Zinedine Zidane's France were held to a 1-1 draw by Italy in their Nations League match at the Stade de France. Michael Olise opened the scoring for France, but Alessandro Bastoni equalised for Italy. The match also saw France reduced to 10 men late in the game. In another Group A1 fixture, Belgium secured a dominant 3-0 victory over Turkey.
Belgium secured top spot in Group G and a place in the World Cup round of 32 after a dominant 5-1 victory over New Zealand.
Belgium look to have found their best playing style at the World Cup after thrashing co-hosts the US 4-1 on Monday, but the successful tinkering of coach Rudi Garcia has come at a cost to his top players.
Inter Milan and Napoli secured victories in their Serie A openers, while Racing Lens and Olympique Lyonnais also began their Ligue 1 campaigns with wins, setting an early pace in their respective leagues.
Bruno Fernandes surpassed Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne to set a new Premier League record for assists in a single season.
King Philippe of the Belgians visited the national football team to offer his support and encouragement ahead of their FIFA World Cup 2026 quarter-final match against Spain. He shared a meal, received a signed jersey, and praised their performance, expressing confidence in their victory. Both teams have had strong runs to the quarter-finals, with Belgium overcoming several challenges and Spain maintaining an unbeaten record.
Paris St Germain, Bayern Munich, and Napoli all secured crucial victories in their respective European football leagues, with Ferran Torres, Harry Kane, and Stanislav Lobotka scoring decisive goals. Juventus, however, suffered a late defeat to Sassuolo.
Former Arsenal manager and FIFA's Chief of Global Football Development Arsene Wenger has backed Kylian Mbappe's France to win the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2026, saying Spain are the only team capable of stopping the two-time champions because of their superior technical quality.
Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes also emerged as the Premier League's best playmaker this season when he created a league-high 132 chances.
Belgium, who missed a slew of scoring chances against Iran on Sunday, have taken only two points from their opening two matches despite entering the tournament as favourites to progress from the group.
Portugal and Croatia's World Cup last-32 clash on Thursday could be Cristiano Ronaldo or Luka Modric's final game on soccer's biggest stage, and the massive moment will unfold at the tournament's smallest venue.
Manchester United defeated Nottingham Forest 3-2 at Old Trafford as Bruno Fernandes equalled the Premier League assist record and Michael Carrick moved closer to securing the manager's job permanently.
Scott McTominay's early strike lifts Napoli to second in Serie A, while Lens thrash Angers 5-1 to go top of Ligue 1.
Belgium drew 1-1 with Egypt in their World Cup opener after Romelu Lukaku's second-half introduction led to an own goal. Egypt had taken an early lead through Emam Ashour, and despite Belgium's numerous chances, they struggled to equalise until Lukaku's impact. Both coaches reflected on the match, with Belgium's coach highlighting the importance of their next game against Iran, and Egypt's coach feeling his side was closer to victory.
Multi-champions Brazil, Argentina and Germany all won their preparatory games for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Saturday, although by small margins, with former champion England and hopeful Portugal also securing victories.
The FIFA World Cup 2026 quarter-finals are set, featuring a diverse lineup of one South American, one African, and six European teams, including defending champions Argentina and France, alongside surprise packages like Morocco and Norway, all vying for football's ultimate prize.
Napoli's injury concerns deepened in the second half when David Neres was seen limping off. The stoppage sparked a brief flashpoint between the two sides.
The official 26-man squads for FIFA World Cup 2026.
Captain Kevin De Bruyne scored in his penultimate game at Etihad Stadium as Manchester City beat Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-0 on Friday to climb to third in the Premier League and boost their chances of Champions League qualification.
Harry Kane scored his 36th goal of the season but Bayern Munich let a second-half lead slip to draw 2-2 with Hamburg SV.
Manchester United defeated Aston Villa to strengthen their position in the Premier League top four, while Liverpool were held to a draw by Tottenham Hotspur.
Kevin De Bruyne lifted 19 trophies at City since his 2015 move from German side VfL Wolfsburg -- a haul that includes six Premier League titles and one Champions League crown.
IMAGES from Serie A matches played on Sunday
Kevin De Bruyne will leave Manchester City after a decade at the club having lifted six Premier League titles, as well as winning the Champions League and Club World Cup in 2023.
'The club and all of our fans will now take the time to deliver a fitting tribute and farewell to one of the greatest players to ever play in the Premier League.'
Manchester City gave Kevin De Bruyne a victory in his final appearance at Etihad Stadium, as Omar Marmoush scored a stunner in a 3-1 Premier League win over Bournemouth on Tuesday that saw them climb to third in the table.
IMAGES from football matches played across Europe on Sunday
The result was only their second two-goal defeat in a qualifier, the last being the infamous 5-1 home thrashing by England in 2001.
Liverpool's Salah named Premier League player of the season, Gravenberch best youngster
Wright blasts Man City's Haaland for throwing ball at Arsenal's Gabriel
Premier League takes its responsibility very seriously and do a great job: Michael Owen
Erling Haaland roared back to his best form with a five-goal salvo as Manchester City thumped Luton Town 6-2 at Kenilworth Road to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup on Tuesday.
The 22-year-old German is Liverpool's most-expensive signing ever, ahead of captain Virgil van Dijk who joined for 75 million pounds in 2017.
Shubman Gill met some of Manchester City's treble winning stars during their open-top bus parade in Manchester on Monday.
Guardiola optimistic of De Bruyne's quick return
France's perfect record in their World Cup qualifying campaign ended as they were held to a 2-2 draw away to Iceland who got a late equaliser in an entertaining Group D clash on Monday.
Winning back-to-back titles for the first time since 1984 is likely to prove a rather more arduous challenge for Liverpool.
Manchester City and Chelsea both secured their Champions League places with victories on the final day of the English Premier League season and Newcastle United joined them despite stumbling to a last-day defeat.
Ukraine came from behind to beat visitors Belgium 3-1 in the first leg of their Nations League playoff on Thursday
Benzema and Courtois helped Real seal a record 14th European title last season while De Bruyne guided City to the Premier League title -- his fourth crown in seven seasons at the club.
