Sweden captain Caroline Seger decried the Spain soccer federation president for kissing star player Jenni Hermoso in the aftermath of La Roja’s World Cup win.

“Horrible and unacceptable,” Seger said.

Luis Rubiales, president of the Spanish football federation (RFEF), kissed Hermoso on the lips as the team celebrated its World Cup title. Rubiales later apologized, while Hermoso downplayed the incident, calling it “a natural gesture of affection and gratitude.”

Seger, though, took issue with Rubiales’ actions, as Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet reported. The 38-year-old midfielder won the third-place match with Sweden one day before the tournament final on Aug. 20, then watched with the rest of the world as Spain defeated England, 1-0, to take the title.

“I can’t understand how it can happen, and to me it feels really weird,” said Seger, according to a translation. “I want the whole world to react and I want something to happen because it’s clear that there are problems in RFEF. If people think it’s not wrong, it’s just not acceptable!”

#SWE captain Caroline Seger on Luis Rubiales

Its horrible and unaccaptable. I can’t understand how it can happen and to me it feels really weird. I want the whole world to react and I want something to happen cause its clear that there are problems in RFEF. If people think it’s…

— Mia Eriksson (@mia_eriksson) August 21, 2023

Irene Montero, Spain’s national minister for equality, also condemned the kiss, calling it “a form of sexual violence.” San Diego Wave coach Casey Stoney criticized Rubiales as well, asking in a social media post: “Would he kiss a male player like this? This is NOT ok.”

The controversy comes against the backdrop of turmoil within the Spanish federation. Head coach Jorge Vilda selected only three of 15 players for the World Cup team who had expressed concerns with his leadership in a written letter to RFEF.

Dallas star Paige Bueckers all but slammed the door on the 2025 WNBA Rookie of the Year race on Wednesday, tying basketball legend Cynthia Cooper's 1997 single-game rookie scoring record by dropping a career-high 44 points in the No. 11 Wings' narrow 81-80 loss to the No. 9 LA Sparks.

Despite the Sparks officially eliminating the Wings from playoff contention, Bueckers's efficiency was on full display, tallying the highest single-game performance by any player in the league this season while shooting over 80% from the field.

"People have [seen] the struggles — the injuries, the ups and downs," Bueckers said afterwards. "For people to continue to follow me and still believe in me, it really means a lot."

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The 2025 No. 1 overall draftee leads a rookie class thriving in the pros, with the No. 10 Washington Mystics' Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen and the No. 13 Connecticut Sun's Saniya Rivers hot on Bueckers's heels.

On the WNBA stat sheet, Bueckers currently sits fifth overall in points per game and ninth in assists per game, while Iriafen is fourth in rebounds per game and Citron — who recently set a new Mystics rookie scoring record with 537 career points — is fifth overall in clutch points.

Despite the Sun's struggles, Rivers has excelled defensively, becoming the fastest-ever WNBA player to record 30 career blocks by doing so in just 31 games.

Ultimately, while Sparks guard Kelsey Plum's game-winning buzzer-beater ended Bueckers's postseason dreams on Wednesday night, the rookie's heroics continue to shine with the WNBA's end-of-season awards fast approaching.

Coming off Tuesday's 85-75 momentum-grabbing win over the No. 1 Minnesota Lynx, the No. 2 New York Liberty will shoot to maintain late-season consistency against the now-eliminated No. 12 Chicago Sky in Thursday's WNBA slate.

Tied with the No. 3 Atlanta Dream at 22-13 on the year, the Liberty could benefit from the lopsided Thursday matchup, potentially adding space above Atlanta in the WNBA standings considering the Dream face an uphill battle against a motivated Lynx side.

"We're focused on the next nine games," New York head coach Sandy Brondello said following Tuesday's victory. "It's all about focusing on us and getting as high a position as we can in the standings."

The reigning champs still have work to do, however, with recent weeks seeing the Liberty post the second-worst 10-game record for any team above the playoff line — complete with three losses to their 2024 WNBA Finals rival Minnesota.

As for Chicago, the Sky are now focused on the future, bolstered by star forward Angel Reese's return from injury as they continue to build under first-year coach Tyler Marsh's system.

"I want to hoop," Reese said earlier this week. "I'm just happy to be out here to play the game I love."

How to watch Chicago Sky vs. New York Liberty in Thursday's WNBA slate

The No. 2 Liberty will host the No. 12 Sky at 7 PM ET on Thursday, tipping off live on Prime.

As the regular season winds down, the WNBA announced this year's postseason schedule on Wednesday, with the 2025 Playoffs officially tipping off on September 14th.

The latest possible finish for the 2025 WNBA Finals is October 17th, with three rounds of play standing between the eight-team postseason field and this year's championship trophy.

Notably, the WNBA is instituting two main changes to its previous Playoffs format in the 2025 schedule.

The postseason's first round — a best-of-three series — will shift from the WNBA's home-home-away format, in which the higher seeds could sweep at home, to a one-one-one structure.

With this change, the league is guaranteeing that every playoff team will host at least one home game.

Additionally, while the best-of-five semifinals will remain the same with its two-two-one hosting structure, the 2025 WNBA Finals will be the first to expand to a best-of-seven series, feeding fans' growing appetite for additional postseason clashes and offering upwards of four title-deciding matchups.

This new Finals format will see the higher seed host Games 1, 2, 5, and 7, giving each team a possible two opportunities to clinch the 2025 championship in front of a home crowd.

All games in the 2025 WNBA Playoffs will air on ESPN platforms, with matchups across ESPN2, ESPN, and ABC.

Currently, the No. 1 Minnesota Lynx are the only team to clinch their 2025 postseason berth.

On the other hand, the No. 11 Dallas Wings, No. 12 Chicago Sky, and No. 13 Connecticut Sun were all recently eliminated from playoff contention.

Just days ahead of taking the 2025 US Open court, US tennis star Coco Gauff has reportedly parted ways with coach Matthew Daly, after he helped guide the world No. 3 to her first French Open title earlier this year.

Gauff originally hired Daly, a grip specialist, following a disappointing 2024 US Open run, ultimately finishing out the season by adding 2024 China Open and 2024 WTA Finals hardware to her trophy case.

However, despite her breakthrough performance at this year's Roland Garros, the 21-year-old has struggled with her serve this season, most recently registering 42 double faults across her three matches at the 2025 Canadian Open and 16 in her 2025 Cincinnati Open quarterfinal clash.

In Daly's absence, Gauff will still be working with longtime coach JC Faurel while also adding Gavin MacMillan to her 2025 US Open team — a biomechanics specialist who No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka has credited for helping her find consistency with her serve.

"I'm very much a perfectionist type of person," Gauff recently told reporters. "So it's really nothing satisfying until you're holding the big trophy, to be honest."

Gauff's next shot at a big trophy begins on Sunday, when the main draw of the 2025 US Open — the last Grand Slam of the year — hits courts in Queens, NY.

The 2023 US Open champion will face Australia's No. 84 Ajla Tomljanović in her first-round match.