The U.S. opened its first home World Cup in 32 years with its biggest win in the tournament, a dynamic 4-1 victory over Paraguay on Friday night

#Canada striker Cyle Larin came off the bench to grab a 1-1 draw for his side against Bosnia and Herzegovina in a frenetic Group B opener on Friday that long looked like it would end in defeat for the World Cup co-hosts.

#Canada’s Larin salvages 1-1 draw against #Bosnia

Broos names five defenders in Bafana’s starting XI for World Cup opening act

Still thinking about World Cup tickets? Here's where prices, availability stand.

NEW YORK — The #World Cup starts Thursday, and #FIFA is charging record prices at the 11 stadiums in the United States, three in Mexico and two in Canada. FIFA is using dynamic pricing and has repeatedly raised the prices since tickets first went on sale last fall. FIFA president Gianni Infantino defended those prices Wednesday as fitting in the North American market, but they have been criticized for list prices that have reached five figures.

Here’s where things stand on the eve of the World Cup opener:

Several venues have sold out, but there are seats available for most games

On the eve of the tournament, 29 games were sold out (with wheelchair seats available for some of those) and 75 had tickets remaining, including both semifinals, all four quarterfinals, five round of 16 matches and 14 of 16 games in the new round of 32. That’s in addition to unreleased knockout-stage tickets that won’t be available until FIFA knows which teams have advanced to specific matches.

Many of those available tickets are in the high-priced category one and category two levels added by FIFA in April.

Several hundred seats, all costing four figures, were available for the semifinal in Arlington, Texas, but just over 20 were on sale for the Atlanta semifinal on FIFA’s official tickets site.
There aren’t many relatively cheap seats left

Category three seats, the lowest-priced category, remained for just three matches. Two of those were high-priced to begin with.

Those lower-priced tickets for the U.S. opener against Paraguay on Thursday at Inglewood, California, could be bought for US$1,120 — but just two remained. Other available prices for the game were $4,105, $2,735, $2,330 and $1,645. More than 100 tickets were listed as available.

Category three also was available for Canada’s opener against Bosnia-Herzegovina on Thursday at Toronto for $980 along with seats at $2,240 and $1,645.

Category three seats priced at $180 remained for just one match, Egypt vs. Iran at Seattle on June 26, and more than 370 were on sale. Several hundred tickets also were available at $1,000, $875 and $550.
More tickets will become available closer to match days

Infantino that “there are always tickets on sale.”

In addition to tickets given back to FIFA, the governing body holds back seats.

“We also need always to keep some tickets for those teams who qualify for the additional rounds,” he said.

There are some better deals available on resale markets

FIFA has its own resale marketplace, where it collects 15 per cent from both the buyer and seller.

In addition, other resale sites such at StubHub and SeatGeek have tickets for sale.

FIFA’s resale site has tickets for the Paraguay-U.S. game starting at $661.25 and SeatGeek starting at $920. England’s game against Croatia at Arlington, Texas, on June 17 started at $880 on Seat Geek and $850 on FIFA.

Tickets for the July 19 final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, started at $7,986 on SeatGeek, $8,775 on StubHub and $9,085 on #FIFA.

#Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow says Omar Artan, the Somali referee who was denied entry to the U.S. ahead of the World Cup, would be welcome to officiate in Toronto.

“Toronto believes in fairness, inclusion, and giving talent the opportunity to shine. He would be welcome to referee here in our city,” Chow said, adding she will write to FIFA to let them know he is welcome.

#Somali referee Omar Artan, who was set to be the first from his country to officiate at the World Cup finals, has been denied entry to the United States.

Victor Wembanyama carries Spurs to 115-111 win that cuts Knicks' NBA Finals lead to 2-1.

Wembanyama had 32 points, eight rebounds and six assists, carrying the San Antonio Spurs to a 115-111 victory Monday night that cut the Knicks’ lead to 2-1 in the best-of-seven series.

San Antonio is trying to make a first-of-its-kind NBA Finals comeback, and the 7-foot-4 Wembanyama, with his array of skills, makes anything look possible.

“I’m sure Victor has numerous sources of motivation,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “I don’t think any of us are surprised or expect anything different than a strong performance.”

The Spurs handed the Knicks their first loss in 46 days and potentially salvaged their season in front of a Madison Square Garden crowd that included President Donald Trump.

The Knicks had their 13-game winning streak, the second-longest in NBA postseason history, snapped and missed a chance to move to the brink of their first title since 1973. Their previous loss occurred on April 23 in a one-point defeat to the Atlanta Hawks. They won the next three against Atlanta, swept Philadelphia and Cleveland and took the first two games against the Spurs.

The run stirred New York into a frenzy, with raucous watch parties, fans paying outrageous sums of money for tickets and “Knicks In Four” becoming a daily greeting on streets, subway cars and in workplaces.

But Wembanyama and the Spurs ended the streak and ruined the Knicks’ first home NBA Finals game since 1999.

“At home, it really feels like playing six against five. Here, it feels like five against six,” Wembanyama said. “It really shows what teams are made of.”

Knicks coach Mike Brown complained about the Spurs’ 24-8 advantage in free throw attempts in the second half.

“I tell the guys, it’s a seven-game series for a reason,” Brown said. “They are a great team. They are well-coached. They have an iconic player. It’s not going to be easy.”

Stephon Castle and De’Aaron Fox hit big shots late as the Spurs avoided falling into a 3-0 hole, which no NBA team has escaped. Now they can tie the series Wednesday night and are guaranteed another game at home, with Game 5 scheduled for Saturday.

Castle finished with 23 points as the Spurs got started in their quest to become the first team to win the NBA Finals after losing the first two games at home.

Jalen Brunson scored 32 points and OG Anunoby had 28 for the Knicks.

Fans who endured long lines to get in with the extra security measures in place — and some who paid five-figure sums for the chance to do so — were treated to a back-and-forth game as the NBA Finals returned to Madison Square Garden for the first time in 27 years.

Wembanyama, whose turnover late in Game 2 cost the Spurs dearly, didn’t make many mistakes Monday. He had 10 points in the final quarter, helping San Antonio build just enough of a cushion to withstand Brunson’s latest comeback attempt.

Minutes after Trump was booed loudly when he was shown during the national anthem, the Spurs got off to an ideal start. Wembanyama dunked for their first two baskets and they had a double-digit lead 4 1/2 minutes into the game. San Antonio made nine of its first 11 shots, with the Knicks and their fans frustrated by the referees and the home team’s sloppy play, and led 33-22 after one.

The Garden crowd didn’t really start to rock until Anunoby’s 3-pointer capped an 11-2 surge that cut it to 40-38. The Knicks got their first lead of the night on Brunson’s 26-footer as part of a big burst to finish the half. New York led 64-57 at the break.

But the Spurs went back ahead in the third quarter and led 111-104 on Castle’s 3-pointer with 1:53 to play. Castle then closed the scoring with two free throws with 6.8 seconds left after Anunoby’s 3-pointer cut it to two.

The Knicks had piled up massive scoring margins while romping through the Eastern Conference playoffs, then were just good enough in the two games in San Antonio. This time, a horrible start to the fourth quarter put them too far behind.

A star-studded crowd that included Derek Jeter and Eli Manning, champions of New York teams in other sports, was hoping to see the Knicks move closer to a third #NBA title. But with Karl-Anthony Towns limited to 11 points and Mikal Bridges saddled with foul trouble, a team that had been so potent in the postseason struggled for long stretches.

Brian Mahoney, The Associated Press

#MOGADISHU, Somalia — The World Cup referee from Somalia who was denied entry to the United States after arriving in Miami and subsequently dropped from the tournament by FIFA was set to make history for his country.

Omar Artan was due to be the first referee from Somalia to officiate at the World Cup after making FIFA’s final list for the tournament, which was announced two months ago. He is one of Africa’s top referees and was named the continent’s best male referee in 2025 by the African soccer body.

He was denied entry at Miami International Airport on Saturday over “vetting concerns,” U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a statement without giving details of those concerns. Artan was issued a visa to travel to the U.S. last week, according to the Somalia Embassy in Kenya that processed it.

The move to deny a FIFA-appointed match official permission to enter the World Cup is highly unusual. Artan was due to meet up with other World Cup referees at their training base in Miami.

The Somalia Sports and Youth Ministry said on Tuesday that it had not been told why Artan was denied entry and its embassy in the U.S. was making diplomatic efforts to resolve the problem and still allow Artan to referee at the World Cup, which opens on Thursday.

Somalia was one of the countries subjected to new travel restrictions last year under the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration. That raised concerns that fans, players and officials from those countries — most of which are African — might be denied entry for the World Cup due to the larger crackdown despite having valid visas.
Artan subjected to ‘additional inspection’

“During processing, the traveller underwent additional inspection, a routine part of CBP’s inspection process when officers need to verify information or determine admissibility,” CBP said in its statement on Monday. “Following inspection, the traveller, a referee for the FIFA World Cup, was determined to be inadmissible due to vetting concerns and was denied entry.”

It didn’t name Artan and referred only to a Somali national who is a World Cup referee. Artan is the only Somali referee selected for the tournament.

CBP said all travellers seeking entry into the U.S. — including World Cup players, coaches and staff — were subject to CBP inspection and vetting.

“Admissibility determinations are made on a case-by-case basis using law enforcement, national security, and immigration information available at the time of inspection,” the CBP statement said. “CBP officers have the authority to question travellers, conduct inspections, and determine admissibility consistent with U.S. law.”
FIFA drops ref from World Cup

FIFA said it was not involved in the immigration processes and was informed by U.S. authorities that Artan’s “status will not be changed at present.” It said Artan wouldn’t be able to train and officiate at the World Cup.

“In line with previous FIFA events, a host government ultimately determines who receives a visa and who is admitted into their country,” FIFA said.

Still, FIFA and its president Gianni Infantino built close ties to U.S. President Donald Trump’s government as the U.S. prepared to co-host with Mexico and Canada, and had publicly stressed how that would help the World Cup run smoothly.

Infantino did not immediately comment on the issue, while FIFA released a statement on behalf of Artan.

“Despite the circumstances, I am in a positive mood and I am focused on the next challenges in my refereeing career,” Artan said in the statement. “I would like to thank FIFA and (the African soccer confederation) for all their support and I promise to keep my refereeing levels up as I concentrate on the future.

“I want to thank the football family for their messages and wish my colleagues all the best success during the World Cup and I look forward to joining them again in future competitions.”
He was to make history for Somalia

Artan was praised as one of Africa’s best referees and was the ref for the decisive leg of the African Champions League final last month — Africa’s biggest club soccer game.

He spoke in a recent interview with the Al Jazeera TV network about how he was honored to be selected to be the first Somali to referee at the World Cup and how he faced challenges in his conflict-torn country in East Africa, including sometimes having to change his route to training because of explosions in the streets of the capital, Mogadishu.

“You cannot give up as a referee,” Artan said in the interview. This (going to the World Cup) was my big, big target and I’m really excited."

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Omar Faruk and Gerald Imray, The Associated Press

Imray reported from Cape Town, South Africa. AP Sports Writer Graham Dunbar in Geneva contributed.

DR #Congo to play final World Cup warm up in #France