We asked our editors to pick out the best sporting events this weekend, and a little beyond. Here's what they are circling in the calendar:
Saturday, October 11th
Serbia vs Albania - 20:45 CET
There are many interesting European World Cup qualifiers taking place this week and next, but the pick of the bunch on Saturday looks like Serbia’s clash with Balkan rivals Albania in the small Serbian city ofLeskovac.
No general sale tickets were made available due to the issues that have marred previous meetings between these sides, but don't let that make you think this will lack bite.
There is no love lost between these nations, whose rivalry extends far beyond the confines of a football field. Most notably, but not exclusively, that is due to the diplomatic tensions that arose out of the Kosovo war in the 1990s, and persist to this day.
Wedged in between the two, Kosovo is recognised by Albania to the south, with whom they share ethnic and linguistic roots, but not by Serbia to the north. Suffice it to say, it’s a heated and complicated situation.
Moving back to footballing matters of the present, these two find themselves in the same World Cup qualifying group in Europe (Group K) and locked in a battle for second place.
England lead the group with a perfect record (five wins from five) and appear nailed on to grab the direct qualification berth. In fact, England will seal top spot this break if they beat Latvia on Tuesday and Albania and Serbia were to draw, which they did last time they met in Tirana in June.
A win for either side is thus vital if they want to catch England. More realistically, three points from this fixture will catapult either team to favourite for clinching the second spot in the group, which gains access to the European playoffs.
Serbia have a game in hand and play once more this break after the weekend, against Andorra. They’ll be expected to win that one, which adds pressure to this make-or-break match for Sylvinho’s Red and Blacks. Get the popcorn out, this could be a cracker!
Pat Dempsey
Sunday, October 12th
World Grand Prix Darts final - 21:00 CET
The World Grand Prix draws to a fascinating conclusion in Leicester this weekend, as several of darts’ biggest names look to capture one of the sport’s most prestigious titles.
A field of 32 players has been whittled down to eight ahead of Friday’s quarter-finals, with Luke Humphries, Luke Littler, Gerwyn Price and Gary Anderson among those remaining in the tournament.
Using the unique “double in, double out” format, in which players must start on either a double or bullseye to start scoring and do the same to win a leg, the World Grand Prix has a total prize fund of £600,000, with the winner receiving £120,000.
The quarter-final lineup on Friday evening includes reigning world champion Littler facing Price in a blockbuster tussle at 22:15 CET, as well as world number one Humphries coming up against Scotland’s Cameron Menzies.
In the remaining two last-eight ties, sixth-ranked Jonny Clayton takes on Dirk van Duijvenbode while former world champion Anderson faces Danny Noppert.
With the semi-finals taking place on Saturday and the showpiece event to follow on Sunday evening, make sure you tune in over the weekend to follow all the drama!
Danny Clark
Chicago Cubs vs Milwaukee Brewers - 02:10 CET
After going down 0-2 in the National League Divisional Series to the Milwaukee Brewers, the Chicago Cubs have won the past two games to force a Game 5. The winner will go on to the National League Championship Series to face the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers, who eliminated the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday.
After being outscored 16-6 in the first two games, the Cubs' pitching has completely shut down the Brewers' bats - outscoring them 10-3 in the last two games.
This one heads back to Milwaukee for the final game of the series. If the Brewers win, it'll be their first NLCS appearance since 2018, a reminder that they have never won a World Series. Should the Cubs win, it'll be their first NLCS appearance since 2017, a year removed from their World Series victory.
Jackson Chourio leads the Brewers in hitting, going 7-for-15 with two doubles, one home run, and six RBI. On the other side, Nico Hoerner leads the Cubs, going 12-for-28 (Wild Card included), while teammate Michael Busch leads all batters this postseason with four home runs.
Neither team has announced the starting pitchers for the game yet.
Eric Himmelheber
Kansas City Chiefs vs Detroit Lions - 02:20 CET
Sunday night will feature one of the NFL's most highly anticipated regular-season games of 2025. The Kansas City Chiefs will host the Detroit Lions in a battle between the teams who finished top of their respective conferences last year.
If the Chiefs are to top the AFC for the second year running, they will have to do so the hard way. They have a 2-3 record so far, with last week's narrow loss against the Jacksonville Jaguars leaving them third in their division. They have dominated the AFC West in recent times, having won it in each of the last nine years.
The Chiefs will have a rough schedule, as four of their next five are versus teams who partook in that postseason last season. They can ill afford another slip up though.
They will have their hands full versus a Lions team who have picked up where they left off in 2024. They have rattled off four straight wins after the week 1 reverse to their divisional rival Green Bay Packers. All four of their wins so far saw them score at least 30 times.
This is the first of five consecutive games for Detroit where they meet a team who reached the playoffs last year. So far, they are 1-1 in such matches this year.
This really is a must watch game - you will not be disappointed.
David Parkes
Monday, October 13th
Cape Verds vs Eswatini - 18:00 CET
It is sink or swim for Cape Verde’s Blue Sharks when they host minnows Eswatini in their final 2026 World Cup qualifier in Praia on Monday, with the tantalising prospect of a maiden place at next year’s global finals in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The archipelago, which earned independence from Portugal in 1975, might have already booked their ticket but for a bizarre 3-3 draw away in Libya on Wednesday, in which they were gifted a goal via a scarcely believable goalkeeper howler, but then denied a win late on by an atrocious offside call.
Welcome to the wonderful world of African football, where the only thing to expect is the unexpected.
Cape Verde, with a population of around 600,000 but a large diaspora outside the country, would be the second smallest nation after Iceland in 2018 to qualify for the World Cup.
A win at home over bottom side Eswatini, who have three draws and six defeats in their nine fixtures, would get them over the line, but a stalemate would leave them vulnerable to a Cameroon victory at home to Angola.
The Indomitable Lions would then move level on points with Cape Verde, but with a vastly superior goal difference, they would leapfrog their rivals to book a World Cup place.
Nick Said