If AFL and NRL finals, the Women’s Rugby World Cup, or The Rugby Championship is simply not enough oval-shaped ball sports for you, you’re in luck.

The NFL kicked off over the weekend and has already produced some seriously good viewing. Today saw a showdown between two of the league’s best quarterbacks, 2025 MVP Josh Allen and two-time MVP Lamar Jackson.

The Buffalo Bills (Allen’s team) were down by 15 points headed into the final quarter and produced a remarkable comeback to triumph 41-40 over the Baltimore Ravens.

If you don’t have Allen or Jackson in your fantasy team, do you really think you stand a chance?

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The number of Irish Open titles Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy has now won. Nine years after his first Irish Open title, the world number two golfer outplayed Sweden’s Joakim Lagergren in a playoff to claim his second. It adds to a remarkable year for McIlroy, who has won four titles, including the Masters. To force the playoff with Lagergren, McIlroy drained an eagle putt on the 18th. He will now turn his attention to the Ryder Cup, a U.S. v Europe team competition held every two years, which is set to take place later this month.

"When you're in the same team, same pit crew, same mechanics, there's a lot at stake. For not just us, but for the whole team. I think the decision to swap back was fair. Lando was ahead of me the whole race, so I don't have any issues with that."
Australian Formula One driver Oscar Piastri in an interview with UK broadcaster Sky Sports after the Italian Grand Prix. Piastri moved ahead of Norris into second (behind race leader Max Verstappen) after the Brit was hampered by a slow pit stop. Piastri was then ordered by McLaren to allow Norris to pass him. Verstappen won the race, followed by Norris in second and Piastri in third. The result sees Piastri’s lead over Norris in the drivers championship reduced to 31 points.

One of the traditions in the NHL (North America’s professional ice hockey league) is that after a team wins the Stanley Cup, each member of the team is given one day to spend with the iconic trophy. Several players have taken this opportunity to baptise their children with the Stanley Cup. The first player to do so was Sylvain Lefebvre, who christened his children after the Colorado Avalanche won it in 1996. 

🏉 The Wallabies continued their impressive run in The Rugby Championship on Saturday with a 28-24 victory over Argentina in Townsville. After trailing 21-7 at halftime, the Wallabies worked themselves back into the game and were able draw level with ten minutes remaining. The Pumas then kicked a penalty goal to lead 24-21 before Wallabies prop Angus Bell crossed the line after the siren to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Meanwhile, the All Blacks defended their remarkable winning record at Eden Park in Auckland with a 24-17 triumph over South Africa. The All Blacks have not lost there since 1994. Next weekend, the Wallabies face Argentina again in Sydney and the All Blacks will host the Springboks in Wellington. 

🚴‍♂️ Australian cyclist Jay Vine was denied a historic third stage win at the Vuelta a España on Stage 15, but he held on to the King of the Mountains (polka-dot) jersey. Denmark’s Mads Pedersen sprinted to victory in Monforte de Lemos, while Jonas Vingegaard retained the overall leader’s red jersey. Jai Hindley remains the highest-placed Australian in the general classification in fourth place.

🏉 The first week of the NRL finals is set after the regular season came to a close on Sunday. Friday night saw the Sydney Roosters secure the final place in the top eight with a dominant 36-6 win over the South Sydney Rabbitohs. They will play the Sharks (5th) in an elimination final while the other elimination final will be contested between the NZ Warriors (6th) and Penrith Panthers (7th). In the qualifying finals between the top four teams in the competition, the Melbourne Storm (2nd) will host the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs (3rd) and the Canberra Raiders (1st) will face the Brisbane Broncos (4th). Meanwhile, the Newcastle Knights take home the wooden spoon for the fourth time in 11 seasons after they were beaten 66-10 by the Eels yesterday. 

🏉 In their first ever AFL finals appearance, the Gold Coast Suns scraped past the Fremantle Dockers by one point (80-79) to keep their hopes of an AFL premiership alive and end Fremantle’s season. In the other elimination final on Saturday, Hawthorn cut the GWS Giants season short with a 19-point (107-89) victory in Sydney. Those results mean that in the semi-finals next weekend, the Adelaide Crows will host Hawthorn and the Suns will face the Brisbane Lions. The winner of the Crows and Hawthorn will advance to a preliminary final against the Geelong Cats, while the victor of the Queensland grudge match will progress to a preliminary final against Collingwood.

Don’t let a cough be the reason you miss a game 

We’re entering an epic season of sport, make sure you’re ahead of the game by prioritising your immune health.

Blackmores’ Immune Rapi-Melts are formulated to help the immune system fight illness and support general health and wellbeing so you can spend more time on the field and less time sniffling in bed.

Always read the label and follow the directions for use. 

The Wallaroos have secured a place in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals, despite a heavy 47-7 loss to England in Brighton. 

Here’s what to know.

Australia started strongly, with Adiana Talakai scoring the opening try and holding England, the world’s number one team, to 19 points in the first half. England then showcased their dominant forward play in the second half and extended their lead by a further 28 points. 

Australia entered the match needing to avoid a 76-point loss to remain in the top two in Pool A, ahead of the U.S, and advance to the knockout stages. 

In the quarter-final, they will face Canada, who finished atop Pool B. The match will be played next Sunday in Bristol.

The other quarter-finals next weekend will see England play Scotland, New Zealand take on South Africa, and Ireland face France. 

Coach Jo Yapp said: "The positive thing is we created opportunities, we got field position and then we couldn't execute. Credit to England, they were coming up the line hard at us. But I'm proud of the first half, the way we took it to them.”

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The singles finals at the U.S. Open saw Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz take home the coveted women’s and men’s titles. Here’s what happened at the final tennis major of the year. 

Carlos Alcaraz won a sixth grand slam title with a commanding four-set victory over Jannik Sinner in the U.S. Open final. The Spaniard won in four sets (6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4) in just under three hours, reclaiming the world number one ranking and securing his second U.S. Open crown. 

Alcaraz was clinical on serve, winning 90 per cent of his first-serve points and dictating rallies with his speed and aggression. He credited his support network after the match, saying: “My team, my family, I am really lucky to have you guys, to be honest. The hard work you do to make me even better, not only in the professional part, but the personal part as well. Every achievement that I am [making] is thanks to you, and this one is no less, it’s also yours.”

The match also marked the latest chapter in Alcaraz’ rivalry with Sinner, who had held the number one spot for 65 weeks before the loss. 

Between them, the two players have now captured the last eight Grand Slam titles, underlining a generational shift in the sport. Alcaraz is on course to finish the season atop the rankings for the second time in his career.

Aryna Sabalenka cemented her status as the world’s best player by successfully defending her U.S. Open title, beating American Amanda Anisimova in straight sets (6-3, 7-6) in the final. 

The win makes Sabalenka the first woman since Serena Williams in 2014 to claim back-to-back titles in New York, and it is the Belarusian’s fourth major overall. Sabalenka dominated early with her trademark power but showed composure to steady in the second set when Anisimova mounted a late challenge. The victory also marked her 100th career Grand Slam match win. 

After finishing runner-up at the Australian Open and French Open, the U.S. Open was the third major final Sabalenka has played in this year. She said: “I think because of the finals earlier this season, this one felt different. This one felt like I had to overcome a lot of things to get this one. The hard work we put in, like, I deserved to have a Grand Slam title this season.”

For Anisimova, it was her second consecutive grand slam final loss after she finished runner-up to Poland’s Iga Świątek at Wimbledon in July.