# Featured Work A curated selection of my best sports journalism, showcasing different types of writing and audio. --- <div style="margin-top: 0.1em; margin-bottom: 0.25em; padding-bottom: 0.3em; border-bottom: 1px solid #E6E4D9;"> <div style="font-size: 1.3em; font-weight: 600; color: #100F0F; line-height: 1.3;">Original Reporting</div> <div style="font-size: 0.95em; color: #6F6E69; font-style: italic; margin-top: 0.2em;">Investigative pieces, deep dives, and exclusive stories</div> </div> ### More than the mafia: Winning Serie A helped Napoli show the city's true colors Through interviews with locals, fans, and the club's famous stadium announcer, a look at how Napoli's improbable Serie A title became a love letter to a city the rest of Italy forgot. [[Napoli's Serie A Title|Read More →]] ### One special night in Madrid: How passionate fans rescued Champions League final Tens of thousands of ticketless Liverpool and Tottenham supporters descended on Madrid and turned a forgettable final into an unforgettable spectacle of devotion. [[A Special Night in Madrid|Read More →]] ### Football's cash obsession: How the billion-pound transfer market exploded From a five-figure deal that was debated in Parliament to a billion-pound arms race fueled by TV money and foreign ownership, a history of how football's transfer market lost all sense of proportion. [[How the Transfer Market Exploded|Read More →]] ### Brand Aid: North American tours about more than money for Europe's top clubs AC Milan, Tottenham, and other European giants aren't just chasing quick cash on their pre-season tours. They're planting flags in the world's biggest untapped football market. [[Why Clubs Tour North America|Read More →]] --- <div style="margin-top: 0.1em; margin-bottom: 0.25em; padding-bottom: 0.3em; border-bottom: 1px solid #E6E4D9;"> <div style="font-size: 1.3em; font-weight: 600; color: #100F0F; line-height: 1.3;">Breaking News</div> <div style="font-size: 0.95em; color: #6F6E69; font-style: italic; margin-top: 0.2em;">Fast-paced coverage of developing stories</div> </div> ### Zlatan Ibrahimovic retires after decorated 24-year career After 573 goals, 32 trophies, and 24 years of unmistakable swagger, Zlatan walks away from football with only one regret: the Champions League trophy he never lifted. [[Zlatan Retires After 24 Years|Read More →]] ### Serena Williams plans to retire from tennis after US Open Serena Williams announces her "evolution" away from tennis after three decades of dominance. [[Serena Williams Plans to Retire|Read More →]] --- <div style="margin-top: 0.1em; margin-bottom: 0.25em; padding-bottom: 0.3em; border-bottom: 1px solid #E6E4D9;"> <div style="font-size: 1.3em; font-weight: 600; color: #100F0F; line-height: 1.3;">Interviews</div> <div style="font-size: 0.95em; color: #6F6E69; font-style: italic; margin-top: 0.2em;">Conversations with the people behind the stories</div> </div> ### Haiti's World Cup wait is over. Derrick Etienne Jr. can't wait to tell grandpa American-born Haiti winger Derrick Etienne Jr. chose to represent his grandfather's country, and 52 years later, it's heading back to the World Cup. [[Haiti's World Cup Wait is Over|Read More →]] ### Inside Qatar: What life is like in the World Cup host nation A social anthropologist's journey behind Qatar's glittering World Cup facade reveals a country of staggering inequality, where migrant workers earning less than $300 a month built a nation they'll never belong to. [[What Life is Like in Qatar|Read More →]] ### There's nothing quite like the thrill of the chase for Milan enforcer De Jong Feared on the pitch for his kung-fu kicks, Nigel de Jong turns out to be a soft-spoken, well-groomed family man who finds peace on Lake Como. [[Portrait of Nigel de Jong|Read More →]] --- <div style="margin-top: 0.1em; margin-bottom: 0.25em; padding-bottom: 0.3em; border-bottom: 1px solid #E6E4D9;"> <div style="font-size: 1.3em; font-weight: 600; color: #100F0F; line-height: 1.3;">Essays</div> <div style="font-size: 0.95em; color: #6F6E69; font-style: italic; margin-top: 0.2em;">Long-form reflections on sport, culture, and legacy</div> </div> ### When Messi found his voice, Argentina found its leader After years of quiet genius, Lionel Messi delivered a locker-room speech that moved his teammates to tears — and transformed himself from shy superstar into the leader Argentina had been waiting for. [[Messi is Argentina's Leader|Read More →]] ### How Italy completed transformation from abject failure to Europe's finest Three years after the humiliation of missing the World Cup entirely, Italy ditched decades of defensive pragmatism and emerged as European champions. [[Italy Becomes Europe's Finest|Read More →]] ### Remembering Maradona: The complicated legacy of Argentina's favorite son A portrait of Diego Maradona that stretches from the shantytowns of Villa Fiorito to the dark side of Naples, tracing the full arc of a man who was equal parts god, rebel, and cautionary tale. [[Remembering Maradona|Read More →]] ### Messi vs. Ronaldo: The defining rivalry of the decade For a decade, no one else won the Ballon d'Or. The rivalry between two opposites of footballing genius pushed Messi and Ronaldo to heights neither could have reached alone. [[Messi vs. Ronaldo|Read More →]] ### Fighting the good fight: How Muhammad Ali transcended boxing Before he was everyone's hero, millions hated him — for his bravado, his religion, and his refusal to be drafted — and that's precisely what made Ali the most important athlete who ever lived. [[Muhammad Ali's Legacy|Read More →]] --- <div style="margin-top: 0.1em; margin-bottom: 0.25em; padding-bottom: 0.3em; border-bottom: 1px solid #E6E4D9;"> <div style="font-size: 1.3em; font-weight: 600; color: #100F0F; line-height: 1.3;">Reaction & Analysis</div> <div style="font-size: 0.95em; color: #6F6E69; font-style: italic; margin-top: 0.2em;">Breaking down the biggest moments as they happen</div> </div> ### Even in a World Cup of twists and turns, it came down to Messi and Mbappe Argentina dominated the final, France looked finished, and then Kylian Mbappe single-handedly dragged the game into chaos, turning a coronation into the greatest World Cup final ever played. [[Messi vs. Mbappe|Read More →]] ### Olivier Giroud gets his moment in the sun after years of selfless service to France Long dismissed as the forward France never truly wanted, Olivier Giroud quietly became his country's all-time leading scorer — and proved every doubter wrong at the age of 36. [[Giroud's Moment in the Sun|Read More →]] ### Making of a champion: How France built a team of World Cup winners Didier Deschamps didn't pick the most talented squad. He picked the most cohesive one, assembling hungry young talent from the Paris Banlieues into a unit that prioritized togetherness over individual brilliance. [[How France Won the World Cup|Read More →]] --- <div style="margin-top: 0.1em; margin-bottom: 0.25em; padding-bottom: 0.3em; border-bottom: 1px solid #E6E4D9;"> <div style="font-size: 1.3em; font-weight: 600; color: #100F0F; line-height: 1.3;">Live Coverage</div> <div style="font-size: 0.95em; color: #6F6E69; font-style: italic; margin-top: 0.2em;">Game recaps, live blogs, and deadline writing</div> </div> ### Toronto FC end difficult season with goal fest: Mihailovic powers TFC to 4-2 win After an 11-game winless run, 29 player transactions, and a fifth straight year without playoffs, Toronto FC closed one of its most chaotic seasons with a rare moment of joy. [[TFC's Season Ends on High Note|Read More →]] ### Canada eliminated from World Cup after dispiriting loss to Croatia Alphonso Davies gave Canada a dream start with the fastest goal of the tournament, but Croatia's craftsmen turned the game on its head and sent the Canadians home without a point. [[Canada Eliminated in Qatar|Read More →]] ### Relive 2025 UCL final: How PSG blew out Inter to claim long-awaited title A minute-by-minute account of the night PSG finally lifted the Champions League trophy, dismantling Inter Milan in a dominant performance that ended years of near misses. [Read More →](https://www.thescore.com/chlg/news/3292811) --- <div style="margin-top: 0.1em; margin-bottom: 0.25em; padding-bottom: 0.3em; border-bottom: 1px solid #E6E4D9;"> <div style="font-size: 1.3em; font-weight: 600; color: #100F0F; line-height: 1.3;">Audio</div> <div style="font-size: 0.95em; color: #6F6E69; font-style: italic; margin-top: 0.2em;">Script writing and podcast productions</div> </div> ### Blanco to Bianconero: The Transfer of Cristiano Ronaldo An audio documentary tracing Cristiano Ronaldo's shock move from Real Madrid to Juventus — from a standing ovation in Turin to a tax battle in Spain to the gamble that reshaped Serie A. [[Blanco to Bianconero|Listen →]] --- [[index|← Back to Home]]