Countdown to Next Report: Special Report with Game-Changing Potential Coming Your Way

Enemies to lovers ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Sports News   •   Edition #1359   •  Dec 05, 2025

Leveling The Playing Field

From The GIST Team

Happy Friday!

And happy FIFA men's World Cup draw day. Groups for next summer's tourney will be sorted today at 12 p.m. ET, just the start of an incredibly high-stakes sports weekend ahead. Let's get right to it.

Quote of The Day

	My teammates are just the best Betches — and also bitches — around.
	— Rugby icon Ilona Maher, one of Betches' Betches of the Year, happily sharing the accolade with her teammates. Girls just wanna have fun play sports and get even hotter as they age.

The Latest

College football 🎓🏈 Conference call Source: Ryan Sun/AP Photo The GIST: It's NCAA football conference championship weekend, aka teams' last chance to show the College Football Playoff (CFP) selection committee that they belong in the 12-team hunt for the national championship before Sunday's 12 p.m. ET selection show. We're launching our bracket challenge soon after the CFP field is announced, so prepare with today's full scouting report on this weekend's crucial slate. Oh, it is so on. 👀 The matchups to watch: You're in for a top-notch Saturday, starting with No. 4 Texas Tech vs. No. 11 BYU in the 12 p.m. ET Big 12 Championship, followed by yet another SEC Championship between No. 3 Georgia and No. 9 Alabama — their fifth title-game showdown in 10 years — at 4 p.m. ET. Then, the headliner: The reigning national champ No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes, who run the sport's best defense, face the No. 2 Indiana Hoosiers, the sport's second-best offense, for the Big Ten Championship at 8 p.m. ET. Told you this was going to be good. 🏆 The stakes: For some, they couldn't be higher. The five highest-ranked conference champs earn an automatic CFP bid, and the selection committee will be watching to determine which bubble teams snag an at-large berth. Even for squads that will likely make it despite a loss this weekend, there's a lot on the line because all-important seeding will decide their paths to the championship. The top four seeds earn a first-round bye, a massive advantage. 💨 The Heisman Trophy candidates: The race for college football's MVP award is essentially a three-man race between Indiana quarterback (QB) Fernando Mendoza, Ohio State QB Julian Sayin, and Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia (with Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love in a distant fourth). Pavia and Love don't play this weekend, giving Mendoza and Sayin the chance to shine…and adding even more consequence to their already-massive matchup. No pressure, fellas.

Formula 1 🏎️ The thrill of the fight Source: XPB Images The GIST: Fasten your seatbelts because for the first time since 2010, three drivers are in contention for the coveted World Drivers' Championship (WDC) crown ahead of Sunday's 8 a.m. ET season finale. Let's set the stage before the lights go out at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. 👀 How we got here: McLaren teammates Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri dominated the first half of the season, winning 11 of 14 races. Red Bull's Max Verstappen once trailed then–WDC leader Piastri by a whopping 104 points. But Verstappen put on a masterclass in the second half, finishing on the podium in every race. And McLaren didn't help themselves: In an effort to keep things level between their title-contending drivers, the constructor often made strategy calls that were fair, instead of ones that were right…like last weekend in Qatar, a race Piastri arguably should have won. 🏆 Which driver has the edge?: That would be current WDC leader Norris, who sits 12 points clear of Verstappen and 16 ahead of Piastri. A top-three finish garners 25, 18, and 15 points, respectively, so as long as Norris secures a podium, he'll win his first WDC. But count four-time defending champ Verstappen, who won in Abu Dhabi four straight times from 2020 to 2023, out at your own peril. 🎧 Looking for a deeper dive on the 2025 F1 season and this weekend's finale? Tune in to the latest episode of The GIST of It, where co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotz detail the title fight and Verstappen's villain-to-hero character arc.

Every major men's league had its messy beginnings. Now, we're seeing that same origin story play out…this time for women's sports. Welcome to She's Not Next, She's Now, The GIST of It's new eight-part podcast series spotlighting the game-changers building the next generation of sports leagues. In this week's episode, The GIST co-founder Ellen Hyslop and Associate Managing Editor Lauren Tuiskula break down the incredible growth of women's indoor pro volleyball, making sense of a crowded landscape across North America. Bump, set, sound on. LISTEN EVERY MONDAY

Quick Hits

🏀 WNBA and WNBA Players Association remain at odds over revenue sharing

The league's most recent collective bargaining agreement proposal reportedly granted players 15% of league revenue, which Sports Business Journal reports the WNBPA has countered, asking for a revenue share closer to 30%. As a refresher, W players are seeking a revenue deal similar to the one in the NBA, where athletes get 50% of basketball-related income. Tick tock.

⚽ NWSL squashes Trinity Rodman contract offer

Amid offers to play abroad, Rodman was reportedly ready to accept a four-year, multimillion-dollar deal from the Washington Spirit, a contract that would earn her more than $1M on average annually — but the offer was rejected by the NWSL, who said it violated the spirit of the league's competition rules. In response, the NWSL Players Association filed a grievance on Rodman's behalf.

🏒 PWHL reveals major expansion plans

PWHL Executive Vice President of Business Operations and friend of The GIST Amy Scheer told CNBC that the league plans to expand by two to four teams for the 2026-27 season, putting extra emphasis on the upcoming 11-stop Takeover Tour. In short, the cities with the best attendance will be expansion team front-runners.

🏀 Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo out for two weeks amid trade talks

Antetokounmpo is sidelined with a calf strain as trade rumors continue to swirl around the Bucks legend, who is reportedly considering a move amid his team's 10-13 season start. Elsewhere, the LA Clippers dismissed NBA veteran Chris Paul on Wednesday, a shocking move during his retirement tour season. CP3 plans to close out his 21st NBA campaign with another squad.

Powered By Invisalign Source: Invisalign ⚽ Soccer star Croix Bethune's story is one of pure grit. The NWSL standout has bounced back from countless injuries, but still she rises, redefining resilience on and off the pitch with a stellar smile on her face. Bethune knows purposeful transformation requires small steps along the way — that's why she's an Invisalign® Game Changer, investing in her own smile so she can feel her best. Click here to learn more about why Bethune trusts Invisalign clear aligners to level up her smile and boost her oral health. Shining bright.

Weekend Watching

Source: University of Nebraska 🎓🏐 NCAA volleyball: National tournament — Ongoing — ESPN+ The first round continues, with three of the four No. 1 seeds taking the court tonight: Pittsburgh (6:30 p.m. ET), undefeated Nebraska (8 p.m. ET), and Texas (8 p.m. ET). Aces. 🎓⚽ NCAA Women's College Cup: Final Four — Starting tonight at 6 p.m. ET — ESPNU Friday night plans? Cancel 'em. The national tourney semis are tonight, with No. 3 seed Florida State taking on No. 2 TCU at 6 p.m. ET followed by No. 1 Stanford vs. No. 2 Duke at 8:45 p.m. ET. Winners advance to Monday's title game. 🏆⚽ MLS Cup Final: Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs. Inter Miami CF — Tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. ET — FOX Miami enters with home-field advantage and a little someone named Lionel Messi on their side, but underdog Vancouver knows how to dismantle a star-studded squad, as they did in their semis win over LAFC. Either way, a first-time champ will be crowned tomorrow. 🏈 NFL: Houston Texans vs. Kansas City Chiefs — Sunday at 8:20 p.m. ET — NBC/Peacock Two-time MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes and KC battling for their postseason lives against the NFL's best defense? Consider us Reality Hot Seat-ed.

The GIST's Picks

🏅 Who's going to the Olympics The winner of this weekend's mixed relay ski mountaineering race, featuring teams from Canada and the United States. Only one can advance…

⛸️ What to keep tabs on This weekend's ISU Grand Prix Final, where the top six skaters in each discipline will compete for season-ending hardware — and the honor of being an Olympic favorite ahead of Milano Cortina.

🌶️ What to watch A'ja Wilson on Hot Ones, where the Las Vegas Aces star discusses her recent championship season, drills with Coach Dawn Staley, and the dunking narrative in the WNBA. Spicy.

Today's email was brought to you by Alessandra Puccio, Lisa Minutillo, Lauren Tuiskula, Rachel Fuenzalida, Grace DePaull, and Briana Ekanem. Editing by Katie Kehoe Foster. Fact-checking by Elisha Gunaratnam and Mikaela Perez. Ops by Briana Ekanem and Elisha Gunaratnam. Ads by Katie Kehoe Foster, Alessandra Puccio, and Lisa Minutillo. Managing edits by Lauren Tuiskula and Alessandra Puccio. Head of content Ellen Hyslop.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to the GIST at our website: https://www.thegistsports.com

You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

View the web version of this email.

Valid Check