USA play first World Cup finals game on home soil since 1994

Los Angeles, United States: The United States begin their World Cup challenge on Friday, taking on a savvy Paraguay side in a high-stakes match in Los Angeles.

The World Cup co-hosts know that they must avoid a banana skin at the futuristic SoFi Stadium in the first World Cup finals game on US soil for 32 years. freshyourfeel.org

US head coach Mauricio Pochettino says that he expects his team to do much more than simply progress from Group D.

"For me, successful is to win, is to win tomorrow and win after," the former Tottenham coach said on Thursday.

"If we don't arrive to the final and we don't win the World Cup, to talk about 'successful'? I don't know."

A talented crop of US players led by Christian Pulisic need to prove themselves against the world's best, while dealing with the pressures of playing in front of their own fans.

Pulisic insisted that the squad around him is "able to compete with anyone."

"We want to be a real force in this tournament," he told AFP.

"We've got three really good games to show everyone what we're all about."

Pochettino, an Argentine, has insisted that his team need to be equal to the streetwise South Americans.

"We know we have to be ready to battle. It's not about just playing beautiful football," said Pulisic.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will attend the opening match. President Donald Trump has said that he would be present at other games in the tournament, without specifying which ones.

The game in Los Angeles will be preceded by a Hollywood-style opening ceremony featuring Katy Perry and a host of music stars.

In Friday's other game, co-hosts Canada go in search of the first World Cup win in their history as they tackle Bosnia-Herzegovina in Toronto.

Canada must do without their star player Alphonso Davies, who is still recovering from a hamstring issue.

Dramatic opener

The World Cup kicked off in dramatic fashion in Mexico City on Thursday where Shakira and Nigerian singer Burna Boy got the packed 80,000 crowd at the Estadio Azteca on their feet.

Co-hosts Mexico beat South Africa 2-0 in a game that featured three red cards.

Julian Quinones scored the opening goal of the tournament after nine minutes and 35-year-old striker Raul Jimenez headed in Mexico's second at the Azteca, which became the first stadium in the world to host games at three World Cups.

There was a festive atmosphere inside the stadium, but outside dozens of protesters clashed with police in chaotic scenes.

Groups of teachers, relatives of Mexicans who have gone missing, and student activists gathered outside the stadium.

Some protesters broke through barriers and traded blows with police officers guarding the stadium's perimeter moments after Mexico scored their opening goal.

Mexico's victory launched a 48-team tournament that will culminate in the final in New Jersey on July 19.

South Korea got their World Cup campaign off to a winning start by beating the Czech Republic 2-1 in the opening day's second game.

Until the 80th-minute mark, it seemed that the Czechs would punish the Koreans' wastefulness in front of goal, but substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu notched the decisive goal in a Guadalajara stadium that was far from full.

The start of the action on the pitch will have come as a welcome relief to football's world governing body FIFA, which has faced stinging criticism over the eye-watering cost of tickets.

In addition, Trump's immigration crackdown has seen a top referee, Iranian team officials, and fans refused entry to the United States.

Portuguese legend Cristiano Ronaldo said on Friday that he was feeling "very positive" before flying out of Lisbon with his team to their base camp in Palm Beach, Florida.

"I believe things will go well and that we will put in a good performance," said the 41-year-old who will be competing in a record sixth World Cup.

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LE MANS, France: Team Qatar’s preparations for its historic debut entry in the 24 Hours of Le Mans continued at the Circuit de la Sarthe yesterday with a further two practice sessions and Hyperpole qualifying.

In an extremely competitive session, Team Qatar just missed out on advancing to Hyperpole 2 by fractions of a second and will line up 12th on the grid in the LMGT3 class for the 94th running of the world’s most famous endurance race.

Missing out on the top ten by just 0.072 seconds around the 13.6km lap underlined just how ultra-competitive the LMGT3 class is.

At the wheel of the Qatar-liveried Mercedes-AMG, German Silver-rated driver Julian Hanses took to the track for qualifying at 20:00 last night. He delivered the fastest lap the team has achieved all week, recording a time of 3m54.771s at an average speed of 208.9km/h.

“It’s been a special moment for me. Not many people can say that they have qualified at Le Mans, and to do it in a Hyperpole session makes it even more special,” said Hanses. “I didn’t manage to achieve Hyperpole 2 in the end, but I was happy with my performance.

“This is the highest level of motorsport and a few hundredths of a second can make the difference, with multiple cars covered by a tenth. We need to push to the absolute limit and this is what we are here for.”

The day’s on-track running started with the third Free Practice session, with three hours available to prepare the car for the weekend’s twice-round-the-clock race. Qatar’s Abdulla Al-Khelaifi was first behind the wheel.

Hanses then took over and, towards the end of his stint, began to push. He set Team Qatar’s best time of the session, recording a 3m55.232s lap before Giuliano Alesi took over, bringing the team’s total to 38 laps and securing 14th place on the timesheets.

Following the excitement of qualifying, the final one-hour practice session took place after sunset, allowing drivers to become acclimatised to the nighttime conditions. Al-Khelaifi headed out first before Hanses and Alesi also enjoyed time behind the wheel. Between the three of them, they completed 12 laps, with the best time placing them 20th in class with a 3m57.866s lap.

“It’s been another strong and encouraging day for the Team Qatar by Iron Lynx outfit as we continue our preparations for our historic first entry into the 24 Hours of Le Mans,” said Abdul Rahman bin Abdul Latif Al Mannai, President of the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation (QMMF) and Lusail International Circuit (LIC).

“Yesterday’s Hyperpole 1 qualifying session demonstrated just how fiercely competitive the LMGT3 class is at Le Mans. To miss out on progression by such a small margin highlights the extraordinary level of competition in this field.

“I am immensely proud of the progress this team has made in such a short period of time and now our focus shifts to the race itself, as we look forward with great anticipation to taking our place on the grid in this historic moment for Qatari motorsport.”

Furthermore, Abdulrahman bin Abdul Latif Al Mannai, President of the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation and Lusail International Circuit, met with international media during a specially arranged press conference in the Team Qatar Hospitality, where he outlined the vision behind this historic entry.

He was joined on the panel by Iron Lynx Team Principal Andrea Piccini, Mercedes-AMG Head of Customer Racing Stefan Wendl, and all three Team Qatar drivers as they discussed the team’s landmark participation in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the first time.

In addition, a series of media interviews and meet-and-greet sessions were conducted throughout the afternoon, ensuring that Team Qatar’s presence was felt across the paddock and throughout the day.

The crews will return to the track for a brief 15-minute warm-up at 12:00 local time on Saturday before the 94th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans gets underway at 16:00.

Doha, Qatar: The FIFA World Cup 2026 is already guaranteed to be unlike any previous edition of football’s biggest tournament.

With a record 48 participating teams, 104 matches, three host nations and an expanded knockout stage, the tournament will rewrite several chapters of World Cup history.

Yet beyond the structural changes and record-breaking numbers, another historic milestone could be within reach: the possibility of witnessing a new all-time leading goalscorer in FIFA World Cup history.

For nearly 12 years, former German striker Miroslav Klose has held the record as the highest goalscorer in World Cup history with 16 goals.

Klose surpassed Brazilian legend Ronaldo Nazário during the 2014 World Cup and has remained alone at the summit ever since.

However, as the world prepares for the 2026 tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico, two active superstars remain within striking distance of the Germans’ record: Argentina captain Lionel Messi and France forward Kylian Mbappé.

Having already completed football’s ultimate achievement by lifting the World Cup trophy in Qatar 2022, Messi could have another piece of history within reach in 2026.

The Argentine legend has scored 13 World Cup goals across five tournaments, Germany 2006, South Africa 2010, Brazil 2014, Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022, leaving him just three goals behind Klose’s all-time record.

Messi’s World Cup goals have come against Serbia and Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran, Nigeria (four goals), Australia (two goals), Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Netherlands, Croatia, and France.

Should Argentina make another deep run in North America, Messi would have a realistic opportunity to become the most prolific scorer in World Cup history.

While Messi enters the tournament as one of football’s greatest veterans, Mbappé arrives as perhaps the biggest threat to Klose’s record.

The French star has already scored 12 World Cup goals despite appearing in only two tournaments, Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022.

His goals have come against Peru, Argentina (two), Australia, Denmark, Poland (three), France’s opponents in the 2022 final, Argentina (three goals), and Croatia.

At just 27 years old during the 2026 World Cup, Mbappé could potentially surpass not only Messi and Klose but also establish a record that may stand for decades.

قال مدرب المنتخب النرويجي ستاله ستولباكن، امس، إن هناك «نفاقا عاما» يحيط بالسياق السياسي لكأس العالم 2026 في الولايات المتحدة، وذلك عقب المشكلات التي واجهها أحد لاعبي المنتخب العراقي عند وصوله إلى البلاد.
وخلال مؤتمر صحفي في مدينة غرينزبورو بولاية كارولاينا الشمالية، حيث أقام المنتخب النرويجي معسكره الأساسي، سُئل ستولباكن عن حالة أيمن حسين، المهاجم البارز في المنتخب العراقي، الخصم الأول لمنتخب النروج.
وبحسب شبكة «سي بي إس»، فقد تم احتجاز اللاعب لمدة سبع ساعات من قبل عناصر الجمارك وحرس الحدود الأمريكية في مطار شيكاغو، مساء الجمعة، عند وصوله مع بعثة منتخب «أسود الرافدين».
وقال ستولباكن: «نتفق جميعا على أن ما حدث غير ضروري، وأن الكثير من الأمور كان يمكن التعامل معها بشكل مختلف، لكننا جميعا منافقون».