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Today’s Connections: Sports Edition might be tough. The purple category might be one of those where you have to just fill in the other categories and see what you end up with. Read on for hints and the answers.
Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.
Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta
Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.
Yellow group hint: How you recognize your team.
Green group hint: Sport, but its name is also a Wisconsin city.
Blue group hint: Hockey team names with something in common.
Purple group hint: Think Shedeur’s dad.
Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Yellow group: A team’s symbol.
Green group: Associated with lacrosse.
Blue group: NHL teams with singular nicknames.
Purple group: Teams Deion Sanders has played for or coached.
Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words
What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?
The yellow words in today’s Connections
The theme is a team’s symbol. The four answers are badge, crest, emblem and logo.
The green words in today’s Connections
The theme is associated with lacrosse. The four answers are cradling, crease, faceoff and ground ball.
The blue words in today’s Connections
The theme is NHL teams with singular nicknames. The four answers are Minnesota, Seattle, Tampa Bay and Utah.
The purple words in today’s Connections
The theme is teams Deion Sanders has played for or coached. The four answers are Colorado, Dallas, Jackson State and New York.
Toughest Connections: Sports Edition categories
The Connections: Sports Edition puzzle can be tough, but it really depends on which sports you know the most about. My husband aces anything having to do with Formula 1, my best friend is a hockey buff, and I can answer any question about Minnesota teams.
That said, it’s hard to pick the toughest Connections categories, but here are some I found exceptionally mind-blowing recently.
#1: Series A Clubs, Jan. 11. Answers: Atalanta, Juventus, Lazio, Roma.
#2: WNBA MVPs, Jan. 21. Answers: Catchings, Delle Donne, Fowles and Stewart.
#3: Premier League team nicknames, Jan. 17. Answers: Bees, Cherries, Foxes and Hammers.
#4: Homophones of NBA player names, Jan. 26. Answers: Barns, Connect, Heart and Hero.