CULTURE

Footer Column 2

Footer Legal

Footer Main

Nav Bar

OTHER

SPORTS

Subscribe, at any level, to play

Thanks for your interest in Defector Crosswords!

Become a subscriber today to get unlimited access

Thanks for reading!

Plans start at $8/month.

Subscribers enjoy unlimited, ad-free browsing.

Register to continue

Or click here to subscribe for unlimited, ad-free access!

Our gift to you: This year's post is unlocked. Register your email to get even more free articles.

Welcome to the 2025 Hater's Guide!

Just register your email:

This blog is free to read.

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

Giri Nathan

A view of the crowd milling around the U.S. Open

Tennis

The U.S. Open Crowd Has Become Too Much Of A Good Thing

Fans cool off in misters during Day Three of the 2024 US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on August 28, 2024 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.

A Sweltering U.S. Open Inspires Many Ways To Stay Cool, Most Of Them Useless

Kelsey McKinney

Chappell Roan on stage in a blue outfit, her hair blowing behind her, with one arm outstretched, pointing.

Arts And Culture

Chappell Roan Confronts The Sickness Of Modern Fandom

Patrick Redford

ELANCOURT, FRANCE - JULY 29: Thomas Pidcock of Team Great Britain competes during the Men's Cross-Country on day three of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Elancourt Hill on July 29, 2024 in Elancourt, France. (Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images)

Olympics

Tom Pidcock Scandalizes Delicate French Fans By Being Too Good At Bike Racing

Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates winning match point with a violin gesture against Holger Rune of Denmark in his Gentlemen's Singles fourth round match during day eight of The Championships Wimbledon 2024 at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 08, 2024 in London, England.

No One Can Invent A Guy To Be Mad At Quite Like Novak Djokovic

<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-kelly-180886217/"><span style="font-weight: 400">Christopher “Kit” Kelly</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400"> is a professor of criminal justice at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia.</span></p>


Kit Kelly

<p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/ray-spraggins-49638227b/"><span style="font-weight: 400">Ray Spraggins</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400"> graduated in 2024 from Saint Joseph’s University with a Bachelor of Science degree in criminal justice.</span></p>


Ray Spraggins

Lady Justice, wearing an Eagles helmet and weighing a football and some alcohol.

Eagles Court Could Only Have Existed In Philadelphia

Ray Ratto

FC Barcelona women's football team present their Champions League trophy to supporters from the balcony of the Catalan Regional Government headquarters one day after getting their third Champions League triumph, in Barcelona on May 26, 2024. The Catalans finally avenged final defeats by Lyon in 2019 and 2022 yesterday in Bilbao, beating the French giants 2-0 to lift the Champions League for the third time.

Mods Asleep

Buy The T-Shirt, Not The Jersey

<p>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 <em>Point B</em>. Handsomest man in the world.</p>


Drew Magary

Minnesota Vikings fan dressed up in Viking costume at a National Football League game in the Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by LAYNE KENNEDY/Corbis via Getty Images)

Jamboroo

I Am Ready To Become The Worst Kind Of Sports Cock

Dave McKenna

SHADY GROVE, MD - SEPTEMBER 26: Robin Ficker, a Republican candidate for Montgomery County Executive, speaks during a County Executive Candidates debate on September 26, 2018 in Shady Grove, MD. (Photo by Oliver Contreras/For The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Politics

Portrait Of The Asshole As An Old Man

David Roth

Yankees manager Aaron Boone argues with home plate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt after being ejected in the first inning of his team's game against the Oakland Athletics at Yankee Stadium on April 22, 2024 in New York City.

Aaron Boone Gets Ejected For Whatever Some Fan Yelled At Hunter Wendelstedt

<div dir="ltr">
<div>Zach Buchanan has covered Major League Baseball for more than a decade, for the <em>Arizona Republic</em>, <em>Cincinnati Enquirer,</em> and most recently The Athletic. He also has been published in <em>The New York Times</em>, <em>Washington Post</em>, FanGraphs and <em>Baseball America</em>. He lives in Phoenix, where he prepares for the inevitable water crisis by living off Dr Pepper instead.</div>
</div>
<div class="yj6qo ajU"></div>


Zach Buchanan

College Basketball

Terry Francona’s Next Act: Arizona Hoops Superfan

Justin Ellis

Wake Forest basketball fans packed together and celebrating after storming the court following their 83-79 upset victory over Duke.

Can Someone Please Tell Me If Storming The Court Is Ever OK?

Two Mavericks fans interact with Kevin Durant

Savor The Discomfort Of Kevin Durant Confronting A Mavs Fan Who Called Him A “Bitch”


<p>Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.</p>


Dan McQuade

SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 09: (EDITORS NOTE: Image contains nudity.) A fan dressed in costume as William Wallace from Braveheart, runs on the course during the second round of the WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on February 09, 2024 in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Golf

The Rowdy Golf Tournament Got Too Rowdy This Year

Tom Ley

Fans celebrate on the floor after the Ohio State Buckeyes defeated the Iowa Hawkeyes in overtime on January 21, 2024, at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio.

Elder Wisdom

Here Is The New Rule About Storming The Court

A New York Jets fan looks on from the crowd during a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at MetLife Stadium on Saturday, August 19, 2023, in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

For Jets Fans, Disaster Is The Only Love Language

A crowd shot of Court 17 at the U.S. Open.

An Interview With The Biggest Tennis Sicko I’ve Encountered At The U.S. Open

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 13: Oakland Athletics fans display signs during a reverse boycott game against the Tampa Bay Rays at RingCentral Coliseum on June 13, 2023 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Brandon Vallance/Getty Images)

Oakland A’s Fans Held A Raucous Wake For Their Team

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 12: Jonah Bride #26, Seth Brown #15, Jace Peterson #6, Esteury Ruiz #1 and Ramon Laureano #22 of the Oakland Athletics celebrate after a 4-3 win against the Tampa Bay Rays at RingCentral Coliseum on June 12, 2023 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)

Tonight’s A’s Game Will Be A Party Or A Wake

I Could Stare At The Roland Garros Clay All Day

Samer Kalaf

The rapper E-40 yells at arena security personnel before being escorted from courtside seating during Game One of the Western Conference First Round Playoffs between the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings

E-40 Says Kings Security Wrongfully Ejected Him From Game 1

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 20: De'Aaron Fox #5 and Domantas Sabonis #10 of the Sacramento Kings celebrate after a three-point basket in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons at Golden 1 Center on November 20, 2022 in Sacramento, California. 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 Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)

Kings Fans Have Waited So Long For This

Kansas City Chiefs fans in Germany do the Tomahawk Chop during Super Bowl 57.

Life's Rich Pageant

NFL Exports Racist Arm Gesture To Germany

An announcement is displayed on the scoreboard after the game was temporarily suspended following the collapse of Damar Hamlin #3 of the Buffalo Bills after making a tackle against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium on January 02, 2023 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)

Interviews

A Fan At The Bills-Bengals Game Describes The Scene When Damar Hamlin’s Heart Stopped

Turkish chef Salt Bae poses with World Cup trophy.

fans