Sports History On This Day: September 19

September 19, 2022 by Sports History Network

September 19, 1901 – The world of sports briefly stopped, at least here in the United States. 11 baseball were games canceled out of mourning and respect due to the funeral of President William McKinley. The 25th President of the U.S. had been assassinated on September 14.

McKinley was best well known for leading America to victory in the Spanish American War and raising protective tariffs to protect American industries. To his credit, McKinley was a veteran of the Civil War as well. The President had been standing in a receiving line at the Buffalo Pan-American Exposition when a deranged anarchist shot him twice, and he passed days later.

To find more great daily sports history make sure to check out the Sports Jersey Dispatch and Pigskin Dispatch.

William McKinley in 1897 — The photo is courtesy of Wikimedia Commons of William McKinley in 1897. This portrait photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston shows President William McKinley seated at his desk in the Treaty Room. The Treaty Room, also historically called the Cabinet Room, is located in the Second Floor residence of the Executive Mansion. The desk McKinley is seated at was acquired during the Ulysses S. Grant administration and historically resides there in the room's contemporary use as the president's private study. Johnston was one of the earliest female photographers and photojournalists and had her own studio in Washington, D.C. Contributed by Frances Benjamin Johnston of the National Archives. Special thanks to the resources of Newspapers.com and OnThisDay.com for the information obtained.

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An England football flag - Source: Unsplash Three Nations Looking To Break Long-Standing Curses at the 2026 FIFA World Cup The 2026 FIFA World Cup is just around the corner, and the final rounds of qualifiers are now underway to determine which nations will battle it out for the biggest prize the beautiful game has to offer next summer. With 48 teams set to compete, up from the usual 32, a slew of debutants have already purchased their tickets to North America. While reigning champions Argentina and back-to-back beaten European Championship finalists England are already confirmed, at the opposite end of the spectrum, the underdogs are barking. So far, three teams that have never competed at a FIFA World Cup before have already confirmed their participation Stateside next summer. Africa's Cape Verde managed to progress, becoming the smallest nation in history to feature, as they finished ahead of continental heavyweights Cameroon to secure their spot. Over in Asia, both Uzbekistan and Jordan are also confirmed. While plenty more would follow. But while the upstarts are bracing themselves for a maiden foray onto the global stage, some of the bigger names have far loftier ambitions. To reach them, though, they will have to banish old ghosts that have struck them down before. Here are three heavyweight nations that all have jinxes to oust in the summer of 2026. England's 60 Years of Hurt Online betting sites already have their favorites to claim the famous gold trophy next summer, and near the top of most lists, you will find England. The latest Bovada sports betting odds currently list the Three Lions as a 13/2 second favorite to leave MetLife Stadium as champions next July, narrowly behind 4/1 outright frontrunners Spain, the team that beat England in last summer's European Championship final in Berlin. 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