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This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

Ray Ratto

Coach John Beam, center bottom, and the Skyline High School football team pose together after beating Oakland High School 19-0 for the championship title at Laney College in Oakland, Calif. on Nov. 24, 1989.

College Football

Coach John Beam’s Legacy Is Everywhere

Luis Paez-Pumar

Scotland's Kieran Tierney (R) and Kenny McLean celebrate at full time during a FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifier between Scotland and Denmark at Hampden Park, on November 18, 2025, in Glasgow, Scotland.

Soccer

Scotland Stunned Its Way Back To The World Cup

Barry Petchesky

Arts And Culture

The Eyes Have It

Jasper Wang

Three men bend over a newspaper just off the printing press, January 7, 1947, assignments, The Netherlands, 20th century press agency photo, news to remember, documentary, historic photography 1945-1990, visual stories, human history of the Twentieth Century, capturing moments in time.

Announcements

Reflections On Five Years In Worker-Owned Media

Jae Towle Vieira [they/them] works as a producer for Normal Gossip. Their fiction has been published in The Normal School, New England Review, Carve Magazine, Passages North, Fairy Tale Review, and elsewhere.

Jae Towle Vieira

Podcasts

Meet-Cute At The Anne Rice Vampire Ball

Patrick Redford

Thomas Pynchon Is Laughing All The Way To The Brink

Alex Shultz is a journalist based in Brooklyn. He&#8217;s a writer for <a href="https://www.hardresetmedia.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.hardresetmedia.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1763581679564000&amp;usg=AOvVaw07bi0TNndgTXDN2QH72s3J">Hard Reset,</a> a newsletter about tech, labor, and power.

Alex Shultz

US Senator John Fetterman, Democrat of Pennsylvania, looks at his cellphone in between Senate votes to reopen the government on day 41 of the government shutdown at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, November 10, 2025. The longest-ever US government shutdown appeared headed Monday to an eventual resolution, after several Democratic senators broke ranks to join Republicans in advancing a compromise deal -- sparking intra-party backlash.

Politics

John Fetterman’s Memoir Is As Low-Effort As His Senate Tenure

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - OCTOBER 29: Luka Garza #52 of the Boston Celtics watches warmups before a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at the TD Garden on October 29, 2025 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Brian Fluharty/Getty Images)

Which NBA Teams Are Cool?

Columnist. Author of many <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Drew-Magary/e/B001JS8R52/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1">fine works of literature</a>, including Point B. Handsomest man in the world.

Drew Magary

Funbag

Which Fictional Character Would You Hate To See Go MAGA?

Joel Pinckney

‘The High Heaven’ Is A Beautifully Grounded Debut Novel

leader of the US Postal Service team, US Lance Armstrong, leaves the podium of 17th stage of the 89th Tour de France in Cluses, 25 July 2002. Italy's Dario Frigo of the Italian Tacconi Sport team won the stage and Armstrong, retains his yellow jersey. AFP PHOTO OLIVIER MORIN (Photo by OLIVIER MORIN / AFP)

Lance Armstrong And The Myth Of The Natural Body

Lauren Theisen

Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals skates before playing against the Los Angeles Kings during the first period at Capital One Arena on November 17, 2025 in Washington, DC.

When Will Alex Ovechkin Stop Scoring?

Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.

Dan McQuade

Only The Raiders Could Run A Play This Poorly

Billy Haisley

Ireland's forward #07 Troy Parrott celebrates his 2-3 during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group F European qualification football match betweem Hungary and Republic of Ireland at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary on November 16, 2025.

The World Cup Is The Best, Even When It’s Not The World Cup

charismatic megafauna (they/them)

Sabrina Imbler

Split image. The lefthand side is Olivia Nuzzi attends the 2023 White House Correspondents' Association Dinner at Washington Hilton on April 29, 2023 in Washington, DC. She's wearing a leopard longsleeve top and has long blonde hair and is smiling tightly at the camera. On the right side is an image of a purple blob of some sort.

Olivia Nuzzi Addresses The Worm

Staff Writer
Find me on Signal @DefectorChris.19

Chris Thompson

Tom Ley

(L-R) Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein, and musician Michael Bolton pose for a portrait during a party at the Mar-a-Lago club, Palm Beach, Florida, February 12, 2000.

Capital

Jeffrey Epstein’s Inbox Was A Place To Complain, Talk Shit, And Make Boomer-Grade Jokes

Dave McKenna

Conor Benn punches Chris Eubank Jr during their middleweight fight on the ‘Unfinished Business’ fight card at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on November 15, 2025 in London, England.

Boxing

Conor Benn Avenges 35 Years Of Family Losses With Beatdown Of Chris Eubank Jr.

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - NOVEMBER 16: Draymond Green #23 of the Golden State Warriors gets into a verbal altercation with a fan during the second quarter of an NBA game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on November 16, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

A Brand-New Draymond Green Incident Cycle Has Arrived Right On Schedule

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - NOVEMBER 16: Jameson Williams #1 of the Detroit Lions celebrates a touchdown during the first half against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on November 16, 2025 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Williams is hugging the goal post after scoring a touchdown. He's in his white and silver and blue Lions jersey and he's pretty high up on the goalpost, above the NFL "Salute to Service" logo and he's clearly very excited.

The NFL Needs To Cool It With The Celebration Penalties

Alex Sujong Laughlin

Zakiya Gibbons Goes Speed-Dating

Kathryn Xu

osh Naylor #12 of the Seattle Mariners reacts after grounding out to end the first inning.

The Mariners Are Acting Like A Team That Wants To Win A World Series

Norway's team players ans staff celebrate their victory at the end of the FIFA World Cup 2026 European qualification football match between Italy and Norway, at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, on November 16, 2025.

Norway Is So Much More Than Just Erling Haaland

Ja'Marr Chase faces Jalen Ramsey after spitting on him.

Ja’Marr Chase Thought He Got Away With Spitting On Jalen Ramsey

Shea Patterson #7 of the Montreal Alouettes fumbles the ball at the goal line the 112th Grey Cup game between the Montreal Alouettes and Saskatchewan Roughriders

The Grey Cup Was Decided On A Goal Line Fumble

J.J. McCarthy #9 of the Minnesota Vikings looks on during warmups before the game against the Baltimore Ravens at U.S. Bank Stadium on November 09, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.