Berlin’s LA28 berth, Budapest’s new final and US Open finals week: Team USA watch, Sept. 7–13 (2026)

This issue covers Sept. 7–13, 2026. Berlin reaches the decisive phase of the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup, Budapest hosts the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship, and New York moves through the US Open quarterfinals and finals. The key distinction is practical: Berlin is the only event here with a direct LA28 qualification consequence, while Budapest measures senior athletics against the world’s best and New York measures ranking points and form. 1 2 3 4

What changed since last week

Team USA opened the basketball tournament with a 94–61 win over China. The official FIBA table available at publication lists the Americans at 1–0 in Group D, while the Sept. 6 Italy–USA page had not yet posted a final score. The next confirmed U.S. group listing is the Sept. 7 game against Czechia. 5 6

The biggest change in the athletics watch is Noah Lyles’ withdrawal. The Paris 2024 100m champion ended his 2026 season because of a nagging injury and will not race in Budapest, although he still plans to attend the event. 7

In New York, the Sept. 6 order of play still placed Tommy Paul, Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe, Emma Navarro and Jessica Pegula in fourth-round matches. Their presence in the quarterfinals and beyond depends on those results, so the final-week U.S. field remains live rather than fixed. 8

This week’s watch list

Event and governing body	Dates and place	Tier	Team USA watch	What is at stake	U.S. time and viewing information
FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup — FIBA / USA Basketball 1	Sept. 4–13, Berlin, Germany. The U.S. group phase closes Sept. 7; quarterfinals are Sept. 10, semifinals Sept. 12, and the final and third-place game Sept. 13. 2	Senior world championship	Caitlin Clark leads the U.S. roster’s playmaking group, with Paige Bueckers and Angel Reese among the American World Cup debutantes highlighted by FIBA. The official roster announcement also names the 12-player team. 2 9	The World Cup champion earns a direct place in the women’s basketball tournament at LA28. The U.S. already has a place as the Olympic host, so Berlin is a world-title and team-performance checkpoint for Team USA rather than a U.S. quota race. Group winners go straight to the quarterfinals; second- and third-place teams enter the qualification round. 1	USA–Czechia, Sept. 7 at 12:45 p.m. ET / 9:45 a.m. PT (18:45 in Berlin). FIBA’s event page points readers to Courtside 1891 on DAZN for live or on-demand coverage, but the accessible official pages do not identify a U.S.-specific outlet for every game. 2
World Athletics Ultimate Championship — World Athletics 3	Sept. 11–13, National Athletics Centre, Budapest, Hungary. 10	New senior global championship	The official field page lists Grant Holloway, Masai Russell, Rai Benjamin, Cole Hocker, Gabrielle Thomas, Quincy Hall, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, Katie Moon and Cordell Tinch among the U.S. stars. Lyles is no longer a racing entry after his Sept. 4 withdrawal. 3 7	World Athletics describes the event as a meeting of Olympic champions, world champions, Diamond League winners and top-ranked athletes to determine an “Ultimate Champion.” The cited official material does not attach a direct LA28 quota or U.S. Olympic selection decision to the meet. New rules include a live 200m lane draft and four-round progression in most field events. 10	The official pages confirm the three-day dates but do not publish a complete U.S.-time timetable or a U.S. broadcast outlet in readable text. Check World Athletics’ live/results channels for the session schedule. 3
US Open — USTA / WTA / ATP 4 8	Aug. 30–Sept. 13, USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, New York. Singles quarterfinals are Sept. 8–9, semifinals Sept. 10, and the women’s singles final Sept. 12; the tournament concludes Sept. 13. 4 8	The current U.S. watch begins with Paul, Shelton, Tiafoe, Navarro and Pegula in Sunday’s official order. The WTA guide also lists Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova, Madison Keys and Ann Li among the American names in the singles field. 4 8	This is a Grand Slam ranking and form checkpoint, not a direct LA28 selection event in the cited material. The singles champion earns 2,000 ranking points; the round of 16 is worth 240, the quarterfinals 430, the semifinals 780 and the finalist 1,300. 4	The official pages confirm round dates. The ATP page gives Sunday’s order of play, but a complete U.S. broadcast schedule and exact later-round match times are not published in the cited readable pages. 8

The LA28 read

Berlin is the direct qualification story, but not a U.S. quota story. The World Cup champion earns a direct LA28 place, while the United States already holds the host place. For Team USA, the useful questions are whether the new-look roster can defend the world title and how Clark, Bueckers, Reese and the veterans perform under a senior championship load. 1 9

Budapest is a prestige and form checkpoint. World Athletics has built the Ultimate around a field of Olympic and world champions, but the available rules and event pages do not make it an LA28 selection trial. Lyles’ withdrawal also changes the U.S. story: the focus shifts from the reigning Olympic 100m champion to the Americans still listed across sprints, hurdles, jumps and middle distance. 3 7

New York is about ranking movement and current form. A deep run carries a large points difference, but the effect is individual and ranking-based rather than a direct Olympic selection decision. Because Sunday’s matches were not complete at publication, treat every U.S. name beyond the fourth round as conditional until the live draw updates. 4 8

Calendar order

Sept. 7: The FIBA group phase closes. USA plays Czechia at 12:45 p.m. ET / 9:45 a.m. PT. The US Open fourth round also continues in New York. 2 4
Sept. 8–9: FIBA’s second- and third-place teams enter the qualification-to-quarterfinals round. The US Open singles quarterfinals take place. 2 4
Sept. 10: FIBA quarterfinals are scheduled in Berlin. New York stages the US Open singles semifinals on the published schedule. 2 4
Sept. 11: The World Athletics Ultimate Championship begins in Budapest. The US Open women’s doubles final is scheduled for noon local time in New York. 3 4
Sept. 12: World Athletics continues in Budapest. The US Open women’s singles final is scheduled for 4 p.m. local time in New York. 3 4
Sept. 13: World Athletics stages its final day in Budapest. Berlin hosts the FIBA World Cup final and third-place game. The US Open schedule lists the tournament’s conclusion on this date. 2 3 4