TMZ Sports - Page 50

Paul Mullin isn't just a star on the pitch for Wrexham, he's a TV star, too, thanks to the docuseries, "Welcome to Wrexham" ... which the footballer says he didn't know about until the moment he was literally signing his contract to join the club.

29-year-old Mullin was the first guest on the new Men In Blazers show, "This Week In Wrexham" ... where the star soccer player talked about his decision to sign with the then-fledgling team, and his decision to appear on the hit show.

"People think that the documentary might be a selling point, but I can tell you now that I didn't know about the documentary until I was signing the contract, sat at the table, and there were cameras in the room.  And I was like, 'Who's this?' And they told me then, 'We're filming a documentary,'" the former Cambridge United star explained.

"It had nothing to do with my decision whatsoever. I didn't even know it was happening. I just signed the form as I was signing my contract to give them obviously the opportunity to record me. At that time obviously, you don't know how big it's gonna be. It's just something we've gotten used to. There are cameras everywhere, but you don't notice them because they're blending in, but also 'cause we're used to them, too."

Of course, "Welcome to Wrexham" premiered last summer on FX ... after Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought the Welsh team. The show has been a smash hit ... and was recently renewed for a third season, set to air in 2024.

If not for the docuseries, why did Mullin sign with Wrexham when other higher-profile clubs were available?

Paul explained his decision.

"It wasn't even [soccer] to begin with, it was my son. Obviously, it's well documented now but he's autistic, and I've been away in Cambridge for the majority of the season, obviously coming home whenever I could, and I just wanted to be at home with him every night, and Wrexham was the perfect opportunity to do that, and ultimately, it was perfect for me, as well in the [soccer] sense because it was a club with real ambition, a club going somewhere," Paul told Roger Bennett.

Wrexham has done incredibly well since Reynolds and Mullin's arrival ... they not only won the National League championship with a 3-1 win over Boreham Wood in April, but they were also elevated to League 2.

AJ McLean's pit stop on the Vegas Strip -- during the Formula 1 Grand Prix festivities --  had A-listers doing laps around the glitzy event, and got AJ onstage with The Chainsmokers.

The Backstreet Boys star put the pedal to the medal inside XS Nightclub at the Wynn Las Vegas Thursday night, as the trio performed a special rendition of his band's mega-hit "Everybody" -- but not before F1 superstar Lewis Hamilton and Will.i.am kicked things off at the exclusive invite-only opening ceremony the night before.

On Friday, TikToker Alix Earle jumped into the DJ booth with Swedish House Madia at XS ... while Leo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Michael B. Jordan, French Montana, and Saweetie partied in VIP.

The whole weekend was packed with celebs in town for the main event ... Saturday night's race, where RiRi and her man A$AP Rocky immersed themselves in the action. No doubt, it was a nice break from reality for the rapper, ahead of his courtroom appearance Monday in his shooting case.

Jake Paul's leaving a ton of money on the table in his upcoming boxing match ... telling TMZ Sports he's more focused on being a world champion than selling Pay-per-views.

The 26-year-old Problem Child is facing off against 35-year-old pro boxer Andre August in Orlando next month ... which is a stark contrast from his usual big-name opponents like Tommy Fury, Nate Diaz and Anderson Silva.

Paul says that's by design ... as he needs to take on real-deal boxers to both silence his haters and move toward his goal of being the best fighter on the planet -- even if it doesn't line his pockets like his other high-profile bouts.

"This is probably just a break-even fight for me," Jake told Michael Babcock on the TMZ Sports TV show on FS1. "I probably won't even make money on it. Who knows what the outcome is. It's $200,000 for a private jet to fly around just to get me there and back."

But, that's not fazing Jake -- he makes it clear his only concern is polishing his skills and taking on a bigger challenge against a guy with more wins and knockouts under his belt.

"He's a beast, he's a dog and he's coming to win," Jake said of his opponent. "This is his make-or-break moment as a boxer himself. It's gonna be a really good fight."

Jake made a great point -- the entire world has watched all of his fights from the very beginning ... which is unprecedented for someone in the sport. Usually, dudes take on smaller bouts to gain more experience before getting big.

Jake explained he's not going to leave the massive PPV opportunities for good -- which might be good news for former boxing champion Andre Ward, who previously told us he was interested in taking on one of the Paul brothers in the future.

Nick Hogan was working a bikini contest at his father Hulk Hogan's restaurant hours before being arrested for DUI in Florida.

TMZ obtained video from Friday's event at Hogan's Hangout in Clearwater ... and you see Nick working from the DJ booth, playing music and introducing some of the winners.

Hulk was one of the judges, and he was also hosting the bikini contest, which featured $5,000 in cash prizes to three winners ... with Nick serving as MC/DJ.

When the contest started, Hulk announced they were giving out free shots ... which is interesting because ... as we first told you, later that night Nick got busted on suspicion of driving under the influence.

Nick's yet to address his DUI bust ... which comes 16 years after a scary car wreck in Clearwater that left a passenger with severe brain damage ... but now we know what he was doing earlier in the night.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's parents are putting their plans to meet for the first time on the back burner, due to a change in the popstar's schedule.

As we expected, Taylor will not be able to attend the Chiefs vs. Eagles game Monday night, which is where the families were going to meet. Instead, she'll be performing the Rio de Janeiro concert that was originally scheduled for Saturday night ... the one she postponed for the "safety and well-being" of fans amid soaring temperatures.

The schedule shift means Taylor can't play "Meet the Fockers" in Kansas City, and sources familiar with the situation tell us it just didn't make sense for the parents to meet with Taylor absent and Travis busy on the field.

Remember, we were told last week the plan was for Andrea and Scott Swift and Donna and Ed Kelce to be under one roof at the same time. The plans weren't set in stone, perhaps because everyone realized Taylor's schedule could change.

It would have been a fitting family get-together with Travis's Chiefs, and his bro Jason Kelce's Eagles meeting in a Super Bowl rematch -- and, of course, the Eagles used to be Taylor's fave team and her dad's too. Both of their loyalty seems to be swaying now that she's dating Travis.

Kareem Jackson has been suspended yet again ... this time, the NFL levied a four-game ban on the Denver Broncos safety after it says he illegally hit Joshua Dobbs during a violent play on Sunday night.

The tackle happened just seconds into Denver's tilt with the Minnesota Vikings, when Jackson launched himself into Dobbs' face while trying to bring down the QB.

Replays of the hit show Jackson tagged Dobbs in the chin area with the crown of his helmet -- a big no-no, according to the NFL exec Jon Runyan, who announced the suspension Monday afternoon.

"You had an unobstructed path to your opponent and the illegal contact could have been avoided," Runyan told Jackson when making the announcement.

"Illegal acts that are flagrant and jeopardize the safety of players will not be tolerated."

This is the second time Jackson has been slapped with a suspension for his play on the field ... back on Oct. 23, he was also banned four games for illegally hitting Packers tight end Luke Musgrave in the head and neck area.

Jackson, however, appealed the ruling ... and had the ban reduced to two games.

Donna Kelce is proving yet again she's just as big a celeb as her two NFL star sons ... receiving a police escort in Kansas City on Monday that included FOUR armed officers.

Jason and Travis' mom got the secret-service-like protection just hours before her two boys will square off at Arrowhead Stadium ... as she was doing some promo work at a nearby Raising Cane's restaurant.

Mama Kelce -- rockin' a half green, half red shirt to represent both her sons' teams -- was working the register and the drive-thru at the eatery ... before cops made sure she got out of the joint unscathed.

Donna, however, didn't appear nervous about the attention at all ... in fact, she was seen smiling and waving to a mob of fans -- all while flanked by policemen.

Of course, Donna has got to be used to all the love at this point ... 'cause after bursting onto the scene during last year's Super Bowl -- she's become an even bigger star following her elbow-rubbing sessions with Taylor Swift at Travis' Chiefs games this year.

Retired Los Angeles Lakers star Michael Cooper's brother, Mickey Cooper, was tragically shot and killed this weekend at a local L.A. park.

Police in Pasadena responded to the area on Washington Boulevard around 4 AM early Saturday morning, where they found 64-year-old Mickey unresponsive with gunshot wounds.

Law enforcement has not commented on motive ... as they continue to investigate the shooting. No arrests have been made.

Adding to the tragic nature of the incident, Michael says he and Mickey grew up hooping on the court where he was ultimately killed.

67-year-old Cooper was a mainstay for the Showtime Lakers in the 1980s, winning 5 championships alongside teammates like Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

In addition to the handful of championship rings, Michael was one of the most accomplished defensive players in the NBA, making 8 All-NBA Defensive teams, and winning the league's Defensive Player of the Year award in '87.

Zach Wilson is FINALLY headed to the bench and Tim Boyle is the NY Jets starting quarterback, according to several NFL insiders ... a move most Gang Green fans have demanded for weeks!

Sunday's game against the Bills was evidently the last straw for head coach Robert Saleh ... as the offense was putrid in the 32-6 loss to the division rivals Buffalo Bills.

24-year-old Wilson didn't even finish the game ... he was pulled late in the third quarter, as New York trailed big. The former #2 overall pick in the '21 draft finished with an under 47% completion percentage, throwing for just 81 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception.

29-year-old Boyle, this week's starter, was inserted into the game ... though he wasn't much better, going 7-for-14 for 33 yards, on a bunch of dink and dunk pass attempts.

The Jets have not yet officially announced the change to the signal-caller... but listening to Wilson speak after the loss, the move is no surprise.

"When things aren't getting done, change has to be made, and I understand that," Zach told reporters after the game.

To make things even more difficult for the Jets, they've got a short week ... they're playing the offensive powerhouse Miami Dolphins in Jersey on Friday, meaning Boyle won't even get a full week to prepare.

The Dolphins are averaging 30.5 points per game, best in the NFL, while the Jets are third from worst with 15 points a game. Bottom line, the Jets are going to have to score ... and they're going into the game with a guy who only has 3 starts (0-3) under his belt.

Of course, the hope was the Jets would be in playoff contention, and Aaron Rodgers could come back sometime in mid/late December, and lead the team in time for a deep playoff run.

Now, the playoffs look incredibly unlikely at 4-6 ... with six teams currently ahead of the Jets. They've also got a ton of other issues including the offensive line and the coach calling the plays.

It might be Monday morning, raining and nearly freezing in Kansas City ... but Chiefs fans are still pouring out in droves to support their team before their huge matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles.

According to reporters at Arrowhead Stadium, Patrick Mahomes fanatics showed up to the site of arguably the biggest game of the NFL's regular season some 12 hours before it began ... this despite it being a workday with some pretty crappy weather.

You can see in images taken by KCTV5's Nathan Brennan, a line of cars filled with Chiefs fans stretched all the way into the street outside the stadium -- even though it's about 40 degrees out.

Plenty more are expected to be on their way soon, too.

Of course, it's hard to blame them for the excitement ... after all, the "Monday Night Football" matchup features two of the best teams in the league -- and it's also a rematch of Super Bowl LVII.

The Chiefs are currently 2.5-point favorites ... though many believe the Eagles -- who are 8-1 this season -- are the better squad.

Travis Kelce's love for Taylor Swift is much deeper than her looks and musical talent ... the NFL superstar says he's fascinated by her brain and learning new things from her every day.

The Kansas City Chiefs tight end opened up on his relationship with the pop icon in an interview with the Wall Street Journal this week ... where he detailed how he's personally growing from their one-on-one time together.

"I've never been a man of words," Kelce said. "Being around her, seeing how smart Taylor is, has been f***ing mind-blowing. I'm learning every day."

Kelce also praised Swift's ability to turn her own experiences into words ... specifically pointing out his love for a line in her hit song, "Blank Space" -- when she sings, "I could make a bad guy good for the weekend."

Kelce -- who referred to Swift as "hilarious" and a "genius" -- added the two are on the same page with their views ... especially when it comes to family.

"Everybody knows I'm a family guy. Her team is her family. Her family does a lot of stuff in terms of the tour, the marketing, being around, so I think she has a lot of those values as well, which is right up my alley."

As for how they first linked up, the two-time Super Bowl champion said someone in Taylor's circle played Cupid after he publicly shot his shot on his podcast ... and eventually, Taylor reached out directly.

Another interesting point -- Travis claims his mother, Donna, is upset with herself to this day about how she downplayed meeting Taylor for the first time during her appearance on the "Today" show ... when she famously said it was just "okay."

Kelce says his mom was just trying to play it cool ... but he reassured her she handled the question perfectly.

AEW's Full Gear went down at The Forum in L.A. on Saturday, but the match was better suited for the Staples Center ... after "Hangman" Adam Page busted out a Swingline and drove a staple into Swerve Strickland's face, before drinking his blood!

It was as nasty as it sounds ... and the thousands in the building loved it!

If you're a wrestling fan, you know the history ... Page and Strickland HATE each other, and the Texas Deathmatch format (and lack of rules) was the perfect setting for the match.

Ultimately, Swerve pinned Hangman, defeating him ... after some help from Prince Nana and Brian Cage. But, it's what happened before the pin that has fans talking.

Hangman, holding a heavy-duty staple gun, stapled a drawing done by his son to Swerve's face, instantly drawing blood. Page then grabbed the drawing and ripped it, staple and all, out of Strickland's face.

As Swerve writhed in pain, Adam dove to the ground, grabbed Strickland's head, and actually began drinking his blood.

The entire match was brutal ... and Hangman wasn't alone in resorting to the use of weapons. In fact, Swerve used a barbed-wire-wrapped chair to hit Page. Hangman also slammed Strickland through a barbed wire-wrapped table.

The men did everything short of killing each other in the squared circle.

An L.A. Lakers fan not only lost out on $55,000 during a shooting contest at Sunday's game ... he also might have seriously injured his leg in the process.

The wild scene happened during a break in the action at Crytpo.com Arena ... when Lakers officials set up a game where a fan named Anthony could've scored a ton of cash if he hit a half-court shot.

Anthony initially seemed super confident he'd get the job done ... telling an in-arena host, "This is what I do."

A short time later, however, everyone in the building quickly learned this is not what Anthony does.

Check out footage from the contest ... as Anthony released the ball, he somehow hurt his left leg -- and he was hurting so much, he ultimately crumpled to the floor.

While the in-arena host attempted to get him to come back to make another attempt at earning money ... Anthony was in simply too much pain to continue.

"Let's put our hands together for the attempt," the host said as officials walked Anthony off the court.

Browns cornerback Mike Ford ditched the Dude Wipes for something much different after Cleveland's big win over Pittsburgh on Sunday ... taking a Steelers fan's Terrible Towel and rubbing it all over his rump!!

Vibes were high as the Orange and Brown improved to 7-3 on the season after holding off their division rival in the 13-10 victory ... and to add insult to injury, Ford decided to have a one-on-one interaction with a Steelers backer who was standing in the front of the stands.

In a clip of the exchange, Ford ran right up to the guy in a Hines Ward jersey and threw the Terrible Towel on the ground ... before handing him a Browns rag.

But what had Steelers fans most irked is when he took the yellow cloth and pretended to wipe his ass with it as he ran toward the locker room.

The taunting might worry Browns fans ... as some believe in the Curse of the Terrible Towel, which leads to a bunch of losing for anyone who disrespects the team's signature cloth.

It was an emotional day for the Dawg Pound for several reasons ... but the most touching moment came when Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski gave a game ball to longtime Cleveland play-by-play announcer Jim Donovan, who returned to the booth for the first time since receiving leukemia treatment earlier this season.

Bronny James got to warm up with his USC teammates for the first time this season before their game on Sunday night ... and LeBron James said afterward his son is "almost" ready for a full return to the court.

The younger James got in some jump shots and dribbling work as fans filled the Galen Center just prior to the Trojans' tilt with Brown ... his first legitimate pregame action with his team since he suffered cardiac arrest during a workout in July.

The 19-year-old looked great ... showing no signs of issues -- this despite needing surgery to fix a congenital heart defect just a few months ago.

Following the USC game, Bronny headed over to Crypto.com Arena to watch LeBron play against the Rockets ... and after Dad took care of business vs. Houston -- he gushed about all the progress Bronny has made since his medical emergency.

"Today's game was the first game he got an opportunity to warm up with his team," LeBron said with a smile. "He's almost there."

LeBron added that seeing Bronny courtside gave him a little extra juice in the Lakers' 105-104 win over the Rockets.

Trojans head coach Andy Enfield, meanwhile, said Sunday night it was "great" seeing Bronny warm up ... though there's still no set timetable for a return to action.

Kim Zolciak has been sued yet again for not paying her bills ... this time by Bank of America, which claims she's delinquent on more than $50,000.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Kim had a $50,000 line of credit over at B of A, and then racked up a bill that reached the limit. B of A claims it sent periodic notices, demanding payment, but got zippo.

With interest and penalties, the balance is now $56,224.07 and growing. So B of A is now the latest in a long line of creditors who have resorted to the legal system to get Kim and Kroy to fork over cash.

BMW just won a case against Kroy over non-payment of a Rolls-Royce. A judge ordered this month that he return the $400,100 SUV to the car company.

Kim and Kroy have also been ordered to pay Simmons Bank approximately $230,000 for defaulting on a home equity line of credit.

Kim was sued back in August by SAKS/CAPITAL ONE for $156,080 ... again, failing to pay her credit card bill.

And Kim was also sued by Target for $2,400 for failing to make good on her credit card bill.

Kroy was sued by Sky Warrior over a gambling debt -- $52,500 -- over a bad run at a casino in the Bahamas.

They've also teetered on the edge of foreclosure.