Sports

By Ben Church, CNN (CNN) — Note: This is story first appeared in The Beautiful Game by CNN Sports, our daily newsletter on all things World Cup. To subscribe, click here. The first games of the World Cup always seem to have a little shock in them. On Saturday, Switzerland, Brazil and Turkey found that

CNN By Ben Church, CNN (CNN) — Note: This is story first appeared in The Beautiful Game by CNN Sports, our daily newsletter on all things World Cup. To subscribe, click here. The first games of the World Cup always seem to have a little shock in them. On Saturday, Switzerland, Brazil and Turkey found

By Don Riddell, CNN (CNN) — Nobody can predict how the 48 teams will do at the FIFA World Cup this summer, but if you wanted to gamble on Japan being the tidiest team, you’d surely clean up at the bookies. Thanks to a societal expectation of all Japanese people, you’d never know they were

By Julia Vargas Jones, CNN Moorpark, California (CNN) — The crest is red, white and green – the colors of the Iranian flag. Nader Adeli, the 65-year-old captain of Arya Football Club, holds up the jersey and laughs: “We are Iranian! We are Aryan, alright?” All 11 Arya FC players on the field are Iranian

By Ben Church, CNN (CNN) — Note: This is story first appeared in The Beautiful Game by CNN Sports, our daily newsletter on all things World Cup. To subscribe, click here. It now feels like we’re well underway in the World Cup with matches coming thick and fast. After the USA’s dominating win yesterday (more

By Hannah Keyser, CNN (CNN) — One time, before she met her now fiancé, Victoria Perry went on a first date with a man who said he wasn’t into the NBA. “I was not going on a second date,” she says now. And just think if she had – and they had hit it off

By Emile Nuh, CNN (CNN) — The quest for a sixth star begins again for Brazil. This storied, soccer-mad nation has lifted the World Cup five times – more than any other country – but its last triumph in 2002 is beginning to feel like a distant memory as over two decades of frustration have

By Ben Church, Isaac Tellechea Toronto (CNN) — Canada concluded its opening World Cup match against Bosnia and Herzegovina with a 1-1 draw. Bosnia was the better team in the first half but ran out of legs by the end. That, and some smart substitutions for Canada, saw the co-host get back into the tie,

By Ben Church, CNN (CNN) — Two goals, three red cards and players crying with pride and joy on the pitch – what else did you expect from the first game at this year’s World Cup? The Estadio Azteca proved the perfect place to kick-start the tournament and Mexico showed the other co-hosts how to

By Dana O’Neil, CNN Irvine, California (CNN) — The sofa cushions didn’t stand a chance. The last line of defense between native New Yorker Tyler Adams and a celebration that’s been waiting a lifetime to be born, the off-white pillows in the fancy team hotel turned into a trampoline as Adams and the US Men’s

By Glen Levy, Ben Church Mexico City (CNN) — In a game that saw more red cards than goals, Mexico has won the opening match of the 2026 World Cup with a 2-0 victory over South Africa. The goal from Julián Quiñones in the opening 10 minutes was more than enough, but Raúl Jiménez got

By Patrick Sung Cuadrado, CNN (CNN) — Real Madrid has signed José Mourinho to a three-year deal as its new manager until June 30, 2029, the club announced on Thursday, marking a sensational return for the two-time Champions League winner to the Spanish capital. Mourinho is set to join the club on July 13, when