LOS ANGELES — 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...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Cliff Illig pushed one arm into the glass doors, swinging open the entrance of a sprawling conference room. His other arm held a packed-to-the-brim work bag atop a binder with block letters printed across the front:

"KC2026"

Some two decades ago, virtually everyone in his life — his wife, his friends, prominent Kansas ...Read more

MEXICO CITY — FIFA president Gianni Infantino described Mexico City Stadium as a venue "blessed by the gods" and a "true cathedral of soccer."

Azteca Stadium, as most people know it, is steeped in soccer history and is now the only venue to host three World Cup opening ceremonies. But the Mexican national team had never much World Cup success...Read more

This is part of what we were hearing 32 years ago this month, as the last World Cup on these shores drew near:

“If the U.S. does well, it will show that U.S. players can compete at the highest level.”

That particular quote came from an executive from a local indoor soccer team, the Anaheim Splash. Tim Orchard, who was then the director of ...Read more

The pressure is on for the U.S. men’s national team.

Ranked No. 16 in FIFA’s most recent global standings, the USMNT has much loftier goals as the World Cup returns to American soil for the first time since 1994.

USA’s lineup remains a work in progress ahead of Friday’s opener against Paraguay at Los Angeles Stadium (SoFi Stadium) in ...Read more

IRVINE, Calif. — There is no question that this U.S. men’s soccer team has players with talent and pedigree like never before. Even some of their predecessors, who are as prone to claiming “back in my day” as in any other sport, have said as much lately.

Now, at last, the time has arrived to prove it. For all the pomp and circumstance ...Read more

SEATTLE — Welcome to the biggest global sporting event.

New here? No problem. We’ve put together a little explainer to let you know how this whole FIFA Men’s World Cup works.

Please raise your hand with any questions.

How does this all work?

For the first time, the World Cup will feature 48 teams, of which 45 came through qualifying to...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — This week the FIFA World Cup began in the United States, bringing with it all the familiar trappings of modern international sports: billion-dollar television contracts, eye-popping ticket prices, endless social media debate and the promise of a global audience.

For Orlando, however, the tournament’s arrival carries ...Read more

We don’t sit around the same fires anymore.

We don’t watch the same TV shows, or trust the same voices, either.

We haven’t had a “song of the summer” in years.

No, we’ve retreated so deep into our bespoke, glowing silos of aggravation and self-adulation that the outside world feels entirely alien.

But once every four years, the ...Read more

IRVINE, Calif. — It only took two words for one of the U.S. men’s soccer team’s most important players to get everyone talking.

“I’m ready,” star centerback Chris Richards said before Wednesday’s practice, and after a few days on the field, where he looked good in his recovery from torn ankle ligaments.

“It’s a World Cup, so ...Read more

During the Nazi occupation of Paris, the Gestapo frequently raided Pablo Picasso’s Left Bank apartment and studio at 7 rue de Grands-Augustins, a few steps from the Seine.

On one of the raids, sometime in 1940 or 1941, a Gestapo agent pointed to a photograph of “Guernica,” the Spanish artist’s masterpiece mural depicting the 1937 Nazi ...Read more

SANTA CLARA – Matt Greiner, the San Francisco 49ers’ ace groundskeeper, meticulously and slowly sprayed white paint on what typically serves as the Niners’ home sideline at Levi’s Stadium.

This time, Wednesday’s work was among the finishing touches for the FIFA World Cup.

Saturday’s noon match between Switzerland and Qatar marks ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — On the eve of the World Cup kickoff, FIFA President Gianni Infantino called for patience in the face of a series of crises that threaten to overshadow the start of the tournament, led by the case of Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan, who was denied entry into the United States.

On Thursday, Mexico faces South Africa at the ...Read more

MIAMI — This week and into July should remind us why we’re sports fans. Soccer’s quadrennial men’s World Cup intersecting with the crescendos of the NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Final should make it tough to complain. Whether your fandom is avid or casual, driven by money wagered or just by the glory of athleticism at its best, finding ...Read more

MEXICO CITY — The star-studded opening ceremony for the 2026 World Cup will unfold Thursday afternoon in Mexico City.

The Mexican capital joins Guadalajara as the only cities to host games during three editions of the World Cup. Shakira will headline the pre-match spectacle alongside Mexican music stars Alejandro Fernández and Los Ángeles ...Read more

Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan was denied entry into the United States for the World Cup after enduring an 11-hour interrogation in Miami, according to media reports. Andrew Giuliani, head of the White House Task Force on the World Cup, indicated Artan was suspected to having ties to a Somali militant group.

"We want to make sure we are ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — 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 on Friday, with Canada facing Bosnia-Herzegovina in Toronto before the United States opens Group D play against Paraguay at SoFi Stadium.

Here'...Read more

LOS ANGELES — 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 ...Read more

SEATTLE — This week, travelers from all around the world will descend on the United States and Seattle for the FIFA Men's World Cup, the monthlong soccer celebration unmatched in its size, scope and global interest.

The World Cup remains the most watched sporting event in the world. FIFA, the global governing body for the sport, announced ...Read more