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Omar Artan scandal reveals Gianni Infantino for what he is: one of sport’s greatest cowards | Jonathan Liew
The Guardian

Omar Artan scandal reveals Gianni Infantino for what he is: one of sport’s greatest cowards | Jonathan Liew

Fifa president has prostrated the organisation before Donald Trump and lost control of his own tournament as a result Even the Nazis tried to tone things down a bit. Before the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, acutely conscious of how it might be perceived by foreign visitors, the Third Reich tried to soften some of its harder, more intolerant edges. Antisemitic signs and images were removed from shops and other public places. Der Stürmer was removed from newspaper kiosks. Paragraph 175, the country’s strict anti‑homosexuality law, was temporarily suspended. By contrast, the 2026 men’s World Cup is being co-hosted in a country utterly indifferent to what a foreign visitor might think of it. In this respect, the US of Donald Trump is tonally different to any host of a major sporting event that has preceded it: a country that actively wants you to see the darkness in its heart, the inhumanity at its core, that gets off on your revulsion. Continue reading...

Inside the country pub preserving Socceroos history with the Johnny Warren Museum
The Guardian

Inside the country pub preserving Socceroos history with the Johnny Warren Museum

Surrounded by rolling fields and winding roads, and hidden away at the back of the Jamberoo Pub, is a moving tribute to Australian football As the Socceroos and Australian football fans make a pilgrimage to North America filled with uncertainty over what the next few weeks might bring, it is all too easy to forget who and what laid the foundations for the team’s sixth successive trip to a World Cup. For while the current crop of Socceroos are out to chart their own course at this year’s global showpiece, where their adventures will ultimately be recorded and remembered remains up in the air. Football Australia is yet to establish a national museum more than a decade after it pledged to create a space that would ensure “a strong connection between football’s present and its past”. A small country pub with a big Socceroos history helps to fill the void. Continue reading...

Gordon makes his point as England breeze past Costa Rica in final World Cup warm-up
The Guardian

Gordon makes his point as England breeze past Costa Rica in final World Cup warm-up

It was the day when Thomas Tuchel showed his hand for England’s World Cup opener against Croatia in Dallas next Wednesday and his players hinted at what can happen when they play with intensity and slick connections. The paucity of the opposition had to be considered. Costa Rica barely even saw the ball; it was entirely a rearguard effort from them. But there was nevertheless encouragement for Tuchel, who went strong with his line-up, the occasion framed, really, by who he picked at the outset. Continue reading...

Haiti forced to change World Cup jerseys after Fifa rejects ‘political’ elements
The Guardian

Haiti forced to change World Cup jerseys after Fifa rejects ‘political’ elements

Shirts had included imagery evoking Haitian revolution Winter Olympics team also had to redesign uniforms World Cup newsletter | Daily podcast | Download the app Haiti have been made to find new jerseys on the eve of the 2026 World Cup, after Fifa deemed certain elements to be too political in nature. The Concacaf qualifiers are set to open their group stage against Scotland on Saturday. In a statement responding to the decision, kit manufacturer Saeta confirmed that it had worked with Fifa to ensure the design would meet requirements, even having “successfully implemented the requested modifications” during the mandatory review process. Continue reading...

Ghana World Cup 2026 team guide
The Guardian

Ghana World Cup 2026 team guide

Antoine Semenyo will need help from his supporting cast but there is plenty of excitement about a 20-year-old midfielder likened to Michael Essien This article is part of the Guardian’s 2026 World Cup Experts’ Network , a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 48 countries who qualified. theguardian.com is running previews from three countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 11 June. Continue reading...

England v Costa Rica: World Cup 2026 warm-up – live
The Guardian

England v Costa Rica: World Cup 2026 warm-up – live

Storm delays friendly: kick-off 10pm BST, 5pm EDT Player guide | Bracketology | Wallchart | Mail Scott England: Pickford, Konsa, O’Reilly, Stones, James, Rice, Anderson, Bellingham, Gordon, Madueke, Kane. Subs: D Henderson, Guehi, Saka, Rashford, Livramento, J Henderson, Burn, Mainoo, Rogers, Watkins, Eze, Toney, Spence, Quansah, Trafford. Costa Rica: Sequeira, Johnson, Mitchell, Faerron, Araya, Salazar, Carlos Mora, Galo, Soto, Alcocer, Ugalde. Subs: Bayron Mora, Madriz, Peraza, Ruiz, Nunez, Flores, Sinclair, Quiros, Rodriguez. Continue reading...

Gianni Infantino tells football fans to ‘chill’ in response to Fifa’s critics
The Guardian

Gianni Infantino tells football fans to ‘chill’ in response to Fifa’s critics

Fifa president defends handling of tournament ‘Screaming and shouting does not find a solution’ Gianni Infantino told football fans to “chill and relax” on the eve of the World Cup, while Fifa faced criticism from the United Nations over the immigration issues that have overshadowed the buildup to the tournament. The Fifa president launched a staunch defence of his organisation’s handling of the tournament, particularly regarding ticket prices and visa problems, and claimed no one else would have been able to secure the participation of Iran, who are at war with one of the three host nations, the United States. Continue reading...

‘Not in our best moment’: strikes and tension temper World Cup buzz in Mexico City
The Guardian

‘Not in our best moment’: strikes and tension temper World Cup buzz in Mexico City

An escalating teachers’ strike and concerns around public perception have left locals with complicated feelings on the eve of the tournament’s opener World Cup newsletter | Daily podcast | Download the app Mexico City’s Plaza de la Constitución sits in the middle of the city’s historic center and has been a gathering place since Aztec times. Nobody here calls it by its formal name, referring to it instead as the Zócalo. Framed by centuries-old cathedrals and government buildings, it is one of the largest city squares on earth, a monument to Mexico’s colonial past and cosmopolitan present. It is also a block southwest of the Templo Mayor, a place Aztec mythology referred to as the center of the universe. In more recent times, Fifa has done its best to make the plaza the center of the footballing universe. Mexico City is preparing to host the opening match of the 2026 World Cup, and the Zócalo has been converted into the city’s fan festival. A massive video screen dwarfs almost everything else in the plaza. Continue reading...