Tag: FIFA World Cup

Rio de Janeiro: A debate erupted over the iconic No. 10 jersey of the Brazil football team, following reports that Neymar could be switched to the No. 13 shirt. 

According to reports, the Brazil FIFA World Cup 2026 squad members have not yet received their official jersey numbers, but discussions are underway about the iconic jersey in Brazilian football history.

Brazil’s No. 10 jersey is not a number; it carries historic importance in world football, having been worn by legends including Pelé, Zico, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, and Kaka.

Neymas has worn the jersey regularly since June 2013 and is widely regarded as the successor to Brazil’s legendary No.10 jersey.

However, since Vincius Jr. wore it in June 2023 during Neymar’s injury absence, many supporters felt the winger as the next leader of the national side.

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The jersey is becoming the centerpiece of discussion with the arrival of coach Carlo Ancelotti, and Neymar and Vinicius Jr. are expected to play key roles in the squad.

Several Brazilian players, including Raphinha, have publicly highlighted Neymar’s importance inside the dressing room, strengthening the argument for the veteran forward to retain the famous jersey.

Neymar is likely to keep the No. 10 shirt if Brazil chooses to follow the principle of seniority. If that is the case, then Vincius Jr. could wear the No. 7 jersey that he has previously worn for Real Madrid and Brazil

Notably, if Neymar plays in the upcoming FIFA World Cup wearing the iconic jersey, then he would become the only Brazilian player ever to wear that number in four different FIFA World Cups, surpassing Pelé.

For the unversed, Pelé himself received the No. 10 jersey by chance during the 1958 FIFA World Cup after Brazil reportedly failed to submit squad numbers to FIFA, leading the governing body to assign jersey numbers at random.

LONDON: FIFA World Cups are where rising stars of football quickly transform into global icons.

AFP Sport looks at five of the contenders to become the game’s next superstar this year’s FIFA World Cup 2026 in the United States, Mexico, and Canada:

Nico Paz (Argentina)

The son of former Argentine international Pablo Paz has opted to play for the world champions in FIFA World Cup 2026 despite being born and raised in Spain.

A rising star in the Real Madrid academy, Paz has flourished over the past two years working under Cesc Fabregas since moving to Como in Italy.

Madrid are reportedly set to exercise their buyback option on the 21-year-old.

His technical ability and eye for goal from range has alerted Europe’s other top clubs.

Paz could have the daunting task of filling in for Lionel Messi with Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni expected to manage the 38-year-old’s minutes during the champions’ title defense in the FIFA World Cup.

Desire Doue (France)

Doue has already lit up the biggest stage in club football, winning the man-of-the-match award and scoring twice in Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League final thrashing of Inter Milan last year.

But this will be the 20-year-old’s first taste of a major international tournament.

Doue has a battle just to ensure he starts for Les Bleus among a dazzling display of attacking talent that includes Kylian Mbappe, Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele and Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise.

But Doue gave Didier Deschamps a timely reminder of his quality with his first two international goals in a 3-1 friendly win over Colombia in France’s last outing in March.

Nico O’Reilly (England)

O’Reilly, 21, has already earned the trust of Pep Guardiola to become a regular for Manchester City.

Scorer of two goals from left-back in City’s League Cup final win over Arsenal in March, O’Reilly began his career as a goalscoring midfielder.

Guardiola has harnessed his blend of height, speed and skill as an attacking weapon from deep and may have solved a problem position for England coach Thomas Tuchel in the process.

England reached the final of Euro 2024 without a natural left-back for the majority of the tournament due to Luke Shaw’s lack of fitness.

“What a player,” said Guardiola. “He has made an incredible step up and he has had a lot of minutes, but he deserves it.”

Endrick (Brazil)

A teenage prodigy who made his Palmeiras debut at 16 and was snapped up by Real Madrid before his18th birthday, Endrick’s hopes of shining at the World Cup have been rekindled by a successful loan move at French club Lyon.

Endrick burst onto the international scene by scoring the winner against England at Wembley two years ago and becoming Brazil’s youngest goalscorer since Ronaldo in the process.

Relegated behind international team-mate Vinicius Junior and Mbappe after his big move to Madrid two years ago, the 19-year-old has found his scoring touch since his switch to France in January.

Often compared to another Brazilian great Romario for his squat but powerful physique, Endrick will be hoping to recreate the former’s success in scoring five goals as Brazil won the World Cup on US soil in 1994.

Pedri (Spain)

Spain’s latest passing metronome, Pedri has proven to be a fitting heir to Xavi Hernandez for both club and country.

After first rising to prominence as an 18-year-old at Euro 2020, Pedri was key to Spain’s run to conquering Europe two years ago in Germany, but injury prevented him from featuring in the semi-finals and final.

For Barcelona, he has put his fitness troubles behind him under Hansi Flick, playing a starring role in back-to-back La Liga title triumphs over the past two seasons.

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Matthijs de Ligt will miss the Netherlands’ World Cup campaign after undergoing back surgery to address an injury that has kept him out since November.

The Manchester United defender is not expected to return until the early stages of next season.

“Matthijs de Ligt has undergone successful surgery to address a back injury,” United said in a statement on Friday.

“Having diligently worked throughout his rehabilitation process, the decision was made that a corrective procedure was the best course of action.”

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De Ligt had made a positive start to this season, playing every minute of United’s first 13 Premier League games until the injury halted his progress.

“Since November I have done everything, pushing myself in every session and exploring every option, to get back to doing what I love, playing football,” said the former Juventus and Bayern Munich centre-back.

“I am grateful to everyone who has supported me throughout a difficult period in my career.

“I remain as determined as ever to represent Manchester United and play in front of our incredible supporters as soon as possible.”

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Madonna, Shakira and K-pop megastars BTS will headline a Super Bowl-style half-time show at the FIFA World Cup final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Coldplay’s Chris Martin is curating the show, which is a first for a football World Cup final but has raised concerns about how long half-time will be.

The biggest-ever World Cup, with 48 teams, kicks off on June 11 in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino announced in March last year that there would be “the first-ever half-time show at a FIFA World Cup final”.

He did not say at the time who would be performing or how long the show would last.

“This will be a historic moment for the FIFA World Cup and a show befitting the biggest sporting event in the world,” he said on Instagram.

The move mirrors the show held during the final of the 2024 Copa America in Miami, when Colombian star Shakira performed at half-time at the Hard Rock Stadium.

There was also a half-time show at last year’s FIFA Club World Cup final, also at MetLife Stadium, which stretched the break in excess of the regulation 15 minutes.

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Infantino added that FIFA also planned to “take over” New York’s Times Square on the final weekend of the World Cup.

The half-time extravaganza will support FIFA’s Global Citizen Education Fund, an initiative working to raise $100 million for children worldwide during the World Cup.

Shakira last week teased the new official song for the World Cup, releasing a brief video of the track filmed at Brazil’s iconic Maracana Stadium.

The singer — who also created the 2010 World Cup anthem “Waka Waka” — announced the song, titled “Dai Dai” in a post on her Instagram account.

In the 67-second video, Shakira appears on the pitch at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro, where she performed in a free concert at the city’s Copacabana Beach before two million people.

Holding the “Trionda”, the official match ball of the 2026 World Cup, Shakira performed excerpts of the song in English, joined by dancers dressed in the colors of teams including the United States and Colombia.

The song was produced with Nigerian artist Burna Boy and is set for official release on Thursday. The clip, also shared by the FIFA World Cup account, ends with the message: “We’re ready!”

Shakira has a long association with the World Cup, performing at the 2006 and 2014 World Cup finals in addition to producing “Waka Waka” for the 2010 tournament.

READ: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi named in India A squad for Sri Lanka tri-series

Iraq football coach Graham Arnold pleaded with FIFA on Monday to postpone his team’s intercontinental playoff for the World Cup because many of his players and backroom staff are stranded by the growing Iran war.

The Iraqis are due to face either Suriname or Bolivia on March 31 in the Mexican city of Monterrey for a place in the World Cup finals, but with Iraqi airspace closed until April 1, Arnold’s squad is unable to gather or travel.

“If the game goes ahead in Mexico, we have the difficulties of getting out of Baghdad,” Arnold, an Australian, told CNN.

“About 60% of my players play in Iraq, all my backroom staff live in Iraq, all my medical staff live in Qatar, and we’re having trouble getting Mexican visas at this moment,” he added.

Arnold said he had already been forced to cancel a training camp in the United States.

“That has all been scrapped now, because we can’t get out of Baghdad,” he said. “FIFA need to obviously make a quick decision on this because it is a bit unfair at this moment, with what we would have to go through.”

He suggested that Suriname and Bolivia could go ahead with their playoff in Monterrey on March 26, and the winner of that game could play Iraq in the United States just before the World Cup, which kicks off on June 11.

“Suriname could always play Bolivia if we can’t get there, and we could always play the winner just before the World Cup, and that lets us prepare properly and do everything required to be successful,” Arnold said.

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“Bolivia and Suriname can play in March, they’ve got no complications with flights or anything, they can get there straight away, and we could play the winner

“The winner stays and plays the World Cup, and the loser goes home.”

Graham Arnold said the Iraqi football authorities were in close contact with FIFA, but he admitted the situation was taking its toll.

“It’s one step at a time, it’s stressful, (I’ve had) a lot of sleepless nights worrying about getting that planning right,” he said.

An Iraqi source told AFP the national federation had asked for the change.

“Iraq’s request came due to the inability of the delegation to travel from the capital, Baghdad,” they said.

“As a result of the closure of airspace and the security risks currently affecting the region,” they added.

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The winners of the 2026 World Cup will receive $50 million in prize money as part of a record financial contribution for the tournament from FIFA, world football’s governing body, announced on Wednesday.

The total World Cup prize fund of $655 million (558.5 million euros) represents an increase of almost 50 percent from the $440 million distributed to teams taking part in the last tournament in Qatar in 2022.

However, next year’s World Cup — to be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada from June 11 to July 19 — will be the first to feature 48 teams, a 50 percent increase from the 32 teams last time.

The Argentine Football Association received $42 million in prize money after Lionel Messi inspired them to glory three years ago, when they won on penalties in the final against France.

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France received $30 million for their run to the final. This time, the beaten finalists will pocket $33 million, with the third-place finishers collecting $29 million and the other defeated semi-finalists getting $27 million.

Teams eliminated in the group phase will receive $9 million, while all 48 participating nations will get an additional $1.5 million to cover “preparation costs.”

Earlier, World Cup organisers also unveiled a new cut-price ticket category after a backlash by fans over pricing for the 2026 tournament in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Football’s global governing body FIFA said in a statement that it had created a limited number of “Supporter Entry Tier” fixed at $60 for all 104 matches, including the final.

It said the plan was “designed to further support travelling fans following their national teams across the tournament”.

FIFA said that the $60 (51 euro) tickets would be reserved for fans of qualified teams and would make up 10 percent of each national federation’s allotment.

For the unversed, the draw for tickets of all prices in the first round of sales will take place on Tuesday, January 13.

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Four-time World Cup winners Italy will face Northern Ireland in the semi-finals of the European playoffs for the FIFA World Cup 2026, while Ukraine will face star-studded Sweden.

Italy will take on Northern Ireland on March 26 next year at an Italian venue that is yet to be confirmed, after to the draw made in Zurich on Thursday.

Five days later the winner will travel to face the winner of Wales’s semi-final against Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Despite another error-strewn qualification campaign, Italy still have a chance of reaching the World Cup finals for the first time since the 2014 tournament in Brazil, having failed to qualify in 2018 and 2022.

Facing the Azzurri will be a daunting challenge for Northern Ireland, who have only beaten the Italians once in 11 meetings, and that was in 1958.

Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso said: “Let’s concentrate on the first match. Northen Ireland are a team that we can beat.

“They’re a team that have their own style, they’re very physical… they’ll give us a good game but we can do it.

“We know about Wales and Bosnia, and playing in Cardiff is difficult for anybody, but for now let’s concentrate on the semi-final.”

War-torn Ukraine will play a Sweden team that could feature Liverpool’s £125 million ($164 million) forward Alexander Isak and Arsenal striker Viktor Gyokeres.

The Swedes, though, were woeful in qualifying, finishing bottom of their group, and only got into the playoffs thanks to their performance in the Nations League.

Newly appointed English coach Graham Potter, formerly in charge of Brighton and Chelsea, faces a tough task to steer the Swedes to the finals in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

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Potter said Sweden had a “fantastic opportunity”.

“We need to make sure we’re in a good place in March. We need to use our time until then wisely,” he said.

Whoever triumphs in the Ukraine v Sweden match will face the winner of Poland’s meeting with Albania — the Albanians are bidding to reach football’s showpiece for the first time.

Meanwhile, the Republic of Ireland, who reached the playoffs after a dramatic late goal from Troy Parrott earned a 3-2 win in Hungary on Sunday, face a tough trip to the Czech Republic.

The winner of that match will host the winner of the semi-final between Denmark and North Macedonia.

Turkey will play Romania, who were surprise quarter-finalists the last time the tournament was played in the United States in 1994.

The winner will face either Slovakia or Kosovo, who are also trying to reach a World Cup for the first time in their history.

All the European semi-finals will take place on March 26, with the finals on March 31.

In the inter-continental playoffs, New Caledonia — another nation bidding to make a first appearance at a World Cup finals — will play against Jamaica for the right to face the seeded Democratic Republic of Congo.

Bolivia will play Suriname — yet another country seeking a first ever appearance — with the victor going on to a winner-takes-all game against Iraq.

Those games will be played in March next year.

The expansion of the 2026 World Cup to 48 teams from 32 teams in 2022 has led to a clutch of first-time qualifiers, including Curacao and Uzbekistan.

READ: Pakistan-India to clash as U-19 Asia Cup schedule announced

Iraq scored a penalty in the 17th minute of injury time to beat the United Arab Emirates (UAE) 2-1 in the second leg of their 2026 World Cup qualifying tie on Tuesday and secure a place in the inter-confederation play-offs.

Substitute Mohanad Ali, who plays in the UAE for Dibba, and Amir Al-Ammari scored in Basra as Graham Arnold’s men came from behind to secure a 3-2 aggregate victory after last week’s 1-1 first-leg draw.

Iraq, whose only appearance at a World Cup was a group-stage exit in Mexico in 1986, progressed to the six-team play-offs where the last two tickets to the finals will be decided.

The UAE broke the deadlock in the 52nd minute, as Yahia Nader slipped the ball through for Brazilian-born forward Caio Lucas to fire the ball past Iraq goalkeeper Jalal Hachim.

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But Iraq hit back midway through the second half when Mohanad Ali headed home Al-Ammari’s free-kick.

The home side piled on the pressure late on, with Mohanad Ali missing two good chances to score a winner.

But VAR awarded Iraq the latest of penalties for a handball, and Al-Ammari stepped up to net the spot-kick and keep alive his nation’s hopes of ending their 40-year wait to play in a World Cup.

Bolivia, New Caledonia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo have also booked their places at the inter-confederation play-offs.

The other two play-off spots will be decided by the final round of CONCACAF qualifiers later Tuesday, with Jamaica and Panama currently in position to qualify for the mini-tournament.

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Co-hosts Australia beat France 7-6 in a thrilling penalty shoot-out to reach the semi-finals of the Women’s World Cup for the first time in their history on a night of drama in Brisbane on Saturday.

Australia now go to Sydney on Wednesday to face the winners of the final last-eight tie between England and Colombia.

Cortnee Vine scored the winning penalty to end a remarkable shoot-out that saw both teams take 10 spot-kicks, the third Women’s World Cup quarter-final having ended 0-0 after 120 nerve-shredding minutes.

Vine held her nerve to send the crowd into raptures and keep the Matildas’ dream of winning the World Cup on home soil alive.

Australia goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold had missed a chance to win the shoot-out when her kick hit the post but then saved twice from Kenza Dali after the VAR spotted she had both feet off her line the first time.

Vicki Becho missed France’s 10th penalty, and it was left to Vine to take Australia through by beating France’s substitute goalkeeper Solene Durand, who had been sent on, especially for the shoot-out.

“I’m so freaking proud about this team. The bravery that they showed tonight, unbelievable,” said Australia coach Tony Gustavsson.

“I think we’ll have maybe tonight to celebrate it and then tomorrow we’ll review it and move on to the next game,” added Arnold, the player of the match.

It was an agonising way for France to go out of the Women’s World Cup after a tense encounter watched by a sell-out crowd of 49,461.

Les Bleues had been hoping to get to the semi-finals for just the second time, following their defeat in the last four in 2011, but instead go home.

“We had a whole stadium and a nation against us. We produced an exceptional performance, but that’s football. It was destiny,” French coach Herve Renard told broadcaster France 2.

“Good luck to Australia. I think we deserved more but that’s how it is.”

Australia’s victory was achieved despite Sam Kerr again being left on the bench at kick-off, with the talismanic Matildas captain, now fit after a calf injury, coming on early in the second half and going on to convert her penalty in the shoot-out.

Gustavsson stuck with the same team that started against Denmark in the last 16, while France brought the fit-again Maelle Lakrar back into their defence.

Lakrar really should have given France an early lead to silence the hostile crowd, but the 23-year-old somehow succeeded in diverting a Eugenie Le Sommer shot over the bar with the goal gaping.

That was a let-off for the hosts, who were then grateful to Arnold for tipping a Le Sommer effort behind and for stopping a stinging Lakrar attempt following a corner.

It looked like the occasion was getting to Australia, but they began to threaten in the final minutes of the first half.

They were desperately unlucky not to go ahead in the 41st minute when French defensive hesitancy allowed Emily van Egmond to tee up Mary Fowler for what seemed like a certain goal, but Elisa De Almeida raced in to produce a miraculous block.

French goalkeeper Pauline Peyraud-Magnin then had to come out to clear in front of Fowler, as it somehow remained goalless at the interval.

Kerr emerged 10 minutes into the second half, replacing Van Egmond to the delight of the crowd, and her introduction provided such a lift that Australia very nearly went ahead moments later.

Hayley Raso tried her luck with a rasping drive from outside the box, but Peyraud-Magnin saved and the Juventus goalkeeper topped that with a brilliant block to deny Fowler from point-blank range on the hour mark.

That appeared to pierce some of Australia’s momentum, and the tension increased as the clock ticked down, making extra time almost an inevitability.

France thought they had the breakthrough 10 minutes into the extra period when Ellie Carpenter turned the ball into her own net, but Australia were rescued when the Chilean referee blew for a foul.

Arnold saved superbly from Becho, before France replaced Peyraud-Magnin with Durand as penalties loomed.

Durand is their penalty-saving specialist and denied both Steph Catley and Clare Hunt in the shoot-out, but it was not enough for France.

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Pakistan men’s football team will face Cambodia in the Preliminary Round One of the upcoming FIFA World Cup Asia Qualifiers.

The game’s apex body on Thursday, unveiled the draws for the first and second rounds of the qualifiers.

The first-round matches will be played on the basis of one home and one away match on October 12 and 17, with the 10 winners advancing to the second round.

🤩 The first step on Asia's road to #WeAre26!

These 20 sides will face off for a place in the second round group stage of 2026 AFC #WCQ.#FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/Vif9J5BbxH

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 27, 2023

Those 10 nations will then join the remaining 26 teams, already slotted in the second round on the basis of FIFA Rankings, which will feature nine groups of four nations, with the winners and runners-up then progressing through to the third round.|

The race is on! 🤩

Asia is ready to begin the run for the finish line in Canada, Mexico and USA. 🙌 #WCQ | #WeAre26 pic.twitter.com/hLGIqZ1xu9

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 27, 2023

 

A total of 18 nations that reach the third round will be divided into three groups of six, via a draw conducted at a later date, with the top two nations in each group qualifying for the FIFA World Cup.

The remaining six teams that finished third and fourth in the third round will then be divided into two groups of three teams for the fourth round, with the victor of each group earning a direct entry ticket to the FIFA World Cup.

Finally, in the fifth round, Asia’s representative in the FIFA play-off competition will be decided by a two-legged, home-and-away match between the two runners-up from the fourth round.

Notably, in the 2019 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, Pakistan took on the same opponent and received a 1-4 thrashing.

It is worth mentioning here that Pakistan men’s football team recently partook in the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship last month.

The national team was drawn in Group A with hosts India, invitee Kuwait and Nepal.

Pakistan received a 0-4 thrashing each from India and Kuwait respectively before Nepal edged them 1-0 in the dead rubber Group A clash.

Thus, the green shirts concluded their SAFF Championship without a win.

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