US President Donald Trump became the first ever recipient of FIFA's new peace prize at the 2026 World Cup draw Friday -- a compensation gift for a leader whose dream of winning the Nobel remains unfulfilled.

The 2026 World Cup draw got under way on time on Friday and though the 42 nations assured of their slot will have to wait more than an hour to discover their opponents, they will have to wait another 24 to find out where and when they will be playing.

Nasrin Sports Academy made a dreadful start to their SAFF Women's Club Championship campaign, suffering a 4-0 defeat to Nepal's APF Football Club in the second match of the opening day at the Dasharath Rangasala Stadium in Kathmandu on Friday

Leaders Bashundhara Kings extended their winning run in the Bangladesh Football League with a resounding 5-1 victory over a spirited Brothers Union at the Shaheed Birshreshtha Flight Lt Matiur Rahman Stadium in Munshiganj on Friday.

The draw for the 2026 World Cup takes place in Washington on Friday, with Donald Trump set to play a prominent part in a star-studded ceremony that will map the path to glory for contenders at the first-ever 48-team finals.

With the expanded 48-team tournament taking place across the United States, Mexico and Canada next year, debate over ticketing has intensified, with fans expressing frustration over the model.

As well as the 2014 World Cup final, Mueller's wins over Messi include Bayern Munich's 8-2 humiliation of Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-finals in 2020.

Undav set a club record when his strike in last weekend's 2-1 loss at Hamburg was his sixth in a row for Stuttgart

Any rule changes would have to be approved by the International Football Association Board at its meeting in Wales in February.

The 38-year-old Inter Miami forward said he wants to help Argentina defend its 2022 crown in North America next summer.

Amorim's men also lost 1-0 at home to Everton despite playing against 10 men for almost the entire match in their previous game at Old Trafford.

Salah, who signed a two-year contract extension in April, has struggled to match the consistency that helped propel the club to the league title last year.

England full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold has suffered a thigh injury, his club Real Madrid said on Thursday, with Spanish media speculating that he faces two months out.

National forward Sanjida Akter leads the youthful Nasrin squad, which includes players such as Sauravi Akanda Prity, Shanti Mardi, Trishna Rani.

Virgil van Dijk says Mohamed Salah's omission from Liverpool's team for a second successive match shows no player at the club has "unlimited credit".

Neymar played through a knee injury to score a hat-trick and lift his boyhood club Santos clear of the relegation zone in Brazil's Serie A.

Ahead of Friday's 2026 World Cup draw, here we take a look at the leading contenders at the first-ever 48-team finals to take place across North America next June and July (current world ranking in brackets):

Liverpool boss Arne Slot conceded his side have lost their fear factor during a miserable run as Sunderland emerged with a 1-1 draw at Anfield on Wednesday.

FIFA announced on Wednesday the lineup of current and former sports stars as well as entertainers in the event at the Kennedy Center.

A late equaliser did little to lift the gloom around Anfield as Liverpool sit eighth.