Sports
‘Ale, ale, ale!’ to meh: World Cup loses its spark to boring music
The World Cup has always been more than the matches on the pitch. For a brief, electrifying moment every four years, it extends into the streets, bars, and living rooms of millions of fans worldwide. And for a long stretch, from 1998 through 2010, that heartbeat came in the form of music.
The songs weren’t just background noise as they carried motivational fire, capable of uniting entire nations and turning casual spectators into believers.
Ricky Martin’s “The Cup of Life” in 1998 was the spark that changed everything.
The horn-driven salsa, the chantable “¡Ale, ale, ale!”, the relentless energy, it bypassed language barriers and demanded participation.
My friend, who watched his first World Cup in 1998, always says it felt like every stadium and every living room with a TV was beating to the same unstoppable rhythm.
It wasn’t merely a hit song; it was the tournament itself distilled into four minutes of explosive Latin fire.
Suddenly, the World Cup had a voice, a pulse, and a personality that echoed far beyond the Stade de France.
The golden era of World Cup music continued into the early 2000s, each official track carrying its own energy and flair. Anastacia’s “Boom” in 2002 delivered dance-pop adrenaline, while Il Divo and Toni Braxton’s 2006 ballad “The Time of Our Lives” added cinematic drama without losing its motivational core.
These songs shared a crucial DNA: they were alive. They were tied to place, time, and the communal joy of sport.
Then came 2010 in South Africa.
This one hits especially close to home, as Africans, it felt like the world was in our hands, with every street from Cape Town to Cairo alive with the roar of vuvuzelas.
The undeniable peak of World Cup anthems accompanied the traditional instrument.
Shakira’s “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)” fused Afro-pop rhythms, South African instrumentation, and a chorus designed for stadium-wide sing-alongs.
K’naan’s “Wavin’ Flag” became a companion piece, a deeply personal anthem transformed into a celebration of resilience and triumph.
For the first time, the tournament felt truly global, yet rooted in the spirit of its host continent.
Fans across Africa and the world debated which track carried more weight: Waka Waka’s infectious party energy or Wavin’ Flag’s emotional depth.
Together, they created a sonic moment that remains unmatched, a reminder of what happens when music and sport converge perfectly.
Even controversies, like the plagiarism of Cameroon’s “Zangalewa” by Shakira, couldn’t diminish the impact.
These songs didn’t just play during matches; they defined them. They moved crowds, motivated players, and turned the World Cup into a festival that transcended sport.
After 2010, the magic began to fade. By the 2014 Brazil World Cup, the anthem formula had shifted.
Pitbull, Jennifer Lopez, and Claudia Leitte’s “We Are One (Ole Ola)” carried star power and carnival energy, but it felt manufactured.
It was polished, professional, and commercially successful, but it lacked the heartbeat of previous anthems.
Four years later, “Live It Up” in Russia, with Nicky Jam, Will Smith, and Era Istrefi, felt even more engineered for mass appeal, a boring song built to hit streaming charts rather than to unite fans in stadiums.
By Qatar 2022, FIFA abandoned the single-track model entirely, splintering its soundtrack across multiple artists and genres.
The result was the safe Dreamers by BTS’ Jung Kook, forgettable music that rarely inspired a crowd to sing in unison or move with genuine energy.
The first preview for 2026, “Lighter” by Jelly Roll and Carin Leon, has already sparked criticism online.
Too country, too slow, too disconnected from the global pulse of football, it signals a continued departure from the era when World Cup songs felt like an event in themselves.
The stadium-shoutable chorus, the infectious beat, the cultural authenticity all seem absent.
In their place are tracks designed for streaming algorithms and cross-market appeal, losing the grit, the soul, and the communal energy that once made the World Cup soundtrack a global event in its own right.
The decline is not accidental. It is a product of three converging forces.
First, commercial pressures turned the anthem into a multi-track, multi-market production, diluting focus and emotional impact.
Second, safety and formula replaced risk and cultural authenticity. Producers optimized for global streaming trends rather than creating music grounded in the host nation’s rhythms and identity.
And third, the modern digital era, dominated by TikTok snippets and short-form virality, undermines the long-form build-up that makes a song a communal, stadium-filling experience.
A track can be a social media hit, but it cannot be chanted by 80,000 fans in unison if it was designed for a 15-second clip.
And so, the motivational fire of World Cup songs, once capable of turning ordinary fans into believers, has dwindled.
Today’s tracks play and fade, rarely leaving a lasting imprint. The memories of Ricky Martin’s La Copa de la Vida, Shakira’s Waka Waka, and K’naan’s Wavin’ Flag endure precisely because they carried emotional weight, cultural grounding, and raw energy.
They remind us that the right song can transform a tournament into an unforgettable moment in history.
Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca produced the biggest upset of the French Open so far on Friday, defeating Novak Djokovic in the third round and ending the Serbian’s bid for a record 25th Grand Slam singles title.
The 39-year-old Serb – a three-time champion at Roland Garros – lost 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, 7-5 as temperatures again reached 33 degrees C (91 F).
Djokovic looked exhausted in the fifth set but soldiered on and his exit leaves the men’s draw even more open following Jannik Sinner’s second-round exit on Thursday.
“Tough one for me to lose,” Djokovic said. “I was barely standing on my legs toward the end of the match.”
Facing Fonseca for the first time, Djokovic mixed trademark defense with stunning winners and delicate drop shots to win the first two sets.
“I was playing good tennis, very good tennis,” Djokovic said. “Taking everything into consideration and all the circumstances, my level was very good.”
But Fonseca proved resilient and tied the match on sets. In the final game, Djokovic had a break point for 6-6 but Fonseca served out with three consecutive aces and became the first teenager to beat Djokovic at a Grand Slam tournament.
“I just enjoyed being on court and what a pleasure it was. It’s my first stepping on court against him,” Fonseca said. “I was just trying to hit the ball as fast I could. Djokovic don’t miss, we still think he’s 20. At the end of the match I think he was more fit than me, that’s crazy.”
About his flurry of aces, he joked: “I felt like (big server) John Isner. I never did this before.”
Then he wished his mother in the crowd happy birthday and thanked all the Brazilians in the crowd.
Djokovic came to Roland Garros with doubts. After he lost the Australian Open final to Carlos Alcaraz, a shoulder injury limited his clay-court buildup to one competitive match. He labored for at least three hours in each of his previous two rounds but would have thought his chances of adding to his 2016, 2021 and 2023 French Open titles improved after Sinner’s exit.
But the heat that stressed Sinner also got to Djokovic, who applied ice packs on both sides of his face during changeovers. Still, he looked to be in command when he clinched the second set with a forehand volley at the net.
But Fonseca, who kept pushing Djokovic back with his big forehand, broke early in the third set and held on to it.
In the fifth set, Djokovic frantically tried to find ways to recover some energy against an opponent 20 years younger but he couldn’t hide his fatigue: He hunched over the advertising boards, his forearms dangling; slumped back in his chair with a towel on his head; grabbed his head with his hands.
He was gracious in defeat.
“I told him (after the match) that he deserved to win and he should be proud of himself. We’ve all seen today why there is hype around him,” Djokovic said. “Without a doubt he was a better player in important moments. Found incredible shots.”
Djokovic said he was unsure if he would play at the French Open next year, although he said the same after his semifinal defeat to Jannik Sinner last year.
Turkish rider Toprak Razgatlıoğlu this weekend returns to the spotlight at one of the most demanding stages on the calendar as he lines up for Round 7 of the 2026 season at Mugello, Italy, continuing his adaptation to MotoGP machinery with the Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP.
The Mugello Circuit delivers one of MotoGP’s most intense challenges, a 5.245 km rollercoaster of 15 corners, rapid elevation changes and a 1.141 km straight where speeds regularly exceed 360 km/h.
The 23-lap main race stretches just over 120 km, with precision, tire management and bravery all tested at the limit.
Italian fans are expected to pack the hillsides once again, adding pressure and energy to a venue known for producing some of the season’s most explosive racing.
Tough rookie season
Now competing in his debut premier-class campaign, Razgatlıoğlu made history in 2026 as the first Turkish rider in MotoGP. After six rounds, he sits 22nd in the standings with 4 points, his best result a 13th-place finish at the French Grand Prix.
Riding the Yamaha M1 has demanded a major adjustment from his World Superbike dominance. Known for aggressive braking and late corner entries, he has been working to adapt to prototype machinery that requires finer control of electronics and corner speed discipline.
Early in the season, Aprilia has set the pace, with Marco Bezzecchi leading the standings ahead of Jorge Martin and Fabio Di Giannantonio. KTM’s Pedro Acosta and Japan’s Ai Ogura complete the top five.
For Razgatlıoğlu, Mugello is less about points and more about progress. The high-speed layout will expose both strengths and weaknesses of the Yamaha package, while offering valuable data for development.
Lionel Messi will captain Argentina at a record sixth World Cup, extending an international career that has already reshaped the modern game as the reigning champions arrive in North America with both legacy and expectation weighing heavily on every step.
Lionel Messi enters the tournament at 39, still central to Argentina’s identity nearly four years after delivering the country’s long-awaited third world title in Qatar. That 2022 campaign was not just a triumph but a full reinvention of his international legacy, defined by seven goals, three assists, and decisive moments in every knockout round, culminating in a final against France where he scored twice and converted in the shootout to secure the trophy.
In the immediate aftermath, Messi suggested that the World Cup win had closed the circle on his career, calling it the one achievement he had been missing. Retirement from international football felt like the natural next step. Instead, he chose to extend his run, driven by the rare opportunity to compete again as reigning world champion and the unfinished pull of elite competition on the global stage.
That decision has carried Argentina into a new cycle under coach Lionel Scaloni, who has repeatedly made clear that Messi’s role cannot be replicated. The structure of the team, both tactically and emotionally, still flows through him, even as Argentina have gradually diversified their attacking patterns and reduced dependence on a single focal point.
The physical context is different now. Messi’s departure from Europe in 2023 after a mixed spell at Paris Saint-Germain marked the end of his weekly exposure to the Champions League level. At Inter Miami CF, he has found a new rhythm, producing 13 goals in 16 appearances in 2026 and leading the club to the MLS Cup title last season. The tempo and intensity differ from Europe’s elite competitions, but his efficiency and influence remain intact.
Recent injury management has added a layer of caution. A hamstring issue following a match against Philadelphia Union briefly raised concern within Argentina’s camp, though the medical outlook has been described as manageable. The expectation remains that he will be available for the opening phase of the tournament.
What remains striking is the scale of his international longevity. Messi is approaching 200 caps, already standing as Argentina’s record holder for appearances and goals, and his national team journey now spans five World Cups and three decades of football evolution. He debuted in 2006, experienced the heartbreak of the 2014 final loss to Germany, and then completed the long arc with victory in 2022.
Since that breakthrough, his influence has not faded. He captained Argentina to the 2024 Copa America title in the United States, adding another major trophy to a resume that had long been defined by near misses at international level. He also played a leading role in South American qualifying, finishing among the top scorers and reinforcing that his output remains decisive even in a shared attacking system.
Argentina’s current squad reflects a blend of continuity and controlled renewal. The core of the 2022 champions remains intact, including Emiliano Martinez, Cristian Romero, Enzo Fernandez, Alexis Mac Allister, Julian Alvarez, and Lautaro Martinez. The retention of 17 players from Qatar underscores how stable the structure remains.
At the same time, Scaloni has begun integrating younger profiles such as Nicolás Paz and Valentín Barco, while experienced names like Paulo Dybala and Emiliano Buendía were left out. The omission of highly rated teenager Franco Mastantuono also drew attention, highlighting the fine balance between long-term planning and immediate tournament ambition.
Preparation for the tournament includes friendlies against Honduras and Iceland before Argentina begin Group J play against Algeria in Kansas City. Austria and Jordan complete the group, with fixtures scheduled across the United States, including a match in Arlington, Texas that will take place just days after Messi’s 39th birthday.
Inside the squad, there is an awareness that this cycle may represent the final World Cup chapter for their captain. Alvarez has described Messi’s presence as both motivating and defining, while also emphasizing that Argentina now have enough depth and tactical flexibility to compete without over-reliance on one player. That point has been reinforced by results such as a dominant qualifying win over Brazil achieved without him.
Still, the global focus remains fixed on him. Alongside figures such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Guillermo Ochoa, Messi’s sixth World Cup appearance stands as part of a rare convergence of longevity at the highest level, where past and present collide on the same stage.
Brazil’s World Cup preparations were disrupted on Wednesday after Neymar missed the national team’s first training session to undergo medical tests, casting fresh uncertainty over his place in the squad.
The Brazilian Football Confederation confirmed the 34-year-old forward, who is recovering from a right calf injury, did not take part in the closed-door session at the team’s Granja Comary base and was instead sent to a private clinic in Teresopolis for imaging tests.
In a statement, the CBF said no further details would be released until the national team’s medical staff complete their assessment.
Neymar’s absence quickly dominated discussion on the second day of Brazil’s training camp ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
Brazil are scheduled to hold three more sessions at Granja Comary before Sunday’s friendly against Panama at the Maracana.
Manager Carlo Ancelotti is already without three players for that match. Defenders Gabriel Magalhães and Marquinhos, along with forward Gabriel Martinelli, are involved in Saturday’s Champions League final between Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain.
Neymar’s recall last week generated widespread excitement after he had not featured in Ancelotti’s plans during the Italian coach’s year in charge.
Brazil’s all-time leading scorer with 79 goals in 128 appearances, Neymar has not played for his country since 2023. His return came amid scrutiny over his fitness and form following years of injury problems and an underwhelming spell back at Santos.
The timing could hardly be more delicate. After facing Panama, Brazil meet Egypt in Cleveland in their final friendly before opening their World Cup campaign against African champions Morocco on June 13 in New Jersey. Brazil and Morocco are drawn in Group C alongside Haiti and Scotland.
In an interview with Reuters in early May, Ancelotti made clear that reputation alone would not secure Neymar’s place.
He said Neymar would receive no special treatment and that his selection would be based strictly on fitness and form, not sentiment.
For now, Brazil wait for the medical verdict and on whether their most recognizable name will be fit to take center stage next month.
The Champions League trophy is up for grabs in Saturday’s final in Budapest, but for Paris Saint-Germain and Luis Enrique, the stakes go far beyond silverware.
Facing Arsenal, the defending champions and their serial-winning Spanish coach have a chance to strengthen their case as one of the defining teams of this era.
“I arrived at the club thinking, ‘My objective is to make history,’ and we have indeed made history,” Luis Enrique said. “We want to keep writing the story because we believe there’s still more there for us to achieve.”
PSG is already part of the conversation about the best sides of the Champions League era, yet only results on nights like this tend to settle such debates.
Victory at the Estadio Metropolitano in Budapest would make PSG only the second team to retain the trophy since the competition was rebranded as the Champions League in 1992.
For years, even the game’s most dominant sides have failed to repeat the feat.
Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona won two titles in three years. AC Milan and Juventus each reached three consecutive finals in the 1990s but won only one apiece. Ajax and Manchester United both saw title defenses end in final defeats.
Real Madrid, the most successful club in European football, eventually broke the pattern with three straight titles from 2016-18. What once seemed out of reach would now become a realistic target for PSG with victory on Saturday.
Luis Enrique would join Guardiola and Zinedine Zidane as a three-time Champions League winner, though his focus remains collective success rather than personal milestones.
Having previously won the Champions League with Barcelona, he has built a PSG side that has set the standard in Europe over the past two seasons. It blends attacking quality with intensity and pressing energy, a high-risk style that prioritizes control through aggression.
At its best, PSG looks unstoppable, with last year’s 5-0 win over Inter Milan in the final standing as one of the most dominant performances in the competition’s history.
With a squad averaging under 24 years old, the prospect of sustained success is clear.
Desire Doue, the two-goal scorer in last year’s final, is 20, while midfielder Joao Neves is 21.
PSG’s performances, including a 5-4 win over Bayern Munich in the semifinals, underline its quality, but history suggests dominance must be proven with repeated titles.
For many, Guardiola’s Barcelona side featuring Lionel Messi, Xavi and Andres Iniesta remains the benchmark of the modern era.
Others point to Luis Enrique’s Barcelona team of 2015, powered by Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez, as even more complete.
Statistically, no side matches Real Madrid’s dominance under Zinedine Zidane, with Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Luka Modric and Toni Kroos, which delivered three consecutive titles. Over five years, Madrid won the competition four times.
PSG remains far behind Madrid’s 15 European crowns, having lifted the trophy for the first time last year. But it can still make a case as the defining team of its era.
Backed by Qatari investment, PSG spent heavily for years in pursuit of European glory, bringing in Messi, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
The breakthrough only came after a shift toward a more balanced, team-first approach, even while retaining elite talent. Messi, Neymar and eventually Mbappe departed, while a younger core emerged, including Doue, Neves and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. Ousmane Dembele, once inconsistent at Barcelona, has re-emerged in Paris as a central figure.
A semifinal run in Luis Enrique’s first season was followed by last year’s title and a chance to go back-to-back.
“I’d say there was more pressure last season because everyone was like, ‘This is it, we can’t lose this time,’” Luis Enrique said. “This time around, there is pressure because we believe we deserve it.”
While PSG pursues history, Arsenal is aiming to claim its first Champions League title.
The Premier League side reached the final after topping the league phase with a perfect record.
Mikel Arteta’s team lost to PSG in last year’s semifinals.
“It’s two teams that are exceptional in the way they function, how they adapt and the intensity they play with,” Arteta said. “We’re going to have to be at our best to win it.”
Haiti’s first World Cup appearance since 1974 has become a powerful moment of national pride, but for Emile, a Haitian living in Ohio, it is overshadowed by fear tied to US President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.
“Singing my country’s national anthem in a stadium in front of the whole world is a historic moment that no one would want to miss,” the truck driver in his 40s, who requested anonymity, told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
“But at the same time, I think twice. I don’t want to be arrested by ICE,” he added, referring to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency responsible for detaining and deporting undocumented migrants.
“My lawyer advised me not to fly so I don’t get caught at the airport,” he said.
His concerns echo those of many in immigrant communities who have watched Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations across multiple US cities, often carried out by heavily armed and masked officers.
Outrage peaked when ICE officers shot and killed two American demonstrators in Minneapolis.
“Now, people are making sure they are aware of what they are doing, and they don’t feel safe,” Monica Sarmiento of the Virginia Coalition for Immigrant Rights told AFP.
“They are afraid. We have seen very aggressive tactics from ICE that have gone after not only undocumented communities but also people with protected status.”
Sarmiento said 70% of those arrested, detained and deported have no criminal record.
“Many of them have been here for decades, paying taxes for decades,” she added, condemning what she called “a fearful and hostile environment across the country, not only for the World Cup but every single day.”
Seventy-eight of the 104 World Cup matches will be held in the United States, which is co-hosting the June 11 to July 19 tournament with Canada and Mexico.
The possibility of ICE activity around US matches has sparked concerns within the US Hispanic community, which makes up about 20% of the US population and is concentrated in California, Texas and Florida, with significant representation in cities such as Miami, Los Angeles, Dallas and New York.
The Haitian community, estimated at about 850,000 people in 2024, is also largely concentrated in Miami and New York.
The Trump administration has sought to end temporary protected status for which Emile and others are eligible. It shields them from deportation to their home country, one of the poorest in the world and one still grappling with political instability, economic crisis and gang violence.
Serious rights violations
Fears have been fueled by reports, including one from Human Rights Watch, which said an asylum-seeker who attended the Club World Cup final last year in New Jersey with his children was arrested by ICE and deported to his country of origin.
Some rights organizations also fear ICE will target foreign tourists around stadiums and in the numerous fan zones where supporters are expected to gather.
More than 120 US civil rights organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union, issued a travel advisory in April warning of the risk of serious rights violations for fans, players, journalists and other visitors.
The signatories said travelers to the United States could face denial of entry, arrest, detention and deportation, racial profiling, and “cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and even death while in ICE detention or custody.”
ICE, one of several agencies under the Department of Homeland Security, has long been involved in security operations at major sporting events such as the Super Bowl.
“International visitors who legally come to the United States for the World Cup have nothing to worry about,” a DHS spokesperson told AFP.
“What makes someone a target for immigration enforcement is whether they are in the US illegally.”
World football’s governing body, FIFA, responding to a question from AFP, said it “is committed to respecting all internationally recognized human rights and strives to promote the protection of these rights.”
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