The 2026 FIFA World Cup is deep into the knock-out stages — and HuffPost is live-blogging every twist and turn as the final looms at New York/New Jersey Stadium on July 19.Even before a ball was kicked, the 23rd edition of the tournament was engulfed in controversy: from Iran’s tough journey to the competition amid Donald Trump’s war, to the president’s close relationship with FIFA’s Peace Prize-awarding President Gianni Infantino. That’s not to mention Trump’s travel bans keeping some fans and officials out and the fury over soaring ticket prices. Once the soccer actually began, much of the concern was eased — at least for a short while. But the introduction of hydration breaks, seen as a vehicle for TV advertising, prompted booing from fans and questions about the fundamentals of the game being undermined. And Trump’s intervention in an effort to get a red card reversed for U.S. forward Folarin Balogun, which was fruitless, as the Americans were soundly defeated by Belgium, will likely leave a stain on this World Cup.Check out the full games schedule on the FIFA website.Follow along with our coverage below:Egypt Coach Blasts Referee After Argentina Defeat: 'We Have Suffered An Injustice'Egypt coach Hossam Hassan said his team was treated unfairly and "suffered an injustice" in the wake of his team's stunning 3-2 loss to Argentina in a round of 16 match in Atlanta on Tuesday.Egypt held a 2-0 lead until Argentina's Cristian Romero scored in the 79th minute. Lionel Messi tied it four minutes later and Enzo Fernandez scored the game-winner two minutes into stoppage time.However, Hassan took issue with referee Francois Letexier on several counts. Egypt had a goal that had initially put them up 2-0, but it was disallowed following a VAR review. And the Pharaohs were upset that a hard tackle in the penalty box late in stoppage time was not reviewed."I'm not convinced with this outcome. I'm not convinced with the way things unfolded during this match," Hassan said. "I would do not want to try to put it nicely here with beautiful wording, selective wording, and saying hard luck, and so on and so forth."We have been treated unfairly today. We have suffered injustice."Hassan said Egypt had objected to Letexier being the referee, referring to his "background." Letexier is from France.Nine minutes into extra time, Hassan was issued a yellow card after objecting to the lack of a VAR review."I was just saying this is unfair. I was saying maybe he's carrying a scar," Hassan said of their interaction. "Maybe he has something to hide. Whoever has something to hide sometimes fails to hide what he is hiding."Hassan vowed not to watch another match during the 2026 World Cup after his team came within minutes of upsetting the defending champions."We looked better compared to the reigning champions," Hassan said. "We were better in everything, but the result, the outcome, was influenced by internal factors on the pitch, inside the game, and external factors ahead of the game."There seemed to have been pressure exercised from the Argentinian side on the referee that had brought about this outcome."As the drama intensified, Letexier issued a red card to one of Hassan's staff members. By the end of the match, Egypt had been issued five yellow cards while Argentina had none."Ordinary life, normal life is unfair, OK, but why isn't there any fairness in sports? Within football," Hassan said.Despite his team holding a two-goal advantage late into the match, Hassan also questioned the noon start time in Atlanta. The only other match of the day was the final round of 16 match between Colombia and Switzerland at 4 p.m. ET in Vancouver."I dare to say that whoever schedules those matches is someone who doesn't and has never played football. It has nothing to do with football, because you never schedule a football match for 12 p.m., at noon," Hassan said. "At noon you go for a stroll, you go to get some fresh air, to maybe go on a brunch, but you do not go to play football. You do not go onto the pitch."When are the players supposed to eat? Are they supposed to have their meal at 7:30 a.m. in order to be capable of playing at noon? Is this someone trying to outsmart everyone else?"There have been a lot of things to be questioned on and off the pitch. Negative aspects all around. It's just about credibility, lack of credibility with how things unfolded."I'm proud of my players. But we have not received what we deserve."--Field Level MediaLatest Live UpdatesU.S. World Cup Exit Smashes Another Major RecordThe United States men's national team's loss to Belgium in the World Cup round of 16 on Monday was a disappointment for fans, but it rewrote domestic viewership records once again.The game drew 30 million viewers on Fox, according to Nielsen preliminary data released Tuesday. That far outpaced the Americans' round of 32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina last Wednesday, which at 24.429 million was the most-watched English-language soccer broadcast in the U.S. for all of five days.The peak audience for Belgium's 4-1 win over the U.S. was 36.895 million viewers in the 9:15-9:30 p.m. ET window.The 30 million number beat out some high-profile sporting events in the U.S. in the past 12 months, including the New York Knicks' title-clinching Game 5 win over the San Antonio Spurs (24.5 million) and Game 7 of the 2025 World Series in which the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Toronto Blue Jays (26 million). The CFP national title game between Indiana and Miami only barely beat out U.S.-Belgium at 30.1 million.And taken together with an audience of 12 million on Spanish-language Telemundo, the game averaged a whopping 42 million viewers.It was the last U.S. match fans will get to see in the tournament they are co-hosting. Malik Tillman scored on a free kick, but Charles De Ketelaere had a first-half brace for Belgium and they added on two more after halftime.FIFA Suspended 2 U.S. World Cup Team Staffers For Belgium LossTwo U.S. men's national team staff members were suspended by FIFA for the team's World Cup round of 16 match against Belgium on Monday.Team manager Sam Zapatka and U.S. Soccer Federation vice president of security Frank Pannell weren't allowed at the match, multiple media outlets reported on Tuesday. FIFA reportedly handed out the suspensions pregame on Monday without specifying an exact reason.The U.S. Soccer Federation also didn't address the cause behind the punishment, though it did say it was unrelated to the federation's work that resulted in Folarin Balogun's red-card suspension getting pushed back.According to ESPN, the two were sanctioned regarding a violation of FIFA match protocols as well as people having access to areas where they shouldn't have been. Per the report, no physical dispute occurred.Balogun started on Monday, a match the U.S. lost 4-1 to Belgium.Front Office Sports reported that the cause of the two suspensions might have been Balogun coming back onto the field on July 1 to celebrate the United States' 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in Santa Clara, Calif.Balogun was sent off for a bad tackle in the second half of the Bosnia game, and players who receive a red card are not allowed to return to the pitch during or after that contest.Per multiple media outlets, Zapatka joined U.S. Soccer in 2015 and has been in his current job since 2020.In an April article, Seton Hall University newspaper The Setonian wrote that Pannell previously worked for the Secret Service, the CIA and in the private sector.Switzerland Edge Colombia On Penalty Kicks To Make First World Cup Quarterfinal Since 1954Ruben Vargas delivered the deciding goal in the fifth round of a penalty shootout and Switzerland advanced to the quarterfinals of the World Cup following a scoreless draw against Colombia on Tuesday in Vancouver.Switzerland goalkeeper Gregor Kobel made a key diving save on Colombia's Cucho Hernandez in the fourth round of PKs. Granit Xhaka, Zeki Amdouni and Cedric Itten also made shots from the spot as Switzerland prevailed 4-3 and advanced to its first quarterfinal since 1954.As the last of the eight quarterfinal teams in the tournament, Switzerland are set to face Argentina on Saturday in Kansas City, Mo. Argentina advanced by scoring three goals after the 78th minute as the defending champions pulled off a 3-2 comeback victory over Egypt.Kobel finished with three saves in regulation and extra time while surviving a Colombia offensive onslaught in the 30-minute extra period. Colombia had an 8-1 advantage on shots in extra time.Colombia nearly took the lead in the 99th minute when Jhon Lucumi's header off a Juan Quintero corner kick bounced off the top of the crossbar. Colombia's Jaminton Campaz put a shot on goal from distance in the 101st minute that Kobel saved.Colombia again had a scoring chance in the 115th minute but Campaz's left-footed shot went over the goal.The defensive tussle played out just as expected. Colombia entered the match after allowing one goal, better than all World Cup teams except Spain, who have yet to allow an opponent to score. Switzerland allowed three goals during its first four matches.Each team had two shots on goal in the opening 90 minutes, while Colombia took seven total shots to six for Switzerland.Switzerland had a rare scoring chance just past the 90-minute mark but a shot from Dan Ndoye slid untouched across the 6-yard box.Colombia's best chance to score came early in the match when Gustavo Puerta's shot to the top right corner in the 21st minute was knocked down on a diving save from Kobel. Switzerland had a scoring chance in the 30th minute when Fabien Rieder's shot was saved by Camilo Vargas.--Field Level MediaLionel Messi Leads Argentina To 3-2 Comeback Victory Over Egypt And Spot In World Cup QuarterfinalsATLANTA (AP) — Lionel Messi did it yet again at this year’s World Cup.The Argentina great scored once while inspiring his team to an improbable 3-2 victory over Egypt on Tuesday despite trailing by two goals with only 11 minutes to play.The defending champions will next face either Switzerland or Colombia in quarterfinals on Saturday in Kansas City, Missouri.Read more here:Read Our Earlier CoverageSee HuffPost's earlier World Cup coverage here:See All Updates