The World Cup has kicked off! Mexico hosted the opening ceremony yesterday and then beat South Africa, 2-0, in front of an electric home crowd. Can the U.S. men’s national team follow suit tonight? The Americans start their World Cup journey in Los Angeles against Paraguay.
We’ll have two reporters at that game and a live blog running all day, keeping you up to date on all things World Cup. After the game, check out our coverage on the NBC News website.
Mexico started its World Cup campaign in a fiery opening match of the tournament that also saw three red cards. Julián Quiñones and Raúl Jiménez scored the goals for the home side, in front of a capacity crowd of 80,824 at the iconic Azteca Stadium.
South Africa’s Sphephelo Sithole and Themba Zwane were given red cards, forcing the team to finish the match with only nine players. Mexico defender César Montes was then given a red card in injury time.
It was the first time there were three red cards given in the opening match of a World Cup tournament. And it’s the most in a World Cup game since four were handed out when Portugal played the Netherlands at the 2006 tournament in Germany.
“We didn’t play well in the first half, but we could have gone into the break leading 3-0 and no one would have complained — we were far superior,” Mexico’s coach Javier Aguirre said. “In the second half, it felt like we relaxed a bit, but starting with a win is good, and we can certainly improve.”
In the second game of the tournament, South Korea rallied to defeat Czechia 2-1.
After a lackluster first half in which both teams were jeered as they left the field, the Czechs took the lead in the 59th minute with a header by captain Ladislav Krejci after a long throw-in into the penalty area.
South Korea equalized in the 67th minute when Hwang In-beom scored after faking a shot with a nifty move to clear two Czech players. The midfielder, who plays for Dutch club Feyenoord, then made the cross from the right flank for Oh Hyeon-gyu’s decisive strike in the 80th minute, played in front of hundreds of empty seats at the Guadalajara Stadium in Mexico.
“It was our first game and a very difficult one,” South Korea’s coach Hong Myung-bo said. “The win itself makes me happy, but what’s even more positive is that our boys won by not giving up. I knew that we were more than capable of winning, so at 1-1, I told the boys to keep playing the way we’ve been playing.”
The U.S. men’s national team, nicknamed the “Golden Generation,” will be hoping that home advantage counts as it starts its campaign at the Los Angeles Stadium today.
Ranked 17th by FIFA, the U.S. has advanced to the knockout round in four of the last six World Cups it has played, but hasn’t been able to get past the quarterfinals.
Its first opponent, Paraguay, is the lowest-ranked team in Group D at No. 47 and back in the World Cup for the first time in 16 years.
All eyes will be on Pennsylvania-born Christian Pulisic, who is widely considered the most talented American player of his generation and — rightly or wrongly — tasked with delivering the best result in the country’s history this summer on home soil.
But the 27-year-old says he’s not letting that pressure get to him.
“I think no matter what, wherever you’re playing, in the World Cup there’s pressure,” Pulisic, dubbed “Captain America,” told NBC News in February at the training facility of his professional club, AC Milan. “I’m just going to try to live in the moment and enjoy the best I can.”
Canada is also searching for its first World Cup win when it faces Bosnia-Herzegovina in Toronto today.
After being dumped out of the 1986 and 2022 tournaments at the group stage, the co-hosts have been on the rise over the past decade, moving to No. 30 in FIFA’s rankings after being ranked below 100 as recently as 2017.
Forward Jonathan David — who plays for Italian giants Juventus — is the country’s career-leading scorer with 39 goals in 77 matches.
Bosnia-Herzegovina — playing in its second World Cup and first since 2014 — beat four-time world champion Italy in a playoff to qualify for the event.
Leading up to the World Cup, we’re counting down 26 players to watch. Today is the final entry and it is France’s Kylian Mbappé.
Kylian Mbappé already cemented himself among the greats in French history at 19 when he helped secure the country its second World Cup title in 2018. Now 27, Mbappé is a veteran returning to the international tournament with the hopes of securing France its third star.
Soccer is a family business for Mbappé, the son of a former football coach and older brother to another professional player. The Paris-born forward began his career at just 14 when he left home to play for AS Monaco’s academy and garnered international attention at 18 when he scored 21 goals for Paris-St. Germain in his first year with the team.
His first World Cup appearance in Russia was when Mbappé became a household name, becoming only the second teenager to score in a World Cup final. The technical skill that makes Mbappé hard to defend against also makes for a stylish offensive press that was on full display in his first World Cup appearance.
Mbappé returned to the World Cup final in 2022 as a force to be reckoned with, single-handledly tying against Argentina with two goals in the 80th and 81st minutes of regulation. France fell in penalty kicks, though Mbappé earned a hat-trick in the shootout.
It’s a moment that Mbappé told Vanity Fair the French team has to move past as it faces enormous pressure going back to the world stage this summer.
“We have to take that disappointment and transform it into motivation to try to truly change the course of history, and to give ourselves the opportunity to reach another final, which will be extremely difficult, and to try to bring back the third star,” he said in a pre-tournament interview.
He returns to the World Cup this year after scoring 24 goals with Real Madrid this season but is fresh off a recovery from a hamstring strain.
Yesterday’s entry was Argentina’s Lionel Messi. Read about him here.
When U.S. Soccer hired Mauricio Pochettino in 2024, it was with this exact moment in mind: A proven big-game coach on a short-term contract for a World Cup on home soil. Well, the day has arrived, and it’s a make-or-break time for the Argentine and the host nation. Star defender Chris Richards is officially back after missing out on both pre-tournament friendlies due to injury, while the rest of Poch’s 26-man squad are all available for selection.
The USMNT defeated Paraguay 2-1 in November in an international friendly, but La Albirroja will have put that loss behind them.
For more World Cup coverage sent straight to your inbox every morning, subscribe to the Men in Blazers newsletter. We’ll be covering every match, every goal and every joyous moment that soccer’s biggest spectacle is sure to bring.
Additionally, Men in Blazers is going from host city to host city for Match Day Live! We’re taking the stage with celebrity guests in front of thousands of fans directly before some of the biggest matches this summer. Join us today in Los Angeles at 3 p.m. PT with Rob Mac, Larry Nance Jr. and Kyle Beckerman, or check out the rest of the tour dates here.
“Captain America” Christian Pulisic has played under pressure before, but nothing like this World Cup.
Empty seats on the World Cup’s opening day renew ticket price concerns.
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Dr. Neal ElAttrache faces scrutiny over Conor McGregor’s use of PEDs.
The U.S. men’s national team kicks off its World Cup tonight, and there are lots of storylines we’ll be following. Who will the starting goalkeeper be? Matt Freese? How will Pulisic perform? How will the squad look under new manager Mauricio Pochettino?
Remember, we’ll be live-blogging all the World Cup games today. Follow along!
All times are Eastern:
That’s it for now! We’ll be back Monday.
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