LA's playoff push | Spain gets it done | Venus breaks through

Call the ambulance — but not for me.

Can LA make a playoff run?

As the fight for survival takes over the WNBA standings, the No. 10 LA Sparks are eyeing a spot above the postseason cutoff line — but the path to the Top 8 is anything but clear-cut.

• With 2024 No. 2 draft pick Cameron Brink nearing a return from last year’s ACL tear, the Sparks enter tonight’s clash with the long-suffering Sun on a three-game winning streak, giving them a distinct edge.

• However, LA’s 9-14 record exposes their inconsistencies, having dropped two games to No. 11 Chicago in late June before turning things around ahead of the All-Star break.

What to watch: The Sparks have a long way to go before playoff contention, but Thursday’s lopsided matchup presents an opportunity to keep building.

• No. 10 Sparks vs. No. 13 Sun, 7 PM ET (League Pass): LA tries to make it four in a row while the Sun hunt their fourth win of the season.

• No. 6 Las Vegas vs. No. 7 Indiana, 7 PM ET (Prime): Caitlin Clark will once again ride the bench for this tight showdown, with the Fever able to retake sixth place should they snap the Aces’ three-game winning streak.

• No. 4 Seattle vs. No. 11 Chicago, 8:30 PM ET (League Pass): Seattle attempts to bounce back after Tuesday’s upset loss to Dallas, while an up-and-down Chicago looks to stir up momentum for a second-half push.

Bottom line: Only eight teams will factor into the 2025 postseason, and while there’s plenty of game left, the time to make moves is now.

Spain advance to first-ever Euros Final

2023 World Cup champions Spain have clinched their first-ever UEFA Women's Euro Final berth, taking Wednesday’s semifinal with a narrow 1-0 extra-time victory over eight-time title-winners Germany .

• “I’m proud because we deserve it,” winning goal-scorer Aitana Bonmatí told reporters. “We had a tremendous championship. It was the first time we beat Germany, and on top of that, we reached the final.”

How it happened: Germany entered the match shorthanded, with both injuries and suspensions forcing them to start every available defender.

• The squad’s famed football mentality prevailed for more than 110 minutes of a 0-0 deadlock, as Spain struggled to break down a committed German defense led by savvy goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger.

• But as the clock ticked down in extra time, Bonmatí’s audacious 113th-minute strike caught Berger off-guard, handing Las Rojas a shot at their second major tournament trophy in three years.

What’s next: The once-improbable 2023 World Cup Final rematch has become a reality, as familiar foes Spain and England gear up for another championship battle.

• “I know what they can do,” said Spain and Arsenal midfielder Mariona Caldentey of the defending Euros champs. “It will be a hard game.”

Don’t miss it: The UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 Final kicks off on Sunday at 12 PM ET, live on Fox Sports.

US Olympics & Paralympics issue trans ban

The US Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) announced an official policy change this week, banning trans athletes from competing for Team USA in the Olympic and Paralympic Games’ women's categories.

• The new policy cites President Trump’s recent anti-trans athlete Executive Order 14201 alongside 1998’s Ted Stevens Olympic & Amateur Sports Act.

• “As a federally chartered organization, we have an obligation to comply with federal expectations,” USOPC president Gene Sykes and CEO Sarah Hirshland said in Wednesday’s internal memo.

Big picture: The USOPC oversees some 50 national governing bodies across sports, including at the youth and masters levels, as well as Team USA’s participation in official Olympic and Paralympic competitions.

• The revised segment — part of the larger USOPC Athlete Safety Policy — does not explicitly use the word “transgender,” nor does it explain the ban’s function, scope, or application to men's sports.

• Only one openly trans athlete has ever competed for the US at the Olympic Games: Nonbinary runner Nikki Hiltz, who was assigned female at birth, participated in the women’s 1500-meter track event at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The response: “By giving into the political demands, the USOPC is sacrificing the needs and safety of its own athletes,” National Women's Law Center president and CEO Fatima Goss Graves said in a statement condemning the policy change.

• “This rule change is not in response to new research or new guidelines from medical experts in sports,” posted advocacy nonprofit Athlete Ally. “Instead, it is the result of mounting political pressure and government hostility toward one of the smallest minorities in society, let alone sports.”

Venus Williams makes a run

45-year-old tennis icon Venus Williams has turned back the clock, scoring her first singles win in almost two years at this week’s DC Open hardcourt tournament.

• With her straight-set victory over fellow US pro Peyton Stearns, Williams became the oldest player to win a WTA singles match since then-47-year-old Martina Navratilova in 2004.

• “I’m here with my friends, family, people I love, and the fans, too, who I love and they love me, so this has been just a beautiful night,” the seven-time Grand Slam winner said after the match.

Up next: Williams now faces No. 5 seed Magdalena Fręch in tonight’s Round of 16, taking her comeback push one match at a time.

• “It doesn’t matter how many times you fall down. Doesn’t matter how many times you get sick or get hurt or whatever it is,” she said. “If you continue to believe and put in the work, there is an opportunity, there is space for you.”

Tune in: Williams hits the court against Fręch tonight at 7:30 PM ET, live on the Tennis Channel.

LPGA lands in Scotland

The LPGA Tour is teeing off across the pond, as the Scottish Open’s 156-strong player field hits Dundonald Links in the lead-up to next week’s AIG Women’s Open.

• Sitting in the leaderboard’s Top 6 after the first round, world No. 1 Nelly Korda continues the search for her first tournament win of 2025, with Solheim Cup legend Charley Hull, 2025 US Open champion Maja Stark, and 2025 Evian Championship winner Grace Kim also in the mix.

Strong start: Today’s play saw England’s Lottie Woad make her highly anticipated professional debut, as the former top-ranked amateur officially joins the LPGA Tour after excelling at this year’s Evian Championship.

• And Woad came out swinging, finishing the day tied for the lead at five under-par after beating Korda by one shot and fellow UK star Hull by four.

• “I will definitely take it, there was some good and some bad, but overall it was pretty fair,” said Woad.

Quote of the day

South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley
roasting Between The Lines host Lisa Leslie over their old-school All-Star Game portraits.