Sports quiz of the week: World Cup, Knicks, T20, Giro and Serena Williams

Ben Stokes, Serena Williams and Jordan Pickford. Composite: Tom Jenkins/Guardian and Getty Images

1. The South Africa manager, Hugo Broos, played in the opening game of the 1986 World Cup in the Estadio Azteca and has now managed in the opening game of the 2026 World Cup at the Estadio Azteca. Which country did he play for in 1986?

   1. South Africa

   2. Mexico

   3. Belgium

   4. Netherlands

2. 

   Three teams qualified for the World Cup without conceding a goal. England …

   1. … New Zealand and Japan

   2. … Tunisia and Côte d’Ivoire

   3. … Australia and Saudi Arabia

   4. … Spain and Norway

3. Who managed a team at USA 94 and is also managing a team at the tournament this year?

   1. Carlos Queiroz

   2. Dick Advocaat

   3. Carlo Ancelotti

   4. Marcelo Bielsa

4. 

   The Women’s T20 World Cup begins this weekend. Which team are competing in the tournament for the first time?

   1. Ireland

   2. Scotland

   3. Wales

   4. Netherlands

5. Ben Stokes has been dropped from the England team after he broke the team’s curfew and went out to a nightclub. Who will take over as captain for the next Test against New Zealand?

   1. Gus Atkinson

   2. Harry Brook

   3. Joe Root

   4. Sonny Baker

6. 

   Serena Williams made her comeback to tennis this week, playing on a court named after …

   1. ... Venus Williams

   2. ... Andy Murray

   3. ... Cliff Richard

   4. ... Sue Barker

7. Mirra Andreeva and Alexander Zverev won the singles titles at the French Open. What do they have in common?

   1. They were born in the same city

   2. They had never won grand slams titles before

   3. They were the losing finalists last year

   4. They are reigning Olympic champions

8. 

   Kimi Antonelli has won five of the six races in Formula One so far this season, including the Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday. Who won the other one?

   1. Lewis Hamilton

   2. Oscar Piastri

   3. George Russell

   4. Max Verstappen

9. The 24 Hours of Le Mans race takes place this weekend in France. How long is the circuit?

   1. 800 metres

   2. 8.5 miles

   3. 80 miles

   4. 800 miles

10. 

    Demi Vollering has become the second woman to win the three grand tours: the Tour de France, Vuelta de España and Giro d’Italia. Who was the first?

    1. Annemiek van Vleuten

    2. Marianne Vos

    3. Jeannie Longo

    4. Beryl Burton

11. The pope was in Barcelona this week. How did he cause controversy?

    1. He said he hoped Spain would go out in the group stage at the World Cup

    2. He admitted he supports Real Madrid

    3. He said that God has “no interest in who wins football matches”

    4. He advised Catholics not to watch the World Cup

12. 

    What was unusual about the Brazil v United States women’s football match played this week?

    1. There were eight red cards

    2. The game was delayed for eight hours due to repeated lightning strikes

    3. Neymar played for Brazil in a bid to get fit for the World Cup

    4. It finished 2-2 and all four goals were own goals

13. Ja’Kobe Tharp is a 20-year-old student at Auburn University. What did he do this week?

    1. He scored the winning points for the Knicks against the Spurs in the NBA Finals

    2. He broke the world record in the 110m hurdles

    3. He became the youngest manager in MLS

    4. He became the first American to win a PDC darts tournament

14. 

    The New York Knicks are one win away from securing the NBA championship. Who was the president the last time they won it?

    1. John F Kennedy

    2. Richard Nixon

    3. Ronald Reagan

    4. Bill Clinton

15. Which British rugby league team lost 134-0 to London Broncos this week – the biggest defeat in the history of the top two divisions?

    1. North Wales Crusaders

    2. Huddersfield Giants

    3. Toulouse Olympique

    4. Halifax Panthers

Solutions

1:C - We’re not sure what he was doing when the Azteca hosted the opening game in 1970., 2:B - The real test begins now. , 3:B - His Netherlands team reached the quarter-finals, where they were narrowly defeated 3-2 by eventual champions Brazil in an entertaining game. Curaçao would take that this year., 4:D - England is hosting the tournament, which has expanded to 12 teams this year., 5:C - Atkinson has also been dropped after he and Stokes visited the Rex Rooms nightclub in Chelsea in the wee hours of the morning., 6:B - Williams, who is 44, was playing on centre court at the Queen’s Club in London, which has been renamed the Andy Murray Arena. , 7:B - Andreeva is Russian and Zverev is German; they aren’t related; and, while Zverev has won an Olympic title, neither of them is a reigning champion. , 8:C - His Mercedes teammate., 9:B - The winning car last year – a Ferrari – completed 387 laps (3,276 miles)., 10:A - Vollering ​and Van Vleuten are both Dutch. , 11:B - He did add a caveat, saying: “The pope is for all teams, but Robert Prevost is for Real Madrid?” But some of the locals in Catalunya were unimpressed., 12:A - “It was an experience I will never forget,” said Emma Hayes, the US coach, whose team won 1-0. The cards were all shown to Brazil players or coaches, 13:B - “It wasn’t on my bingo chart – I’m speechless,” he said after recording a time of 12.75sec. , 14:B - Nixon began his second term in 1973. Little did he know it would end so soon. And little did the Knicks know they would still be waiting for another championship., 15:A - They conceded 25 tries in the match (which was at their home ground). To be fair, the Broncos are top of the Championship with 14 wins from 14.

Scores

1. 1 and above.

   Ah well. Better luck next week.

2. 2 and above.

   Ah well. Better luck next week.

3. 3 and above.

   Ah well. Better luck next week.

4. 4 and above.

   Ah well. Better luck next week.

5. 5 and above.

   Not bad. Not bad at all.

6. 6 and above.

   Not bad. Not bad at all.

7. 7 and above.

   Not bad. Not bad at all.

8. 8 and above.

   That's a super score. Well played.

9. 9 and above.

   That's a super score. Well played.

10. 10 and above.

    That's a super score. Well played.

11. 11 and above.

    That's a sensational score. Well played.

12. 12 and above.

    That's a sensational score. Well played.

13. 13 and above.

    That's a sensational score. Well played.

14. 14 and above.

    That's a sensational score. Well played.

15. 0 and above.

    Ah well. Better luck next week.

16. 15 and above.

    That's a sensational score. Well played.