International sports

To watch Argentina at the World Cup feels like a religious experience: the spiritual fervour, the adoration, the total devotion to someone seen as a supreme being.

Now that the curtain was officially raised on the FIFA Men’s World Cup in Seattle, all the attention can turn to the home team.

The score said 1-1, but that was a clear victory. Maybe not for Belgium or Egypt, but for the city in which they competed.

There is a misunderstanding about Mohamed Salah, whose history and status, not just as a footballer, feeds to the idea that teams should be built around him.

Take West Sunset Highway out of Spokane, and before cowboy country opens up, just beyond a strip of barbecue spots, truck washes and kennels, is the rather incongruous modern, glass-paneled hotel hosting the Egypt squad at the 2026 World Cup.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – The United States got its 2026 World Cup off to a thundering, near-flawless start with a 4-1 win over Paraguay in its opener Friday at Los Angeles Stadium .

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Now this is how you throw a party.

If it’s possible to strip away all the other layers surrounding the FIFA Men’s World Cup from a local perspective, it comes down to six games being played in Seattle over the course of three weeks where different parts of the world will have their focus on what is happening on the grass of Lumen Field.

IRVINE, Calif. – Matt Freese is aware of the history. Before he ascended to the U.S. men’s national team, like any other young goalkeeper in the United States, he was a fan of Tim Howard, of the “great goalkeeping corps” the U.S. has seemingly always had at World Cups.

IRVINE, Calif. – The 2026 World Cup arrives in North America as a faceless behemoth.

IRVINE, Calif. – Center back Chris Richards delivered the United States the perfect boost ahead of its opening game at the World Cup on Friday by declaring he is ready to play against Paraguay and hasn’t been told of any minutes restrictions.

IRVINE, Calif. – Nearly a decade and a half ago, two 13-year-old boys stood on the eighth level of a stairwell at a California hotel tossing wads of chewed gum, trying to get it to stick to the fronds of a palm tree below.

There is perhaps no better stage for a sportsman to prove their brilliance than at a World Cup. There have been 22 previous tournaments, and although no nation has won the trophy without several of its key players performing, there are certain individuals whose contribution to a World Cup win has been so momentous that simply mentioning their name and a year is shorthand for an entire tournament.

The air around Mexico City will on Thursday night reverberate with awe when the co-hosts’ Edson Álvarez and South Africa’s Ronwen Williams meet at the toss, striking the flint to ignite the largest FIFA World Cup the world has ever seen.

The FIFA Men’s World Cup coming to Seattle is an opportunity to highlight the men and women from Washington who have worn the crest of the United States and stood on a World Cup field.

This is the time in the soccer calendar where everyone wants a piece of the FIFA World Cup shine. A connection, no matter the gender or how distant, to the excitement of the quadrennial tournament.

By The Athletic staff

PARIS – Alexander Zverev defeated Flavio Cobolli 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-1 in the French Open final at Stade Roland-Garros on Sunday.

For two decades, soccer revolved around twin suns, bending a generation into rival tribes. Now Messi and Ronaldo step into America’s summer glare for one last waltz; a king defending his crown, a warrior chasing ghosts. Time is undefeated, but for a few luminous nights, the twins of greatness spin through their final dance, a closing act carved from stardust, memory, and the stubborn refusal to fade.