Sports

104 matches in three countries, the action starts on Thursday at the stadium Pele and Maradona won the World Cup Source link

New Delhi: At daybreak, a smattering of children quietly emerge from their homes and make their way out of dusty bylanes. Their eyes groggy, their ears swollen and their bodies battered, they dutifully march on to the nearest akhada (mud pit). Mitti (soil), they say, is sacred; and so when mitti calls, they answer. The…

The FIFA World Cup remains football’s ultimate prize, but some of the sport’s greatest names never managed to lift the trophy despite legendary careers. Ronaldo featured in five World Cups between 2006 and 2022, but Portugal never reached the final during his appearances. (REUTERS) From near-misses in finals to heartbreaking exits and missed opportunities, several…

TimesofIndia.com in Mohali: Day after getting a green signal from the Centre of Excellence (CoE), Rohit Sharma looked in fine touch during India’s optional training session at the IS Bindra PCA Stadium in Mohali on Wednesday.Rohit Sharma was the first to step out of the team bus, and security officials and Punjab Police personnel took…

England’s World Cup camp briefly turned into a cricket net session this week as a light-hearted clip featuring Jude Bellingham, Morgan Rogers and Harry Kane went viral on social media. Jude Bellingham try his hand at cricket during the FIFA World Cup preparation. (X images) The England football team’s official account shared footage from the…

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will not just be bigger. It will be a different animal. Forty-eight teams, 104 matches, a Round of 32 and a tournament stretched across the United States, Canada and Mexico. For the first time, the champion will need to survive five knockout rounds instead of four. Brilliance for a month…

Lionel Messi marked his return to action from a hamstring injury as he came off the bench in a FIFA World Cup warm-up game on Tuesday against Iceland to score a goal in Argentina‘s 3-0 win in front of over 88,000 people in Alabama’s Jordan-Hare Stadium. However, the game was marred by a security oversight…

Ben Stokes will miss England’s second Test against New Zealand at The Oval following the nightclub incident in London, with Joe Root set to lead the side as interim captain.Stokes has been left out of the squad along with fast bowler Gus Atkinson after the pair breached the team’s midnight curfew in the early hours…

NEW DELHI: Richa Ghosh produced a sensational counterattacking knock but her valiant effort ultimately went in vain as England held their nerve to register a thrilling five-run victory over India in a Women’s T20 World Cup warm-up match on Wednesday.After defeating West Indies by 26 runs in their first warm-up game, India came agonisingly close…

The 2026 edition of the FIFA World Cup, hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, will be the first to feature 48 teams. For a quarter of a century, from 1998 to 2022, fans knew the tournament’s shape by heart: eight groups of four, two qualifiers from each, straight into the Round of 16….