There were 308 goals scored at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

FIFA held a public vote to determine which one was the best of them all, and this one scored by Cape Verde’s Sidny Lopes Cabral was announced as the winner earlier this week.

Not only was it an absolute pearler of a shot, but it was also scored in extra time to make the score 2-2 against eventual finalists Argentina.

According to Cabral, his mother fainted in the stands after he scored the goal. I don’t blame her!

23
The number LeBron James will wear for the Philadelphia 76ers next season. It is the same number he has worn for most of his career, as he enters his 24th NBA season. He also spent six seasons wearing No. 6 across the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers. The 41-year-old signed a two-year deal worth $US8 million ($AU11.4 million) with Philadelphia on Sunday, leaving the Lakers and joining a fourth franchise as he chases a fifth championship. The 76ers have not won the NBA Finals since 1983.

"Of course it's not fair. Clearly it's not fair."
Australian sprinter Rohan Browning speaking after his 100m heat in Glasgow, before knowing whether his time would be enough to advance. Under a revamped qualifying system at this year’s Commonwealth Games, eight sprinters with the season's fastest times were given automatic progression to the semi-finals, including reigning Australian champion Lachie Kennedy. The remaining athletes had to qualify on the basis of the 17 fastest times across all heats, rather than the traditional system of the top two finishes from each heat advancing. Fellow Australian Eddie Nketia later ran 10.07 seconds in a tailwind-assisted heat, while Browning's own 10.24 was ultimately enough to scrape through in 16th place.

South Korean figure skater Yuna Kim became the first to win all four of the sport's biggest titles, the Olympics, World Championships, the Grand Prix Final and the Four Continents Championship, completing the set at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. On top of that, she never once finished a competition in her career without a medal.

How postgrad study at Deakin unlocked a career in sport leadership.

Rebecca Costanzo didn't follow the typical path for a law graduate. After building experience across sport through internships and joining Tennis Australia's legal team in 2020, she completed a graduate diploma in public relations with a unit in sport journalism at Deakin - sharpening her approach to risk management and crisis communications.

She stepped into an executive leadership role at Tennis Victoria before landing her current position as Head of Integrity and Compliance at Netball Victoria, helping make sport safer, fairer, and more inclusive for everyone.

Inspired by Rebecca's story? Your journey could start at Deakin, the #1 provider for sport in Australia.

🎾 Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka will pair up for mixed doubles at this year's US Open, headlining a 16-team field announced this week. The event was overhauled last year with a $US1 million ($AU1.43 million) prize for the winners, luring the biggest singles stars into the two-day event starting on 25 August. Sabalenka, the world number one, and 24-time grand slam champion Djokovic have played exhibition doubles together before but never at a major. Italy’s Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori won the 2025 title.

🏉 St Kilda key forward Max King's comeback from a 757-day absence lasted less than three quarters, with the 26-year-old pulled from his first senior game back due to hamstring tightness. A scan confirmed another strain, ruling King out for the remainder of the season after a run of knee and hamstring setbacks stretching back to 2024. Coach Ross Lyon says the priority now is a full pre-season rather than rushing King back for a finals tilt. St Kilda sit inside the wildcard spots, a game clear of Greater Western Sydney and North Melbourne.

🌊 Charlie Verco has gone from shark attack hero to world champion, winning the Moloka'i to O'ahu World Championships for a fourth straight year and breaking the race record in the process. The Australian was thrust into the spotlight last month when he paddled towards a great white shark to help rescue Leah Stewart after she was attacked at Coogee Beach in Sydney. The 25-year-old crossed the 52km Ka'iwi Channel in four hours and 18 minutes, three minutes faster than the previous record set by fellow Australian Matt Bevilacqua in 2019.

⛳  At just 21 years old, American golfer Jackson Koivun has won a PGA Tour event in just his third professional start, edging out world number one Scottie Scheffler by three shots at the 3M Open in Minnesota. Koivun finished with a tournament record of 25 under par, and cemented his status as a potential future star. Scheffler has now finished second five times this year, level with Cameron Young's 2022 runner-up tally and matching a mark Ernie Els set back in 2000.

Australia has maintained its place atop the medal table after  Day 4 in Glasgow.

Here's what to know.

In the pool, Sam Short claimed his third gold of the meet, becoming the inaugural champion in the men's 800m freestyle, newly added to the program. Meg Harris beat defending champion Mollie O'Callaghan for gold in the women's 100m freestyle, with Shayna Jack completing an all-Australian podium in what is her last competition before retiring. Beau Matthews claimed the 100m breaststroke SB9 title, with Timothy Hodge taking bronze.

In athletics, Rose Davies became the first Australian to win the women's 10,000m, hauling in Kenya's Diana Wanza before surging clear with two laps remaining. "I've just been chipping away," Davies said afterwards. Sprinter Ullrich Muller added silver in the men's 100m T38.

In gymnastics, Kate McDonald claimed her second gold of the Games in the uneven bars, four years after finishing seventh in the same event at Birmingham. Teammate James Hardy took bronze in both the floor exercise and the rings, the former ending a 16-year Australian drought in the men's apparatus finals.

Athletics takes centre stage with the men's and women's 100m semi-finals and finals. Australia's Rohan Browning, Eddie Nketia and Lachie Kennedy contest the men's semis, with Torrie Lewis, Georgia Harris and Ebony Lane in the women's. In the pool, Kyle Chalmers heads into the 100m freestyle decider as the quickest qualifier, one gold shy of Ian Thorpe's men’s Commonwealth Games record of 10.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has addressed criticism of his leadership and organisation in a 15-slide Instagram carousel and an open letter.

Infantino said “those behind their pens and papers, behind their screens spreading hate and false rumours,” had “missed our beautiful game” at the World Cup.

Why? Let’s dive in.

Infantino was first elected FIFA President in 2016, and re-elected in 2019 and 2023 without opposition. He plans to run again in 2027.

Trained as a lawyer, Infantino built his career in football administration, taking over FIFA after former president Sepp Blatter left amid corruption allegations. According to FIFA, Infantino has sought to make the organisation “credible, trustworthy, modern, professional and accountable” organisation.

He also has a well-documented friendship with U.S. President Donald Trump, who referenced him in a speech ahead of his 2025 inauguration, and hosted him at Mar-a-Lago and the Oval Office. Last year, FIFA launched a Peace Prize. Infantino presented the inaugural award to Trump.

On Monday, Infantino posted a 15-slide Instagram carousel to both his account and FIFA’s, and an open letter on the FIFA website. Here are two of the key claims he made:

Red cards

“‘Arguable’ referees’ decisions or ‘strange’ disciplinary rulings such as for instance potentially mistaken red or yellow cards or subsequent decisions not to ban players in certain situations are routine and widely accepted in some of the biggest leagues worldwide.”

During the World Cup, Trump intervened with FIFA to have U.S. striker Folarin Balogun’s red card suspension successfully overturned. It was the first instance at a World Cup where a player avoided a one-match suspension after a red card since 1962.

Visas

“Countries facing serious health issues or other challenges were granted visas… you mentioned the few people denied visas and overlooked the millions who were approved, from all parts of the world”.

Players from Iran (currently at war with the U.S.) and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (experiencing an ebola outbreak) were granted visas to play. However, Somalian referee Omar Artan was turned away at U.S. entry over "vetting concerns". Somalia is on Trump's travel ban list and FIFA said host nations control entry. Artan was set to become his country's first World Cup referee. Meanwhile, the U.S. granted visas to Iranian players, but denied some to staff, and the team faced travel restrictions. Captain Mehdi Taremi called it "a disaster World Cup."

Infantino's post follows a formal complaint to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from human rights nonprofit FairSquare, alleging he breached the charter's political neutrality rules "through statements or other clear expressions of support for the U.S president."

The IOC said it would not investigate him because the complaint is outside its jurisdiction.

Reporting by Pavitra Ravi.

25 years in the game and still in peak form

Avène Cicalfate+ Restorative Protective Cream has been a dermatologist favourite for 25 years - and it's back in the spotlight as barrier-first skincare takes over. It repairs your skin barrier up to 4x faster than untreated skin, with visible results in 48 hours.