Reuters Sports News Summary

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs. NFL Draft to occur in 'fully virtual format,' with team personnel kept apart

The upcoming NFL draft will take place in a "fully virtual format," the league confirmed in a letter to teams on Monday, with personnel advised to stay at home amid the coronavirus pandemic. The draft, scheduled to begin April 23, will take place "with club personnel in separate location and able to communicate with one another and draft headquarters by phone or internet," NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in the letter obtained by Reuters. Former Fox executives indicted in U.S. FIFA corruption probe

U.S. prosecutors on Monday accused two former 21st Century Fox Inc executives of paying millions of dollars in bribes to secure lucrative media and marketing rights to soccer matches, the latest charges in a long-running investigation of corruption surrounding FIFA, soccer's world governing body. The former Fox executives, Hernan Lopez and Carlos Martinez, were indicted in Brooklyn federal court on wire fraud and money laundering charges along with Gerard Romy, former co-chief executive of Spanish media company Imagina Media Audiovisual SL, and Full Play Group SA, an Uruguayan sports marketing company. Rugby: EPCR admits to discussions to launch Club World Cup

Club rugby's top organizing body is exploring holding a Club World Cup after French federation president Bernard Laporte proposed a radical new competition to replace the existing European Champions Cup. However, European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR) said the new competition would complement the existing continental competitions and not replace them. No decision on resuming play before May, says NBA Commissioner Silver

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said on Monday there will be no decision on ending the league's coronavirus shutdown until May at the earliest. Silver, speaking on the NBA's Twitter account as part of the league's new NBATogether initiative, said, "in a perfect world" the league would finish the regular season in some form and move onto the playoffs but that it was too early to make projections. Phelps urges athletes to take care of mental health after Games delay

Olympic great Michael Phelps has voiced his concerns over the negative impact on athletes' mental health of the Tokyo Games postponement prompted by the new coronavirus pandemic. Last month the International Olympic Committee decided to delay the Tokyo Games for a year as the global health crisis prompted by the COVID-19 outbreak hit the professional sports calendar and brought daily life to a grinding halt for millions. Brady says he joined Bucs to see 'how great I can be'

Tom Brady's surprising decision to leave the New England Patriots last month for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was rooted in a need to seek out new challenges, the 42-year-old quarterback wrote in an essay on Monday. Brady spent 20 seasons with the Patriots, winning an NFL record six Super Bowls to become arguably the best to ever play the position. Report: NFL delays offseason phase 1

Teams are being advised the first phase of the offseason program, which includes rookie minicamps after the NFL draft, will be delayed by at least one week, NFL Network reported. Team facilities remain closed for all non-essential -- primarily healthcare -- employees. Coaches, general managers and scouts are meeting via video conference and will conduct their entire draft not from the typical team facility "war room" but remote locations that follow national social distancing guidelines prohibiting more than 10 people from being assembled. Doping: Testing gap due to coronavirus a 'gift' to cheats: race walker Bosworth

Reduced drug testing during the COVID-19 pandemic is like a "gift" for those unscrupulous athletes who will go to any lengths to win and make money, British race walker Tom Bosworth has told The Times newspaper. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said last month that the pandemic had created challenges for drug testers with countries closing borders, cancelling flights and enforcing quarantines, and with the shutdown of the sporting calendar. Bookmakers suspend betting after NBA 2K20 results leaked online

Online bookmakers, already hit by the stoppage of live sports due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, suffered a further setback when the results of an NBA 2K20 video game tournament were leaked online. The tournament features 16 current NBA players, seeded according to their past performance playing the game, battling one another from the comfort of their homes. Hall of Fame Tigers outfielder Al Kaline dies aged 85

Baseball Hall of Famer Al Kaline, one of the most beloved and distinguished players of his era who spent his entire 22-year Major League Baseball career with the Detroit Tigers, died on Monday, aged 85, the team said. Known affectionately as "Mr. Tiger," Kaline was one of the most consistent players and retired not long after he became only the 12th player to reach MLB's elite 3,000-hit club.