Football

Los Angeles, United States: Five-time winners Brazil roll into the World Cup on Saturday when they play surprise 2022 semi-finalists Morocco in one of the standout group-stage matchups. On the first day featuring four matches at a tournament expanded this year to 48 teams, Scotland return to the World Cup for the first time since 1998 and take on debutants Haiti in Boston. In other games, 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar play Switzerland in Santa Clara before Australia take on Turkiye in Vancouver to close out the day. Co-hosts the United States launched their home World Cup in emphatic fashion Friday, thrashing Paraguay 4-1 to delight a star-studded 70,000-strong crowd in Los Angeles that included Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Cruise and David Beckham. On Saturday, all eyes will be fixed on Brazil in New Jersey. The Selecao might not be the force they once were, but they remain one of the most glamorous draws in world football. Carlo Ancelotti has been drafted in to try to end the Brazilians' 24-year wait for another global crown. Ancelotti, making his World Cup debut as a coach, says he is convinced he has a team capable of competing with the very best. "It's a new experience, it's a new responsibility to represent the country of football," the Italian said on Friday. "We have a team that can compete with every team in the world, we're convinced of that. It's a team with quality and experience, and with absolute confidence that it can compete with anyone," he added. Brazil labored through their South American qualification campaign, losing six of 18 matches to finish fifth, which in previous years would have forced them into the play-offs. Read Also World Cup underway in United States and the winner is Freddy Qatar complete preparations for opening match against Switzerland United States defeat Paraguay 4-1 in World Cup opener Forwards Rodrygo and Estevao are out of the squad due to injury, while fading superstar Neymar will miss the opening game but, Ancelotti said, is "working very hard to recover as quickly as possible". Neymar has not played for his country since 2023. That all puts pressure on Vinicius Junior, who scored 21 goals last season for Real Madrid and must provide the firepower if Brazil are to shine, although Barcelona forward Raphinha can also find the net. Morocco stunned the football world four years ago as they became the first African side to reach the last four in Qatar. They were awarded this year's Africa Cup of Nations title on home soil after a chaotic final, initially won 1-0 by Senegal after extra time. Senegal were stripped of the victory after storming off the pitch in protest at a late penalty decision. Coach Mohamed Ouahbi, who replaced Walid Regragui as Morocco boss in March, said: "It's a match that will tell us where we stand, but I think we're in a good place to start this competition. "Lots of people say it's not the Brazil of old, but it's still Brazil," he added. Scotland are back Scotland, and their Tartan Army of fans, will look to star man Scott McTominay to be the engine of the team. Napoli midfielder McTominay has become an icon in Scotland since his stunning overhead kick goal in the 4-2 win over Denmark last November which sealed his team's qualification for a first World Cup since 1998. Haiti will just hope to do their turmoil-hit country proud. Australia coach Tony Popovic said he was confident his side could "punch above our weight" at the World Cup but the Turks represent a tough early test. The World Cup, expanded to 48 teams, will culminate in the final in New Jersey on July 19.

Football

Washington: Qatar's national football team completed their preparations on Thursday ahead of their opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup against Switzerland, scheduled for Saturday at 10:00 p.m. Doha time at San Francisco Bay Arena in the United States. The fixture marks Qatar's first outing in Group B, which also includes Canada and Bosnia and Herzegovina. ????️ | The stands are set at San Francisco Bay Arena???? for the start of our journey at the #FIFAWorldCup 2026 ????????#AlAnnabi #AllForQatar pic.twitter.com/28B7Q00FLc — Qatar Football Association (@QFA_EN) June 13, 2026 The reigning Asian side held their final training session in San Francisco under the supervision of Spanish head coach Julen Lopetegui, who assessed the squad's readiness as the coaching staff put the finishing touches on preparations for the team's World Cup opener. Read Also United States defeat Paraguay 4-1 in World Cup opener Canada draw 1-1 with Bosnia-Herzegovina in World Cup Pele's 1958 World Cup winners' medal set to fetch £500,000 Qatar, making their second appearance at a FIFA World Cup finals, will head into the match with a fully fit squad after all selected players participated in the final training session, which lasted less than an hour. ???? | Our fan’s march through San Francisco in support of #AlAnnabi ahead of the team’s opening #FIFAWorldCup clash against Switzerland ????????#AllForQatar pic.twitter.com/pYHoiQOGwS — Qatar Football Association (@QFA_EN) June 13, 2026 The team is also expected to receive strong support from Qatari fans in the stands. Around 1,000 supporters traveled from Doha to the United States via a dedicated air bridge operation conducted between June 9 and 11 to back the national team during the tournament. In a further show of support, Qatari fans already in the United States staged a supporters' march along San Francisco's waterfront on Friday afternoon, at 4pmlocal time, to rally behind the players ahead of their highly anticipated clash with Switzerland.

Football

Los Angeles, United States: The United States could scarcely have scripted a better start to their World Cup as a Folarin Balogun brace and Gio Reyna curler fired the co-hosts to a 4-1 drubbing of Paraguay in front of Hollywood royalty in Los Angeles on Friday. The hosts took the lead in the tournament's first game on US soil within seven minutes thanks to an own goal, and by the end of an utterly dominant half the home fans were in dreamland, their side up by three. Paraguay's midfielder #17 Alejandro Romero Gamarra and defender #15 Gustavo Gomez react after conceding US fourth goal. Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP Tom Cruise, Leonardo DiCaprio and Paris Hilton were among a sold-out 70,492 crowd as the US -- co-hosting the tournament with Mexico and Canada -- piled wave after wave of attacks on the South Americans, with Reyna polishing off the win late in stoppage time after Mauricio had pulled one back. The win and emphatic scoreline puts the US in a favorable position already to progress from Group D, which also contains Australia and Turkiye. The night's only potential sour note was the half-time withdrawal of Christian Pulisic, the US attacking talisman who is carrying the hopes of the nation as they attempt a deep run into the World Cup knockouts for the first time since their quarter-final appearance in 2002. Paraguay could not have been more obliging guests from kickoff. In the seventh minute, Weston McKennie picked up the ball in the center circle and drove upfield, finding Pulisic. Pulisic darted between two defenders and returned the ball to McKennie, whose pass to striker Balogun was bundled into his own net by a hapless Damian Bobadilla. The stadium erupted, and a US onslaught began. Gustavo Gomez #15 of Paraguay is challenged by Ricardo Pepi #9 of the United States. Jamie Squire/Getty Images/AFP The hosts oozed confidence. Both McKennie and Tillman played backheel through balls into the area, while captain Tim Ream sprayed out passes from the heart of defense. Balogun had a goal ruled out in the 28th minute. He had strayed offside, as had Pulisic in the buildup. But the Monaco striker had the ball in the net again three minutes later, thanks to a superb ball down the left flank by Antonee Robinson to Pulisic, whose cross to Balogun took a slight fortuitous deflection. Cesar Samudio #12 of Panama fails to save a shot from Giovanni Reyna #7 of the United States. Jamie Squire/Getty Images/AFP The US added a third on the cusp of half-time. Tillman found Balogun down the right, who evaded Omar Alderete's challenge, skipped inside Gustavo Gomez and curled his shot perfectly into the top left corner. It could have been four or five, with Chris Richards -- returning from injury -- flashing a header barely an inch wide. The US had 75 percent possession in the first half. Now without the dangerous Pulisic, the hosts sat back slightly in the second half. Paraguay finally offered a threat. Their dangerous forward Julio Enciso, who started despite a hamstring injury, picked up the ball on the edge of the area and fed in Brazil-born substitute Mauricio, who pulled one back. Reyna scored a superb fourth with the outside of his right foot that curled just inside the far post. A fan of the United States celebrates during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group D match between USA and Paraguay. Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images/AFP The game had been preceded by a Tinseltown-style opening ceremony. Katy Perry delivered the headline performance, accompanied by singers Future, Tyla, Anitta and K-pop star Lisa. Andres Cubas #14 and Gatito Fernandez #1 of Paraguay look dejected after the team's defeat. Jamie Squire/Getty Images/AFP Performers danced around a giant World Cup trophy beneath enormous "FIFA" letters in the gold favored by US President Donald Trump -- who did not attend, instead wishing the team luck via phone before kickoff.