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How are sunspots connected to the Sun’s magnetic field?

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Illustration showing the eight planets of the solar system in order from the Sun-Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune-depicted to scale by size, with labeled diameters in miles and kilometers. The Sun is partially visible on the left for comparison. — Solar system The planets (in comparative size) in order of distance from the Sun.

Sunspots are regions on the Sun’s surface characterized by extremely strong magnetic fields. These spots are fundamentally connected to the Sun's magnetic activity in the following ways:1

Magnetic Flux Loops: Sunspots typically appear in pairs or groups of opposite magnetic polarity, which correspond to clusters of magnetic flux loops that intersect the Sun's surface. The dark central core of a spot, known as the umbra, is where magnetic flux emerges vertically from below the surface.1
Suppression of Convection: The intense magnetic fields within sunspots suppress convective motions that would otherwise bring heat from the solar interior to the surface. This cooling effect causes the umbra to appear dark, as it is significantly cooler (approximately 3,000 K) than the surrounding photosphere (5,800 K).12
Active Regions: An ensemble of sunspots and their associated strong magnetic field regions form an "active region". Sunspots of opposite polarity within these regions are connected by magnetic loops that arch into the chromosphere and low corona.1
Solar Cycles: The magnetic polarity of these spot groups reverses every 11 years, completing a full magnetic cycle every 22 years.12