'Thank you Los Angeles for your hospitality'
New Zealand midfielder Sarpreet Singh, the first Sikh footballer to play at a FIFA World Cup, hopes his historic appearance will inspire more players of Indian and South Asian heritage to reach football's biggest stage.
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.
Australia secured their spot in the World Cup's round of 32 after a 0-0 draw against Paraguay. The Socceroos finished second in Group D and will face the second-placed team from Group G. Paraguay now faces an anxious wait to see if they qualify as one of the best third-placed teams.
Manchester City and Belgium footballer Jeremy Doku became a father, welcoming a baby boy named Praise with his wife Shireen. He temporarily left the national team's FIFA World Cup camp in the USA to be present for the birth in London, a decision supported by the Belgian Football Association despite some public criticism.
Following a dominant group stage performance, Argentina is now preparing to face Cape Verde in the Round of 32.
Iran twice came from behind to earn a 2-2 draw with New Zealand in their opening World Cup match on Monday after an end-to-end contest played against the backdrop of Iranian fan protests against the government in Tehran.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday signed the historic peace deal between the United States and Iran as a guarantor; the agreement will see the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the lifting of the US naval blockade.
The top 32 teams at the FIFA World Cup 2026 are now confirmed after a dramatic and exhausting group stage that came to a close on Saturday.
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.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is set to attend the BRICS National Security Advisors meeting in New Delhi on June 22-23. The high-level gathering will address international security challenges, regional issues, and prepare for the upcoming BRICS Summit in India. Wang Yi is also expected to hold bilateral talks with India's NSA Ajit Doval, focusing on India-China border issues.
A record eight players aged 40 or older have been selected to play at the tournament in Canada, Mexico and the United States - one more than at all the past 22 tournaments combined.
Belgian winger Jeremy Doku faces a personal dilemma during the World Cup as his wife is due to give birth to their first child. He hopes to be present for the birth, potentially requiring him to leave the tournament.
The 2026 World Cup has witnessed an unusual number of own goals in its opening 10 days, with seven already recorded, making it the second-highest tally in tournament history. The United States has benefited from two such incidents. This trend is notable given the tournament's expansion and could surpass the 2018 record of 12 own goals. Several players from different nations have contributed to this statistic, highlighting a peculiar aspect of the early matches.
At the Iran-Belgium FIFA World Cup match, least one attendee wearing a pre-revolutionary flag shirt was detained for trying to run onto the pitch and Iranian player Alireza Jahanbakhsh said after the match that he doesn't want to keep focusing on the challenging situations faced by his team.
The Iranian football team is facing significant travel restrictions in the US during the World Cup, requiring them to enter and leave within 24 hours of matches. This has led the Football Federation of Iran to lodge a formal complaint with FIFA, citing concerns over fair play and technical preparation, while US authorities maintain the measures are for safety and security.
Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House Task Force for the World Cup, confirmed that the US will continue to assess Iran's travel arrangements for the tournament despite their complaints about restrictions.
Ten-man Belgium dominated possession but could not break down a disciplined Iranian defence, with goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand producing a string of saves to preserve the result in the Group G encounter.
South Africa will look to bounce after a 2-0 loss to co-hosts Mexico in their opening FIFA World Cup match.
Iran's World Cup football team has finally received visas to enter the United States, just days before their first match in Los Angeles.
'Producers were ready to pay me obscene amounts of money because after Rangeela, they thought if they took A R Rahman and Ahmed Khan, the film would be a hit.' 'There were no imported cars then, no mobile phones or online shopping, no house to run or any big kharcha. I was rocking!'
Oleksandr Usyk retained his WBC heavyweight title after stopping Rico Verhoeven in the penultimate round of their fight in Egypt. The fight was closer than expected, with Verhoeven putting up a strong challenge.
'Actual implementation of the 14-point agreement is proving hard to achieve let alone striking and sustaining a long-term treaty or deal.'
Morocco outmuscled Scotland for a 1-0 win thanks to the tournament's fastest goal on Friday, taking control of Group C in the World Cup and moving into top spot with one match left to play.
US President Donald Trump announced that a deal to end the war with Iran would be signed on Sunday, with the strategic Strait of Hormuz immediately becoming 'open to all'. This follows indications from Pakistan that negotiations were in their final stages, though Iran has yet to comment on the timeline.
Brazil is facing significant defensive challenges, particularly at right-back, ahead of their World Cup opener against Morocco.
Iran's coach and their key player said the national team will strive to bring joy and unity to Iranian people around the world, despite war and other tensions making their FIFA World Cup adventure uniquely challenging.
Displaced Palestinians in Gaza are overcoming power cuts, poor internet and ongoing insecurity to follow the FIFA World Cup, finding brief moments of joy and escape amid the hardships of war and displacement.
Iran's football federation has requested FIFA to clarify the timeline for issuing tournament visas after relocating their World Cup training camp from Arizona to Tijuana due to diplomatic friction and visa complications.
Indian squash player Veer Chotrani defeated Abhay Singh in the opening round of the World Squash Championships in Giza, Egypt. Chotrani will face Mostafa Asal in the next round.
Hours after warning that the United States could strike Iran "very hard tonight", President Donald Trump announced to halt planned military action, despite earlier threats to target Kharg Island and other key Iranian oil facilities.
Karandeep Kochhar, in excellent form with three top-10 finishes this season, will lead a 10-member Indian contingent at the USD 2 million International Series Morocco golf tournament. He will be joined by other prominent Indian golfers including Anirban Lahiri.
For Iran's team, the FIFA World Cup has been marred by fraught politics at home, the war with the US, and tensions over whether they would actually be able to set foot on US soil to play their games.
Iran's national soccer team will sleep in Mexico and travel to the US on the days of its three FIFA World Cup matches after Washington declined to host the squad for the tournament.
Indian javelin throw superstar Neeraj Chopra would hope that his lengthy injury-forced absence from competition does not affect his rhythm when he returns to action against an in-form line-up of heavyweight rivals in the familiar environs of the Doha Diamond League on Friday.
Iran's national soccer team, currently training in Tijuana, Mexico, will be able to enter the US the day before each of their three World Cup matches, the Department of Homeland Security said on Tuesday.
A US-Iran memorandum of understanding is set to be signed, outlining sanctions relief, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and a 60-day negotiation window for Iran's uranium enrichment, but US President Donald Trump has underscored the deal's conditional nature, warning of military action if Tehran fails to comply.
Iran's football federation announced its World Cup ticket allocation has been revoked just days before the tournament, leaving many fans unable to attend.
Iran's World Cup campaign has left many Iranian-Americans torn between supporting Team Melli and opposing the country's leadership, highlighting deep divisions within Los Angeles' influential Iranian diaspora.
