Hosting the World Cup marks a pinnacle in Qatar's efforts to rise out of the shadow of its larger neighbors in the wider Middle East, where its politics and its upstart ambitions have brought both international attention and regional ire. The road to the tournament — and Qatar's increased prominence on the global stage — has been fueled by the country becoming one of the top exporters of natural gas. That newfound wealth built the stadiums that fans will fill for the tournament, created the Arab world's most recognized news network, Al Jazeera, and enabled Doha's diplomatic outreach to the wider world.

The Memphis Grizzlies (6-3) are hosting the Washington Wizards (4-5) for the first game of a back-to-back at FedEx Forum, in their first of two matchups this season. The Grizzlies will aim to extend their two-game winning streak after a 99-130 blowout win against the Charlotte Hornets. Meanwhile, the Wizards just suffered their worst loss of the season, a brutal 128-86 defeat by the Brooklyn Nets at home. Wizards big man Daniel Gafford went viral in the game for getting crossed up by Kevin Durant in epic fashion. Let’s take a look at what should we expect in this game. Source

Sue Bird’s farewell to the WNBA had been highly-anticipated by everyone in the women’s basketball community ever since she announced, on June 16, that she would be retiring at the end of this season. When the moment finally came to say goodbye Tuesday night after the Seattle Storm were eliminated from the playoffs at the semifinal stage, Bird said it "just feels kinda weird. "I think initially you feel sad about the season and the game, or I felt sad about the season and the game. And I then think as the emotions started to come to the surface, that's also what I know deep down in that that was my last game. So it was a combination of those two things. "I didn't really want to leave the court. It felt like that’s where everybody was going, so I followed at first. But I also wanted to kind of have one last moment to say thank you, to soak it all in. Cuz in some ways it is a happy thing. You know, I'm proud of everything we’ve accomplished here and of course I'm sad, but there’s happiness too — to be able to have a moment like that with the fans, to have them chant the way they did. I know the tears don’t look like happy tears, but there’s a lot of happiness." "I stayed on the floor and just watched her get the love from our fans," said Storm head coach Noelle Quinn. "I wasn’t here to witness her last (regular-)season game and feel that energy, so I wanted to stay and feel that today. It’s amazing what she’s done for the city of Seattle, for this organization, for this team. It’s tough not finishing the season having her ride off on a white horse with a championship, but she’s won enough for the both of us, so just proud to be a part of her journey.

Tallahassee Community College announced Thursday the hiring of Mercedes Corona as the new Head Women’s Basketball Coach. She is the seventh head coach in program history, including interim stints by Lamar Hamilton (2013) and Joe Cohen (2021-22). Cohen will remain on Corona’s staff as an assistant. Most recently, Corona served as Head Women’s Basketball Coach at Arkansas State University Mid-South. During her tenure, she turned a struggling program into one that was nationally ranked at the NJCAA Division II level. In her third season at ASU Mid-South, Corona led the Greyhounds to a 25-2 record and an NJCAA Region II Championship. Last season, they compiled a 17-10 record and were named Region II runners-up. The streams for the latest NFL matches live will be available on this site whenever the official games are available.

Hunched over, RaeVaughn Barnes grasps her basketball shorts, catching a breath. "It’s been eight years," Barnes gasps, thinking back to when, as a community college student struggling with academics and mental health, she walked out on her team midseason. Barnes later learned that several Division I schools were offering her a scholarship. She hasn’t played organized basketball since. "I think about how I walked out every day," said Barnes, who moved to Oakland in 2018. Those regrets brought her to Fremont High School in East Oakland on May 7, as one of 20 players trying out for the Women’s Premier Basketball Association, or WPBA. After full-court sprints and side-to-side shuffles, followed by one-on-one and three-on-three drills, Barnes is battling fatigue before a series of full-court, five-on-five scrimmages end the nearly five-hour camp. Watch the live Rugby World Cup action that beIN SPORTS has to offer wherever you are and on any device exclusively on beIN SPORTS CONNECT.

Fighting Illini women's basketball head coach Shauna Green announced Wednesday (May 11) the addition of former Dayton star Jenna Giacone as the Fighting Illini's Director of Scouting & Player Development, pending approval by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees.

The opening weekend of the WNBA season has come and gone, so now we have some tangible feedback on what the teams look like. Many of the impact players played to expectation, but there have already been surprises. A significant portion of the league still has commitments to overseas basketball leagues and/or are dealing with injuries or suspension, which has opened up playing time for several players who are maximizing their opportunities.

The 2022 transfer portal season officially surpassed the 2021 season, with 1,284 Division I players entering their names into the portal (compared to 1,197 a season ago). It’s a win for every player that made a decision to start a new journey or took a chance on themselves and their game.

Really cool resource for anyone who wants help putting team-level stats into perspective relative to historical averages. Also, just awesome to see so many more people taking interest in WNBA analytics!