FIFA World Cup Day 6 recap: Austria beats Jordan; Lionel Messi scores hat trick

Austria 3, Jordan 1, final

Jordan was called for a handball while trying to slide tackle in front of Marko Arnautović as he took a shot. After VAR review, Arnautović hit a penalty kick in about the 12th minute of stoppage time to cap its win over Jordan.

Austria 2, Jordan 1, 75th minute

Shortly after an Austria goal was overturned by VAR, the team earned a corner. Austria’s Marcel Sabitzer fired into the box and the ball was headed off Jordan’s Yazan Al-Arab and bounced in for a goal.

Austria 1, Jordan 1, 66th minute

Jordan goalkeeper Yazeed Abulaila could not clear a ball lofted into the box. It bounced off various players before Marko Arnautovic pushed it home for a goal.

After a lengthy VAR review, it was ruled a handball despite the ball bouncing off another Austrian player before landing near the goal scorer.

Austria will have to recover from disappointment during the ensuing hydration break.

Austria 1, Jordan 1, 50th minute

After Austria turned the ball over, Noor Al-Rawabdeh connected with Ali Olwan on a long pass for history. Olwan raced up the left side of the field and squared to fire a shot that hit the far right post and bounced in for a goal. It was Jordan’s first World Cup goal and the team celebrated accordingly.

Austria 1, Jordan 0, halftime

Austria scored in the 20th minute. Jordan made a spirited push during a fast-paced final 25 minutes of the first half, but neither team could tack on another goal before the break.

Austria 1, Jordan 0, 20th minute

Austria efficiently passed the ball before Xavier Schlager passed to Romano Schmid at the top of the box. Schmid turned fluidl and scored.

Jordan, which is making its first World Cup appearance, will have to show poise to keep the game from slipping away.

Austria 0, Jordan 0, first minute

The final match of the day has kicked off at Levi’s Stadium.

Can Austria and Jordan match the star-studded fireworks we’ve seen today? We’ll find out.

Argentina 3, Algeria 0, full time

Algeria showed some flashes of potential in the first half, but the team had no answer for Argentina’s attack that set up legend Lionel Messi for a hat trick.

The Kansas City, Mo., crowd was overwhelmingly behind Argentina, chanting all match as Messi’s team carved up the Algerian defense.

Argentina 3, Algeria 0, 76th minute

There were genuine concerns Lionel Messi was injured right before the World Cup and might not be play.

Messi shut down any doubt during Argentina’s World Cup opener Thursday, collecting the ball at the top of the box, dancing and firing a shot past Algeria goalkeeper Luca Zidane to earn a hat trick.

With the goal, Messi tied Miroslav Klose for the most goals in men’s World Cup history with 16.

Four minutes later, the crowd roared and Messi applauded them as he was replaced in the lineup.

Argentina 2, Algeria 0, 60th minute

Lionel Messi can sometimes look like he’s just standing during a match, but he’s constantly watching the game unfold and jogs to seemingly perfect position with no wasted effort. He was on the left side of the box during an Argentina run in the second half and never gave up on tracking the play even though the ball wasn’t passed to him. He followed the path of Alexis Mac Allister’s shot and was in position gather a rebound and push him his second goal of the match against Algeria.

It is Messi’s 15th career World Cup goal, one short of the all-time tournament record.

Argentina 1, Algeria 0, 46th minute

Argentina dominated most of the first half but only has a 1-0 lead to show for it. Algeria generate some promising runs late in the first half and has to try to build on that as the second half kicks off.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. is pushing back on complaints from Iran’s national team that it was forced to leave the country immediately after its first World Cup match instead of having a day to recover in a hotel, saying that was the plan for the team all along.

“We were clear this was the process,” Andrew Giuliani, the executive director of the White House FIFA Task Force, told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei said after Monday’s night’s 2-2 draw with New Zealand that the team had been ordered to leave the U.S. and return to its training base in Mexico only a few hours later. Ghalenoei said the team had expected to spend the night in California to maximize the normal recovery process after its opening game.

Iran winger Mehdi Torabi’s entry visa had also expired after the first game. Team officials confirmed Tuesday afternoon that they had secured Torabi a new, multiple-entry visa after he visited the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana.

“This issue has been resolved,” the State Department said Tuesday. “As soon as we became aware of the issue, we worked to ensure that the player can participate in every game.”

Giuliani said during an interview broadcast Monday night on CBS News that some of the Iranian team’s support staff and team officials were denied entry into the U.S. But he said that all the players and coaches had received visas. He also outlined the conditions by which the Iranian team would be able to come into the U.S. for their games.

“The team will be allowed to come in, match day minus one, so the day before the match. They’ll be asked to leave the day that the match wraps up, so the evening of the match. And they’ll be able to do that again in Los Angeles. They’ll be able to do it again in Seattle,” Giuliani said. The team’s next match is Sunday, in LA.

When asked about why some support staff and team officials had been denied entry, Giuliani wouldn’t go into details but referred to previous comments made by Secretary of State Marco Rubio about denying entry to people with direct ties to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.

“Secretary Rubio said very clearly: Anybody with direct ties to the IRGC is not coming into the United States of America, and they’re not going to let the World Cup be the reason why they can come in,” Giuliani said. “So I think it’s very clear why.”

Iran’s federation said in a statement Tuesday evening that it had asked FIFA to follow up on the cases of those who hadn’t received visas, noting that “the team’s media duties were being handled by one of the analysts, which is neither professional nor an appropriate arrangement.”

“Like the other 47 participating teams, the Iranian delegation is expected to have its full operational staff in place, including a team manager, a media officer, and an administrative manager,” the federation said. “Their absence creates obvious challenges for the team’s daily operations and is not consistent with standard tournament procedures.”

The Iranians’ World Cup cycle has been in upheaval since the U.S. and Israel began a war against Iran on Feb. 28. Iran ultimately decided to compete even after FIFA rejected its request to move its three group-stage matches out of the U.S.

Iran captain Mehdi Taremi said the team endured five hours of travel and security checks during what’s normally a very short trip from Tijuana to the Los Angeles area on Sunday.

“I think FIFA have to help us more than this,” Taremi said.

OTTAWA, Ontario — A Canadian federal judge on Tuesday rejected Ghana’s bid to get Thomas Partey into the country for the team’s first World Cup match while the midfielder awaits trial on rape charges.

The ruling means Partey, whose visa application was denied last week, will remain in the United States while his teammates face Panama in Toronto on Wednesday. He will be eligible to play in Ghana’s next two matches — both in the U.S.

Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs had criticized the visa denial for Partey, who awaits trial in Britain, as a “high-handed and extremely unfair decision.” Its appeal was heard by the court earlier Tuesday.

Partey faces allegations in Britain from several women dating to his time playing for Arsenal from 2020-25. Partey, who played in Spain for Villarreal this past season, has pleaded not guilty.

In March, a lawyer for Partey said the player intends to plead not guilty to two new charges of rape after a woman alleged Partey twice raped her on the same day in December 2020. Partey had separately been awaiting trial on five counts of rape related to two other women and one count of sexual assault involving another woman, and the new allegations arose after the first set of charges were publicized.

Partey’s lawyer, Mackeda Bramwell, told the court Tuesday that as a World Cup host nation, Canada had a “public interest” in allowing the “orderly participation of accredited national team athletes.”

In a statement submitted to the court, Partey had said he would remain under constant supervision of team officials, and will leave Canada when the team does.

Millions of his countrymen are hoping the team advances to the knockout round, he said.

“I have not been convicted of any offense. I have pleaded not guilty, and I remain presumed innocent,” Partey said.

Canada officials have said immigration decisions are made on a case-by-case basis regardless of the World Cup.

“He’s a tremendous player, everyone knows his ability, and it’s an unfortunate situation,” Ghana forward Brandon Thomas-Asante said Tuesday. “I think we just, as players, we have to adapt.”

Ghana coach Carlos Queiroz said earlier Tuesday before the ruling that the team would be ready but declined to comment on the appeal.

Ghana’s base camp for the World Cup is in Smithfield, Rhode Island. Partey remains eligible to play June 23 when Ghana faces England in Massachusetts. Ghana concludes group play June 27 against Croatia in Philadelphia.

“As a team, as a family, we are going to give everything for him to be happy and be proud of us,” midfielder Kwasi Sibo said.

Argentina 1, Algeria 0, 17th minute

Rodrigo De Paul took a free kick from the center circle and passed forward to Lionel Messi, who dribbled toward the penalty area and fired a left-footed shot to the far corner that gave Argentina a 1-0 lead. No question about whether he was onside and the crowd roared with approval.

It was Messi’s 14th career World Cup goal.

Argentina 0, Algeria 0, 10th minute

Ibrahim Maza passed to Farès Chaïbi’s for a goal, Alegeria’s celebration was short-lived after VAR confirmed Chaïbi offsides in the eighth minute.

The reversal came two minutes after Lionel Messi also was narrowly ruled offsides after appearing to score.

Argentina 0, Algeria 0, sixth minute

Lionel Messi became the first man to play in six World Cups when this match in Kansas City kicked off.

Messi appeared to score in the first six minutes of the match, but he was offsides.

Star Erling Haaland lived up to expectations during Norway’s opening World Cup match, scoring twice during the team’s 4-1 win over Iraq Tuesday at Gillette Stadium.

Haaland, a potent striker for Manchester City, is the fastest player to reach 50 international goals and is Norway’s all-time leading goal scorer at age 25.

He delivered goals in the 29th and 43rd minutes of the match against Iraq.

Leo Ostigard added a third for Norway in the second half, shutting the door on an Iraq rally. During second half stoppage time, Iraq surrendered an own goal off Aymen Hussein to close a frustrating day.

Hussein accounted for two goals during the match, scoring Iraq’s sole goal in the 39th minute.

Norway is now tied with France atop potent Group I and will play Senegal before tangling with the French to close out group competition.

Iraq’s next match is against France, a team favored to make a deep tournament run.

GUADALAJARA, Mexico — When shown the number of Instagram followers he had gained after helping tiny Cape Verde hold off powerhouse Spain in his team’s World Cup debut, 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha gasped and laughed, in shock.

He was speaking shortly after Monday’s stunning 0-0 draw in Atlanta against the European champions, when he had gone from about 50,000 followers to more than 1 million. Less than 24 hours after the game, Vozinha already had nearly 10 million Instagram followers — more than NBA superstar Victor Wembanyama (6.2 million) and NFL quarterback Patrick Mahomes (6.4 million).

“Crazy, that’s crazy,” Vozinha told Brazilian YouTube channel CazéTV after the match that turned him into the biggest new name of the World Cup so far. It was CazéTV, the only channel in Brazil with the rights to all 104 World Cup games, that was taking credit for the huge surge in followers.

CazéTV is anchored by the popular Brazilian streamer Casimiro Miguel, known as Cazé. The channel has more than 31 million subscribers on YouTube and is known for sports broadcasts marked by a more informal and conversational approach, with a focus on community-based fan engagement. While watching Vozinha’s performance during the broadcast, Cazé realized that the goalkeeper did not have many Instagram followers and began asking his audience to start following him.

Spain, one of the World Cup favorites, was widely expected to cruise past the tournament debutants. But La Roja could not find a way past Vozinha and a stubborn defense that had an answer to everything Spain’s superstars threw at them.

“Normally we ask for subscribers,” Cazé said. “We are not going to ask for subscribers today, we are going to ask for followers. For Vozinha. He is stopping Spain. He is shocking the world. He is the standout player of the first half. Why not show him some love?”

His followers increased by a few hundred thousand shortly after that, and kept growing and growing throughout the day. Vozinha, who only began playing professionally at 25, is one of the few players 40 or older in the tournament. He made several crucial saves against Spain’s powerful attack and was named the man of the match.

The result sparked celebrations in Cape Verde, the group of islands off Africa’s west coast that is home to about half a million people. Cape Verde is the third-smallest nation by population to ever qualify for the World Cup.

Working on mom’s visa

Vozinha said after the game that his mom was not able to make it to the United States to watch him play because of difficulties getting a visa.

In Washington, the U.S. State Department said it had no record of her ever applying for a visa, but that it was working on resolving the situation with Cape Verde authorities. The department said it had notified all players from World Cup countries affected by the $15,000 visa bond requirement that they and their families would be exempt from posting the bond.

“All relatives of players are eligible for visa bond waivers, and the department is actively reaching out to this player’s family to assist with visa services,” the department said.

A person familiar with the situation said that the State Department believes that Vozinha’s mother did not apply for a visa because she did not hold a valid Cape Verde passport, but that she is now in the process of getting one.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential visa deliberations. A request for comment was sent to the team Tuesday afternoon. The team’s next match is Sunday.

Payne’s similar case

A similar case to Vozinha’s virality happened last month, with New Zealand defender Tim Payne, after an Argentine influencer called on his followers to make the little-known player a “hero” of the World Cup.

El Scarso, a soccer influencer also known as Valen Scarsini, identified the 32-year-old Payne as the least-known player at the World Cup based on his small social media following.

Payne had around 4,700 followers on Instagram before being singled out by El Scarso. That number quickly rose to more than a million. He had nearly 6 million followers on Tuesday.

Push for new audiences

FIFA has made a push to engage a new generation of fans by giving younger audiences more options to access soccer’s showcase event. For the 2026 World Cup, it reached what it described as a record number of deals with broadcast partners carrying digital-only platforms, and partnered with TikTok and YouTube to allow users to see parts of matches live.

Brazil historically has been one of the countries with the most engagement on social media and digital platforms. FIFA took notice and four years ago did a type of a test run with CazéTV after Cazé’s success on Twitch. He broadcast 22 matches during the 2022 Qatar World Cup, leading to a bigger deal for this year’s tournament.

“Thank you,” Vozinha told CazéTV. “The Brazilians have always supported us. We felt it during our campaign to qualify for the World Cup and now we are feeling it again at the biggest stage. We are thankful for it.”

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — A sprinkler malfunctioned at Gillette Stadium during halftime of the World Cup match between Iraq and Norway on Tuesday.

A large stream of water spurted for several seconds from a sprinkler on the edge of the area in front of the goal in which Erling Haaland scored twice to give Norway a 2-1 halftime lead.

The rest of the sprinklers appeared to work as expected, but all of them had to be turned off to prevent further damage from the malfunctioning one.

The grass appeared discolored around the offending sprinkler head as groundskeepers ran out to attend to the problem. Staff sloshed through the area with buckets and tools to disperse the water to other parts of the field.

The affected part of the field appeared to be back to normal by the time the players emerged for the second half.

Kylian Mbappe scored twice in the second half to lead France to a 3-1 victory over Senegal in a World Cup Group I opener on Tuesday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

After a scoreless first half, Mbappe opened the scoring in the 66th minute off a through pass from Michael Olise.

France went ahead 2-0 in the 82nd minute when Bradley Barcola took a pass from Adrien Rabiot and chipped the ball over goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, who had come off his line too far.

It was a wild finish as Senegal got on the board five minutes into extra time when Ibrahim Mbaye scored off an assist from Iliman Ndiaye.

Then one minute later, Mbappe scored again off another pass from Olise to complete the scoring in the match.

Bradley Barcola has given France a 2-0 lead with a goal in the 882nd minute.

Barcola, who had entered the game only a couple of minutes early, ran onto a pass from Adrien Rabiot and chipped it over Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.

Kylian Mbappe gives France the lead with the game’s first goal in the 66th minute.

France has pressed the action after halftime, with Mbappe’s goal their sixth shot of the second half.

Michael Olise sent a pass from outside the penalty area into the six-yard box that Mbappe ran onto and quickly fired the shot.

Senegal has taken only one shot, which was not on target, in the second half.

It’s scoreless halfway through the FIFA World Cup Group I game between France and Senegal.

Senegal pressed the action early and has taken four shots, only one of which was on target. France has taken only one shot in the game. France has taken three corner kicks, Senegal has attempted two.

France has settled in and has controlled the ball for 56% of the time.

France, one of this year’s favorites to win the 2026 FIFA World Cup, has started group play against Senegal at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

It’s the first of four matches today. The others are Iraq-Sweden, Argentina-Algeria and Austria-Jordan.

The U.S. men’s soccer team isn’t only trying to win games in this World Cup. It is trying to win hearts and minds as well.

“We want the game to grow,” star midfielder Christian Pulisic said. “We want to get Americans excited to watch this game, to watch our team. That’s obviously a big goal of ours. And being successful would give that the best boost.”

The Americans certainly got a great start Friday, opening the second World Cup played on U.S. soil with a dominant 4-1 win over Paraguay. It was one of the most complete performances the American men have had on the sport’s biggest stage, with Folarin Balogun scoring twice, Pulisic setting up two goals, and just one momentary lapse on defense separating goalkeeper Matt Freese from a shutout.

There’s the Scottish soccer fan who marveled at our wildly varied landscape and welcoming communities as he walked from L.A. to Boston, arriving in time to see Scotland play Haiti on Saturday. There’s the German traveling in the opposite direction from Atlanta who could not get over the wonders of the hospitable South, from Stone Mountain to Buc-ees. There’s the Swede promoting the power of ranch dressing, the Italians marveling at fountain drinks with ice and free refills, the English rhapsodizing over chicken parm and just about everyone shouting out the friendliness of the businesses that served them. Even the “beauty” of American trucks, big yellow school buses and eight-lane freeways have gotten their fair share of shout-outs.

Just in time for the semiquincentennial, the churning waves of social media discontent have parted and given us a glimpse of how these United States look (and taste) to wide-eyed World Cup attendees. And it is glorious.

In 1986, when Mexico became the first country to ever host the FIFA World Cup a second time, actor and director Diego Luna was only 6 years old. The year before, his hometown of Mexico City had been ravaged by a massive earthquake. That the World Cup happened at all in a nation recovering from such destruction seemed miraculous to a young Luna.

“It felt as though it wouldn’t happen. It was impossible given the magnitude of the disaster,” Luna, now 46, recalls in Spanish during a recent video interview. “And then when it did happen, you could witness what a balm it was for the people of Mexico City to host the opening ceremony, to welcome so many people from around the globe, and to receive such an outpouring of affection.”

Brooke Mayo was just 4 when she started playing soccer. She was about 4½ when she started fantasizing about participating in the World Cup.

“I just fell in love with the game,” she said. “Like any soccer player, you dream about the World Cup, you know?”

That dream came true three years ago, though not quite in the way Mayo had imagined. Although she took part in four matches at the 2023 Women’s World Cup, she did so as an assistant referee, not a player, running up and down the field with a flag in her hand, not a ball at her feet.

Simon Kuper’s first World Cup memory is of watching the 1978 final in his pajamas from the living room of his home in the Netherlands.

He was 8. But he quickly was smitten with the game and the tournament — so much so he has attended every World Cup since 1990. It’s an odyssey Kuper, one of the sport’s preeminent journalists, muses on in his latest book “World Cup Fever: A Soccer Journey in Nine Tournaments.”

A few hours after Lionel Messi and the Argentine World Cup team checked into their training base in Kansas City, a series of thunderstorms pounded the area, knocking out power, felling trees and bringing flood and tornado warnings.

Hardly ideal conditions for the world’s biggest soccer tournament. Yet that’s likely just the opening salvo of a disruptive weather system that could affect the 38-day competition, which kicks off next week with games in Mexico, Canada and the U.S.

MONTERREY, Mexico — Tunisia has fired coach Sabri Lamouchi after being thrashed 5-1 by Sweden in its first match at the World Cup and appointed French coach Hervé Renard.

The 54-year-old Lamouchi had been in charge only since January.

Renard’s deal covers only the World Cup and a longer-term agreement will be discussed after that, the Tunisian soccer federation said on Tuesday.

Tunisia’s blowout loss on Sunday left the North African nation with a tough task to reach the last 32. The team’s remaining group games are against Japan on Saturday and the Netherlands on June 25.

Renard is an experienced coach who specializes in leading national teams across Africa and the Arabic-speaking world. He’s won the Africa Cup of Nations with Zambia and the Ivory Coast.

He coached Morocco at the 2018 World Cup and Saudi Arabia in 2022 — earning a notable upset win over eventual champion Argentina — and the French team at the following year’s Women’s World Cup.

His most recent job was another stint with Saudi Arabia’s men, which ended in April when he was replaced by Georgios Donis following two friendly losses ahead of the World Cup.

It’s not the first time Tunisia has made a mid-tournament coaching change at a World Cup. In 1998, Henryk Kasperczak was fired after group-stage losses to England and Colombia, which ruled the team out of contention for the knockout stage before its closing match against Romania.

Spain went even earlier at the 2018 World Cup, firing Julen Lopetegui two days before its first group game — against Portugal — after he was announced as the next Real Madrid coach for the following season.

Tunisia is making its seventh appearance at the World Cup and has never advanced from the group stage.

Lamouchi is a former France international who previously coached Ivory Coast at the 2014 World Cup.

NEW YORK — Christian Pulisic looked exhausted as he stepped from a yellow cab on the edge of Manhattan’s financial district for a promotional event arranged by his shoe sponsor.

A day earlier, he had been booed off the field after going scoreless in his final 17 games with AC Milan. And as Pulisic’s private jet made its way from Italy to New York, the club’s coach, sporting director and two other top executives were sacked.

A day later Pulisic walked across a stage overlooking the East River to cheers during a sparsely attended rally in which the U.S. roster for this summer’s World Cup was announced.

Unprecedented sports feats and historical firsts are usually joyous affairs. Something to celebrate, fun trivia to tuck away for later.

On Monday in Inglewood, the history was much more fraught, and not at all trivial.

Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa has experienced nearly everything a Mexican soccer player could imagine. World Cups, titles, criticism, adulation, impossible saves and nights when he practically carried the weight of an entire national team on his own. But at 40, the legendary Guadalajara-born goalkeeper seems to be looking toward the end of his career with a different kind of calm. No drama. No exaggerated nostalgia. Like someone who knows exactly what he has achieved and what he still wants to give to Mexican soccer before saying goodbye.

The Mexican goalkeeper recently confirmed that the 2026 World Cup will be the last of his career with the Mexican national team and likely also as a professional soccer player, thus closing a career that will place him on a list reserved for few names in soccer history.

Julian Ryerson hadn’t learned to walk the last time Norway played in the World Cup. He was just 7 months old then, and if he had known his country was going to go 0 for the 21st century when it came to World Cup qualifying, he might have considered pursuing a sport other than soccer.

But that drought will finally end next week when Norway plays in the World Cup for the first time in nearly three decades.

“It’s been a long wait, especially for the Norwegian people,” he said. “They’ve been waiting as long as I am old. So yeah, I think everybody’s ready.”

The U.S. men’s soccer team chose an incredible day to have an incredible day.

Crucially, the United States aced its only chance to make a first impression, kicking off this colossal World Cup it’s co-hosting with Mexico and Canada with a 4-1 victory over Paraguay.

Consider it a save for the tournament, three points for soccer in America and maybe even a win for uniting the States.

SEATTLE — If a pregnant Nigerian woman had been allowed to board a plane 25 years ago, the U.S. team’s path through this summer’s World Cup may have unfolded much differently. Instead, a gate agent turned her away, insisting it wasn’t safe for her to fly from New York to London.

So Florence Balogun returned to Brooklyn, where she had been visiting relatives, and waited for her second son to be born. And when Folarin arrived a few weeks later, entering the world just hours before Independence Day dawned, he did so as an American citizen.

It was that quirk of fate that allowed Balogun, who lived just two months in the U.S., to represent the country on soccer’s biggest stage.

In many ways, the most ambitious World Cup in history — which kicked off Thursday in Mexico City — has inspired more angst than anticipation, more fear than fervor.

The competition, returning to North America for the first time in more than three decades, has expanded to 48 teams and 104 matches, to be played over 39 days in 16 cities in the U.S., Mexico and Canada. The complex planning was eight years in the making.

The Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation and the City of Los Angeles are hosing free watch parties across the region for the World Cup.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is set to start Thursday with Mexico facing South Africa in Mexico City and South Korea taking on Czechia in Guadalajara, Mexico.

The tournament then heads north Friday, with Canada facing Bosnia-Herzegovina in Toronto before the United States opens Group D play against Paraguay at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.

The Iranian national team finally got to just play soccer.

Their journey to the World Cup has been uniquely fraught, with a war erupting between the host of their matches and their home country.

They had to relocate their base camp from Arizona to Tijuana, struggled to get all of their traveling party into the United States amid visa scrutiny and absorbed President Trump’s suggestion they may not be safe if they chose to play in the World Cup.

SEATTLE — Growing up the son of an NFL wide receiver, Alex Freeman said he felt a lot of pressure to play the American version of football, not the one the rest of the world plays.

“I always got asked if football was the path,” he said last summer. “But I always had a secret love for soccer.”

And he had to keep it a secret because he wasn’t sure his father Antonio, a Super Bowl winner with the Green Bay Packers, would understand.

The first seven days of the 2026 FIFA World Cup are over, with the U.S. and Mexico each winning their group stage openers. However, several teams in the World Cup field are still looking to hit the competitive pitch for the first time.

Here’s everything you need to know about matches being played on Thursday in the 48-team tournament across the U.S., Mexico and Canada (all times Pacific).

Here’s where things stand heading into Tuesday’s four World Cup games:

The first five days of the 2026 FIFA World Cup offered plenty of memorable moments.

Check out The Times’ daily recaps ahead of Tuesday’s four-game slate:

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