Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Dec. 26, No. 459.
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Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a tough one. That purple category once again has players looking for a different, but related, hidden word in four of the clues. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.
Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for 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: Big Apple jock.
Green group hint: College football fun.
Blue group hint: On the road.
Purple group hint: Hunt down a word in other words.
Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Yellow group: A New York athlete.
Green group: Bowl games.
Blue group: Associated with a team road trip.
Purple group: Ends in a movement verb.
Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words
What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?
The completed NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Dec. 26, 2025.
NYT/Screenshot by CNETThe yellow words in today’s Connections
The theme is a New York athlete. The four answers are Islander, Net, Ranger and Yankee.
The green words in today’s Connections
The theme is bowl games. The four answers are Alamo, Gator, Liberty and Pinstripe.
The blue words in today’s Connections
The theme is associated with a team road trip. The four answers are bus, flight, hotel and visiting locker room.
The purple words in today’s Connections
The theme is ends in a movement verb. The four answers are foxtrot (trot), newsprint (sprint), terrace (race) and thunderbolt (bolt).
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