Author: Rowan Clarke

Somali referee Omar Artan will receive his full World Cup tournament fee despite being denied entry to the United States and taking no part in the competition. Artan was held for 11 hours by US immigration authorities at Miami International Airport on Monday before officials refused him entry into the country. His diplomatic passport and single entry US visa were both rejected during what became an exhausting and deeply distressing ordeal for the referee. A US government official stated that Artan had not been permitted to enter the country due to an alleged “association with suspected members of terror organisations.”…

England’s World Cup campaign gets underway on 17 June when Thomas Tuchel’s side face Croatia in Dallas, with kick-off scheduled for 21:00 BST. BBC Sport pundits have been sharing their preferred starting elevens ahead of the Three Lions’ opening Group Stage fixture at the tournament. One of the key debates centres on the centre-back pairing, with Marc Guehi, John Stones, and Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa all competing for starting berths in defence. Another talking point is whether Jude Bellingham, who will wear the number 10 shirt at the tournament, actually starts the opening game against Croatia. Former England defender Micah…

Nestory Irankunda etched his name into Australian football history by becoming the Socceroos’ youngest ever World Cup scorer against Turkey in Vancouver. The 20-year-old Watford forward opened the scoring in a commanding 2-0 victory, finishing with pace and power in the 27th minute to spark wild celebrations. “It is unreal and a dream come true,” Irankunda said shortly after the final whistle, reflecting on a moment that crowned a quite extraordinary personal journey. Born in a Tanzanian refugee camp in 2006 to Burundian parents who fled their homeland due to civil war, Irankunda’s path to the World Cup is genuinely…

After 28 years absent from the World Cup stage, Scotland supporters were never going to let a traffic jam dampen their spirits on the road to Foxborough. Fans revelled in the gridlock for hours before kick-off, hanging out of yellow school buses on the I-95, singing songs and waving flags at a crawl of barely a mile an hour. The sense of joy was so palpable you could have reached out and touched it, with vast waves of Tartan Army supporters occupying every street corner across Boston. Seven minutes before 9pm local time, Scotland walked out into Boston Stadium, a…

Brazil were held to a 1-1 draw by Morocco in their opening World Cup Group C fixture at the New Jersey New York Stadium. Vinicius Jr produced a moment of stunning quality to rescue Brazil after they fell behind and looked decidedly second best for long periods. The Real Madrid forward received the ball on the left side of the penalty area from Bruno Guimaraes before cutting inside onto his right foot and lashing a brilliant strike into the roof of the net. It was his 10th goal for Brazil, three of which have now come on US soil, and…

Ismael Saibari has given Morocco the lead against Brazil in their Group C match at the 2026 World Cup with a composed clinical finish. The goal arrived in the 21st minute, with Saibari converting to put Morocco firmly in control of the early stages of the contest. Morocco have been one of the more exciting sides to watch at this tournament, and their attacking intent was rewarded with an early breakthrough against one of the competition’s heavyweights. Brazil, perennial favourites and one of the most decorated nations in World Cup history, found themselves behind inside the opening half-hour of the…

Ruben Amorim has emerged as a leading candidate to become the next manager of AC Milan, sources have confirmed. The Portuguese coach has been without a club since Manchester United sacked him in January, following a difficult 14-month stint at Old Trafford. Sources close to Amorim had previously distanced the 41-year-old from a return to Benfica, where he made 154 appearances across six years as a player. While no formal agreement has been reached, conversations have already taken place between Milan and Amorim’s representatives over the vacant role. Milan are searching for a new manager after dismissing Massimiliano Allegri in…

The 2026 World Cup has started with four games, three opening ceremonies, and victories for two of the host nations already in the books. Despite some issues around ticket prices and blocked entry for match officials and players, the tournament itself has made a broadly positive start. However, football fans and coaches are now grappling with a raft of rule changes that are leaving players, supporters, and TV viewers increasingly confused. Dutch referee Danny Makkelie stopped the United States versus Paraguay game in the second half after Antonee Robinson headed the ball from the home penalty area, initially without a…

Scotland manager Steve Clarke faces one of the most consequential selection decisions in the nation’s football history ahead of Sunday’s World Cup opener against Haiti in Boston. The match kicks off at 02:00 BST at Boston Stadium, representing the biggest occasion for Scottish football in almost three decades, with enormous pressure on winning the first game. Clarke is widely expected to line up in a 4-4-2 formation, a system he rarely uses but one that delivered a convincing 4-0 warm-up victory over Bolivia last week. The complication is that the Bolivia win came with John McGinn on the bench, raising…

For two days in 2004, the violence in Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince simply stopped, brought to a halt by the arrival of then world champions Brazil. Haitian journalist Pierre Richard Midy remembers his foreign friends being stunned, asking him: “Are you sure the Brazilians are playing in Haiti? It sounds like the Brazilians are at home.” Thousands of locals lined the streets, climbed trees for a better view, and waved Brazilian flags as stars including Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Roberto Carlos arrived on the island. Haiti lost that UN-organised friendly 6-0, but the match delivered something far greater than a scoreline, offering…