LIVE Football World Cup | Fan zone in Mexico City may be closed, Infantino praises Trump: ‘Without him the World Cup in the US would be impossible’ | Sport

Minister of Foreign Affairs Marco Rubio will lead the U.S. government delegation Friday at the U.S. soccer team’s opening World Cup match against Paraguay. His ministry announced this.

Rubio will be accompanied by Secretary of Transportation at the game in Los Angeles Sean Duffy and the head of Homeland Security, Markwayne Mullin.

Neymar is almost certainly missing for Brazil in the first group match at the World Cup against Morocco. The attacker is still not recovered from a calf injury and he was also missing from Brazil’s training complex in Morristown, New Jersey, on Wednesday.

Five-time world champions Brazil will play Morocco at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford on Saturday. After that match, group matches against Haiti and Scotland will follow. It is also doubtful whether 34-year-old Neymar can play in those matches.

Neymar is Brazil’s top scorer of all time. He scored 79 times in 128 international matches and participated in the World Cup three times with Brazil.

Mexico is “very well prepared” for the World Cup in their own country. That said national coach Javier Aguirre (67) of the Mexican national team a day before the opening ceremony at a press conference at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.

The opening match between Mexico and South Africa starts at 9 p.m. (Dutch time) in the country’s national stadium. “Whatever happens, people will experience this celebration with us. Everything indicates that things will go well,” said Aguirre. “It will be a historic day.”

According to Aguirre, not only the result is important, but also how his team performs. “It is not always an advantage to play at home,” the national coach explained. “That also brings a certain pressure. We have to deal with that. I am confident. I feel calm. That is also due to the experience I have gained in thirty years as a trainer.”

Mexico is organizing the World Cup for the third time. Previously, the global final tournament took place in the country in 1970 and 1986, with the opening matches and the finals in the Estadio Azteca.

Gianni Infantino (56) praises the involvement of American President Donald Trump (79) in the Football World Cup. “Without him, organizing the tournament in the US would have been impossible”the FIFA president said at a press conference in Mexico City a day before the opening of the World Cup.

Infantino met Trump during the American president’s first term. The recent years the two have more frequent and intensive contact with each other. “I have a good relationship with Trump,” Infantino said the greatest power in the world. He understands better than anyone what organizing the World Cup means.”

Infantino gave Trump the very first FIFA peace prize during the draw for the Football World Cup on December 5, 2025 in Washington. The FIFA president did not respond to the criticism that came from Mexico.

Gianni Infantino calls the World Cup ‘the greatest event in human history’. The FIFA president said this a day before the opening match of the 23rd World Cup at a press conference in the capital of Mexico. Tomorrow the final tournament in which 48 countries are participating starts in Mexico City.

Infantino said he would ‘try to make the best of it’ with FIFA. He mentioned three topics that have received a lot of attention in the media recently: “Iran, visas and tickets”. “These are matters that do not have much to do with football, but that we do have to deal with,” said Infantino. “Iran is participating. We are very happy with that. I am proud of my team. And grateful for the help of the organizing countries.”

According to Infantino there are more than six million tickets sold. “The demand has never been so high. Ten times as much as ever before,” said the FIFA president. “The lowest price for a ticket is $60, the average price is $500. That is lower than other sporting events in this part of the world.”

The official FIFA fan festival in the heart of Mexico City at the Plaza de la Constitución may be closed due to ongoing protests by the teachers’ union. There are several on Wednesday at the end of the afternoon and on Thursday demonstrations on the program by teachers and mothers, among others, who are looking for missing children. About 130,000 people are missing in Mexico.

The Mexican government is doing everything it can to ensure that the World Cup goes ahead. Fans who wanted to watch football on big screens in the city may have suffered from the protests. “Well, let’s wait and see how the situation with teachers and other groups develops,” he said President Claudia Sheinbaum during a press conference. “There is a team that is constantly monitoring the situation, but we will see how it develops.”

In the run-up to the opening match between Mexico and South Africa, protests have taken place in various parts of the metropolis in recent weeks. For example, the teachers’ union demands better working conditions and higher pay for teachers.

On Wednesday there are at the end of the afternoon protests planned at the airport and near the Estadio Azteca. And on Thursday, several demonstrations have been announced in various places in the capital, with various groups drawing attention to their actions with the World Cup approaching. social problems.

The KNVB hopes that 10,000 Orange supporters will join the fan walk to the stadium on Sunday Dallas Stadium in Arlington for the Dutch national team’s first group match at the World Cup against Japan. About 5000 Dutch fans have a ticket before the duel. “We assume that Dutch people living in America will also join. It is difficult to estimate exactly, but we expect around 10,000 people,” said a spokesperson for the KNVB in Dallas.

Fans will gather at the Road to Six Flags Street at Choctaw Stadium in Arlington beginning at 10 a.m. local time. Take care there Yuki, FeestDJRuud and Yves Berendse until 11:15 a.m. the music and entertainment. The Dutch supporters then head to the Dallas Stadium, where the match takes place. The Oranjebus, which recently arrived in Texas after a long ocean voyage, is leading the way.

The match against Japan starts at 3 p.m. In the Netherlands it is then 10 p.m.

Thousands of protesters have blocked the main access road to the Aztec Stadium, where the first match between Mexico and South Africa is on Thursday. However, there is no question of total chaos. The stadium is still accessible for media and volunteers, who have to collect their accreditations.

This concerns a group from the Mexican education association CNTE. Teachers have been taking to the streets since last week to demand a pay increase and the repeal of a new pension law.

“We want to reach the stadium”campaigner Angel Villalobos responded to the AFP news agency. A new call has also been launched for mass protests again next Thursday – during the opening match.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum reassures football fans. “I guarantee that the opening ceremony of the World Cup will proceed well, in peace and tranquility.”

At Mexico City’s international airport, workers are working late into the night to get everything ready. That will clearly not be possible before the kick-off on Thursday at 1 p.m (9 p.m. Dutch time).

The Iranian football team travels a day before the first group match to the United States at the World Cup. The Iranian Football Association announced this on Tuesday.

“The team delegation travels with a charter flight a day before the match against New Zealand to host city Los Angeles. For the next two group matches, we will be there two days before kick-off,” said Mehdi Alavi, spokesperson for the Iranian Football Association, as quoted by Isna news agency.

Manuel Neuer has trained with the German selection again. The 40-year-old Bayern Munich goalkeeper has been suffering from a calf injury for the past three weeks.

Germany trained for the first time on Monday evening local time at the base camp in the city of Winston-Salem in the US state of North Carolina. for 3000 supporters. National coach Julian Nagelsmann’s team had already been in the United States for a while. On Saturday, they won 2-1 in a practice match against the US, one of the host countries of the World Cup, in Chicago.

Four-time world champion Germany starts the World Cup on Sunday, with a match against debutant Curaçao.