Kylian Mbappé has played down any notions of seeking revenge following his goals in France‘s World Cup opener against Senegal. The forward scored twice in New Jersey, the second of which was a stunning strike from outside the box, to lead Les Bleus to a dominant 3-1 win in a potentially tricky first game. It took him past Olivier Giroud as France’s all-time leading scorer with 58 goals. France came…
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Erling Haaland took just 29 minutes to score his first ever World Cup goal on his tournament debut against Iraq on Tuesday. By the end, he had scored twice in a convincing 4-1 victory and delivered on his tag as one of this tournament’s biggest stars. Haaland, 25, has been one of the world’s most prolific strikers since he burst onto the scene in 2019, but he…
Iran forward Mehdi Torabi has received a new visa and will be able to participate in the remainder of the FIFA World Cup, spokespersons from the U.S. State Department and the Iran Football Federation told ESPN. Torabi, 31, was an unused substitute for Iran in Monday’s 2-2 draw against New Zealand. But after the match, it emerged that his visa had expired because he had been given a single-entry visa,…
A Federal High Court in Canada has upheld the decision to deny Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey entry into the country ahead of the Black Stars’ 2026 FIFA World Cup opening game against Panama on Wednesday The ruling was delivered on Tuesday following an appeal hearing in which Partey’s legal team sought to overturn the visa refusal that had prevented the former Arsenal midfielder from travelling to Toronto with the rest…
IRVINE, Calif. — United States midfielder Sebastian Berhalter said that one of the ways manager Mauricio Pochettino has changed the culture within the team is instilling a mindset where they don’t “take s—.” The USMNT has experienced some ups and downs since Pochettino was hired in September of 2024, including sobering defeats in the 2025 Concacaf Nations League last March. However, the U.S. coach has since created an environment where…
Kylian Mbappé moved ahead of Lionel Messi in the all-time World Cup scoring charts and became France‘s record goalscorer with two goals in Les Bleus’ 3-1 Group I win against Senegal in East Rutherford, New Jersey. France, tipped as one of the pre-tournament favourites after winning in 2018 and reaching the final in 2022, were held by Senegal in the first half but a fine pass from Michael Olise found…
Lyndon Dykes is ready to lead from the front if required in Scotland’s crucial clash with Morocco on Friday night. After returning to the World Cup for the first time in 28 years, the Scots began their Group C campaign with a 1-0 win over Haiti, with the 30-year-old Dykes coming off the bench in the second half of a tough encounter. Ché Adams and Lawrence Shankland started as a…
A recent soccer card auction, timed to the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, saw several individual player records set for Argentina’s Lionel Messi, Norway’s Erling Haaland, United States’ Christian Pulisic and even England legend David Beckham. But the highlight of auction house Goldin’s 2026 Global Football Auction was a 1958 Alifabolaget Pele rookie card, which sold for $976,000, the most ever paid for a Pele card at auction.…
Neymar, who has been out for a month with a right calf injury, trained on the pitch sidelines on Tuesday for the first time since arriving in the United States. The Brazil Football Confederation (CBF), said Neymar “took another step in his recovery process” with the appearance at Brazil‘s training groun in Morristown, New Jersey. The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain forward performed his first running drills and worked out…
Mikel Merino said World Cup favourites Spain are “dealing with the mourning” after their shock draw with underdogs Cape Verde in their opening game. World Cup debutants Cape Verde held Spain’s stars to a goalless draw in Atlanta — with goalkeeper Vozinha named MVP, and Lamine Yamal only fit to feature as a substitute — before Saudi Arabia and Uruguay also drew, to leave Group H wide open. Spain are…