Jordan’s first qualification for the World Cup also means a World Cup berth for Palestinians, millions of whom live in the country.

At its first game in Los Angeles, the men’s national team drew spectators who weren’t coming for the soccer, but rather to protest the regime in Tehran.

John Sorochan, a turf scientist at the University of Tennessee, has led the yearslong, multimillion-dollar effort to develop perfect playing fields for the 2026 World Cup.

“I had the right papers and everything,” Omar Abdulkadir Artan said in his first interview since he was turned back. He would have been the first Somali to referee a game in the tournament.

Gianni Infantino, the FIFA president, has unabashedly courted the president’s favor. Soccer officials privately ask, who really benefits?

Staggering ticket prices and lackluster matches have left thousands of seats in Toronto and Vancouver unsold just days before the tournament kicks off.

After months of doubts over their participation, Iran’s players have received visas for the United States just days before the World Cup begins.

The Iranian soccer players, still awaiting visas to the U.S., are practicing in Turkey and making backup plans.

Soccer’s global governing body is grappling with a World Cup first: a tournament host going to war with a participating nation.