President Donald Trump on Monday insisted he didn’t demand that soccer authorities reverse the controversial suspension of World Cup star Folarin Balogun and merely asked FIFA President Gianni Infantino to allow an appeal of the red card decision.

With international outrage growing over Balogun’s reinstatement for Monday night’s game with...Read more

SEATTLE — FIFA has rejected an appeal from the Royal Belgium Football Association over the decision to make U.S. striker Folarin Balogun eligible to play in Monday’s World Cup elimination match in Seattle.

Balogun was given a red card in the second half of last Wednesday’s Round of 16 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina, a penalty that carries ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Four people were wounded by gunfire in East Los Angeles after crowds took to the streets after the Mexico-England World Cup soccer game Sunday night.

According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, a person involved in an argument at Whittier Boulevard and Leonard Avenue pulled out a gun and opened fire about 9:35 p.m....Read more

SEATTLE — Andreassen simply didn’t understand the words coming out of his friend’s mouth.

Andreassen, a former Washington Youth Soccer president, was catching up with a friend whose two children are 6 and 8 years old when Andreassen’s friend mentioned the family was preparing to travel to San Diego.

Not to visit Legoland. Or the San ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Three weeks of World Cup excitement in Philadelphia came to a close on Saturday, but not before an announced sold-out crowd of 68,324 sat through 100-plus degree temperatures to watch France move on to the quarterfinals following a 1-0 defeat of Paraguay.

When the final whistle blew, it capped Philly’s first-ever hosting of ...Read more

Miami’s World Cup quarterfinal opponents are set, and they feature two of the best strikers in the world.

England and Norway will face off at Miami Stadium (typically known as Hard Rock Stadium) at 5 p.m. ET on July 11.

Norway punched its ticket to the quarterfinals with a win over Brazil on Sunday evening. England secured its place with a ...Read more

SEATTLE — The United States men’s soccer team was on its way to training Sunday morning at the University of Washington, driving over bridges and around lakes, basking in another day of World Cup sunshine.

“We were lit on the bus,” defender Chris Richards said. “We had our speaker in the back, so we were listening to music. Then one ...Read more

Three members of Haiti’s FIFA World Cup squad finally stepped foot in the Caribbean nation on Sunday, where they were welcomed by an enthusiastic crowd at Cap-Haïtien International Airport.

Haiti was eliminated from the World Cup after losing its three group-stage matches to Scotland, Brazil and Morocco. But the team’s first World Cup ...Read more

NEW YORK — The summer of Erling Haaland has reached a new high.

Haaland, the ponytailed prodigy delivering a World Cup for the ages, added to his legend in dramatic fashion Sunday, scoring both goals in Norway’s 2-1 upset victory over Brazil at New York New Jersey Stadium.

The 6-5 striker broke a scoreless tie when he headed in a cross ...Read more

SEATTLE — The Royal Belgian Football Association expressed its displeasure Sunday with FIFA’s decision to suspend the one-game ban for United States striker Folarin Balogun making him eligible to play against Belgium in the FIFA Men’s World Cup round of 16.

The RBFA issued a statement Sunday afternoon saying it was, “astonished,” by ...Read more

SEATTLE — U.S. men’s soccer team star striker Folarin Balogun will be available to play in Monday’s World Cup round-of-16 game after all.

FIFA announced just before the team’s practice on Sunday that the one-game suspension that came with Balogun’s red card against Bosnia in the round of 32 has been suspended “for a probationary ...Read more

SEATTLE — Chris Richards said he first heard teammate Folarin Balogun had been cleared to play in Monday’s World Cup elimination game while on the team bus, heading to a morning training session at the University of Washington.

“We found out through social media,” Richards said Sunday. “There’s a lot of people posting a lot of ...Read more

LAS VEGAS — A societal ill is exposed every four years that casts a dark cloud over America.

And it’s not the Presidential election.

No, this is a far more serious plague.

It’s the tradition of the average American sports fan not only getting a reminder that futbol is the most beautiful game on the planet, but deciding it is their duty ...Read more

KANSAS CITY. Mo. — A fireworks display dotted the distant skyline to the north of Arrowhead Stadium, a July 4 celebration 24 hours early. Another popped up to the west, and then a couple of more displays to the east.

Before you knew it, the illuminations were spread across the sky.

Inside the building, the rhythm of an African drumbeat ...Read more

SEATTLE — Mauricio Pochettino repeated three words, three times, as if attempting to summon a soccer Beetlejuice.

On Wednesday evening, basking in the buzz of another FIFA Men's World Cup win, the 54-year-old Argentine completed an interview with Fox Sports sideline reporter Jenny Taft. Pochettino had just sung John Denver’s “Take Me Home...Read more

LOS ANGELES — England famously found itself on the wrong side of World Cup history at Azteca Stadium, surrendering Diego Maradona's iconic "Hand of God" goal and another strike known as the tournament's "most beautiful goal."

Maradona and eventual champion Argentina eliminated England 2-1 in the quarterfinals of the 1986 World Cup, leaving ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — James Wilson, one of just six men who signed both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, never could have imagined how grand the country he was founding would become. But he knew how it could get there.

Wilson envisioned a steady stream of foreigners coming to America every year, reinvigorating the energy and ...Read more