chaotic. Critics said the production felt closer to a biotech infomercial than elite sport.

Reaction outside the event has been fierce. The World Anti-Doping Agency and mainstream sports federations condemned the Games as dangerous and unethical. Athletes and medical experts warned that openly encouraging PED use could pressure future competitors into risking long-term health damage just to remain competitive. Supporters, meanwhile, argue the Games expose hypocrisy in elite sport and could normalise safer, medically supervised enhancement instead of underground doping.

A 70ft statue of Lionel Messi in India is set to be taken down after it was spotted “swaying in the wind”. The giant monument in Kolkata, West Bengal, was erected in December

According to local media, engineers from the Public Works Department (PWD) carried out an inspection of the statue following complaints from local residents on Monday. Its immediate removal and relocation were ordered after the inspection found the statue’s structural integrity to be severely compromised.

#onthisday in 1907, the very first Isle of Man TT race took place, launching what would become one of the world’s most famous and dangerous motorsport events.

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Introducing the third issue of TIRO , the Italian football magazine.

There’s 56 pages of football, culture, food and more as we celebrate the city of Florence and its football club — Fiorentina.

The unmistakable purple shirt, a century of history and how the Renaissance’s lasting legacy impacts upon Fiorentina today.

There’s a 20% discount through this link: https://shop.tirofootball.com/discount/TIRO20

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Football Benchmark has published the 11th edition of Football Clubs’ Valuation: The European Elite, its annual report ranking the 32 most valuable football clubs in Europe by Enterprise Value (EV). The report analyses the latest financial, sporting, operational, and market trends across European football.

Real Madrid CF have once again topped the ranking with an EV of €7.7 billion, the highest figure ever recorded in Football Benchmark’s analysis. The club’s position was supported by sustained elite-level sporting performance, strong commercial momentum, and the ongoing impact of the renovated Santiago Bernabéu on matchday and commercial & other revenues.

FC Barcelona have climbed to second place after recording the strongest absolute EV growth amongst all clubs, adding approximately €1.46 billion year-on-year and approaching the €6 billion EV threshold for the first time. However, despite Barcelona’s strong recovery, the gap to Real Madrid CF still exceeds €1.8 billion.

Manchester City and Manchester United , both broadly stable in value, complete the top four, with the 2026 edition marking the first time in the report’s history that Manchester United FC are ranked outside the top three. Arsenal FC have climbed to fifth place following sustained sporting and commercial progress, and have recorded the third-highest year-on-year absolute EV increase (+€921 million), behind only FC Barcelona and Real Madrid CF. Fellow UEFA Champions League finalists Paris Saint-Germain FC recorded the fourth-highest increase (+€765 million).

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Our 16th magazine takes the planet’s most-watched tournament, in the Football World Cup, and quite deliberately shoots around the edges of what you’ll find elsewhere.

To kick things off, a comprehensive timeline of the Copa Mundial maps nearly a century of history and covers the birth of modern football at USA ’94.

There’s a strong Scottish thread running throughout this celebratory magazine, inspired by an interview with 1978 World Cup skipper Don Masson and a lyrical profile of Napoli’s Scott ‘McFratm’ McTominay.

Elsewhere, we meet the first-time qualifiers – there’s four of them – before taking a broader look at football across the Americas, with postcards from Clube Atlético Mineiro to boot.

That covers the good, we’ve also the ‘bad’ in an extract from No Show: The World Cups that Never Were, and the ‘ugly’ as Paul Simpson writes about five World Cup campaigns that turned sour.

There will be 104 games at the 2026 World Cup. Consider this your invitation to join us for the journey.

In discussions about the greatest goalkeeper of all time, the name Gianluigi Buffon wouldn’t be far from the debate. With over 1000 career appearances and the record for most appearances in Serie A and for Italy, there are few accolades the goalkeeper doesn’t hold. A record five-time winner of the IFFHS World’s Best Goalkeeper, the IFFHS Best Goalkeeper of the 21^st Century, thirteen-time winner of the Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year, as well as a World Cup winner. Yet despite retiring in 2023 at the age of 45, the ending was nearly quite different, as the legendary goalkeeper acknowledges in his autobiography, Saved.

Having represented Italy at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 as an eighteen-year-old, Buffon always had hopes of returning as one of the older players and had aimed for Paris 2024, but with Italy failing to qualify, Gigi not only put that dream to bed but also brought time on a career spanning four decades – a career that started in the snow of northeastern Italy, where a young Buffon first learned to love to dive. From those humble roots, the boy from Carrara would go on to Parma, where he would make his breakthrough and win his first trophies: the Coppa Italia and UEFA Cup, and bring him to the attention of Juventus.

At the Old Lady, Buffon secured his iconic status, whilst at the same time triumphing on the global stage at the 2006 World Cup, but his time in the game, and in Turin, would not be without controversy as Juventus – and Buffon – were caught up in one of the biggest football betting scandals of the modern era and relegated to Serie B.

Buffon’s autobiography encompasses an incredible career, as well as the realities of life as an Italian footballer in both its greatest moment and its biggest shame and is written in an elegant, sophisticated style of which fans of one of the world’s greatest ever goalkeepers would expect no less.

BUY THIS BOOK

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It’s your essential World Cup read.

* Review: every tournament since USA 94

* Characters: 10 Brazilians who make it look easy

* The first-time qualifiers

* Profile: Scott McTominay

* The Best Team Never To Reach The World Cup

* 5 World Cup campaigns that went sour

* Interview 1978 skipper Don Masson

* Baddies: Sepp Blatter

132 pages, great writing, stunning illustrations and photography in this Collector’s Edition. Get 20% off with WORLDCUP20 code

20% OFF WITH "WORLDCUP20" CODE HERE

The all-female track meet Athlos will head to London for the first time in 2026 as it expands to a two-day event - and its founder hopes the competition can become the “Formula 1 of track and field”.

Created by Alexis Ohanian, Reddit co-founder and husband of tennis’ 23-time Grand Slam singles champion Serena Williams, Athlos will also be held in New York for a third consecutive year.

In addition to a prize pot of $2.1m (£1.5m), athletes will be offered equity in the league - the idea being that they will be rewarded if it is successful.

American stars Sha’Carri Richardson, Gabby Thomas, Tara Woodhall-Davis, Masai Russell and Dominican sprinter Marileidy Paulino have so far been confirmed for the events at the StoneX Stadium in Barnet, home of rugby union side Saracens, on 18 September and the Icahn Stadium in New York two weeks later.

#onthisday in 1966, British boxing legend Henry Cooper challenged Muhammad Ali for the world heavyweight title at Highbury Stadium in London. Cooper’s hopes ended when a severe cut forced the fight to be stopped.

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A California high school athletics final sparked debate after officials allowed multiple athletes to share championship podium positions following controversy around transgender athletes competing in and winning girls’ events.

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The cash at stake in the Championship play-off, and the rewards of getting to the Premiership, clearly went to Southampton’s heads. Reuters this week described the game as being worth “over £200 million”. While the play-off is certainly the most financially consequential single game, rather than the richest sporting event, the consequences of spying on their rivals have backfired on Southampton.

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In a podcast appearance this week, Bryson DeChambeau suggested that the moon landings may not be real, adding “I do think that there are interdimensional beings out there, for sure. I do believe in UAPs [Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena]. UAPs, UFOs, I think they’re more than just aliens from another world. Maybe aliens from another world. But I think there’s more. There’s a lot more to that story.”

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A team of North Korean footballers who made history by crossing the border into South Korea earned a victory to take them into the Asian Women’s Champions League final.

Naegohyang won 2-1 in their semi-final against South Korea’s Suwon - with emotional scenes at the final whistle, as several of the victorious players sobbed with joy. The match marked the first time athletes from the north have visited the south since 2018.

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It’s your essential World Cup read.

* Review: every tournament since USA 94

* Characters: 10 Brazilians who make it look easy

* The first-time qualifiers

* Profile: Scott McTominay

* The Best Team Never To Reach The World Cup

* 5 World Cup campaigns that went sour

* Interview 1978 skipper Don Masson

* Baddies: Sepp Blatter

132 pages, great writing, stunning illustrations and photography in this Collector’s Edition. Get 20% off with WORLDCUP20 code

20% OFF WITH "WORLDCUP20" CODE HERE

Ask a sports fan to name a football goal celebration and they’ll likely rattle off a few: Ronaldo’s Siu, Mbappe’s folded arm stance, Crouch’s robot, and any number of knee slides and cradles. But ask a sports fan to name a rugby celebration and there are few as currently iconic as the cowboy celebration and few players as iconic as its proponent – Ellie Kildunne. World Cup winner, Olympian, World Rugby Women’s 15s Player of the Year in 2024, Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year 2025, runner-up in BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2025 and an MBE to boot, the 26-year-old is indeed paving the way in women’s rugby, and with another Six Nations title currently being competed for, she shares her inspirational story in her aptly named autobiography: Game Changer.

Finding rugby at a young age, adolescent Ellie had one ambition: to be the best player in the world. A lofty ambition, especially when girls’ rugby teams and girls’ rugby at school was at that time limited, to say the least. But Kildunne didn’t let those obstacles stop her – the only girl to play with the boys before making the bold decision, aged sixteen, to leave home to enrol at the rugby-centred Hartpury College. From there, England sevens and later the Red Roses beckoned, but not without the heartbreak of a delayed Olympics, World Cup defeat, health issues and injury that made success all the sweeter for the girl from Keighley who was determined to conquer the world and to do so with a smile on her face and a charisma all of her own that has propelled women’s rugby to new heights.

While Kildunne has already achieved so much, including the honour of having her very own Barbie to her name, there’s no plan to rest on her laurels. With the current Six Nations very much the focus for now, both the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 and the World Cup in Australia in 2029 are on the horizon, and Kildunne has already proved whatever she sets her sights on she achieves.

BUY THIS BOOK AT BOOKSHOP.ORG

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Our 16th magazine takes the planet’s most-watched tournament, in the Football World Cup, and quite deliberately shoots around the edges of what you’ll find elsewhere.

To kick things off, a comprehensive timeline of the Copa Mundial maps nearly a century of history and covers the birth of modern football at USA ’94.

There’s a strong Scottish thread running throughout this celebratory magazine, inspired by an interview with 1978 World Cup skipper Don Masson and a lyrical profile of Napoli’s Scott ‘McFratm’ McTominay.

Elsewhere, we meet the first-time qualifiers – there’s four of them – before taking a broader look at football across the Americas, with postcards from Clube Atlético Mineiro to boot.

That covers the good, we’ve also the ‘bad’ in an extract from No Show: The World Cups that Never Were, and the ‘ugly’ as Paul Simpson writes about five World Cup campaigns that turned sour.

There will be 104 games at the 2026 World Cup. Consider this your invitation to join us for the journey.

BUY YOUR COPY AT iSUBSCRIBE

The 2026 NFL season will see a record-breaking nine international fixtures, with London hosting three and first-ever games in Melbourne, Rio de Janeiro and Paris.

The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will again host two NFL games, in successive October weekends with the Philadelphia Eagles - 2025 champions - playing the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday October 11.

Wembley will also host a fixture as the Houston Texans face the Jacksonville Jaguars a week later on Sunday October 18. Further fixtures will take place at Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia, Maracana in Rio and Stade de France in Paris.

The NFL will also return for fixtures in Madrid, Munich and Mexico City.

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Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe, who last month became the first man to run a marathon in under two hours in an official race, will attempt to improve on that record on one of the world’s fastest courses at the Berlin Marathon in September.

The 31-year-old, who ran the London Marathon in one hour, 59 minutes and ⁠30 seconds, will return ​to ⁠competition when he defends his Berlin title on 27 September.

“After my victory in London and my sub-two-hour performance, I can only say that I will – as always – prepare as well as possible, come to Berlin to honour this great event and the organisation that invited me, and aim to run as well and as fast as I can,” Sawe said in a statement.

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#onthisday in 1988, Wimbledon’s Crazy Gang pulled off one of the greatest upsets in English football history, beating Liverpool 1–0 in the FA Cup Final at Wembley. Goalkeeper Dave Beasant became the first keeper to save a penalty in an FA Cup Final.

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Tennis stars push for revenue sharing

A growing player movement led by Novak Djokovic, Coco Gauff, and others is demanding a revenue-sharing system similar to the NBA and NFL. Prize money and player compensation have become a major issue ahead of the French Open.

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FIFA confirms a Super Bowl-style World Cup halftime show

FIFA has confirmed the 2026 World Cup final will feature the tournament’s first-ever halftime show. The planned lineup reportedly includes Madonna, Shakira, and BTS. It’s a major shift toward the NFL-style entertainment model.

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Casting the Circle does not merely describe a cultural phenomenon; it invokes a mode of perception. Within its pages, football—that global language seemingly exhausted by commercialisation—reappears in its most primal form: ritual, incantation, bodies and voices gathered around a shared mystery. Chris Kelso is not writing about the sport itself, but about what surrounds it: an archaic energy that endures at the margins, where the logic of capital has not yet fully corrupted experience.

This text invites us to abandon the distant gaze of the contemporary spectator—mediated through screens, statistics, and prefabricated narratives—and to enter an emotional and symbolic landscape in which each stadium becomes an improvised temple and every chant a form of resistance. What is portrayed here, alongside the work of Bruce Mack, and ultimately celebrated, is not competition but communion; not spectacle, but a living liturgy that reawakens each weekend in Scotland’s junior leagues. At a time when culture seems to have forgotten its own rituals, the authors remind us that there are still grounds and communities holding firm against the encroachment of the modern game.

The book will be available on our website dinkit.co.uk

Socials:
@dinkit
@therealchriskelso
@plantsnifferpress

—
Casting The Circle is a collaboration between Writer Chris Kelso, Photographer Bruce Mack and designer Matt Berry. Published by Dinkit

Our World Cup Special is now available.

I wanted to give you a special discount on our latest issue - it’s out now, and copies are selling fast but, for the next 24 hours you can secure your copy at 20% off the cover price.

Use code: SUBSTACK20

Here’s what you can look forward to:

-A city guide exploring the fan experience across host nations - from neighbourhood hangouts to stadium showpieces

-A retrospective on USA ’94 and its role in shaping the modern global tournament

-“Made at the World Cup” - a look back at iconic World Cup moments

-A Bluffer’s Guide to the 2026 tournament to keep you confidently in the know

-Features on the tournament’s first-time qualifiers

-An exclusive World Cup book extract from former Scotland captain Don Masson

-Insights from a goalkeeper on the art of saving penalties

-We also take a broader look at soccer in the United States - revisiting the NASL era and its star-studded line-up, including Pelé, Franz Beckenbauer, and George Best - examining what made it work, and why it ultimately faded.

If you’d like to take advantage the discount, now’s the time.

USE CODE SUBSTACK20 for 20% off

There’s not a day goes by that you don’t receive a promotional email, but last week one caught my eye and I decided to take a quick look. Four hours later, I’d acquired three new football shirts. Welcome to Classic Football Shirts.

The kit lover’s paradise was founded by a pair of university pals twenty years ago and what started out in the back room of a student house in Manchester with a handful of shirts has grown into one of the most thriving and exciting startups, with thousands of iconic kits to choose from and a roster of famous faces dropping in. And they’ve just published their first book, which gives everyone a chance of owning (in a fashion) hundreds of Classic shirts without overstretching either the bank balance or wardrobe.

With a brief introduction to the guys behind the endeavour, the substantial tome soon dives into the Vault, picking out iconic shirts in the history of football and the history of football fashion, with signed and match-worn examples from the likes of Francesco Totti. There are the usual classics, including the bruised banana and the Netherlands 88 shirt, alongside some absolute bangers from Colorado Caribous and Boca, all captured in full-page technicolour glory.

Yet despite the vast collection on show in the book’s 300-plus pages, this only scratches the surface, so fans and collectors alike will be hoping for a follow-up. Until then, dive into this compilation, but just make sure you’ve got wardrobe space to spare if you find yourself visiting Classic Football Shirts thereafter.

BUY AT BOOKSHOP.ORG

Our World Cup Special is now available.

I wanted to give you a special discount on our latest issue - it’s out now, and copies are selling fast but, for the next 24 hours you can secure your copy at 20% off the cover price.

Use code: SUBSTACK20

Here’s what you can look forward to:

-A city guide exploring the fan experience across host nations - from neighbourhood hangouts to stadium showpieces

-A retrospective on USA ’94 and its role in shaping the modern global tournament

-“Made at the World Cup” - a look back at iconic World Cup moments

-A Bluffer’s Guide to the 2026 tournament to keep you confidently in the know

-Features on the tournament’s first-time qualifiers

-An exclusive World Cup book extract from former Scotland captain Don Masson

-Insights from a goalkeeper on the art of saving penalties

-We also take a broader look at soccer in the United States - revisiting the NASL era and its star-studded line-up, including Pelé, Franz Beckenbauer, and George Best - examining what made it work, and why it ultimately faded.

If you’d like to take advantage the discount, now’s the time.

20% OFF WORLD CUP ISSUE: USE SUBSTACK20

Wonderkid One. For the first time in 24 years, and just the fourth time in Crucible history, the World Snooker Championship final went to a deciding frame. It was a fitting climax to the 50th final at this iconic Sheffield theatre and after Wu Yize (at just 22 years and 202 days) and Shaun Murphy had delivered a showpiece just as, if not more, compelling than any of the previous 49, it could hardly end any other way.

The decider itself may not have had the drama of the legendary black-ball finish of 1985 but as Wu held his nerve with a 85 break and become the second-youngest snooker world champion in history, the “Wuuuu” chants that rang round and confirmed that snooker has a new star in the boy from Lanzhou.

Wonderkid Two. Champions League finalist Bukayo Ayoyinka Temidayo Moses Saka was a bright lad at school, reportedly earning four A*s and three As in his GCSEs. “Bukayo” roughly means “adds to happiness” in Yoruba. As a kid he used to make breakfast with hot cross buns, chopped frankfurters, and ketchup.

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Wonderkid Three. 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is the latest wonder boy of Indian cricket. A left-handed opening batter from Bihar - he generates immense power with a whippy, high-handed motion. While there’s a debate as to whether India should fast-track him into the senior national team immediately or protect him from burnout, a social activist sparked a bizarre legal controversy by seeking an FIR (First Information Report) against Rajasthan Royals, claiming that a 15-year-old playing in a commercial league like the IPL constitutes “child labour.” We may, if India do select him, see him play in England this summer.

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#onthisday in 1975, shot-putter Brian Oldfield threw 22.86 metres — farther than the official world record at the time — but it couldn’t count because he was considered a professional athlete during an era when that affected eligibility.

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Our World Cup Special is now available.

I wanted to give you a special discount on our latest issue - it’s out now, and copies are selling fast but, for the next 24 hours you can secure your copy at 20% off the cover price.

Use code: SUBSTACK20

Here’s what you can look forward to:

-A city guide exploring the fan experience across host nations - from neighbourhood hangouts to stadium showpieces

-A retrospective on USA ’94 and its role in shaping the modern global tournament

-“Made at the World Cup” - a look back at iconic World Cup moments

-A Bluffer’s Guide to the 2026 tournament to keep you confidently in the know

-Features on the tournament’s first-time qualifiers

-An exclusive World Cup book extract from former Scotland captain Don Masson

-Insights from a goalkeeper on the art of saving penalties

-We also take a broader look at soccer in the United States - revisiting the NASL era and its star-studded line-up, including Pelé, Franz Beckenbauer, and George Best - examining what made it work, and why it ultimately faded.

If you’d like to take advantage the discount, now’s the time.

20% OFF WORLD CUP ISSUE: USE SUBSTACK20

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Pitch invasion: Cult Kits

Football has grown far beyond the 90 minutes on the pitch. It is defined by the stories, the high-stakes moments, and, most importantly for Cult Kits, the shirts.

To celebrate the release of the upcoming World Cup edition of Pitch, we’re giving you, the readers, an exclusive Cult Kits discount so you’re ready for kick-off on June 11th. Simply use code ‘PITCH10‘ at checkout.

The World Cup Edit

From Argentina’s recent winning blue and white stripes to the iconic shirts from the 1994 USA World Cup, football shirts are a global language. We specialise in vintage, rare, and international shirts that carry history and meaning. Whether you are backing your nation or showcasing your football knowledge, our collection has you covered.

Bootlegs, Done Properly

These are not your typical market stall knock-offs. Our in-house designed bootleg tees remix cult heroes, iconic moments, and nostalgia into unique, terrace-ready apparel you won’t find anywhere else.

Why Cult Kits?

Football culture deserves more than the same five shirts on repeat. We source the pieces you forgot, the ones you missed, and the ones you didn’t even know existed. High-quality football gear for those who care about the game beyond the scoreline.

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