Good morning football fans. It’s Thursday, July. 2 - England will meet co-hosts Mexico in the round of 16, an investigation into Euro 2024 ticket corruption, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
KEY FIXTURES
2026 World Cup round of 32 (July 2): Spain vs Austria, 15:00 ET / 20:00 BST. Spain has not won a World Cup knockout match since their 1-0 win over the Netherlands in the 2010 final, though they are currently on an unbeaten run of 34 matches in all competitions. Austria, who collected four points in the group stage, have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last 12 World Cup matches. Portugal vs Croatia, 19:00 ET / 00:00 BST (July 3). Cristiano Ronaldo hasn’t scored in any of the eight World Cup knockout round matches he’s played. While Portugal only won one match (D2) in the group stage, Croatia won their last two matches and will be looking to win three consecutive matches at a major tournament for the first time since the 2018 World Cup. Switzerland vs Algeria, 23:00 ET / 04:00 BST (July 3). Algeria are winless in nine World Cup games against European opposition since winning their first ever fixture in 1982. Meanwhile, Switzerland have won just one of their last 12 major knockout matches inside normal time. See every upcoming World Cup fixture here and bracket here.
Results…
World Cup round of 32: England vs Congo DR | Belgium vs Senegal | United States vs Bosnia-Herzegovina (Live Results)
TOP TALKING POINTS
Azteca Awaits England
England have advanced to the World Cup round of 16 following a 2-1 win over DR Congo. Harry Kane, who scored both of England’s goals, overtook Pele’s World Cup goal tally of 12 in a game in which he also overtook 1966 World Cup-winning captain Bobby Moore and Billy Wright for the most appearances as England captain, with 91. Watch Kane’s superb second goal (US link / UK link).
England now face Mexico in the round of 16 at the co-hosts’ home venue, Azteca Stadium, on July 5. Mexico, who are yet to concede at the 2026 World Cup, have lost just twice in 89 competitive games at Azteca, winning 70 of them, and they are unbeaten in 10 World Cup games played in Mexico City. They are entering the round of 16 off the back of their first World Cup knockout stage win in 40 years.
One of the most iconic football stadiums in the world, the Azteca is 7,300 feet (2,200 m) above sea level. Mexico’s national team have spent the entire World Cup at their training base in Mexico City, leaving briefly to play South Korea in Guadalajara, meaning they have been training at high altitudes. For England, reports suggest the FA will deploy a risky ‘fly in, fly out’ strategy to mitigate the negative effects of playing at high altitudes, with a 2013 review suggesting that arriving only hours before competition may minimise plasma-volume loss.
The last time England played at the Azteca was in the 1986 World Cup quarter-final, when Diego Maradona scored one of the greatest World Cup goals ever (watch) and the infamous Hand of God goal (watch).
Euro 2024 Corruption Investigation
German police have carried out a major raid on the headquarters of Germany’s football federation (DFB) as part of a probe into ticket corruption relating to Euro 2024. According to Bild, investigators are seeking evidence of alleged preferential treatment, with claims that match tickets and hotel stays may have been improperly provided to host-city officials and other preferred guests at the tournament. Germany hosted the 2024 Euros across 10 stadiums, and Spain were the eventual winners.
“A football ticket is not part of a salary,” said Germany’s interior minister Herbert Reul. “Anyone in public service who holds out their hand can expect a visit from us.” The investigation is reportedly focused on two individuals, a 66-year-old German and a 46-year-old French national, in connection with alleged benefits provided by officials of the tournament’s organising body, Euro 2024 GmbH. More than 150 police officers have been deployed to the DFB offices in Frankfurt and to town halls in multiple German cities that hosted matches at the tournament.
The raids came just 36 hours after the German men’s national team was eliminated from the 2026 World Cup round of 32 by Paraguay on penalties.
AFCON Expansion Rejected
Plans to expand the African Cup of Nations (Afcon) from 24 to 28 teams have reportedly been rejected in a vote during the Confederation of African Football’s executive committee meeting. The proposal was initially made by the Caf’s president, Patrice Motsepe, in February, though a Caf executive committee member told The Guardian that he had made it without consulting the committee.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, one executive said that they “do not know why Motsepe proposed it in the first place. There is absolutely no reason for it.” According to CAF communications director Luxolo September, the idea of increasing Afcon’s size formed only one part of broader talks about strengthening the competition.
Africa has seen its best showing at a World Cup, with nine of the ten African teams securing a berth in the round of 32. Prior to this, only six African countries had ever qualified for the knockout stage, and no more than two had done so at a single tournament. Morocco’s semi-final run at the 2022 World Cup was the deepest run for an African nation at the competition.
POLL
Could Kylian Mbappe be considered the greatest World Cup player ever after the 2026 World Cup?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> Liverpool have signed centre-back Jeremy Jacquet from Rennes for £55m plus £5m add-ons (More) | Chelsea have signed defender Marco Palestra from Atalanta for £43m on a contract until 2033 (More) | Brighton have agreed a club record £46m deal with Tottenham for Croatia defender Luka Vuskovic (More) | Bayern Munich have signed Morocco international Ismael Saibari from PSV for €50m (More); see every transfer in Europe’s top five leagues (More)
> Nottingham Forest have terminated manager Vitor Pereira’s contract and are in talks with Oliver Glasner to replace him (More) | Hull City have avoided starting the Premier League season with a points deduction after selling two players to comply with the league’s financial rules (More)
> Jurgen Klopp would reportedly be open to considering a return to management if it were for the German national team (More) | Ronald Koeman has stepped down as head coach of the Netherlands following their early World Cup exit (More) | Olympique de Marseille have appointed Bruno Genesio as head coach following the departure of Habib Beye after a four-month spell in charge (More)
> Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni is under investigation over alleged underage prostitution (More)
Americas
> Three people have died in Mexico City during World Cup celebrations following the country’s first World Cup knockout win in 40 years (More) | Mexico became the first Concacaf team to eliminate a Conmebol nation in a World Cup knockout match (More)
> FIFA has identified a 13-fold increase in abusive social media posts toward players at the current World Cup compared to the 2022 World Cup (More)
> Ecuador’s Piero Hincapie became the second player to be issued a red card at the World Cup for covering their mouth during a confrontation (More) | Sebastian Beccacece has confirmed he will not continue as head coach of Ecuador following the team's elimination from the World Cup (More)
Rest of the World
> Michael Emenalo is leaving his role as chief football executive of the Saudi Pro League (SPL) after having arrived in 2023 (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Do you prefer World Cup matches to be decided in regular time or penalty shootouts?
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🕰️ Regular time (76%)
🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 😰 Penalty shootouts (24%)
Your punditry takes:
🕰️ D.L: “The only fair way to decide a match is with the 11 v 11 on the pitch. Even though I enjoy the tension of a penalty shootout, I don’t think it is fair.”
🕰️ J.M.H: “Penalty shootouts are a crapshoot with a lot of exhausted players. I would rather not have them and modify the extra time rules. Bring back the golden goal, and if no goal is scored in the first 15 minutes, both teams have to take a player off. It would open up the field and likely lead to a quick goal.”
😰 J.R: “Penalty shootouts are some of the most exciting aspects of the knockout rounds, as we have already seen. If they are worried about the length of matches, then cut out extra time. Go from regulation time straight to penalties.”
EXTRA TIME
How Haaland could end up with 260 international goals.
England fans sing Wonderwall with players.
Fifa explains the decision to rule out Germany's goal.
Jude Bellingham joins James Corden in his car.
Who has scored the most goals at a World Cup without winning the Golden Boot?
Sketchers launch special boots for Harry Kane’s World Cup record.
Ranking all 20 Premier League clubs on transfer work for 2025-26 season.
GAME FACE ON
Question: Who was the first player to miss a penalty at the 2026 World Cup?
Scroll below for the answer.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
Write an excuse for school and let them watch football. The World Cup is only every four years and we need everyone's support.
Answer
Lionel Messi.
