MLS delays expansion for 3 teams due to pandemic
Major League Soccer delayed the first seasons of expansion teams in Charlotte, North Carolina; St. Louis; and Sacramento by one year each because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Charlotte will start play in 2022, and St. Louis and Sacramento will take the field in 2023, the league said Friday.
Austin, Texas, remains on track to begin next year, when MLS will have 27 teams. MLS said Austin FC had made significant progress before the pandemic.
“It is important for each club to take the necessary time to launch their inaugural MLS seasons the way their fans and communities deserve,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said. “With the extra year to make up for what has been a challenging 2020, these teams will be well-positioned for their debuts and for long-term success.”
D.C. TIES NEW ENGLAND >> Veteran Federico Higuain scored as a secondhalf substitute for a second straight match, and D.C. United rallied for a 1-1 draw with the New England Revolution in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
New England had a defensive blunder midway through the second half. Higuain was able to chase down an awful back-pass by New England defender Antonio Delamea. The pass was short and left New England goalkeeper Matt Turner out of position. Higuain got to the ball first, dribbled around Turner and scored.
In another game, Graham Zusi scored in stoppage time to give Sporting Kansas City a wild 3-2 victory over the shorthanded Colorado Rapids.
NBA
RACES FOR INDIVIDUAL TROPHIES ARE
OVER >> The NBA’s MVP race is over. So is the battle for every other individual regular-season trophy.
The league told teams that none of the seeding games will be taken into consideration for any postseason award, and that voting for those honors — such as All-NBA, rookie of the year and defensive player of the year — will be completed before the July 30 restart of the season at Walt Disney World.
Typically, those votes are cast closer to the end of the regular season. So the postseason races are still going in many cases, but the individual award chases are now complete. CLIPPERS’ HARRELL LEAVES BUBBLE >>
Los Angeles Clippers forward Montrezl
Harrell has left the NBA bubble near Orlando to address a family emergency, multiple outlets reported.
Shams Charania of The Athletic said Harrell is expected to return “at a later date.” Harrell became the second player in as many days to leave Florida for an urgent family matter. On Thursday, New Orleans rookie Zion Williamson departed.
If his absence lasts seven days or fewer, Harrell reportedly will quarantine for four days upon his return to the NBA bubble if he has a negative test each day he’s outside the bubble, per ESPN. BUCKS’ BLEDSOE TESTS POSITIVE
FOR VIRUS >> Milwaukee coach Mike Budenholzer confirmed that Eric Bledsoe tested positive for COVID-19, and remains cautiously optimistic the veteran point guard will be ready for the restart of the season.
Motorsports
NHRA POSTPONES ITS NEXT TWO STOPS
>> The NHRA revised its schedule yet again, postponing its next two stops until further notice while adding a fourth race in the Indianapolis area.
Series officials announced that the events scheduled for Morrison. Colo., on Aug. 7-9 and Brainerd, Minn., on Aug. 14-16 will not take place because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Indianapolis event replaces Morrison on the schedule and will host its third consecutive event with limited spectators, from Aug. 6-9.
F1 HAS TWO POSITIVE TESTS >> Formula One said two people tested positive for the coronavirus in the latest batch of tests carried out before the Hungarian Grand Prix. F1 said 4,997 tests for COVID-19 were carried out from July 10-16 ahead of Sunday’s race outside of Budapest.
NFL
BENGALS’ GREEN SIGNS FRANCHISE TAG
>> Receiver A.J. Green signed his oneyear, $17.9 million contract after the deadline passed for agreeing to a longterm deal with the Cincinnati Bengals.
The club used its franchise tag on Green, who missed all last season with an ankle injury. Green wanted a multiyear deal to stay in Cincinnati but said he wouldn’t hold out if the club used the tag to keep him around another year. NFLPA WANTS PLAYERS TESTED DAILY
>> The NFL Players Association wants players tested daily for coronavirus, one of the outstanding points in discussions with the NFL over health and safety protocols.
Colleges
ATLANTIC 10 POSTPONES FALL SPORTS
SEASON >> The Atlantic 10 Conference is postponing its fall sports season, which includes soccer, cross country, field hockey and women’s volleyball.
The conference announced it will try to play those sports in the spring semester, and agreed to a “look-in” window during September to evaluate whether it is possible to conduct shortened, conference-only seasons in fall sports.
• SEC schools will honor the scholarships of athletes who opt not to participate in fall competition because of concerns about COVID-19.
• Isaiah Livers, the leading scorer on Michigan’s basketball team, removed his name from NBA draft consideration and is returning for his senior season.
• Arizona has three positive coronavirus tests among 83 football players still on campus for voluntary offseason workouts. Two were asymptomatic and all three entered department protocols for self isolation.
NHL
VEZINA TROPHY FINALISTS NAMED >>
Tampa Bay Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy was selected as a finalist for the Vezina Trophy for the third consecutive season. Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyk and Boston’s Tuukka Rask also were selected following a vote by the league’s general managers.