The Good Sport Guide to Women's Sports in NYC: July 27th - August 2nd
Today’s newsletter starts with a complex philosophical question: What makes something a game vs a sport?
Today’s newsletter starts with a complex philosophical question: What makes something a game vs a sport? I spent the past week in Northern Minnesota along Lake Superior, where, in addition to spending time with my girlfriend’s lovely extended family, I engaged in various activities that some may call games, some may call sports: Bottle Bash and Cornhole.
I think we all know Cornhole, or Bags, depending on where you’re from. I had never heard of Bottle Bash, though, which is a game where you and a partner try to knock your opponent’s bottle off a stand with a frisbee, and everyone has to have a drink in one hand while playing.
A common intuitive test for deciding sport vs game: Does success depend substantially on physicality (strength, speed, endurance, or coordination)? If so, then sport. Or, some say it comes down to whether success depends on measurable, quantifiable performance.
Bernard Suits, the late thinker known for his work in the Philosophy of Sport, argued that games are activities where you adopt agreed-upon unnecessary obstacles for the sake of the activity itself. In his view, sports are a subset of games, but not all games are sports.
If you think about that long enough, though, whether it’s cornhole or soccer, it’s all kind of the same intellectual framework. People come together to suspend reality and play in a fantasy world where you can win or lose.
Guys, the truth is, it’s a spectrum. Like all of the best things in the world. There are levels to this and different categories of games and sports. Maybe when I go bowling, it’s a game. But when someone who has trained their whole life goes to work as a professional bowler, it’s a sport. Maybe a sport is whatever game you take extremely seriously and thus makes you sick in the head.
If I’m still thinking about a round of cornhole where I totally shit the bed, and I’ve thought about how I never play cornhole in New York and I might not get better before the next family trip…Am I a cornhole athlete? No. But I am sick in the head.
I love games and sports. Here’s your newsletter.
NYC women’s sports news & culture
Here’s what you should know this week.
The Liberty’s Jonquel Jones adds All-Star MVP to her resume. This makes JJ the only player in WNBA history to have a WNBA MVP (2021), Commissioner’s Cup MVP (2023), Finals MVP (2024), and WNBA All-Star MVP (2026). It was an emotional weekend for JJ, who recently lost her aunt and had to miss the memorial service to attend ASW. To add to the weekend’s complication, JJ was also heard on the StudBudz livestream telling Courtney Williams that she thought the Lynx deserved to win the 2024 Championship, which got blown up by the media. She called that situation a gut punch and clarified her meaning in a press conference. My take: Everyone needs to lay off JJ. From everything I’ve heard about her, she’s salt of the earth, and I know what she meant, and it seems like most of the fans do, too. I hope she enjoyed that MVP moment because she deserved it.
I wasn’t at All-Star, but my friend and Good Sport truther Ashtyn (who everyone should follow because she’s talented // hilarious // knows ball) was there and wrote about the weekend in her newsletter for Offball. Read it here to get more details on what appeared to be a very chaotic and fun weekend in the Windy City.
Esther Gonzalez departs from Gotham FC. Earlier today, it was announced that the forward and Gotham mutually agreed to a contract termination. Fans were quick to judge this as a bad soccer move by the team, possibly to make room for Sam Kerr, who joined us earlier this month, but it’s been made clear that this is due to Gonzalez temporarily stepping back from soccer to attend to personal matters back in Spain. In her time with Gotham, Gonzalez led the Bats in scoring and finished as a runner-up in the 2025 Golden Boot race. She won two NWSL Championships with the team. I wish she could’ve gotten a proper, more in-depth send-off, but I’m wishing her all the best as she takes care of what she needs to back home.
The WPBL kicks off this weekend. Our NY Heights will play in the league’s first game against the LA Queens. I’m going to dive into our roster and the history of women’s pro baseball on the podcast this week, so stay tuned for more come Thursday. All of the WPBL games will be played in Springfield, IL this season, and I have yet to find the details on streaming…Perhaps on the league’s YouTube? I’ll report back. But virtual or not, take me out to the gd ball game. Also, WPBL, please restock the merch. In need of the white jersey severely.
What to watch this week
Tuesday 7/28
🏀 The Liberty are at the LA Sparks at 10:00 pm ET. Watch on My9 local TV.
Wednesday 7/29
⚽ Gotham FC is at Bay FC at 10:00 pm ET. Watch on Fubo / CBS Sports Network.
Thursday 7/30
🏀 The Liberty are at the Las Vegas Aces at 10:00 pm ET. Watch on Prime Video.
Saturday 8/1
⚾ The New York Heights play the WPBL’s first-ever game vs the LA Queens at 5 pm ET at Robin Roberts Stadium in Springfield, IL. Streaming details TBA.
And that’s a wrap…
That’s all for this week! At Good Sport HQ, we’re cooking up some fun events and other new stuff for the rest of summer and early fall…More soon but I’m excited.
Love you, bye!