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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

Lauren Theisen

Nathan MacKinnon #29 of the Colorado Avalanche scores a goal during a shootout after overtime to win the game against the Minnesota Wild

I Have So Many Nice Things To Say About The Avalanche And The Wild

Connor McDavid #97 of the Edmonton Oilers faces off against Sebastian Aho

I Bought A Ticket To The Connor McDavid Show And A Hurricanes Game Broke Out

A general view of the exterior of the Saddledome

It’s A Dome That’s Shaped Like A Saddle

view from my seat: Ishii and Boltin lock up

Pro Wrestling

New Japan Makes, The World Takes

<p>Libby Watson is a writer, <a href="https://www.twitch.tv/libtron">streamer</a> and <a href="https://www.patreon.com/whatsallthisthen">podcaster</a>.</p>


Libby Watson

The exterior of breakfast, lunch, and pizza

Food

I Traveled 800 Miles To Eat Breakfast, Lunch, And Pizza At Criss Angel’s Breakfast, Lunch, And Pizza

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<div>Abigail Segel is a contributing writer at Defector. She is also an editor for The IX Soccer and the Equalizer. Her work has been published in the Guardian and the Montreal Gazette.</div>
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Abigail Segel

SAN JOSE, CA - NOVEMBER 22: Rose Lavelle #16 of NY/NJ Gotham FC celebrates scoring the winning goal with teammates during the 2025 NWSL championship game between Washington Spirit and NJ|NY Gotham City FC at PayPal Park on November 22, 2025, in San Jose, CA. (Photo by Elysia Su/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images)

Soccer

Gotham Grabs The Crown Of An NWSL At A Tipping Point

Patrick Redford

Tech leaders, including Sam Altman (C), CEO of OpenAI, and Tim Cook (2nd L), CEO of Apple, attend a dinner hosted by US President Donald Trump with tech leaders in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on September 4, 2025. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)

Capital

An Evening With Sam Altman And Steve Kerr

Emmanuel Rivera #26 of the Baltimore Orioles celebrates with teammates after walking off the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-3 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 06, 2025 in Baltimore, Maryland

[Affecting A Maryland Accent] “Whoa! Go O’s!”

Aaron Timms

A view of the park from behind police barriers

Tennis

The U.S. Open Could Be More Than A Fortress For Capital

Samer Kalaf

Samer Kalaf in a Hell Gate hat at the Mets game

Life's Rich Pageant

TNT Sports Airs Guerrilla Marketing For Worker-Owned Website That Isn’t Defector

Albert Burneko

A pure black field. Nothing whatsoever is visible.

Arts And Culture

What’s ‘Mönch’ Thinking?

Life Lessons

Seeking Closure At Planet Hollywood, Where My Life Once Exploded

<p>E.Y. Zhao is a writer and editor from St. Louis. Her debut novel, <a href="https://astrapublishinghouse.com/product/underspin-9781662603266/"><i>Underspin</i></a>, set in the world of competitive table tennis, is out now. She holds a BA in history from Harvard College and an MFA from the University of Michigan.</p>


E.Y. Zhao

Felix Lebrun of France competes in the Men's Singles Semifinal match against Wang Chuqin of China on day 7 of the United States Smash 2025 World Table Tennis at the Orleans Arena on July 12, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Table Tennis

Sweating Through The Existential Angst Of A Las Vegas Table Tennis Tournament

Bills Week

Bill’s Wines & Liquors: The Defector Review

<p>Alex Tey is a writer, photographer, and birdwatcher living in Queens, New York. Alex is short for Alexandra.</p>


Alex Tey

The Anti-Fascist Power Of Trans Women Wrestling In Nacho Cheese

<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

James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich of Metallica perform during the M72 World Tour at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on June 03, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Music

Metallica Is Forever

A large bitcoin guy regards the world they will take over

Politics

What World Does Bitcoin Want To Build For Itself?

Kelsey McKinney

image of the screen at the Wells Fargo center displaying the words WORSHIP, WISDOM, WORK, WEALTH

Saquon Barkley Lured Me To An Arena Where I Learned Passive Income Is Holy

<p>Emily Bice is a Brooklyn-based writer. Her work centers on explorations of how we navigate love and life in the 21st century. These investigations have taken her to a fishmonger, inspired meditations on dating, and even led to rollerblading a marathon. You can find more on her Substack, <a href="https://129waysto.substack.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://129waysto.substack.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1728739707762000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1SlDWyDATtJJ90_yxFN0B1">129 Ways to Get a Life</a>.</p>


Emily Bice

a woman bowls into a time travel-like vortex

Ten Frames Of Time Travel

Dave McKenna

Horse Racing

One Last Trip To Pimlico, A Dead And Damned Racetrack

Kathryn Xu

Marc Marquez of Spain and Ducati Lenovo Team, Alex Marquez of Spain and BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP during the 2025 MotoGP Michelin Grand Prix of France at Circuit Bugatti on May 11, 2025 in Le Mans, France.

Racing

Finding The Limit At Le Mans


<p>Jasper Hutson is a lapsed journalist.</p>


Jasper Hutson

Fitness

Any “Halfway Decent Person” Can Join And Own Ireland’s Oldest Gym

I Went To Japan To See One Building

Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin during player introductions at the 2017 skills competition

A Pittsburgh Pilgrimage

<p>Heather Chen is a former Defector intern and the managing editor at the <em>Columbia Daily Spectator</em>. She loves hockey, photography, and the good ol’ state of Michigan.</p>


Heather Wei-Xi Chen

DETROIT, MI - SEPTEMBER 14: A worker cleans a RAM truck at the 2022 North American International Auto Show on September 14, 2022 in Detroit, Michigan.The NAIAS opens to the public on September 17 and features the latest state of the art electric vehicles, vehicle rides, the world’s first battery-powered Monster Truck, an Air Mobility Experience featuring flight demonstrations of jet suits, hoverboards, and vertical take-off and landing aircraft, a Dinosaur Encounter featuring 80 life-like and life-size dinosaurs, and the world’s largest rubber duck. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)

field trips