An hour into a conversation that has ranged from childhood TV favourites to the challenges of retirement, reflecting on destiny and “what if” moments that defined a career, I stumble into one topic that Francesco Totti considers taboo. All it took was a question about whether he lets his 15-year-old son, Cristian, beat him at pinball.
“No!” he exclaims, fixing me with incredulous eyes from the other end of our Zoom call. “Things have to be earned, not given!”
What other mindset could we expect from a man who stayed his whole career at one club, declining opportunities to earn and win more elsewhere? Totti made his senior debut with Roma in 1992 and played there for a quarter of a century, retiring in 201…
Out of a shameful moment in the history of the Milan derby came one of its most beautiful images. The last meeting of Milan and Inter in the Champions League, in April 2005, was paused by the referee after fans created a scene more reminiscent of Dante’s Inferno than a sporting event. Yet the legacy of this game is a story of camaraderie thanks to a split-second decision to press down on a shutter release button.
Against an apocalyptic backdrop of smoke and burning objects stood the Inter defender Marco Materazzi, with his elbow casually leaning on the shoulder of Milan’s midfielder Rui Costa. They stood together, watching the chaos unfold.
Eighteen years later, as the teams prepare to meet again on Wednesday in…
The Giants got rolled by the Rams 51-17. At halftime, the score was just 27-10. Not close, either, but in the realm of possibility that the Giants could catch up. A reporter asked head coach Ben McAdoo what he said at halftime to inspire the team. Here was a chance for McAdoo to show off; though his team is 1-7, he could convince the press that he at least had a good halftime speech. McAdoo’s speech, per his response, was: “Um.” Anyway, the next question was about the Giants giving up a touchdown on third and 33. [via Andrew] …
Swede Martin Jacobson took poker's biggest prize with his first World Series of Poker bracelet in this year's Main Event, dispatching Norway's Felix Stephensen on the final table's 328th hand with trips 10s, a fitting hand to match his $10,000,000 prize. Stephensen—who had been severely short-stacked from the moment the final table went head's-up— raised to $3.5 million after being dealt suited A-9, only to be put all in by Jacobson's pocket 10s. The flop showed Stephensen a 9—but it also gave Jacobson a set, virtually locking up the championship for the Stockholm native. Stephensen's consolation for missing out on the bracelet? $5,147,911. [ESPN] …