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If you hadn't heard yet, New York is the place to be this summer.
It's not just the tourist appeal, the architecture or even the lights Alicia Keys sang about in "Empire State of Mind." This summer, sports are moving New York to center stage, with historic championships, the world's biggest sporting event and some of pop culture's biggest names converging on the city.
Some might say it all began when the New York Knicks clinched a spot in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999, then capped the run by winning their first title in 53 years.
Since then, the New York Liberty claimed a second Commissioner's Cup title in Brooklyn, and the wedding�of Taylor Swift and�Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce at Madison Square Garden brought another wave of star power to the city.
And that was only the beginning.
Jay-Z returned home for a three-night concert at Yankee Stadium the weekend before Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers arrive for a marquee showdown against�and the New York Yankees.
This week? The Sports Humanitarian Awards and ESPYS will bring the biggest names in athletics to the Big Apple before Fanatics Fest welcomes stars such as LeBron James and Tom Brady. It all builds toward the FIFA World Cup final Sunday, capping one of the busiest stretches on the city's sports calendar in recent memory.
Here are the highlights from New York City's stretch as the summer sports mecca.
The 2026 Sports Humanitarian Award for Team of the Year went to the�Baltimore Ravens.
"Our community work is core to who we are as the Ravens ... our athletes who leave it all on the field on Sunday, join us every Monday in our community work," said Ravens' team president Sashi Brown. "In Baltimore, we pride ourselves in putting our money where our mouth is ... count us in for $100,000 [to ESPN's pediatric cancer research goal]."�
Shortly before the winners for the Corporate Community impact award were announced, Burke Magnus, ESPN president of content, and Kevin Martinez, ESPN vice president of corporate citizenship, announced ESPN's goal of raising $10 million to support pediatric cancer research before Super Bowl LXI.
Magnus noted that $2 million has already been raised for the cause. The charitable theme continued as Jersey Mike's took home the aforementioned award, in part attributed to the company's notable fundraising efforts for the Special Olympics.
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Lonnie Ali, the wife of the late Muhammad Ali, presented�Stephen Curry�with the Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian award. Curry and his wife, Ayesha, were honored for their efforts in supporting their "Eat Learn Play" foundation. Adam Thielen and Damar Hamlin�rounded out the category's nominees.
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New York Giants legend Justin Tuck introduced�New York Giants�and Gotham FC co-owner Laurie Tisch as the 2026 winner of the Philanthropist of the Year award for her $10 million, multiyear "Play to Thrive" initiative. "Play to Thrive" promotes youth development and mental health, creating a safe place to play and a chance to feel joy in movement regardless of where children live or their financial situation.
"Growing up, giving to what we believed in was just called doing the right thing -- we never called it philanthropy," Tisch said.�
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Taelor and Sydni Scott, daughters of the late SportsCenter host Stuart Scott, introduced former�Philadelphia Eagles�star Jason Kelce and his wife, Kylie, who presented the Stuart Scott ENSPIRE Award to Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie.
Lurie was honored for his commitment to making sports more accessible and inclusive, from creating sensory rooms and other game-day accommodations for fans with sensory needs to establishing the Eagles Autism Foundation and Eagles Autism Institute, initiatives that have contributed more than $100 million to autism research.
"Our life's journey is really about the people who touch us. ... I try to live my life in service and gratitude," Lurie said.
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SportsCenter host and emcee Christine Williamson began the event with a joke about the Sports Humanitarian Awards being the second-biggest event in town over the past few weeks thanks to a wedding at MSG.
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The Currys have entered the building. The�Golden State Warriors star is nominated for the Muhammad Ali award along with Damar Hamlin and Adam Thielen.
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The stage is set for the Sports Humanitarian Awards at Gotham Hall. From Jason and Kylie Kelce to Stephen and Ayesha Curry, the stars are showing out in New York.
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| Gotham Hall before the Sports Humanitarian Awards begin. |
