Sports

Israeli Premier League season opens with goals, drama and off-field concerns

The Greens applied all kinds of pressure early on as they repeatedly penetrated the box, with Kenji Gorre doing as he pleased.

Bnei Sakhnin midfielder Modestas Vorobjovas (in yellow) and Maccabi Netanya’s Aziz Ouattara (8) vie for the ball during their teams’ season-opening goalless draw.
Mickey Berkowitz on his 70th birthday

Israeli basketball legend Mickey Berkowitz’s severe dementia diagnosis revealed in documentary

Booster Robotics humanoid robots walk in formation during the opening ceremony for the second World Humanoid Robot Games at the National Speed Skating Oval in Beijing, China August 22, 2026.

Chinese robots break Usain Bolt's 100-meter record at Beijing World Humanoid Robot Games

REIGNING CHAMPION Hapoel Beersheba (in red) and Maccabi Tel Aviv (in yellow) battle for possession as the two Israeli giants prepare for another season of Premier League competition, which begins this weekend.

Israeli soccer set for another thrilling season


‘Come fight me Zios’: Anti-Israel influencer's boxing challenge ends in 40-second TKO

“So, this is an open invitation. Write me a DM, and we meet here in Tel Aviv. I’m waiting. B***h,” Amiaz said in an Instagram challenge.

Ido Amiaz loses by TKO to Shimon Smotritsky in an unofficial boxing match in Tel Aviv after issuing a challenge to fight Zionists. August 18, 2026.

Israel withdraws support for embattled FIFA President Gianni Infantino

In a letter sent by Israel Football Association Chairman Shino Moshe Zuares, the IFA informed FIFA that it was withdrawing its previous letter of support for Infantino.

FIFA PRESIDENT Gianni Infantino faces growing questions over the direction of world soccer after Israel withdrew its support for his leadership ahead of next year’s presidential election.

Williams sisters team up for first time in four years, lose in Cincinnati Open opening tennis match

"I thought it was fun," Serena said. "I thought it was special. We kicked off a little rust in the middle of the match and just, you know, (we were) starting to feel it."

Serena Williams and Venus Williams of the United States meet with Peyton Stearns of the United States and Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine, after their doubles match during the Cincinnati Open at Lindner Family Tennis Center, August 17, 2026.

Israeli clubs face mixed fortunes in Europe

Hapoel Tel Aviv advances in Conference League • Maccabi Tel Aviv falls out of Europa League • Beitar Jerusalem eliminated.

HAPOEL TEL AVIV players celebrate after advancing to the UEFA Conference League playoff round, where it will face Italian powerhouse Atalanta.

Not a 'rich people's sport': Yachting clubs say sailing in Israel affordable, drawing diverse crowd

“In the past three or four years, it's become a real trend," David Simon, one of the owners of the Derech Hayam (Via Maris) sailing school and club said.

A man sits aboard one of the boats belonging to the Derech Hayam (Via Maris) yachting club and school. August, 2026.

Pamela Laufer-Ukeles returns to tennis after 20 years and a battle with breast cancer

The lessons she received from playing tennis and from surviving breast cancer now intersect on the courts of Ra’anana, where the 50-year-old law professor and competitive tennis player trains.

PAMELA LAUFER-UKELES on the court

Jared Kushner's brother Joshua, former Disney CEO Bob Iger, buying NBA's Los Angeles Lakers team

The sale comes barely a year after the team’s controlling stake was sold for $10 billion to Mark Walter, the billionaire CEO of Guggenheim Partners who also owns MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Lakers logo is displayed outside Crypto.com Arena, home of the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers, on August 12, 2026 in Los Angeles, California.

Israeli soccer star Manor Solomon completes move to West Ham United for a reported £5 million fee

Solomon, 27, has now joined his fourth English club following his permanent departure from Premier League outfit Tottenham Hotspur.

Israel's Manor Solomon speaks with Roy Revivo during a break in play in a match against Albania, June 3, 2026

Mixed results for Israeli clubs in European soccer qualifying, Hapoel Tel Aviv achieve valuable win

Beitar Jerusalem came up short against Austria Wien 2-1 in the first leg of their Conference League third-round qualifying tie, while Maccabi Tel Aviv suffered a 3-0 defeat to CSKA Sofia.

Hapoel Tel Aviv players celebrate after the Reds earned a 2-0 first-leg victory over Katowice in Conference League qualifying.

Former Beitar Jerusalem player Shimon Chernocha dies at age 78

"He was always a listening ear, knew how to give the combative advice to the team," said former player Aviram Brokhian. "Every player on the team loved him."

Shimon Chernocha.