MADRID (AP) — Jude Bellingham scored an 87th-minute equalizer for Real Madrid which extended its winless streak to three matches with a 2-2 draw at Elche in the Spanish league on Sunday.
Madrid needed Bellingham's goal to salvage the away draw after twice coming from behind.
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Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham reacts after the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe controls the ball during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe, centre, tries to score past Elche's goalkeeper Inaki Pena during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Elche's team players celebrate after Aleix Febas scored the opening goal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Real Madrid's Rodrygo reacts during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
The result moved Madrid one point ahead of Barcelona, which routed Athletic Bilbao 4-0 on Saturday in its return to the renovated Camp Nou Stadium.
Madrid was coming off a 0-0 draw at Rayo Vallecano in the Spanish league, and a 1-0 loss at Liverpool in the league phase of the Champions League. Xabi Alonso's team had won 13 of its previous 14 matches to start the season.
“The team continues to compete,” Alonso said. “The results and our game could be better. We are self-critical but the team's spirit remains good. We must persevere in the face of adversity. This is Real Madrid, we have to live with criticism.”
Aleix Febas put Elche ahead in the 53rd and Dean Huijsen leveled for Madrid in the 78th for his first goal with the club. Álvaro Rodríguez put the hosts ahead again in the 84th but Bellingham equalized from inside the area three minutes later.
Madrid foward Vinícius Júnior came on in the second half.
"We had talked about it, as we often do," Alonso said about Vinícius. "He understands. He knew his role and the impact he could have. We had done it before. He’s still engaged. Today we are not as happy as we’d like but everyone is energized and eager to get back to a good result and a positive momentum."
Madrid's next game is at Olympiakos on Wednesday in the league phase of the Champions League.
Elche's Víctor Chust was sent off deep into stoppage time.
Sitting in 11th place, Elche hasn't won in six consecutive league matches.
An own-goal by Domingos Duarte in the 82nd gave Atletico Madrid a hard-fought 1-0 win at seventh-placed Getafe.
It was the fifth win in a row for Atletico in all competitions, since a 4-0 loss at Arsenal in the league phase of the Champions League last month. Diego Simeone's team has won five straight in the league.
Veteran midfielder Koke made his 700th appearance for Atletico.
Atletico's Marcos Llorente had to be replaced less than 15 minutes into the match because of an injury.
Simeone couldn't count on goalkeeper Jan Oblak because of an injury sustained with Slovenia's national team during the international break. Forward Giuliano Simeone also was out.
Fifth-placed Real Betis couldn't manage more than a 1-1 draw with relegation-threatened Girona.
Vladyslav Vanat put Girona ahead in the 20th before Valentín Gómez equalized for Betis in the 75th. Betis forward Antony was sent off in stoppage time for hitting an opponent in the head with his leg while going for a bicycle kick.
Last-placed Oviedo and 13th-placed Rayo Vallecano drew 0-0 in Oviedo. Oviedo's Ilyas Chaira was shown a red card in the 52nd, and Rayo saw Pathé Ciss ejected in stoppage time.
Oviedo is winless in seven consecutive matches in all competitions, while Rayo hasn't won in three straight league games.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham reacts after the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe controls the ball during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe, centre, tries to score past Elche's goalkeeper Inaki Pena during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Elche's team players celebrate after Aleix Febas scored the opening goal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Real Madrid's Rodrygo reacts during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Elche and Real Madrid in Elche, Spain, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
NEW YORK (AP) — First-time Tony Award host Pink kicked off Sunday’s telecast by leading a crowded, exuberant version of “Lady Marmalade” and John Lithgow took home the first award for “Giant.” A blockbuster revival of “Death of a Salesman” was racking up awards even before the halfway mark.
Lithgow won best lead actor in a play as children’s author Roald Dahl in Mark Rosenblatt’s production set in 1983, when the author is facing intense backlash to his antisemitic comments. The role earned Lithgow his first Olivier Award in London and now the Tony for lead actor in a play, his third.
The win puts Lithgow in an exclusive group of actors who have won in three separate acting categories. He previously won featured actor in a play for “The Changing Room” and lead actor in a musical for “Sweet Smell of Success.”
“Two Tony bookends with 53 years between them," he said. "In those years, I have worked with hundreds of just fantastic theater artists. I’ve had dozens and dozens of ecstatic moments on the stage, but I have to tell you right now, this moment has got to be one of the best.”
A revival of “Death of a Salesman” won at least five Tonys, nearing the record for most statuettes ever won by play revival, which is seven.
Laurie Metcalf won her third Tony for playing Willy Loman’s wife opposite Nathan Lane in “Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman,” which also won for lighting, scenic design and sound design. Joe Mantello won best director for a play.
Pink started the show spinning and then dangling uncomfortably from a harness over the stage, dressed like Peter Pan. Former host Neil Patrick Harris stepped in to suggest the first-time host just be herself. “You’re Pink, Pink. You can do anything,” he told her.
After lifting Harris off the stage with her legs, Pink relented to his suggestion of being “less Pan-ish” by taking off her harness, adding a top hat and leading an extended “Lady Marmalade” that included contributions from dozens of performers including Lea Michele and Megan Thee Stallion — plus some strange, new lyrics like “Gitchie, gitchie, Laurie Metcalf” — and ended with some 170 performers on stage and crowding the aisles.
In her opening remarks, Pink, who has not yet gotten a Broadway credit, called herself theater’s second-biggest fan after her teenage daughter, Willow. “I’m not here just to steal peoples’ wigs, although I will be doing that. I’m here to celebrate the hardest-working people in show business,” she said.
“Schmigadoon!” and “Death of a Salesman” each went into the main telecast with a lead of three Tonys after a pre-show on Pluto TV hosted by Laura Benanti and Tituss Burgess that announced the more technical awards. Qween Jean became the first openly trans Tony winner ever for making the costumes for “Cats: The Jellicle Ball.” Kai Harada, nominated twice for the sound design of a musical, didn’t initially know which one he had won for until told onstage — “Ragtime.”
Twenty-four Broadway shows are hoping to nab at least one win Sunday across the 26 Tony categories, which can mean the difference between keeping the doors open and pulling down the curtain.
There will be performances from the seven best new musical and best musical revival nominees: “The Lost Boys,” “Schmigadoon!,” “Titanique,” “Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York),” “Cats: The Jellicle Ball,” “Ragtime” and “The Rocky Horror Show.”
Other performances include the original lead cast members of “The Book of Mormon” — Josh Gad, Andrew Rannells, Rory O’Malley and Nikki M. James — this year celebrating its 15th anniversary. Leslie Odom, Jr. will sing “Without You” from “Rent” during the In Memoriam section, in honor of that show’s 30th anniversary.
Another show celebrating a milestone, “Chicago” now at 30, will have a performance slot featuring Pink, as well as Queen Latifah, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Alex Newell, Adrienne Warren, Julianne Hough, Whitney Leavitt and Dylan Mulvaney. Plus, “A Chorus Line,” which last year celebrated its 50th anniversary, will get a special tribute by Rachel Zegler.
The competition for best new musical is between four very different shows: “Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York),” an opposites-attract rom-com; “The Lost Boys,” a stage adaptation of a 1987 teen movie vampire thriller; “Schmigadoon!,” which gently mocks Golden-Age Broadway shows; and “Titanique,” a camp musical comedy that reimagines the 1997 movie “Titanic.”
The two top best play nominees are “Giant,” exploring accusations of antisemitism against children's author Roald Dahl, and “Liberation,” about a consciousness-raising women’s group in the 1970s that explores inequality, gender roles and racism.
There are intriguing races in both the revival categories: A “Death of a Salesman” is competing for best play revival with a modern-set “Oedipus” led by Marc Strong and a sweet “Every Brilliant Thing” starring Daniel Radcliffe.
The best musical revival pits a new “Cats” reimagined as a “Pose”-like competition show, the sweeping American history show “Ragtime” and a rollicking, frisky “The Rocky Horror Show.”
For more coverage of the 2026 Tony Awards, visit https://apnews.com/hub/tony-awards.
Bill Rauch, left, and Zhailon Levingston accept the award for best direction of a musical for "Cats: The Jellicle Ball" during the 79th Tony Awards on Sunday, June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
John Lithgow accepts the award for best performance by a leading actor in a play for "Giant" during the 79th Tony Awards on Sunday, June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Maya Rudolph, left, and Cole Escola present the award for best performance by a leading actor in a play during the 79th Tony Awards on Sunday, June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Host Pink, left, and Shoshana Bean perform during the 79th Tony Awards on Sunday, June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Bernadette Peters speaks during the 79th Tony Awards on Sunday, June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Neil Patrick Harris, left, and Host Pink perform during the 79th Tony Awards on Sunday, June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Omari Wiles, left, and Arturo Lyons accept the award for best choreography for "Cats: The Jellicle Ball" during the 79th Tony Awards on Sunday, June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Host Tituss Burgess speaks during the 79th Tony Awards on Sunday, June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Kristin Chenoweth speaks during the 79th Tony Awards on Sunday, June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
