FIFA World Cup 2026 :Canada/Mexico/United States: Discussion Thread

[Alpha Marine]

FIFA is getting more and more greedy and we can see this with the price of tickets, the hidratation breaks that are filled with ads and all sorts of money grabbing tricks. Is it not better to keep messi because of all the fuss that he gives in the world cup and can be translated into more money? But then it stops being about football and starts being more about money and hype and that's sad for the fans of the sport

You people complain about everything. You always look for something to complain about. No matter how good something is, you look for that one stain and complain about it till you make it look so big.

So a referee made a controversial decision, how is that new to football? How does that translate to FIFA being greedy? Egypt were denied a penalty against Belgium. These things happen in football all the time. But somehow, you people always make it seem like there is a conspiracy behind everything. I believe Messi should at least get a yellow card for the tackle, but is it the first time a player didn't get a yellow card for a challenge that another player gets a red card?

Another complaint I'm tired of is the hydration break. We've had cooling breaks in football since 2020, I think. We had cooling breaks in the UCL final between PSG and Arsenal. We had cooling breaks in the Euros. Even some La Liga games have cooling breaks. The only difference is that instead of showing the players and coaches addressing the players, they show ads, which is not ideal, but you guys are making it a bigger problem than it is.

The football on the pitch has been amazing. The officiating has been amazing. The new rules implemented by FIFA have been amazing. There is no longer any time wasting, and players don't pretend to have injuries just to waste time. The matches flow much better.
In fact, in the Austria vs Jordan game I just finished watching, an Austrian player was taking too long to take a throw, and the referee overturned the decision and gave it to Jordan, and they almost scored from it.
You people don't talk about these little details that have made the game better, but will always complain about other stuff.
Look at the atmosphere in the stadium, always packed and loud, and it's just the first round of the group stage.

[Olatundespo]

The goal in the 17th minute was incredible, scored from outside the box and Messi once again scored his second goal in the 60th minute. The odds for Argentina before the match were crazy. I am hopefully waiting to see a hat-trick from Messi.  

You got what you wished for . He just scored a hat-trick and was subbed off right after.
Mission accomplished!

It is just insane to see Messi announcing his entry into the world cup with this kind of banger that even an average young player can not measure up with. when you think that at his age he will be slowing down you are seeing this kind of performing from him? it is extremely on a world class level. At this point, the banter and comparison goes on because Ronaldo will certainly see this as something he has to stand up to.

Many people would estimate that a talented player can maintain his performance until he is 35 or if he is very physically skilled, he can play until he is 40. Messi is a player from a different planet. The same title may apply to Cristiano Ronaldo because age is not a barrier to the development of his great talent. Messi scored a hat trick against Algeria in his first match of the World Cup, which was an impressive result. Even at the age of 38, he is still shining and no new player seems to be getting much attention to compete with him. His country Argentina won the trophy in the last World Cup and it would not be surprising if he wins the trophy in this World Cup too.

[HajiBagi]

For once I thought we were going to watch a match with a really less number of goals. But I'm thankful for the second half and especially France of course.

I was hoping for a win by them with a -1,5 handicap. I was really nervous in the last minutes. It was crazy that right after Senegal scored France answered in only a minute in the stoppage time.

Finally there was no surprising result in a favourite team's match.

If someone tell me that the game of France and Senegal is going to end with four goals after the first half draw i will not believe because it looks like Senegal is well prepared to play the game and get a win or draw, France first half performance was very poor and if Senegal uses the chances they have they will have score 2 goals in the first half of the game, Mbape and Olise make sure they win the game and we all can see how important Mbape is to the France national team, some people were saying that Dembele should be the main man because he has win the Ballon Dior and he press more than Mbape and that is a disrespect for Mbape.

Hat trick from Messi but of course he committed a clear red card foul that was denied by the referee

One play could changed the whole game and he would not have scored a hat trick

But we know how fifa can be sometimes or at least this is what some people say when we talk about Messi and Argentina

Messi tackled is a clear red card tackle and he should be sent off but what surprise me is that even a yellow card he did not get and that shows that what people are saying is true about Messi and the FIFA, we all saw how South Africa players were treated in the first game of the tournament and how they received a red card for tackles, if FIFA wanted Messi should be treated special they should announce that the rules can not apply to him so that if he commit any foul that is reckless they should not send him off.

[Sithara007]

As per Stake, 98% of the 1x2 bets for the Portugal vs DRC match favors the former. How crazy can it get? Portugal has been given 1.28 (which is a bit surprising), while draw is at 5.20. DRC win is placed at 10.00. I have placed bets on the underdogs so far in this tournament, but these odds doesn't look very promising to me. Portugal is 99% certain to win the match, and they are only being given 1.28? IMO, it should have been more like 1.07 or 1.08. It seems like Portugal is being underestimated here. Should I place a bet in favor of Portugal? Odds are too attractive for them.

[Davidvictorson]

If someone tell me that the game of France and Senegal is going to end with four goals after the first half draw i will not believe because it looks like Senegal is well prepared to play the game and get a win or draw, France first half performance was very poor and if Senegal uses the chances they have they will have score 2 goals in the first half of the game, Mbape and Olise make sure they win the game and we all can see how important Mbape is to the France national team, some people were saying that Dembele should be the main man because he has win the Ballon Dior and he press more than Mbape and that is a disrespect for Mbape.

The reverse is the case for me.
It was already obvious that France was the better and stronger team.
Senegal showed a lot of lapses at the back which France took advantage of and didn't show any mercy. That is what football is all about.
If Senegal wants to go further in this tournament, they must fix their defense. Their next match is against Norway...hmmmm. I don't want to sound pessimistic so I'll stop here for now.

[Sithara007]

If I'm mistaken Cristiano Ronaldo is currently 41 years considering his age he is not a young player anymore but the most interesting thing about him is that his age doesn't limit his potential in anyway. Despite that he is 41, Ronaldo is still playing better than most of the young players in the Saudi league, currently he is the best player in Saudi Arabia. I think Ronaldo age is something we shouldn't worry about because for him,age is just a numbers. He fit and  strong for football and he doing well at Al Nassr.  This might be his final world cup playing for Portugal and I want him to win it to add to his achievements before he retires from the world cup.

Look out for the stats as well. At the moment, his career goal count stands at 973. He is certain to play at least 3 matches in the group phase, and many more in the knockout phase. IMO, he may end up his tally at ~980 by the time the World Cup gets completed. I am making this assumption, since he has scored at a rate of approx. 1 goal per match in recent times. Also, today's opponent is the Democratic Republic of the Congo, one of the weaker teams from the CAF. Only Colombia can be regarded as a strong team in Group K. Uzbekistan is even weaker than the DRC.

[IjawMan]

As per Stake, 98% of the 1x2 bets for the Portugal vs DRC match favors the former. How crazy can it get? Portugal has been given 1.28 (which is a bit surprising), while draw is at 5.20. DRC win is placed at 10.00. I have placed bets on the underdogs so far in this tournament, but these odds doesn't look very promising to me. Portugal is 99% certain to win the match, and they are only being given 1.28? IMO, it should have been more like 1.07 or 1.08. It seems like Portugal is being underestimated here. Should I place a bet in favor of Portugal? Odds are too attractive for them.

I can see what the bookmakers are enforcing in this match and is a psychological play on the bettors. Just yesterday Argentina won a weakling Algeria with a big 3:0 goals margin, all scored by the great football star Lionel Messi.

And today the Portuguese team of Cristiano Ronaldo are to play DR Congo and their anticipation is that Ronaldo will give his best to prevent his team from not winning as well. This, creating a wave of certainty by the odds difference for Portugal and DR Congo, should this game end in the result as what we saw in the match between Spain and Cape Verde then a lot of bettors will be losing big money.

[Barikui1]

Look out for the stats as well. At the moment, his career goal count stands at 973. He is certain to play at least 3 matches in the group phase, and many more in the knockout phase. IMO, he may end up his tally at ~980 by the time the World Cup gets completed. I am making this assumption, since he has scored at a rate of approx. 1 goal per match in recent times. Also, today's opponent is the Democratic Republic of the Congo, one of the weaker teams from the CAF. Only Colombia can be regarded as a strong team in Group K. Uzbekistan is even weaker than the DRC.

This 1k goals target can be achieved before the end of his playing career, but I seriously doubt if it can be achieved in this world cup event, because he is no longer as ruthless in front of goal as he has been over the years, when he was a bit younger.
I agree with your sentiment that the highest he can get in this tournament is seven goals, but if he can showcase his best form in this tournament, he may get up to 10 goals, but am not sure of anything because Cristiano Ronaldo is no longer the player he uses to be three to four seasons ago, that's why I can no longer place a bet on him scoring against congo later today.

[Unsoldier]

Source: https://www.cnnindonesia.com/olahraga/20260617035251-142-1369804/hasil-piala-dunia-mbappe-cetak-gol-indah-prancis-hajar-senegal-3-1/amp
I was very happy to see Mbappe in action in today's match between France and Senegal. In this match, Mbappe scored two goals. He looked very happy and confident. Senegal was very unfortunate to have to accept defeat in this match with a score of 3-1. It is very unfortunate that in this match, Sadio Mane and his teammates had difficulty scoring many goals because France had a good attack and also a good defense. Bradley was also very good in today's match because he also contributed a goal for France. Now France has earned 3 points from Senegal, and this is certainly happy news for the French people. However, of course, there is still hope for Senegal to advance to the next stage, although it will not be easy.

Fortunately, in this match, I bet on France to win and ended up getting a profit. Did you also get a profit from betting on this match? I think there is great potential for Norway and France to advance to the next stage. What do you think?

France won the match against Senegal, but in the first half, Senegal looked much better—they attacked a lot, while the French were just chasing the ball. France was very lucky not to concede in the first half. After the break, the game changed completely; it seems Deschamps found the right words in the dressing room, and a completely different France team came out for the second half. Senegal could no longer play freely, and the French put pressure on the opponent's goal. Olise was named Man of the Match, which was very fair—he created a lot of danger near the opponent's goal, and it was his passes that set up Mbappe's goals. It was a very spectacular match. I think if the Olise-Mbappe partnership continues to develop, France will definitely be able to challenge for the World Cup title.

[giammangiato]

Look out for the stats as well. At the moment, his career goal count stands at 973. He is certain to play at least 3 matches in the group phase, and many more in the knockout phase. IMO, he may end up his tally at ~980 by the time the World Cup gets completed. I am making this assumption, since he has scored at a rate of approx. 1 goal per match in recent times. Also, today's opponent is the Democratic Republic of the Congo, one of the weaker teams from the CAF. Only Colombia can be regarded as a strong team in Group K. Uzbekistan is even weaker than the DRC.

This 1k goals target can be achieved before the end of his playing career, but I seriously doubt if it can be achieved in this world cup event, because he is no longer as ruthless in front of goal as he has been over the years, when he was a bit younger.
I agree with your sentiment that the highest he can get in this tournament is seven goals, but if he can showcase his best form in this tournament, he may get up to 10 goals, but am not sure of anything because Cristiano Ronaldo is no longer the player he uses to be three to four seasons ago, that's why I can no longer place a bet on him scoring against congo later today.

I may be weird or maybe even the only one thinking this, but could it be that being "crazy" Cristiano Ronaldo wants to extend his career and face yet another World Cup at 46\47?
He doesn't seem to give up and as a performance he is still better than other younger players currently, that's undeniable.
Maybe he could or would like to achieve a record that has so far been untouched by anyone, I know it's absurd but could he really do it?

[Jostern]

Hat trick from Messi but of course he committed a clear red card foul that was denied by the referee

One play could changed the whole game and he would not have scored a hat trick

But we know how fifa can be sometimes or at least this is what some people say when we talk about Messi and Argentina

Argentina have shown why they’re World Champions, and beating Algeria Comfortably, it was a huge result to win their first game, winning first game at the World Cup is always difficult.

Lionel Messi have also shown why he is one of the best player out there, he has shown a very good performance and scoring a hat-trick is also a very good achievement for him, I believe that is his first hat-trick at the World Cup Finals.

All the Argentina players had a very good performance, they showed why they’re one of the best team in the World and it’s going to be a very long tournament.

Messi isn’t finished yet, Like Haaland said Messi is a Madman.

[Nheer]

As per Stake, 98% of the 1x2 bets for the Portugal vs DRC match favors the former. How crazy can it get? Portugal has been given 1.28 (which is a bit surprising), while draw is at 5.20. DRC win is placed at 10.00. I have placed bets on the underdogs so far in this tournament, but these odds doesn't look very promising to me. Portugal is 99% certain to win the match, and they are only being given 1.28? IMO, it should have been more like 1.07 or 1.08. It seems like Portugal is being underestimated here. Should I place a bet in favor of Portugal? Odds are too attractive for them.

Spain did everyone dirty. Of all teams no one expected Spain to play a goalless draw.
With all big teams winning their games it's almost certain that Portugal will win it but i know one thing, the bookmakers have a way of calculating the odds which I most of the times don't doubt. If the odds are set to be a bit high then maybe there's something sneaky about the opponents or about Portugal that isn't perfect. I think the odds are still pretty fair and good enough to bet on.
If you think the odds are a bit high for Portugal then it's to your advantage, you can go ahead to place a bet on them, it's really attractive.

[Akbarkoe]

Hat trick from Messi but of course he committed a clear red card foul that was denied by the referee

One play could changed the whole game and he would not have scored a hat trick

But we know how fifa can be sometimes or at least this is what some people say when we talk about Messi and Argentina

It is interesting that the old player scored another hat trick in an important match like this world cup, it is indeed a natural talent, and this result will certainly be a personality comparison with Ronaldo's match results later, if he does not get a good result this will be a hot topic of conversation.
 
And about the card, we all know how the narrative about Messi as the golden boy of FIFA, but yes we seem to have to see it as objective in judging, so I pretend not to see and hear it.
Well Argentina did have a whale of a win today, Algeria couldn't do much and they had to accept defeat.

[kennycryptoitalia]

Spain would be disappointed by this game because they were playing against a low-ranked side. However, this serves as a reminder that no team should be underrated in this World Cup.

A low-ranked team, if underestimated like the Spanish, can provide bad emotions.
Goalkeeper Vozhina did a great job, who would have expected such a performance? It was really the man who left that changed everything.
Of course there was no winner, but many certainly lost on Spain's victory, where even the odds suggested this.

[Catenaccio]

It is interesting that the old player scored another hat trick in an important match like this world cup, it is indeed a natural talent, and this result will certainly be a personality comparison with Ronaldo's match results later, if he does not get a good result this will be a hot topic of conversation.
 
And about the card, we all know how the narrative about Messi as the golden boy of FIFA, but yes we seem to have to see it as objective in judging, so I pretend not to see and hear it.
Well Argentina did have a whale of a win today, Algeria couldn't do much and they had to accept defeat.

It's not only about goals he scored, a hat-trick he made hours ago, but also how he performed during the match, run, dribble, pass, and shot, he shown that he is still able to play at highest level with excellent performances. He is older, slower than in the past but his performance quality is still very good and with his playing style, Messi can prolong his career in more years.

If four years ago, after World Cup 2022, people talked about whether it was a last World Cup for Cristiano Ronaldo but now we have Cristiano in World Cup 2026, it is interesting to have similar question but this time, it's about Messi. Will Messi join World Cup 2030, next four years?

I believe that he will be able to do this, it's only whether he will continue playing till that year, and will he not retire his national career after this World Cup?

[m4r1o]

It was a real shame to see Spain, despite so many good chances, fail to win yesterday's match.
I actually had more confidence in Lamine Yamal being in the starting XI, but for some reason, Luis de la Fuente preferred another player.
Had Lamine Yamal started, Spain might have scored early in the first half.

He is still very young and it is understandable that he is not allowed to play straight away, i am not critical of what the coach chooses, he will have his reasons for preferring to start using him slowly.
Perhaps the fact that he is so young is inexperienced and so i repeat fits.

[blomen]

some fans say that if lamine yamal had chosen to play for morocco’s national team, they would have had a better chance of winning the world cup. theoretically speaking, spain is a very strong team, but when it comes to winning matches and advancing through the knockout rounds, they fall short. they have one of the most valuable rosters in the world, but expectations have dropped significantly since the very first match. i don’t know if spain will win the world cup this season, but it’s true that in the previous world cup, morocco became the first african team to reach the semifinals after eliminating spain in the round of 16.

[bastisisca]

The second half I expected more from France because I believe 1x2 they should be able to get 3 points but if that doesn't happen then it will be another disappointment for the favorite team to win.

At the moment I'm noticing that all the big national teams are suffering a lot in this World Cup, which obviously reassures me a bit given that even my national team: Italy, hasn't even participated in 3 competitions.
I say this with regret but also with the hope of seeing new nations become strong.

[Italian Panic]

I may be weird or maybe even the only one thinking this, but could it be that being "crazy" Cristiano Ronaldo wants to extend his career and face yet another World Cup at 46\47?

Oh man, I think that, in the end, even he will have to face up to his age, and I don’t think he will be there for the next World Cup, even if it’s held in Portugal. I think he will be there as an ambassador or perhaps as part of the national team’s coaching staff, but as a player, we’re really too far down the line, even for him.
Even now, despite putting in a good performance, he’s lost a lot in terms of mobility and pace. He’s fine in a league like the Saudi League, but even a European league would be too much for him, let alone a World Cup in four years’ time.

[changaa]

Sweden's qualification for the World Cup was highly debated. They didn't even perform well in warm-up matches, but they started their group stage with a stunning victory.
They attracted attention by beating Tunisia 5-1.
I'm curious to see what Sweden will do against the Netherlands and Japan. They currently have a significant advantage for advancing to the next round.

At worst, a draw would see them qualify.

Unexplained things often happen, yet Sweden, despite being underestimated, still gave their nation a victory.
Obviously, he won't be able to compete with teams that are decidedly stronger, more experienced, and have significantly stronger players, but he will still do his part in this World Cup, unlike other teams like Italy, who haven't even managed to qualify.