Keeper Room shines as Curacao hold Ecuador for historic World Cup draw

Ecuador goalkeeper Hernan Galindez and his Curacao opposite number Eloy Room were the busiest players in a stalemate that guarantees that Germany will win Group E.
21 June 2026

Unlucky 7th, and red cards on the table

Aside from the Messi incident, the referees have made their uncompromising statement.
21 June 2026

Lula pokes fun at Neymar as world’s first 'work-from-home' national team player

Neymar, an outspoken supporter of former President Jair Bolsonaro, has been recovering from a calf injury for a month and has yet to play at the World Cup.
21 June 2026

Ronaldinho set for surprise return at 46 with Italian third-tier club

"I can't wait to get back dancing with the ball again and to write a new story with Ignazio Cipriani (the Italian-American owner of Ravenna) and his entire family," Gazzetta quoted Ronaldinho as saying.
21 June 2026

Undav stars as Germany reach WC knockout stage for first time since 2014

Substitute Deniz Undav scored twice, including the crucial goal four minutes into injury time, triggering a massive roar from the overwhelmingly pro-German crowd of 43,000 in Toronto.
21 June 2026

Netherlands thump Sweden to get World Cup liftoff

Cody Gakpo and Brian Brobbey both scored twice as the rampant Netherlands thrashed Sweden 5-1 in a World Cup warning on Saturday in Houston.
21 June 2026

The illusion of dominance

For decades, football has been increasingly defined by numbers. Possession, shots, expected goals (xG), completed passes and touches inside the opposition box have become the modern language of football analysis.
21 June 2026

Brazil get the win, not the spark

Brazil shrugged off their World Cup opener disappointment with a 3-0 win over Haiti in their second Group C outing at the Philadelphia Stadium yesterday, but it was still not the resounding performance expected from a side chasing a record-extending sixth world title.
21 June 2026

Dalot defends Ronaldo, hits back at Portugal critics

Dalot also revealed that the players were deliberately shielding themselves from the backlash on social media.
20 June 2026

1000th World Cup kick-off awaits Tunisia and Japan

Renard faces an immediate test against a Japan side he regards as Asia's best.
20 June 2026

'Everybody's crying'

The 62 shots combined were the most without a goal in any two-match span in the World Cup on record in data collected since 1966.
20 June 2026

How many points are needed to advance to the World Cup knockouts?

As the weekend’s action across Canada, Mexico and the United States begins to give the group standings some shape, so the calculators will come out to start determining what the minimum requirement will be to advance to the last 32.
20 June 2026

Morocco impress with free-flowing football but fail to turn style into goals

Morocco have a natural scorer leading their attack in Ismael Saibari, who lashed home from an angle after 71 seconds against Scotland – the quickest strike of this year’s World Cup.
20 June 2026

7 and counting: ‘Own goal’ leads World Cup scoring charts

At this rate, the 2026 edition is on a direct trajectory to shatter the all-time World Cup record of 12 defensive mishaps, set during the 2018 tournament in Russia.
20 June 2026

Why Almiron saw red: A look at the new World Cup rules

In the third minute of first-half stoppage time, Almiron was sent off after covering his mouth while speaking to Turkey defender Mert Muldur during a confrontation. The dismissal was issued under one of the new FIFA regulations introduced for the 2026 World Cup.
20 June 2026

Germany meet Ivory Coast in high-stakes clash, Sweden face Dutch

History will be made in another of Saturday's games as Japan face Tunisia in Monterrey, Mexico for the 1,000th game at a World Cup.
20 June 2026

Day 9 at a glance: Heroes, records and a red card

Matias Galarza and Ismael Saibari registered the quickest goals of these global finals. The Paraguay midfielder scored after merely 64 seconds against Turkey, while the Morocco forward was on target after 69 against Scotland.
20 June 2026

The star Tunisia let slip away

Ayari overshadowed his better-known teammates Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres in the 5-1 win on Sunday and is expected to start against the Netherlands on Saturday.
20 June 2026

10-man Paraguay eliminate Turkiye with tense 1-0 win

Ten-man Paraguay eliminated Turkiye with a courageous defensive effort to seal a dramatic 1-0 win on Saturday after suffering a dismissal before halftime, with the fastest goal of the World Cup proving the difference.
20 June 2026

Ancelotti hails Brazil's 'complete performance'

Coach Carlo Ancelotti said Brazil produced a "complete performance" in Friday's 3-0 World Cup win over Haiti and will continue to improve ahead of the knockout phase.
20 June 2026