AP Sports SummaryBrief at 11:58 a.m. EST

Messi, Mbappe give Qatar the perfect World Cup ending

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — When it comes to soccer, money can buy the world. It can pay for the World Cup. And the world’s best players. And it can bundle them all up into a perfect package and present it to a global audience of millions. The power of money was on show in all its glory as Argentina beat France 4-2 on penalties to become world champions for the third time and end Lionel Messi’s pursuit of the one major trophy that had eluded him in his storied career. Not a bad return on Qatar’s estimated $200 billion investment.

TCU’s Sonny Dykes named Associated Press coach of the Year

TCU’s Sonny Dykes is The Associated Press Coach of the Year after leading the Horned Frogs to the College Football Playoff in his first season with the school. Dykes received 37 of 46 first-place votes from AP Top 25 voters to become the second TCU coach to win the award. The first two were won by Gary Patterson, the coach Dykes replaced. TCU faces Michigan on Dec. 31 in the Fiesta Bowl semifinal. Tulane coach Willie Fritz was second with two first-place votes, followed by Tennessee’s John Heupel and last year’s winner, Jim Harbaugh of Michigan.

Analysis: Top NFL teams had lots of close calls in Week 15

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Joe Burrow wasn’t satisfied after throwing four touchdown passes in the second half to rally the Bengals to a comeback win over Tom Brady and the Buccaneers. Week 15 was a struggle not only for the Bengals but several playoff-bound teams. Only one game — Bengals-Buccaneers — was decided by more than 10 points, going into the Rams-Packers matchup Monday night. Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs needed overtime to beat the lowly Houston Texans. Jalen Hurts and Philadelphia had to overcome a tough first half and three turnovers to beat Chicago 25-20. Dallas blew a 17-point lead in the third quarter and lost 40-34 in overtime at Jacksonville.

At 50, ‘Immaculate Reception’ still lifts a region’s spirits

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The “Immaculate Reception” turns 50 this Friday, Dec. 23. That’s the name for the play in which Pittsburgh Steeler Franco Harris caught a deflected pass and scored a touchdown for Pittsburgh’s first-ever playoff victory. The NFL considers it the greatest play in league history. But it’s more than that. The name is a wordplay on the Catholic Feast of the Immaculate Conception. It came to symbolize the grit of the blue-collar city. But Pittsburgh steelmaking was in decline even as the Steelers were building a dynasty. The Immaculate Reception gave a needed morale boost. “This was our cultural rallying point,” says one priest.

Messi wins World Cup, Argentina beats France on penalties

LUSAIL, Qatar (AP) — Lionel Messi finally won the biggest prize in soccer. Argentina beat France 4-2 in a penalty shootout to claim a third World Cup title despite Kylian Mbappé scoring the first hat trick in a final in 56 years. Gonzalo Montiel scored the clinching penalty as Argentina won after a 3-3 draw. Messi’s once-in-a-generation career is complete now that he is finally a World Cup champion. Messi is definitively in the pantheon of soccer’s greatest ever players alongside Pelé and Diego Maradona. Europe’s run of four straight World Cup winners dating to 2006 came to an end.

Jones snags lateral on final play, Raiders stun Patriots

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Defensive end Chandler Jones grabbed a bizarre, unnecessary lateral by New England’s Jakobi Meyers out of the air on the final play and returned it 48 yards for a touchdown, giving the Las Vegas Raiders a 30-24 victory over the Patriots. With the game tied at 24-all, the Patriots decided to run a series of pitches in a last-ditch attempt to avoid overtime. Rhamondre Stevenson pitched the ball to Meyers, who heaved it across the field and into the arms of Jones. The burly pass-rusher stiff-armed Patriots quarterback Mac Jones and was untouched from there. The wild finish bailed out the Raiders, who led 17-3 at halftime before allowing the Patriots to score 21 straight points.

Giants beat Commanders in prime time to end winless streak

LANDOVER, Md. (AP) — Daniel Jones and the New York Giants ended their winless streak by beating the Washington Commanders 20-12. Jones was 21 of 32 passing to win in prime time for the first time in 10 chances in the NFL. Kayvon Thibodeaux scored a touchdown on a fumble he forced and recovered after declaring earlier this week that prime time likes him. The Giants forced a second fumble by Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinicke with six minutes left in the fourth quarter. New York bolstered its playoff chances by improving to 8-5-1 and hurt Washington’s postseason hopes two weeks after the teams played to a tie.

USOPC pushes category qualifiers for sport transgender issue

The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee is encouraging individual sports to consider “category qualifiers” to ensure transgender athletes will have events to participate in after they reach puberty. The USOPC finalized its so-called position paper addressing a proposed path forward for transgender participation in sports. Its recommendations were based on the principles that science and “fairness” should guide all major decisions. The federation said category qualifiers are used in several sports, including wrestling and boxing, and a so-called open category could be used in some sports. Such a category could include male, transgender and nonbinary athletes who were male at birth. It would leave a category exclusively for athletes who were female at birth.

Messi wins World Cup to push claim to be soccer’s GOAT

LUSAIL, Qatar (AP) — Lionel Messi made his strongest case yet to be considered soccer’s greatest player of all time after finally winning the World Cup. It will never be possible to say definitively even after Argentina’s 4-2 penalty shootout victory over France in the final at Lusail Stadium. No one will ever surpass Pele for some. The Brazil great won the World Cup three times. Even in Messi’s homeland there is Diego Maradona. He remains for many the country’s ultimate soccer icon after captaining his national team to the 1986 World Cup title. And Messi has even had a personal rivalry with Cristiano Ronaldo for the past 15 years or so. He also now has a World Cup.

Messi plans to play on for Argentina after World Cup win

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Lionel Messi is not ready to walk away from Argentina yet despite ending his pursuit of a World Cup winner’s medal. The soccer great secured the one major trophy that has eluded him in his storied career as Argentina beat France 4-2 on penalties in the final at Lusail Stadium. The match finished 3-3 through extra time with Messi scoring twice and converting his penalty in the shootout. At 35, this is likely his last appearance in soccer’s biggest tournament but he confirmed after the match he intends to play on.