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Michigan State interim president John Engler wrote in an email that he believed Rachel Denhollander received a “kickback” for being the leading voice in the case built against convicted serial sex abuser Larry Nassar.

The 2018 World Cup kicks off tomorrow. Just because the USMNT blows and didn’t make the tournament, that’s no reason for you not to pay attention to the best sporting event on the planet. Here’s everything you absolutely must know about Group B, all in one neat little video.Read more...

Welcome back to LeBronWatch, your source for the most premium inside information on LeBron James’s next destination. He who crowned himself “King of New York” last November may soon be making that a reality. Don’t take it from us—take it from a man who has been somewhat recently employed by the New York Knicks. Kenyon…Read more...

Former NFL defensive lineman Greg Hardy had his first pro MMA fight this week, on Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series, and he defeated fellow former NFL player Austen Lane in 57 seconds via TKO. UFC czar Dana White was in attendance and clearly impressed.Read more...

It makes sense that Marco Pantani remains Italy’s most beloved cyclist 14 years after his death. Italy is one of cycling’s most vibrant strongholds, and like Brazilian soccer fans, the tifosi demand not just mere victory, but style. Vincenzo Nibali’s snoozer of a 2014 Tour de France win is fine, but his iconic solo…Read more...

The word “underachievers” will haunt this Belgium group for the rest of their lives unless they seriously impress at this World Cup. Even just a glance at their roster should strike fear into most opponents’ hearts, but in practice, this dream team has yet to really gel, playing much more like a loose collection of…Read more...

After hibernating through the clay season, with good reason, Roger Federer has woken up again. Today at the Stuttgart Open, he played his first match since March. Millions of fans and also his wife were pleased by this development.Read more...

The 2018 World Cup kicks off tomorrow. Just because the USMNT blows and didn’t make the tournament, that’s no reason for you not to pay attention to the best sporting event on the planet. Here’s everything you absolutely must know about Group A, all in one neat little video.Read more...

Courtney Dauwalter is a real nice girl, but competitive. She’s 33 now and married, and living in Golden, Colo., but she grew up in Hopkins, Minn. where she was one heck of an athlete—ran track and cross country, did nordic skiing, went to state a few times. One thing led to another, and now she’s into ultra running,…Read more...

Everyone welcome Tunisia back to the World Cup! They haven’t been here since 2006, and they will go to Russia seeking to win their first Wold Cup match in 40 years. They, uh, probably won’t get it.

Four years after a disappointing showing in Brazil, South Korea had the great misfortune of being drawn into a very tough group in Russia. The Taegeuk Warriors have enviable top-end talent in Son Heung-min and Ki Sung-yueng, and if they had been drawn into the groups that their fellow Asian qualifiers like Australia,…Read more...

There are usually a very limited number of ways that most fans will ever come to know that a guy like Scooter Gennett exists. He’s a player you would know if you’re the type of Brewers fan that keeps up with those 16th-round role-playing guys, ones that hang around for a few years and never really flash star…Read more...

A note before starting: This piece contains a lot of conversations that took place many years ago. They’re not word-for-word quotes, but they are pretty motherfucking close. The phone answering machine messages are exactly what was spoken.

Stephen A. Smith speaks of his adoration for butts in the way a person would speak of an old friend or an enriching life event. On Snoop Dogg’s YouTube show, Smith discusses asses fondly. They have clearly done so much for him.

At the beating heart of Amazon’s unstoppable ecommerce expansion is a very basic promise: jobs.

Stock up on snacks and energy drinks, find your most comfy chair, and get ready for the most wonderful racing weekend of the year. It’s time for the 2018 24 Hours of Le Mans, a full day of magic and sweet, sweet race cars. We put together this nifty guide to tell you how you, too, can watch one of the most prestigious…Read more...

Early on in the Brewers’ 4-0 win over the Cubs Tuesday, Christian Yelich was on second base and Lorenzo Cain hit a sharp grounder up the middle. Javier Baez was there for a nice backhand play, but Yelich had already taken off for third, maybe figuring the ball was getting through. That required a rundown, which…Read more...

For years now, there hasn’t been much to do but laugh at England’s performances on the world stage. The so-called Golden Generation won nothing, and the 2014 World Cup team didn’t even make it out of their group. England did manage to make it to the Round of 16 in the 2016 Euros, but ended up getting knocked out of…Read more...

Welcome back to LeBronWatch, where we are watching LeBron. So far, our observations have provided us with two unassailable truths: LeBron James is absolutely going to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers, and he believes that Houston is a city of puke. Today brings us more insider information, though coyly shared, from…Read more...

Save big on a 20-pound weighted blanket, wireless Beats earbuds and over-ear headphones, a mesh Wi-Fi router, and more of today’s best deals.Read more...

It is not uncommon to see two NBA players who just spent a game or even an entire series scrapping and talking wild shit to each other suddenly shaking hands and hugging once the buzzer goes off. It’s a particular quirk of the NBA, a league in which guys can say truly vile things during the game and then be cordial…Read more...

The Spanish soccer federation (RFEF) announced today that it has fired its national team manager Julen Lopetegui, on the eve of the World Cup, because Lopetegui did not “act the right way.” The infraction? Lopetegui accepted a job managing Real Madrid, which would have started after the World Cup, without prior…Read more...

While the rest of the world’s hatred of Donald Trump runs deep, it apparently doesn’t run quite deep enough to deprive the U.S. of hosting the World Cup. After a bit of a scare there for a while, today FIFA voted on who would host the 2026 World Cup and the joint bid by the U.S., Canada, and Mexico won. Hooray.Read more...

Things are crazy right now, and if you somehow forgot that Father’s Day is on Sunday, this deal on a 20-pound weighted blanket will keep you relaxed. This big ass blanket is just $102, the best price it’s ever been, when you use the code KFATHERD at checkout. And if your dad doesn’t want it, take it for yourself. Just …Read more...

Whether you’re filling tires or firing pneumatic tools, this 4.3 star-rated DEWALT electric pancake compressor is a great addition to any garage, and you can pick it up for $119 in today’s Gold Box. That’s over $40 less than usual, and the best price Amazon’s ever listed.

Miguel Cabrera left Tuesday’s loss to the Twins in the bottom of the third inning with what was initially described by the Tigers as a left biceps tendon strain. Cabrera took a looping cut on a Jake Odorizzi off-speed pitch and immediately winced and grabbed his bicep before walking into the dugout and out of sight.Read more...

C.C. Sabathia of the dastardly New York Yankees pegged dear Dinger Lord Bryce Harper in the funny bone in the top of the fifth inning Tuesday, with two men on and the Yankees clinging to a 2-0 lead. Scum! Murder most foul!Read more...

Noah Syndergaard was ejected from a Dodgers-Mets game way back in late May 2016 after throwing behind Chase Utley in the top of the third inning. It was a 1-0 pitch, and it was 99 miles per hour, and it sailed behind Utley by a good eight inches:Read more...

My favorite genre of fiction, in books and stories and movies and probably even television shows, is horror. I love horror. I watch horror movies all the time. I stay up late after my wife goes to bed so that I can watch more horror movies, even though it means that I sleep terribly. My worry with Hereditary was that…Read more...

Swiss fans don’t have much room for optimism at this World Cup. While the squad Switzerland will take to Russia is perfectly adequate, and though the team had the good fortune of being drawn into a pretty manageable group, the presence of a couple superteams surrounding them greatly limits their likely outcomes.…Read more...

St. Louis’s Edward Jones Dome—now the Dome at America’s Center—was a piece of crap football stadium for many reasons, just one of which was a wide warning track of concrete that ran around the stands and presented a hazard for be-cleated football players whose actions and momentum occasionally carried them onto its…Read more...

The crowd at the Belmont Stakes was an uneven split between people who were just there to party and horse racing die-hards who make up the entire population of the Park the other 51 weekends of the year. On the morning before Justify won, we talked to representatives from both groups.Read more...

Three weeks ago, the New York Jets traded former second-round pick Christian Hackenberg to the Raiders after keeping his ass firmly planted on the bench for two entire seasons. Unfortunately, he will not take the field for the Raiders either, as ESPN’s Field Yates reported this afternoon that Oakland had waived him.…Read more...

We see a lot of deals around the web over on Kinja Deals, but these were our ten favorites today.

Rafael Nadal won the French Open on Sunday, and there’s little new to say that wasn’t already said after last year’s title. After the preposterousness of 10, 11 doesn’t feel so different. But even into the double-digits, it’s worth remembering that the points are fucking absurd.Read more...

If you made a list of everything you’d want from a favorite to win the World Cup, Brazil would tick every box.Read more...

Panthers placekicker Graham Gano was told “just don’t kick it hard” as he lined up for an attempt in his family’s kickball game, but that’s kind of tough to do when it’s his job to kick it hard.

Last week, a Texas A&M student tweeted that she had reported to the university that a member of the swimming and diving team had raped her—and that the swimmer was back with the team. These are what she posted, first on June 7.Read more...

In the immediate aftermath of Game 4, Warriors rookie Jordan Bell wielded two bottles of celebratory champagne. These were the results:Read more...

Here is an utterly bizarre story from the Ottawa Citizen: Melinda Karlsson, wife of Ottawa Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson, has filed an order of protection against a woman she accuses of harassing her and her husband, including after the death of their stillborn baby. The woman accused is Monika Caryk, the longtime…Read more...

Team, Monday night’s episode of The Bachelorette was a rough one. Not only did we lose two soldiers to injury, but our game was in danger of being pushed back because of a pesky little thing called the “NBA Finals,” and was still interrupted by a fascist dictator meeting with a wannabe fascist dictator. It was a…Read more...

I was not born or raised in the D.C. area but all of my children were, and so I felt it was my solemn duty as a Good Sports Dad to take them downtown for the Capitals Stanley Cup parade, the first major title parade to take place here in nearly three decades. This was a celebration that was unprecedented in scope…Read more...

Real Madrid announced Julen Lopetegui as their new manager today, just two weeks after Zinedine Zidane resigned abruptly from the job after winning the Champions League title. Lopetegui is currently manager of Spain’s national team and won’t take over at Real Madrid until after the World Cup.Read more...

Time for your weekly edition of the Deadspin Funbag. Got something on your mind? Email the Funbag. Today, we’re talking about bowling balls, BIG SCOOTER, urine, gladiators, and more.

When the Warriors took to the streets of Oakland a year ago to celebrate their championship, Draymond Green marked the occasion by donning a “Quickie” t-shirt featuring the logo from the Cavs arena. There’s a long history of sartorial beef between the Warriors and the Cavs, and highlights from the other side of the…Read more...

Big NFL news today: Andrew Luck put a frickin’ football in his hands and then threw the football. It’s the first time he’s done that in something like 272 years.

After missing out on the two previous World Cups, Sweden squeaked into this one with an upset win over Italy in qualifying. Simply making the tournament is in many ways an overachievement for this squad, and it’s probably best for them to view things that way. They are in the Group of Death with Germany and Mexico,…Read more...

It has been a rough year for my five little holly trees, transplanted last spring from a nursery to the muddy, weedy slope of the western edge of my home property, along the stupidly long driveway.Read more...

Whether you wear TOMS for the ease of never having to tie your shoes, or just dig the style, this is one deal you should take advantage of. Head over to Nordstrom Rack for their rather large TOMS sale on both men’s and women’s shoes. Plus, they’ve come a long way from just simple, canvas slip-ons.Read more...

It was absolutely not a penalty.