FOOTBALL

Two Black coaches joined Brian Flores on Thursday in his lawsuit alleging racist hiring practices by the NFL when there are vacancies for coaches and general managers.

The updated lawsuit in Manhattan federal court added coaches Steve Wilks and Ray Horton.

The lawsuit said Wilks was discriminated against by the Arizona Cardinals in 2018 when he was hired as a “bridge coach” but was given no meaningful chance to succeed, while Horton was subjected to discriminatory treatment when he was given a sham interview for the Tennessee Titans head coach position in January 2016.

Flores also criticized the NFL in the rewritten lawsuit for its response to the lawsuit he brought against it and its teams several weeks ago.

The lawsuit added the Houston Texans to the teams Flores has alleged discriminated against him, saying the Texans engaged in “blatant retaliation” by removing him from consideration for its head coach vacancy after he sued the league.

In a release from the lawsuit’s attorneys, Wilks said he hoped the lawsuit would help bring racial equality to the league. Arizona replaced Wilks with Kliff Kingsbury, a white man with no NFL coaching experience, and gave a white general manager an extension despite a drunk driving conviction.

“When Coach Flores filed this action, I knew I owed it to myself, and to all Black NFL coaches and aspiring coaches, to stand with him,” he said. “This lawsuit has shed further important light on a problem that we all know exists, but that too few are willing to confront. Black coaches and candidates should have exactly the same ability to become employed, and remain employed, as white coaches and candidates.”

Horton said he was “devastated and humiliated” when he learned that his interview with the Titans was a sham.

“By joining this case, I am hoping to turn that experience into a positive and make lasting change and create true equal opportunity in the future,” he said.

The NFL declined to comment Thursday.

Flores sued the NFL and three teams on Feb. 1 after he was fired as the Miami Dolphins coach in January after leading the Dolphins to a 24-25 record over three years. They went 9-8 in their second straight winning season, but failed to make the playoffs during his tenure.

He has since been hired as an assistant coach by the Pittsburgh Steelers.

COLLEGES

MEN’S HOCKEY: Carter Savoie scored with 14:53 gone in overtime, converting his own rebound to give Denver a 3-2 win over Michigan in the Frozen Four semifinals at Boston’s TD Garden.

The Pioneers will play for the title Saturday night against the winner of the late semifinal between Minnesota and Minnesota State. It would be Denver’s ninth hockey championship, tying Michigan for the most in NCAA history.

MEN’S BASKETBALL: Gonzaga junior forward Drew Timme announced his intention to declare for the NBA draft, but did not indicate if he would hire an agent.

Timme was the West Coast Conference player of the year and a second-team AP All-America selection after averaging 18.4 points and 6.8 rebounds.

TENNIS

CHARLESTON OPEN: Amanda Anisimova of the U.S. upset top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals in Charleston, South Carolina.

In another surprise, CoCo Vandeweghe beat U.S. countrywoman and sixth-seeded Jessica Pegula, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.

• Serena Williams’ coach for a decade, Patrick Mouratoglou, is going to work with another Grand Slam champion and former No. 1, Simona Halep.

Mouratoglou announced his partnership with Halep via social media, creating a formidable pairing – and raising questions what this means for the future of Williams as a player.

The owner of 23 major singles titles, a record for the professional era, Williams has not competed anywhere since hurting her right hamstring in a first-round match at Wimbledon in late June last year.

INJURY: Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini will miss the next three ATP Masters 1000 tournaments as he recovers from surgery.

The 25-year-old Italian, who is ranked sixth, had surgery on his right hand last week.

SOCCER

SOUTH AMERICA: A South American soccer official who was acquitted of a racketeering conspiracy charge in the United States has had his life ban by FIFA annulled and sent back for a fresh investigation.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport said its panel of judges partially upheld an appeal by Manuel Burga against FIFA “on the basis of a violation of due process rights.”

Burga’s ban from soccer imposed in 2019 was overturned “and the case has been referred back to the FIFA Investigatory Chamber of the FIFA Ethics Committee which will have to resume the procedure,” the court said.

Burga was the president of Peru’s soccer federation when he was implicated in taking bribes by a sweeping investigation unsealed in 2015 by American federal authorities.

He stood trial in Brooklyn with two other South American soccer leaders and was the only one acquitted in December 2017. Leaving court he said: “My history in soccer is finished.”

Two years later, FIFA investigators argued there was “overwhelming evidence” Burga got or had been promised $6.6 million in bribes linked to marketing deals for competitions including the Copa America and Copa Libertadores.

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