How will the USA (soccer team and country) fare at the 2026 World Cup?
You may have heard that the World Championships will be held this year. After all the controversy about ticket prices And peace prize And cooling breaksThe real football tournament will begin. This is when the USA, both the national team and the host nation, will be truly appreciated; when the 2026 World Cup will be considered a huge success or a grotesque failure. There will be no gap between them. No nuances. This has long since disappeared from public discussion.
FIFA has already taken its victory lap, boasting a record 150 million ticket applications. How many of these applications came from bots was not specified. Gianni Infantino, however, said that FIFA's exorbitant ticket prices were justified because without fans squeezing out every penny, “there would be no football in 150 countries around the world.” Apparently, FIFA's revenue last year was $7.5 billion. World Championship the cycle was not enough.
The USMNT also expects the 2022 World Cup to improve. Reaching the last 16 would be a success for Mauricio Pochettino and his players, who have endured a sometimes painful process in 2025. Concacaf Nations League defeats to Panama and Canada to friendly victories over Japan, Australia, Paraguay and Uruguay, year ended more positively how it started. Will this lead to a strong performance at the World Championships itself?
Additional questions will be answered next summer. Will President Donald Trump cozy relationship with Infantino have any influence on where World Cup matches are played and where they are not? How will fans from countries behave? currently under travel ban attend matches? Could the scorching heat of the North American summer affect the intensity of the games? On and off the field, US measures will be taken.
Can Arsenal keep their nerve and end their long wait for Premier League glory?
Arsenal have been here before. More precisely, exactly four times. Each of the four times the Gunners were top at Christmas they failed to win the Premier League title. So Mikel Arteta could be forgiven for eating his turkey and stuffing it a little nervously this year, even though his team finished top.
Not least because Manchester City are increasingly in the rearview mirror. There are good reasons to be wary of Pep Guardiola's side given they have won their last six league games in a row. What was recently seen as a season of transition for City could turn into another title-winning season.
Arteta says Arsenal are “actively considering” potential signings in January. One or two mid-season additions could help the Gunners edge towards the finish line ahead of City, Aston Villa and everyone else. However, Arsenal's solid summer business should have been enough to make them champions.
Victor Gyökeres was to become their Erling Haaland. Instead, the Swedish striker scored just five goals in 17 league matches. Eberechi Eze was signed to give them a different dimension in the final third. However, since scoring a hat-trick in November's North London derby, the England international has played four league games without scoring. Noni Madueke, another summer player, missed most of the season due to injury.
Experience from previous failed title races could help Arsenal navigate this particular sprint to the finish. On the other hand, past injuries may add to their nervousness, which already appears to be building on the back of recent shaky wins over Wolves, Everton and Brighton. Tuesday's emphatic win over Villa It was a release of some tension and perhaps a sign that Arsenal were ready to fight. The second half of the season will be a reckoning for Arteta's title challengers.
Who will win the fight for the soul of Real Madrid?
If Xabi Alonso was ever happy with the task of overhauling Real Madrid's style of play and overall culture, he certainly isn't now. Recruited in the summer to take the Spanish giants into a new era, the former midfielder has faced everything he does White an anomaly in the modern game.
Under Alonso, Bayer Leverkusen pressed hard. They won the ball back quickly in the frontcourts and were among the best in possession in the Bundesliga. However, Alonso's Real Madrid team is a far cry from the team that won the German title two seasons ago. They don't press high. They cannot win the ball back quickly in advanced areas and are often out of possession.
Perhaps this is due to the fact that Real Madrid do not have players capable of such things. Or it could be because they have players who don't want to do such things, perhaps Vinicius Junior among them. The Brazilian's frosty relationship with Alonso has been well documented, raising questions about his future at the Santiago Bernabeu after this season.
This season was not just the beginning of a new coaching term, it was power struggle for the soul of Real Madrid. One way or another, 2026 will be a turning point. Either Alonso's methods will start to catch on, perhaps after some high-profile departures, or the 44-year-old will be spat out by a club that refuses to swallow his medicine.
