The Guardian

Kick-off in the Orlando friendly 9pm BST, 4pm EDT Player guide | Bracketology | Wallchart | Mail Scott England have concluded their World Cup warm-up business against Costa Rica before. That was in 2018, and after this … … they made it all the way to the semi-finals in Russia. Say what you like about omens and vibes: they might not materially help, but neither do they hinder. Let’s just not talk …

Mboko forced to retire in singles match at Queen’s Duo are due to play next on Thursday evening The future of Victoria Mboko’s doubles partnership with Serena Williams was plunged into doubt after the Canadian was forced to retire in her opening singles match at the HSBC Championships in London. Williams, 44, made her comeback to tennis on Tuesday, securing a win alongside Mboko in their first do…

Manager keen to spend more time with family Ipswich chair Mark Ashton ‘gutted’ by decision Kieran McKenna has stepped down as Ipswich’s manager after four and a half years in charge of the Suffolk club, who will return to the Premier League next season . The 40-year-old will take a break from management and is understood not to have a position lined up. McKenna had been linked with the vacant job…

Fifa still to confirm length of show despite requests Delay is causing issues for advertising teams World Cup TV rights holders are growing increasingly frustrated at Fifa’s failure to confirm the length of the half-time show at next month’s final. Madonna, Shakira and the K-pop boyband BTS have been booked to perform at the MetLife Stadium in the first half-time spectacle at a World Cup final, c…

James Dolan’s company slams mayor and police commissioner as ‘party poopers’ over large restricted zone The owner of the New York Knicks basketball team sharply criticized both the New York police department and Zohran Mamdani after city officials announced an extensive security strategy for Game 4 of the NBA finals, featuring a large restricted zone and additional access controls. The expanded s…

Burnley relegated in 2022 after Everton breached PSR Everton ‘angered’ by verdict and have appealed Burnley have won a landmark legal case against Everton for breaching Premier League financial rules, with the Merseysiders ordered to pay nearly £40m in compensation. It is the largest financial penalty ever imposed on a Premier League club. The verdict by a Premier League independent disciplinary …

It was Morocco in 2022, Croatia in 2028 and Costa Rica in 2014. Which team will make an unexpected run in 2026? By WhoScored Every World Cup needs a dark horse: the team no nobody quite planned for that disrupts the natural order and is remembered more vividly than the finalists. Morocco did it in 2022 , beating Spain and Portugal on their way to becoming the first African side to reach the semi-…

Stokes weighing up future following late-night incident Atkinson also left out with Root to captain team Joe Root will captain England in next week’s second Test against New Zealand after Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson were left out of the squad for breaking the team curfew as they celebrated victory in the first game of the series on Sunday night. Stokes, the team’s full-time captain, is being give…

Alexis Putellas leads a host of stars expected to arrive in the WSL but smaller clubs will still struggle to keep pace The whistle has blown on the 2025-26 season for the vast majority of women’s teams around the world, and attention now turns to the hullabaloo of the transfer window and another summer of rising wages, transfer fees and agents fees. This summer’s activity is likely to see the gap…

From marvelling at teenage wonderkids to tracking the world’s largest coffee pot, our team of writers outline their expectations for the jamboree in North America Spain and Portugal in the final, with Spain winning. I’ve played our Bracketology game 20 times and gotten 20 different paths but Spain always end up winning. Alexander Abnos Continue reading...

Football’s staying home for the belt-tightening Beeb, while ITV and Gary Lineker’s popular podcast present from glitzy studios in New York It is the biggest World Cup in history, and perhaps the most unpredictable. How will England and Scotland fare in the heat? Who drew Curaçao in the office sweepstake? And, crucially, will anyone notice that the BBC is broadcasting this giant sporting spectacle…

The World Cup did not save South Africa. But for one second, it showed us the country we wanted to be Before Siphiwe Tshabalala’s rocket from his left foot , before Peter Drury’s iconic commentary, before the wall of noise from thousands of vuvuzelas and before Shakira’s Waka Waka, there was Philip. From the moment Sepp Blatter pulled out an envelope with the words “South Africa” inside on 15 May…

A run-through of the teams, key players and talking points ahead of the biggest Women’s T20 World Cup to date – and perhaps the most open Continue reading...

Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning , Jonathan Liew and Philippe Auclair to preview Groups I-L Rate, review, share on Apple Podcasts and join the conversation on email . On the podcast today; our third and final World Cup preview. Continue reading...

Olympic gold medallist diver reflects on the financial and emotional challenges since retiring from the sport and teaming up with his hero Tom Daley “It’s like I’ve already got an open wound and you’re stabbing me in it,” Matty Lee says as, deep into our second hour at a beautiful old Edwardian swimming pool in Leeds, we turn to Kirsty Coventry’s recent comments that athletes should not be paid a…