Play-by-Play: A World Cup Prep Test and the Dawn of Olympic Skateboarding

In the United States, the arrival of summer heat brings the cooling of the sports calendar. In June, playoffs in two major pro leagues ended with some familiar teams on top: The NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins wrapped up their second straight Stanley Cup championship, while the NBA's juggernaut Golden State Warriors romped to their second title in three seasons. Two very different individual sports were also in the headlines: Brooks Koepka went home with golf's U.S. Open, while boxer Floyd Mayweather and mixed martial artist Conor McGregor announced an August date for their much hyped boxing match. In this odd-numbered year, there's a relatively sparse slate of international sports offerings for the summer months, although we have been keeping an eye on the America's Cup sailing races and the Confederations Cup, FIFA's pre-World Cup teaser tournament. This month, we'll take a closer look at that gathering of soccer champions and examine some...