World Cup updates: Team USA looks forward to 2026
The Americans lost 3-1 to the Netherlands in the knockout round.
After years of controversy around its location, the 2022 World Cup is underway in Qatar.
There have been allegations of payoffs to FIFA members to earn the bid, criticism of Qatar's laws against women and LGBTQ individuals, the deaths of migrants used to build the sparkling new stadiums and even last-second controversy over beer sales. The tournament was also moved from its usual summer timeframe to the holiday season to avoid Qatar's intensely hot weather.
But on the field, the best players in the world -- such as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar -- are ready to go. And the U.S. is back with a hungry, young team after failing to qualify for the last World Cup.
Key headlines:
Brazil tops Switzerland
In the Group G competition Monday, Brazil beat Switzerland 1-0 with a late-game goal by Casemiro.
With that, Brazil has won both its matches so far in the tournament and sit atop the group.
Ghana defeats South Korea, Cameroon and Serbia tie
Ghana won over South Korea 3-2 in a high-intensity match that saw the momentum change several times over.
Ghana started strong, with Mohammed Salisu scoring 24 minutes in and Mohammed Kudus at 34 minutes, bringing the score to 2-0 by halftime.
But then Cho Gue-sung of South Korea scored twice, at the 58th minute and again just three minutes later. He scored both goals on a header from a cross, the second powerful strike followed by an exuberant team celebration as it tied up the game.
Ghana met the challenge just minutes later, with Kudus scoring once more to put Ghana back in the lead.
With 10 minutes of extra time, South Korea was not able to score again as the Ghanaian team successfully defended multiple goal opportunities.
Earlier Monday, in Group G, Cameroon and Serbia ended in a 3-3 tie.
Germany, Spain tie
Germany and Spain ended their high-energy match in a 1-1 tie Sunday.
Both goals came late in the game, with Spain's Álvaro Morata scoring at 62 minutes and Germany's Niclas Füllkrug at 83 minutes.
Croatia beats Canada 4-1
Croatia handily beat Canada four goals to one. Croatia's goals were scored by Marko Livaja, Lovro Majer and Andrej Kramaric, who scored twice.
Canada's Alphonso Davies scored their sole point, the country's first in a men's FIFA World Cup, within the first three minutes of the match.
Croatia is now the top team in Group F, while Canada will not advance.
Portugal, Brazil tune up for knockout stage in Friday action
Brazil and Portugal, two of the favorites to win the World Cup, are already into the knockout stage, but they'll have a chance to tune up for the second round in their final group matches on Friday.
In Group G, Brazil faces Cameroon, which needs to win and get a loss from Switzerland to qualify or a draw and better goal differential than the Swiss. Switzerland is facing off with Serbia. Serbia would need to win and get a loss by Cameroon or have a better goal differential. The Swiss just need a win or draw to advance alongside Brazil.
In the other set of games Friday, Portugal faces off with South Korea and Uruguay faces Ghana. Portugal may rest its top players, including Cristiano Ronaldo, so South Korea will be looking to take advantage and grab an upset win. Tottenham star Son Heung-min and South Korea need to win and get a loss from Ghana, or, if that game ends in a draw, beat Ghana in goal differential.
Uruguay, sitting on 1 point just like Korea, needs a similar situation. They'll need to beat Ghana and get a loss from South Korea, or beat Korea out on goal differential if the Portugal-South Korea match ends in a draw.
Here's the schedule for Friday, the final day of group play: