The FIFA World Cup takes place in Russia from June 14 to July 15.
- Follow the Los Angeles Times for full coverage of the tournament.
- From jerseys to star players: A novice’s guide to World Cup teams
- 2026 World Cup is awarded to North America
- With the home team out, here are 10 World Cup teams worth cheering.
- Who will you be rooting for?
- Who’s better, Ronaldo or Messi? The World Cup could end the debate.
- A closer look at the technology inside the 2018 World Cup soccer ball.
Here’s the biggest takeaway for the 2022 World Cup
If one thing became obvious during the World Cup’s month-long run in Russia, it’s that Qatar is going to need a bigger country.
More than 1 million visitors flooded Russia, packing Red Square, partying along Samara’s riverfront embankment and strolling the canals of historic St. Petersburg. But Russia is the largest country in the world. What happens when that many people show up four years from now in Qatar, which is smaller than Connecticut and has fewer people than Orange County?
“What we saw in Moscow, which has two stadiums, is that a city can be very quickly overwhelmed by big crowds,” senior Qatari official Nasser Al Khater said. “The fact you’re going to have the fans of 32 teams pretty much in a city, I think, is going to be electrifying.”
World Cup finalists get big welcomes home
The World Cup finalists received heroes’ welcomes at home Monday, with hundreds of thousands of well-wishers clogging the Champs-Elysees in Paris to greet the victorious French team while a red-and-white checkerboard carpet was rolled out in Zagreb for runner-up Croatia.
At the French presidential palace, captain and goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, brandishing the golden World Cup trophy, and coach Didier Deschamps, winner of the award as both a coach and player, were the first to greet President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, on a red carpet in the courtyard.
“Eternal Happiness” was Monday’s headline in sports daily L’Equipe.
Building toward World Cup victory began with France’s Euros loss
Didier Deschamps, captain of France’s first World Cup champion in 1998, coached the second one Sunday and said the title might not have been won but for the disappointment of losing the European Championship two years ago in Paris.
France entered the Euro final unbeaten but couldn’t score against Portugal, losing 1-0 in extra time. It was a crushing defeat but one Deschamps said set the foundation for the World Cup victory.
“Two years ago, it was so, so painful,” he said. “Maybe if we’d been European Champion we wouldn’t be world champions today. I learned a lot through this final.”
Sampaoli out as Argentina coach
Jorge Sampaoli is out as Argentina coach, two weeks after his team was beaten by France in the World Cup round of 16.
The Argentina soccer federation says it reached a “mutual agreement” to terminate his contract.
Sampaoli took over in May 2017 to revive Argentina’s faltering World Cup qualifying campaign. The team did advance to play in Russia but failed to beat Iceland, then slumped to a 3-0 loss against eventual runner-up Croatia.
Sampaoli’s role running the team seemed to be marginalized as senior players Lionel Messi and Javier Mascherano exerted influence.
Croatian fans proud of team despite disappointment of World Cup final loss
Euphoria gave way to a mixture of disappointment and pride for Croatia fans after their national team lost to France in its first ever World Cup final.
The entry into the World Cup final in Russia brought the country of 4 million people to a standstill Sunday after officials and the media described the event as the biggest in Croatia’s sports history.
“Croatia has fallen as a hero!’ proclaimed the Index news portal. “Croatia’s team has managed to unite the whole country!”
Fans in the capital, Zagreb — many wearing the team’s red-and-white checked shirts or wrapped in national flags — crammed into squares and streets and were full of hope and cheers until the last moment.
As the game ended 4-2, they couldn’t hide sadness, but many said they were impressed by what Croatia achieved at the tournament.
“Of course I am sad. I could see them lift the trophy, but this is really fantastic,” Aleksandar Todorovic said. “We were great!”
Waving flags and singing songs, the fans kept up their spirits as the crowd partly dispersed from Zagreb’s main square.
Firecrackers went off as the state TV proclaimed that “we are still not aware of what we have done.” Many fans went on celebrating into the evening.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said the national team is “the first in the world for me.”
“People are happy as if we have won, and that’s the way it should be,” Plenkovic added. “This is a miraculous success for Croatia, and we should be very, very happy.”
The fans were particularly proud that the team captain, Luka Modric, won the Golden Ball after being voted the best player of the World Cup.
“We have achieved so much,” the 26-year-old Sofia Halinovcic said. “This is the best ever we did.”
Halinovcic contended that “we had great expectations, but we still need to process what we have done.”
Croatia is planning a huge welcome ceremony for its players on Monday that will include celebrations at the main square in Zagreb and a reception with the country’s president.
France wins second World Cup title, beating Croatia 4-2
How else should one of the most wild, unpredictable and entertaining World Cups in recent memory end, but with one of the wildest, most unpredictable and entertaining finals in recent memory.
France and Croatia followed that script perfectly in a game that included an own goal, a penalty-kick goal, video replay and a goalkeeper gaffe that led directly to the final score. When the dust had settled France was the champion, winning 4-2 in the highest-scoring World Cup final since 1966.
It was also France’s second title in 20 years.
Pele congratulates teenage sensation Mbappe
The great Pele has acknowledged Kylian Mbappe’s remarkable tournament that culminated with the France forward becoming just the second teenager to score in a World Cup final. No guessing who is first.
Pele was 17 when he scored twice in Brazil’s 5-2 win over Sweden in the 1958 final.
Mbappe, 19, scored France’s fourth goal in the 4-2 win over Croatia in Moscow and was voted young player of the tournament.
Belgium beats England to finish third in World Cup
Belgium earned its highest World Cup finish by beating England 2-0 in the third-place match on Saturday in St. Petersburg. The goals came from Thomas Meunier and Eden Hazard, once in each half.
“These players didn’t want to rely on talent anymore, wanted to work as a team,” said Belgium coach Roberto Martinez, who has managed most of his career in England. “Their standards have been magnificent. They wanted to make the country proud.”
Meunier’s early goal matched a World Cup record with Belgium having 10 players score in a tournament, something done only twice before — by France in 1982 and Italy in 2006. Hazard added the other off a pass from Kevin De Bruyne in the 82nd minute.
On France’s World Cup roster, soccer DNA outranks national origins
To the French national motto liberté, égalité, fraternité you can probably go ahead and add diversité, at least as far as its soccer team is concerned.
Because at a time of rising xenophobia and an anti-immigrant backlash on both sides of the Atlantic, France has made it to Sunday’s World Cup final against Croatia with one of the most diverse and multiethnic rosters of any national team in any sport.
Sixteen of the 23 players on the team come from families that recently immigrated to France from places like Zaire, Martinique, Cameroon, Morocco, Angola, Congo or Algeria. Forward Antoine Griezmann, the team’s leading scorer, is half-German and half-Portuguese. Defender Samuel Umtiti, who scored the goal that sent France to the final, was born in Cameroon. Teenage prodigy Kylian Mbappe is part Cameroonian, part Algerian.
Soccer has been part of Croatia’s identity even before there was a Croatia
A couple of weeks before the Croatian national team left for Russia and the start of a surprising World Cup run that has carried it to Sunday’s final, fans of Dinamo Zagreb, the country’s most important club team in its largest city, gathered before a monument at Maksimir Stadium, a spot they consider hallowed ground.
It was there, at a soccer stadium, the fans say, that the country’s battle for independence kicked off.
“To all the Dinamo fans for whom the war started on May 13, 1990 and ended with them laying down their lives on the altar of the Croatian homeland,” an inscription on the monument reads.
World Cup: How Belgium and England match up in the third-place game
Croatia’s tank far from dry after three extra-time wins
Croatia’s players should have been tired Wednesday during their World Cup semifinal with England.
They had already played two extra-time games in the tournament’s knockout stage, winning both in penalty-kick shootouts. No team had ever won three straight overtime games in a World Cup. Until now.
Croatian captain Luka Modric said his team embraced the challenge of doing things the hard way, adopting the motto “We will see who will be tired” as a rallying cry.
Belgium has others to thank for its new-found prowess
Kevin de Bruyne said a big factor in Belgium’s recent rise to global prominence in soccer is the fact this generation was the first to send its players in great numbers to top-flight foreign leagues to play and learn.
On the 1986 Belgium team, the first to play in a World Cup semifinal, 20 of the 22 players competed for club teams in the country’s domestic league. This year’s team, by contrast, has just one player — defender Leander Dendoncker — playing at home.
“Belgium has a lot of talent but until 15 years ago, nobody was playing outside of Belgium,” said de Bruyne, who has played in the German Bundesliga and the English Premier League. “Then (Vincent) Kompany and (Marouane) Fellaini went and others thought ‘let’s sign more Belgium players.’ And that has helped.”
Croatia advances to World Cup final with 2-1 win over England
Mario Mandzukic’s goal four minutes into the second overtime Wednesday capped a wild comeback and sent Croatia into Sunday’s World Cup final with a 2-1 win over England.
The victory makes Croatia the first country to win three consecutive extra-time games in the same World Cup; it won the first two in penalty-kick shootouts. Wednesday’s victory, which ended at nearly midnight local time, also concluded a streak that saw Croatia play six hours of World Cup soccer in 11 days.
It has another 90 minutes — at least — coming up Sunday in the World Cup final with France. England will meet Belgium in the third-place match Saturday.
England riding high on World Cup success as Wimbledon also creates a racket
England is a nation unified and deliriously divided.
The world’s best tennis players typically own center stage during these two weeks of Wimbledon. But this year, they have stepped to the edge of the spotlight for the country’s surprising soccer team, which has advanced to the World Cup semifinals for the first time since 1990.
A spot in Sunday’s final is up for grabs Wednesday when England plays Croatia in a showdown that has this nation transfixed. As a result, Wimbledon officials are forced to relax their rigid rules of Centre Court that hold that spectators must switch off their phones and devices during play. When England is playing a World Cup game, tennis fans in those prime seats will be allowed to follow on their phones and tablets as long as they don’t disturb the people around them.
France defeats Belgium 1-0 to advance to World Cup final
When the spotlight has shone on France in this World Cup, it has illuminated Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe, Olivier Giroud and Paul Pogba, the team’s attackers. And that made the team’s defenders as anonymous as the French Foreign Legion.
But when coach Didier Deschamps needed them the most, those anonymous defenders came up big Tuesday, shutting down Belgium in a 1-0 victory that sends France to its third World Cup final in 20 years.
The French will play the winner of Wednesday’s semifinal between England and Croatia on Sunday in Moscow.
Jordan Pickford has saved England’s World Cup hopes in more ways than one
A year ago Jordan Pickford was a talented young goalkeeper with just one full season of first-division experience, no national team call-ups and a reputation built more on promise than proof.
On Wednesday he’ll start against Croatia in a World Cup semifinal in Moscow, with a chance to take England to a promised land it hasn’t seen since 1966. And nothing has done more to fuel England’s historic run than Pickford’s rapid rise from prodigy to polished shot-stopper.
He was the difference in England’s Round-of-16 game with Colombia, which England won in a penalty-kick shootout. And he followed that by shutting out Sweden in the quarterfinals. Almost forgotten was the fact that that game was just the eighth of Pickford’s international career.
Croatia didn’t pay the penalty for misses this time around
For Luka Modric it was like déjà-vu all over again.
When the Real Madrid midfielder lined up for a penalty kick in extra time of a round-of-16 game with Denmark 10 days ago, he had a chance to send Croatia on to the World Cup quarterfinals. Only his weak try was gobbled up by Kasper Schmeichel, preserving the tie and sending the game to a shootout to decide who would advance.
Ten years earlier, in the first knockout round of the European Championship, Modric lived a similar nightmare, failing to convert a penalty try in a game Croatia would go on to lose to Turkey.
How England and Croatia match up in the World Cup semifinal
Migrant workers got World Cup started and have kept it going
Invisible to the crowds flocking to World Cup venues all over Russia are legions of migrant workers from Central Asia, who built the stadiums and keep them running, staff concession stands, and clean up after fans who revel through city streets.
They are among millions of migrants who perform menial jobs across Russia, and face routine police harassment and ethnic profiling. Yet they are a pillar of the economy and aid Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s geopolitical strategy — and without them, Russia might not have managed to host a World Cup at all.
“Migrants made up the main workforce” in the construction of stadiums and transport infrastructure for the tournament, Valery Solovei, a professor at Moscow’s MGIMO foreign policy institute and an expert on immigration and nationalism, told the Associated Press. “Without migrant workers, Russia couldn’t have built all these things so quickly.”
How Belgium and France match up in the World Cup semifinal
Spain already has a new coach after disappointing World Cup
Spain’s football federation says former Barcelona coach Luis Enrique has been appointed to take charge of the national team.
He replaces Julen Lopetegui, who was sacked on the eve of the World Cup after accepting the job at Real Madrid, with Fernando Hierro taking temporary charge for the finals in Russia.
Enrique, 47, has signed a two-year contract.
“The decision has been unanimous,” federation President Luis Rubiales said. “I like his commitment. He has let better financial opportunities pass in order to be national team coach.
“This coach fulfills all the parameters to take charge of the team. Enrique is bringing his backroom staff, but this is a matter he will speak about next week.”
Enrique, as both player and coach, didn’t fit the typical model of the cerebral tactician steeped in the ways of Barcelona. But his fiery spirit proved to be just as successful— while it lasted.
He started out as a player for his local Sporting Gijon team on Spain’s Atlantic coast. He then won one league title while playing for Real Madrid before moving to fierce rival Barcelona in 1996, where he went on to win two more Liga crowns and became the captain before retiring in 2004.
Overall, Enrique’s achievements compare well to Pep Guardiola’s. Barcelona won nine of a possible 13 titles in his three years in charge, compared to 14 of a possible 19 trophies in four seasons under Guardiola.
At his presentation as Barcelona’s coach, Enrique said his strength was motivating players. “I don’t rely too heavily on tactical know-how, instead I focus on managing a group, managing egos,” he said.
“There is work that goes on during the week, work based on knowing each player. I try to be everything a leader is.”
Enrique achieved his greatest success at the beginning of his stint at Barcelona. The improvement was immediate. With Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez scoring lots of goals, Barcelona repeated the rare treble of Champions League-Spanish league-Copa del Rey titles first won under Guardiola.
France’s last World Cup hero using expertise to help Belgium reach final
The first time Antoine Griezmann met Thierry Henry he was 7. Henry had just helped France to its only World Cup title and Griezmann, who could barely reach the player’s waist on tippy-toes, wanted an autograph.
Had a video of the meeting not surfaced recently, the moment might have been forgotten to all but Griezmann. In it Griezmann and a pint-sized friend chase down Henry and, after bending over to sign a soccer ball, the player turns to a pair of teammates and says “they’re our successors.”
On Tuesday, Griezmann has a chance to make Henry either a prophet or a profiteer when he leads France into the World Cup semifinals against Belgium. If Griezmann wins, he will have proven a worthy successor indeed by taking France to a World Cup final for the first time since Henry retired from the national team eight years ago.
A little Pep talk is giving England a World Cup boost
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has never coached a game at the international level, yet his influence was considered partly responsible for the success of the last two World Cup champions and could play a role in next Sunday’s final was well.
Here’s how the “Pep Effect” has worked: When Guardiola was managing Barcelona in Spain’s La Liga, six of his players started for the national team in the 2010 World Cup final, which Spain won. Four years later Guardiola was in the Bundesliga at Bayern Munich and six of his club’s stars played in the 2014 World Cup final, which Germany won.
Neither team has won a knockout game since.
Neymar’s fall leaves World Cup without a superstar
The last Latin American team is out of the World Cup, meaning Europe will extend its hold on soccer’s biggest prize to 16 years by the time the next tournament rolls around in 2022.
Brazil’s departure means the competition in Russia will finish without a widely recognized international superstar, the kind of player who gets casual fans from Austin to Auckland to turn on their television sets and watch soccer.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, who have combined to win the last 10 world player of the year awards, both went out one game into knockout stage. Brazil’s exit in the quarterfinals in a 2-1 loss to Belgium on Friday takes Neymar, the world’s most expensive player, with it.
England reaches semifinals after beating Sweden 2-0
England achieved something David Beckham’s generation never managed: It reached the semifinals of the World Cup.
Harry Maguire and Dele Alli scored with headers in a 2-0 win over Sweden on Saturday, earning England a match against either Croatia or host-nation Russia for a place in the final.
England has advanced further than was widely expected. Not even the England side from the early 21st century, containing stars like Beckham, Steven Gerrard and a young Wayne Rooney, ever got this far at a major tournament.
Russia’s surprising World Cup run ends in shootout loss to Croatia
Croatia defeated host Russia 4-3 in a penalty shootout Saturday night to advance to a World Cup semifinal against England.
The quarterfinal at Sochi was tied 1-1 after regulation and 2-2 after extra time, forcing both Croatia and host Russia to a shootout for the second consecutive game.
Ivan Rakitic scored the winner from the spot as Russian goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev dived the opposite direction. Akinfeev made on save during the shootout and nearly had another on Luka Modric, but the shot deflected off Akinfeev’s hand, off the post and into the net.
Alex Ovechkin brings Stanley Cup with him to World Cup
Alex Ovechkin has brought the Stanley Cup to the World Cup.
The Washington Capitals captain took the NHL trophy to a fan zone in Moscow where World Cup games are screened. With the Russian national guard providing security, Ovechkin lifted the cup above his head in front of a crowd of fans, who were allowed to take photos with the trophy.
“The cup is with us. The cup is in Moscow, Russia,” Ovechkin said. “I am very happy for the people that can see it and touch it. I am very, very happy.”
Ovechkin said he wishes the Russian soccer team well in its quarterfinal match against Croatia in Sochi.
“The national team did a great a job for the fans. Everyone is so happy. Miracles can happen. We are not far away from the final,” he said. “We need to fight, and our players understand it. They will do everything that they can.”
Ovechkin won his first Stanley Cup championship a month ago in his 13th season in Washington.
Other Russian NHL players are also interested in soccer. Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins posted a picture on Instagram showing himself on a luxury jet with Ilya Kovalchuk of the Los Angeles Kings and Alexander Radulov of the Dallas Stars.
“Flying to Sochi” was the caption.
Belgium savors 2-1 victory over Brazil, moves on to face France in semifinals
Since taking over as coach of the Belgian national team two years ago, Roberto Martinez has kept the focus on preparing for the next win rather than celebrating the previous one.
He briefly broke from that approach Friday after beating Brazil 2-1 in a World Cup quarterfinal in Kazan, a win that lifted Belgium into the tournament’s final four for the first time in 32 years.
It was a victory, Martinez admitted, that deserved to be savored.
European team guaranteed title
Losses by Brazil and Uruguay on Friday reduced the World Cup to a European championship with the tournament’s final six teams all calling the continent home.
Neighbors France and Belgium have already advanced to next week’s semifinals while the remaining quarterfinals Saturday will send England against Sweden and Croatia against Russia. When those games are concluded it will mark just the second time since 1982 that the final four of a World Cup have all come from the same FIFA confederation.
It also happened in 2006 when Italy, France, Germany and Portugal reached the semifinals.
A look at Saturday’s World Cup quarterfinal games
Belgium survives late push from Brazil, 2-1, to advance to semifinals
Belgium reached the World Cup semifinals for the first time in 32 years by holding off five-time champion Brazil 2-1 Friday, sending Neymar home without living up to the expectations of being soccer’s most expensive player.
Kevin De Bruyne put Belgium up 2-0 by completing a counterattack led by Romelu Lukaku in the 31st minute.
The opener came after a bit of good fortune. Fernandinho’s trailing arm inadvertently helped Belgium captain Vincent Kompany’s header land in his own net in the 13th.
As Belgium lost cohesiveness in the second half and Brazil’s changes stirred the team, substitute Renato Augusto reduced the deficit with a header in the 76th.
But it was too late for Brazil to muster an equalizer as efforts to force the game into extra time were thwarted by Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.
Belgium will face France in the semifinals on Tuesday in St. Petersburg.
France advances to World Cup semis with 2-0 win over Uruguay
Antoine Griezmann set up one goal and scored another Friday as France became the first team to clinch a spot in the World Cup semifinals with a 2-0 win over Uruguay before a crowd of 43,319 at Nizhny Novgorod Stadium.
The semifinal appearance is the first for France since 2006, when it lost the World Cup final to Italy on penalty kicks. For Uruguay, which was missing leading scorer Edinson Cavani to a calf injury, the loss was its first in Russia. The South Americans were bidding for their second semifinal berth in three World Cups.
France’s semifinal opponent will be determined in Friday’s late game between Brazil and Belgium in Kazan.
Numbers back France’s claim of being soccer’s dominant nation
Ask Didier Quillot who he is supporting in the World Cup and the chief executive of France’s first-division league pauses to work up the proper amount of disdain before answering.
“Who am I for? For France, obviously,” he eventually said Wednesday. “I am French. So I am a supporter of my country. “
The answer really isn’t that obvious, though, because Quillot’s league has 19 players spread across the rosters of six of the eight teams in the tournament quarterfinals. The leading scorers for Uruguay and France play in Ligue 1. Goalkeeper Danijel Subasic, the hero of Croatia’s victory in the round of 16, plays in France. So does Brazil’s Neymar, arguably the best player left in the tournament.
Russia’s performance in World Cup — and the country’s history — are raising doping suspicions
During the 2014 Sochi Winter Games, the last major international sporting event held in Russia, athletes from the host country topped the medal count with 33, including 13 golds. It was a performance that seemed too good to be true.
And it was. Seven months ago, the International Olympic Committee sanctioned 43 athletes after an investigation into a state-run doping program, planned for years to ensure dominance at the Sochi Games.
Twenty-eight athletes were later reinstated, but the stain of one of the most elaborate and successful doping ploys in sports remained. That doubt now hovers over the country’s soccer team, which entered the World Cup ranked 70th yet finds itself among the final eight teams.
World Cup quarterfinals a class conflict between soccer’s rulers and its climbers
There is a prominent square in this central Russian municipality dedicated to the revolutionary writer Maxim Gorky, for whom the city was once named.
For much of the past month World Cup visitors have been pouring through the park, taking pictures of the massive 23-foot statue of Gorky at its center and visiting the museum housed in the Art Deco mansion where he spent his last five years. And while Gorky probably wouldn’t have thought much of the tournament or the tourists, as a master of the social realism literary style he would have found inspiration in World Cup quarterfinals that have reduced to a class conflict between soccer’s bourgeois and its proletariat.
In one half of the bracket are three former champions in France, Uruguay and Brazil who have combined for eight titles; on the other side, three teams that have never lifted the trophy.
French star Antoine Griezmann has his heart on both sides of quarterfinal match-up
When France and Uruguay face off in a World Cup quarterfinal here Friday, French star Antoine Griezmann may have trouble remembering which team he’s playing for.
Lined up against him will be Juan Maria Gimenez and Diego Godin, two of his teammates at Spain’s Atletico Madrid. In fact Griezmann and Godin are so tight, the Uruguayan captain is the godfather of Griezmann’s daughter.
Add to that Griezmann’s affection for mate, a Uruguayan drink, the fact he speaks Spanish with a Uruguayan accent and has been pictured wearing the team’s jersey and, well, things could get complicated.
England advances to World Cup quarterfinals by defeating Colombia in a shootout
MOSCOW — England ended its long run of penalty misery and reached the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time in 12 years, beating Colombia 4-3 in a shootout on Tuesday.
Eric Dier scored the decisive kick after a 1-1 draw.
England will play Sweden in the quarterfinals in Samara on Saturday. It is the furthest England has progressed in any tournament since the David Beckham era, when a golden generation of players exited the 2002 and 2006 World Cups in the last eight.
England took the lead in a scrappy match when Harry Kane scored from the penalty spot in the 57th minute. Yerry Mina headed in an equalizer in the third minute of stoppage time.
England trailed 3-2 in the shootout after Jordan Henderson’s shot was saved, but Mateus Uribe hit the bar and goalkeeper Jordan Pickford then saved Carlos Bacca’s kick.
World Cup TV ratings in the U.S. are down 42% without American team
The lack of a U.S. team caused a big viewership drop for World Cup telecasts.
The 48 group stage telecasts on Fox and FS1 averaged 2.069 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. That is down 42% from the 3.54 million average on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC four years ago and down 15% from the 2.429 million average on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC eight years ago.
Excluding games involving the U.S. team in previous World Cups, the average declined 28% from the 2014 tournament in Brazil and was up 1% from the 2010 tournament in South Africa.
Most group-stage kickoff times this year were morning EDT, starting as early as 6 a.m., and the latest matches began at 2 p.m. Games in 2014 started mostly from noon to 4 p.m. EDT, while in 2010, there were many matches at 10 a.m. and some as early as 7:30 a.m.
Twenty-six group-stage matches were aired on Fox, up from six on ABC in 2014 and four on ABC in 2010.
Ratings include only television viewers and not those who viewed digital streams.
Sweden edges Switzerland to reach World Cup quarterfinals
Sweden has advanced to the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time since 1994 with a 1-0 win over Switzerland.
The Swedes took the lead in the 66th minute at St. Petersburg when Emil Forsberg’s right-foot shot deflected off defender Manuel Akanji and past the wrong-footed Yann Sommer.
Forsberg also cleared a corner off his own line to preserve Sweden’s lead in the 80th minute.
Referee Damir Skomina awarded Sweden a penalty in stoppage time for a foul by Michael Lang on Martin Olsson but overturned his own decision after a review showed Lang’s push was just outside the area. Lang was sent off for the challenge.
Sweden will play the winner of Tuesday’s later match between England and Colombia at Spartak Stadium in Moscow.
Belgium rallies from two-goal deficit to beat Japan 3-2
Belgium has rallied from 2-0 down to beat Japan 3-2 with a goal in the dying seconds and advance to a World Cup quarterfinal match against Brazil.
Nacer Chadli finished off a length-of-the-field movement late in stoppage time for the clincher Monday night at the Rostov Arena. It’s the first time since 1970 that a team has rallied to win a knockout game from 2-0 down at a World Cup.
Midfielders Genki Haraguchi and Takashi Inui scored in the 48th and 52nd minutes to give Japan a surprising 2-0 lead.
Jan Vertonghen started the comeback when he scored with a looping header in the 69th and another substitute, Marouane Fellaini, headed home Eden Hazard’s cross from the left in the 74th.
What was expected to be a mismatch ended up a classic match.
Belgium was one of only three teams to win all three group games and topped the tournament scoring list with nine goals in the group stage. Japan narrowly scraped through to the knockout stage in the tightest of tiebreakers against Senegal — after both teams finished level in Group G — because it had a better disciplinary record at the tournament.
Japan has now lost in the round of 16 three times and has never reached the World Cup quarterfinals.
Brazil and Neymar eliminate Mexico from World Cup with a 2-0 victory
Mexico’s World Cup is over, ending in a 2-0 loss to Brazil on a sultry evening at Cosmos Arena on Monday.
Brazil got second-half goals from Neymar and Roberto Firmino to hand Mexico a loss in the first game of the knockout round for a seventh consecutive World Cup. El Tri hasn’t made it past the Round of 16 since 1986 and has never won a World Cup elimination game outside Mexico.
For Brazil, the win extends its streak of reaching the quarterfinals to seven straight World Cups. Upsets in this tournament have already claimed the last two World Cup finalists and the last two World Cup winners.
Mexico took down one of those giants, stunning reigning champion Germany in its opener. But it couldn’t get past Brazil, a team it has never beaten — and never scored upon — in World Cup competition.
Brazil’s quarterfinal opponent will be determined in Monday’s late match between Belgium and Japan.
The game in Samara, Russia, kicked off in sweltering 92-degree temperatures, making it as much a struggle for survival as it was a soccer match. Both teams slogged through a scoreless first half in which Mexico did not put a shot on goal and Brazil tested Mexican keeper Guillermo Ochoa three times.
It was the first knockout game in this tournament not to have a goal in the first half but the 20th overall to be scoreless at the half. Only one of those previous games ended 0-0 and this one wouldn’t either after Neymar scored the game’s first goal in the 51st minute.
The Brazilian talisman started the sequence by walking the ball across the top of the 18-yard box before sliding to Willian with a back-heel pass. The Chelsea midfielder then brought the ball into the area on the left side and sent a low left-footed cross past Mexican defender Miguel Layun to the front of the goal, where a sliding Gabriel Jesus just missed getting a foot on it.
But Neymar, sliding in tandem just behind Jesus, didn’t miss, poking the ball into the gaping net with his right foot for his second goal in three games.
The goal was the 227th for Brazil in World Cup play, breaking a tie with Germany for all-time high.
Mexico, playing without a clear home-field advantage for the first time in Russia — the crowd of nearly 42,000 was evenly split — tried to come back, with Carlos Vela bending a left-footed shot toward the crossbar in the 60th minute. But Brazilian keeper Alisson lifted it over the goal for his first save of the game.
He wouldn’t be called on to make another as Brazil posted its third consecutive shutout, running its scoreless streak to 310 minutes.
That allowed Firmino, a second-half substitute who had come on just two minutes earlier, to tack on an insurance goal in the 88th minute. With Mexico pushing numbers forward, Neymar and Firmino were launched on a counterattack, and when Neymar’s right-footed shot from the left side strayed, Firmino was there to tap it in to secure the win.
Croatia advances to World Cup quarterfinals by defeating Denmark on penalty kicks
Danijel Subasic saved three penalties to help Croatia reach the World Cup quarterfinals with a 3-2 shootout victory over Denmark following a 1-1 draw on Sunday.
Ivan Rakitic scored the decisive penalty after Subasic had used his feet to stop an attempt from Nicolai Jorgensen.
Croatia captain Luka Modric, who also scored in the shootout, had a chance to put his team ahead late in injury time, but his penalty was saved by Denmark goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel.
Croatia will next face host Russia in the quarterfinals on Saturday in Sochi.
Denmark took the lead in the first minute when defender Mathias Jorgensen scrambled in a shot that went in off Subasic’s left hand and then the left post. It was Denmark’s fastest World Cup goal.
Croatia equalized in the fourth minute with another untidy goal at Nizhny Novgorod Stadium. Henrik Dalsgaard’s clearance hit a teammate and fell for Croatia forward Mario Mandzukic to hook the ball in.
The teams stayed even for the next 116 minutes, including the 30 minutes of extra time.
Another World Cup shocker: Russia upsets Spain in penalty-kick shootout
Russia shockingly eliminated Spain from the World Cup, surviving two hours of dominance by the 2010 champions in a 1-1 draw before winning a penalty-kick shootout 4-3.
Russia’s captain and goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev saved spot-kicks from Jorge “Koke” Resurreccion and Iago Aspas, and four of his teammates scored without a miss.
Akinfeev used his trailing left foot to kick the ball high away from the goal on Spain’s last attempt by Aspas. The veteran goalkeeper leapt up, punched the air with both hands and leapt into a belly flop dive on to the rain-soaked turf as teammates raced to him from the halfway line.
The World Cup’s lowest-ranked team now advances to a quarterfinal against Croatia or Denmark in Sochi on Sunday.
“I just feel emptied out,” Akinfeev said. “Over the whole second half and extra time we were defending our goal and managed it, we were hoping for penalties because Spain are hard to beat. Spain can’t always be lucky.”
It gave Russia its greatest win in international soccer for 10 years, since Akinfeev was in goal for an extra-time victory over the Netherlands in a European Championship quarterfinal. That run was ended days later by a Spain team beginning its era of dominance.
Spain has now failed to win a knockout game at three major tournaments since it won Euro 2012.
Defeat Sunday likely spells the end of Andres Iniesta’s career. The veteran Barcelona midfielder came off the bench and almost won the game with an 85th-minute shot well saved by Akinfeev. Iniesta also scored the first spot-kick of the shootout.
Spain was more urgent in extra time after being too passive when it dominated the ball in the 90 minutes of regular time.
Akinfeev pushed away a 109th-minute shot from substitute Rodrigo who ran hard at goal from near the halfway line. He also ensured the game needed 30 extra minutes with back-to-back diving saves in the 85th to deny substitutes Iniesta and Aspas.
Spain dominated the ball during the game — completing more than 1,000 passes — but was too passive against a well-organized Russian defense.
Spain led in the 12th minute when captain Sergio Ramos helped force Russia’s Sergei Ignashevich into an own goal when his back was turned to the play. The 38-year-old defender diverted a crossed ball into the net with his heel as he and Ramos got tangled up.
An error in Spain’s defense let Russia level in the 41st, after Gerard Pique’s raised arm blocked a header by Artyom Dzyuba at a corner. Pique’s complaints were wasted. Referees and video officials have consistently penalized handballs in the box at this World Cup.
Dzyuba’s penalty kick fooled goalkeeper David De Gea to dive the wrong way.
No team? No problem for Chinese World Cup sponsors
China does not have a team in the World Cup — it finished fifth in its six-team group in Asian qualifying — but it does have a lot of fans in Russia, where the country’s economic clout has given it a huge presence.
Nearly 43,000 World Cup tickets were sold in China, more than were purchased in 26 countries that did send a team to Russia. Chinese fans purchased less than 11,000 tickets to the last two World Cups combined.
And corporate China is even more prominent at this summer’s tournament.
Mexico is relishing a chance to make history against Brazil
If Mexico had taken care of business in its final group-stage game with Sweden, it would be facing Switzerland in the round of 16 this week, safely tucked in the softer side of the World Cup bracket alongside Russia, Denmark and Colombia.
Instead, it will play in the elimination round Monday against Brazil, a team it hasn’t beaten in more than six years — and one it has never bettered in a World Cup.
Yet for captain Andres Guardado, it’s the ideal matchup.
Edinson Cavani scores twice in Uruguay’s 2-1 win over Portugal
Edinson Cavani scored twice and Cristiano Ronaldo none, giving Uruguay a 2-1 victory over Portugal on Saturday at the World Cup.
On the same day, Lionel Messi was sent home in Argentina’s loss, the other “GOAT” at this tournament that also was eliminated. It was two weeks ago that Ronaldo scored a hat trick in the same stadium against Spain, stroking his chin after the first goal to imply he was the “greatest of all time.”
Uruguay, a two-time champion that reached the semifinals at the 2010 World Cup, will next face France on Friday in Nizhny Novgorod.
There was no goal from Ronaldo this time. Everywhere he went, the Portugal great was hounded by two or three Uruguayan defenders.
It was Cavani who instead took the spotlight. He combined with Luis Suarez to compete a series of precision passes to give Uruguay the early advantage with a header in the seventh minute. And after Portugal equalized on Pepe’s header in the 55th minute, it was Cavani again finishing a perfect Uruguay counter in the 62nd with a shot from just inside the penalty area that caught Portugal goalkeeper Rui Patricio slightly out of position and curled inside the far post.
Colombia star James Rodriguez misses practice
James Rodriguez was the only Colombia player who didn’t take part in training Saturday, raising further doubts about whether he will be fully fit for the World Cup knockout match against England.
Rodriguez, who was the top scorer at the 2014 World Cup, has been bothered by a calf injury since the start of the tournament in Russia.
He left the field in the 31st minute of Colombia’s 1-0 victory over Senegal on Thursday night, but his injury has never been officially disclosed as the reason for the substitution.
Colombia’s national team hasn’t clarified how serious the injury is. The South Americans face England on Tuesday at Spartak Stadium in Moscow.
Before training on Saturday, midfielder Carlos Sanchez and backup goalkeeper also didn’t shed any light on Rodriguez’s recuperation.
“James is a leader, but I’m also sure that if James isn’t there, there are others who can step in and make the difference,” Sanchez said. “Each member of the team’s squad is here to play and they have the experience.”
Rodriguez missed two training sessions before Colombia’s first group match against Japan and didn’t start in the 2-1 loss. He was fit enough to play a full 90 minutes in the second match against Poland in the 3-0 win.
With Colombia facing England on Tuesday, the possibility that Rodriguez wouldn’t be fit enough to play would be a major headache for coach Jose Pekerman.
“It’s not a secret to anybody what James means for us, not only in football terms, but for the group. But I stand by what Carlos says,” Colombia goalkeeper Camilo Vargas said. “At the level of the national team, everyone has the hope of giving their best.
“Whatever happens, all 23 players have that dream.”
David Silva says Spain needs to use speed against Russia
With Russia expected to defend in numbers, Spain’s speed and attack will be crucial in their last-16 match at the World Cup.
One of the players on which the 2010 champions will be relying to cut through the host’s back line is David Silva.
He scored for Spain in its 3-0 win over Russia in the semifinals of the European Championship in 2008, the last time the two teams played in a competitive fixture.
“Sometimes these teams ‘park the bus’ in front of us, and it’s hard to handle,” he said through an interpreter Saturday. “If we play very fast up front, we’ll have more options and generate spaces in which we can hurt them.”
After tough matches in a group also containing Portugal, Iran and Morocco, Silva and coach Fernando Hierro both called on Spain to be more meticulous and cut down on errors.
“It was a very tough group, and we need to minimize our mistakes. That’s the key,” Silva said. “If in difficult matches we start handing out goals to the opposition, things are going to be difficult for us, so we need to tighten up our defending.”
The winner of the match goes on to face either Croatia or Denmark in the quarterfinals.
Hierro never expected to be leading Spain into the knockout stages of this World Cup — at least not until his predecessor, Julen Lopetegui, was fired as coach two days before the tournament.
Despite that disruption, Hierro said Spain has been able to do detailed research on its opponents, and Russia is no different. He stressed that his team will need to counter Russia’s physical strength and their success at set pieces.
“So we need to find their weak points and where we can hurt them,” Hierro said through an interpreter.
Plans can change, and he noted that Russia has switched its style since the two teams drew 3-3 last year.
“We’re not going to lose any sleep over all these variables,” Hierro said. “I have done all the work I could, and I have a team which can adapt to any situation. That’s our strength.”
Argentina defender Javier Mascherano quits after loss to France
Javier Mascherano has announced he’s retiring from the national team after Argentina was eliminated from the World Cup.
“It’s time to say goodbye and for the younger players to step in,” the 34-year-old midfielder said.
Argentina had a 2-1 lead early in the second half, but France, often choosing to attack Mascherano, rallied to win 4-3 and become the first team to advance to the World Cup quarterfinals.
Mascherano, who has played at four World Cups, made his debut for Argentina in 2003 when he still hadn’t played professionally for River Plate.
He holds the record for most appearances for Argentina, with 147.
Now, the defensive midfielder says it’s time for a new generation to shine: “Hopefully, they can achieve something. Now I’m one more fan of the national team.”
Mbappe becomes second teenager to score twice in knockout stage game as France eliminates Messi and Argentina
Teenager Kylian Mbappe scored two goals in a five-minute span to lead France over Argentina 4-3 Saturday and into the World Cup quarterfinals.
The loss could be the end of Lionel Messi’s international career.
Mbappe, a constant threat to Argentina’s creaking defense with his speed and skill, was at the heart of France’s often-breathtaking display, particularly in the middle part of the second half.
With the score even at 2-2, the 19-year-old Mbappe got his first goal with a cool finish from a tight angle in the 64th minute, his low shot going under Argentina goalkeeper Franco Armani. Four minutes later, he slotted past Armani again after he was put through on goal by a deft pass from Oliver Giroud.
Mbappe also helped France to its first goal. Following a sustained period of early pressure, he won a penalty after a 40-meter burst of speed that ended with him being brought down by Marcos Rojo. Antoine Griezmann then scored from the spot in the 13th minute, sending Armani the wrong way.
France will next face either Portugal or Uruguay in the quarterfinals on Friday in Nizhny Novgorod.
Argentina briefly took the lead in the 48th minute at Kazan Arena, but France defender Benjamin Pavard equalized nine minutes later with a superb strike from outside the area.
Argentina got its goals from Angel Di Maria, Gabriel Mercado and Sergio Aguero. Messi set up the latter two, first sending a shot on goal that Mercado deflected into the net in the 48th.
With time winding down, the 31-year-old Messi gave Argentina a bit of hope with a cross to the left that Aguero headed into goal in stoppage time.
Di Maria’s goal was one of the best of the tournament.
Following a throw-in, he hit a hard shot from 30 yards that curled into the top right corner, beyond the dive of France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
World Cup’s knockout phase gives teams a second chance at greatness
Roberto Martinez believes the best way to win a World Cup is to have won one before.
“To be a favorite in a World Cup you need to have the know-how of winning a World Cup or have a reference of a previous generation that won the World Cup,” the Belgian coach said. “So for me there’s only five nations that [have] that.”
That’s good news for Brazil, France, Spain and Argentina, who have all won World Cups since 1986 and have made it to the knockout phase in this summer’s tournament.
Mexico focuses on first two wins, not loss to Sweden
Mexico is on to the final 16 for a seventh straight World Cup, and goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa says the team should be recognized for how it got there, not for the fact that it almost tripped on its way through the door.
“We are in the next round, thanks to the first two games and to the six points we got,” said Ochoa, whose team beat Germany and South Korea before getting blown out 3-0 by Sweden in the group-play finale on Wednesday, nearly ending its tournament.
“We deserve the credit. We don’t like [Wednesday’s] result, but we have a very important game next.”
Belgium edges England 1-0 to win Group G
In a match neither team had to win, Belgium came out on top and took first place in its World Cup group with a 1-0 victory over England on Thursday in Kaliningrad, Russia.
Adnan Januzaj scored with a curling shot in the 51st minute on a night of little tension or attacking intent.
With the victory, Belgium gets what appears to be an easier match in the next round against Japan on Monday in Rostov-on-Don. England will face Colombia on Tuesday in Moscow.
Both teams had advanced to the round of 16 before the match.
Although Belgium was the winner of the group, it might have the tougher road to the final with Brazil, Portugal, France and Argentina possible future opponents. If England gets past Colombia, it could face Spain, Russia, Croatia, Denmark, Sweden or Switzerland on its way to a possible final.
Belgium is one of only three teams to advance to the knockout round with 3-0 records from the group stage. Croatia and Uruguay are the others.
England and Belgium made a combined 17 changes to their starting lineups to rest players for the knockout round. Harry Kane, the leading scorer at the tournament with five goals, was on the bench for England. So was Romelu Lukaku, who has scored four for Belgium.
In the other Group G game, Tunisia captain Wahbi Khazri set up a second-half goal and then scored one of his own to help his side secure its first victory in a World Cup in four decades.
The striker’s hard, rising shot in the 66th minute lifted Tunisia to a 2-1 triumph over Panama on Thursday night. It came 15 minutes after Khazri’s pinpoint square pass produced Fakhreddine Ben Youssef’s equalizer.
Panama had taken the lead in the 33rd minute through an own-goal when Jose Luis Rodriguez’s hard shot deflected off of Yassine Meriah, which sent the goalkeeper the wrong way.
Tunisia hadn’t won a World Cup game since a 3-1 victory over Mexico in 1978.
Japan loses to Poland but moves on to knockout round
Japan advanced to the knockout round at the World Cup on a tiebreaker: fewer yellow cards than Senegal.
The Japanese lost to Poland 1-0 Thursday in their final group match, but they still reached the round of 16 because Colombia beat Senegal 1-0.
Both Japan and Senegal finished the group phase with four points, had the same goal difference and the same amount of goals scored. Starting at this year’s tournament, disciplinary records — known as fair play — were added by FIFA as a tiebreaker. Japan had four yellow cards in its three group matches while Senegal had six.
Poland, which had already been eliminated, got its goal from defender Jan Bednarek in the 59th minute. He beat his marker at the far post and volleyed in a swerving free kick from Rafal Kurzawa.
Japan has reached the knockout round at the World Cup three times in the last five tournaments.
Colombia advances while Senegal is eliminated by ‘fair play’ tiebreaker
Yerry Mina scored on a header in the 74th minute and Colombia defeated Senegal 1-0 Thursday to advance to the World Cup knockout stage. Senegal became the first team ever eliminated by a new tiebreaker — number of yellow cards.
Poland defeated Japan 1-0 in the other Group H match. Japan and Senegal were tied on all tiebreakers except “fair play points,” based on yellow and red cards. Japan had four yellow cards, Senegal had six.
Colombia, which played in the quarterfinals four years ago in Brazil, finished atop the group and is the fourth South American team to advance, joining Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil. Senegal’s elimination means no African teams are left.
Colombia and Japan go on to play opponents from Group G — either England or Belgium, who play later Thursday.
Bud Light to Mexico fans living in California: ‘Dilly Dilly!’
Here’s a look at Thursday’s World Cup games
Knockout stage seems to be lacking a Cinderella story
The clock will strike midnight on the World Cup on Thursday and Cinderella will go home empty-handed once more.
Many Cinderellas in fact.
And that robs the competition of some of its romance.
Mexicans shower Koreans with love after Asian team’s World Cup win over Germany
As Mexico fell behind by one goal, two goals and then three in its World Cup game against Sweden on Wednesday, Mexico fans across the world switched their television channels to another game that had suddenly become much more important.
With a loss to Sweden all but guaranteed, Mexico’s future in the tournament depended on South Korea beating Germany, or at least hold the reigning World Cup champion to a tie.
“Korea, Korea,” Mexican fans chanted in cantinas, plazas and anywhere else screens had been erected to broadcast the game. Never mind that only days before the same fans had been cheering against Korea when Mexico won 2-1.
Switzerland advances after 2-2 draw with Costa Rica
Switzerland has qualified for the round of 16 at the World Cup despite twice losing the lead in a 2-2 draw with Costa Rica, which had already been eliminated.
Costa Rica scored on a Bryan Ruiz penalty kick in stoppage time to tie the match Wednesday night, but it didn’t affect Switzerland’s progression as the second-place team in Group E.
Brazil topped the group after a 2-0 win over Serbia and will play Mexico. Switzerland will play Sweden.
Bjerim Dzemaili slammed in Switzerland’s first goal from close range after being set up by a header from Breel Embolo.
Costa Rica got its first goal in Russia when defender Kendall Waston headed in a corner early in the second to equalize.
Substitute Josip Drmic put Switzerland 2-1 up in the 88th minute. Ruiz’s penalty kick hit the crossbar and then bounced in off of goalkeeper Yann Sommer.
Brazil advances to round of 16 at World Cup, tops Serbia 2-0
Worried no more, Brazil is through at the World Cup.
Paulinho and Thiago Silva each scored a goal Wednesday to give the five-time champions a 2-0 victory over Serbia and first place in their group.
Brazil struggled in its opening two matches, first held to a 1-1 draw and then needing late goals to win the other. But they controlled this one.
Paulinho gave his team the lead when he met a lofted ball from Philippe Coutinho in the 36th minute. The defensive midfielder let the ball bounce in front of him near the penalty spot and kicked his right leg in the air to tap it over the goalkeeper’s fingertips.
Silva later scored with a powerful header in the 68th minute from Neymar’s corner.
Brazil finished first in Group E and will next face Mexico in the round of 16 on Monday in Samara. Serbia was eliminated, finishing third in the group behind Switzerland.
Fans stunned by Germany’s World Cup elimination
Germans shook their heads in disbelief Wednesday after their defending champion team was eliminated from the group stage of the World Cup in a 2-0 loss to South Korea.
Tens of thousands of fans watched the German team’s lackluster performance from Berlin’s “Fan Mile” — a major downtown street running from the landmark Brandenburg Gate to the Victory Column that was shut to traffic and set up as a public viewing area.
As the game wound down, people started sneaking away and then streaming home after South Korea’s second goal in the final minutes.
Germany needed a win to have a shot at advancing from Group F but conceded two goals in stoppage time in the loss to South Korea after squandering many chances to score. The result allowed Sweden and Mexico to advance.
“I don’t understand it,” said a disappointed Tim Mueller, a fan wearing a Germany T-shirt who lingered at the Fan Mile after many had left.
Like many, he directed his frustration at team coach Joachim Loew, who he said pursued too much of a defensive strategy. “I think honestly Loew must resign immediately, he needs to give it up,” Mueller said. “He couldn’t motivate the team and get them ready for the game.”
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert took the stiff-upper-lip approach, tweeting after the loss “Not our World Cup - that is sad! More tournaments will come where we can celebrate.”
Leaving a patio bar at Berlin’s Alexanderplatz, an upset Tiffany Tuchen said Germany gave up too many chances to win.
“I can’t believe it, my pulse was 180 the whole game, but they deserved to lose,” she said.
Her friend Kerstin Fahrenholz swore off watching any of the rest of the World Cup games, lamenting: “The worst case scenario actually happened.”
Berliner Juhan Szok said he was disappointed, but was trying to be optimistic.
“We’re out now, but there’s still the European Championship,” he said, referring to the European Football Championship coming up in 2020. “Then we’ll be European champions.”
Defending champion Germany is eliminated from World Cup after 2-0 loss to South Korea
Germany is out of the World Cup, the fourth defending champion in the last five tournaments to be eliminated in the group stage.
The four-time champions lost to South Korea 2-0 in Kazan, Russia, on Wednesday, allowing a pair of injury-time goals while knowing a 1-0 victory would have been enough to advance because of the result in the other group match.
Germany ended up last in Group F while Sweden and Mexico advanced to the round of 16. South Korea was also eliminated despite the victory.
It was the first time Germany has been eliminated in the first round since 1938.
Kim Young-gwon scored the first goal in the third minute of injury time. Originally called out for offside, the goal was then given after video review.
Son Heung-min made it 2-0 in the sixth minute of injury time after Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer came up the field to help his teammates outside the South Korea box. Son tapped the ball into an empty net after a long pass from Ju Se-jong.
Besides Germany this year, France in 2002, Italy in 2010 and Spain in 2014 were the previous defending champions to get eliminated in the group stage.
Mexico falls to Sweden but advances to knockout round with an assist from South Korea
Mexico’s World Cup is alive but only by the thinnest of margins.
Playing in Yekaterinburg, the easternmost World Cup city, on the border between Asia and Europe, Sweden got second-half goals from Ludwig Augustinsson, Andreas Granqvist and an own goal contributed by Mexican defender Edson Alvarez to stun Mexico 3-0.
But South Korea — and American referee Mark Geiger — rescued El Tri with Kim Young-gwon’s goal in extra time to beat defending champion Germany and save Mexico’s spot in the knockout round.
Kim’s goal was originally waved off by an offside call, but Geiger, after consulting video replay, correctly ruled that the ball had struck a German defender before bouncing to Kim, negating the offside. South Korea later scored on an unattended goal to win 2-0.
Had Germany won that game, Mexico would have become the first team to get six points in the first round of a World Cup yet fail to advance since the group-play format was adopted in 1950.
Sweden got its first goal in the 50th minute when Viktor Claesson, in the center of the penalty area, chipped the ball toward the edge of the six-yard box, allowing Augustinsson to use his left foot to redirect it in off the arm of Mexican keeper Guillermo Ochoa and across the line.
The second came 12 minutes later on a penalty kick by Granqvist, whose right-footed blast beat Ochoa high to the keeper’s right. The penalty kick was set up when Hector Moreno was whistled for a sliding tackle on Sweden’s Sebastian Larsson in the box.
Sweden closed out the scoring in bizarre fashion in the 74th minute when Claesson sent a long throw-in into the box. The ball was headed forward, dropping behind Sweden’s Ola Toivonen before glancing off Alvarez and bouncing into the goal.
Mexico, needing only a draw to win the group and advance, did not play cautiously, attacking for most of the afternoon. It had a 2 to 1 advantage in time of possession in a first half in which it also outshot Sweden. But Mexico struggled to break down a Swedish defense that kept as many as nine players behind the ball and put just one shot on goal in the first half.
Sweden’s swarming defense made things even more difficult for Mexico once it took the lead
The Swedes started quickly, getting three dangerous set-piece chances in the first five minutes. On the second it took a stout two-handed save by Ochoa to keep out a strong shot by Emil Forsberg from a tough angle to the left of the six-yard box.
Mexico answered with left-footed shots from Miguel Layun and Carlos Vela, but both went just wide. Mexico did catch a break in the 29th minute after a loose ball struck Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez in the arm while he was in the box, but Argentine referee Néstor Pitana, after consulting a video replay, declined to call it a hand ball.
On the ensuing corner — one of three Sweden had in the first half — Ochoa came up big again, turning away a shot from Marcus Berg. The half ended with Berg putting a final left-footed shot off the side netting.
But Ochoa, who has been brilliant in the tournament, had his luck run out in the second half when he didn’t get enough of Augustinsson’s shot to stop it, then guessed right on the penalty kick only to see Granqvist direct his shot perfectly into the corner.
He never got close to the ball that glanced off Alvarez.
Mexico’s Jesus Gallardo picks up fastest card in World Cup history
Jesus Gallardo on Wednesday received what FIFA is calling the fastest yellow card in World Cup history.
The Mexico fullback was booked for a hard tackle just 13 seconds into a match against Sweden.
The record for the fastest red card still belongs to Uruguay’s Jose Batista, who was sent off in the first minute against Scotland in 1986.
Croatia reserves halt hard-fighting Iceland 2-1 at World Cup
Fielding a side filled with reserves, Croatia ended Iceland’s first World Cup run with a 2-1 win in Rostov-on-Don, Russia.
Milan Badelj crashed a volley against the bar, and moments later scored for Croatia in the 53rd minute, sprinting into the area to fire a bouncing shot past goalkeeper Hannes Halldorsson.
Croatia playmaker Luka Modric led the already-qualified Croats for 65 minutes before being taken off, as his team remained in low gear for most of the match to contain the Icelanders, who had needed a win to hope for a place in the last 16.
Iceland equalized with a penalty shot taken by Gylfi Sigurdsson in the 76th minute after substitute Dejan Lovren carelessly handled the ball. But Ivan Perisic punished a defensive error to make it 2-1 at 90 minutes.
Russian fans at the 45,000-seat Rostov Arena rooted for the underdogs as the traveling Iceland supporters kept up their singing and chanting all evening.
Defender Sverrir Ingason twice threatened for Iceland, hitting the crossbar with a header in the second half.
Lionel Messi, Marcos Rojo score in Argentina’s 2-1 win over Nigeria
Argentina has scraped into the knockout stage of the World Cup after a tense 2-1 victory over Nigeria in a must-win last group game.
Defender Marcos Rojo scored in the 86th to secure the win with volley from the right to spark wild celebrations on the Argentina bench.
After Lionel Messi’s exquisite 14th-minute goal was canceled out by Victor Moses’ penalty in the 51st minute, Argentina was in danger of being eliminated without winning in Russia.
It took an unlikely goal by Rojo — a center back — to save Argentina and help the two-time world champion finish in second place behind Croatia in Group D.
Argentina will play France in the last 16 in Kazan on Saturday and Messi’s ambition of a first world title is still alive
In the simultaneous match in Rostov-on-Don, Croatia sent Iceland home with a 2-1 defeat on second-half goals by Milan Badelj and Ivan Perisic. Iceland had several chances to tie or take the lead, and a win would have seen them advance instead of Argentina.
France and Denmark advance to the knockout round after a scoreless draw
France got what it wanted and Denmark got what it needed Tuesday on the final day of play in Group C at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium.
What neither team got, however, was a goal. Not that it mattered, since the first scoreless draw of the World Cup was enough to give France the group title and Denmark a berth in the second round as runner-up when Peru beat Australia 800 miles away in Sochi, eliminating the Aussies.
France and Denmark will learn their opponents in the knockout stage after the final two Group D games later Tuesday.
With their fates largely decided before kickoff, neither Denmark nor France showed more than an occasional interest in scoring — in fact, Denmark spent part of the second half going backward, drawing jeers from many in the announced crowd of 78,011.
Peru defeats Australia 2-0 for first World Cup win since 1978
Peru has won its first game at the World Cup since 1978 with a 2-0 victory over Australia on Tuesday in the last match of Group C play.
Veteran striker Paolo Guerrero assisted on the first goal when Andre Carrillo volleyed the cross and beat Australia goalkeeper Mat Ryan in the 18th minute. Guerrero then got a goal of his own in the 50th minute, finishing a deflected cross from Christian Cueva. It was Peru’s first win since beating Iran in the 1978 tournament. They were winless in their previous eight World Cup matches but had not been in the tournament since 1982.
The Peruvians are going out on a high note this time, though, delighting the thousands of fans who made the trip from South America and flooded every city and stadium where they played. Carrillo’s goal started Peru’s party, and it only became louder and more joyful after Guerrero found the net.
Australia came out of its first two matches with only one point, but was still in contention to advance to the knockout stage. Needing a win, and help from France, the Socceroos were lackluster and their effort at times was sluggish. Even the addition of Tim Cahill and youngster Daniel Arzani in the second half failed to produce the spark Australia needed.
The 38-year-old Cahill appeared for the first time in this World Cup. Cahill was unable to become the fifth player to score in four World Cups, although he came close in the 60th minute when his shot was blocked by Christian Ramos in front of the goal.
Portugal advances after 1-1 draw with Iran
Cristiano Ronaldo’s missed penalty cost Portugal first place in its World Cup group on Monday.
Portugal finished second in Group B after a 1-1 draw with Iran. The 2016 European champions will next face Uruguay on Saturday in the round of 16.
Instead of Ronaldo, it was Ricardo Quaresma who scored for the Portuguese. The 34-year-old midfielder responded to his first start of the tournament by producing one of the more aesthetically pleasing goals of group play.
Quaresma hit a curling shot with the outside of his right foot from the edge of the penalty area that went beyond the reach of diving Iran goalkeeper Ali Beiranvand.
Quaresma’s goal came on a night when Ronaldo — who had scored all four Portugal goals in its first two games — was denied on a penalty shot.
Karim Ansarifard scored a late penalty for Iran.
Spain won the group after its 2-2 draw with Morocco. Both Spain and Portugal had a goal difference of plus-1, but Spain scored six goals in its three group matches while Portugal had five.
Spain will next face host Russia on Sunday.
Here’s a look at Wednesday’s World Cup matches
It has been a difficult tournament so far for reigning champion Germany, which lost its opener to Mexico then needed a goal deep in stoppage time to beat Sweden, keeping alive its hopes of reaching the knockout round.
Now it needs another win if it hopes to continue a streak of never exiting a World Cup in group play, although with the right circumstances, it could also advance with a draw.
Winless South Korea also has a path — albeit a narrow one — open to the second round. The easiest way through would be for the South Koreans to win and Sweden to lose, creating a three-way tie for second that would be broken on goal differential. If Sweden loses and South Korea beats Germany by two or more goals, the Koreans finish second.
Saudi Arabia sinks Egypt with injury-time goal
Saudi Arabia edged Egypt 2-1 after Salem Aldawsari scored with almost the final kick in a contest where both teams were trying to avoid the last spot in their World Cup group.
Saudi Arabia ends Group A in third place with three points and Egypt finishes with three losses.
Aldawsari scored from a tight angle inside the Egypt penalty area after poking past 45-year-old goalkeeper Essam El Hadary, who became the oldest person to take the field in a World Cup.
Mohamed Salah put Egypt ahead in the 22nd minute when he deftly controlled a long ball from Abdalla Said that split the Saudi defense and then nonchalantly lobbed the ball over goalkeeper Yasser Almosailem.
Salman Alfaraj got the Saudis level with a penalty kick in first-half stoppage time after Ali Gabr was adjudged to have brought down Fahad Almuwallad in the area. The decision was confirmed belatedly after a video review.
Uruguay downs host Russia 3-0, but both teams advance to knockout round
Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani scored a goal each and Uruguay went on to defeat Russia 3-0 on Monday, finishing undefeated in group play and handing the host nation its first loss of the World Cup.
Both teams were already assured of spots in the knockout round, but Uruguay’s victory put it at the top of Group A and looking toward a match in Sochi on Saturday against the second-place finisher from Group B.
Uruguay, which also benefited from an own-goal in the first half, had its third straight shutout of the tournament after consecutive 1-0 victories over Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
By advancing to the round of 16 with victories over Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Russia secured its best World Cup showing in the post-Soviet era.
Cristiano Ronaldo appeals for quiet to noisy Iranian fans outside Portugal’s hotel overnight before showdown
Hundreds of Iranian fans spent several overnight hours surrounding the hotel where Portugal’s national team is based, making loud noises in an attempt to disrupt their opponents’ sleep before a decisive World Cup match later Monday.
Superstar Cristiano Ronaldo was filmed by Portuguese TV RTP late at night by the window using gestures to ask the Iranian fans to be silent, but Monday morning there were still a few dozen of them playing loud music near the hotel in the Saransk city center.
Iran can only advance to the next stage of the World Cup if it beats the European champions. Portugal only needs a draw, but also aims to take the top position in Group B ahead of Spain.
Saransk police said they received their first calls about the noise about 11 p.m. Sunday, when a first wave of Iran fans arrived and started singing outside the hotel. That forced Ronaldo to show up, which convinced supporters to leave.
Then a second wave came and did not stop making noise for several hours. Police then blocked roads nearby, but the main avenue across the hotel was still open, which allowed Iran fans to keep their effort in smaller numbers.
Iran fan and IT consultant Mehdi Fayez arrived Monday morning after reading messages from supporters saying they needed to trouble Portugal to stand a better chance of winning the match.
“I love Ronaldo, I love Portugal, but this is a big game. We have to do all it takes,” a still joyful Fayez said as he held an Iranian flag on the back of his head.
Montreh Fayoud, one of the several Iranian women attending their first World Cup, disagreed.
“We were coming back from dinner and saw all these Iranians here. When I found the reason, I decided to leave,” she said.
At about noon on Monday Portugal players had a quick walk around the hotel, but it is uncertain whether they will walk around the city as they did before other matches in Russia.
Argentina’s lack of talent and philosophy are making it nearly impossible for Lionel Messi to succeed
Even before the start of the World Cup, the photographs invited mockery.
There was a picture of Lionel Messi gazing into the distance with his right hand on the back of a goat. Another of Messi cradling a kid goat in his arms.
The theme of the Paper magazine shoot and accompanying 2,000-word article was that Messi was soccer’s G.O.A.T. — greatest of all time.
World Cup goals are coming from surprising places, at dramatic times
Through the first 32 matches of this World Cup, there have been 85 goals scored, an average of 2.7 per game, matching the 2014 tournament in Brazil.
But it’s not so much the number of goals that have been scored as it is how and when some of them happened that’s surprising, with 12 coming in stoppage time, either at the end of the first half or at the end of the game, and 13 coming on penalty kicks, one more than were scored from the spot in all 64 games of the 2014 World Cup.
Belgian coach Roberto Martinez, whose team is tied for the tournament lead with eight goals in two games, credits the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) protocol for the rise in penalty-kick goals.
Winning changes everything for once-ridiculed Russian national team
Maybe Vitaly Milonov was right. Maybe all the jokes and sarcastic songs and abuse heaped on the Russian national team heading into the World Cup were misplaced.
Once dismissed as something of a national embarrassment, the Russian team has become a national treasure heading into Monday’s group-stage finale with Uruguay. It is already assured of a spot in the knockout stage of a World Cup for the first time since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, while the eight goals it scored in its first two games are tied for most in the tournament, and the most scored in the first two games by a World Cup host since 1934.
So maybe Milonov was simply ahead of his time when he joined a group of lawmakers in drafting a bill that would impose a fine of 10,000 rubles (about $160) on anyone who criticized the team. It turns out he need not have bothered; the team silenced the critics on its own.
FIFA investigating Switzerland’s ‘provocative’ celebration
Despite goal celebrations seen as inflaming political tensions with Serbia, the head of Switzerland’s soccer federation said Sunday he doesn’t expect FIFA to suspend his players.
FIFA has added a third Swiss player — captain Stephan Lichtsteiner — to an investigation of both scorers in a 2-1 win who made hand gestures of a two-headed eagle that is an Albanian national symbol. Lichtsteiner also made the gesture during the match.
Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri have ethnic Albanian heritage linked to Kosovo, a former Serbian province that declared independence in 2008. Serbia doesn’t recognize that independence.
A strict reading of FIFA’s rules suggests the key trio in Switzerland’s starting lineup could be ruled out until the quarterfinals.
“Anyone who provokes the general public during a match will be suspended for two matches,” the FIFA disciplinary code states.
FIFA’s disciplinary panel could impose only a fine and warning before Switzerland plays Costa Rica on Wednesday. The Swiss need a draw to reach the round of 16.
“I don’t have any concerns,” Swiss soccer federation president Peter Gillieron said Sunday in an interview published by Swiss news website “20 Minutes.”
Gillieron said he expected a quick decision from FIFA’s judicial body, and the country could be proud of a team which has four points from two games.
“It may be annoying but we have to accept it,” Gillieron said of the case. “We have to be aware that now football is just a priority.”
Both the Switzerland and Serbia teams played down any political factors before the game Friday. Shaqiri had posted a photograph on Instagram of his playing boots, one with a Switzerland flag on the heel and the other with a Kosovo flag.
However, a tense back-and-forth game saw Xhaka level the game in the second half and Shaqiri win it with a 90th-minute goal. Both players made the eagle symbol before running to celebrate with teammates in front of Swiss fans in the Kaliningrad stadium.
FIFA rules prohibit political gestures by players or fans, and let the disciplinary panel act on “serious infringements which have escaped the match officials’ attention.”
Xhaka, Shaqiri and Lichtsteiner would likely have been shown a yellow card at the time for their celebrations.
In further fallout from the Group E game, FIFA said Sunday it opened disciplinary cases against Serbia coach Mladen Krstajic and federation president Slavisa Kokeza for comments made after the game.
Serbia’s federation said if filed an official complaint, including videos of game action, with the sport’s governing body alleging “biased officiating” by German referee Felix Brych.
Colombia comes alive in 3-0 win; Poland eliminated
Radamel Falcao’s first World Cup goal led Colombia to a 3-0 victory over Poland on Sunday and kept the team in the running for a spot in the knockout round.
Poland was eliminated.
Falcao, who missed the 2014 World Cup because of a knee injury, made it 2-0 with a 70th-minute goal.
Yerry Mina scored in the 40th and Juan Cuadrado completed the win in the 75th.
Both teams lost Group H openers and knew another loss would end their hopes of advancing.
Senegal and Japan drew 2-2 in the other group match and lead with four points each.
Will Mexico advance in the World Cup? Here are the scenarios heading into the final group stage game
Despite two wins in two games, Mexico’s future in the World Cup is almost as unsettled as it was when the team landed in Russia three weeks ago.
Heading into its final group stage game with Sweden on Wednesday, Mexico is facing several scenarios that could either send it on to the knockout rounds as Group F champion or runner-up, or send it home. Here are the possibilities — and stick with us because it gets complicated:
kevin.baxter@latimes.com | Twitter: @kbaxter11
Back-and-forth Senegal-Japan match ends in 2-2 tie
Senegal twice took the lead. Japan tied it up both times.
Keisuke Honda came off the bench and scored from close range in the 78th minute to give the Japanese a 2-2 draw with Senegal on Sunday at the World Cup.
The draw keeps the two teams at the top of Group H ahead of their final matches.
Sadio Mane gave Senegal the lead in the 11th minute, deflecting the ball into the net for his first World Cup goal, but Takashi Inui equalized with a well-placed shot from inside the area in the 34th.
Moussa Wague restored Senegal’s lead in the 71st minute. Honda came on the field a minute later and evened the score.
In their final group games on Thursday, Senegal will face Colombia in Samara while Japan plays Poland in Volgograd.
Key Uruguay defender Jose Maria Gimenez ruled out for final group stage match with injury
Uruguay defender Jose Maria Gimenez has been ruled out of the team’s final World Cup group match because of a right thigh injury.
Gimenez scored in the team’s opening match of the tournament, a 1-0 victory over Egypt. Uruguay also defeated Saudi Arabia 1-0 to secure a spot in the round of 16 as it heads into its final group match against host Russia on Monday.
The team didn’t say when Gimenez might return.
The stalwart defense of the 23-year-old Atletico Madrid center back has been key to the team’s two wins. Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez wouldn’t reveal Sunday who would replace Gimenez.
Russia with two wins has also qualified for the round of 16, and Monday’s match will be for the top spot in Group A.
Uruguay, ranked No. 14 in the world, is making its 12th overall World Cup appearance. The South American country won the tournament in 1930 as host, and again in 1950.
Veteran Uruguay forward Edinson Cavani acknowledged the loss of Giminez was a blow, but he said he was confident other teammates would help fill the gap.
“It is an important factor. Why? Because Jose Maria Gimenez has played at an excellent level,” Cavani said. “But as I’ve always said on prior occasions, this is a team. We are a team.”
Gimenez has made 44 appearances with the national team since 2013. He signed with Atletico that same year.
He also played in the 2014 World Cup at 19, becoming the youngest Uruguay player to appear in soccer’s premier tournament. Uruguay advanced from its group in Brazil, but fell 2-0 to Colombia in the round of 16.
Tabarez said it’s normal to have to adjust during tournaments. He emphasized that the team was prepared.
“The match plan that we always have is to continue to work — until the match begins really,” Tabarez said. “The fact that he has been injured doesn’t really change anything. We have the same notion of the match and the same plan for the match as before.”
Harry Kane nets hat trick as England routs Panama 6-1
Harry Kane scored a hat trick to help England to its most one-sided World Cup victory, a 6-1 rout of Panama on Sunday that secured a place in the last 16 with a game to spare.
John Stones headed in two goals and Jesse Lingard curled in another. England’s previous high for goals in a World Cup match was set in its 4-2 victory over Germany in 1966 final.
Two of Kane’s goals came from the penalty spot and the third via his heel. He leads the tournament with five goals, one more than Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku.
England goes into the Group G finale against Belgium level on points and with the same goal difference after conceding a late goal against Panama, which was eliminated after two matches in its World Cup debut.
Mexico closes in on knockout stage with 2-1 win over South Korea
Mexico moved a big step closer to the knockout round of a seventh straight World Cup with a 2-1 win over South Korea on Saturday at Rostov Arena in the southern port city of Rostov-on-Don.
Mexico got goals from Carlos Vela and Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez, one in each half, to secure its second victory in as many games in Russia. The win also put Mexico alone atop the Group F standings pending the result of Saturday’s late group game between unbeaten Sweden and defending champion Germany.
A victory or draw for Sweden would guarantee Mexico a spot in the second round. But even a win for Germany would still leave Mexico in control of its own destiny, needing only a draw against Sweden in next week’s group-play final to advance.
Playing with 10 men, Germany scores in stoppage time to beat Sweden
Toni Kroos scored in the fifth minute of stoppage time from outside the penalty area, and Germany, despite playing a man down, rallied to beat Sweden 2-1 on Saturday to stay alive at the World Cup.
Kroos’ goal came off a set play after a foul in the closing minutes of stoppage time. Kroos tapped the ball to Marco Reus, who set it up for Kroos to curl a right-footed shot to the far post. Sweden goalkeeper Robin Olsen couldn’t get his hand on it.
Reus had scored in the 48th minute to pull Germany even after Ola Toivonen’s goal in the 32nd put the Swedes in front. Germany finished with 10 men after Jerome Boateng was sent off following a second yellow card with about 10 minutes remaining.
Mexico has six points in Group F, while Germany and Sweden both have three and South Korea zero entering their final matches.
Belgium blitzes Tunisia as it eyes path to final
The problem with gold is it’s just a metal until someone takes the time and effort to polish it and make it glisten.
And Belgian soccer’s so-called Golden Generation, a 24-karat collection of world-class players at every position, came to Russia having lost much of its shine over the last four years.
Disappointing losses in the quarterfinals of the 2016 European Championship and the 2014 World Cup had not only left the underachieving Belgians with nothing to show for all that talent, but it led captain Eden Hazard to compare his team to England.
Cocaine and pot seized in World Cup trophy replicas in Argentina
Some Argentines are taking advantage of World Cup fervor.
The security minister of Buenos Aires province said Friday that police have broken up an organization that trafficked marijuana and cocaine in fake World Cup trophies.
The so-called Narcos de la Copa took advantage of the global merchandising boom generated by the soccer tournament to move the drugs without raising suspicions.
“These merchants of death have endless ingenuity, but don’t be fooled,” said minister Cristian Ritondo, according to a statement. “They shouldn’t be admired. On the contrary, they are now in jail.”
Officials said 20 kilograms of marijuana, 10 kilograms of cocaine, 1,800 doses of crack-cocaine known as “paco,” and 400,000 Argentine pesos ($14,819) were seized. Four men and two women were arrested in the operation.
Soccer fans gather across Los Angeles to watch Mexico vs. South Korea match
Thousands of soccer fans gathered in sports bars, churches, restaurants, pubs, football clubs and makeshift viewing stands all over Southern California on Saturday to watch the World Cup soccer match between Mexico and South Korea.
The game kicked off at 8 a.m. and is being broadcast locally from Rostov-on-Don, Russia, about 600 miles south of Moscow. Here are some of the places you can watch the game.
Mexico, which upset reigning champion Germany in its June 17 match, is favored to win. History is not on Mexico’s side, however, because it has not won back-to-back matches at a World Cup since 2002.
Sunil Gulati deserves an assist for bringing 2026 World Cup to North America
A little over an hour after FIFA awarded the 2026 World Cup to the U.S., Mexico and Canada earlier this month, the three co-chairmen of the United 2026 bid committee took the stage for a news conference at Moscow’s sprawling Expo Center.
Carlos Cordeiro, president of the U.S. Soccer Federation, Canadian soccer association leader Steven Reed and Decio de Maria, president of the Mexican federation, all wore crisp suits and wide smiles as they answered questions and accepted congratulations for bringing the world’s biggest sporting event back to North America.
In the third row of the press seats, near the foot of the stage but out of the spotlight, Sunil Gulati sat alone, one leg crossed over the other. If Cordeiro, Reed and De Maria had combined to get the ball over the goal line, Gulati, the former USSF president and the bid committee’s first chair, was the playmaking midfielder who had done the hard and thankless work of bringing the ball up the field.
Update: Who’s in and who’s out at the World Cup
Who’s in, who’s out and possible scenarios at the World Cup after Friday’s play:
GROUP A
Russia and Uruguay have clinched berths in the round of 16, and play each other Monday to determine who wins the group. Egypt and Saudi Arabia have been eliminated.
GROUP B
Morocco has been eliminated, leaving Portugal and Spain (four points each) and Iran (three) to compete for two spots. Spain plays Morocco on Monday, when Portugal meets Iran.
GROUP C
France has advanced and leads with six points. Denmark is second with four after a 1-1 draw against Australia, which has one point. Peru has been eliminated. Denmark plays France on Tuesday, when Australia takes on Peru.
GROUP D
Croatia has secured a trip to the second round and tops the group with six points. Argentina got some help Friday when Nigeria beat Iceland 2-0. Nigeria (three points) will advance with a win over Argentina (one point) on Tuesday, when Iceland plays Croatia. But Iceland (one point) or the last-place Argentines could survive with a win and a Nigeria loss or tie, depending on goal difference.
GROUP E
Brazil (four points) got a pair of stoppage-time goals Friday to vault from a precarious position to the brink of qualifying for the knockout stage. The 2-0 win also eliminated Costa Rica. Switzerland (four points) pulled off a 2-1 comeback win over Serbia (three points), leaving three teams bunched together, all with a chance to advance but with only two spots to be had. Serbia meets Brazil on Wednesday at the same time Switzerland plays Costa Rica.
Xhaka and Shaqiri score for Swiss, make Albanian symbol
Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri scored in Switzerland’s 2-1 victory over Serbia on Friday at the World Cup, and both celebrated by making a nationalist symbol to their ethnic Albanian heritage.
In the tournament’s first come-from-behind victory, Xhaka made it 1-1 in the 52nd minute with a powerful shot through a crowded penalty. Shaqiri added the other in injury time after running past the Serbian defense.
Both put their open hands together with their thumbs locked and fingers outstretched to make what looks like the double-headed eagle displayed on Albania’s national flag. The thumbs represent the heads of the two eagles, while the fingers look like the feathers.
The gesture is likely to inflame tensions among Serb nationalists and ethnic Albanians.
Shaqiri was born in Kosovo, the former Serbian province that declared independence in 2008. Serbia doesn’t recognize Kosovo’s independence, and relations between the two countries remain tense. Xhaka’s parents are from Kosovo and of Albanian heritage.
Aleksandar Mitrovic scored for Serbia with a header in the fifth minute.
The win puts Switzerland into second place in Group E with four points, the same as Brazil. The Swiss will advance to the round of 16 if they beat Costa Rica on Wednesday. Serbia will face Brazil in Moscow at the same time.
Mexico fans try new chant with eye on avoiding more fines
Mexico fans are trying out a new chant so the country’s federation avoids another FIFA fine.
Only time will tell, though, whether some of them won’t go back to the old one that got them into trouble in the first place.
Standing next to a golden-domed cathedral, Mexican fans visited the sites of Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia on Friday and practiced a new chant — “eeeeeeee-ROO-si-ya,” the last part meaning Russia in Spanish — that they hope will keep the tournament hosts and organizers happy.
The modified version was introduced after the national federation was fined 10,000 Swiss francs ($10,000) over a chant by supporters considered to be homophobic during the opening game against Germany.
Mexico fans use the chant to intimidate opposing goalkeepers. FIFA considers it a slur, but many supporters argue it has no discriminatory intent.
Carlos Quezada, from San Luis Potosi in central Mexico, joined revelers at the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary and said he wasn’t certain fans would comply with the ban.
“It’s the way we are. When you tell Mexicans not to do something, they keep on doing it,” he said, but added that the Mexicans were keen to repay the kindness of their Russian hosts.
“People have been really, really nice to us. They have welcomed us everywhere. The Russians have been chanting for us — chanting ‘Mexico, Mexico’ — and it makes us feel like this is a second home.”
Mexico takes on South Korea in its second Group F match after a shock 1-0 win over Germany. The Koreans lost their opener 1-0 to Sweden.
Mexico coach Juan Carlos Osorio said he intended to continue his attacking style, would stick with core players who beat Germany, and would not get carried away with the opening win.
“We hope it doesn’t happen, but there would be no shame in losing to South Korea,” the Colombian said. “We all have respect for them. No matter how prepared you are, the unthinkable can always happen in every game.”
Captain Andres Guardado echoed the sentiment, adding that the team had been hardened by frequent disappointments on the road to Russia — as the Mexicans vie for a quarterfinal spot, having been stopped at the last 16 in the six previous World Cups.
“Beating Germany was good for us. It strengthened our [winning] mindset. But we know how dangerous praise can be. But we’ve had so much criticism in the past. And in those very difficult moments, we built this team. Thanks to those failures, we will stick to our dream and maybe, this time, it will be within reach.”
South Korea coach Shin Tae-yong said he was worried that expected high temperatures would favor the Mexicans. The forecast is for 93 degrees on Saturday.
“The change in the weather will have a negative impact on us,” he said. “I haven’t seen much of the city, only what I could see on the bus coming into the city. But I noticed that it’s hot and it has large fields.”
Musa scores twice to give Nigeria 2-0 win over Iceland
Ahmed Musa gave Nigeria its first win at this year’s World Cup, and kept alive Argentina’s hopes of reaching the knockout round.
Musa scored two second-half goals to help the Nigerians beat Iceland 2-0 on Friday and move into second place in the group behind already-qualified Croatia.
Nigeria will face Argentina in its final group match on Tuesday in St. Petersburg. If Nigeria wins, it will advance to the round of 16. But if Argentina claims all three points, it can still advance, depending on the result of the other match between Croatia and Iceland.
Musa gave Nigeria the lead in the 49th minute after Victor Moses sprinted deep into the Iceland half and curled a cross to the near post. Musa deftly controlled the ball before slamming it past Iceland goalkeeper Hannes Halldorsson on the half-volley.
He doubled the lead in the 75th minute. Picking up the ball on the left side of the Iceland penalty area, Musa mazed his way past Halldorsson and picked his spot in the Iceland goal.
Iceland had a chance to get one back, but Gylfi Sigurdsson sent a penalty kick high over the Nigeria bar in the 83rd minute. The penalty was awarded after a video review showed that Alfred Finnbogason had been brought down by Tyronne Ebuehi.
Brazil scores late goals to beat Costa Rica 2-0 at World Cup
Philippe Coutinho and Neymar scored injury-time goals to help Brazil beat Costa Rica 2-0 Friday at the World Cup in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Coutinho poked the ball past goalkeeper Keylor Navas in the first minute of injury time, and Neymar volleyed in another with virtually the last kick of the game six minutes later.
Neymar then broke down in tears and sobbed for several moments. His teammates helped him off the ground to celebrate.
It had looked like Brazil, after drawing its opening game 1-1 with Switzerland, was heading for another stalemate.
Brazil attacked relentlessly in the second half and was awarded a penalty in the 78th when Neymar was impeded as he cut inside defender Giancarlo Gonzalez. But referee Bjorn Kuipers went over to look at the sideline monitor and reversed the decision.
Brazil has four points heading into its final group game against Serbia on Wednesday.
Peru lost on the field, but its fans made their presence felt
France had the advantage on the field Thursday, beating Peru 1-0 to ensure passage to the second round. But Peru had an overwhelming advantage in the streets of Yekaterinburg, where its supporters outnumbered French fans by about 7 to 1.
Peruvians have been waiting since 1982 to see their team play in a World Cup. And even though its stay will be short — Thursday’s loss, its second in as many games, means Peru will go home after the group stage — many fans had to see it in person, even if they couldn’t get into the stadium.
Many fans arrived without tickets and watched the game from a fan zone in a city park.
To make history, Mexico must guard against complacency
Carlos Hermosillo played on the last Mexican team to reach the World Cup quarterfinals and he sees some similarities between that squad and the one that opened this summer’s tournament by upsetting defending champion Germany.
“They want to make soccer history,” Hermosillo, once Mexico’s all-time scoring leader, said Thursday. “But they have to approach this game by game. They played Germany and they have to realize the most important game is the one coming up, against Korea.”
That match is Saturday in Rostov-on-Don, a port city about 600 miles south of Moscow. A win and Mexico’s passage to the knockout round of a seventh consecutive World Cup is virtually assured. A loss and Mexico will go into its final group-stage game with Sweden next week facing elimination.
Messi, Argentina beaten 3-0 at World Cup; Croatia advances
Lionel Messi and his Argentina teammates are on the verge of World Cup elimination. Croatia is moving on.
Argentina was handily beaten by Croatia 3-0, a loss that makes advancement very difficult with only one group match remaining. It was Argentina’s worst loss in group play in 60 years.
Messi, who turns 31 on Sunday, failed to get even one shot off against Croatia on Thursday, five days after he missed a penalty in the team’s opening 1-1 draw against Iceland.
Croatia frustrated Argentina throughout the match and never gave Messi space to operate.
The humiliating loss came in humiliating fashion for one of soccer’s most storied nations.
Argentina goalkeeper Wilfredo Caballero miss-kicked a clearance and Croatia defender Ante Rebic recovered the ball before sending it into the net in the 53rd minute.
Luka Modric scored another with a hooking shot in the 80th and Ivan Rakitic added the third in stoppage time.
Croatia advanced to the round of 16 with six points from two games in Group D. Argentina has only one point and will next face Nigeria on Tuesday in St. Petersburg.
Argentina has won two World Cups — the last in 1986 — but has not won any major title in 25 years. It lost the World Cup final to Germany four years ago in Brazil.
It worst loss in group play came in a 6-1 defeat against Czechoslovakia in 1958.
Croatia, a 1998 World Cup semifinalist, reached the knockout stage for only the second time.
Kylian Mbappe sends France into knockout stage — and himself into the record books — with 1-0 win over Peru
Kylian Mbappe’s first World Cup goal put France into the round of 16.
The teenage forward tapped in a ball headed toward the goal in the 34th minute to give France a 1-0 victory over Peru on Thursday.
At 19 years and 183 days, Mbappe became the youngest scorer in France’s World Cup history.
With two wins from two matches in Group C, France is through to the next round with a match to spare, while Peru has been eliminated.
France coach Didier Deschamps made a pair of tactical adjustments after an underwhelming performance in the team’s opening win over Australia. He put Blaise Matuidi and Olivier Giroud in the starting lineup but kept his same 4-3-2-1 formation with Giroud out front.
Both used their speed and passing to expose gaps in Peru’s backline.
Australia gets crucial 1-1 draw with Denmark at World Cup
Mile Jedinak’s penalty kick gave Australia a 1-1 draw against Denmark and new life at the World Cup on Thursday.
The 38th-minute penalty was set up after Denmark forward Yussuf Poulsen was called for a handball following a video review. Poulsen was also given a yellow card and will be suspended for the team’s final group match against France because of accumulation.
The goal was Jedinak’s second from the spot at this year’s World Cup, and it snapped Denmark goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel’s five-match streak of shutouts for the Danes.
Christian Eriksen scored in the opening minutes for Denmark, which has gone unbeaten in 17 straight international matches.
Going into the tournament, No. 36 Australia was the lowest-ranked team in Group C with the others all in the top 12.
With a loss to France in the opener, a defeat Thursday would have made it nearly impossible for the Socceroos to advance to the next stage. Denmark, meanwhile, won its first match against Peru.
Australia lost to 1998 World Cup champion France 2-1 on Saturday in Kazan, with both French goals coming as the result of video technology. But the score didn’t reflect the Socceroos’ gritty defensive performance.
Australia again took a defensive stand against Denmark, which was back at the World Cup after missing out on the tournament in Brazil. The Danes were coming off a 1-0 victory over Peru on Saturday in Saransk. Poulsen, who plays for German club RB Leipzig, scored the lone goal.
It is the fifth World Cup appearance for the Danes, who reached the quarterfinals in 1998.
Australia was also making a fifth trip to the World Cup. The team’s best showing was in the 2006 quarterfinals.
Moments after Mathew Leckie’s header for Australia sailed over the goal, Eriksen sent a left-footed shot over goalkeeper Mathew Ryan’s outstretched arms.
Pione Sisto nearly gave the Danes the advantage just after the halftime break, but his shot went to the right of the goal. Australia added some firepower in the 68th, bringing on 19-year-old Daniel Arzani as both teams scrambled for a winning goal.
Australia lost Andrew Nabbout in the 74th minute with what appeared to be a dislocated shoulder. He was replaced by Tomi Juric.
Denmark’s opening victory over Peru was marred by the loss of starting midfielder William Kvist, who fractured two ribs and is likely to miss the rest of the tournament. He was replaced in the starting lineup against Australia by Lasse Schone.
Denmark’s last loss was in October 2016 against Montenegro, 1-0 in Copenhagen.
Spain beats Iran 1-0 thanks to nullified goal
Diego Costa’s third goal in two matches at the World Cup lifted Spain to a 1-0 win over a stubborn Iran side Wednesday.
The win brought Spain even on points with Portugal in Group B after Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates defeated Morocco on the same score line. Portugal and Spain drew 3-3 in their tournament opener last week. But Iran could still get through to the knockout round, depending on the results of the final group matches.
Costa has now scored nine goals in his last nine international starts for Spain. Only Ronaldo has more goals at the current World Cup, with four.
After a frustrating first half during which Spain could not find an edge to get past Iran’s well-organized defense, Costa broke the deadlock in the 54th minute after being set up by Andres Iniesta.
The powerful striker turned in the area and fired the ball, which took a deflection off Ramin Rezeian before bouncing back on the Atletico Madrid player and into the net.
Needing a goal, Iran changed strategy and it nearly paid off when Saeid Ezatolahi thought he had leveled, but his goal was ruled out after review.
Brilliant Cristiano Ronaldo scores game’s lone goal in Portugal’s win over Morocco
This World Cup will have a winner and undoubtedly will produce many memorable moments over the next 3 1/2 weeks.
Yet it may forever be remembered for Cristiano Ronaldo.
If the tournament started with a debate over whether Argentina’s Lionel Messi or Portugal’s Ronaldo is the greatest player of his generation, that debate could be over even before the competition is.
Burger King apologizes for offering lifetime of burgers for women impregnated by World Cup players
Burger King says it’s sorry for offering a lifetime supply of Whoppers to Russian women who get pregnant from World Cup players.
Critics assailed the offer, announced on Russian social media, as sexist and demeaning.
The announcement was removed Tuesday from Burger King’s social media accounts but is still circulating among Russian social network users. It promised a reward to women who get “the best football genes” and “ensure the success of the Russian team for generations to come.”
The fast food company posted a Russian-language statement on local network VKontakte saying, “We offer apologies for the announcement we made. It was too offensive.” The company didn’t respond to requests from the Associated Press for comment.
Ads in Russia often play on sexist stereotypes, notably ads around sports events like the World Cup. Women’s rights activists have been increasingly speaking out against them.
How a small dry cleaners in Pasadena is uniting a community around the World Cup
Amid the dark roar of a dry cleaning machine and the steamy swoosh of presses appears a different sort of sound.
It’s the noise not of suffocating labor, but of sport, of passion, of light.
It’s coming from a 42-inch television set sitting atop a cabinet above a hanging USC band uniform and a sewing machine. It’s flowing out the narrow front door and into a busy Pasadena street, drawing smiling customers into its odd but uplifting presence.
Landon Donovan’s heart was in the right place, but the U.S.-Mexico soccer rivalry is too intense
Look beyond the green shirt, ignore the Wells Fargo logo on the screen and the underlying message of Landon Donovan’s cheer-for-Mexico campaign is truly wonderful.
That soccer can be more than a game.
This is quintessential Donovan. As a player, he had the kind of vision that was rare for an American and his uniqueness of perspective extended beyond the field. That’s the case again here, the thoughtful Donovan viewing his sport as a vehicle to create support for a population vilified by many on the far right of the political spectrum.
Suarez scores in 100th international cap to send Uruguay into round of 16
Luis Suarez put both Uruguay and host Russia into the second round of the World Cup while eliminating Saudi Arabia and Egypt at the same time.
Suarez scored the winning goal in his 100th international appearance for Uruguay, knocking in a corner kick from Carlos Sanchez in the 23rd minute to give the two-time champions a 1-0 victory over the Saudis on Wednesday.
It was the Barcelona striker’s 52nd goal for his country in that century of games.
Besides scoring, Suarez led his team with a hard-working performance. He fell back to defend and raced forward on the counterattack.
Uruguay and Russia each have six points from their opening two matches, putting them into the round of 16. They will face each other on Monday in Samara with first place in Group A on the line.
Mexico’s Carlos Vela is eager to help his country in this World Cup
Carlos Vela’s relationship with the World Cup is complicated. Over the last eight years it’s included three starts, a tournament-ending injury, a long self-imposed exile and Sunday, after his most important game on soccer’s biggest stage, a death in the family.
A day after Vela helped key Mexico’s upset of defending champion Germany, he got news that his grandfather had passed away. But in his final hours, Vela was told, his grandfather had watched Mexico’s 1-0 win, which led to a touching message on Instagram.
“The last victory you were able to see, grandpa,” Vela wrote in Spanish. “I hope you were proud of me.”
Senegal gets Africa’s first points in World Cup, upsetting Poland 2-1
Pele was unparalleled as a soccer player. But as a prognosticator? Not so much.
In fact, the three-time World Cup champion’s forecasts have been so laughably wrong, former Brazilian coach Luiz Felipe Scolari once advised, “If you want to win a title, you have to listen to Pele and then do the opposite.”
But there was one prediction Pele made that seemed so solid no one begged to differ. An African team, he said, soon would win the World Cup.
Russia on verge of round of 16 after beating Egypt 3-1
Russia scored three goals in a 15-minute span early in the second half to set up a 3-1 win over Egypt on Tuesday, moving the host nation to the brink of the World Cup’s knockout stage.
Mohamed Salah won and converted a penalty for a consolation goal on his return from injury but Egypt’s first World Cup in 28 years could be over in barely five days following a second straight loss.
Ahmed Fathi poked the ball into his own net — for the fifth own-goal of the tournament — to put Russia ahead in the 47th minute. Then Denis Cheryshev and Artyom Dzyuba scored in quick succession to leave Russia on course for a victory that followed up a 5-0 opening-night win over Saudi Arabia.
It was Cheryshev’s third goal of the World Cup, putting him tied with Cristiano Ronaldo at the top of the scoring chart.
Russia’s place in the round of 16 will be assured if Uruguay wins or draws against the Saudis on Wednesday. Those two scenarios would also eliminate Egypt, which started with a 1-0 loss to Uruguay.
Colombia’s third-minute red card not the fastest in World Cup history
Colombia midfielder Carlos Sanchez will be relieved about one thing: His third-minute dismissal in the team’s opener with Japan on Tuesday at the World Cup isn’t the fastest in the tournament’s history.
That honor remains in the hands of Uruguay defender Jose Batista, who was shown a red card against Scotland at the 1986 World Cup inside the first minute.
Still, Sanchez is second in the all-time list, and his dismissal means there are now three players in the history of the World Cup who have been sent off inside the first 10 minutes.
JOSE BATISTA, 1986
Batista, a defender, was shown a red card in the 52nd second of a group match against a Scotland team coached by Alex Ferguson, after he brought down midfielder Gordon Strachan at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. It could have been even earlier as the foul was committed in the 39th second — it took French referee Joel Quiniou a full 13 seconds to brandish the card.
Despite having a one-man advantage for nearly the whole match, the game ended 0-0, and Scotland was eliminated.
Batista, who unlike some of the other players on that Uruguay side didn’t have much of a reputation as a bruiser, appears to have come to terms with his place in World Cup history.
“I work at a football academy and I coach an amateur team, and I always hear, ‘You know who this guy is? He’s the one that got sent off.’ So I get my phone out and show them the tackle,” Batista said in an interview posted on FIFA.com in 2016.
CARLOS SANCHEZ, 2018
The Colombian holding midfielder’s offense wasn’t as blatant as Batista’s, but he was sent off by Slovenian referee Damir Skomina for handling the ball.
Sanchez had struck out his arm to stop a shot that looked bound for the Colombian net at the Mordovia Arena in Saransk.
It was costly. Shinji Kagawa converted the ensuing penalty to give Japan the lead. And though Colombia managed to get back on level terms in the 39th minute with a smart free kick from Juan Quintero, Japan’s man-advantage was evident in the second half. Yuya Osako sealed the win with a powerful header in the 73rd minute.
GEORGIO FERRINI, 1962
The Italian’s sending-off in the 1962 World Cup took place during what is arguably the dirtiest game in World Cup history. Italy versus Chile will forever be known as the “Battle of Santiago.”
The 66,000 fans at Chile’s national stadium witnessed spitting, two-footed challenges, punches, scuffles and even police intervention.
Referee Ken Aston, who later invented the yellow and red card system in place from the 1970 World Cup, took to the field fearful of what was to come. The backdrop to the game already had added an edge to the match, with Italian reporters maligning Chile as a country.
In the eighth minute, Aston sent off midfielder Georgio Ferrini for a violent foul on a Chile player. Ferrini refused to leave the field and eventually was escorted off by police.
Arguably, the violence only got worse. Italy defender Mario David was also sent off after he high-kicked at Leonel Sanchez’s throat. Sanchez, the son of a professional boxer, should have been sent off himself after breaking Humberto Maschio’s nose with a punch.
Italy, down to nine men, held on until two late goals saw Chile win 2-0.
ZEZE PROCOPIO,1938
Before the “Battle of Santiago,” the match that was perhaps the most violent in World Cup history had taken place at the 1938 World Cup in France when Brazil took on Czechoslovakia.
According to British journalist Brian Glanville, there was “carnage” in the quarterfinal match in Bordeaux.
Zeze, a midfielder, was sent off in the 14th minute for kicking out at Czechoslovakia forward Oldrich Nejedly, who ended up with a broken leg.
Also sent off were Czechoslovakia striker Jan Riha and Brazilian defender Arthur Machado for trading punches in the 89th minute.
The match ended 1-1, and the two sides had to replay two days later, again in Bordeaux. This time, there were no expulsions, and Brazil came through 2-1.
Sanchez’s red card means that Zeze no longer is one of the three fastest sending-offs in World Cup history.
Telemundo draws record audience for Mexico-Germany World Cup game
Telemundo drew an average audience of 6.56 million viewers for Sunday’s Mexico-Germany World Cup match, making it the most-watched sporting event in the Spanish-language network’s history.
Across all platforms, including digital, Telemundo’s coverage had an average audience of 7.4 million, and it peaked at 8 million.
Fox Sports drew just more than 4 million TV viewers — 4.25 million across all platforms — for the Mexico-Germany contest and 4.09 million for Brazil-Switzerland later Sunday, the largest audiences for soccer on an English-language network since 2016. Both games were carried on cable outlet FS1.
A look at Wednesday’s World Cup schedule
Early red card dooms Colombia in 2-1 loss to Japan
Yuya Osako had a surprise in store for those who thought the absence of Shinji Okazaki left Japan little hope of competing with Colombia at the World Cup.
Osako’s gritty determination to set up one goal and his 73rd-minute header from Keisuke Honda’s corner kick lifted Japan to a surprising 2-1 victory over the Colombians on Tuesday.
Osako won a bouncing ball to begin an early sequence that led to a penalty, put Colombia a man down and gave Japan a 1-0 lead when Shinji Kagawa converted from the spot.
Colombia had to play all but the opening minutes with 10 men after Carlos Sanchez received a red card for blocking Kagawa’s shot on goal with his extended right arm.
Columbia equalized late in the first half on Juan Quintero’s rolling but accurate free kick, which sneaked inside the right post.
Japan became the latest side to pull off an upset at the World Cup, joining Mexico, Switzerland and Iceland in earning surprising results.
Harry Kane’s late header pushes England past Tunisia
Twice wrestled to the ground during the match, England captain Harry Kane finally evaded the Tunisian defense just as time was running out.
Kane found an open area of space at the far post and used his head to meet Harry Maguire’s flick-on, scoring the winning goal Monday in a 2-1 victory at the World Cup.
It was relief for Kane and Gareth Southgate, who leapt into the air in delight as his World Cup debut as a coach got off to a winning start.
England shouldn’t have found it so tough in its Group G opener against such opposition. Not after Kane got England off to a perfect start with an 11th-minute tap in. But after Kyle Walker softly conceded a penalty that Ferjani Sassi converted in the 35th, many of the fouls went against England.
“Maybe there was a bit of justice at the end,” Kane said.
After a scoreless run at the 2016 European Championship, Kane is finally showing the predatory instinct in front of goal that has served Tottenham so well.
Euro 2016 ended in humiliation for Kane and England with a loss to Iceland in the last 16, but the team has been transformed by Southgate. For all the placidness and togetherness within the group, Southgate has added persistence and doggedness.
At the last World Cup, England couldn’t even win a game. Low expectations for this year’s overhauled team were dispelled early in Russia when Kane reacted quickly to score after John Stones’ header was saved. But England struggled to finish it off.
When Walker’s flailing arm caught Fakhreddine Ben Youssef, a penalty was awarded and Sassi slotted it in to equalize.
England’s players later thought they deserved a similar call when Kane was brought down in the opposite penalty area, but the referee disagreed.
Kane was pushed to ground again after the break, this time by Yassine Meriah, but again nothing was given.
Kane persisted, and delivered.
“You go until the last second,” Kane said, “and I’m absolutely buzzing.”
Panama’s World Cup debut spoiled by Belgium
Romelu Lukaku scored two goals in a six-minute span and Dries Mertens put in another Monday to give Belgium a 3-0 win over Panama at the World Cup.
Saddled with massive expectations and a lineup of talent the envy of others in the tournament, Belgium finally showed flashes of being the dominant team worthy of title consideration.
It took a wonderful strike from Mertens to finally relieve some of the pressure. His perfectly struck volley from about 18 yards came in the 47th minute after Panama was unable to clear a free kick.
Lukaku made it 2-0 in the 69th off a pass by Kevin De Bruyne, and scored his second on a breakaway chip over Panama goalkeeper Jaime Penedo.
Panama, which was making its World Cup debut, was unable to reward its thousands of loud, passionate fans with a goal.
Penalty kick gives Sweden 1-0 win over South Korea in foul fest
Another video review led to a penalty at the World Cup, this time helping Sweden beat South Korea 1-0 Monday.
Sweden captain Andreas Granqvist converted from the spot, sliding his shot into the bottom right corner in the 65th minute.
Referee Joel Aguilar used the replay technology to decide whether South Korea substitute Kim Min-woo had fouled Viktor Claesson in the area after initially waving play on. Kim had tripped Claesson, though, and the converted penalty was enough to give Sweden its first World Cup victory since 2006.
Before the penalty, Sweden controlled the game and showed most of the attacking intent.
South Korea had a chance to level in injury time but Hwang Hee-chan put a header wide from in front of the goal.
Sweden will next play Germany, which lost to Mexico 1-0 in the other Group F match, on Saturday. The South Koreans face Mexico that same day.
A look at Tuesday’s World Cup schedule
Switzerland earns draw with Brazil 1-1
Switzerland’s well-organized defending held Brazil to a 1-1 draw in their World Cup opener, keeping Neymar and other attackers at bay for the most part.
Brazil midfielder Philippe Coutinho opened the scoring in the 20th minute, with a stylish volley that beat goalkeeper Yann Sommer, bouncing in off the right post. But coach Vladimir Petkovic’s Swiss players kept their composure and dominated in midfield for long spells in the Group E match.
Switzerland midfielder Steven Zuber headed in the equalizer in the 50th. Mexican referee Cesar Ramos dismissed complaints that Zuber had shoved defender Miranda out of the way before meeting a corner from Xherdan Shaqiri.
Ramos also ignored a penalty claim late in the second half when Brazil forward Gabriel Jesus was wrestled to the ground by Manuel Akanji.
Petkovic kept his promise to frustrate Brazil, which was seeking redemption from its disastrous 2014 World Cup exit with a 7-1 semifinal defeat on home soil by Germany.
Mexico takes over World Cup with 1-0 victory over reigning champion Germany
They played the game on the banks of the Moscow River, but given the noise, the waves of green Mexican national team jerseys and multi-colored sombreros and the loud pre-game rendition of “Cielito Lindo,” Luzhniki Stadium on Sunday might as well have been Estadio Azteca.
Thursday’s World Cup opener was played in a library compared with the atmosphere at Sunday’s Mexico-Germany game. And the majority of the 75,000-plus fans went home happy with Hirving Lozano’s first-half goal and Guillermo Ochoa’s eight saves in goal giving Mexico a 1-0 victory.
It was a result that made history in more ways than one. Germany, the World Cup champion, had never lost the first match of a title defense while Mexico had never beaten a reigning team.
How the Mexican national team has brought me closer to my own father
Of all the things my father brought with him when he first came to the United States from Mexico, his love of soccer has proven to be the most useful.
It helped him make his first friends in America as a 16-year-old living in Chicago’s north side during the late 1970s. He couldn’t yet speak the language, but he sure could play.
Later, my father’s passion for the beautiful game became a much-needed respite that carried him through the work week. As a child, I would tag along every Sunday to his recreational league games in Reynosa, Mexico, the neighboring border city across the river from Hidalgo, Texas, where he chose to lay our family’s American roots. Nothing else mattered when he’d step on the pitch. The mortgage, bills, supporting a family of five — it’s as if every worry, every bit of economic anxiety, melted away for those 90 minutes. I’d witness the weight of the world temporarily lift from his shoulders every time the referee blew the opening whistle. To this day, I can’t think of another situation where I’ve seen him that at ease.
Serbia opens with 1-0 win over Costa Rica
Aleksandar Kolarov’s curling free kick in the 56th minute has helped Serbia to a 1-0 win over Costa Rica in its World Cup opener.
Serbia, which missed out on the 2014 World Cup, had the early advantage in a tough group in Russia that includes five-time champion Brazil and Switzerland, who were set to play later Sunday in Rostov.
After a scoreless first half, Costa Rica goalkeeper Keylor Navas withstood a barrage of Serbian challenges to open the second with the boisterous Costa Rican fans cheering him on at Samara Arena.
But after David Guzman was handed a yellow card, Kolarov curled the free kick over the wall and Navas, who plays for Real Madrid, was not able to reach it.
Croatia leads Group D after 2-0 win over Nigeria
Luka Modric set up one goal and scored another from the penalty spot Saturday to give Croatia a 2-0 win over Nigeria at the World Cup.
The Real Madrid midfielder sent a corner kick toward the goal that was headed by two Croatians and then deflected into the net by Nigeria midfielder Oghenekaro Etebo in the 32nd minute.
Modric then converted a penalty in the 71st minute after William Ekong held on to Mario Mandzukic.
It was the fifth penalty kick awarded in four World Cup matches on Saturday.
The win takes Croatia to the top of Group D with three points. Earlier, Iceland held Argentina to a 1-1 draw.
Denmark beats Peru 1-0 on Poulsen’s goal
Kasper Schmeichel’s slew of saves made Yussuf Poulsen’s opportunistic second-half goal stand up in a 1-0 victory over Peru on Saturday at the World Cup.
The victory gave Denmark a crucial advantage in Group C, in which France defeated Australia 2-1 earlier in the day.
Poulsen squeezed his goal between charging Peru goalkeeper Pedro Gallese and the left post in the 59th minute after collecting an accurate pass from midfielder Christian Eriksen.
Appearing at the World Cup for the first time in 36 years, Peru had overwhelming fan support in the Mordovia Arena and the bulk of scoring chances, including a late first-half penalty shot that Christian Cueva sent sailing over the cross bar.
Peru striker Paolo Guerrero made his much anticipated appearance as a substitute with about 30 minutes to go and had two scoring chances, one on a header and one on a clever back-heel that rolled just wide.
From jerseys to star players: A novice’s guide to the World Cup teams
The United States is not in this World Cup field, but 32 teams are. Brush up on your World Cup countries knowledge as the tournament gets into full swing, and use this helpful guide (complete with team uniforms) to find the team(s) that you’ll want to follow over the next month.
Iceland goalie stops Messi penalty kick; Argentina can’t break Iceland in 1-1 draw
They came, they saw, but they refused to be conquered.
If Iceland had any opening-night jitters before the first World Cup game in its history, its players did a pretty good job of hiding them Saturday, with the smallest country ever to qualify for the tournament holding fifth-ranked Argentina, a country that has won it twice, to a 1-1 draw.
Sergio Aguero scored for Argentina and Alfred Finnbogason countered for Iceland minutes later. But the story of the game was Iceland’s gutty resilience to withstand 90 minutes of relentless pressure.
Goal line technology helps France secure 2-1 win over Australia
Technology twice helped France at the World Cup on Saturday as the 1998 champions labored to beat a gritty Australia 2-1 in their opening game.
The French team was given a controversial penalty kick, eventually converted by Antoine Griezmann in the 58th minute, after the referee watched the replay of a foul on the sideline.
Paul Pogba later scored the winning goal in the 81st minute, and goal-line technology was used to confirm the ball had crossed the line after bouncing down off the crossbar.
“I’m not going to complain about the use of video today,” France coach Didier Deschamps said. “It helped correct a mistake.”
Full coverage of the 2018 World Cup »
Pogba had been unimpressive until the goal, but the Manchester United midfielder set up a 1-2 with substitute Olivier Giroud and beat Australia goalkeeper Mat Ryan to give France the victory.
Australia captain Mile Jedinak had briefly equalized from the penalty spot in the 62nd after France defender Samuel Umtiti handled the ball in the area.
After a balanced first half in the Group C match at the Kazan Arena, France was awarded the first penalty following a VAR review. After checking images of a tackle from behind by Joshua Risdon on Griezmann, referee Andres Cunha pointed to the penalty spot.
“When I received the knock, I believed there was a penalty,” Griezmann said. “The referee did not blow his whistle, so I moved on with that. But when he went to see if there was a penalty, I immediately thought about how I would take it.”
Griezmann hit a powerful shot that left Ryan stranded, four minutes before Jedinak then sent France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris the wrong way to put the teams level following Umtiti’s clumsy foul.
France had controlled possession and circulated the ball well before the interval, but after four shots in the first eight minutes the French failed to get a single shot on target in the remainder of the first half.
Group Dynamics
It’s the ideal start for France, whose ambition is to finish at the top of a group that also includes Peru and Denmark. A win against the South Americans next would allow France coach Didier Deschamps to rotate his players for the final game.
Australia, whose goal is to survive the group stage, will need two good results to escape elimination.
Key to Success
The French did not impress in the final third of the field and their defense often looked shaky.
Umtiti made a clumsy mistake when he jumped to clear a ball with both arms raised and touched the ball with his hand to concede a penalty. But the French showed guts to secure the three points with a good pressing toward the end.
Australia delivered a gritty display that bodes well for its next two matches. The team’s defense is solid and they were unlucky in the end. They also have a skillful and inspired playmaker in Aaron Mooy.
Super Subs
Giroud and midfielder Blaise Matuidi had a big impact after coming in as substitutes during the second half.
Giroud delivered the assist that led to Pogba’s goal, and Matuidi added some strength and pace in midfield after France looked bereft of ideas in that sector for long spells.
Mbappe the Youngest
Kylian Mbappe became the youngest player to represent France at a World Cup at 19 years, 178 days. He was 10 months younger than Bruno Bellone, who played at the 1982 World Cup in Spain.
World Cup notes: Games might be sold out, but there have been many empty seats at games
The World Cup opener in Moscow drew a rabid crowd of more than 78,000 Thursday, but the tournament wasn’t as warmly embraced in Yekaterinburg, where Friday’s game between Egypt and Uruguay was watched by wide swaths of empty seats.
Attendance at Yekaterinburg Arena was listed at 27,015, more than 6,000 below capacity, although that appeared to be a very generous account given the vast number of empty seats visible on TV. Most of the vacant seats were the bright orange ones in the lower bowl, where viewers couldn’t miss them.
Crowds at the two other second-day games were much better. In Krestovsky Stadium, a modern $1.1-billion retractable-roof venue in St. Petersburg, 62,548 showed up to watch Iran beat Morocco, although that’s still nearly 2,000 short of capacity. In Olympic Stadium in Sochi, Portugal vs. Spain — one of the World Cup’s most compelling first-round matchups — drew 43,866. Not a sellout, but close.
Cristiano Ronaldo scores hat trick in Portugal’s 3-3 draw with Spain
Cristiano Ronaldo completed a hat trick with a perfectly taken free kick in the 88th minute to give Portugal a 3-3 draw against Spain on Friday at the World Cup.
Ronaldo had twice given Portugal the lead with first-half goals, but Diego Costa equalized for Spain with a goal in each half. Nacho Fernandez then put the 2010 champions ahead with a one-timer from outside the area in the Group B match.
Spain looked to have successfully overcome its dramatic coaching change on the eve of the tournament but Ronaldo curled a late shot over the wall to force the draw.
Ronaldo’s opening goal from the penalty spot allowed him to become the fourth player to score in four World Cups, joining Pele, Miroslav Klose and Uwe Seeler. Ronaldo also became the first Portuguese player to appear in four World Cups.
His second goal came after a blunder by Spain goalkeeper David de Gea, who let the ball bounce off his hands and into the net.
Spain badly needed a winning start after the federation fired coach Julen Lopetegui two days before its tournament debut for accepting a job with Real Madrid without letting it know in advance. Sporting director Fernando Hierro, a former player, was picked as Lopetegui’s replacement and was on the bench despite no significant previous coaching experience.
It was an exciting start to one of the group-stage’s most anticipated matches and it didn’t take long before Ronaldo and Portugal struck first.
Ronaldo made a nice stepover move to get past Fernandez, his Real Madrid teammate, and was fouled at the edge of the area. He then calmly sent his shot to the right corner as De Gea went the other way.
During the celebration, Ronaldo rubbed his chin in an apparent reaction to Adidas’ “GOAT” promotion with Lionel Messi. GOAT is the acronym for “greatest of all time” and Adidas is running an advertisement featuring Messi with a real goat.
As Ronaldo returned to midfield for the restart, he and Fernandez appeared to exchange words and the Portuguese star smiled.
Portugal threatened on counterattacks as Spain struggled to get near Rui Patricio’s goal, but a great long pass by Sergio Busquets allowed Costa to even the match. The striker beat defender Pepe to the ball and used several neat moves to clear defenders before firing a low shot into the corner from inside the area.
Portugal loudly complained for a foul by Costa on Pepe, and replays showed there was contact by the Spaniard’s arm with Pepe’s body, but referee Gianluca Rocchi allowed the play to continue. Portugal wanted the play to be reviewed, and Rocchi at one point put his hand to his ear, apparently indicating that the assistant referees didn’t see a clear error.
Goal-line technology came into play a few moments later when a Francisco “Isco” Alarcon’s shot struck the crossbar and dropped straight down on top of the goal line. After Isco complained, Rocchi pointed to his watch, which is where he gets goal-line technology confirmations.
Busquets and Costa teamed up again for Spain’s equalizer in the 55th. After a cross by Andres Iniesta, Busquets headed the ball back across the area and Costa touched it into the open net.
Three minutes later, Fernandez redeemed himself for the penalty on Ronaldo with a streaking shot after a ball cleared by the defense got deflected toward him. The ball struck the post before going into the goal.
Mexico has the top-selling World Cup jerseys in 23 U.S. states
Mexican soccer rules in much of the U.S., at least as far as World Cup jersey sales are concerned.
According to a map released by soccer.com, Mexico is the site’s top-selling soccer jersey among teams that qualified for the World Cup in 23 of the 50 states. Not surprisingly, California is one of those states, along with the rest of the southwest portion of the U.S.
Defending champion Germany is the top-seller in seven states.
So it should also come as no surprise that a Mexican player has the best-selling jersey in more states than any other player, again according to a soccer.com map.
Hirving Lozano is No. 1 in jersey sales in California and nine other states. Argentina’s Lionel Messi leads the way in eight states, and Brazil’s Neymar has the most jersey-wearing fans in six states.
World Cup: Saturday’s matchups
GROUP C
France vs. Australia
Where: Kazan
Time: 3 a.m. PDT.
TV: FS1, Telemundo
The buzz: The last time these teams met, both were tuning up for the 2014 World Cup and France routed the Socceroos, 6-0, costing coach Holger Osieck his job. Australia hasn’t improved much since. France, a tournament favorite, features an attack that includes Paul Pogba, Olivier Giroud and Antoine Griezmann. Keeper Hugo Lloris anchors the defense.
Full coverage of the 2018 World Cup »
Peru vs. Denmark
Where: Saransk
Time: 9 a.m. PDT
TV: FS1, Telemundo
The buzz: Peru returns to the World Cup for the first time since 1982 and it comes in hot, having gone 16 months since its last loss. Forward Paolo Guerrero had his drug suspension lifted two weeks ago, so the South Americans are also at full strength. Denmark’s hopes ride largely on Tottenham playmaker Christian Eriksen and Leicester City keeper Kasper Schmeichel.
GROUP D
Argentina vs. Iceland
Where: Moscow
Time: 6 a.m. PDT
TV: Fox, Telemundo
The buzz: This is a David versus Goliath matchup. Argentina and Lionel Messi, World Cup finalists four years ago, meet tournament debutante Iceland, the smallest nation ever to qualify for the event. Iceland isn’t a team to be overlooked — it made the quarterfinals in its first European Championship two years ago — but the pressure here is clearly on Argentina and Messi, who needs a title to cement his legacy as one of the best players of all time.
Croatia vs. Nigeria
Where: Kaliningrad
Time: noon PDT
TV: FS1, Telemundo
The buzz: Croatia is one of the best teams in the tournament, although one few people are playing attention to. With a lineup that features Luka Modric, Mario Mandzukic, Ivan Rakitic, Mateo Kovacic and Ivan Perisic, it can score in bunches, and after conceding just five goals in 12 games in UEFA qualifying, the defense looks stingy. Nigeria has a number of physically gifted players in Victor Moses, Alex Iwobi and Kelechi Iheanacho, but the Super Eagles are searching for a reliable keeper and there are concerns about the defense.
Own-goal during injury time earns Iran 1-0 win over Morocco
Aziz Bouhaddouz headed a free kick into his own net in the fifth minute of injury time to gift Iran a 1-0 victory over Morocco on Friday at the World Cup.
Only on the field as a 77th-minute substitute, the Morocco striker dived to reach a curling cross from the left, trying to knock it out of play, but headed the ball into the net past goalkeeper Monir El Kajoui.
Full coverage of the 2018 World Cup »
There was an explosion of joy among the Iran squad, with coaching staff and substitutes sprinting onto the field and jumping for joy.
It was only Iran’s second win in 13 matches at the World Cup, and the first by an Asian team since the 2010 tournament in South Africa.
For L.A.’s Iranian American community, the World Cup means much more than soccer games »
With Spain and Portugal the other teams in Group B, Friday’s match in St. Petersburg was regarded as a must-win game for both Iran and Morocco.
Mexico’s World Cup star is accused of helping a drug lord
At a recent World Cup warm-up match at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Mexico’s national soccer team was missing one of its biggest stars: Rafael Marquez, the team’s captain and a legendary defender.
Marquez, a four-time World Cup veteran, was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department last year for allegedly aiding a powerful Mexican drug trafficker. His bank accounts were frozen in the U.S. and Mexico and he was placed on a blacklist that bans Americans and U.S.-based companies from doing business with him.
The sanctions also bar him from playing in the United States, his lawyer told ESPN last year.
Trump on North America’s successful 2026 World Cup bid: ‘I worked hard on this’
President Trump said in a tweet Friday that he worked hard on the effort to bring the 2026 World Cup to North America and thanked Bob Kraft, owner of the NFL’s New England Patriots and Major League Soccer’s New England Revolution.
Trump signed letters to FIFA President Gianni Infantino expressing confidence World Cup delegations and fans would be welcomed for the tournament. Although of no legal force, the letters were used in lobbying by the U.S. Soccer Federation and the joint North American bid competed against Morocco’s. The North American bid won 134-65 in voting by FIFA members on Wednesday.
Trump tweeted Friday “Thank you for all of the compliments on getting the World Cup to come to the U.S.A., Mexico and Canada. I worked hard on this, along with a Great Team of talented people. We never fail, and it will be a great World Cup! A special thanks to Bob Kraft for excellent advice.”
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Kraft became honorary chairman of the bid last July, worked to obtain U.S. government support and helped gain the support of federations.
Trump also tweeted about the North American World Cup bid back in April. “It would be a shame if countries that we always support were to lobby against the U.S. bid,” he tweeted. “Why should we be supporting these countries when they don’t support us (including at the United Nations)?”
Late goal by Jose Gimenez gives Uruguay a 1-0 win over Egypt
Jose Gimenez came to Uruguay’s rescue by scoring the lone goal in a 1-0 victory over Egypt on Friday in Group A of the World Cup.
The Uruguay defender jumped in the area and headed home a free kick late in the 89th minute.
The win is Uruguay’s first in a World Cup opener since 1970, when it went on to reach the semifinals.
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Russia leads Group A on goal difference after beating Saudi Arabia 5-0 on Thursday in the tournament’s opening match. Uruguay is now second, also with three points.
Egypt forward Mohamed Salah was on the bench for his country’s first World Cup match since 1990 after injuring a shoulder while playing for Liverpool in last month’s Champions League final. Salah was the Premier League’s player of the season after scoring a league-leading 32 goals, with 44 in all competitions.
He left the Champions League final in tears on May 26 after he was injured during a collision with Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos.
At the other end, Uruguay strikers Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani missed their chances. Suarez failed to beat Egypt goalkeeper Mohamed El Shennawy in two one-on-one situations and Cavani hit the post from a free kick two minutes from the end.
Egypt, which had zero corner kicks in the match, has yet to win a World Cup game. It managed two draws at the 1990 tournament and left empty handed in 1934.
For L.A.’s Iranian American community, the World Cup means much more than soccer games
For many, the World Cup gives people a chance to sideline politics and unite under the feel-good umbrella of sports diplomacy.
In the current geopolitical climate, fat chance of that.
The World Cup kicked off in Russia after all. (You might have heard a thing or two in the news and all over social media about Russia since the last presidential election.) And one of the other participants in the highly anticipated event is Iran. (Ditto.)
For many of Los Angeles’ Iranian Americans — part of the largest Persian community outside Iran — separating sports from politics is all but impossible. On Friday, Iran’s national soccer team will begin its World Cup play in a game against Morocco.
Lionel Messi needs a World Cup while Iceland is just happy to be playing in one
It hasn’t been the smoothest of World Cup preparations for Lionel Messi and Argentina.
First the Argentines were routed 6-1 by Spain, then starting goalkeeper Sergio Romero was sidelined because of an injury and then on their way to Russia they caused an international incident by stopping in Jerusalem to play Israel in a friendly.
That didn’t get a friendly greeting from the Palestinians, so the Argentine soccer association canceled the game. For Messi, it all brought back bad memories: two years ago, frustrated with a national association mired in scandal, he briefly retired from international soccer.
Where to watch the World Cup in Los Angeles
The 2018 FIFA World Cup is finally here. Billions worldwide will be tuning in for the monthlong tournament as 32 national teams compete for a chance to become global champion.
Because of the time difference with Russia, where the tournament is beind held, all of the games will be broadcast early in the morning, Pacific time (you can find the full schedule here). Early kickoffs or not, Angelenos have plenty of options to catch the games at public venues.
Russia beats Saudi Arabia 5-0 for first World Cup win in 16 years
Russia opened its World Cup on Thursday with a quick, energetic opening ceremony that featured a giant fire bird made from crepe paper, English pop singer Robbie Williams flipping off the cameras, a lot of juggling and a speech from President Vladimir Putin.
Then Russia’s national team went out and provided an encore, riding two goals from Denis Cheryshev and single scores from Yury Gazinsky, Artem Dzuba and Roman Zobnin to a 5-0 win over Saudi Arabia before a crowd of 78,011 at Luzhniki Stadium.
Igor Akinfeev picked up the shutout in goal without making a save.
Russia — both the country and the team — made history just by showing up since this World Cup is the first to be played in Eastern Europe. They made some more with the result, Russia’s first World Cup win in 16 years.
And the victory marked a big first step toward what could be even more history since a win or draw in either of its next two games could carry Russia beyond the group stage for the first time since the break-up of the Soviet Union.
And the 2018 World Cup is underway!
World Cup: Egypt-Uruguay, Morocco-Iran, Portugal-Spain matches ready to kick off Friday
World Cup notes: Spain replaces coach Julen Lopetegui with Fernando Hierro two days before opener
Spain will go into the World Cup under new management after the country’s soccer association fired manager Julen Lopetegui on Wednesday, two days before its tournament opener against Portugal in Sochi, Russia.
The move came after Spanish club Real Madrid said Lopetegui would become its manager after the World Cup, an announcement that angered Luis Rubiales, president of the Spanish soccer federation.
“The federation cannot be left out of a negotiation by one of its workers and be informed five minutes before the press release,” said Rubiales, who is just a month into his job.
Soccer stars Salah, Ozil and Gundogan receive backlash over photos with political figures
Egypt soccer star Mohamed Salah has been criticized after accompanying Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov to a Gronzy, Russia, stadium where Salah and the rest of his teammates were training for the World Cup on Sunday.
While there, Salah and Kadyrov posed for photos in front of thousands of cheering fans.
“This is Kadyrov trying to capitalize on Chechnya being a team base to boost his own profile; it was 100% predictable,” said Rachel Denber, the Human Rights Watch deputy director for Europe and central Asia.
“He revels in the spotlight. He also has a ruthless grip on Chechnya. He has sought to obliterate any kind of political advocacy or human rights work.”
Salah has yet to comment on the controversial encounter, which caused a stir on social media. When asked about it by the Associated Press on Monday, Egyptian national team director Eihab Leheita said, “Ask FIFA for a comment.”
Two members of the German national team also are receiving considerable backlash for posing in a picture with another world leader. Mesut Ozil and Ilkay Gundogan, who were both born in Germany but are of Turkish descent, stood with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for a photo op in London last month.
Germany has a strained relationship with Erdogan, who is moving to consolidate and extend his power after 15 years leading Turkey.
Gundogan received boos and whistles from portions of the home crowd during Germany’s friendly against Saudi Arabia in Leverkusen last week. Ozil did not play because of a knee injury.
“A lot of things rained down on Mesut and me in the past two weeks. It continues to be a difficult situation for us. It’s still on our minds, on my mind,” Gundogan said on German television Tuesday.
“That’s why it hurts when there are accusations like that we are not integrated [into German society] or that we don’t live by German values.
“I believe we both have done a lot for it, have tried to be role models, be respectful, be tolerant. Those two weeks were incredibly difficult.
“It’s still not over. You could all hear the whistles at us in the last match. It’s never nice. Not for me, not for my teammates. It’s not an easy situation to cope with.”
Ozil has yet to comment on the controversy.
Contrasting cultures
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Pittsburgh or Moscow?
Group G preview: The party is just beginning for World Cup debutante Panama
Donald Trump isn’t the only president who governs by tweet. Panamanian leader Juan Carlos Varela has also embraced the practice of issuing official decrees in 280 characters or less, taking to Twitter in October to declare a national holiday moments after his country qualified for its first-ever World Cup.
“The voice of the people has been heard,” Varela wrote beneath a picture of himself, in a red national team jacket, signing the presidential order.
And although the holiday has ended, the celebration hasn’t, which could necessitate another Twitter proclamation ahead of Panama’s tournament opener against Belgium next week.
“I can’t say. The president’s in charge of that,” midfielder Anibal Godoy said with a laugh. “But I think a lot of people are going to miss work.”
You couldn’t blame Panamanians for pausing to pinch themselves in the midst of the revelry, though, just to make sure they’re not dreaming. The country appeared to have its ticket punched to the World Cup four years ago, only to have it slip through their fingers when the U.S. scored twice in stoppage time of the final CONCACAF qualifier, eliminating Panama and opening the way for Mexico to go to Brazil instead.
Argentina is easy favorite, but who else will advance from Group D?
Sure Argentina will field one of the deepest, most talented teams in the tournament. But the storyline surrounding, its national team, La Albiceleste, will be all about Lionel Messi’s pursuit of the one prize that has eluded him, a World Cup title. Messi carried Argentina to the final four years ago, winning the Golden Ball as the tournament’s outstanding player but losing the World Cup to Germany in extra time. Messi will be 31 by the final in Russia and he clearly needs more than a consolation prize if he hopes to one day be remembered as the outstanding player of his generation.
World Cup Group A: Bob Bradley laid foundation for Egypt’s first trip to World Cup in 28 years
Mohamed Salah was a quiet teenager who had made just one appearance for Egypt when Bob Bradley took over the country’s national team in the summer of 2011.
Now Salah is Egypt’s leading scorer among active players and the talisman on a team about to play in its first World Cup in 28 years. And he’s not the only one whose career blossomed under Bradley, a former U.S. national team coach and the current Los Angeles Football Club manager who took Egypt to within a game of the World Cup in his only qualifying campaign there.
“Most of the players that are playing now, and the starting players, Mr. Bob is the first one who chose them,” said defender Omar Gaber, who as one of those players unfailingly uses the honorific “mister” when referring to the coach.
But Bradley didn’t just rebuild the Egyptian team, he saved it. And that, more than anything that happened on the field, is what made this World Cup visit possible.
Group H preview: Radamel Falcao, James Rodriguez lead Colombia into World Cup competition
Four years ago, as Colombia prepared for its first World Cup in 16 years, Radamel Falcao struggled to get healthy.
An ACL injury had sidelined him for nearly six months but Falcao waited until the week before the tournament to admit he wouldn’t be able to play. His sadness soon turned to envy as he watched an unheralded 22-year-old teammate named James Rodriguez lead Colombia into the quarterfinals unbeaten.
This summer both Rodriguez and Colombia could be even better thanks to Falcao, the country’s all-time leading scorer, who will finally make his World Cup debut at 32.
“The story’s different now,” he told reporters before leaving for Russia. “I’m making the most of every moment with my teammates, getting us ready for this World Cup that we’re very excited about.”
Brazil was Rodriguez’s coming-out party. He finished as the tournament’s leading scorer with six goals in five games, so he won’t catch anyone by surprise this summer. Nor will Falcao, who was nominated for the 2017 Ballon d’Or — awarded to the world’s top player — and who has scored 51 goals in all competitions the last two seasons for Monaco of France’s Ligue 1.
Together they’ve written a new chapter in Colombian soccer history, one they’d like to conclude with a happy ending in Russia.
Group E preview: Costa Rica confident even in a group that includes Brazil
Costa Rica didn’t lose a game in regulation in the World Cup four years ago in Brazil, where it was eliminated in a penalty-kick shootout.
But it did lose the element of surprise with its magical run to the quarterfinals. So Minnesota United defender Francisco Calvo doesn’t expect anyone to take the Central Americans lightly in Russia.
“We have set the bar very high,” he said in Spanish. “Costa Rica no longer is a little team that can be beat easily. Right now everyone in the world looks at Costa Rica in a different way.
“We hope in this World Cup we follow the same path we took in the last one.”
Costa Rica could become the first CONCACAF team to reach the quarterfinals in consecutive World Cups, not a small feat for a country that had qualified for consecutive World Cups just one other time. For Marco Urena, however, simply returning to the quarterfinals wouldn’t be enough. He said Costa Rica must go further.
The three most hated letters at the World Cup
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World Cup Group B preview: Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal have a pretty clear path to advance
Portugal can be described as “experienced,” but in Portuguese that also translates as “old.” Coach Fernando Santos’ team will start two central defenders older than 34 and at striker they’ll have the 33-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo. So look for Portugal to play conservatively on defense while hoping the field eventually opens up for Ronaldo at the other end. Portugal can be good, if uncreative, in the midfield where the mission never wavers: Get the ball to the captain. It’s a simple plan, but it worked well in Euros and World Cup qualifying.
Fernando Hierro takes over as Spain’s coach two days before team’s World Cup opener
Spanish soccer federation president Luis Rubiales announced Wednesday that Fernando Hierro would replace Julen Lopetegui as coach for Spain’s World Cup match against Portugal in Sochi, Russia, on Friday.
Lopetegui was fired as national team coach earlier Wednesday because he accepted a job to lead Real Madrid next season.
The 50-year-old Hierro, a former national team player and Real Madrid captain, had been acting as the federation’s sports director and was already in Russia with the national team.
Rubiales said firing Lopetegui wasn’t the best solution but was necessary after the federation was caught by surprise by Real Madrid’s announcement.
“The federation cannot be left out of a negotiation by one of its workers and be informed five minutes before the press release,” Rubiales said Wednesday. “We have been compelled to act.”
Lopetegui was expected to talk to the media later.
“We have to work on a series of decisions that come just two days before the opener,” Rubiales said. “There’s a lot to do.”
Hierro spent most of his playing career as a defender for Real Madrid and finished his playing days with English club Bolton in 2005. He played in four World Cups with Spain, from 1990 to 2002, and in two European Championships, 1996 and 2000.
Hierro was Carlo Ancelotti’s assistant at Real Madrid after Zinedine Zidane left the post in 2014.
He coached second-division club Real Oviedo two seasons ago and was Malaga’s general manager after leaving his sports director position with the Spanish federation in 2011.
Injuries leave questions for Germany, Mexico in World Cup Group F qualifying
Germany has the deepest squad in the tournament, but it faces several questions regarding injuries. Coach Joachim Low said goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, who has not played a competitive match since fracturing a foot in September, will be his starter in Russia. That will send Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who played well at Barcelona this season, back to the bench. But can Neuer stand up to the World Cup grind? Midfielder Mesut Ozil, meanwhile, is in a race to heal his knee before next weekend’s opener with Mexico. Another worry: Germany, which went 10-0 with a plus-39 goal differential in World Cup qualifying, was winless in its next five.
World Cup Group C capsules
Arguably the strongest French team since the 2006 squad, which lost the World Cup final on penalty kicks, coach Didier Deschamps’ team is loaded with attacking options. In the midfield he has Manchester United’s Pogba and Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante, and up front is Chelsea’s Olivier Giroud and Atletico Madrid’s Griezmann. Tottenham’s Lloris anchors the defense. Two years ago, that group led France to its first Euro final in 16 years.