Here were the goods and bads of May:
Good
WSL (1 and 2)
WSL has mostly been wrapped, up barring Arsenal somehow winning the title [edit 6 May - NOPE], or throwing away 2nd/3rd. Despite that, games between the top four and those below have felt closer for the best part - Leicester aside.
The WSL2 title race deserved more attention, well done to Brum and Palace on returning to the top tier! Charlton vs Leicester will be a toss-up because they're both on such strange form.
[Added 8 May - it's lovely to see Man City get over the line, they've had a few near misses in recent years but that squad and Andrée Jeglertz's system has just clicked so well, it's a much deserved title.]
[24 May - And the play-off was ultimately won by Charlton, largely because of Sophie Whitehouse's saves.
Bunny Shaw re-signing with Man City
She would have been a huge loss, glad to see that get over the line.
Manchester City securing the double
They've had their fair share of near misses over the past decade, to see that group finally break through is a joy.
George Fouracres
Just unfailingly funny. SNL UK has been a nice surprise, and he's been a huge part of it. Hootenannyyyyy
Snooker World Championship - particularly the Mark Allen-Wu Yize semi.
This shot not going in and the universal reaction of pure shock inside the Crucible, oof. The final was a great watch as well, it feels like they could have played to 55 and it still would have gone down to the last frame or two, brilliant.
Hearts of Midlothian
4 May was the day I truly believed Hearts could win the Scottish Premiership, that comeback win at home to Rangers sets things up oh so nicely. If they can do the job against Motherwell and Falkirk, it's probably done - remarkable.
Coventry City and Lincoln City
Pound for pound the two best seasons in the EFL, thoroughly deserved promotions.
It would have been rotten for Rochdale to miss out after that season, and yet they were seconds away from precisely that - phew! Nice to see them back in the EFL.
Bradford City 2025/26
As gutting as the second leg of the playoff semi was, it was a great season. When you look at the struggles of Port Vale and Wimbledon, other promoted teams, that says a lot. There's a very healthy baseline for this team going into the summer.
Dublin Hurling
Them knocking Kilkenny out was a shocker to me, I haven't follow the Provincials (or League) much this year, but yeah - Dublin going unbeaten in the Leinster groups and punting the Cats out is quite something. Áth Cliath abú!
Bad
RL Super League and the volume of injuries
It's bad enough seeing big names (particularly the skilful ones) going down, but there's multiple teams running on fumes with 5 more months yet to play and the scorelines are reflecting that. Some of that comes down to 14 teams sharing a limited pool of players, some is purely budgetary, and some is the brutal schedule. These squads aren't deep enough and players aren't paid enough for such a punitive fixture list.
Cricket subs
Just let teams name a twelfth player in case of injury and an emergency wicketkeeper, none of this 'like-for-like' nonsense which has already caused irritation.
Fifa
I don't need to offer further detail, *gestures at World Cup build-up and Fifa Congress*
Met Gala
Rancid vibes, the Bezos aspect says everything we need to know.
2026 Champions League Final
For me, two tough teams to watch in a competition that I've largely lost any real joy out of watching as a neutral. The Europa and Conference League finals will be much better occasions, as will Lyon vs Barcelona in the Women's CL.
[19 May - and now it turns out TNT/HBO Max/Discovery+/the artist formerly known as BT Sport/the bastards who killed Eurosport UK are keeping all of the European finals behind their paywall this year - a great advert for the dodgy sticks, streaming sites and VPNs - well done folks.]
Eurovision 2026
The continued inclusion of a particular broadcaster has clearly worsened this year's ESC – with zero disrespect intended to the artists involved (they're not the ones to blame for the actions of the EBU and a bulk of the broadcasters who comprise it), I won't be watching.
[18 May - by many accounts, not watching was a good call. The broadcasters know the solution, I don't have much faith in them doing the right thing.
Bunny Shaw's contract
If the Cup final is the last time she's seen in the sky blue of Manchester City, what a shame - she's had incredible run in this part of the world.
People who blare out music and meme videos on coaches
Thankfully we had a headset to drown it out, but wow, some eejit on Flixbus wouldn't take the hint from multiple folks - awful tunes and lots of narration by the shite generic AI voice you hear on tiktok and YT shorts - ghastly.
Reality TV
...and the exploitative ghouls that oversee it. Married at First Sight has always come across to me as a sketchy concept, and the stuff being reported by BBC Panorama is plainly vile (TW-SA). Shame on all those involved.
Tonda Eckert
Spygate was just idiotic in design and execution. With the amount of money at stake, the EFL didn't have a choice - they were absolutely right to punt the Saints. I feel for fans and those at the club who weren't aware, but this whole operation seemed a bit too far along the risk/reward matrix to be worth a go.
European Club Rugby
Apparently the finals of the two competitions were this weekend (15/16 May). That competition should be one of the major sporting occasions in Europe each year, and yet I wouldn't have known it took place today without YouTube popping up some highlights. Meddling by the various clubs/nations has made it a chore to follow.
Other things of note
Best recent tune I've stumbled into: Rasa by oktobernatt
Chess Ratings as of 29/5/26: Bullet 175 - Blitz 394
Comments are closed!