As the oak trees turn from green to red, Oakland’s busy sports calendar begins to wind down. The Oakland Ballers’ baseball season ends in September, and in October the Oakland Roots will conclude not just their soccer season but their time playing at the Coliseum.
Not all season endings are sad. Last weekend, the Oakland Spiders won the Ultimate Frisbee championship in Madison, Wisconsin. Less than a year after the Oakland Ballers won the Pioneer League title, Oakland is home to yet another champion. Here’s your update on Oakland sports, including what is happening in September.
The latest on Oakland’s teams
🥏 Oakland Spiders
The Oakland Spiders reach for the league championship, August 28, 2026. Credit: Matthew Brooks/courtesy of the Oakland Spiders
On August 28, the Oakland Spiders defeated the Minnesota Wind Chill by a score of 21-16 to win the Ultimate Frisbee Association Championship. The dominant performance was a long time coming; this was the Spiders’ first chip since 2015. In the elated aftermath of the victory, team captain Evan Magsig exclaimed, “This was everything I ever dreamed. This was for the city of Oakland.”
Oakland’s team had been dominant all season, losing only once, to the same Wind Chill team they faced again in the final. The Spiders got to the final match after eliminating the New York Empire 27-21 in the semifinals.
Before the season began, Magsig’s fellow captain, Robin Vickers Batzdorf, told the Oaklandside that the team’s goal was to win it all. He even called out Walker Frankenberg as a player to watch out for — and Frankenberg went on to be named MVP of the Championship Weekend. The day after the final, Vickers Batzdorf was reflective about “grinding to get better through a tough eight-month season,” telling The Oaklandside, “I get to do it with people I genuinely love. That is what will stick with me for the rest of my life.”
Plans for an Oakland celebration are underway.
Anton Orme, number 75, and his Spiders teammates celebrate their championship win. Credit: Matthew Brooks/courtesy of the Oakland Spiders
⚾ Oakland Ballers
After falling to the Pioneer League-leading Long Beach Coast on Sunday afternoon in their final home game of the season, the Ballers’ overall record sits at 43-47, putting them in eighth place. For the first time in their history, and just one season removed from their exhilarating championship, the Ballers will not make the playoffs.
Jeter Ybarra hits a home run as the Oakland Ballers face off against the Yuba-Sutter Freebirds on June 28, 2026. Credit: Courtesy Oakland Ballers
The lack of success on the field led team co-founders Paul Freedman and Bryan Carmel to pen an open letter to fans apologizing for the team’s performance. They enumerated the mistakes that led to the unwelcome result, from failing to re-sign players who went onto great seasons elsewhere to failing to take advantage of rules that made players like Oakland native Osiris Johnson eligible to play. They lamented that Johnson now plays in Modesto rather than his own hometown. “This season simply wasn’t good enough,” they wrote.
And yet, with the Ballers’ final six games on the road, there is still history to be made. The Ballers’ Jeter Ybarra is the league leader in home runs, and already holds the Ballers all-time single season home run record with 33 and counting.
⚽ Oakland Roots
Oakland Roots midfielder Florian Valot scores against Orange County SC in the 20th minute at the Oakland Coliseum, August 29, 2026. The match ended in a 1-1 draw. Credit: Courtesy Oakland Roots SC
Another league scoring leader is Roots’ striker Peter Wilson. After winning the Golden Boot last year for scoring the most goals in the USL Championship league, he’s gunning for the title again. Currently tied for third-most goals with 11 on the season, Wilson is one goal away from tying Johnny Rodriguez as the top scorer in team history.
The Roots currently sit at 11th place in the Western Conference standings, with a record of 6-8-9 (wins-losses-draws) on the season. This had been Oakland’s best ever start to a season, but the team had a prolonged slump in the summer. After beating Phoenix Rising 4-3 in Arizona on June 20, Oakland did not pick up another win for over two months, until Wilson’s extra time goal gave them a 1-0 win over San Antonio FC in Texas on August 22.
Last Saturday, the Roots earned a 1-1 draw against Orange County SC at the Oakland Coliseum. With seven matches left, the Roots are just four points out of playoff contention, so they have plenty of time to make up ground. (Wins count for three points, draws for one, and losses for zero.) Given how dangerous the Roots have looked at various points this season, they are likely not who the top-ranked teams want to see sneak into the playoffs.
Oakland sports calendar
⚾ Oakland Ballers Season Finale Watch Party with the Oakland 68’s
Fans are invited to watch the Ballers — the team that brought professional baseball back to Oakland after the A’s left — with the Oakland 68’s, the supporter group named after the year that the A’s arrived here. For this final game of the season, the Ballers will be in Marysville facing the Yuba-Sutter Freebirds.
September 6, 6:35 p.m., Oakland Athletic Club, 59 Grand Ave., Oakland, free
⚽ Oakland Roots ‘Conoce Tu Raices’ night vs. Lexington FC
For one of their last games at the Coliseum, the Roots are celebrating 250 years of American immigration stories with a post-match drone show. The halftime performance by glamorous Oakland native Sheila E promises to give fans life. “Conoce Tu Raices” is Spanish for “Know Your Roots,” the team’s motto, and the night will be presented in Spanish and English.
September 12, 7 p.m., Oakland Coliseum, 7000 S. Coliseum Way, Oakland, tickets from $24
🏀 FIBA Women’s World Cup Watch Party
People hang out outside Oakland Athletic Club during a World Cup watch party, June 11, 2026. Credit: Godofredo Vasquez for The Oaklandside
The bar that launched with World Cup men’s soccer is back at it with another World Cup, this time the FIBA women’s basketball tournament. The Oakland Athletic Club will host an early morning championship watch party with live action from Berlin on the screens and a recently launched brunch food and beverage menu on the tables.The top ranked team in the tournament is Olympic champion Team USA featuring Paige Bueckers, Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. Their biggest competition is Team France led by Golden State Valkyries stars Gabby Williams and Janelle Salaün, and former Valkyrie Carla Leite.
September 13, bronze medal game at 7:30 a.m. and gold medal game at 11 a.m., Oakland Athletic Club, 59 Grand Ave., Oakland, free
For the first time since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League gave (white) female baseball players a league of their own in the 1940s, women have a place to play professional baseball. The Women’s Pro Baseball League features players like former Little League star Mo’ne Davis and former Oakland Ballers pitcher Kelsie Whitmore. For the opening game of the inaugural World Series, the Oakland Athletic Club’s Women’s Sports Lounge will host a watch party with food and drink specials and giveaways. Women’s sports fans get a doubleheader with the National Women’s Soccer League’s Bay FC playing the Denver Summit later in the evening.
September 16, World Series game at 4 p.m. and NWSL soccer match at 6:30 p.m., Oakland Athletic Club, 59 Grand Ave., Oakland, free
⚾ Join the Ballers at OakTown Third Thursday
The Oakland Ballers are offering free game tickets to registered “ballunteers” who show up to help set up, break down and staff the OakTown Third Thursday street festival, which this month features Gina Madrid and other artists celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month.
September 17, 2:30 to 10:30pm (each volunteer shift is three hours), Latham Square, 1615 Broadway, Oakland, register online.
🏀 Golden State Valkyries vs. Portland Fire Watch Party
French teammates (and perhaps, by then, newly minted world champions) Gabby Williams, Janelle Salaün and Carla Leite face off against each other in Portland as the Valkyries play the Fire in their penultimate game of the season. The Oakland Athletic Club is gathering fans to watch the game — and help design their permanent Women’s Sports Lounge within the bar. Fans will get a chance to play trivia to win prizes from Oaklandish.
September 22, 7 p.m., Oakland Athletic Club, 59 Grand Ave., Oakland, free
🏀 Golden State Valkyries vs. Los Angeles Sparks ‘People’s Watch Party’
Golden State Valkyries guard Veronica Burton brings the ball up the court against the Dallas Wings at a WNBA basketball game in San Francisco, Aug. 17, 2026. Credit: AP Photo/Jeff Chiu
Former WNBA MVP and champion, current players’ union president, and Stanford alum Nneka Ogwumike will play the last game of her professional career when her Los Angeles Sparks take on the Golden State Valkyries in the final game of the WNBA season. The People’s Watch Party, whose parties have been called “baby Balhalla,” is gathering in the fans to cheer Golden State on as their playoff seeding is determined. Attendees will be entered into a raffle, with prizes given out during game stoppages, including swag for the future Hysteria Sports Bar.
September 24, 7 p.m., Xingones Restaurant, 190 4th St., Oakland, free
⚽ Oakland Roots ‘Beast Mode 510 Day’ vs. Phoenix Rising FC
Oakland sports legend Marshawn Lynch, nicknamed “Beast Mode,” who played at the Coliseum as a star running back during his NFL career, is also a part owner of Oakland Roots SC. “Marshawn’s impact on The Town goes so far beyond football. He’s Oakland, through and through,” Edreece Arghandiwal, an Oakland Roots co-founder, said in an August 27 email to fans. You can now add to Lynch’s list of Oakland bonafides his new graphic novel, “Beast Mode 510,” a story set in and inspired by Oakland. To celebrate the release of his book, Lynch will be in person at the Roots match for a pregame tailgate, halftime appearance, and an autograph signing.
September 26, 7 p.m., Oakland Coliseum, 7000 S. Coliseum Way, Oakland, tickets from $19 with ticket packages start at $39 including the graphic novel and $99 also including a t-shirt and autographed item.
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