This Country Is Letting Employees Start Work Later For The World Cup

The 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off in June — and HuffPost will be live-blogging every twist, turn and controversy from the buildup through the final of what’s widely shaping up to be the most political soccer tournament of all time.From the action on the pitch to the potential chaos off it, the storylines are already piling up: Iran’s possible non-participation amid Donald Trump’s war, the president’s close relationship with FIFA’s Peace Prize-awarding President Gianni Infantino, and simmering tensions between the U.S. and fellow host nations Mexico and Canada fueled by Trump’s tariffs and divisive rhetoric.Trump’s travel bans could keep some fans out, there’s been fury over soaring ticket prices, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents could be present at games as the Trump administration continues its anti-immigration crackdown.Not to mention extreme heat concerns that scorched all those involved the last time the U.S. hosted the tournament some 32 years ago, in 1994.And that’s all before a ball has been kicked.U.S. President Donald Trump received the FIFA Peace Prize from FIFA President Gianni Infantino in December.Andrew Harnik via Getty ImagesOn the field, the men’s national teams from 48 countries will compete in a record 104 matches across the three host nations in what will be the biggest World Cup in history.Mexico will take on South Africa at the iconic Mexico City Stadium in the opening game on June 11. The U.S. will play Paraguay in Los Angeles on June 12, Australia in Seattle on June 19 and Turkey back in Los Angeles on June 25, in the group games, before potentially competing in the later knockout rounds.The final will be held on July 19 at MetLife Stadium, which is being temporarily rebranded as the New York/New Jersey Stadium for the competition.Current European champions Spain are favorites to lift the trophy. Defending champions Argentina, of Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi fame, along with France, England and Brazil, are also expected to be in the mix.Check out the full games schedule on the FIFA website.Follow along with our coverage below:This Country Is Letting Employees Start Work Later For The World CupJordan said on Sunday it will allow a late start to work for public sector employees on World Cup matchdays to let fans enjoy the national team's debut appearance at the tournament.A decree from Prime Minister Jafar Hassan said official working hours would begin at 10 a.m. instead of 8:30 a.m. for its Group J games against Austria, Algeria and Argentina which are being played in the U.S. on June 17, 23 and 28."The decision aims to enable citizens to follow and rally behind our national football team during its historic participation in this tournament," said a government statement.Jordan, popularly known as Al-Nashama (The Chivalrous Ones), qualified for the World Cup after finishing second behind South Korea in their Asian qualifying group, an unprecedented achievement that sparked nationwide celebration.Latest Live UpdatesThe U.S. Just Got A Huge Lift Ahead Of The World CupThe first of two friendlies for the U.S. men's national team before opening the 2026 FIFA World Cup on June 12 vs. Paraguay wasn't meant to be a definitive statement on the Americans' chances to advance to the knockout round.But the 3-2 win against Senegal in Charlotte, N.C., on Sunday provided a huge relief, with a glimpse of what can be.Many believe that as star forward Christian Pulisic goes, so goes the U.S., and his prolonged scoring slump rightly drew attention. Pulisic answered with a goal and an assist to help the U.S. to a 2-0 lead in the first 20 minutes.He assisted on a goal by Sergino Dest in the seventh minute before taking a ball in the middle of the box from Ricardo Pepi for his first goal since Dec. 28 for AC Milan and his first U.S. score since November 2024.After Sadio Mane's brace tied it, Folarin Balogun made it 3-2 in the 63rd minute.All was going well for the U.S. until Mane, Senegal's all-time leading scorer, had goals in the 44th and 52nd minutes.U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino made 10 changes at halftime, including goalkeeper Chris Brady coming on for Matt Turner and making his international debut, and Brady was involved in a gaffe that led to the tying goal. Miles Robinson made an egregious turnover with the ball popping up at the top of the box.Brady was too late to the ball. It got by him and Mane was at the goal line for the tap-in. The score came three minutes after Balogun thought he had made it 3-1 but was offside.Less than 10 minutes later, Balogun was called for a foul at the 6-yard box which nullified a Weston McKennie goal, but Balogun would not be denied on the go-ahead marker when he converted a cross by Tim Weah.It was not the first clinical U.S. build-up. The Americans' first goal came off the 20th pass when Pulisic, after a setup by Pepi on the left flank, spotted Dest flying through the box from his right back spot.Now, it's on to Chicago where the U.S. will play Germany on Saturday.This U.S. World Cup Player Had The Loveliest Excuse For Missing PracticeAmerican midfielder Brenden Aaronson had a good excuse to miss the U.S. World Cup team's training session Friday — he was getting married.The Leeds midfielder was marrying longtime girlfriend Milana D’Ambra, a daughter of Saint Joseph’s men’s soccer coach Don D’Ambra.Aaronson, also a member of the 2022 U.S. World Cup squad, left camp after Thursday’s session and was due back in time for training Saturday.Unable to attend the wedding himself, fellow midfielder Gio Reyna was being represented by wife Chloe.“We don’t know if it’s a no-phones wedding. We’re trying to get clarity on that," said Cristian Roldan, another U.S. midfielder. “Gio's wife will be FaceTiming in and we’ll all be able to watch kind of like a live stream if it is a phone wedding.”Aaronson, 25, is part of a well-known U.S. soccer family from Medford, New Jersey. His brother Paxten is with Major League Soccer's Colorado Rapids and sister Jaden played for Villanova as a freshman last fall. Their father, Rusty, is sporting director of Real Futbol Academy in Medford.American goalkeeper Chris Brady said Aaronson was likely playing golf Friday afternoon ahead of the ceremony.“Good luck. Don't (mess) it up,” Brady said teammates told Aaronson before he left camp. “Say I do.”Timing for the wedding was tricky.Players at the World Cup are supposed to get 21 days off before reporting to Premier League clubs ahead of season openers from Aug. 21-23. The U.S. finale could be as early as June 25 if the Americans are eliminated in the group stage or as late as July 19 in the unlikely event they reach the final for the first time.The U.S. team allowed star Christian Pulisic to skip training to attend his Hershey High School prom on May 27, 2016, at the Hershey Hotel in Pennsylvania, then return for the following day’s Copa America match against Bolivia in Kansas City, Kansas.U.S. Names Captain Of World Cup SquadTim Ream will captain the U.S. men's national team at the upcoming World Cup.Manager Mauricio Pochettino awarded the armband to the 38-year-old Charlotte FC defender on Saturday."I am so grateful he is with us -- he is a great captain not only (on the) field but more importantly off the field. He has the experience and capacity to be the leader we want," Pochettino said.Ream has earned 80 caps with the USMNT since 2010 and started all four matches for the 2022 World Cup squad captained by Tyler Adams in Qatar."This is more than a dream come true," said Ream, who is set to become the oldest American to play in a World Cup. "It's the highest honor for me."The U.S. squad is currently ranked 16th in the world and is in Group D for the World Cup in North America, opening play June 12 against Paraguay in Inglewood, Calif., before matches against Australia (June 19 in Seattle) and Turkey (June 25 in Inglewood, Calif.).The Americans' final tune-up friendlies are against Senegal (Sunday in Charlotte) and Germany (June 6 in Chicago).Professionally, Ream is in his third season with Charlotte and fourth in the MLS. He has two goals and three assists in 105 regular-season matches (102 starts) with the New York Red Bulls (2011) and Charlotte (2024-26). He also played in England for Bolton Wanderers (2012-15) and Fulham (2015-24).Also, Pochettino shed light on the status of defender Chris Richards, who has been attempting to come back from an ankle injury.Pochettino said Richards won't travel to Charlotte to compete in the Senegal match. Rather, he will remain at the National Training Center near Atlanta to continue his rehabilitation."I think he needs to keep doing his rehab and I think it's much better to stay here and plan to train and re-evaluate next week (to see) how he is," Pochettino said.Richards, 26, sustained his injury while playing for Crystal Palace on May 17.Twenty-six man rosters must be submitted to FIFA by June 1, although the U.S. can replace injured players until June 11.Visa Drama Rocks Start Of South Africa's World CupSouth Africa will depart for the World Cup on Monday, a day later than planned, after all the players received their visas to travel through the United States, sports minister Gayton McKenzie confirmed on Sunday.The team had been due to leave on a charter flight for their training base in the Mexican city of Pachuca on Sunday but that was postponed while the South African Football Association (SAFA) tried to sort out the paperwork."All Bafana Bafana players received their visas to travel to the USA. Outstanding is assistant coach, team doctor, head of security and one analyst. The charter will leave tomorrow (Monday)," McKenzie said on X.He had earlier issued a furious rebuke to SAFA over the paperwork issues, calling them "embarrassing and grossly unfair towards the players and coaching staff", adding "we are being made to look like fools".The football association confirmed in a statement that the team had been unable to fly in the morning as planned due to "challenges regarding visas" for some players and officials.EMERGENCY MEETINGSAFA has not yet confirmed the team's departure with an emergency meeting planned later on Sunday to discuss the issue.South Africa kick off the World Cup in Mexico City on June 11, and are appearing at the global finals for the first time since they were hosts themselves in 2010.Coach Hugo Broos had previously spoken of wanting to be in Mexico by June 1 at the latest to allow his players to recover from jetlag and acclimatise to the altitude, though they will now arrive a day later.Pachuca is around 680 metres (2,200 feet) further above sea level than Johannesburg at 2,432m. South Africa are due to play Jamaica in Mexico on Friday in a final warm-up fixture.An administrative bungle in qualifying almost cost them their place at the finals when their 2-0 victory over Lesotho was overturned after they fielded an ineligible player in Teboho Mokoena, who was suspended for the clash.Despite this, they still finished a point ahead of Nigeria and Benin in their qualification pool.South Africa also have Group A games against Czech Republic (June 18) in the U.S. city of Atlanta and South Korea (June 24) in Monterrey back in Mexico.Canada Star Out Of World Cup With Excruciating InjuryCanadian midfielder Marcelo Flores will miss the World Cup after suffering an ACL tear over the weekend.Flores plays for Mexican titans UANL Tigres and was on the pitch for the club's CONCACAF Champions Cup final Saturday against Toluca when he went down with a noncontact right leg injury. He appeared to catch his foot in the grass while dribbling the ball. Both Flores and Canada manager Jesse March confirmed the player's diagnosis on Sunday."Sorry, I haven't gotten back to anyone yet, really rough times. My ACL is gone," Flores posted on social media. "I wanted to say thank you to everyone and all the messages. I haven't been on my phone or checked messages, but I promise to get around to everyone and I really appreciate the concerns. I'll be back stronger."Flores' injury occurred just one day after Marsch named him among the Canadians' 26-man roster for the World Cup, which the nation will co-host with Mexico and the United States. It's not yet known who will replace him on the roster.Flores, 22, was gearing up for his first World Cup appearance. He was not part of the Canadian squad that competed in 2022 in the country's first appearance since 1986.He originally committed to the Mexican international team before filing his one-time switch to represent Canada.Flores had four goals for Tigres in the 2025-26 campaign.Expert Names The Most Blatant Way Trump Is Trying To Exploit The World CupPresident Donald Trump receiving the FIFA Peace Prize from his buddy, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, is the most blatant example of him trying to exploit this year's World Cup for his political advantage, an expert has revealed to HuffPost.“As ludicrous as the prize might sound to a lot of people, to him, he looks important,” said Jules Boykoff, a professor at Pacific University and an expert in international sports politics.Months before he launched the U.S. into his unpopular Iran war, Infantino awarded Trump the prize, citing the commander in chief’s “unwavering commitment to advancing peace and unity” as the rationale behind the award.Boykoff said Trump is also trying to achieve a “halo effect” from other “extraordinarily popular” events like the upcoming 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and next month’s Freedom 250 UFC fight card at the White House.“The worse that Donald Trump’s approval ratings get,” Boykoff said, the more incentive he has to “cling to sports as a sort of political life raft.” Read more:U.S. Soccer Coach Opens Up About Future As Post-World Cup Job Rumors SwirlU.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino said his agent may have spoken with AC Milan and he also may have had a casual conversation with the Italian club but he remains open to staying with the American national team after the World Cup.Read more here:Host Nations Tighten Ebola Precautions Before World CupThe United States, Mexico and Canada on Thursday announced aligned public health travel measures for people coming from African regions at the greatest risk from Ebola, they said in a joint statement, as they aim to protect citizens and visitors during the World Cup."The health and safety of every person in the region remains our highest priority as we welcome the world to North America," they said in the statement, which did not detail the aligned measures.The World Health Organization on Sunday, May 17, declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo a Public Health Emergency of International Concern and said there was a high risk it could spread to neighboring countries.The decision has prompted governments to step up travel-related containment measures.Washington last week banned non-citizens who had traveled to the DRC, Uganda or South Sudan in recent weeks from entering the United States. On Friday, the ban was extended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to green card holders who have been in those countries in the previous 21 days.Canada has banned residents from the DRC, Uganda ‌and South Sudan from entering the country for 90 days, which started on Wednesday.Canadian citizens, permanent residents and other foreign nationals who have been in affected areas in recent weeks and do not have symptoms will have to quarantine for 21 days from May 30, according to a statement from Canada's public health agency.Mexico's Health Secretary David Kershenovich on Monday outlined tighter Ebola screening measures at airports, urging the public to avoid travel to DRC and asking arrivals from the country to observe a 21-day quarantine.FAA Issues Major Drone Warning Ahead Of The World CupThe U.S. Federal Aviation Administration said on Thursday it will bar drones over FIFA World Cup 2026 matches and related fan events across the U.S., to fortify security.During match days, all aircraft operations, including drones, are prohibited within a radius of three nautical miles and up to 3,000 feet above ground level around the stadiums unless specifically authorized by air traffic controllers.Drones will be barred within a one-nautical-mile radius and up to 1,000 feet above ground level for fan events throughout the country.The FAA said drone operators who enter restricted airspace without approval can face fines of up to $100,000, along with criminal charges and confiscation of the drone.The FBI also has drone mitigation teams it will station around World Cup stadiums as an added layer of protection.New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said last week the department had received new authority "to work with our federal partners ... to confront credible drone threats at major events." She added that, "Over the past several months, we have purchased $6.5 million in drone-mitigation equipment."She said drones can easily be adapted as "weapons of war" and New York is on guard across events for the 250th anniversary of the U.S.Lawmakers and others have expressed alarm about prior drone incidents near airports and sporting events.A man pleaded guilty last year after he was charged with violating defense airspace after he flew a drone over the NFL AFC Championship game in Baltimore in January 2025; a Massachusetts man was charged with unlawfully flying a drone near the finish line of the April 2024 Boston Marathon, which prompted law enforcement to seize it mid-air and land it.Senegal Moves To Quash Reports Over Coach And World Cup Travel DelayReports that Senegal coach Pape Thiaw is refusing to travel to the United States for World Cup preparations are false, according to the Senegalese Football Federation.News reports out of Africa claimed Thiaw was involved in a contract dispute with the FSF after his deal expired in February and that his frustrations over negotiations were holding up travel on Wednesday, prompting a departure delay of nearly eight hours.The FSF said those rumors were untrue and that logistical issues -- flight permits and visas -- were behind the delay."The Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) wishes to inform the national and international public of the circumstances surrounding the departure of the national football team to the United States, in order to establish the truth of the facts in response to erroneous information relayed by certain media outlets and on social networks," a statement said."The FSF categorically denies the unfounded rumors suggesting that the national team manager refused to travel on grounds related to the renegotiation of his contract. Whilst legitimate contractual discussions are ongoing, they have had no impact on the team's travel schedule."These minor logistical setbacks in no way undermine the cohesion and determination of the players, the technical staff and the federation. The group remains fully united as the Lions approach the important fixtures awaiting them on American soil. The FSF will ensure that the calm atmosphere necessary for excellent preparation is maintained."Thiaw, 45, became Senegal's head coach in December 2024. This will be the country's fourth World Cup appearance.Senegal is in Group I of the World Cup. It will face France on June 16 and Norway on June 22 at East Rutherford, N.J., and Iraq in Toronto on June 26 in group play.Senegal will play two friendlies prior to the World Cup -- Sunday against the United States at Charlotte, N.C., and June 9 versus Saudi Arabia at San Antonio.See All Updates