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The Jewish Sport Report: A Jewish guide to the Women’s World Cup
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Happy Friday!
Robert Stock hasn’t appeared in the MLB since 2021, but the Team Israel alum is making quite the case for a comeback.
Stock hurled a no-hitter for the Long Island Ducks this week, becoming the second pitcher in the independent team’s history to do so. Not too shabby!
A Jewish guide to the Women’s World Cup
Doug Emhoff poses with the United States Women’s National Team before a training session in Auckland, New Zealand, July 20, 2023. (Brad Smith/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)
The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is underway in Australia and New Zealand, and there are no known Jewish players in the tournament.
In fact, Jews in women’s pro soccer seem to be few and far between — a fact that disheartens Yael Averbuch West, the former star player who is now an executive in the National Women’s Soccer League.
“I do think that representation is important,” Averbuch West told me. “And because of the lack of representation, I think that that affects up-and-coming Jewish players. I’ve had people say to me, ‘oh my gosh, you’re my favorite player, because we’re Jewish and we don’t see any Jewish players out there.’”
Though there won’t be any Jews on the field, there are some notable ones off the field — from legendary broadcaster Andres Cantor to fans Doug Emhoff and Sue Bird, who will be there to cheer on the U.S. team.
Halftime report
HAPPY ENDING. Last month, we told you the story of Orthodox athlete Michael Neuman, who competed on this season of NBC’s “American Ninja Warrior.” Neuman had brought a group of medically fragile youth from his Jewish Inspiration Foundation to the filming in Los Angeles — only to be told they’d all been cut from the show, and that NBC wouldn’t release any footage to them. Our article helped NBC change its mind.
NO JOKE. Hall of Fame catcher Johnny Bench was in hot water this week after making an antisemitic joke at a Cincinnati Reds event last weekend. Bench has since apologized, and the team put out a statement denouncing antisemitism.
SUPERSTAR. Yeshiva University basketball star Daniella Rothman was nominated for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award, which honors graduating seniors for their excellence and leadership on and off the court. Rotham racked up 512 rebounds and 468 points in three seasons at YU.
INJURY UPDATES. A pair of injured Jewish MLB players are trending in opposite directions. Atlanta Braves ace Max Fried, who has been out since May with a forearm strain, is progressing in his rehab assignment and could rejoin the club soon. Meanwhile, Milwaukee Brewers slugger Rowdy Tellez will be out an additional four weeks after a freak accident he suffered while shagging fly balls during batting practice.
SEE YA. The record $6.05 billion sale of the Washington Commanders has officially gone through, with embattled owner Daniel Snyder selling his franchise to Jewish owner Josh Harris. Snyder was fined $60 million on his way out the door, after an investigation found that Snyder sexually harassed an employee.
This 10-year-old races with Israeli and native flags
Thomas Poretsky shown in front of his Bandolero car. (Lonny Goldsmith/TC Jewfolk)
Thomas Poretsky is only 10 years old, but he’s already a competitive race car driver in Minnesota.
And his car is a symbol of his identity: it features an Israeli flag to represent his Jewish heritage from his father’s side and a Quechan flag from his mother’s Native American tribe.
“It means a lot to me,” Poretsky said during a recent practice session. “There’s not a lot of Native and Jewish mixes and it’s just … me. It shows my story.”
Read more about the young racer here.
Jews in sports to watch this weekend
IN BASEBALL…
Zack Gelof and the Oakland Athletics host Alex Bregman and the Houston Astros this weekend. Gelof has four hits — including two doubles and a triple — in five games since his callup. Eli Morgan and the Cleveland Guardians face Garrett Stubbs and the Philadelphia Phillies.
IN SOCCER…
Daniel Edelman and the NY Red Bulls face the New England Revolution Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET. Manor Solomon and his new club Tottenham host Leicester City in a friendly match Sunday at 6 a.m. ET. Solomon told The Athletic that once he had the opportunity to join the Spurs, a team with a historically Jewish fanbase, it was “really hard to say no.”
IN GOLF…
After finishing tied for 12th in the Scottish Open last week, Max Homa is in England this weekend for the British Open. Ben Silverman is competing in the Price Cutter Charity Championship.
IN RACING…
Lance Stroll will be on the track for the Hungarian Grand Prix Sunday at 9 a.m. ET. Stroll has been having the best season of his Formula One career.
IN BASKETBALL…
If you’re in New York, you might just come across a very Jewish pick-up game this weekend. Jewish actors Adam Sandler and Timothee Chalamet have been spotted balling it up together in The Big Apple.
Starstruck
This recent story about Jewish basketball player Abby Meyers opens with an amazing tidbit: during Meyers’ WNBA debut earlier this season, she got distracted by a certain celebrity sitting courtside: none other than Jewish WNBA legend Sue Bird.
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The post The Jewish Sport Report: A Jewish guide to the Women’s World Cup appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Germany’s Halt to Arms Exports to Israel Is Response to Gaza Expansion Plans, Chancellor Says
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a cabinet meeting at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Aug. 6, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Liesa Johannssen
Germany’s decision to curb arms exports to Israel comes in response to Israel’s plan to expand its operations in the Gaza Strip, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday in an interview with public broadcaster ARD.
“We cannot deliver weapons into a conflict that is now being pursued exclusively by military means,” Merz said. “We want to help diplomatically, and we are doing so.”
The worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza and Israel’s plans to expand military control over the enclave have pushed Germany to take this historically fraught step.
The chancellor said in the interview that the expansion of Israel’s operations in Gaza could claim hundreds of thousands of civilian lives and would require the evacuation of the entire city of Gaza.
“Where are these people supposed to go?” Merz said. “We can’t do that, we won’t do that, and I will not do that.”
Nevertheless, the principles of Germany’s Israel policy remain unchanged, the chancellor said.
“Germany has stood firmly by Israel’s side for 80 years. That will not change,” Merz said.
Germany is Israel’s second-biggest weapons supplier after the US and has long been one of its staunchest supporters, principally because of its historical guilt for the Nazi Holocaust – a policy known as the “Staatsraison.”
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Newsom Calls Trump’s $1 Billion UCLA Settlement Offer Extortion, Says California Won’t Bow
California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks at a press conference, accompanied by members of the Texas Democratic legislators, at the governor’s mansion in Sacramento, California, U.S., August 8, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
California Governor Gavin Newsom said on Saturday that a $1 billion settlement offer by President Donald Trump’s administration for UCLA amounted to political extortion to which the state will not bow.
The University of California says it is reviewing a $1 billion settlement offer by the Trump administration for UCLA after the government froze hundreds of millions of dollars in funding over pro-Palestinian protests.
UCLA, which is part of the University of California system, said this week the government froze $584 million in funding. Trump has threatened to cut federal funds for universities over anti-Israel student protests.
“Donald Trump has weaponized the DOJ (Department of Justice) to kneecap America’s #1 public university system — freezing medical & science funding until @UCLA pays his $1 billion ransom,” the office of Newsom, a Democrat, said in a post.
“California won’t bow to Trump’s disgusting political extortion,” it added.
“This isn’t about protecting Jewish students – it’s a billion-dollar political shakedown from the pay-to-play president.”
The government alleges universities, including UCLA, allowed antisemitism during the protests and in doing so violated Jewish and Israeli students’ civil rights. The White House had no immediate comment beyond the offer.
Experts have raised free speech and academic freedom concerns over the Republican president’s threats. The University of California says paying such a large settlement would “completely devastate” the institution.
Large demonstrations took place at UCLA last year. Last week, UCLA agreed to pay over $6 million to settle a lawsuit by some students and a professor who alleged antisemitism. It was also sued this year over a 2024 violent mob attack on pro-Palestinian protesters.
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Trump Nominates State Dept Spokeswoman Bruce as US Deputy Representative to UN
FILE PHOTO: U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce speaks during her first press briefing at the State Department in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 6, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo
President Donald Trump said on Saturday he was nominating State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce as the next US deputy representative to the United Nations.
Bruce has been the State Department spokesperson since Trump took office in January.
In a post on social media in which Trump announced her nomination, the president said she did a “fantastic job” as State Department spokesperson. Bruce will need to be confirmed for the role by the US Senate, where Trump’s Republican Party holds a majority.
During press briefings, she has defended the Trump administration’s foreign policy decisions ranging from an immigration crackdown and visa revocations to US responses to Russia’s war in Ukraine and Israel’s war in Gaza, including a widely condemned armed private aid operation in the Palestinian territory.
Bruce was previously a political contributor and commentator on Fox News for over 20 years.
She has also authored books like “Fear Itself: Exposing the Left’s Mind-Killing Agenda” that criticized liberals and left-leaning viewpoints.
In a post after Trump’s announcement, Bruce thanked him and suggested that the role was a “few weeks” away. Neither Trump nor Bruce mentioned an exact timeline in their online posts.
“Now I’m blessed that in the next few weeks my commitment to advancing America First leadership and values continues on the global stage in this new post,” Bruce wrote on X.
Trump has picked former White House national security adviser Mike Waltz to be his U.N. envoy. Waltz’s Senate confirmation for that role, wherein he will be Bruce’s boss, is still due.
Waltz was Trump’s national security adviser until he was ousted on May 1 after he was caught up in a March scandal involving a Signal chat among top Trump national security aides on military strikes in Yemen. Trump then nominated Waltz as his U.N. ambassador.