It’s here. After years of hype, handwringing, logistical nightmares, and enough corporate noise to deafen a stadium, the 2026 FIFA World Cup is finally upon us. The planet stops, the football starts, and for the next few weeks, nothing else truly matters.
Fourth World Cup still has Son ‘feeling like a kid’
Son Heung-min entering his fourth World Cup and still describing himself as feeling like a kid is either the most wholesome thing you’ll read today, or a reminder of just how rare his longevity at the elite level truly is. South Korea face Czech Republic in Guadalajara on Thursday, and Son remains the heartbeat of this team — the difference between a dangerous side and an ordinary one. Cherish him while you can, because players who sustain this level across four tournaments don’t come along very often.
O’Neill confirmed as Celtic’s permanent manager
Martin O’Neill returning to Celtic permanently after two interim stints delivered a league and cup double is one of those stories that feels almost too tidy — but football occasionally rewards sentiment with silverware. The question now is whether this is a triumphant homecoming or a comfortable arrangement that flatters to deceive in Europe. O’Neill has enormous credit in the bank at Parkhead, but permanent status demands permanent ambition, and the Champions League group stage is no place for nostalgia.
Pulisic in ‘comfort’ zone as U.S. readies for opener
Christian Pulisic carrying the weight of a home World Cup on his shoulders at just 27 is either a blessing or an enormous burden, and the fact he’s framing familiarity with his teammates as a source of strength suggests he’s learned to manage pressure rather than be crushed by it. Nearly 15 years alongside some of these players gives the USMNT a core that doesn’t need to find its feet in the biggest moments. The whole nation is watching, the whole world is curious — Pulisic needs to be the player who makes them believers.
Wolves sack Rob Edwards and target Portuguese manager César Peixoto
Sacking Rob Edwards feels less like a decision and more like an admission — Wolves handed a struggling manager a drowning club and then seemed surprised when the inevitable arrived in April. Taking over a side with two points from eleven games was a near-impossible task, and whoever signed off on that appointment deserves as much scrutiny as the man they’ve now dismissed. César Peixoto as a target fits the Wolves mould of Portuguese connections, but the real work begins in the Championship, where identity and momentum matter far more than managerial lineage.
Spain, France open World Cup as betting favourites
France and Spain as co-favourites is a perfectly reasonable assessment of where world football’s hierarchy sits right now, and anyone who watched both nations over the past two years would struggle to argue. What’s genuinely fascinating is the sportsbook chaos caused by patriotic American money flooding in on the host nation — sentiment and self-belief making bookmakers genuinely nervous. The USA getting out of their group would be celebrated as a triumph; anything beyond the quarter-finals would be a cultural earthquake.
NY street named in honour of Thierry Henry for World Cup
Renaming a New York street after Thierry Henry is a lovely gesture, and if any footballer has earned a piece of Manhattan’s geography, it’s the man who helped make the 1998 generation and then reinvented himself as one of the Premier League’s all-time greats. Henry has deep roots in New York through his time at Red Bulls, so this isn’t entirely ceremonial — there’s genuine affection here. Though we’d gently suggest the street should have an absolute minimum of 30 yards of space, just to do the man justice.
Vítor Pereira’s previous comments hint at Nottingham Forest formation change
Reading the tactical tea leaves through a manager’s old quotes is an inexact science, but if Vítor Pereira is genuinely targeting Leo Pereira from Flamengo, it tells you something about how he wants to build Forest’s defensive foundation going forward. Nottingham Forest under Pereira have already shown they can be hard to break down — adding a physically imposing, ball-playing centre-back from one of South America’s most attack-minded clubs would be a statement of intent. The Championship to Champions League pipeline runs through the East Midlands now, and Forest know it.
Key explains Root captaincy decision over Brook
Joe Root getting the Test captaincy over Harry Brook is a decision that will divide opinion for exactly as long as England’s next Test series lasts — if they win, Key’s a genius; if they lose, it’s a generational mistake. Brook’s instincts and energy felt like the future, but Root’s experience, tactical intelligence, and sheer weight of runs make him a defensible choice. What Rob Key must avoid is this becoming a distraction that unsettles Brook, because England cannot afford to lose either man’s focus heading into what promises to be a punishing schedule.
Six complaints about the 2026 World Cup — and why it might still work
Gab Marcotti’s six-complaints, six-reasons framework is essentially the mental gymnastics every football fan has been doing since this tournament was awarded — acknowledging the mess while refusing to abandon the joy. The distances, the heat, the overcrowded format, the commercial ugliness: none of it disappears, but football has an extraordinary habit of transcending its own dysfunction. Once the first great goal flies in and a nation erupts somewhere across three countries, most of those complaints become footnotes.
Injuries force Ezzalzouli and Aguerd out of World Cup
Losing Abde Ezzalzouli and Nayef Aguerd two days before facing Brazil is a brutal blow for Morocco — two players who would have been central to any realistic plan of repeating their 2022 heroics. Aguerd’s absence in particular hurts at the back, because Morocco’s defensive organisation was the spine of everything Walid Regragui built last time around. They still have quality and belief in abundance, but this is the tournament drawing blood before it’s even kicked off.
🎤 The WAF Take
The World Cup is finally here, and for all the noise, the chaos, and the endless column inches of concern, football has a way of making you forget every single grievance the moment that first whistle blows. We’ll be with you every step of the way — the upsets, the heartbreaks, the moments you’ll be describing to people who weren’t born yet. Let’s get into it.