News blog for the 2026 World Cup
Military service: mockery for South Korea’s captain Son
Updated June 17, 2026 – 12:05 a.mReading time: 6 minutes
The World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada has begun. You can find out all the important news about the tournament here.
From June 11th to July 19th, the Football World Cup, the largest tournament in the history of football, will take place in the USA, Mexico and Canada. A total of 48 national teams are fighting for the title in 104 games over five and a half weeks.
The three hosts have now all started the tournament. While Mexico (2-0 against South Africa) and the USA (4-1 against Paraguay) celebrated victories, Canada played a draw (1-1 against Bosnia and Herzegovina). The DFB team entered the tournament against Curaçao on Sunday evening – and won 7-1. With the t-online news blog you won’t miss any important news about the 2026 World Cup.
Military service: mockery for South Korea’s captain Son
The national players of World Cup participants South Korea have responded to ridicule of captain Heung-Min Son with a media boycott. As several media outlets, including the American sports magazine The Athletic, report, the team refuses to speak to South Korean journalists. Only the official Fifa media events will take place. The spark of the dispute was that journalists made fun of Son’s exemption from military service.
The star player was released from duty in 2018 after winning the gold medal at the Asian Games and instead only had to complete three weeks of basic training. In South Korea, all physically able men between the ages of 18 and 28 are actually subject to strict military service for up to two years, as the country is formally at war with North Korea.
During a training session before the World Cup (June 7), a South Korean television station captured a conversation between two reporters in which derogatory comments were made about Son’s special arrangement. The recording was broadcast unedited on television and sparked outrage.
In response, the former Bundesliga professional refused media interviews after the 2-1 opening win against the Czech Republic. The Korean Football Association (KFA) criticized the “inappropriate comments” and spoke of a “great shock and disappointment” among the team.
Entry ban: Ghana professional misses opening game
Ghana’s footballer Thomas Partey has suffered a defeat in court and is not allowed to travel to Canada for his team’s opening World Cup game at the last minute. The Canadian Federal Court in Ottawa has rejected the appeal against the previously refused entry for the 33-year-old professional from Villareal FC. This means Partey will not be able to take part in Ghana’s first group game against Panama on Thursday (1 a.m.) in Toronto.