![\"Pep](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/the_sporting_news_articles_584/55d0ed9417f8ecf2642cf28555aa53bc\")
Why is Pep Guardiola leaving Man City? Ten years, 20 trophies and the multiple reasons to call time originally appeared on The Sporting News.\n Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
\nFor a man who has stayed so long, become part of the Premier League furniture, the British sporting landscape and Manchester's wider culture, Pep Guardiola has always felt a bit like he might be leaving.
\nSpeaking at his first City press conference in July 2016, wearing an immaculate grey three-piece suit, he expressed reverence for English football's traditions that made him sound like a man passing through.
\n\"To come to the country which created football and believe you have to change something would be a little bit presumptuous,\" he said. \"I'm not good enough to change everything. To change the mentality of a club of more than 120 years would be presumptuous.\"
\nPresumptuous, yes. But he did. He has. Manchester City and English football will never be the same after Guardiola. They will both carry his imprint for a very long time when he leaves the Etihad Stadium dugout for the final time after Sunday's concluding Premier League match against Aston Villa.
\nEven this season, when the Premier League has been more physical, set-piece dominated and transition-oriented than at any time since Guardiola bent the league to his will with six titles in seven years, the 55-year-old Catalan is the reason.\u00a0
\nMORE:All trophies won by Pep Guardiola in storied coaching career
\nThe present state of English football's post-Pep evolution, beyond the copyists who yielded mixed results (Guardiola has frequently warned that you cannot simply \"copy and paste\" coaching ideas and hope for success to follow), has been an almost league-wide response to the City manager's signature style being the prevailing one. His old assistant Mikel Arteta is on the cusp of a maiden league title with Arsenal, but only after something of a 'dark side' conversion.
\nAnd Guardiola has relished it. Jurgen Klopp's old No. 2 Pep Lijnders and former Arsenal and City defender Kolo Toure have brought new impetus and enthusiasm to the training ground as a young squad, hastily and expensively revamped over the past three transfer windows, has adapted to Pepball.
\n![\"Manchester](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/the_sporting_news_articles_584/7f0cb62f6be83c4d3cc5132d6ee49ad2\" "\\"Manchester")
Getty Images
\n\"The way we pressed this season was different, different ways. To find the perfect comfort on the field, maybe we took more time,\" he said at a press conference before Tuesday's trip to Bournemouth. The three-piece suit is long gone, currently replaced by a signature Puma hoodie with a giant \"P\" on the front that strongly brings to mind Alvin from The Chipmunks. This is more relaxed, forthcoming Guardiola, who has come to chuckle through press conferences, giddily fumble punchlines and accuse journalists of using Chat GPT for their research (not guilty!).
\n\"The game this season has been many, many different ways, like never happened before in my career. I always have more or less [changed] one slight detail, but here, we changed more. On the other side, it has been fun. It has been more entertaining, I would say.\"
\nFun, entertaining, relaxed \u2014 although not relaxed to the extent he isn't as manically engaged in every kick of every game as he ever was. Games where, through all those changes in personnel and tactical demands, City have emerged with two trophies. They still have an outside chance of sweeping the board domestically. So, why now?
\n\n\n\"You go to the ChatGPT, right?\" \ud83d\udc40
\u2014 Hayters TV (@HaytersTV) May 18, 2026\n
Pep Guardiola is suspicious of the reporter's knowledge \ud83e\udd23 pic.twitter.com/fM5BQSDpi8
There are a combination of factors, but the first thing to point out is that Guardiola was never supposed to be here this long. He worked for four years at Barcelona between 2008 and 2012 on rolling one-year contracts. The exhaustion brought about by Camp Nou's entorno led him to take a one-year sabbatical. Then he took the reins at Bayern Munich, cycled through a stack of bold, new tactical schemes, but grew restless in the final year of a three-year contract and agreed to come to City.
\nIn Manchester, his old Barcelona allies Ferran Soriano and Txiki Begiristain, City's CEO and erstwhile sporting director respectively, laid the groundwork for Guardiola. The City Football Academy was set up to be his perfect working environment. There was none of the political ructions that accompanied a Catalan being Barcelona coach or the overly opinionated retired club icons from Bayern. Early in his tenure, Guardiola sought information about the British game from City's great former England winger Mike Summerbee, safe in the knowledge he would not receive unsolicited tactical advice in return.
\nGuardiola's first contract was for three years and he extended by a further two in May 2018, when City swept to their record-breaking 100-point Premier League title success. This Noah's Ark approach continued, bolting on another two years at a time, although it felt feasible he might have left in 2018/19, had City accompanied their unprecedented domestic treble with a Champions League crown, football completed. Instead, they suffered dramatic heartbreak in a thrilling quarterfinal against Tottenham Hotspur, going out on the now-defunct away-goals rule after Raheem Sterling had a hat-trick and a tie-sealing goal deep into stoppage time ruled out by VAR.
\n\nIt was not the last time the Champions League would bring Guardiola to his knees at City and there were four more years of yearning until the treble moment in Istanbul. By that point, he'd pipped Jurgen Klopp's formidable Liverpool side on the final day of the Premier League season in 2019 and 2022. The Reds' storming run to rip the title away from City in 2019/20 gave Guardiola something else to prove. He signed a two-year extension in November 2020 as City grappled with the vagaries of COVID-19 football and emerged as a whirling false-nine winning machine.
\nThe November international break became a favourite of Guardiola's when it came to plotting his next move. He penned extensions that month in 2022 and, during the worst on-field crisis of his City career, in 2024. His squad had won a fourth consecutive top-division title in 2023/24 \u2013 a feat never previously accomplished in English football \u2013 but a couple of uneven summer transfer windows, along with understandable but misguided loyalty to ageing veterans, meant City collapsed in autumn and winter 2024, winning just one of 13 games in all competitions at their prolonged nadir.
\nAt this time, as at any point of turbulence since the Premier League's hefty charge sheet dropped in February 2023, plenty of observers wondered aloud whether 'the 115' was affecting City and their manager. Guardiola has stridently backed his club, which denies all allegations of serious financial wrongdoing, ever since their two-year UEFA ban was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in August 2020.
\nIt feels unfair and deeply unsatisfactory that the interminable wait for a verdict in the Premier League case will persist beyond Guardiola's tenure, but this is not a factor in his decision. The \"rat deserting a sinking ship\" prognosis is no more than the stuff of social media fantasy. A day-to-day details obsessive and a glacial legal process were never likely to align their schedules.
\nGuardiola recognised his part in the summer 2024 market misjudgement and endeavouring to make it right was a big motivation for him to sign another two-year renewal until 2027. Over recent weeks, his recited mantra of \"I have one more year contract\" when asked about his future has come to sound a bit like a man pleading the fifth. He did not want to hand over a bedraggled City to a successor in summer 2025. Now, a retooled playing squad imbued with fresh ideas on the training ground are primed for a new cycle, widely presumed to be under ex-Chelsea boss and Guardiola's 2022/23 treble-winning assistant Enzo Maresca.
\nThe rebuild was initially overseen by Begiristain in January 2025, but with incoming sporting director Hugo Viana also part of the conversations. Begiristain had intended to bow out alongside Guardiola, only for his old friend to decide he wished to go on and on. Viana and Guardiola enjoy a strong and productive working relationship, but it's not Pep and Txiki. It never could be. And so much has changed, beyond the end of Guardiola's most enduring football partnership.
\nThere's not really anyone left from 2016, aside from his ever-present confident Manel Estiarte. Assistant coaches have moved on, some to fine careers of their own, such as Arteta and Maresca. Guardiola's mentor Juanma Lillo has spent two spells on the coaching staff but left for the last time prior to this season. John Stones was Guardiola's second signing, and the England centre-back's departure means there is no one remaining from the 2016/17 playing squad. Club captain Bernardo Silva following Stones through the exit doors means there is no one left from the 2017/18 'Centurions'. Phil Foden, once Guardiola's teen protege and pet project, is City's longest-serving player by some distance.
\nThe same applies to rivals. The managers filling Premier League jobs look very different to the class of 2016 that Guardiola entered. Plenty of them are there in part due to his influence, both directly and indirectly. His greatest sporting foe, Jurgen Klopp, left Liverpool exhausted in 2024. Guardiola wept in his end-of-season press conference when he paid tribute to the gegenpressing maestro.
\nThere's also a personal element. Guardiola's three children came to Manchester a decade ago; they're now grown up, young adults who have flown the nest. In December 2025, Guardiola separated from his wife and partner of 30 years, Cristina.\u00a0
\n\nIn short, an awful lot of life has happened. A friend of Guardiola told The Sporting News that the coach's inner circle has remained very tight on the precise motivation for his departure. Press conferences over the coming days will shed some light, but only as much as Guardiola wants to let in.
\n\"I don't know the reason. I think it's very personal,\" they said. \"I suppose he's very tired after 10 years. His family is far away; he's been in the same place for 10 years. He's already achieved complete success \u2014 he doesn't need to prove anything.
\n\"I suppose all this is what's driving him to say goodbye. Pep doesn't need any more trophies. I think he needs to take a breather, play golf, live a bit, go to the beach. And then, a national team.\"
\nAh yes, a job at a national team. You didn't think we'd get rid of him that easily, did you?
\n","enclosure":{},"categories":["Soccer"]},{"title":"SCOREBOARD | Northeast Florida high school sports scores for May 18-23, 2026","pubDate":"2026-05-19 12:35:45","link":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/scoreboard-northeast-florida-high-school-123545684.html","guid":"dc8e6aa6-dbae-35f6-9712-7257d808dcf5","author":"","thumbnail":"","description":"The Times-Union rounds up high school sports scores and results across Jacksonville and Northeast Florida for May 18-23, 2026.","content":"BASEBALL
\nClass 2A semifinal
\nTrinity Christian 7, Lakeland Christian 2
\nLakeland Christian;200;000;0;--;2;5;0
\nTrinity Christian;101;401;x;--;7;8;1
\nW: Wheeler. L: Walker.
\n3B: Harris (TC) 2. 2B: Ellis (TC), Reali (TC), Irby (LC).
\nThis article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville-area high school sports scores, May 18-23
\n![\"Manager](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/daily_cannon_articles_231/cfe401e9746eeadd8c0a2934abacbc65\")
![](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/daily_cannon_articles_231/eab173ac36f9bc70ac235e825678bbd7\")
Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images
\nArsenal are doing everything they can to have Jurrien Timber available for their final matches of the season, with the right-back now in his third month out of action.
\nRecent reports have suggested the defender is back in training, and the Netherlands\u2019 manager Ronald Koeman has now confirmed as much. But Koeman added that the chances of Timber featuring in the Champions League final and the World Cup still aren\u2019t great.
\n\u201cJurrien has been dealing with this for quite \u200bsome time. It has been a rollercoaster ride,\u201d Koeman said. \u201cHe is training again to see \u200bif he can make the Champions League final, and be available \u200bfor the World Cup, but it does not look rosy at the moment.\u201d
\n![](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/daily_cannon_articles_231/c2e2733397fbdd6cec9b1a4bcc00a3f8\")
Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
\nBen White has already been ruled out for Arsenal\u2019s last couple of games, with testing on his knee issue revealing he\u2019ll be out for the remainder of the season.
\nThe only good news on that front is that White doesn\u2019t require surgery, and that he has plenty of time to recover before 2026/27.
\nWhite\u2019s absence has put extra pressure on Timber\u2019s situation, with Arsenal having to manage without a natural right-back against Burnley on Monday.
\nCristhian Mosquera filled in well, but it would obviously be preferable to have Timber available against Crystal Palace and Paris Saint-Germain in the final couple of games, with two trophies at stake.
\n![](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/daily_cannon_articles_231/9dbcc8f6b145135af0ec6ea2521162d8\")
Photo by Harry Murphy/Getty Images
\nAs it stands, Koeman\u2019s suggestion is that Timber\u2019s involvement isn\u2019t particularly likely, and the player may instead end up focusing on recovering in time for the World Cup a couple of weeks later.
\nAnd if Koeman decides against including a player who hasn\u2019t featured on the pitch since March 14th, then Timber would be starting his holidays early.
\n","enclosure":{},"categories":["Soccer"]},{"title":"\u2018On the toughest days\u2026\u2019: Man Utd man reflects on \u2018difficult\u2019 season ahead of near-certain summer sale","pubDate":"2026-05-19 12:35:00","link":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/toughest-days-man-utd-man-123500426.html","guid":"73b41972-0fb6-3372-9bfa-7e0ad0927d31","author":"","thumbnail":"","description":"Manuel Ugarte has expressed his gratitude to his family and partner for helping him through a \u2018difficult\u2019 season.It comes ahead of a summer transfer window in which the midfielder looks nailed-on ...","content":"\n![\"\u2018On](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/stretty_news_articles_240/24e0151af8974861a1cebc00f269d015\")
Manuel Ugarte has expressed his gratitude to his family and partner for helping him through a \u2018difficult\u2019 season.
\n\nIt comes ahead of a summer transfer window in which the midfielder looks nailed-on to leave Manchester United.
\nDOWNLOAD THE OFFICIAL STRETTY NEWS APP FOR ALL THE LATEST UPDATES & BREAKING NEWS \u2013 STRAIGHT TO YOUR PHONE! ON APPLE\u00a0& GOOGLE PLAY
\nWhile fans have been less than impressed with Ugarte\u2019s performances this season, you can understand why his morale will have taken a substantial hit, especially in recent months.
\nWant more Stretty News coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust
\n\nOf the 29 Premier League appearances he made in his maiden term, 22 came from the off.\u00a0
\n\nThis time around, however, the Uruguayan has made only 22 appearances overall, with just eight of those being as a starter.
\n\nWhen he oversaw a particularly shoddy display in the defeat to Leeds United at Old Trafford, reports claimed that Sir Jim Ratcliffe had personally green-lit Ugarte\u2019s summer exit while on a visit to Carrington.
\n\nMichael Carrick\u2019s mind was also made up regarding the 25-year-old after the loss, as he has yet to feature since \u2013 not even for a minute to see out some of the recent wins.
\nWhile his impending departure has not been confirmed, there is a general expectation amongst fans that Ugarte has played his final game for United.
\n\nThe fact that he wasn\u2019t used in Saturday\u2019s win over Nottingham Forest meant he was unable to play in front of the M16 faithful for the last time or get a send-off, although he did take part in the post-match lap of appreciation with the rest of his teammates.
\n\nUgarte shared a snap of himself and his partner on the pitch to Instagram today, and the caption simply read: \u201c[A] season with many difficult moments, but always smiling. Thank you to my family who always supported me from afar and to you, love, who stood by my side on the toughest days.\u201d
\nMore Stories / Latest News
\n\n\nFrom Spain: Jose Mourinho plotting shock swoop for Man Utd mainstay after Real Madrid appointment
\n\nFive Manchester United Players Who Reached Football\u2019s Greatest Prize
\n\n","enclosure":{},"categories":["Soccer"]},{"title":"Georgia baseball's coaches poll ranking after series at No. 6 Auburn","pubDate":"2026-05-19 12:34:27","link":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/georgia-baseballs-coaches-poll-ranking-123427771.html","guid":"174cbf5b-52ea-339c-8caa-3855509a488d","author":"","thumbnail":"","description":"The Georgia Bulldogs earned a road series win over the No. 6 Auburn Tigers, but that was not enough to move up in the coaches poll","content":"\nThe Georgia Bulldogs remain at the No. 4 spot in the May 18 USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll after winning two of three games on the road against the No. 6 Auburn Tigers. The Bulldogs even earned one first-place vote.
\nGeorgia is ranked behind No. 1 UCLA, No. 2 North Carolina and No. 3 Georgia Tech. UCLA received 28 of 30 first-place votes with Georgia Tech receiving the other.
\nEntering the Auburn series, Georgia had already won the SEC regular season championship. Georgia is red hot and has won 11 of its last 12 games entering the SEC Tournament.
\nThe Bulldogs (43-12, 23-7 SEC) have lost only one SEC series all year (at home to Florida). Georgia is the only team in SEC history to win all five SEC road road series. Georgia is a lock to earn a top eight seed in the NCAA Tournament after beating Auburn on the road.
\nThe Dawgs are the No. 1 seed in the SEC Tournament and an automatic berth into the quarterfinals. Georgia's opening SEC Tournament game will be at 4 p.m. ET on Thursday, May 21 in Hoover, Alabama.
\n| Rank | \nTeam | \nRecord | \nPTS | \n1st | \n
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | \nUCLA Bruins | \n48-6 | \n748 | \n28 | \n
| 2 | \nNorth Carolina Tar Heels | \n43-10 | \n703 | \n0 | \n
| 3 | \nGeorgia Tech Yellow Jackets | \n45-9 | \n699 | \n1 | \n
| 4 | \nGeorgia Bulldogs | \n43-12 | \n669 | \n1 | \n
| 5 | \nTexas Longhorns | \n40-12 | \n627 | \n0 | \n
| 6 | \nAuburn Tigers | \n36-18 | \n554 | \n0 | \n
| 7 | \nOregon State Beavers | \n43-12 | \n545 | \n0 | \n
| 8 | \nFlorida State Seminoles | \n38-16 | \n506 | \n0 | \n
| 9 | \nTexas A&M Aggies | \n39-13 | \n498 | \n0 | \n
| 10 | \nSouthern Miss Golden Eagles | \n40-14 | \n471 | \n0 | \n
| 11 | \nWest Virginia Mountaineers | \n37-13 | \n452 | \n0 | \n
| 12 | \nOregon Ducks | \n38-15 | \n371 | \n0 | \n
| 13 | \nArkansas Razorbacks | \n36-19 | \n365 | \n0 | \n
| 14 | \nMississippi State Bulldogs | \n39-16 | \n340 | \n0 | \n
| 15 | \nAlabama Crimson Tide | \n37-18 | \n337 | \n0 | \n
| 16 | \nKansas Jayhawks | \n39-16 | \n308 | \n0 | \n
| 17 | \nFlorida Gators | \n37-18 | \n303 | \n0 | \n
| 18 | \nNebraska Cornhuskers | \n41-14 | \n239 | \n0 | \n
| 19 | \nUSC Trojans | \n42-14 | \n235 | \n0 | \n
| 20 | \nOle Miss Rebels | \n36-20 | \n180 | \n0 | \n
| 21 | \nOklahoma State Cowboys | \n36-19 | \n148 | \n0 | \n
| 22 | \nArizona State Sun Devils | \n36-18 | \n94 | \n0 | \n
| 23 | \nCincinnati Bearcats | \n37-19 | \n88 | \n0 | \n
| 24 | \nCoastal Carolina Chanticleers | \n36-19 | \n84 | \n0 | \n
| 25 | \nTennessee Volunteers | \n37-19 | \n62 | \n0 | \n
No. 24 Boston College; No. 25 Jacksonville State;
\nJacksonville State 43; Wake Forest 22; Boston College 18; UC Santa Barbara 10; Oklahoma 10; Mercer 6; California Baptist 5; East Carolina 3; Miami (FL) 2; Kent State 2; UTSA 1; UCF 1; Campbell 1;
\nFollow UGA Wire on Instagram, Facebook, X or Threads for more Georgia baseball coverage!
\nThis article originally appeared on UGA Wire: Where Georgia is ranked in the coaches poll after series win at Auburn
\n","enclosure":{},"categories":["college","sports"]},{"title":"Jaxon Smith-Njigba points out glaring mistake on offensive player of the year award: 'It's getting disrespectful'","pubDate":"2026-05-19 12:33:34","link":"https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/article/jaxon-smith-njigba-points-out-glaring-mistake-on-offensive-player-of-the-year-award-its-getting-disrespectful-123334415.html","guid":"55976e31-f706-4d8a-b54a-4d51b38d76d7","author":"Chris Cwik","thumbnail":"","description":"Jaxon Smith-Njigba is an offensive player, actually.","content":"\nSeattle Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba established himself as the best receiver in football in 2025. Smith-Njigba led the NFL with 1,793 receiving yards, scoring 10 touchdowns en route to an All-Pro season. While that wasn\u2019t enough to win him the MVP award, Smith-Njigba took home the next best thing: The offensive player of the year award \u2026 or so he thought.
\nTurns out, someone made a pretty glaring mistake on Smith-Njigba\u2019s physical award. Upon first blush, you might think it had something to do with the receiver\u2019s name, which isn\u2019t the easiest to spell, but you would be wrong. It was more embarrassing than that.
\nSmith-Njigba received the \u201c2025 defensive player of the year\u201d award \u2026 according to his trophy.
\n\n#Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba received his Offensive Player of the Year trophy \u2026 but the plaque says Defensive Player of the Year. \ud83e\udd26\u200d\u2642\ufe0f
\u2014 Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) May 19, 2026\n
\u201cIt\u2019s getting disrespectful at this point.\u201d pic.twitter.com/mzDlTvACDk
He was the one who called attention to the issue, sending out a short story on his Instagram page pointing out the error.
\nIt\u2019s an unfortunate mistake for all involved, as Smith-Njigba\u2019s excellence extended far beyond the regular season. During the team\u2019s Super Bowl run, Smith-Njigba caught 17 passes for 199 yards and two scores, including a 153-yard explosion that propelled the Seahawks past the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC championship game.
\nNaturally, one has to wonder whether Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett \u2014 the actual defensive player of the year \u2014 erroneously received the \u201coffensive player of the year\u201d trophy. Garrett hasn\u2019t provided any evidence suggesting there was a mixup on both trophies yet.
\nEither the league got that one right or Garrett hasn\u2019t noticed. He already has another defensive player of the year award sitting around his house, so you can\u2019t fault him if he didn\u2019t look too hard at his second one.
\nGiven the mixup, it seems likely Smith-Njigba will receive a corrected trophy in the coming weeks.
\n","enclosure":{},"categories":[]},{"title":"Victor Wembanyama posts monster numbers in Spurs' Game 1 win in Western Conference finals","pubDate":"2026-05-19 12:33:07","link":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/victor-wembanyama-posts-monster-numbers-123307020.html","guid":"0a80e52a-c030-37ee-b69a-16486a29fdad","author":"","thumbnail":"","description":"Victor Wembanyama had a performance for the ages in the Spurs' double-OT win in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals. Check out his amazing line.","content":"\nHe may not have won this season's NBA MVP award, but San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama was unquestionably the best player on the court in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals.
\nIn a performances for the ages, Wembanyama delivered when it mattered most in the Spurs' 122-115 double-overtime victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. He scored from every angle, was an unstoppable force on the boards and in the paint \u2013 and even buried a ridiculous game-tying 3-pointer from way beyond the arc in the waning seconds of the first extra period.
\nIn the process, Wembanyama became the youngest player in NBA history (22 years, 134 days) to score at least 40 points and grab at least 20 rebounds in a playoff game.
\nIn the double-overtime win over the top-seeded Thunder, Victor Wembanyama was on the court for the most minutes he's ever played in an NBA game. And his stat line might not even do him justice.
\nThis article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Victor Wembanyama stats: Spurs star dominates Game 1 of West finals
\n","enclosure":{},"categories":["sports","nba"]},{"title":"Mike Quick celebrity invitational benefits First Tee of Greater Phila.","pubDate":"2026-05-19 12:31:14","link":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/mike-quick-celebrity-invitational-benefits-123114123.html","guid":"77ac1c36-aea4-355f-acf4-8d3bafe53981","author":"","thumbnail":"","description":"Golfers took advantage of Monday's warm weather to raise money for a good cause in Torresdale.","content":"Golfers took advantage of the warm weather to raise money for a good cause in Torresdale on Monday.
\nThe Mike Quick Celebrity Invitational was held at the Union League Golf Club.
\nAction News' own Matt O'Donnell was among the golfers who took part. Eagles legends Jason Kelce and Brandon Graham were also there.
\nProceeds from the tournament benefits the First Tee of Greater Philadelphia.
\nThe SEC baseball world is descending on Hoover, Alabama.
\nHoover Metropolitan Stadium will play host to the 2026 SEC Baseball Tournament, which kicks off Tuesday, May 19, culminating in a tournament championship game at 1 p.m. Sunday, May 24.
\nVanderbilt, which won the 2025 SEC Tournament, will enter 2026 as a No 12 seed, while Georgia, the No. 1 seed heading into this season's bracket, will look for its first tournament championship in school history.
\n\n\nFollow along for updates as SEC teams battle it out in Hoover.
\nThe 2026 SEC Baseball Tournament will take place at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in Hoover from May 19-24.
\nThe 2026 SEC Baseball Tournament will air on SEC Network and ABC. SEC Network will show games from the first round through the semifinals. The SEC conference championship game will air on ABC.
\nStreaming options include the ESPN app and Fubo.
\nClick here to see the full 2026 SEC Baseball Tournament bracket.
\nAll times Central
\nFirst round (Tuesday, May 19)
\nSecond round (Wednesday, May 20)
\nQuarterfinals (Thursday, May 21)
\nQuarterfinals (Friday, May 22)
\nSemifinals (Saturday, May 23)
\nChampionship (Sunday, May 24)
\nColin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at cgay@gannett.com or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter.\u00a0
\nThis article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: 2026 SEC Baseball Tournament live scores, updates, highlights
\n![](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/motorsport_articles_445/d98d08486e0864b9a11365b45a95dbec\")
Johann Zarco is facing what is likely to be a lengthy recovery period following his left leg injury - primarily to the knee - sustained at the Catalan Grand Prix.
\nAfter being examined by knee specialist Dr. Bertrand Sonnery-Cottet, Zarco knows he will need surgery but the procedure won\u2019t be possible for a few weeks.
\nDuring the second restart in Barcelona on Sunday,\u00a0Zarco crashed into the bikes of Francesco Bagnaia and Luca Marini, and his left leg became trapped between the wheel and the upper part of Bagnaia\u2019s bike.
\nIt was confirmed that evening that he had sustained injuries to the anterior and posterior\u00a0cruciate ligaments, the medial meniscus and the fibula of his left leg.
\nZarco flew back to France, and on Tuesday he met with Dr. Sonnery-Cottet, a leading specialist in knee injuries who has treated numerous athletes, including several famous footballers. Surgery will be necessary, but it will be some time before it can be scheduled.
\n\"On Tuesday 19th May, Johann Zarco visited doctor Bertrand Sonnery-Cottet in Lyon, a world-renowned consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon at the Centre Orthop\u00e9dique Santy in Lyon, France, specialising in the management of knee ligament injuries and sports trauma, to further assess his physical condition,\" read a statement from LCR.
\n\"Following a thorough examination, it is estimated that he will need to wait a couple of weeks before undergoing surgery for the damage to his ligaments, allowing the initial trauma and other injuries to his knee some time to heal before the procedure.
\n\"Following the surgery, a detailed recovery plan will be established, allowing the medical team to evaluate a possible timeline for his return.
\n\"The whole Castrol Honda LCR team is in close contact with Johann Zarco and will continue to provide updates as the date gets closer.\"
\n![](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/motorsport_articles_445/324a79961ad10104ee046ab2f2e6334a\")
Several riders are scheduled for medical evaluations following the Catalan Grand Prix, which was marked by several major accidents.\u00a0Alex Marquez, who suffered a heavy crash in a separate incident from Zarco\u2019s on Sunday, is also set to undergo tests this week to determine whether surgery is necessary on his slightly fractured C7 vertebra. An operation on his collarbone was already performed on Monday.
\nFabio Di Giannantonio, struck by debris from Marquez\u2019s bike, won the race but missed Monday\u2019s test due to pain in his left hand. Bagnaia, meanwhile, is set to undergo an examination of his left wrist following the crash with Zarco.
\nJorge Martin also made a trip to the hospital after a crash during Monday\u2019s test. Tests revealed no fractures.
\nSee also:\n\n![](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/motorsport_articles_445/36047149948a47ff75e0758478dadd5c\")
\nJohann Zarco recounts Barcelona MotoGP crash: \"It was absolutely terrifying\"\n![](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/motorsport_articles_445/6173eed3d019c81f6871ea157e65f065\")
\nMotoGP chief Carlos Ezpeleta defends decision to restart Catalan GP twice\nTo read more Motorsport.com articles visit our website.
\n","enclosure":{},"categories":["MotoGP","Sport","Car","Team LCR","Johann Zarco","Catalan GP","Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya"]}]}![\"Georgia](\"https://media.zenfs.com/en/uga_wire_usa_today_articles_805/fd0964ab37744dc951bc7c1f6845b24d\")