| KAIHAVERTZ | Baller who scored the winner in last season's final! (3,7) |
| SARACENS | They averaged the most tackles (150) a match in last season's Premiership (8) |
| EIGHTH | Wasps' finishing position in last season's Gallagher Premiership (6) |
| ASTLE | Jeff, West Bromwich Albion striker who scored the winner in the 1968 FA Cup Final (5) |
| GIROUD | Olivier, French striker who scored the winner in the 2022 FIFA World Cup quarter-final v England (6) |
| EMEKA | ___ Okafor (B-baller who represented the U.S. at the 2004 Olympics) |
| CTR | Baller who sometimes 16-Across, briefly |
| ROBCORDDRY | Star of HBO's Ballers who plays Wade's friend Forrest on 18-Across: 2 wds. |
| INTERMILAN | Last season, which team did Manchester City beat in the Champions League final to complete the treble? (5, 5) |
| LEONBAILEY | Aston Villa forward who managed one goal in 18 appearances last season! (4,6) |
| JOSE | Who scored the winner for Panama in its win over the host USA in Copa America 2024? (4) |
| GLASS | Jimmy ___, 1998-2000 Swindon goalkeeper who scored the winner for loan club Carlisle in their final match in 1998-1999 Division Three (5) |
| NOMOREBUTS | "What I said is final!" |
| DANI | Who scored the winner for Spain in its semifinal and ended up as one of the top goal-scorers of EURO 2024, too? (4) |
| BEERCARD | Seven of diamonds's informal nickname in trick-taking games (if it's the winner in the last hand, the player must buy their partner a drink) |
| HARRY | Who holds the record for scoring the most goals for England And Tottenham Hotspur and second highest goal-scorer in Premier League history but plays for the Bayern Munich Club in Bundesliga since last |
| JUDGE | One who decides the winner in a contest |
| HARMANPREET | Last season's Player of the Tournament at the Women's Big Bash League. (11) |
| CROCODILES | Alligator cousins at an annual race in Darwin, Australia, this week; the winner, in a nod to 12-Across's costume, was named "Kim Krocdashian" |
| CLOSEST | Like the winner in a guessing contest |
