FIFA revealed the new World Cup soccer ball on Thursday. Named TRIONDA, it features three colored waves: green for Mexico, red for Canada and blue for the United States. For much of the World Cup’s history, World Cup balls have symbolized host nations.
In his 2000 book “Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community,” political scientist Robert Putnam writes that, “American history carefully examined is a story of ups and downs in civic engagement, not just downs — a story of collapse and of renewal.”
Goal scoring can be artful, vivid and poetic. After glancing off the inner edge of a player’s cleat, the ball can be neatly curled, gently kissing the crossbar before settling into the top corner of the net. Other times, though, goal scoring can be ugly, scrappy and lucky. Still, no matter how a goal is scored, they all count the same. It was in the latter style that both Tufts men’s soccer junior forward Henry Brown and Wesleyan forward Sam Wheeler scored the only goals for their respective sides in a 1–1 draw on Bello Field on Saturday.
Just like everything else in college basketball, the pecking order of the top conferences seems to shuffle from year to year. With the constant churn of the transfer portal and a fresh round of coaching changes, this feels like the right moment to take stock of the Power 5. The goal: to predict which leagues are poised for the most success, whether by racking up tournament bids, producing true championship contenders or simply standing out in overall competitiveness.
Both Tufts and Wesleyan came into the match nationally ranked by United Soccer Coaches at No. 6 and No. 21 respectively. “We knew it was going to be a tough battle, especially because they are undefeated and so are we,” sophomore forward Audrey Cromett said.
There are certainly times when a sapling tree with great potential is snuffed out by a vast canopy, where bigger trees prohibit growth. In these situations, the sapling can righteously throw up its little branches and blame the forest.
September after dark makes a football game feel bigger. The lights sharpen everything: edges of pads, breath in the air, the collective wince of a crowd when a return man gets the corner and the volume turns from murmur to ‘Oh my god, go.’ Ellis Oval had all of that Saturday, and then some. Tufts defeated Wesleyan 22–20, a win stapled together with all the duct tape a football team keeps in the equipment trunk: defense, field position, special teams, grit, more special teams and, when it absolutely had to happen, one burst through daylight to slam the door.
The World Cup is less than a year away. In this column, I will review the most pressing challenges the tournament faces across all its venues in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
The first tip-off of the 2025–26 college basketball season comes on Nov. 3. With just under six weeks left, the excitement leading up to opening day is starting to build up. Still, we don’t have official preseason rankings, schedules are being finalized and, apparently, the coaching carousel is still taking its course. While we wait for the actual basketball to start, these are the offseason storylines I found to be interesting and also important for this year of college hoops.
The No. 7 Tufts field hockey team entered a busy weekend set on redemption after an overtime loss Wednesday to Babson College. On Saturday, Tufts returned home to Ounjian Field to face Hamilton before traveling to New London to take on Connecticut College.
When the New Jersey Devils Fanatics Instagram page graced my feed last night, crying out to the world that there was only one more week left until hockey returns to Newark’s Prudential Center, I knew I had to write about the NHL, and about one player in particular. This player — a clear locker room presence, cheapshotting players left and right, blowing up group chats by angering opposing fans and, yes, a back-to-back Stanley Cup Champion — has certainly been a complete thrill to watch as a neutral fan.
After a remarkable 2024–25 season that saw the Tufts men’s tennis team reach the NCAA semifinals with a 23–3 record and an undefeated 10–0 NESCAC campaign, Tufts is taking a different approach to their championship aspirations.
Tufts football secured their first win in their season opener in an away game against Bowdoin, making their mark within the NESCAC with a winning score of 13–0. The Jumbos are currently holding a 10-game win streak against the Polar Bears.
Coming into the 2025 season as NESCAC Champions and NCAA runners-up, Tufts field hockey stepped onto the recently renovated Ounjian Field prepared to bring their game to the next level.
The Jumbos hit the road for the first time in the fall 2025 semester for their first tournament of the season in Salisbury, Maryland at Maggs Activities Center this past weekend. The schools that participated in the series were the Tufts Jumbos, Salisbury Sea Gulls and the Gettysburg Bullets.
For the Tufts men’s soccer team, waiting was certainly a difficult element of their NESCAC opener against No. 10 Williams on Saturday. Due to lightning, the game was delayed for over two hours just after the second half began, a memorable interlude in a game that otherwise lacked memorable moments for the Jumbos.
Ayahuasca sipper and podcast activist. Turn on “Sunday Night Football” between 2014–21, and you’re bound to hear the words, “Aaron Rodgers throws to Davante Adams for 6.
Following the Florida Panthers’ second straight Stanley Cup victory, NHL action has not slowed down one bit but simply moved from on to off the ice.
On Saturday, Tufts women’s soccer will take on Williams College in their first game of the 2025 season at 12:30 p.m. on Bello Field. Along with it being their season premiere, they will also be facing the pressure of playing their first conference game against the talented Ephs. The Jumbos, who have been in preseason for over a week, have focused their efforts on bettering the team in preparation.
Sports are defined by moments. Moments captivate us, anger us and most importantly, entertain us. With the rise in short-form content, such moments are only increasingly consumed by the masses all over social media. Moments in sports are critical to defining our fandoms, and our opinions formed from them define our views of the players.
