Nominees for the 43rd annual Sports Emmy Awards were announced Wednesday, with women’s sports featured in a number of categories.

“The challenges these talented sports professionals have overcome to deliver exciting, entertaining and innovative coverage of the world of sports these last two years during a world-wide pandemic is extraordinary,” said Adam Sharp, the president and CEO of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, which presents the awards.

Nominees focused on women’s sports include ESPN’s “144” documentary on the 2020 WNBA season, Facebook Watch’s “Simone vs. Herself” docuseries on Simone Biles. The nominees include:

• Long documentary: ESPN’s “144,” HBO’s “LFG”
• Documentary series: HBO’s “Level Playing Field”
• Documentary series – serialized: Peacock’s “Golden: The Journey of USA’s Elite Gymnasts,” Facebook Watch’s “Simone vs. Herself”
• Outstanding short feature: NFL Network’s “Sam Gordon: In a League of Their Own”
• Outstanding long feature: HBO’s “Oksana: The Remarkable Story of Paralympic Superstar Oksana Masters”

This year’s awards also features the most nominees in the history of the Sports Emmys.

“This year’s competition is a proud moment for the entire industry,” said Justine Gubar, the head of sports awards for NATAS. “I am deeply looking forward to our first in-person sports ceremony since 2019 so that we can celebrate the groundbreaking accomplishments of the last year.”

This year is the first in which the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has released demographic information about its judges. By their own admission, the organization has work to do on representation in the sports category.

According to the report, 73 percent of Sports Emmy judges are male while 25 percent are female. Additionally, 82 percent of judges are white while just nine percent are Black, seven percent Latino and three percent Asian American. Just four percent publicly identify as LGBTQ.

The report aims to bring more transparency to the process.

“This document is designed to provide that transparency, and illustrate the due diligence that the NATAS staff, the judges and the awards committee take to preserve the integrity of that that process,” Sharp said. “The competition is only as strong as the community confidence in it and in the results.”

World No. 18 Colombia secured their spot in the 2025 Copa América final on Monday night, when Las Cafeteras bested No. 32 Argentina in a penalty shootout to take the first of the continental tournament's two semifinals.

Despite dominating in both possession and attacking opportunities, Colombia failed to break through in regulation time, ending the Copa semifinal in a 0-0 stalemate.

However, the 2022 runners-up showed confidence from the spot, securing the victory with a narrow 5-4 penalty differential after six shootout rounds.

"We are finalists and we qualified for the Olympics in Los Angeles, that was our objective," said Colombia goalkeeper Katherine Tapia after the win. "We are prepared for the Final."

With Colombia hunting a first-ever Copa title in their fourth trip to the tournament's finale, they will either face underdog No. 63 Uruguay or reigning champions No. 4 Brazil in Saturday's 2025 title match.

Should Brazil soccer legend Marta and the rest of her team continue their run to a fifth straight — and ninth overall — Conmebol trophy, Colombia would find themselves facing As Canarinhas for a competition record-tying fourth time in the Copa América final.

On the other hand, a Uruguay semifinal victory over Brazil would set up the first-ever Copa América finale to not feature the continental powerhouse.

How to watch Brazil vs. Uruguay in the Copa América semifinal

Defending champ Brazil will take on Uruguay in the second Copa América semifinal at 8 PM ET on Tuesday, as each team aims for a spot against Colombia in Saturday's 5 PM ET tournament final.

Tuesday's semifinal will air live on FS1.

The Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) crowned its inaugural champion on Sunday, with the No. 1-seed Talons lifting the first-ever AUSL trophy after sweeping the No. 2-seed Bandits in the weekend's 2025 Championship Series.

Battling inclement weather all weekend, the Talons finished out Saturday's rain-delayed Game 1 to a 3-1 win early Sunday morning, before avoiding a winner-take-all Game 3 by claiming the AUSL title in a narrow 1-0 second victory on Sunday afternoon.

AUSL Pitcher of the Year Georgina Corrick and former Alabama ace Montana Fouts held the powerful Bandits offense at bay throughout the two wins, while infielder Sydney Romero — a former two-time NCAA champion at Oklahoma — secured the Talons' title with a Game 2 sixth-inning home run.

"I wouldn't have wanted to do this anywhere else, with anybody else," Fouts said after the championship win. "I feel like we really are family. That's what makes this so special. Obviously, winning is awesome, but I just feel like whenever you step on the field with people like this, you've already won." 

In addition to the Talons' 2025 championship trophy, AUSL at-large garnered plenty of success throughout its debut season, selling out 14 of the first 29 games while averaging 117,000 viewers per game on ESPN2 — a 65% increase over the 2024 Athletes Unlimited format.

That boost saw the broadcaster upgrade the final series from ESPN2 to ESPN.

"It's really been, in some ways, eye-opening," AUSL commissioner Kim Ng told Sports Business Journal earlier this month. "I don't think that any of us thought that we would get this type of reception. But everyone here is so incredibly excited."

The No. 11 Dallas Wings put on a show on Monday, handing the No. 2 New York Liberty their second straight loss behind a combined 40 points from star guards Paige Bueckers and Arike Ogunbowale.

Rocketing to a season-best 63-36 first-half lead, Dallas held off the reigning WNBA champions' fourth-quarter surge to secure the 92-82 upset win — the Wings' eighth victory of the year.

Ogunbowale tallied 14 assists in the win, becoming to first WNBA player to ever record 20+ points and 14+ assists in a single game while committing less than two turnovers.

While the WNBA standings remained relatively stable, Dallas's upswing brought further frustration for the Liberty, as they continue to struggle to keep all five starters healthy at the same time.

While previously injured center Jonquel Jones is back in the mix, New York missed 2023 MVP Breanna Stewart on Monday, with the star forward sidelined after suffering a blow to the leg during Saturday play.

"Just understanding the urgency we need to play with, understanding nobody feels bad for us down some people, we have to come out with a little more purpose," guard Sabrina Ionescu told reporters after Monday's loss.

How to watch the Dallas Wings and New York Liberty this week

New York's next trek is significantly steeper, as the Liberty take on the league-leading Minnesota Lynx at 8 PM ET on Wednesday. A rematch of the 2024 WNBA Finals, the clash will air live on ESPN.

Dallas will be in action at the exact same time, when the Wings will hunt a ninth season win against the No. 4 Atlanta Dream, airing live on ESPN3.

Second-year LA Sparks forward Cameron Brink is gearing up to make her long-awaited return on Tuesday night, stepping back on the WNBA court after missing more than a year of action due to a June 2024 ACL tear.

Brink's return couldn't come at a better time for LA, as the Sparks continue to take serious aim at a postseason run after rattling off five wins in a row.

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The 2024 No. 2 overall draftee will likely be on a minutes restriction as she works her way back into full-game fitness, with the Sparks easing her in during their Tuesday matchup against Las Vegas.

"It means the world," Brink told the Long Beach Press Telegram about her WNBA return earlier this week. "I'm just very excited, very humbled by this experience. It's no easy thing to come back from."

Brink's comeback will close out a trio of WNBA games on Tuesday:

• No. 9 Golden State Valkyries vs. No. 4 Atlanta Dream, 7:30 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): After a hot start, the Valkyries slid into a free-fall, leaving Golden State hoping to improve on their 2-6 July record against a gelling Dream side.

• No. 12 Chicago Sky vs. No. 8 Washington Mystics, 7:30 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): The young Mystics are currently clinging onto the final playoff spot, with a chance to push ahead against the injury-ridden Sky.

• No. 7 Las Vegas Aces vs. No. 10 Los Angeles Sparks, 10 PM ET (NBA TV): The Sparks are the shiniest team in the WNBA right now, but they'll have their work cut out against an Aces team desperate to bust out of the mid-table doldrums.