Hot USA News

#Breaking NFL Postpones First Game Due To COVID-19 Pandemic Following Tennessee Titans Outbreak Sunday's game will be delayed until Monday or Tuesday. This comes after four players and five staff members reportedly contracted COVID-19. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Baseball Rarity: Cubs And White Sox In Playoffs, But Chicago Fans Can't Go To Games The strange, shortened season just got more weird, with both teams in the playoffs for just the third time ever. Fans would normally dance in the streets or cram into bars, but it's 2020, so no. Read more on NPR

#Breaking 'I'm Struggling To Walk': Serena Williams Withdraws From French Open Ending her most recent quest to tie the record for the most Grand Slam singles titles, Serena Williams had to pull out due to a flare-up from a previous injury. Read more on NPR

#Breaking 'Kobe Bryant Bill' Makes It A Crime For First Responders To Photograph Dead Bodies The bill, signed into law on Monday, came after reports surfaced of gruesome photos being shared of the helicopter crash site that killed Bryant and others. Read more on NPR

#Breaking NHL Completes Season In Bubble; Tampa Bay Lightning Win Stanley Cup The NHL is the first of the four major North American pro sports leagues to crown a champion during the pandemic. Some players spent over two months in a bubble, with no COVID-19 cases reported. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Cubs And White Sox Are In Playoffs With No Fans To Watch Them Both the Cubs and the White Sox are in the playoffs for just the third time in history. But no Chicagoans will be cheering teams at the stadium, and few will be watching them at bars. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Tampa Bay Lightning Win Stanley Cup, Celebrate In An Empty Stadium The Tampa Bay Lightning won the Stanley Cup on Monday. But pandemic safety precautions made for a surreal celebration. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Tennessee Titans Players And Staff Test Positive For The Coronavirus The NFL had a smooth start to its season with no coronavirus cases in the first three weeks. But the Tennessee Titans have halted that streak — three players and five team staff tested positive. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Baseball Fans Rule In An Online Game Made For Pandemic Times The online game Blaseball is about building community and organizing against malevolent forces beyond your control. It's also surreal, bizarre and a little weird. Read more on NPR

#Breaking 8 Tennessee Titans Players And Staff Test Positive For Coronavirus Both the Titans and the Minnesota Vikings – who played the Titans on Sunday — are now shutting down in-person club activities. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Baseball Made It, So Far, Through A Pandemic. Football Hopes To Follow. After a rocky start to the Major League Baseball season, it's on to the playoffs. MLB has gone almost a month without a player testing positive for the coronavirus. The NFL hopes to replicate that. Read more on NPR

#Breaking 'South Park' Residents Cheer On Broncos From Stadium Seats Characters from the cartoon town were in Denver for an NFL game. The show's creators went to college in Colorado and are huge Broncos fans. Every cardboard cutout wore a mask — even Kenny! Read more on NPR

#Breaking As Games Proceed, MLB And NFL Hope To Keep COVID-19 Cases At Zero Baseball's regular season ended Sunday, as the sport has had to navigate the coronavirus without being in a protective bubble like other leagues. The NFL is hoping to repeat baseball's success. Read more on NPR

#Breaking MLB And NFL Hope To Keep COVID-19 Cases At Zero Baseball's regular season ended Sunday, as the sport has had to navigate the coronavirus without being in a protective bubble like other leagues. The NFL is hoping to repeat baseball's success. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Pac-12 Reversal: Football To Start In November The conference will play a seven-game season with the championship slated for December. The Big Ten made a similar decision earlier this month. Both say players will receive daily Covid-19 tests. Read more on NPR

#Breaking LA Chargers Team Doctor Reportedly Punctured Quarterback's Lung By Mistake The NFL Players Association is investigating after a Los Angeles Chargers team doctor reportedly punctured quarterback Tyrod Taylor's lung while administering a painkiller for cracked ribs. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Gale Sayers, Who Inspired TV Movie 'Brian's Song,' Dies At 77 NPR's Steve Inskeep talks to sports journalist Kevin Blackistone about Gale Sayers' legacy. The former Chicago Bears running back, whose elusiveness bedeviled defenses, died Wednesday. Read more on NPR

#Breaking NFL Hall Of Fame Running Back Gale Sayers Dies At 77 Legendary NFL running back Gale Sayers has died at 77 after battling dementia. In primarily five seasons, he strung together a Hall of Fame career. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Gale Sayers, Who Wowed NFL Fans And Inspired A Beloved TV Movie, Dies At 77 The story of the Black football star's friendship with a white teammate, Brian Piccolo, who died of cancer inspired the 1971 TV movie Brian's Song. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Michael Jordan, Denny Hamlin Form NASCAR Team With Bubba Wallace Behind The Wheel "The timing seemed perfect as NASCAR is evolving and embracing social change more and more," says Michael Jordan, the basketball icon and majority owner of the Charlotte Hornets NBA franchise said. Read more on NPR

#Breaking NFL Hits 3 Coaches And Teams With Large Fines For Not Wearing Face Masks The coaches include Pete Carroll, Kyle Shanahan and Vic Fangio. League rules state that anyone in the bench area "shall be required to wear masks at all times." Read more on NPR

#Breaking Indianapolis Colts Linebacker Accidently Gives Away His Wedding Ring Darius Leonard gave his gloves to a lucky fan at Lucas Oil Stadium after Sunday's game. The fan posted on Twitter about the wedding ring being inside a glove. Leonard replied, "I need that." Read more on NPR

#Breaking NFL Sees Spate Of Injuries. Is The Pandemic To Blame? There were plenty of injuries in the second week of the NFL season. Delayed training camps and no preseason games due to the pandemic are among potential causes. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Saturday Sports: Stanley Cup Games Begin, Big Ten Decides To Play NPR's Scott Simon is joined by ESPN's Howard Bryant to discuss the Stanley Cup and the Big Ten college football decision to play after all. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Women's Soccer World Cup Could Be Held Every Two Years, FIFA President Says Gianni Infantino says the organization should be creative and not just copy what the men's World Cup is doing. The contest is now held every four years. Read more on NPR

#Breaking High Schoolers Cross State Lines For An Opportunity To Play Football Seeking potential college scholarships, some high school football players are moving to states that are playing the game because their local school boards have banned play due to the pandemic. Read more on NPR

#Breaking NCAA Says College Basketball Season Can Start The Day Before Thanksgiving The NCAA Division I Council voted to push the start date back two weeks from Nov. 10, saying most of its schools will have ended in-person classes for the fall semester by then, reducing exposures. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Big Ten Conference Will Play Football After All The Big Ten Conference has decided it will play football this fall after all. In August, it was the first conference to suspend its season but now has relented under pressure. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Politics And Football Mix Again, As Trump Cheers Return Of Big Ten Play The Big Ten conference announced that the college football season would resume at the end of October with new coronavirus protocols. President Trump had been calling for the games to start up again. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Big Ten Reverses Decision, Will Start Football Season In October Facing pressure from athletes, parents, coaches and President Donald Trump, the Big Ten said it will return to football with new precautions, reversing its decision last month to postpone the season. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Big Ten Reverses Decision To Cancel Football Season David Greene talks with sports columnist Christine Brennan about the decision by the Big Ten conference to play its season beginning in late October amid the coronavirus pandemic. Read more on NPR

#Breaking In Iowa, College Football Returns As State COVID-19 Cases Soar A look at the state of colleges in Iowa, which has the third-highest number of new infections per capita in the U.S. Iowa State will play its first game of the season in an empty stadium. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Saturday Sports: NFL Season Resumes With Some Fans Attending Games We look at the resumption of the NFL seasons – with some fans in the stands, low ratings for sports viewership and the start of the U.S. Open. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Why Kansas City Chiefs And Houston Texans Got Booed Before The Kickoff NPR's Sacha Pfeiffer talks with Tyler Tynes of The Ringer about the NFL's opening night, booing fans and the league's united "end racism" stance. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Even In A Pandemic, The NFL Is Ready To Dominate The Sports Landscape The league didn't have to make hard decisions like other major sports leagues but it's been watching and has mimicked them with a hefty set of health and safety protocols for play during the pandemic. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Jacqueline Woodson Wants Kids To Know The Beauty — And The Danger — Of Football Woodson's new novel in verse Before the Ever After follows a 12-year-old boy whose football star father is beginning to show the damaging effects of too many blows to the head. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Presidential Campaigns Use An Opportunity To Reach Voters As NFL Kicks Off Its Season The NFL returns Thursday night. With many Americans craving the experience of watching live sports, presidential campaigns are using the opportunity to reach voters with ads during the games. Read more on NPR

#Breaking The Emotional Legacy Of 'Tony Hawk's Pro Skater' Since Tony Hawk's Pro Skater was first released in 1999, kids who watched – and listened to – their older siblings play have grown into successful artists in their own right. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Add Another Risk Factor To Those Faced By Players In The NFL Sports commentator Mike Pesca reflects on the beginning of the NFL season as some players opt out because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Players were already dealing with health concerns like concussions. Read more on NPR

#Breaking South African Runner Loses Appeal Over Restriction Of Testosterone Levels In Athletes NPR's Sacha Pfeiffer talks to ESPN.com writer Katie Barnes about the latest in South African runner Caster Semenya's case against regulations of athlete testosterone levels on track and field. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Virtual Colin Kaepernick Is A Free Agent In EA Sports' 'Madden 21' This is the first time Colin Kaepernick has been included in the video game franchise since 2016. That's when he started kneeling during the national anthem to protest racial injustice. Read more on NPR

#Breaking The Return of Colin Kaepernick — To The Madden Franchise EA Sports says Kaepernick will return as a free agent in the latest update of Madden 21. His overall rating of 81 is higher than several notable NFL starters, including Baker Mayfield and Cam Newton. Read more on NPR

#Breaking 'At Any Cost': Japanese, IOC Officials Insist Olympics Will Happen In 2021 In the past week, multiple Japanese organizers and International Olympic Committee officials have said that the Tokyo Games will proceed regardless of the state of the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more on NPR

#Breaking 'Base Burglar' Of St. Louis Cardinals, Lou Brock, Dies At 81 The St. Louis Cardinals' Hall of Fame outfielder, Lou Brock, was known for being one of the greatest base-stealers of all time. He died on Sunday at the age of 81. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Djokovic Out Of U.S. Open After Line Judge Gets Hit With Ball Novak Djokovic, the top-ranked player and the overwhelming favorite, was defaulted from his fourth-round match Sunday, after he accidentally hit a line judge with a tennis ball. Read more on NPR

#Breaking The 2020 Kentucky Derby Will Be 'Unlike Any Other' The Kentucky Derby was delayed because of the pandemic, now demands are being made that Churchill Downs use this moment to make lasting changes and to take a stand against racial injustice. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Saturday Sports: US Open Continues, NHL Playoffs Reach Pivotal Games NPR's Scott Simon and ESPN's Howard Bryant talk about the U.S. Open, the NHL Playoffs and more. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Amid Protests For Racial Justice, Activists Ask Kentucky Derby To Take A Stand This Kentucky Derby day was delayed because of the pandemic, now demands are being made that Churchill Downs use this moment to make lasting changes and to take a stand against racial injustice. Read more on NPR

#Breaking High School Football: Beloved Fall Tradition Or Unnecessary Coronavirus Risk? Athletic associations in more than 30 states allow high school football to be played during the coronavirus pandemic. Parents, boosters and fans say it's needed. But is playing safe? Read more on NPR

#Breaking Over 30 States Allow High School Football. Is It Right Or Reckless? Alabama is one of the states pressing ahead with high school football despite the coronavirus. A veteran head coach calls this reckless and says he's determined to protect his players. Read more on NPR

#Breaking How Black Women Athletes Paved The Way For The NBA Strike The wildcat strike was unprecedented for the NBA — but the world of professional basketball is no stranger to protesting for Black lives. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Kentucky Hat Makers Accessorize With Masks For Upcoming Derby The Kentucky Derby is known for its horses, and the spectacular hats that attendees wear. But this year the pandemic has milliners adding an extra accessory to the famous headgear. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Kentucky Milliner Makes Masks To Go With Hats For Upcoming Derby The Kentucky Derby is known for its horses, and the spectacular hats that attendees wear. But this year the pandemic has milliners adding an extra accessory to the famous headgear. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Famed New York Mets Pitcher Tom Seaver Dies At 75 Seaver, a baseball Hall of Fame pitcher, became a household name after helping carry the Mets to their "improbable" 1969 World Series Championship. He died of complications of dementia and COVID-19. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Legendary Sports Broadcaster Vin Scully Makes Social Media Debut At the age of 92, baseball broadcasting legend Vin Scully has taken to social media. He posted his first video on Twitter and Instagram Wednesday. Scully plans a Facebook page and a YouTube channel. Read more on NPR

#Breaking Legendary NY Mets Pitcher Tom Seaver Dies At 75 Seaver became a household name after helping carry the Mets to their "improbable" 1969 World Series Championship. Read more on NPR

#Breaking U.S. Open Action Is Underway Without Crowds And Some Star Players NPR's Rachel Martin talks to Jon Wertheim of Sports Illustrated about the U.S. Open and the changes to this year's tennis tournament because of the coronavirus pandemic. Read more on NPR