Football Articles | Mail Online

• World Cup opening ceremony and Mexico vs South Africa LIVE: 2026 tournament kicks off after Gianni Infantino tells World Cup critics to 'CHILL'11 June 2026, 1:08 pm
  Follow Daily Mail Sport's live blog for the latest score, team news and updates as Mexico vs South Africa kicks off the 2026 World Cup following the opening ceremony. 
  
• USA's World Cup stars wildly celebrate Knicks' NBA Finals comeback in incredible viral clip11 June 2026, 1:06 pm
  On the eve of the World Cup, the US was gripped by the Knicks' Game 4 showdown against the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals, including the nation's own soccer team.
  
• The inside story of Rob Edwards sacking by Wolves: The club power shift that did for him, why chiefs let him play a part in summer transfers, the awful way he found out and why super agent Jorge Mendes was key11 June 2026, 12:50 pm
  Whenever Wolves change their manager or have a backroom reshuffle, the message is frequently the same: we will not be relying so heavily on Jorge Mendes.
  
• Scotland's World Cup opponents forced to re-design kit hours before start of the tournament - after political 'war scene' imagery breaches FIFA's rules11 June 2026, 12:36 pm
  The Caribbean nation's shirts had featured soldiers lifting up the nation's flag to mark them winning independence from France in the Battle of Vertieres in 1803.
  
• Chaos threatens World Cup kick-off: Tent city forms at venue for tonight's opening ceremony, pricey tickets risk thousands of empty seats, US border staff block refs and fans... and FIFA president's message? Just 'chill'!11 June 2026, 12:25 pm
  The World Cup finally gets underway this evening as Mexico take on South Africa at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
  
• From school bus to party bus! Smallest country to EVER compete at a World Cup embrace the vibe on their way to training with no windows and booming sound system11 June 2026, 12:17 pm
  Players from the World Cup's smallest ever nation turned up the stereo and blasted the beats while egging on their dancing team-mates.
  
• The World Cup starts TODAY! Your ultimate guide to England and Scotland's chances, the top games for your diary - and all the chaos and controversy as the planet's biggest sporting tournament kicks off11 June 2026, 12:16 pm
  Forty-eight teams are set to take centre stage in the United States, Canada and Mexico - from the tiny Caribbean island of Curacao, with a population of 150,000, to five-time world champions Brazil.
  
• 2026 WORLD CUP A-Z: Daily Mail Sport's alternative guide to the greatest show on earth - including history-making minnows, Shakira... and Zayu the Jaguar!11 June 2026, 12:12 pm
  Here, Daily Mail Sport is keen to provide one handy guide to the beauty and the madness awaiting fans at home and abroad alike, with a run-through from A to Z.
  
• Celtic put faith in 74-year-old Martin O'Neill to lead them as Dermot Desmond targets domestic AND European success11 June 2026, 11:57 am
  Martin O'Neill has been confirmed as the new permanent manager of Celtic - with Dermot Desmond targeting progress in at home and abroad.
  
• How Daily Mail Sport readers think England will fare at the World Cup (and it could be a VERY memorable summer!)11 June 2026, 11:57 am
  Daily Mail Sport readers are confident in England's prospects of World Cup glory this summer as the tournament opens in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
  
• Inside Mexico's troubled 2026 World Cup: How 'the disappeared', deaths, poverty and protests are threatening to douse the hosts' blazing passion for the beautiful game11 June 2026, 11:56 am
  For decades Mexicans have amused foreign visitors with a joke which as well as raising a guffaw puts the people's shoulder-shrugging acceptance of corruption here in Mexico City into ironic perspective.
  
• Socceroos stars reveal the correct way to pronounce their names - so how many did you get right?11 June 2026, 11:55 am
  The World Cup is finally upon us and the Socceroos are hoping to emulate the successes of the iconic teams of history.
  
• 'It's how it should be': Ian Wright lauds ITV's incredible World Cup rooftop studio in New York City as broadcaster pulls out all the stops to get the upper hand on 'work from home' BBC11 June 2026, 11:24 am
  Viewers were given a first look at the ITV studio on the eve of the World Cup as England faced Costa Rica in a warm-up match, with the broadcaster revealing a stunning view of the New York skyline.
  
• World Cup 2026 tables, results and fixtures11 June 2026, 11:23 am
  Latest standings for all 12 groups, as well as the full schedule.
  
• 'I told my wife: "Don't you dare be pictured dancing on tables!"': Daily Mail's World Cup columnist MICHAEL OWEN on WAG chaos in 2006, Steven Gerrard and Rio Ferdinand's rift, and the England manager who'd have succeeded with Golden Generation11 June 2026, 11:13 am
  The popular theory is that England's Golden Generation missed out on silverware because of tribal loyalties and who sat where at dinner. Michael Owen remembers it differently.