Sports
Brazil face early World Cup concerns as Neymar misses training again
Neymar was again absent from Brazil’s training session in Morristown, New Jersey, on Wednesday as the squad continued preparations for Saturday’s World Cup opener against Morocco while also celebrating head coach Carlo Ancelotti’s 67th birthday.
Ancelotti’s players paid tribute to the Italian, who has been tasked with ending Brazil’s 24-year wait for a sixth World Cup title, with a traditional guard of honor. Barcelona forward Raphinha later joked that the team had gone easy on him compared with the usual treatment.
“He passed through it, but nobody touched him,” Raphinha said.
Talisman Neymar continues his intensive rehabilitation for a grade 2 calf injury suffered while playing for Santos in Brazil in mid-May.
The 34-year-old is set to miss the first game, with no indication yet on whether he will feature in subsequent group matches against Haiti and Scotland.
Despite Neymar’s absence, Brazilian pundits present at the training ground remained optimistic.
“Brazil is not the great favorite, but it has good players that can come together to form a good team. I think it has its chances,” said Zinho, a key midfielder in the Brazil team that won the World Cup in the United States in 1994.
Zinho, who is currently a pundit for ESPN, believes Ancelotti’s side will be cautious against a Morocco team that reached the semifinals at the last World Cup.
Benjamin Back, a popular Brazilian radio commentator, said Ancelotti would not alter the team’s style.
“He will have a team that defends and waits for the opponents’ actions before trying to be quick in transition once it wins the ball,” he said.
“It is a young group, with good physical condition and a great coach. I would put Brazil among the favorites,” he added.
Brazil’s first game will take place at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Mexico got the World Cup party started as the co-hosts swept away South Africa 2-0 on Thursday, in an encounter with three red cards as the quadrennial football extravaganza got underway.
Julian Quinones’s early strike set the tone for a dominant Mexican display in the Group A encounter, with Raul Jimenez’s header midway through the second half removing any lingering tension for the home crowd.
Amid escalating protests and social tensions in Mexico’s capital, more than 80,000 fans made their way to Mexico City Stadium, better known as Azteca Stadium.
It got a much-needed facelift ahead of the 48-team tournament that Mexico is co-hosting alongside the United States and Canada.
Before the kickoff, the crowd was entertained by Colombian singer Shakira and a host of performers in an opening ceremony.
Yet the match will be remembered as much for the three dismissals, with South Africa having Sphephelo Sithole sent off early in the second half, with his teammate Themba Zwane following him off the pitch before Mexico’s Cesar Montes was dismissed in the dying moments.
The ill-tempered encounter spoiled an otherwise party atmosphere, yet the home crowd got to celebrate an opening victory that will set them up nicely to make it out of a group that also includes South Korea and the Czech Republic.
The game was barely minutes old when Jimenez stung the fingertips of South Africa goalkeeper Ronwen Williams with a volley from 12 yards, but the tournament’s opening goal was not long in coming.
Sithole was robbed on the edge of his own box by Erik Lira, preferred in the heart of midfield to captain Edson Alvarez, and he quickly fed Quinones, who danced inside before drilling a low finish beneath Williams.
It was the earliest first goal at a World Cup since 2006, when Philipp Lahm netted for Germany against Costa Rica after six minutes.
It took 35 minutes for South Africa to even vaguely threaten the Mexico goal when Lyle Foster glanced a header wide, yet as the first half drew to a close, Hugo Broos’s side were clinging on for dear life.
First, Jimenez wafted a foot at an inswinging cross to draw a fine save from Williams before Quinones struck the post from close range with the goal at his mercy, and Brian Gutierrez pushed an effort wide when he should have done better.
The second half began in a similar vein, and it was Gutierrez who drew the first red card when his marauding run toward the box was stopped in its tracks by Sithole, whose clumsy tackle from behind earned him his marching orders to complete a miserable afternoon’s work for the midfielder.
The crowd had begun to get a little restless at Mexico’s failure to turn their numerical advantage into another goal, but that frustration was relieved when Jimenez bagged his first World Cup goal, with a powerful downward header past Williams from a devilish cross by Roberto Alvarado.
The game’s finale was dominated by the dismissals , with Zwane sent off after a VAR check for a supposed arm to the face, while Montes was sent off for Mexico for denying a goalscoring opportunity.
Azteca Stadium is the first venue to host three World Cup openers, after doing so at the 1970 and 1986 tournaments.
It is the eighth opening match of a World Cup for the Mexicans, who had previously lost five and drawn the last two, including against South Africa in the 2010 World Cup.
South Africa are playing in their first World Cup since hosting the 2010 tournament. Bafana Bafana also played in the 1998 and 2002 editions.
Mexico arrived with an eight-match unbeaten streak and have not lost since last November, when Paraguay beat them in a friendly.
The Mexican team is led by the 67-year-old coach Javier Aguirre, who is in his third stint with the national team.
The opener was also marked by teenager Gilberto Mora, who became Mexico’s youngest player in World Cup history.
The attacking midfielder was brought on in the 66th minute at the age of 17 years and 240 days.
Mora was already part of the Mexico team that won the Gold Cup when he was 16. His appearance on Thursday was his ninth overall for his country.
He is also the youngest player at the tournament, and the Club Tijuana player has already attracted the interest of European clubs.
The youngest player in men’s World Cup history remains Northern Ireland’s Norman Whiteside, who played at the 1982 tournament in Spain at the age of 17 years and 41 days.
Iran’s World Cup campaign has yet to begin, but the tournament’s political tensions are already threatening to spill onto the field.
Iranian Sports Minister Ahmad Donyamali warned this week that Iran could stop matches at the 2026 FIFA World Cup if what he described as unauthorized flags are displayed or anti-team slogans are chanted inside stadiums, adding another layer of controversy to one of the tournament’s most politically sensitive participants.
The warning comes days before Iran open their Group G campaign against New Zealand in Los Angeles on June 15. They will then face Belgium on June 21 at the same venue before concluding the group stage against Egypt in Seattle on June 26.
Speaking to Iranian media, Donyamali said Iranian officials had formally raised concerns with FIFA regarding potential protests during the team’s matches.
“We have informed FIFA that if unofficial flags are brought or slogans against the national team are chanted in the stadiums where Iran plays in the World Cup, the team manager will definitely be responsible for stopping the match,” Donyamali said.
The comments underscore the political scrutiny surrounding Iran’s presence at the expanded 48-team tournament, jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Iran’s national team has long found itself caught between football and politics. Opposition activists and members of the Iranian diaspora argue the team represents the country’s ruling establishment rather than the broader Iranian population. Demonstrations have followed the team at major international events in recent years, particularly after nationwide protests erupted following the death of Mahsa Amini in 2022.
The issue resurfaced in April when protesters gathered outside the FIFA Congress in Vancouver, urging world football’s governing body to ban Iran from the World Cup. Demonstrators claimed the team was closely aligned with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and did not represent ordinary Iranians.
One of the most visible symbols of the dispute has been the pre-revolutionary Lion and Sun flag, which opposition figures, including Reza Pahlavi, have encouraged supporters to display at international sporting events. Iranian authorities view such symbols as politically charged, while opposition groups regard them as expressions of national identity and dissent.
The concerns appear particularly acute ahead of Iran’s final group-stage match against Egypt in Seattle. Donyamali said FIFA had assured Iranian officials that measures would be in place to prevent disruptions during the game after both countries’ football federations raised concerns.
While political tensions dominate the headlines, logistical challenges have also complicated Iran’s World Cup preparations.
The Iranian Football Federation said its allocation of supporter tickets was withdrawn shortly before the tournament, leaving many fans who had already arranged travel without access to matches. FIFA has said it is working to maximize opportunities for Iranian supporters, though U.S. sanctions and financial restrictions have complicated ticketing and travel arrangements.
The team has also been forced to adapt its tournament preparations. Rather than establishing a training base in the United States, Iran relocated to Tijuana, Mexico, amid uncertainty surrounding visas and entry procedures.
Under arrangements confirmed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Iran’s players are permitted to enter the United States shortly before matches and must leave afterward. Several members of the broader delegation reportedly encountered visa difficulties, further highlighting the diplomatic challenges facing the team.
The unusual setup reflects the wider tensions between Washington and Tehran, which have cast a geopolitical shadow over the tournament despite FIFA’s efforts to keep the focus on football.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has publicly backed Iran’s participation and supported efforts to facilitate the team’s involvement in the competition. However, with emotions running high among supporters and critics alike, the governing body faces a difficult task balancing its ban on political demonstrations with the realities of one of international sport’s most politically charged storylines.
A historic comeback, sealed by a play that may forever be etched into Knicks lore.
The New York Knicks are now one win away from ending a championship drought that has stretched more than five decades, and they did it in unforgettable fashion Wednesday night.
Trailing by 29 points, the Knicks produced the largest comeback in NBA Finals history, rallying to stun the San Antonio Spurs 107-106 on OG Anunoby’s tip-in with 1.2 seconds remaining.
“That has to be the most iconic shot in the history of New York basketball,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said.
Few would argue. With the game hanging in the balance, Jalen Brunson’s deep 3-pointer bounced off the front rim before Anunoby soared above the crowd, extending his right arm to gently guide the ball through the net.
“His right hand came from God,” Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns said.
The victory leaves the Knicks, owners of just two NBA titles and appearing in their first Finals since 1999, with three opportunities to capture their first championship since 1973. Their first chance comes Saturday night in Game 5 in San Antonio.
It looked impossible early, when the Spurs rolled to a 27-point halftime lead. But Brunson helped bring the Knicks back with 36 points, and Anunoby finished with 33.
No team had come back from more than 24 points down in an NBA Finals game since the league began keeping detailed play-by-play records for all four quarters in 1997. Boston overcame a 24-point deficit against the Los Angeles Lakers in 2008. The Spurs led 81-52 in the third quarter.
“We’re a resilient group. We’ve been through a lot,” Anunoby said. “We’ve come back plenty of times when we’re behind. Just staying with it, weathering the storm, not being too down or angry or frustrated.”
The only bigger comeback on record in any NBA playoff game was a 31-point rally by the Los Angeles Clippers against Golden State in Game 2 of a first-round series in 2019.
“You look at it when you’re down 29 and think, ‘OK, let’s get it to 20,'” forward Josh Hart said. “There’s three minutes left in the third quarter, we’re down 18, you’re thinking, ‘Let’s get it to 10.’
“In the fourth quarter, you’re like, ‘This is winning time. Anything can happen.'”
And it did.
The Knicks had their 13-game winning streak snapped in Game 3 and seemed headed for a second straight defeat throughout the first half, when Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs built the largest halftime lead by a visiting team in NBA Finals history.
But the young Spurs, who made 11 of their first 16 3-point attempts, went cold in the second half, shooting 3 for 17 from beyond the arc as the Knicks outscored them 58-30.
“We got on our heels. We missed some shots,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “It’s disappointing, to say the least.”
Delirious fans inside Madison Square Garden sang along to Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin'” a few minutes after witnessing something that seemed almost impossible.
Wembanyama had 24 points and 13 rebounds but shot just 9 for 25 from the field.
Road teams had won the first three games, only the second time that had happened in the NBA Finals. San Antonio was well on its way to making it four for four.
President Donald Trump wasn’t at this game. Taylor Swift was. But the same restrictions remained around Madison Square Garden as when Trump attended Game 3. That angered the Knicks, who decided not to move forward with plans to hold an outdoor watch party outside the arena.
Inside the building in the first half, there wasn’t much for the home fans to be happy about, either.
But the Knicks gave themselves a chance by limiting the Spurs to 14 points on 4-for-20 shooting in the third quarter, using a 13-0 run to get back into the game and cutting the deficit to 90-75 entering the fourth.
These Knicks, who erased a 22-point deficit in the fourth quarter against Cleveland in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals, simply don’t quit. Even when the comeback appeared to be for nothing after Stephon Castle was fouled and made two free throws to put San Antonio back ahead with 30 seconds remaining, the Knicks had one more rally in them.
Dylan Harper scored 21 points, and De’Aaron Fox and Devin Vassell added 18 apiece for the Spurs, who will try to regroup and send the series back to New York for Game 6 on Tuesday. Only one team, Cleveland in 2016, has recovered from a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals.
“I think it began before that,” Wembanyama said of the Spurs’ collapse. “I can’t really explain it right now. I don’t know. We clearly weren’t the hungrier team in the second half.”
Fans booed Wembanyama when he came onto the floor to warm up about an hour before the game, and the Knicks tried to play physically against him. Mitchell Robinson was called for a flagrant foul for hitting him above the shoulders, and Jose Alvarado was reviewed for a possible flagrant after making contact below the belt.
Wembanyama, who was also assessed a flagrant foul, held his own against the Knicks but will regret the two free throws he missed with 1:47 remaining and San Antonio leading 104-103.
The Spurs raced to a 12-2 lead, giving them a double-digit advantage in the first quarter of all four games. They kept pouring it on and led 41-22 after one quarter, then extended the margin to 57-32 when Julian Champagnie’s 3-pointer made them 11 for 16 from beyond the arc.
Türkiye’s return to the World Cup after 24 years is shaping into more than just a comeback story, with Australia defender Milos Degenek framing the Group D opener in Vancouver as a test of pressure, experience and expectation.
Türkiye arrive at the 2026 World Cup carrying both history and uncertainty.
Their last appearance in 2002 remains a national reference point, when Şenol Güneş led a disciplined, fearless side to a third-place finish, still the country’s deepest run on football’s biggest stage.
That tournament produced defining moments, including victories over Japan and Senegal and a tense semifinal shootout win over South Korea before a high-scoring win over the co-hosts secured bronze. Since then, World Cup qualification has been elusive, interrupted by near misses and long gaps that have only intensified the weight surrounding each new attempt.
The long wait ended through a demanding UEFA playoff campaign, where Türkiye battled through tight margins to secure their place in the 2026 edition hosted across North America. The achievement restored their presence among football’s elite, but it also reset expectations around a squad now judged less by qualification and more by what comes next.
Australia enter the fixture from a very different position. The Socceroos have built continuity at this level, qualifying for six straight World Cups and reaching the Round of 16 in both 2006 and 2022. That consistency has shaped a squad comfortable in tournament rhythms, where survival often depends on managing moments rather than chasing narrative breakthroughs. For Degenek, part of both the 2018 and 2022 squads, that familiarity is not just experience but identity.
Speaking ahead of the match at BC Place, he pointed to the contrast in exposure between the two teams as a defining factor.
“Türkiye’s got a lot of pressure because they haven’t been to a World Cup since 2002,” Degenek said. “There’s a lot of hope on them and a lot of pressure, but we’re ready for that.”
His assessment also touched on a broader imbalance in tournament experience, noting that Australia’s core group has lived through multiple World Cup cycles, while Türkiye’s squad arrives largely untested at this stage despite its strong club-level pedigree across Europe’s top leagues.
“They’ve got players at the biggest clubs,” he added, “but we’ve got more experience in national team tournament football.”
That tension sits at the heart of the matchup. Türkiye bring a generation of talent that has raised expectations at club level, including Arda Güler at Real Madrid and Kenan Yıldız at Juventus, alongside a system shaped by Vincenzo Montella that blends technical quality with attacking ambition. Yet World Cup football often demands a different kind of resilience, one built on familiarity with pressure moments rather than reputation alone.
Australia, meanwhile, approach the opener with a settled competitive rhythm. Their recent tournament history has hardened a squad used to navigating group-stage margins, where early points often decide survival. That continuity gives them a sense of stability entering a group that also includes the United States and Paraguay, where every match carries early consequence in the expanded 48-team format.
Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan returned to Mogadishu on Wednesday to a hero’s reception after being denied entry to the United States ahead of the World Cup, a decision that ended his historic debut on football’s biggest stage and ignited criticism over visa restrictions and tournament access.
Artan, 2025’s Confederation of African Football Men’s Referee of the Year and the first Somali official selected for a FIFA World Cup roster, was turned away at Miami International Airport on Saturday after traveling from Istanbul.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said he was deemed inadmissible due to “vetting concerns,” later clarified by a State Department official as alleged links to suspected members of terrorist organizations, without providing further details.
The denial triggered immediate fallout.
FIFA removed Artan from its 52-referee list for the tournament, which is set to open Thursday across the United States, Mexico and Canada. Somalia’s football authorities said they had attempted unsuccessfully to intervene with both FIFA and U.S. officials after his visa had already been issued through the Somali Embassy in Kenya.
The Trump administration confirmed the decision this week, adding to wider scrutiny of immigration controls affecting nearly 40 countries under expanded travel restrictions. The case drew attention not only because of Artan’s profile, but also because he had already been formally appointed by FIFA and was expected to join officials in Miami for pre-tournament preparations.
In Mogadishu, the response was immediate and emotional. Hundreds of supporters, government officials and members of the football community gathered at Aden Adde International Airport hours before his arrival on a Turkish Airlines flight. As he stepped out, he was draped in the Somali flag, escorted through tight crowds, and taken to a VIP reception area where officials from the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Somalia Football Federation greeted him.
Artan struck a calm tone despite the setback, framing the incident as something beyond his control.
“What happened has happened and it was fate,” he said, thanking FIFA for its backing and urging Somalis to remain resilient. “Somalia is ours, whether things are good or bad. That flag belongs to us, and that passport belongs to us.”
He added that his ambitions remained unchanged, saying he intended to return to the global stage at the next World Cup in 2030 and encouraging young Somalis not to lose confidence in their country or their future.
“I will be at the next one,” he said. “Despite what has happened, I am not discouraged.”
Officials in Mogadishu expressed anger and disappointment over the decision. Mohamed Said, a government official who attended the airport reception, said the ruling had wider implications beyond sport, calling it deeply unjust.
Artan’s exclusion also drew attention from global health and sports figures. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on social media that his achievement in reaching the top level of refereeing “stands no matter what,” adding that his presence on the FIFA list had already inspired a generation.
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud had earlier described Artan as a national symbol of progress and possibility in a country still rebuilding after decades of conflict and the continuing threat of the al-Shabaab terrorist group.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino warned Tuesday that Los Angeles was about to be flooded with football fans from across the globe as he helped kick off World Cup celebrations at a star-studded event at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Speaking ahead of this week’s opening matches, Infantino said the city would soon become a focal point of the football world during the expanded 48-team tournament, which gets underway in Mexico City on Thursday before Los Angeles stages its first World Cup match on U.S. soil Friday.
“You will be invaded,” Infantino told the crowd.
“You will be invaded by a horde of barbarians. But it’s happy barbarians, don’t worry.”
The event drew entertainment and sports figures, including actors Will Ferrell and Brendan Hunt, singer Lance Bass, former NBA player Robert Horry, and U.S. football greats Mia Hamm and Cobi Jones.
‘Unite the world’
Infantino said the tournament would turn Los Angeles and other host cities into a sea of national colors as fans of all ages arrive in jerseys, flags and face paint.
“Men, women, children, grandparents, doesn’t matter, they will all have their faces colored with the colors of their countries,” he said.
“They will just want to enjoy and have fun because that’s what we want to do with the World Cup. We want to unite the world.”
The tournament, hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, is the first to feature 48 national teams. Infantino said a quarter of the world’s countries would be represented on the field, while billions more would follow the tournament globally.
“This is not just a World Cup,” he said. “This will be the biggest and greatest FIFA World Cup in history.”
Los Angeles in the spotlight
Los Angeles is scheduled to host eight matches, along with fan festivals and 10 fan zones across the area. Infantino thanked local organizers for staging the events, saying the city’s role reflected its standing as “the capital of entertainment in the world.”
The United States will open its campaign Friday at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood against Paraguay after an opening ceremony featuring musical performances by Katy Perry, Future and Anitta.
Infantino likened the scale of the tournament to staging “104 Super Bowls” over a little more than a month, referring to the total number of matches across the three host countries.
“For the next month and a half, we can call it football or football, as long as we enjoy and have fun,” he said.
Minister Memişoğlu’s emphasis on Türkiye’s century: “We will be a center that produces health technology”
Gift song from AK Party to the National Team and all fans: ‘You are all, we are Türkiye’
Family Year message from Minister Göktaş: “We stand by our young people who want to establish a home”
Minister Memişoğlu’s emphasis on Türkiye’s century: “We will be a center that produces health technology”
Gift song from AK Party to the National Team and all fans: ‘You are all, we are Türkiye’
Family Year message from Minister Göktaş: “We stand by our young people who want to establish a home”
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