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The 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off Thursday, and today's Connections: Sports Edition celebrates the tournament in every single category. If you're struggling with the puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn't appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic's own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today's Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today's Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Where they play.

Green group hint: The Pharaohs is another one.

Blue group hint: He's a star for his star-spangled team.

Purple group hint: La Albiceleste.

Answers for today's Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: 2026 World Cup host cities.

Green group: Nicknames of World Cup teams.

Blue group: Christian Pulisic teams.

Purple group: Argentina World Cup players.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today's Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today's Connections

The theme is 2026 World Cup host cities. The four answers are Atlanta, Mexico City, Philadelphia and Toronto.

The green words in today's Connections

The theme is nicknames of World Cup teams. The four answers are Les Éléphants, Oranje, Socceroos and Three Lions.

The blue words in today's Connections

The theme is Christian Pulisic teams. The four answers are AC Milan, Borussia Dortmund, Chelsea and United States.

The purple words in today's Connections

The theme is Argentina World Cup players. The four answers are (Giovanni) Lo Celso, (Alexis) Mac Allister, (Lionel) Messi and (Nico) Paz.