Beckenbauer, soccer great, dies
Franz Beckenbauer, who won the World Cup both as player and coach and became one of Germany’s most beloved personalities with his easygoing charm, died. He was 78.
A family statement did not provide a cause of death. The Bayern Munich great had struggled with health problems in recent years.
Tiger Woods is no longer a Nike athlete after 27 years, ending a partnership between the swoosh and golf ’s biggest star and raising questions about the future of both in the sport. Woods in a social media post thanked Nike co-founder Phil Knight for his “passion and vision” that brought Nike and the Nike Golf partnership with Woods together.
Olympic gymnastics great Mary Lou Retton conducted her first interview since being hospitalized in October and says she faces a long battle recuperating at home from a rare form of pneumonia in which doctors weren’t sure whether she would survive. She made the comments on NBC’s “Today” show.
The Lakers signed guard Skylar Mays to a two-way contract. He joins the team from the Portland Trail Blazers, where he played 21 games this season and averaged 6.3 points.
The Ducks acquired left wing Cutter Gauthier from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenseman Jamie Drysdale and a second-round pick in the 2025 NHL draft. On Sunday night, Trevor Zegras scored two goals, but the Ducks fell to the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 on a late goal by Michael Rasmussen . ... William Nylander agreed to a $92-million, eight-year contract extension with the Toronto Maple Leafs, the team said.
No. 2 UCLA (14-0) and No. 9 USC (12-1) remained in the same spots in this week’s Associated Press women’s top 25 poll . ... JuJu Watkins of USC tied a record with her eighth selection as Pac-12 freshman of the week in the season’s first nine weeks.
Randy Moss and Larry Fitzgerald were among 19 players and three coaches in the College Football Hall of Fame class. Warrick Dunn of Florida State, Toby Gerhart (Norco High) of Stanford and Julius Peppers of North Carolina also were elected to the Atlanta-based hall by the National Football Foundation. Another inductee was Paul Cameron (Burbank High) of UCLA, who was a consensus AllAmerican playing both ways in 1953 and has his No. 34 retired by the school.