All posts tagged: World Cup 2026

Ecuador stun Germany 2-1 to reach World Cup knockouts for first time since 2006

Ecuador stun Germany 2-1 to reach World Cup knockouts for first time since 2006

Published by Webster

Germany arrived at MetLife Stadium having already topped Group E. Ecuador arrived needing a win or an early flight home. That much was clear before kickoff. What followed was less predictable. It was only the second time in five World Cup appearances that Ecuador have reached the knockout rounds. The first was 2006. The three tournaments in between — 2002, 2014, 2022 — all ended in the group stage. This one nearly did too. The loss to Ivory Coast was a gut punch. Curacao was the one that truly stung. Fifteen attempts on goal, each denied by Eloy Room. No team had registered that many shots without scoring at a World Cup since 1966. They went into the Germany game having spent 242 minutes at this tournament without a goal. ALSO READ | World Cup third-place standings: Which teams will qualify for Round of 32 Then Florian Wirtz found Leroy Sane in the box two minutes in. Sane’s left foot, misfiring for much of this tournament, found its mark. His first World Cup goal. Manuel …

Will Cristiano Ronaldo start in Uzbekistan match? Portugal coach refuses to answer

Will Cristiano Ronaldo start in Uzbekistan match? Portugal coach refuses to answer

Published by Webster

3 min readJun 23, 2026 11:10 AM IST The pressure on Cristiano Ronaldo to perform has been heightened after his long-time rival Lionel Messi backed up his first-round hat-trick for Argentina with a brace against Austria on Monday night. Young stars Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland also showed up with braces of their own for France and Norway, respectively, as they qualified for the Round of 32 on Tuesday. Portugal and Ronaldo have been, however, under fire after their repid start with a 1-1 draw against DR Congo in their Group K opener last week. The 41-year-old will be under the spotlight when Portugal take on Uzbekistan on Tuesday night in Houston. However, whether Ronaldo will start on the turf or off it remains under wraps as Portugal coach Roberto Martinez refused to confirm his position. “I can’t inform you about the starting 11 because I haven’t informed my players,” Martínez said Monday when asked if Ronaldo would remain in the lineup. ALSO READ | Messi, Mbappe may be the superstars but Haaland is fast …

Mbappé approaching Messi’s 18 goal record in World Cup’s leaderboard charge

Mbappé approaching Messi’s 18 goal record in World Cup’s leaderboard charge

Published by Webster

4 min readUpdated: Jun 23, 2026 07:21 AM IST ‘A heavy thunderstorm is approaching’ – read the giant scoreboard at the Lincoln Financial in Philadelphia as fat raindrops pelted down in the France-Iraq game. For those football-inclined, it was on ominous warning of Kylian Mbappé chasing down the all-time scoring record that was claimed by Lionel Messi only a couple of hours ago, as he went past Miroslav Klose’s 16 to reach 18. Mbappé, at age 27 had reached 16 by the time France defeated Iraq 3-0, scoring his first two on either side of lightning and rain that forced fans onto the concourses, when it was evident a flimsy poncho was not going to be enough. Messi turns 39 and will celebrate it with 5 goals from his 2026 games. But a thunderstorm is indeed approaching, as the fluid, feisty, full of flair, fearsome French forwardline led by Mbappé are blasting off bangers of their own, come rain or storm. ALSO READ | Record-breaking Lionel Messi’s longevity is truly remarkable His first came off …

Who has scored most World Cup goals in history? Messi one goal away from all-time record

Who has scored most World Cup goals in history? Messi one goal away from all-time record

Published by Webster

2 min readJun 22, 2026 09:58 PM IST Arguably the greatest footballer of his generation, and one of the finest to ever grace the pitch, Argentinian legend Lionel Messi now stands just one goal away from becoming the all-time leading scorer in FIFA World Cup history. Messi opened Argentina’s 2026 World Cup campaign with a historic hat-trick against Algeria, drawing him level with Germany’s Miroslav Klose as the joint-top scorer in tournament history. Both icons now have 16 World Cup goals to their name, one ahead of legendary Brazilian Ronaldo, who sits third on the all-time list with 15 goals. Already holding the record for the most goal contributions in World Cup history (24), with 16 goals and 8 assists, Messi will claim the outright record if he finds the net in Argentina’s Group J clash against Austria in Dallas on Monday. Another generational talent, France’s Kylian Mbappé, is closing in fast. In just his third World Cup, the French superstar has already netted 14 goals. He opened his 2026 account with a brace in …

Ronaldo could respond to WC critics with hat-trick, says Owen

Ronaldo could respond to WC critics with hat-trick, says Owen

Published by Webster

2 min readUpdated: Jun 22, 2026 10:32 AM IST Cristiano Ronaldo’s indifferent start to his record sixth World Cup appearance last weeek against DR Congo has sharpened the criticism of the waning abilities of the Portugal superstar. Ronaldo endured a forgettable night, with just three shots to show, after playing full 90 minutes in a tame 1-1 draw against Congo in their Group K opener. The 41-year-old soon became the face of criticism, with pundits and former footballers slamming Ronaldo’s contribution, besides being obsessed with the idea of hunting for goals from the box. Ronaldo’s lacklustre performance was in sharp contrast to his long-time rival Lionel Messi’s sparkling hat-trick for Argentina earlier that day in a 3-0 win over Algeria. While their recent outings have widened the gulf between the duo, former Ballon d’Or winner Michael Owen has backed Ronaldo to turn around his poor form around. ALSO READ | Yin & Yang: A statistical breakdown of Messi & Ronaldo’s first World Cup games Portugal next play Uzbekistan in Houston on Tuesday night, and Owen …

A statistical breakdown of Messi & Ronaldo’s first World Cup games

A statistical breakdown of Messi & Ronaldo’s first World Cup games

Published by Webster

4 min readJun 22, 2026 08:33 AM IST Messi’s hat-trick in the defending champions’ 3-0 romp over Algeria was contrasted with the sorry figure the Portuguese superstar cut in 1-1 draw with underdogs Democratic Republic of Congo.With the two legends on the final legs of their careers, we analyse why. 1. Productivity in attack Messi attempted six shots in his first game, four of which were on target, yielding a conversion rate of 66.7 per cent. More remarkably, three of those attempts came from outside the penalty area. Ronaldo, in comparison, attempted three shots — all from inside the box — and failed to test the goalkeeper even once. ALSO READ | In Messi’s second goal & Sachin’s googly to Moin, an insight into genius minds 2. Game involvement Messi not only exerted a greater influence on the game, but was significantly more involved in it. He recorded 57 touches, with neither Lautaro Martínez nor Thiago Almada — his partners in attack — surpassing that figure. Ronaldo had 25 touches against Congo — his fewest …

TV presenter quits after false Messi father death claim: ‘I trusted it’

TV presenter quits after false Messi father death claim: ‘I trusted it’

Published by Webster

3 min readJun 21, 2026 01:57 PM IST An Argentinian TV presenter has quit her role after falsely reporting that Lionel Messi’s father had passed away after the country’s 2026 FIFA World Cup opener against Algeria. Florencia Pena made the claim on the Argentinian streaming channel Luzu TV, saying on a live broadcast that Messi’s father had died and that his death was “sudden”. “I don’t want to bring bad news, but Messi’s father has just passed away. It was sudden. In the middle of the World Cup,” she said. Pena later issued a public apology, saying the information had been relayed to her during the broadcast and that she believed it to be true. “I must clarify that this false information was provided to me during the live broadcast as verified by the production team of the show, and I trusted it,” she wrote on X on Friday. Pido perdón a la familia Messi por el momento espantoso que imagino que están viviendo. Estoy muy avergonzada de haber sido el vehículo para este dolor. …

Smallest nation with the biggest point

Smallest nation with the biggest point

Published by Webster

For ignorant millennials, the FIFA World Cup was a better atlas than geography lessons at school. Korea-Japan 2002 taught us where Henri Camara’s Senegal was located. Germany 2006 made it impossible not to know about Andriy Shevchenko’s Ukraine. South Africa 2010 prompted a generation to learn about Asamoah Gyan’s Ghana. Had USA-Mexico-Canada 2026 been played in that era, we would have run into a problem. We would have scoured through the world map to find Curacao — the team that restricted Ecuador to a 0-0 stalemate on Sunday — and found nothing. They are a tiny dot on a physical map. Senior & Co., Curaçao’s oldest distillery and the producer of the original Blue Curaçao liqueur, acknowledges the irony on its website: “The funny thing is that now many people know the term Blue Curaçao, but don’t know that Curaçao is also an island.” And you would not be accused of geographical blasphemy for the same. The island has a population of 158,000. Ranked 189th. They have an area of 444 square kilometres. ALSO READ …

Morocco’s Saibari scores fastest goal, USA qualify for knockouts

Morocco’s Saibari scores fastest goal, USA qualify for knockouts

Published by Webster

3 min readJun 20, 2026 06:36 AM IST FIFA World Cup 2026 Highlights, June 20: Ismael Saibari’s 70th-second strike eventually proved to be the only differentiator in Morocco and Scotland’s Group C encounter at the Boston Stadium on Friday afternoon. Saibari’s lightning-fast strike is the earliest goal at this year’s World Cup and the fastest since Alphonso Davies’ 68-second goal for Canada against Croatia in 2022. The feat also makes him only the second African player, alongside Mohamed Salah, to find the back of the net in his first two World Cup appearances. Morocco, who reached the semifinals at the last World Cup in Qatar, drew 1-1 with Brazil in their Group C opener. FOLLOW LIVE: Brazil vs Haiti Live Score Updates Saibari slipped behind two Scotland defenders and Brahim Diaz dropped the ball over the top to him. Saibari gathered and blasted it into the top left corner of the net, well outside the reach of goalkeeper Angus Gunn. Saibari, currently linked with a summer move to Bayern Munich, owed his latest goal to …

Mexico first to reach 2026 World Cup knockouts with cagey 1-0 win over South Korea

Mexico first to reach 2026 World Cup knockouts with cagey 1-0 win over South Korea

Published by Webster

5 min readJun 19, 2026 09:43 AM IST The chorus of boos that came with the half-time whistle at the Guadalajara Stadium on Friday confirmed what the statistics showed. The first 45 and a few minutes of football between Mexico and South Korea, which was to decide which side becomes the first in the 2026 FIFA World Cup to confirm a place in the knockouts, was a cagey snoozefest. Just one save to show and an xG of 0.11 for both sides, which roughly translates to almost negligible chances of seeing a goal. The Mexican players looked somewhat befuddled at the fans’ response. It was no secret they would take the pragmatic route when needed at this tournament. “At a World Cup, the team that plays the prettiest football does not always win. The team that knows how to compete does,” manager Javier Aguirre had said in the run-up to the tournament. At that point, however, it might be safe to assume that at least some of those playing for El Tri were wishing that …