Fox versus Telemundo: How hydration breaks and commercials are disrupting World Cup viewing
Mexico head coach Javier Aguirre talks with his players during the hydration break in the 2026 World Cup Group A football match between Mexico and South Africa at the Mexico City Stadium in Mexico City on June 11, 2026.
(Photo by Yuri Cortez / AFP via Getty Images)
Fox is under fire for missing on-field action during the first match of the World Cup last week.
Many sports fans were irate when the network aired a full-screen ad when play resumed after a water break during last Thursday’s Mexico–South Africa match.
‘I’d be happy with the tie’: Korea, Mexico showdown brings more love than rivalry in L.A.
Young fans cheer on stage as Mexico is minutes away from a 1-0 win against South Korea during a watch party for the World Cup match at Seoul International Park on Thursday.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Love was in the air in Koreatown’s Seoul International Park on Thursday, where a sea of thousands of people in red and green jerseys joined together to celebrate soccer’s favorite romance.
South Korea fan Ben Lee was performing soccer kick-ups with a pack of Shin Noodles when he saw Kevin Gonzalez walk by in a Mexico shirt and offered him a fist bump.
“Hermano!” Lee, 31, exclaimed, and the pair, mere moments after meeting, snapped a selfie as Gonzalez, 28, presented his Korean bulgogi beef quesadilla to the camera with a grin.
World Cup 2026 mints big prediction winners and million-dollar losers
By Emily Nicolle, Ira Boudway and Carolyn Silverman
The World Cup is turning prediction markets into a public ledger of million-dollar bets, exposing big wins and dramatic losses as the tournament attracts more money to the fast-growing industry.
More than $5 billion has been traded on the World Cup across Polymarket’s international exchange and U.S.-regulated Kalshi Inc. in 2026, according to a Bloomberg News analysis of Dune Analytics data and company records. The boom has produced multimillion-dollar winners and some painful losses, including a bet-gone-wrong on Belgium to beat Egypt that cost one Polymarket user nearly $9 million.
Swanson: From poker pro to World Cup coach: Sergej Barbarez all in with Bosnia-Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina coach Sergej Barbarez shakes hands with one of his players before a loss to Switzerland in the World Cup Group B play at Los Angeles Stadium (SoFi Stadium) on Thursday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Imagine it. A neophyte coach, leading a team for the first time at any competitive level, and it being a high-profile assignment on the biggest of big stages.
A self-assured broadcaster, critical and competitive, having his bluff called, being invited to not just talk about it, but to be about it: Walk the walk, why don’t you?
A former player — scorer, shooter — being challenged to step up and right a listing ship while navigating politics and the push and pull of history and high hopes.
Pico Rivera’s Cristian Roldan may be last made-in-high-school U.S. World Cup star
U.S. men’s national team player Cristian Roldan, center, and his teammates arrive at SoFi Stadium before the World Cup group stage match between the United States and Paraguay on June 12 in Inglewood.
(Kelvin Kuo / Los Angeles Times)
SEATTLE — Cristian Roldan and Haji Wright grew up less than three years and 30 miles apart, Roldan in Pico Rivera and Wright in Culver City. The odds that they would go on to become teammates on not one, but two, U.S. World Cup teams seem astronomical.
Yet despite starting at the same time and place and arriving together at the same destination, the two players followed completely different paths to get there.
‘The clear choice by far.’ Why rising U.S. star Alex Freeman chose soccer over the NFL
U.S. defender Alex Freeman, left, and Paraguay forward Julio Enciso battle for control of the ball during the United States’ 4-1 win in its World Cup opener on June 12.
(Kelvin Kuo / Los Angeles Times)
SEATTLE — Growing up the son of an NFL wide receiver, Alex Freeman said he felt a lot of pressure to play the American version of football, not the one the rest of the world plays.
“I always got asked if football was the path,” he said last summer. “But I always had a secret love for soccer.”
‘I love America!’: With the World Cup, Inglewood becomes an international hub
Bartender Elijah Gonzalez mixes a drink at the Nile Bar in Inglewood while customers watch Croatia play England as businesses and locals embrace the World Cup soccer tournament.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Daiki Kaneko had only 24 hours before his World Cup journey took him to Dallas, where his home country’s squad will take on Sweden.
The Japanese soccer fan was making the most of it on Tuesday in Inglewood, snapping pictures of SoFi Stadium before taking in a different kind of monument: a space-age, two-story branch of the chicken chain Raising Cane’s, complete with a 308-square-foot screen, a mirrored dog sculpture and a massive halo hovering around the exterior.
For Kaneko, 25, who lives in the Tokyo suburbs, it was the perfect encapsulation of American grandeur.
“All this for chicken,” he said. “I love America.”
Why this World Cup could do for Canada what 1994 did for soccer in the U.S.
Canada’s Jonathan David celebrates after scoring one of three goals during a 6-0 win over Qatar at the World Cup on Thursday.
(Emilee Chinn / Getty Images)
VANCOUVER, Canada — When the first men’s World Cup game played in Canada kicked off last week, Anthony Totera sat in the stands and wept.
“It was a dream come true,” said Totera, who has spent most of his 57 years on earth promoting Canadian soccer. “I can’t describe the emotions. It was something surreal.”
If the 1994 World Cup, the first held in the U.S., forever altered the direction of American soccer, this summer’s tournament, which Canada is sharing with the U.S. and Mexico, has the potential to do the same for that country.
‘We want to lift the trophy.’ U.S. makes history in World Cup win over Australia
U.S. defender Alex Freeman (16) celebrates with teammates after scoring in a 2-0 win over Australia in World Cup Group D play Friday in Seattle.
(Manu Fernandez / Associated Press)
SEATTLE — The World Cup is only a little more than a week old, but it’s already a historic one for the U.S.
With Friday’s 2-0 win over Australia, the U.S. matched its best World Cup performance ever with two victories. Their six goals match the most the U.S. has ever scored in the group stage and its goal differential of plus-five is also its best ever in the tournament. The U.S. also clinched a spot in the round of 32.
Most impressive of all, however, is how the U.S. achieved most of that without their best player, Christian Pulisic, who had an electric first half in the U.S. opener against Paraguay but hasn’t seen the field since.
World Cup matchups: TV schedule, start times, how to watch and previews
U.S. forward Folarin Balogun (20) celebrates with teammates after scoring against Paraguay on June 12 at Los Angeles Stadium (SoFi Stadium).
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
SEATTLE — The 2026 FIFA World Cup is well into the second run of group play, with every team still eager to post wins as they look to secure a place in the knockout stage.
Here’s everything you need to know about matches being played on Saturday and Sunday in the 48-team tournament across the U.S., Mexico and Canada (all times Pacific).
World Cup group standings and results
Here’s where things stand in each group heading into Saturday’s four World Cup group stage matches:
Looking back at the first nine days of the 2026 World Cup
The first nine days of the 2026 FIFA World Cup offered plenty of memorable moments.
Check out The Times’ daily recaps ahead of Friday’s four-game slate:
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