Recent 6 months news in Sports

Germany has won the men’s category title (4th title) at the International Hockey Federation (FIH) Hockey World Cup 2026, defeating Spain 1-0 in the final. Argentina has won the women’s category title (3rd title) after defeating the defending champions Netherlands.

The 2026 edition, co-hosted by Belgium and the Netherlands, marks the first time the men and women tournaments are held jointly. The competition format includes 16 teams each in the men and women categories, divided into four pools.

The Football Players’ Association of India (FPAI) has organized the Indian Football Awards 2026 in Kolkata where former footballer Bhaichung Bhutia presented the awards.

Lallianzuala Chhangte (Mizoram) was named the Indian Footballer of the Year 2026 and Manisha Kalyan (Punjab) won the Indian Women’s Player of the Year award. Sanan Mohammed K (Jamshedpur FC) and Sanfida Nongrum (Garhwal FC) were declared the Young Player of the Year and Women’s Young Player of the Year, respectively.

East Bengal Football Club (FC) was honored as the Indian Super League (ISL) Champions, while the East Bengal FC Women’s team was recognized for winning the Indian Women’s League (IWL) 2025-26 title. Owen Coyle and Anthony Andrews were conferred with the Men’s and Women’s Coach of the Year awards, respectively.

Savio Medeira was presented with the Coach Education Award, and the Player Performance and Development Award was conferred upon Rapid Sports and the Right Weigh.

Smriti Mandhana, an Indian cricketer, has set a new world record as the highest run-scorer in women’s international cricket across all formats. She achieved this milestone during a match against Hong Kong at the Dubai International Stadium,UAE, as part of the Women’s Asia Cup 2026.

She scored 124 runs off 64 balls in the match, taking her total career aggregate to 10,880 runs. It is to be noted that she surpassed the previous record of 10,868 runs held by the retired Indian cricketer Mithali Raj.

The Badminton Association of India (BAI) has announced that the 2028 edition of the India Open Badminton Tournament will be hosted at the National Centre of Excellence (NCOE) in Guwahati, Assam.

The tournament, scheduled for January 2028, will be relocated from its traditional venue at the KD Jadhav Indoor Hall in New Delhi.

Lando Norris, a British national racing for McLaren, has won the Formula One (F1) Dutch Grand Prix 2026.

Lionel Messi, the 39-year-old captain of the Argentina national football team, has announced retirement from international football, concluding an illustrious 21-year career. He finishes his international tenure as the all-time leading goal scorer of Argentina with 125 goals and the most-capped player with 207 appearances.

He holds the record for participating in 6 Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cups. His individual achievements include winning the Ballon d'Or a record 8 times and receiving the FIFA World Cup Golden Ball twice (2014 and 2022).

He has represented three major senior clubs: FC Barcelona (Spain), Paris Saint-Germain (France), and Inter Miami CF (United States of America). He joined Inter Miami CF, a Major League Soccer (MLS) team, in 2023 and will continue to play for the club following his retirement from international football.

Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, an Indian chess Grandmaster (GM), has won the Grand Chess Tour (GCT) 2026 Finals, becoming the first Indian champion. He defeated the USA GM Fabiano Caruana with a score of 15-13 in the finals held at the Saint Louis Chess Club in Missouri, USA.

With this victory, Praggnanandhaa secured the prize of $200,000. He also emerged as the highest overall earner of the GCT, accumulating a total prize money of $404,354.

Karn Sharma, an Indian leg-spinner, has announced retirement from all formats of competitive cricket.

He has won four Indian Premier League (IPL) titles with three different franchises, including Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2016, Mumbai Indians in 2017, and Chennai Super Kings in 2018 and 2021.

Pranesh M, an Indian Grandmaster (GM) from Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu, has won the “Kanizsa Open 2026” Group A title in Nagykanizsa, Hungary. He clinched the championship title after defeating Vadim Petrovskiy of Germany.

The 30th edition of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Championships (2026) was hosted at the Indira Gandhi Arena in New Delhi.

Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand won the bronze medal in the women’s doubles category, marking the first medal for India in this segment since 2011.

Alex Lanier became the first French player to win the men’s singles title, while An Se-young of South Korea secured her second women’s singles title.

Ahmedabad, Gujarat is set to host the second edition of the Commonwealth Cue Sports Championships in October 2026 at the Veer Savarkar Sports Complex.

The tournament will feature athletes from 45 countries competing across 5 disciplines and 10 medal events in both men and women categories.

East Bengal has won the 135th edition of the Durand Cup in 2026, defeating Mohun Bagan Super Giant by 4-1 in the final match held at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata.

It is to be noted that the Durand Cup is recognized as the oldest football competition in Asia.

The tournament is organized by the Durand Football Tournament Society (DFTS) in collaboration with the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and the Indian Armed Forces.

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS) has announced plans to establish the National Coach Accreditation Board (NCAB) to standardize coaching quality and enhance the sports ecosystem in India.

The initiative to establish the board was recommended by a specialized task force led by Pullela Gopichand.

Magnus Carlsen, a Norwegian Grandmaster (GM) and world no. 1 representing Team Liquid, has won the “Esports World Cup Chess” title 2026 for the second consecutive year. The tournament was held in Paris, France, and the winner was awarded a prize of $250,000.

Justin Greaves and Hayley Matthews of West Indies have been named the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s and Women’s Player of the Month for July 2026, respectively.

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS) has officially suspended the recognition of the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI).

The suspension was enforced due to the failure of the TTFI to conduct organizational elections within the mandated timeframe and severe delays in adopting and uploading audited financial statements.

Ariha Pangambam from Manipur has won the first-ever individual gold medal for India at the 10th Senior Women’s individual event in the Aerobic Gymnastics Asian Championships held in Tagaytay City, Philippines. She achieved the gold medal with a top score of 19.1 points.

John Turner, an England fast bowler, has announced his retirement from professional cricket at the age of 25.

Anahat Singh has become the first Indian to win the women’s singles title at the World Junior Squash Championships 2026. She defeated Ruqayya Salem of Egypt with a score of 3-0 in the final held at Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada.

Mohamad Zakaria of Egypt has successfully defended his title in the men’s singles category.

R Praggnanandhaa, an Indian Grandmaster (GM), has won his maiden Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz title in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA. He finished the tournament ahead of Javokhir Sindarov of Uzbekistan.