As sports bettors are putting money on the line for the world series, two art museums are using a different currency — Claude Monet paintings.

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After years of struggling with declining enrollment, Alverno College changed its recruitment strategy with a renewed focus on athletics — and it’s starting to work. 

The post Alverno College doubles down on women’s sports to boost enrollment appeared first on WPR.

Game 1 of the World Series is Friday night at American Family Field. Brewers ace, and likely National League Cy Young award winner Jacob Misiorowski, is expected to start the game.

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The World Series will return to Milwaukee on Friday, Oct. 23 for the first time since 1982.

The post Plumbing help for World Series tickets? Brewers fans are getting creative in quest for seats appeared first on WPR.

At long last, the Milwaukee Brewers are heading back to the World Series.

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The Trump administration’s order to allow import of Russian diesel violates a 2022 law banning Russian energy imports while the country’s war with Ukraine is ongoing, according to a bipartisan group of U.S. senators.

Following an Oct. 9 call between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control lifted sanctions against the “import sale, delivery, offloading, or importation” of Russian diesel. Prices of diesel have skyrocketed in recent months during Trump’s war in Iran.

The administration did not consult with Congress before lifting the sanctions, which is required by the 2022 law, six senators said Sunday in a statement.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking Democrat Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Democrat Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Republicans Susan Collins of Maine, John Curtis of Utah, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Thom Tillis of North Carolina called on Trump to “immediately reverse course.”

“Congress explicitly banned Russian energy imports in 2022 to prevent American dollars from financing Putin’s brutal war against Ukraine,” they wrote. “Congress was clear: the U.S. should not import oil from Russia until it ends its aggression against Ukraine and ceases threats against our NATO Allies. 

“President Trump’s decision to allow Russian diesel imports to the U.S. runs directly counter to that law,” the group added.

U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, a Texas Democrat who sponsored the 2022 law blocking imports of Russian energy products, also said in a Monday statement the administration’s move was illegal.

“Trump is directly violating that law, lifting sanctions to permit the first Russian diesel imports into the United States since the law took effect, without satisfying the specific legal conditions it requires,” he wrote. “He illegally rewards his pal Putin while once again blaming Zelensky for not capitulating to Putin. Meanwhile, every day Putin murders more Ukrainian civilians.”

Broad support for law 

The law passed the Senate unanimously and the House 413-9 before President Joe Biden signed it in April 2022, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine.

It allows for the president to lift sanctions on Russian energy imports, after consultation with Congress, if Russia has withdrawn from Ukraine, recognized Ukraine’s right to independence and poses no immediate threat to any NATO members. 

Throughout his second term, Trump has attempted to use trade policy, including an aggressive tariffs schedule, to extract concessions from foreign governments.

But reopening Russian energy imports appears to break with that record. Trump did not announce any accommodation Russia provided to reenter the U.S. market, instead framing the move explicitly in domestic economic terms.

“Between our TOTAL CONTROL of the Strait of Hormuz, and this great announcement on Russian Energy, Diesel Prices for Americans and, indeed, the World, will be COMING DOWN, IN RECORD NUMBERS, AND FAST,” he wrote on social media Friday. “Lower prices for Americans, especially our Great Farmers, Ranchers, and Truckers, is my Greatest Priority. This is a very big and important announcement.”

The agreement is in effect until April 7, 2027.

The nationwide average price for a gallon of diesel last week was $6.20, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. That marks a $2.49 increase, or 67%, from a year ago. 

The price of fuel, including diesel, and other consumer goods is among the top campaign issues for the Nov. 3 midterm elections. 

Diesel prices are particularly important in farm states like Iowa, Kansas and Texas. Democrats in U.S. Senate races in those generally red states are polling unusually well this year.

Spokespeople for the White House and Treasury Department did not respond to messages seeking comment Monday.

The Brewers won the series 3-1 against the Padres and will now take on the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS, which starts this weekend.

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The Protect College Sports Act would reshape how college sports are governed under the NCAA in the NIL era.

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WASHINGTON — Republicans on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee used a hearing Wednesday to continue voicing opposition to transgender athletes competing in women’s sports, which the top Democrat on the panel called a distraction from cost-of-living issues voters are more concerned about.

Republicans, vying to defend their majority in the House and Senate in the midterm elections less than six weeks away, have pursued a broad anti-trans agenda alongside President Donald Trump’s administration. Republicans on  Wednesday framed the issue as protecting women’s sports. 

“Biological women should not be asked to accommodate men who, for reasons of identity or otherwise, choose to compete in (the) women’s category instead of (the) men’s or co-ed category,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley, chair of the Judiciary panel. 

“Women were last to get the vote, to participate in professions, to serve on juries, get credit cards in their own names and so much more,” the Iowa Republican said. “Women should not again be asked to cede their opportunities just to make men comfortable.” 

The GOP-led panel brought in advocates, who spoke out against transgender athletes’ participation in sports that align with their gender identity. 

Dems absent

Democrats on the panel largely sat the hearing out, drawing the ire of GOP members.

In the only statement by a Democrat during the hearing, the panel’s ranking member, Sen. Dick Durbin, used his opening remarks to question his GOP counterparts’ priorities amid Americans’ affordability concerns. 

“If you ask the American people, ‘What are the priority issues you hope Congress will address as soon as possible?’ the issue of this hearing would not be in the top 10, maybe not the top 20,” the Illinois Democrat said. 

“People are concerned about the cost of living, they’re concerned about the ability to pay for the college education of their kids, they’re concerned about their utility bills, they’re concerned about their grocery bills — they want to know what we’re doing about it,” he added. 

Republicans on the panel noted Democrats’ absence.

“Not one member on the other side of the aisle has had the respect for women to come in here and ask questions, to figure out how we get this right, how we stand up for fairness, for safety, for an opportunity for young women across the country,” GOP Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama said at the hearing. “It’s absolutely absurd.”

But Durbin pointed to a similar 2024 hearing that saw NCAA President Charlie Baker tell senators that of the more than half-million total athletes in NCAA schools, he knew of fewer than 10 who were transgender. 

“We can all agree that we want to be fair and safe in women’s athletics, but this vendetta against a small number of people in the trans community affects everyone, including cisgender girls who can be subject to inappropriate gender verification checks,” Durbin said. 

At a press conference after the hearing, GOP Sens. Ashley Moody of Florida, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Darline Graham of South Carolina and Britt, along with several athletes and advocates, continued to blast the inclusion of trans athletes on women’s sports teams. 

“It shouldn’t be complicated,” Moody said. “Men do not belong in women’s sports. Women’s sports exist for a reason, and if we’re going to have women’s sports, we must protect women’s sports.”

Hot topic

The issue has been the subject of intense debate in recent years.

The House passed a bill in January 2025 that would bar trans students’ participation in women’s school sports teams consistent with their gender identity. 

But Senate Democrats blocked an effort in March of that year aimed at imposing such a ban and codifying Trump’s 2025 executive order on the issue. 

The U.S. Supreme Court in June upheld state laws banning transgender athletes from participating on women’s and girls’ sports teams.

The court’s decision — which has no impact on states without such bans — marked a major setback for transgender rights across the nation. 

Meanwhile, a major bipartisan bill to regulate college athletes’ compensation and establish additional protections for women’s and Olympic sports continues to advance in the Senate.

Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Republicans have made clear that the bill would not preempt state laws regarding the participation of trans athletes in women’s sports.

Few things can bind a community as strongly as Packers football can in Green Bay. A new book, “The Green and Gold Standard,” charts how this small-market franchise owned by its fans for over a century became a football dynasty and a civic institution.

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WASHINGTON — Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on American goods kicked in Tuesday, escalating a trade war with one of the largest U.S. trading partners that President Donald Trump continued to antagonize over the holiday weekend.

Trump posted an AI-generated cartoon image of himself Sunday evening in which he is depicted as a hockey player striking Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who is shown down on the ice, with a hockey stick. 

“Get up, governor,” a speech bubble from Trump’s mouth reads, apparently referring to Canada as a U.S. state rather than a sovereign country. 

Nearly $28 billion in U.S. exports crossing the border to Canada now carry up to 50% tariffs, a dollar-for-dollar match on Trump’s taxes on Canadian goods imposed last month, according to Canadian officials. 

Among the 629 categories of products Canada has targeted are key outputs from U.S. states with hotly contested races in the fast-approaching November midterm elections, including Maine’s paper and lumber industry, Michigan’s vehicle manufacturing and Wisconsin dairy production.

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican who’s in the midst of a tough reelection campaign, warned in late August roughly $170 million of her state’s goods will be impacted by the Canadian tariffs, with more than half of that coming from the forest product sector. Canada revised its tariff proposal Aug. 27 to exclude seafood, including Maine’s significant lobster industry. 

5% of goods in question

The United States and Canada’s dueling tariffs represent roughly 5% of the two countries’ massive and intertwined trading partnership, which totaled $879.9 billion in goods in 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

But the escalation has been accompanied by Trump’s near constant trolling of the U.S. northern neighbor, including threats since his days on the 2024 campaign trail to annex Canada as the 51st state. 

Over the Labor Day weekend, the president declared on his Truth Social platform “NO MORE SELLING BOMBARDIER IN THE UNITED STATES!”

“If they want our Market, they must build here, and stop treating America like a ‘piggybank.’ BUY AMERICAN. FLY ON AMERICAN AIRLINERS. ENJOY AMERICAN LIQUOR AND BEVERAGES. SAIL ON LAKE AMERICA. AMERICA FIRST!” Trump wrote, referencing his executive order Aug. 27 renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America.

The Canadian aircraft maker Bombardier has multiple manufacturing partners and facilities in the United States, including in Arizona, Florida, Indiana, Kansas and New Jersey, according to the company.

“Bombardier aircraft create tens of thousands of U.S. jobs through the company’s growing American footprint as well as within its supply chain made up of approximately 2,800 American companies across 47 states,” according to a Bombadier statement issued Monday. 

“The company spends over $2.5 Billion with suppliers each year. This deeply integrated network and incredible growth stem from the company’s heritage in the business jet industry, dating back to the innovations of Learjet in Wichita, Kansas, and the first business jets to enter service,” the statement continued.

U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran said in a post on X Monday evening that he contacted Trump “to make certain the President is aware of the significant contributions of Bombardier to Kansas and the importance of its presence in Wichita to many Kansas workers at Bombardier and in the Bombardier supply chain.”

The company supports roughly 1,000 jobs in the state, according to the Kansas Republican.

Executive orders

Trade talks between the U.S. and Canada collapsed Aug. 21. In days prior Trump had said he would delay new tariffs on Canadian goods while negotiations continued. 

Trump signed three executive orders for new tariffs on Canada in late July using a Depression-era law that has never been enforced. 

Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 authorizes the president to impose duties up to 50% of a product’s value in response to discrimination against U.S. commerce. 

The study results showing degenerative brain disease in roughly 25 percent of the former NFL athletes tested may not translate to lower levels of play like high school and college football.

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Green Bay Packers star running back Josh Jacobs is facing misdemeanor criminal charges related to a domestic violence arrest in May.

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The news of Alma Center-Humbird-Merrillan School District senior Adam Massman's passing has rocked Wisconsin's high school football community. In a district-wide email on Saturday, Superintendent Drew Semingson said Adam was "injured during Thursday night's football game."

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A truck delivering some of the boats had an accident on US Route 2 in Iron River this week, damaging some of the watercraft. No serious injuries were reported.

The post Highway crash of dragon boat truck won’t sink storied Lake Superior festival appeared first on WPR.

Andrew DeVito from Kenosha is a national champion with his sights set on a professional fighting career.

The post 17-year-old Wisconsin MMA fighter will represent Team USA at global championship appeared first on WPR.

Thousands of endurance athletes are in Milwaukee this weekend for the 2026 USA Triathlon Nationals event.

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The 21-year-old athlete has been twirling a baton since he could walk. He will be representing Team USA at the global baton twirling championships in Paris next week but says shame almost stopped him from competing

The post The only male joining Team USA at world baton twirling championships is from Superior appeared first on WPR.

Collin Powers of Janesville is part of the No. 3 ranked doubles team in the American Cornhole League.

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The Milwaukee Hurling Club was founded in 1996 and has around 240 members. Two of the original members told WPR about the sport and why this club has grown to be one of the largest outside of Ireland.

The post ‘The fastest game on grass’: How the ancient Irish sport of hurling is thriving in Milwaukee appeared first on WPR.