How to Watch Tonight: World Series, WNBA Finals and Cowboys-Eagles

Updated 20:49 UTC

The WNBA has settled the question that hung over tonight's Game 5. Game 6 of the Finals between the Atlanta Dream and the Golden State Valkyries will be played at State Farm Arena in Atlanta on Thursday, October 29, with a 12.30 p.m. Eastern start, the league announced on Monday. The game moves up from its original 8 p.m. Eastern slot and moves out of the Dream's usual home, Gateway Center Arena, which holds about 3,500 fans, into the Hawks' arena, which seats 17,000. The Atlanta Hawks game against Cleveland at the same arena that night moves back to 8 p.m. Eastern to make the doubleheader work. ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reported the agreement on X, and USA TODAY, theScore and Sportsnet all reported the league announcement.

"The sellout crowds and extraordinary atmosphere at State Farm Arena for Games 3 and 4 were a tremendous success, and we're excited to give thousands more fans the opportunity to experience Game 6 with a championship on the line," WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in the league statement. Games 3 and 4 were both played at State Farm Arena and sold out. If the series needs a Game 7, it is set for Saturday, October 31, at Chase Center in San Francisco. This update replaces the two passages below that said Game 6's date and venue were still unresolved.

Three American sports play their biggest games of the season at almost the same hour on Monday night. The World Series plays Game 3 in Florida. The WNBA Finals play Game 5 in San Francisco. Monday Night Football puts the Cowboys in Philadelphia. All three start within 15 minutes of each other, at 8 p.m. Eastern. Here is how to watch each one, and what each game decides.

World Series Game 3: Brewers at Rays, 8 p.m. ET on Fox

Milwaukee leads the Tampa Bay Rays two games to none. The Brewers won Game 1 by 3-2 and Game 2 by 5-4, both close, both on the road pressure to come. The series now moves to Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg for Game 3.

The pitching matchup is the unusual part. Robert Gasser starts for Milwaukee carrying a 1.00 postseason ERA. Freddy Peralta starts for Tampa Bay at 1.08. Two starters with earned run averages near one, in a park where the Rays now need a win to keep the series honest. A Rays loss makes it 3-0, a hole no World Series team treats as a plan. A Rays win turns Wednesday into a real series.

Watch on Fox at 8 p.m. Eastern, 7 p.m. Central.

WNBA Finals Game 5: Dream at Valkyries, 8 p.m. ET on USA and Peacock

The Atlanta Dream and the Golden State Valkyries are tied two games each. Golden State won Game 4 on Sunday, 67-62, to level the Finals. Game 5 is at Chase Center in San Francisco, and the winner takes a 3-2 lead with a chance to close the series in Game 6.

There is a wrinkle behind this game. Game 6's date and venue are still unresolved. A proposal would move Game 6 to October 30 and a possible Game 7 to November 3, but both teams must agree. Monday's winner may not know exactly when or where the closeout chance comes. That uncertainty makes Game 5 bigger, not smaller: the team that leads 3-2 controls a schedule that is still being written.

Watch on USA Network and Peacock at 8 p.m. Eastern, 7 p.m. Central, 5 p.m. Pacific.

Monday Night Football: Cowboys at Eagles, 8:15 p.m. ET on ESPN and ABC

The Dallas Cowboys visit the Philadelphia Eagles in the week's loudest regular-season slot. Kickoff is 8:15 p.m. Eastern on ESPN and ABC, 15 minutes after the other two games start. It is the only one of the three that cannot end a season or swing a series, but Cowboys-Eagles rarely needs stakes to fill a night.

How to choose, and how to flip

If you can watch only one, pick by consequence. The WNBA game changes a championship series lead tonight. The baseball game can put the World Series at the edge of a sweep. The football game holds its meaning longest into the week.

If you have two screens, the practical pairing is baseball and basketball. Both start at 8 p.m. Eastern, both play in short bursts, and their breaks rarely line up. Keep football on the radio or the phone. Its 8:15 kickoff means the first quarter runs while the other two games are still in early innings and early quarters, so you lose the least by checking it in chunks.

Key numbers

• 2-0: Milwaukee's World Series lead over Tampa Bay
• 1.00 and 1.08: the postseason ERAs of starters Robert Gasser and Freddy Peralta
• 2-2: the WNBA Finals tie between Atlanta and Golden State after a 67-62 Game 4
• 8:15 p.m. ET: Cowboys at Eagles kickoff, on ESPN and ABC

What happens next

Same-night reports follow all three games on this site. The World Series continues in St. Petersburg. The WNBA Finals move to a Game 6 whose date and venue still need agreement. And Monday's football result feeds straight into the Week 8 picture, with the Vikings unbeaten and the Chiefs beaten for the first time.