Ranking 25 storylines we're most excited about in 2025 (Part 1)

To ring in the new year, theScore is looking ahead. While 2024 provided a number of indelible sports moments, 2025 promises to deliver its own share of memorable events and historic achievements. Below, we're counting down the 2025 storylines that have us most intrigued. Our five-part series kicks off with items 25-21.

Follow the entire series this week:

25. Will 4 Nations Face-Off be a success?

The 4 Nations Face-Off, which is being held in Montreal and Boston from Feb. 12-20, is men's hockey's first "best-on-best" tournament since the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. The nine-day, NHL-run event features six round-robin games and a final. Four of the top five hockey nations - Canada, the United States, Sweden, and Finland - are participating. Russia's been excluded for geopolitical reasons, while other countries like Czechia, Switzerland, and Germany don't have enough everyday NHLers to fill a 23-man roster. (Only players on NHL contracts are eligible.)

There's a low bar for this event to be considered a success, given the eight-year wait for international competition outside of the annual world championships. This will be the first time Canadians Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby share the ice as teammates, while the U.S. squad is headlined by two sets of brothers in the Hughes and Tkachuk siblings.

The 4 Nations is being marketed as an appetizer for the 2026 Olympics, and it'll come and go quickly. Still, there'll be plenty of storylines: The USA boasts the best roster top to bottom, Canada has the most star power but questionable goaltending, Sweden's performance largely depends on its blue line, and Finland is the tournament's true underdog. - John Matisz

24. Could Man City really get relegated?

Yes. Relegation from the top flight of English soccer is among the possible outcomes of the Premier League's case against Manchester City, who are accused of breaching financial rules, obscuring payments to coaches and players, and failing to cooperate with authorities over a nine-year period. An independent three-man panel is reportedly deliberating after spending three months hearing arguments from both sides.

We won't get a verdict until January at the earliest. Even then, City, who deny all wrongdoing, are likely to appeal. A final ruling may not arrive until next season. So if they do get relegated, it won't happen immediately.

A financial settlement remains the most likely outcome. The Premier League could offer the money to other teams as an olive branch. Anything other than a settlement feels far-fetched and counterproductive. Imagine relegating a team that has won six of the past seven Premier League titles and the damage that could do to the integrity of the competition. The harshest punishment may serve justice, but at the expense of the Premier League itself. Would the league accept such a risky trade-off? - Anthony Lopopolo

23. Will the White Sox bounce back?

2024 was a rough year for the South Side, with the White Sox breaking the modern record for most losses in a single season with 121. This was a supreme fall from grace for an organization that appeared in the postseason just three years prior and had the look of a World Series contender during the 2020 and 2021 campaigns. But after continuous failures and underperformance from stars, the team fired its top executives and undertook a full-on rebuild under newly appointed general manager Chris Getz.

The first White Sox season under Getz looked less like a rebuild and more like what Rachel Phelps had planned for Cleveland in the film "Major League." Chicago finished last in nearly every important baseball category and fans began to wear paper bags over their heads at Guaranteed Rate Field.

It doesn't look like the White Sox are trying to bounce back in 2025 either. The organization has done nothing to improve the squad and is reportedly trying to trade some of its remaining good players; Garrett Crochet has already been dealt, and Luis Robert Jr. could follow. Pure luck might be the only way the White Sox win more games next season. - Bryan Mcwilliam

22. The Bill Belichick era at UNC

Bill Belichick stunned the football world when he accepted the head coaching job at North Carolina for next season. It will be his first college gig after spending 49 seasons in the NFL. Can arguably the greatest coach in football history succeed as a 72-year-old freshman? The six-time Super Bowl champion head coach recently said his Tar Heels will be a "professional program" that's a "pipeline" to the NFL. However, the historic basketball school last won a conference football championship in 1980 and isn't exactly known for churning out blue-chip prospects.

Belichick will have a general manager to help deal with the increasingly complex transfer portal, NIL compensation, and looming revenue sharing, though recruiting and connecting with teenage players could prove difficult for the notoriously inflexible coach. (Will he bench the first player who films a TikTok in the locker room?)

Although his New England Patriots tenure went off the rails post-Tom Brady, Belichick was a master defensive strategist who regularly outschemed the NFL's best coaches. Does he still have that in him? We'll miss his regular media appearances as an analyst, but it'll feel right to see Belichick patrolling a sideline again - even if it's not where we expected. - Liam Fox

21. Can Jokic win his 4th MVP?

On pace to win his fourth NBA MVP award, Nicola Jokic should easily be considered an all-time great after this season. The Serbian has won three of the last four, including the 2023-24 honor, but he's eclipsing his stats from previous campaigns. The Denver Nuggets star is averaging career highs in points (30.8), steals (1.7), and 3-point percentage (50%). He's 14.1 percentage points better from long range than last season and attempting more threes than ever, averaging 4.5 per game. With 12.5 rebounds and 9.5 assists per game, Jokic has a chance to finish the season averaging a triple-double. Only two players in history have achieved the feat (Russell Westbrook has done it four times and Oscar Robertson once).

He's poised to set league records too. Jokic is averaging 52.8 points, rebounds, and assists per game combined; no other player has put up more than 53 since the league merger. He's right there. The Joker could also become the first player to ever lead the Association in points, boards, and dimes in the same season. He currently sits third in points and assists, and tied for third in rebounds.

The 29-year-old will be breathing rarefied air if he takes home the league's top individual honor once again; LeBron James and Bill Russell are the only players in league history to win the MVP award four times in five seasons. - Joseph Luca Casciaro

The rollout continues Tuesday with Nos. 20-16.