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Good morning football fans. It’s Tuesday, June. 23 - Lionel Messi becomes the World Cup’s all-time top goalscorer, alcohol will be allowed in view of the pitch at WSL games next season, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
KEY FIXTURES
2026 World Cup (June 23): Portugal vs Uzbekistan, Group K, 13:00 ET / 18:00 BST. Portugal are winless in their last two World Cup matches against teams from the AFC confederation, though Uzbekistan have only won once in their last 23 contests with Uefa nations in all competitions. Should he start, Cristiano Ronaldo will hope to end a 10-match scoreless streak in major tournaments. England vs Ghana, Group L, 16:00 ET / 21:00 BST. England have a strong record against African nations at the World Cup, going unbeaten in eight such meetings with five wins in that run. At 22 years and 359 days, Jude Bellingham could become the youngest Englishman in history to reach 50 appearances for his country. Panama vs Croatia, Group L, 19:00 ET / 00:00 BST (June 24). Croatia’s head coach Zlatko Dalic has overseen three losses in his last four fixtures in charge, though they have been against England, Belgium, and Brazil. Meanwhile, Panama have lost each of their four World Cup matches, scoring just two goals. See every upcoming World Cup fixture here and group standings here.
Results…
World Cup: Argentina 2-0 Austria | France 3-0 Iraq
Norway vs Senegal and Jordan vs Algeria will conclude shortly after publication (Live Results)
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TOP TALKING POINTS
Messi’s Record-Breaking World Cup
Lionel Messi has become the all-time leading goalscorer at the men’s World Cup after scoring his 17th and 18th tournament goals in Argentina’s 2-0 victory over Austria. Messi, who turns 39 on Wednesday, has now scored two more than the previous record-holder, Germany striker Miroslav Klose, whose 16 goals came between 2002 and 2014. Messi achieved this feat in 28 matches, the most World Cup matches played by any individual. The closest active player to Messi’s record is France’s Kylian Mbappe, who has scored 16 World Cup goals — see the full list of the leading men’s World Cup goalscorers here.
Having already become the first man to play at six World Cups, Messi could break further records during this tournament. His brace against Austria extended his scoring run to six consecutive World Cup matches, drawing him level with Just Fontaine and Jairzinho. He is also level with Diego Maradona for the most assists in men’s World Cup history, with eight. Messi could break either record when Argentina, who have now secured their place in the World Cup’s round of 32, face Jordan in their final group-stage match on June 27.
Beyond the World Cup, Messi has won more Ballon d’Or awards than any other player, with eight. He also holds the records for the most senior goals scored in a calendar year (91 in 2012), the most goals for a single club (672 for Barcelona), and the most goals in La Liga history (474).
Watch highlights of Argentina vs Austria (US link / UK link / Canada link)
New Trafford Plans Progress
Manchester United have secured the majority of the land required to build a new 100,000-seat stadium. The proposed ground, referred to in concept documents as “New Trafford” and described by co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe as a “Wembley of the North”, would become the largest football stadium in the UK and the second-largest in Europe, behind only the renovated 105,000-capacity Barcelona Camp Nou. The plan is to build it in time for the 2035 women's World Cup — see concept images of the stadium design here.
One of the biggest obstacles for Man United was acquiring the land around the stadium. The land acquired, located 350 meters from Old Trafford, means that Man United won’t have to negotiate with a rail logistics company, Freightliner, to buy the land it operates on. Freightliner were demanding £301.8m ($400m) for the land, while Man United valued it at around £50m.
Despite overcoming this hurdle, details remain unclear about how the club plans to fund the estimated £2bn stadium, especially as the club already has around £728m in debt. The club states that the stadium itself will be privately funded and that it is having positive conversations with potential investors. It also says any public funding would support the wider Old Trafford regeneration rather than the stadium build itself, though some critics are sceptical about this claim — read here.
See all Premier League and Championship stadium capacities here.
Alcohol in Stands
Women’s Super League (WSL) and WSL2 clubs will be allowed to let supporters drink alcohol in view of the pitch from the 2026-27 season. The decision to remove the rule forbidding drinking alcohol in view of the pitch follows a successful 18-month pilot scheme.
Following the Sporting Events Act of 1985, drinking alcohol in view of the pitch is banned across England’s top five men’s football leagues. The Act was introduced following a wave of football hooliganism throughout the 1970s and 1980s, with the government believing alcohol was a major contributor to violence at football stadiums. Its passage was accelerated into law following the Heysel Stadium disaster on 29 May 1985, in which 39 people died, and hundreds were injured ahead of the European Cup final. Uefa banned all English teams from European competitions for five seasons.
The WSL was never legally covered by the Act but voluntarily mirrored the restriction in its competition rules while it was run by the FA. However, after the split from the FA in 2024, a pilot scheme was introduced to test whether the change would be beneficial. Surveys of more than 4,000 supporters found that more than 90% continued to regard matches as safe and family-friendly, while support for allowing alcohol in the stands rose from 58% to 69%.
POLL
Do you think VAR has worked well at this World Cup?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> Nottingham Forest are interested in Tottenham midfielder Lucas Bergvall, in what could be a replacement for Elliot Anderson (More)
> Manchester United Plc have been criticised for its allegedly weak corporate governance, including limited board independence (More)
> Giovanni Malago, a 67-year-old businessman and futsal player, was elected president of the Italian Football Federation, tasked with restoring the national team after failing to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup (More); dive deeper into the Italian government’s objections to Malago’s appointment (More)
> Former Argentina international Martin Demichelis has become Bundesliga side RB Leipzig’s new head coach until June 2028 (More) | Paolo Bianco has become Serie B side Pisa’s new head coach, replacing Oscar Hiljemark, whose five-month stint ended in relegation (More)
Americas
> Around 14.8 million viewers watched the U.S. men’s national team beat Australia 2-0 on FOX, the best Friday afternoon telecast on any broadcast network since 2022 (More)
> Egypt secured their first win at a World Cup (3-1 over New Zealand), 92 years on from their tournament debut (More) | Iran left a message in their SoFi Stadium locker room, thanking Los Angeles for its hospitality during the World Cup following a 0-0 draw with Belgium (More)
> Bukayo Saka is training with the rest of the England squad again after solo sessions to manage his Achilles injury ahead of their match with Ghana on Tuesday (June 23) (More) | Germany defender Nico Schlotterbeck will miss the rest of the World Cup with an ankle ligament injury (More)
> The Kansas City Current signed two-time reigning NWSL MVP Temwa Chawinga to a contract extension, which runs through the 2029 season (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Is the nation you’re supporting at the World Cup performing better or worse than expected?
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🤩 Better (82%)
🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 😕 Worse (15%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (3%)
Your punditry takes:
🤩 N.N (USA): “I couldn't be happier as an American fan! My cautious optimism had me nervous, but to have won the group already through two games has me through the moon.”
🤩 N (Canada): “Couldn’t have asked for a better start to this World Cup from a Canadian perspective. First-ever win at a World Cup, first-ever shutout and a player recording a hat trick! Canada is virtually assured of advancing to the knockout stages, and with a win or draw, Canada would win Group B. Happy times!”
🤩 R.P (England): “Despite a shaky start, Thomas Tuchel’s England team showed a resiliency and dominance against Croatia that wasn’t quite there under Gareth Southgate. Promising signs and now I’m feeling quietly confident.”
😕 F.L (Ecuador): “Ecuador have truly underperformed. The coach is terrible, which does not help. But we still have a glimmer of hope.”
✍️ M.B (Scotland): “Scotland are about right in terms of results. Performances haven't been great so far, but the results are on par with expectations. Fingers crossed, performances can improve to go with the results.”
EXTRA TIME
What does it cost to air-condition a World Cup?
Why the Dutch royals were dancing in Curacao’s locker room.
Behind the scenes of the official World Cup portrait photographs.
Norway take over Times Square with “Viking Row”.
A defender's view on how to stop the World Cup's best strikers.
Tom Brady appears on The Overlap with Neville, Keane, and Wright. (podcast)
Ten Championship games to be excited about next season.
GAME FACE ON
Who Am I…
I won the domestic treble with my boyhood club
I won Ligue 1, but not with PSG
I have made 460 appearances under Pep Guardiola
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.
I won’t be playing football at 40 years old… you guys would have kicked me out by then!
Answer
Bernardo Silva
