Jake Paul had to explain why he referred to Bad Bunny as a ‘fake American citizen,’ and then appeared to backtrack altogether from his criticism by declaring his ‘love’ for the Super Bowl 60 halftime show performer in a series of social media posts on Monday morning, Feb. 9.

Paul, the YouTube star-turned-boxer, was one of the biggest online voices who encouraged fans on Sunday afternoon to boycott the NFL’s halftime show, less than two hours before the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots kicked off.

‘Turn off this halftime. A fake American citizen performing who publicly hates America. I cannot support that,’ Paul wrote initially on Sunday.

Bad Bunny (real name Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio) is from Puerto Rico, an American territory, and therefore is an American citizen. Paul’s initial tweet eventually received a community note from X correcting that those who live in Puerto Rico have been identified as American citizens since 1917.

Jake Paul clarified his position on Monday morning following the conclusion of the Super Bowl and Bad Bunny’s halftime show, which received significant political attention due to the Puerto Rican star’s public opposition to the illegal immigration enforcement tactics used by ICE and the Trump Administration. Paul is a resident of Puerto Rico and an outspoken supporter of President Donald Trump, who also panned Bad Banny’s halftime show set as ‘absolutely terrible’ on Sunday night.

‘The problem with my tweet is the word fake being misinterpreted,’ Paul wrote on social media on Monday. ‘He’s not a fake citizen obviously bc hes Puerto Rican and I love Puerto Rico and all Americans who support the country. Moreso Bunny is fake bc of his values and criticism of our great country.’

Paul then added more context and brought up Hunter Hess, the American freestyle skiier who drew criticism from Trump and Trump supporters when he said representing the U.S. at the 2026 Winter Olympics brings up ‘mixed emotions.’ Paul’s fiancee is American speed skater Jutta Leerdam of the Netherlands and races on Monday.

‘To clarify: I wasn’t calling anyone a “fake citizen” because they’re from Puerto Rico,’ Paul wrote. ‘I live in Puerto Rico, and I love Puerto Rico. I have used my platform to support Puerto Rico time and time again and will always do so. But if you’re publicly criticizing ICE who are doing their job and openly hating on America, I’m going to speak on it. Period. That’s the same reason I called out Hunter Hess. If you benefit from a country and the platform it gives you, but publicly disrespect it at the same time, that’s what I mean by being a fake citizen. And I agree love is more powerful than hate. Love America.’

Paul’s initial polarizing tweet and subsequent fact check drew widespread attention in the lead up to Bad Bunny’s performance at halftime of the Seahawks’ 29-13 win over the Patriots, with even Paul’s brother having to publicly side against a family member in the aftermath of the show.

‘I love my brother but I don’t agree with this,’ Logan Paul, the WWE star, wrote on social media over his brother’s initial post. ‘Puerto Ricans are Americans & I’m happy they were given the opportunity to showcase the talent that comes from the island.’

By 10 a.m. ET, Jake Paul sounded even more remorseful in light of the backlash he had received. He changed his bio on X to ‘Benito #1 fan, and insisted in a new tweet that, ‘I love bad bunny idk (I don’t know) what happened on my twitter last night??’

Budweiser left nothing to chance in taking home its record 10th first-place finish in USA TODAY’s Ad Meter contest.

The King of Beers was once again the king of Super Bowl Sunday commercials, easily outpointing Lay’s in balloting that culminated at midnight Feb. 9, hours after the Seattle Seahawks trounced the New England Patriots in Super Bowl 60.

In ‘American Icons,’ Budweiser emptied the tank to mark its 150th anniversary while strongly tying itself to the USA’s 250th. Naturally, its not-so-secret weapon – the iconic Clydesdale – was front and center.

Mix in the birth of an American Bald Eagle, nursed into adulthood by the caring steed until it soars freely on its own – picking up the pace in time with Lynyrd Skynyrd’s ‘Free Bird’ – and the 60-second spot broke through the competition typically loaded with nascent brands and nostalgia-fueled celebrity spots.

‘That’s what we wanted to bring to life, this idea of celebrating two icons, the Budweiser Clydesdale, the American Bald Eagle at the same moment,’ Anheuser-Busch’s chief commercial officer Kyle Norrington told USA TODAY before the Super Bowl, noting that ‘Free Bird’ was the first and only choice for the soundtrack.

‘There’s not a lot of dialogue, so ‘Free Bird’ really carries this narrative in an epic way.’

In a sense, the proven formula stood out even more against an occasionally dark ad lineup heavy on artificial intelligence (including some fratricide among the brands), surveillance for your puppy and de-aging technology of beloved stars of yore that fans on social media found unsettling.

This time, it scored a 4.0 out of 5, defeating Lay’s ‘Last Harvest,’ which chronicles the emotional final lap for a potato farmer. Pepsi’s ‘The Choice,’ which co-opts Coca-Cola’s iconic polar bear, was third at 3.48, with Dunkin’s ‘Good Will Dunkin’,’ fueled by both the 1997 Ben Affleck-Matt Damon film and ‘90s-era NBC comedy icons, fourth at 3.48.

Michelob Ultra (3.47) rounded out the top five with a star turn from Kurt Russell and appearances from Winter Olympic icons Chloe Kim and T.J. Oshie. 

Budweiser’s patriotic 2026 Super Bowl commercial won USA TODAY Ad Meter, the record 10th title for the beer brand, uniting a Clydesdale and a bald eagle for America’s 250th birthday.

Rounding out the top five were Lay’s, Pepsi, Dunkin’ and Michelob Ultra, each delivering memorable spots during the big game. The NFL also landed two Super Bowl spots in the top 20 with ‘Champion’ finishing eighth and ‘You Are Special’ 16th.

On the other end of things, Coinbase had another polarizing commercial and the crypto company finished last for the second time in five years. Other brands in the bottom five were Svedka, Ro, SalesForce and Wix

Here’s a full look at the 2026 USA TODAY Ad Meter rankings:

1. Budweiser – ‘American Icons’ (4.00)

2. Lay’s – ‘Last Harvest’ (3.80)

3. Pepsi – ‘The Choice’ (3.50)

4. Dunkin’ – ‘Good Will Dunkin’’ (3.48)

5. Michelob Ultra – ‘The ULTRA Instructor’ (3.47)

6. Xfinity – ‘Jurassic Park … Works’ (3.43)

7. Novartis – ‘Relax Your Tight End’ (3.39)

8. NFL – ‘Champion’ (3.38)

9. Bud Light – ‘Keg’ (3.35)

t-10. Ring – ‘Be A Hero In Your Neighborhood’ (3.33)

t-10. Amazon Alexa – ‘Alexaaaa+’ (3.33)

12. Rocket and Redfin – ‘America Needs Neighbors Like You’ (3.27)

13. State Farm – ‘Stop Livin’ on a Prayer’ (3.26)

t-14. Dove – ‘The Game is Ours’ (3.25)

t-14. Uber Eats ‘Hungry for the Truth’ – (3.25)

16. NFL – ‘You Are Special’ (3.23)

17. Blue Square Alliance Against Hate – ‘Sticky Note’ (3.22)

18. Bosch – ‘Justaguy’ (3.12)

19. Universal Orlando Resort – ‘Lil’ Bro” (3.09)

20. Toyota – ‘Superhero Belt’ (3.04)

21. Levi’s – ‘Backstory’ (3.02)

22. Pringles – ‘Pringleleo’ (2.97)

t-23. Google – ‘New Home’ 2.94

t-23. Toyota – ‘Where Dreams Began’ (2.94)

25. Hellmann’s – ‘Sweet Sandwich Time’ (2.92)

26. T-Mobile – ‘Tell Me Why (T-Mobile’s Version)’ – (2.85)

t-27. Liquid I.V. – ‘Take A Look’ (2.77)

t-27. TurboTax ‘The Expert’ (2.77)

29. Kinder Bueno – ‘Yes Bueno 2026′(2.75)

t-30. Ritz – ‘RITZ Island’ (2.74)

t-30. Instacart – ‘Bananas’ (2.74)

32. Grubhub – ‘The Feest’ (2.71)

33. He Gets Us – ‘More’ (2.70)

t-34. MAHA Center Inc. – ‘MAHA Real Food by Mike Tyson’ (2.64)

t-34. Boehringer Ingelheim – ‘Mission: Detect the SOS’ (2.64)

t-36: Volkswagen – ‘The Great Invitation: Drivers Wanted’ (2.63)

t-36. Apartments.com and Homes.com – ‘Can’t Live There’ (2.63)

38. Cadillac Formula 1 – ‘The Mission Begins’ (2.62)

39. Squarespace – ‘Unavailable’ (2.59)

40. Fanatics Sportsbook – ‘Bet On Kendall’ (2.55)

t-41. Hims & Hers – ‘Rich People Live Longer’ (2.51)

t-41. Nerds – ‘Taste Buds’ (2.51)

43. DraftKings – ‘DraftKings Live-ish Super Bowl LX’ (2.50)

44. Oakley Meta – ‘Athletic Intelligence is Here – Part Two’ (2.49)

45. OpenAI – ‘You Can Just Build Things’ (2.48)

t-46. Anthropic – ‘Can I get a six pack quickly?’ (2.45)

t-46 Oakley Meta – ‘Athletic Intelligence is Here – Part One’ (2.45)

t-46. Novo Nordisk – ‘A New Way to Wegovy’ (2.45)

49. Poppi – ‘Make it poppi’ (2.44)

50. Wix – ‘Wix Harmony: The New Way to Create’ (2.38)

51. SalesForce – ‘@MrBeast’s Vault’ (2.32)

52. Ro – ‘Healthier on Ro’ (2.23)

53. Svedka – ‘Shake Your Bots Off’ (2.18)

54. Coinbase – ‘Everybody Coinbase’ (2.06)

Several Olympic medals have already been won at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, and there’s a plethora still up for grabs as the Winter Olympics continue in northern Italy throughout the next two weeks.

Team USA got on the board on Sunday, Feb. 9 with a pair of Olympic gold medals thanks to Breezy Johnson in the Alpine skiing women’s downhill and the U.S. figure skating team in the team event. It was the ‘Quad God,’ Ilia Malinin, who helped Team USA defend its gold medal from the 2022 Winter Games as he landed a backflip on one leg during the men’s free skate portion of the event.

USA TODAY Sports is also providing live updates to the medal count tracker for the 2026 Winter Games. Follow along below:

Get our Chasing Gold Olympics newsletter in your inbox for coverage of your favorite Team USA athletes

Olympic medal count tracker live updates

Here’s a current look at the leaderboard for Olympic medals won at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics:

Last update: 10:41 a.m. ET on Monday, Feb. 9

1. Italy: 9 Total (1 Gold, 2 Silver, 6 Bronze)
2. Norway: 6 Total (3 Gold, 1 Silver, 2 Bronze)
T3. Japan: 4 Total (1 Gold, 2 Silver, 1 Bronze)
T3. Austria: 4 Total (1 Gold, 3 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T3. Switzerland: 4 Total (3 Gold, 1 Silver, 0 Bronze)
6. Germany: 3 Total (1 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze)
T7. United States: 2 Total (2 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T7. Czech Republic: 2 Total (1 Gold, 1 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T7. France: 2 Total (1 Gold, 1 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T7. Sweden: 2 Total (1 Gold, 1 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T7. Canada: 2 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 2 Bronze)
T7. China: 2 Total (0 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze)
T13. Slovenia: 1 Total (0 Gold, 1 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T13. South Korea: 1 Total (0 Gold, 1 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T13. Bulgaria: 1 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 1 Bronze)
T16. Albania: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Andorra: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Argentina: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Armenia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Australia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Azerbaijan: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Belgium: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Benin: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Bolivia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Bosnia Herzegovina: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Brazil: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Chile: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Chinese Taipei: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Colombia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Croatia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Cyprus: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Denmark: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Ecuador: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Eritrea: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Estonia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Finland: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Georgia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Great Britain: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Greece: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Guinea-Bissau: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Haiti: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Hong Kong, China: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Hungary: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Iceland: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. India: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Individual Neutral Athletes: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Ireland: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Islamic Rep. of Iran: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Israel: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Jamaica: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Kazakhstan: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Kenya: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Kosovo: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Kyrgyzstan: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Latvia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Lebanon: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Liechtenstein: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Lithuania: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Luxembourg: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Madagascar: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Malaysia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Malta: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Mexico: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Monaco: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Mongolia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Montenegro: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Morocco: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Netherlands: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. New Zealand: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Nigeria: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. North Macedonia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Pakistan: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Philippines: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Poland: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Portugal: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Republic of Moldova: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Romania: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. San Marino: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Saudi Arabia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Serbia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Singapore: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Slovakia: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. South Africa: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Spain: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Thailand: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Trinidad & Tobago: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Turkiye: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Ukraine: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. United Arab Emirates: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Uruguay: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Uzbekistan: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)
T16. Venezuela: 0 Total (0 Gold, 0 Silver, 0 Bronze)

Stream 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics live with Peacock Purchase Team USA gear from 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics with Fanatics

How many Olympic medals does Team USA have at 2026 Winter Olympics?

Here’s a breakdown of Team USA’s Olympic medals at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics:

Alpine skiing women’s downhill: Gold (Breezy Johnson)
Figure skating team event: Gold

Meet every Team USA athlete competing at 2026 Winter Olympics!

2026 Winter Olympics medal events schedule

Here’s a look at the remaining events where an Olympic medal can be won at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics:

Note: This section will be updated throughout the Olympics as events become finalized

Feb. 9

FREESTYLE SKIING: Women’s Freeski Slopestyle Final
ALPINE SKIING: Men’s Team Combined Slalom
SPEED SKATING: Women’s 1000m
SKI JUMPING: Men’s Normal Hill
SNOWBOARDING: Women’s Big Air Final

Feb. 10

SHORT TRACK: Mixed Team Relay
CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING: Women’s, Men’s Sprint Classic Final
FREESTYLE SKIING: Men’s Freeski Slopestyle Final
BIATHLON: Men’s 20km Individual
ALPINE SKIING: Women’s Team Combined Slalom
CURLING: Mixed Doubles
LUGE: Women’s Singles
SKI JUMPING: Mixed Team

Feb. 11

ALPINE SKIING: Men’s Super-G
NORDIC COMBINED: Men’s Normal Hill 10km
FREESTYLE SKIING: Women’s Moguls
BIATHLON: Women’s 15km Individual
LUGE: Women’s, Men’s Doubles Run 2
FIGURE SKATING: Ice Dance Free Dance
SPEED SKATING: Men’s 1000m

Feb. 12

ALPINE SKIING: Women’s Super-G
FREESTYLE SKIING: Men’s Moguls Final
CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING: Women’s 10km Interval Start Free
SNOWBOARDING: Men’s Cross Final
SPEED SKATING: Women’s 5000m
LUGE: Team Relay
SNOWBOARDING: Women’s Halfpipe Final
SHORT TRACK SPEED SKATING: Women’s 500m & Men’s

You can listen to ‘Milan Magic’ on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch full episodes on YouTube or on USA TODAY.

Feb. 13

CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING: Men’s 10km Interval Start Free
BIATHLON: Men’s 10km Sprint
SNOWBOARDING: Women’s Cross Final
SPEED SKATING: Men’s 10000m
FIGURE SKATING: Men’s Free Skate
SNOWBOARDING: Men’s Halfpipe Final
SKELETON: Men’s Heat 4

Feb. 14

FREESTYLE SKIING: Women’s Dual Moguls Final
CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING: Women’s 4×7.5km Relay
ALPINE SKIING: Men’s Giant Slalom Final
BIATHLON: Women’s 7.5km Sprint
SPEED SKATING: Men’s 500m
SKELETON: Women’s Final
SKI JUMPING: Men’s Large Hill
SHORT TRACK SPEED SKATING: Men’s 1500m

Feb. 15

BIATHLON: Men’s 12.5km Pursuit
FREESTYLE SKIING: Men’s Dual Moguls Final
CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING: Men’s 4×7.5km Relay
ALPINE SKIING: Women’s Giant Slalom
SNOWBOARDING: Mixed Team Cross Final
BIATHLON: Women’s 10km Pursuit
SPEED SKATING: Women’s 500m
SKELETON: Mixed Team
SKI JUMPING: Women’s Large Hill

Feb. 16

SHORT TRACK SPEED SKATING: Women’s 1000m
ALPINE SKIING: Men’s Slalom
FIGURE SKATING: Pair Skating Free Skate
FREESTYLE SKIING: Women’s Big Air Final
SKI JUMPING: Men’s Super Team Final Round
BOBSLED: Women’s Singles

Feb. 17

NORDIC COMBINED: Large Hill/10km: 10km
SNOWBOARDING: Women’s Slopestyle Final
BIATHLON: Men’s 4×7.5km Relay
SPEED SKATING: Men’s, Women’s Team Pursuit Finals
BOBSLED: Men’s Doubles

Feb. 18

CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING: Women’s, Men’s Team Sprint Free Final
FREESTYLE SKIING: Women’s Aerials Final
SNOWBOARDING: Men’s Slopestyle Final
ALPINE SKIING: Women’s Slalom
BIATHLON: Women’s 4x6km Relay
SHORT TRACK SPEED SKATING: Women’s 3000m Relay
SHORT TRACK SPEED STATING: Men’s 500m

Feb. 19

FREESTYLE SKIING: Men’s Aerials Final
SKI MOUNTAINEERING: Women’s, Men’s Sprint
NORDIC COMBINED: Team Sprint/Large Hill 2×7.5km
ICE HOCKEY: Women’s Final
SPEED SKATING: Men’s 1500m
FIGURE SKATING: Women’s Free Skate

Feb. 20

FREESTYLE SKIING: Women’s Cross Final
BIATHLON: Men’s 15km Mass Start
SPEED SKATING: Women’s 1500m
CURLING: Men’s Bronze Medal Game
FREESTYLE SKIING: Men’s Halfpipe Final
SHORT TRACK SPEED SKATING: Men’s 5000m Relay Final
SHORT TRACK SKATING: Women’s 1500m Final

Feb. 21

CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING: Men’s 50km Mass Start Classic
FREESTYLE SKIING: Mixed Team Aerials Final
FREESTYLE SKIING: Men’s Cross Final
SKI MOUNTAINEERING: Mixed Relay
CURLING: Men’s Gold Medal Game, Women’s Bronze Medal Game
BIATHLON: Women’s 12.5km Mass Start
SPEED SKATING: Men’s, Women’s Mass Start
FREESTYLE SKIING: Women’s Halfpipe Final
ICE HOCKEY: Men’s Bronze Medal Game
BOBSLED: Women’s Doubles: Heat 4

Feb. 22

CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING: Women’s 50km Mass Start Classic
CURLING: Women’s Gold Medal Game
BOBSLED: Men’s Quads Final
ICE HOCKEY: Men’s Gold Medal Game

How to watch 2026 Winter Olympics

TV channel: NBC | USA Network | CNBC
Streaming options: Peacock (Digital Only) | NBCOlympics.com

The entirety of the 2026 Winter Olympics will be broadcast nationally across the NBC family of networks, such as NBC, USA Network and CNBC. Streaming options include Peacock, NBC’s subscription streaming service, and NBCOlympics.com with a TV login.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

Courtney Williams, Saniya Rivers and Azura Stevens are all on the move.

On Monday morning, Unrivaled announced it had processed the second trade in league history, which sent Williams to Breeze BC from Vinyl BC, Rivers to Vinyl from Hive BC and Stevens to Hive from Rose BC. The details of the trade posted to social media by the league don’t indicate that Rose got a player in return, nor does it show what Breeze gave up for Williams.

The trade comes following the announcement Aari McDonald was ruled out for the remainder of the Unrivaled season with what the league called a “right lower extremity injury.” McDonald hadn’t played much for Breeze this season, appearing one game as she worked her way back from a foot injury she suffered during the WNBA season with the Fever.

Williams joins a Breeze team coached by former Seattle Storm head coach Noelle Quinn that is fourth in the league standings with a 5-5 record. Williams will be the oldest player on the team, which features young stars like Paige Bueckers, Cameron Brink, Rickea Jackson, Kate Martin and Dominique Malonga.

Vinyl, coached by Theresa Weatherspoon, is sixth in the league standings. Rivers — an NC State product who just completed her rookie season in the WNBA with the Connecticut Sun — will be the youngest player on a team that features veterans like Dearica Hamby and Brittney Griner.

Stevens joins a Hive team that’s seventh in the standings.

The first trade in Unrivaled happened before the league began play in December 2024 and Williams was involved in that, too. The Laces shipped Williams to the Lunar Owls in exchange for Natasha Cloud, then the Laces flipped Cloud and a wildcard spot to the Phantom for Jackie Young and Tiffany Hayes.

Williams — who stars for the Minnesota Lynx in the WNBA — is fifth in Unrivaled in assists this season with 4.1 per game.

The day after the New England Patriots fell to the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX, a pair of Boston-area teams will face off for a different kind of title.

Boston University and Boston College will add another chapter to their storied rivalry when they meet in the championship game of the 2026 Beanpot on Monday, February 9 at TD Garden in Boston.

The two schools, separated by a three-mile stretch of Commonwealth Avenue, are the two most decorated teams in the history of the annual event, which pits four Boston-area college hockey programs — BU, BC, Harvard and Northeastern — against each other in a tournament. 

The Terriers have won the Beanpot 32 times, including a 4-1 victory against BC in last year’s Beanpot final, while the Eagles have captured it 20 times.

Coming off three consecutive Frozen Four appearances, including a loss in last year’s NCAA championship game, BU is struggling this season, with a 13-13-2 mark heading into Monday’s game. Last Monday, though, it battled back from a one-goal deficit on two different occasions to beat Northeastern in a shootout to advance to the Beanpot final.

It will take on a BC team that’s 15-9-1, a run that included a 5-1 drubbing of Harvard last Monday in the Beanpot semifinals. The Eagles have won their only previous matchup against the Terriers this season, a 4-1 road victory on January 30. BC has won seven of the past nine meetings against its Green Line rival. 

Monday’s game will be the 300th all-time matchup between the two.

Here’s what to know about the 2026 Beanpot final, as well as how to watch it:

Stream the 2026 Beanpot final on ESPN+

What channel is the Beanpot final on?

TV channel: NHL Network, NESN, TSN3
Streaming: ESPN+, Fubo (free trial)

The Beanpot final between Boston University and Boston College will air on NHL Network (outside of New England), NESN (in New England) and TSN3 (in Canada).

Streaming options for the game include ESPN+, which requires a valid cable login to access, and Fubo, which offers a free trial.

Beanpot final start time

Date: Monday, February 9
Start time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: TD Garden

The puck is set to drop between the Terriers and Eagles at 7:30 p.m. ET on Monday, February 9 at TD Garden in Boston, the home arena of the NBA’s Boston Celtics and NHL’s Boston Bruins.

What is the Beanpot?

The Beanpot is an annual tournament men’s and women’s hockey tournament involving the four major college hockey teams from the Boston area: Boston University, Boston College, Harvard and Northeastern.

The men’s tournament began in 1952 while the women’s tournament was first held in 1979.

The games traditionally are held on the first and second Mondays of February, a pair of semifinals held the first week and the winners of those two games meeting in the title game the next week.

The tournament was originally called the New England Hockey Invitational, but in the leadup to the first iteration of the event in 1952, Leonard M. Fowle of The Boston Globe referred to it as the “so-called ‘Bean Pot’ tournament.” The moniker proved to be popular and quickly became the tournament’s name.

BU has the most all-time men’s Beanpot titles, with 32, followed by BC with 20, Harvard with 11 and Northeastern with nine. The Terriers’ success in the tournament has led their fans to refer to the Beanpot as the “BU Invitational.”

Watch 2026 Beanpot final on ESPN+

MILAN — The Americans would have liked to close their borders, but didn’t. The Canadians did, then tried to talk their way out of it.

The men’s hockey teams at the 2026 Winter Games are readying for the start of the preliminaries, which begin for the 12-team field on Wednesday, Feb. 11. The U.S. begins its tournament Feb. 12 against Latvia, and Canada plays Czechia on the same day. So far there’s been one practice on Sunday evening, the same day players from both teams arrived on charters from the U.S., and one on Monday.

U.S. coach Mike Sullivan knew that sooner or later, the information would come out, and decided against trying to keep out reporters.

‘We talked about it with our practice today,’ Sullivan said. ‘I think any time as a coach and staff you have an opportunity to spend alone time with your team, we would all prefer that. We also understand that this is to a certain extent a business and part of the access to the group is an important element of it also.

‘But as a coaching staff, we love having alone time with our team and be able to work on things without reading about it in a tweet 30 seconds later or whatever it may be. But we understand that’s the world we live in.’

Canada was on the practice sheet at the Santaguilia, and used that as a reason to essentially claim that practice wasn’t closed, there just weren’t allowed any members of the media to attend.

‘Practice wasn’t closed, it was only done because the rink’s too small,’ Canada coach Jon Cooper said. ‘It’s just distractions and people, there’s just issues to have so many people here.

‘Did anything happen? No, it did not.’

The Americans had an upbeat practice, benefitting from having much of the same roster as competed a year ago at the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament.

‘I think that’s the benefit of having that Four Nations experience is, we tried a few different things at that tournament,’ Sullivan said. ‘Some we liked, some we didn’t.

‘Not that anything is etched in stone because I just think that’s the human element of sports. We’ll see how it goes.’

Tuesday will be a day off for the Americans. That’s the benefit of having a bit of leeway with the schedule because they don’t play until Thursday. It reflects the fact players have played upwards of 50-plus NHL games between early October and early February because the schedule was compressed to account for the Olympics.

‘We built a schedule well before we got here based on how much hockey these guys have played in the NHL to a certain extent and then getting to this point,’ Sullivan said. ‘We’ve built a schedule out on building in days off time, off the ice, things of that nature. What we have moving forward as far as the amount of hockey that we have to play once the games begin. We’ve put together a schedule as a staff two months ago on what this looks like.

‘We may tweak it as we go, but we have a thorough game plan on how we’re going to go about it from the start of the tournament to the end.’

SANTA CLARA, CA − Apparently, when you get into a deep Super Bowl hole, like the New England Patriots did nine years ago, you need a Hall of Fame coach – oops, a Hall of Fame-adjacent coach – to make some in-game adjustments that maybe include asking your typically capable defense to make a few momentum-shifting plays.

Apparently, when you get into a deep Super Bowl hole, like the New England Patriots did nine years ago, you need a Hall of Fame quarterback – well, let’s see what the Canton committee thinks in a few years of that guy the Pats used to have – to spark his team at large and offense specifically when there’s no more time to waste to put a needed bundle of points on the board.

But Bay Area native and New England legend Tom Brady was merely a spectator Sunday at Levi’s Stadium, where the Patriots were embarrassed 29-13 by the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl 60. (And maybe he was wise not to claim a rooting interest, given the minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders just watched his new head coach, Seattle offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, help dismantle his former team.)

Ex-Pats expat coach Bill Belichick, who left the organization two years ago, was nowhere to be found – perhaps helping girlfriend Jordon Hudson pick out her next outfit somewhere in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

If ever there was a reminder that the 2025 Patriots were not the 2001 Patriots – or the 2003, 2004, 2014, 2016 or 2018 Patriots – then it was Sunday, when the new edition Pats were swallowed whole by the stifling Seahawks in what was a near-historically bad Super Sunday performance.

But let this be a time of remembrance.

Belichick’s brilliance has certainly been taken for granted in recent weeks – and maybe years. And if you think he was riding Brady’s coattails all those years, go back and look at his brilliant defensive game plans in Super Bowl 25 against the heavily favored K-Gun Buffalo Bills – he was the New York Giants coordinator then – or his Super Bowl 36 master class against the very heavily favored “Greatest Show On Turf” St. Louis Rams. The brilliance of the two-decade dynasty Belichick and Brady lorded over certainly retains most of its luster – and maybe got some added polish with all those Super Bowl 49 replays, when they snatched victory from the jaws of the ‘Legion of Boom’ Seahawks.

But let’s not use Sunday’s blowout as an excuse to give the 2025 Patriots short shrift – and, actually, let’s appreciate them, too.

The Mike Vrabel-Drake Maye Patriots are arguably further ahead of schedule than the Belichick-Brady Patriots were in 2001. We’re talking about a 2025 Pats team with a first-year head coach, a second-year quarterback and 30 new players on the roster compared to a year ago – a record number for a Super Bowl entry. But this was a team − one that had won eight games combined between the 2023 and ’24 seasons − that went 17-4 and reclaimed the AFC East throne that had been abdicated to the Buffalo Bills following Brady’s flee south to Tampa in 2020.

And New England will doubtless be better next year – what with a year of experience, a valuable Super Bowl lesson, another first-round pick plus additional rookie influx, $40 million or so in projected cap space to chase a needed pass rusher like Trey Hendrickson and, who knows, maybe they try to broker a reunion with Vrabel and Philadelphia Eagles wideout A.J. Brown, who played for him with the Tennessee Titans.

But let’s appreciate what they did and who they are despite their Super embarrassment.

And let’s appreciate who they followed and the standard of excellence they’re chasing – and may it be appropriately immortalized by the time the next Patriots team plays in a Super Bowl.