Matt Slater
@mjslater.bsky.social
I cover the business/politics of football & other global sports for The Athletic. In other words, I mainly do bad news.
🔗 https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/author/matt-slater/
🔗 https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/author/matt-slater/
If, like millions around the world, you’ve been watching curling for the first time in four years, you’ll have spent a lot of time looking at the stones. But do you know how they’re made or, even better, where they come from? Well, wonder no longer.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/vid...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/vid...
The Scottish island that makes every curling stone
How are curling stones made, and why does only one company have the rights to make them?
www.nytimes.com
February 11, 2026 at 10:07 AM
If, like millions around the world, you’ve been watching curling for the first time in four years, you’ll have spent a lot of time looking at the stones. But do you know how they’re made or, even better, where they come from? Well, wonder no longer.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/vid...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/vid...
With one small but powerful idea (& a brilliant PR strategy) Vladyslav Heraskevych has grabbed the Olympic family’s attention & asked it a difficult question: you say athletes come first, but what about these athletes? This is new IOC president Kirsty Coventry’s first big test.
February 11, 2026 at 9:57 AM
With one small but powerful idea (& a brilliant PR strategy) Vladyslav Heraskevych has grabbed the Olympic family’s attention & asked it a difficult question: you say athletes come first, but what about these athletes? This is new IOC president Kirsty Coventry’s first big test.
Come on, Scotland!!!!
February 10, 2026 at 12:35 PM
Come on, Scotland!!!!
Green Bay has its cheeseheads, Cortina’s got graniteheads.
February 10, 2026 at 12:33 PM
Green Bay has its cheeseheads, Cortina’s got graniteheads.
Reposted by Matt Slater
Ukrainian skeleton competitor Vladyslav Heraskevych said a helmet he has used in training at the Milano Cortina Games with images of compatriots killed during the war in Ukraine cannot be used in Olympic competition after being told by the IOC that it violates a rule on political statements.
February 10, 2026 at 2:24 AM
Ukrainian skeleton competitor Vladyslav Heraskevych said a helmet he has used in training at the Milano Cortina Games with images of compatriots killed during the war in Ukraine cannot be used in Olympic competition after being told by the IOC that it violates a rule on political statements.
Reposted by Matt Slater
We are five years on from Rob Mac and Ryan Reynolds' takeover of Wrexham, then a fifth tier side — now one promotion from the Premier League.
They both spoke to @rsooty73.bsky.social to reflect on their time so far — and the future ⬇️
🔗 www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
They both spoke to @rsooty73.bsky.social to reflect on their time so far — and the future ⬇️
🔗 www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
February 9, 2026 at 1:21 PM
We are five years on from Rob Mac and Ryan Reynolds' takeover of Wrexham, then a fifth tier side — now one promotion from the Premier League.
They both spoke to @rsooty73.bsky.social to reflect on their time so far — and the future ⬇️
🔗 www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
They both spoke to @rsooty73.bsky.social to reflect on their time so far — and the future ⬇️
🔗 www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
Reposted by Matt Slater
Women’s Super League Football, the organisation which oversees the top two tiers of women’s football in England, is monitoring developments with X’s artificial intelligence tool Grok due to concerns regarding its creation of sexualised images.
More from @charpur.bsky.social
bit.ly/4ai5rn6
More from @charpur.bsky.social
bit.ly/4ai5rn6
February 9, 2026 at 8:22 PM
Women’s Super League Football, the organisation which oversees the top two tiers of women’s football in England, is monitoring developments with X’s artificial intelligence tool Grok due to concerns regarding its creation of sexualised images.
More from @charpur.bsky.social
bit.ly/4ai5rn6
More from @charpur.bsky.social
bit.ly/4ai5rn6
Reposted by Matt Slater
YouTube TV announced the creation of a sports-focused monthly subscription plan that would carry most available live sports at a $20-per-month discount to its existing one-size-fits-all plan.
The sports-specific plan will cost about $65 per month for existing YouTube TV subscribers.
The sports-specific plan will cost about $65 per month for existing YouTube TV subscribers.
February 9, 2026 at 6:14 PM
YouTube TV announced the creation of a sports-focused monthly subscription plan that would carry most available live sports at a $20-per-month discount to its existing one-size-fits-all plan.
The sports-specific plan will cost about $65 per month for existing YouTube TV subscribers.
The sports-specific plan will cost about $65 per month for existing YouTube TV subscribers.
Reposted by Matt Slater
Bad Bunny's halftime show at Super Bowl LX rose to the occasion.
So, where exactly does his performance rank among the greats?
@saadyousuf126.bsky.social has it in the top 10, narrowly above Kendrick Lamar's show last year 👀
So, where exactly does his performance rank among the greats?
@saadyousuf126.bsky.social has it in the top 10, narrowly above Kendrick Lamar's show last year 👀
February 9, 2026 at 7:31 PM
Bad Bunny's halftime show at Super Bowl LX rose to the occasion.
So, where exactly does his performance rank among the greats?
@saadyousuf126.bsky.social has it in the top 10, narrowly above Kendrick Lamar's show last year 👀
So, where exactly does his performance rank among the greats?
@saadyousuf126.bsky.social has it in the top 10, narrowly above Kendrick Lamar's show last year 👀
Reposted by Matt Slater
Eileen Gu secured silver in the women's freeski slopestyle final in her breathtaking first run in the 2026 Winter Olympics.
An outlier on Forbes’ 2025 list of the world’s highest-paid female athletes, Gu earns $23m a year — but just $100k of it from her sport.
An outlier on Forbes’ 2025 list of the world’s highest-paid female athletes, Gu earns $23m a year — but just $100k of it from her sport.
February 9, 2026 at 8:01 PM
Eileen Gu secured silver in the women's freeski slopestyle final in her breathtaking first run in the 2026 Winter Olympics.
An outlier on Forbes’ 2025 list of the world’s highest-paid female athletes, Gu earns $23m a year — but just $100k of it from her sport.
An outlier on Forbes’ 2025 list of the world’s highest-paid female athletes, Gu earns $23m a year — but just $100k of it from her sport.
Reposted by Matt Slater
A day after President Donald Trump called Olympian Hunter Hess “a real loser” over the freestyle skier’s comments about representing the United States, Chloe Kim had this to say in these Winter Olympics that are becoming ever more politically charged.
February 9, 2026 at 9:51 PM
A day after President Donald Trump called Olympian Hunter Hess “a real loser” over the freestyle skier’s comments about representing the United States, Chloe Kim had this to say in these Winter Olympics that are becoming ever more politically charged.
Reposted by Matt Slater
JUST IN: Lindsay Vonn sustained a “complex tibia fracture" when she crashed in Sunday’s women’s downhill at the Winter Olympics.
"Despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets," she wrote on Instagram.
"Despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets," she wrote on Instagram.
February 9, 2026 at 10:53 PM
JUST IN: Lindsay Vonn sustained a “complex tibia fracture" when she crashed in Sunday’s women’s downhill at the Winter Olympics.
"Despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets," she wrote on Instagram.
"Despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets," she wrote on Instagram.
USA’s fire & ice combo down the hometown favourites in a ding-dong mixed doubles curling semi. But while “boy Korey” & “girl Cory” have a shot at gold tomorrow, GB’s Dodds & Mouat must bounce back from a heavy defeat to Sweden. They play Italy for bronze.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...
U.S., in dramatic finish, beats Italy to reach Olympic mixed doubles curling final
Cory Thiesse and Korey Dropkin scored five in the final three ends to win, 9-8, and knock off the defending Olympic champs.
www.nytimes.com
February 9, 2026 at 9:39 PM
USA’s fire & ice combo down the hometown favourites in a ding-dong mixed doubles curling semi. But while “boy Korey” & “girl Cory” have a shot at gold tomorrow, GB’s Dodds & Mouat must bounce back from a heavy defeat to Sweden. They play Italy for bronze.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...
Lindsay Vonn was the 13th racer in the start list and she was 13 seconds into her run…today was a bad day for triskaidekaphobics. Here’s a video from a subdued/worried women’s downhill course, which is a shame on lots of levels, not least for Breezy Johnson, who was brilliant.
February 8, 2026 at 4:37 PM
Lindsay Vonn was the 13th racer in the start list and she was 13 seconds into her run…today was a bad day for triskaidekaphobics. Here’s a video from a subdued/worried women’s downhill course, which is a shame on lots of levels, not least for Breezy Johnson, who was brilliant.
Reposted by Matt Slater
The vice president of Lionel Messi’s boyhood team Newell’s Old Boys says the club are working on plans to bring the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner back to the side in 2027.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
February 4, 2026 at 11:52 AM
The vice president of Lionel Messi’s boyhood team Newell’s Old Boys says the club are working on plans to bring the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner back to the side in 2027.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
Reposted by Matt Slater
Me on the death of the Washington Post sports section.
This isn't a day to be nostalgic. It's a day to be angry.
www.theringer.com/2026/02/04/m...
This isn't a day to be nostalgic. It's a day to be angry.
www.theringer.com/2026/02/04/m...
Death of a Sports Section
The Washington Post sports department was dismantled before its leaders gave it a chance to change
www.theringer.com
February 4, 2026 at 4:20 PM
Me on the death of the Washington Post sports section.
This isn't a day to be nostalgic. It's a day to be angry.
www.theringer.com/2026/02/04/m...
This isn't a day to be nostalgic. It's a day to be angry.
www.theringer.com/2026/02/04/m...
It’s OK, we’ve had our first row about some new aerodynamic kit Team GB has developed - we can start the Olympics now. This one is about helmets the top-ranked British skeleton team want to use. Skeleton’s governing body said no. CAS to decide on Friday.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
Team GB goes to CAS over skeleton helmet ban at Winter Olympics
The IBSF says the aerodynamic shape of the British helmets does not comply with the rules.
www.nytimes.com
February 4, 2026 at 5:27 PM
It’s OK, we’ve had our first row about some new aerodynamic kit Team GB has developed - we can start the Olympics now. This one is about helmets the top-ranked British skeleton team want to use. Skeleton’s governing body said no. CAS to decide on Friday.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/702...
The 2026 Winter Olympics’ opening ceremony is on Friday but curlers curl when they want & they start this evening with the mixed doubles. As it’s probably been 4 years for most of you, I asked 2022 champ Eve Muirhead for a refresher on the lingo, rules & tactics. 🥌🧹🥇
www.nytimes.com/athletic/673...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/673...
Guide to curling at the Winter Olympics: How it works, teams to watch and more
Everything you need to know about curling as the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Games get underway.
www.nytimes.com
February 4, 2026 at 12:14 PM
The 2026 Winter Olympics’ opening ceremony is on Friday but curlers curl when they want & they start this evening with the mixed doubles. As it’s probably been 4 years for most of you, I asked 2022 champ Eve Muirhead for a refresher on the lingo, rules & tactics. 🥌🧹🥇
www.nytimes.com/athletic/673...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/673...
Hugely significant moment at the IOC Session in Milan. Olympic bosses have just voted on whether pineapple is an acceptable pizza topping:
Yes - 46
No - 49
Common sense prevailed. Just.
Yes - 46
No - 49
Common sense prevailed. Just.
February 4, 2026 at 10:08 AM
Hugely significant moment at the IOC Session in Milan. Olympic bosses have just voted on whether pineapple is an acceptable pizza topping:
Yes - 46
No - 49
Common sense prevailed. Just.
Yes - 46
No - 49
Common sense prevailed. Just.
Reposted by Matt Slater
'It’s David against Goliath'
I went behind the scenes at RC Lens last week, who are trying to do the unthinkable and pip Paris Saint-Germain to the Ligue 1 title
Includes interviews with their owner, head coach and captain
#FiersDEtreLensois #RCL
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
I went behind the scenes at RC Lens last week, who are trying to do the unthinkable and pip Paris Saint-Germain to the Ligue 1 title
Includes interviews with their owner, head coach and captain
#FiersDEtreLensois #RCL
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
Inside RC Lens: The David challenging Paris Saint-Germain’s Goliath in France
We visit northern France to speak to the key figures at a small club taking on the might of a team funded by a nation state
www.nytimes.com
February 4, 2026 at 9:15 AM
'It’s David against Goliath'
I went behind the scenes at RC Lens last week, who are trying to do the unthinkable and pip Paris Saint-Germain to the Ligue 1 title
Includes interviews with their owner, head coach and captain
#FiersDEtreLensois #RCL
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
I went behind the scenes at RC Lens last week, who are trying to do the unthinkable and pip Paris Saint-Germain to the Ligue 1 title
Includes interviews with their owner, head coach and captain
#FiersDEtreLensois #RCL
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
Reposted by Matt Slater
Chelsea’s fans taunted the Emirates with chants of, “We’ve won it all.”
They have a reputation as winners, Arsenal as a perennial project. But it's Chelsea who seem to be a work-in-progress.
Tuesday's semi-final wasn’t pretty. But Arsenal are here to win, not entertain.
@gunnerblog.bsky.social
They have a reputation as winners, Arsenal as a perennial project. But it's Chelsea who seem to be a work-in-progress.
Tuesday's semi-final wasn’t pretty. But Arsenal are here to win, not entertain.
@gunnerblog.bsky.social
Arsenal are here to win, not entertain. And that’s just what they’re doing
The nervousness of prior weeks was banished on a Carabao Cup semi-final night that ended in euphoria - and the sense this is just the start
www.nytimes.com
February 4, 2026 at 9:19 AM
Chelsea’s fans taunted the Emirates with chants of, “We’ve won it all.”
They have a reputation as winners, Arsenal as a perennial project. But it's Chelsea who seem to be a work-in-progress.
Tuesday's semi-final wasn’t pretty. But Arsenal are here to win, not entertain.
@gunnerblog.bsky.social
They have a reputation as winners, Arsenal as a perennial project. But it's Chelsea who seem to be a work-in-progress.
Tuesday's semi-final wasn’t pretty. But Arsenal are here to win, not entertain.
@gunnerblog.bsky.social
Reposted by Matt Slater
There's an instinct to accuse Pep Guardiola of double standards when he talks about Gaza, Sudan or anything else, because of who he works for. It's understandable, but at least he's speaking out about something.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
In praise of Pep Guardiola for speaking out, regardless of the inevitable ‘Whataboutery’ accusations
For someone in his position to speak on difficult subjects is welcome. The fact he is ultimately employed by Abu Dhabi doesn’t negate that
www.nytimes.com
February 4, 2026 at 9:16 AM
There's an instinct to accuse Pep Guardiola of double standards when he talks about Gaza, Sudan or anything else, because of who he works for. It's understandable, but at least he's speaking out about something.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
I’m absolutely stoked at the news the ScottsMiracle-Gro Field & PayPal Park will become Olympic venues in 2028. Bit mean of LA not to give Detroit a game, though. Detroit has bid for the Olympics nine times & now sees Columbus get some Olympic action.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
LA28 Olympics announce six more venues across U.S. for soccer events
Both men's and women's competitions will play their final stages at the 90,000-capacity Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
www.nytimes.com
February 3, 2026 at 7:01 PM
I’m absolutely stoked at the news the ScottsMiracle-Gro Field & PayPal Park will become Olympic venues in 2028. Bit mean of LA not to give Detroit a game, though. Detroit has bid for the Olympics nine times & now sees Columbus get some Olympic action.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...
Interesting line from @inttestagency.bsky.social chair Jacques Antenen at IOC Session in Milan. 8% of athletes at Milan Cortina 2026 weren’t drug-tested in pre-Games phase. Some big gaps in coverage, too. 13% of Norwegian team untested, only 1/3 of Finns, French & Swedish tested enough.
February 3, 2026 at 12:20 PM
Interesting line from @inttestagency.bsky.social chair Jacques Antenen at IOC Session in Milan. 8% of athletes at Milan Cortina 2026 weren’t drug-tested in pre-Games phase. Some big gaps in coverage, too. 13% of Norwegian team untested, only 1/3 of Finns, French & Swedish tested enough.