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:
Neymar to miss Brazil's next game with ankle injury
Soccer star Neymar injured his right ankle during Brazil's match against Serbia and will miss Brazil's second World Cup match, the team's doctor said Friday.
Team doctor Rodrigo Lasmar said Neymar has a ligament injury on his right ankle and will not play against Switzerland on Monday, according to The Associated Press.
"I have an injury yes, it's boring, it's going to hurt but I'm sure I'll have the chance to come back because I will do my best to help my country, my teammates and myself," Neymar wrote in an Instagram post.
Lasmar said there is no timetable for Neymar's recovery, but that defender Danilo, who also suffered an ankle injury, will be out for the game Monday, the AP reported.
China gifts Qatar two pandas tasked with predicting game winners
Thuraya and Suhail are two pandas gifted to Qatar from China to celebrate their hosting the World Cup. Every day, they are tasked with predicting which countries will win that day's matchups.
Unfortunately, they are not given the opportunity to choose if the game will end in a draw. Their success rate so far stands at 33%.
Fans of the U.S. men's soccer team may hope this less-than-stellar rate holds as the pandas predicted this morning that England wins in the team's group stage match.
Senegal beats Qatar 3-1
Senegal beat World Cup host Qatar 3-1, in what was the host's first appearance in the tournament ever.
The two other Group A members, the Netherlands and Ecuador, are set to face off on Friday.
Wales suffers defeat at the hands of Iran
With two goals allowed in added time, Wales lost a tight match to Iran 2-0.
In the defeat, Wales has one point in Group B and Iran now has three. The United States will play England later today to wrap up the second games for each team in the group at the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
The U.S. Played To Win Against Iran — And It Worked: FiveThirtyEight
Christian Pulisic nearly captured the entire story of the United States’ win-or-go-home match against Iran on Tuesday in the second minute, when he took off on a dangerous-looking run forward that came to nothing.
But after 37 minutes, seven shots and five chances that generated 0.42 expected goals but no actual goals (while allowing none, none and 0.00 to Iran), Pulisic truly exemplified America’s effort in this match: He put his body on the line to score the goal that would knock Iran out of the World Cup -- and send the U.S. to the knockout round.
Read more about how the USA's change in tactics earned them the win.
-FiveThirtyEight's Ty Schalter