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:Here Are The Stars Set To Appear At Sunday's World Cup Closing CeremonyActor Tom Cruise, Pussycat Dolls singer Nicole Scherzinger and streamer IShowSpeed are among the stars set to appear during Sunday’s World Cup closing ceremony at New York New Jersey Stadium (aka MetLife Stadium), FIFA announced Tuesday.Cruise, who is expected to make a “special appearance” in the show, notably helped close out the 2024 Olympics when he jumped from the top of Stade de France in a stunt to promote the upcoming 2028 Los Angeles Games.Scherzinger and Speed, the latter of whom dropped the song “World Cup (Champions)” as an unofficial tournament anthem last month, are scheduled to “perform” during the show. Laura Pausini, who performed the Italian national anthem at the 2026 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in February, is also joining the star-studded lineup along with Robbie Williams.More artists and special guests will be announced in the coming days, according to FIFA.The ceremony is set to begin at 1:30 p.m. ET prior to kickoff of the World Cup final, where France or Spain will face either England or Argentina.Jennifer Hudson is scheduled to perform “The Star-Spangled Banner” ahead of the competition.Several stars will later hit the stage for the halftime show including Madonna, Shakira, Burna Boy, BTS, Justin Bieber and Gustavo Dudamel.Latest Live UpdatesU.S. World Cup Star Admits Trump's Meddling Made Things 'Difficult'USMNT striker Folarin Balogun told CBS News on Tuesday that Trump’s efforts to get the red card repealed before the knockout game against Belgium made things “difficult” for the U.S. Men’s National Team.“My initial reaction was, you know, I was happy to be back in the team, but when I kind of started to reflect, I knew it was gonna cause a lot of controversy,” Balogun said. “And I could almost see within my teammates a bit of nerves because it was something that’s so unique.”Read more:Spain Shuts Down France And Kylian Mbappé, Advances To The World Cup Final With A 2-0 VictoryMikel Oyarzabal scored from the penalty spot after a heady play by teenager Lamine Yamal, Pedro Porro added another goal and Spain advanced to its first World Cup final since winning in 2010 with a 2-0 victory over France on Tuesday.A day after his 19th birthday, Yamal was denied a goal on a close offside call that came soon after Porro’s give-and-go with Dani Olmo in the 58th minute had put Spain up 2-0. But it was Yamal’s smart play against a veteran defender that put Spain in the lead.Spain, which will play in the final for only the second time, will face either defending champion Argentina or England on Sunday in East Rutherford, New Jersey.“We gave it our all in order just to go through to the final,” Porro said. “We knew that we’re a very tough team, we’re doing things really well. This is our team, it’s not about me.”Read more from The Associated Press:Messi In A Happy Place As Argentina Gears Up For World Cup Semifinal Against EnglandATLANTA, July 14 (Reuters) - Lionel Messi is contentedly enjoying his sixth World Cup, and his teammates are reveling in their captain’s delight, Argentina’s Rodrigo de Paul said on Tuesday as the holders prepared for Wednesday’s semi-final clash against England.Messi has had a record-breaking tournament, not only setting a new mark for the most games played but also shattering the goalscoring record with his eight goals at the finals in Canada, Mexico, and the U.S., bringing his total to 21, and ominously for England, is having a whale of a time.“Seeing him enjoying himself makes me really happy, considering everything he’s been through with this jersey and everything he’s had to fight for,” said De Paul of his teammate, who also plays alongside him in Major League Soccer at Inter Miami.“I think this World Cup has found him truly enjoying himself.“Of course, we all know his mentality, how he prepares, and how he approaches every game. But I see him happy and enjoying it, and as a friend, that makes me very happy.”De Paul, 32, played in the World Cup final in Qatar four years ago, where Argentina edged France on post-match penalties, and is conscious of what it will take to get to Sunday’s deciding game in New York.“We have plenty of concerns, of course, because we’re facing a great team. They have many top-class players, and I think they have a great coach as well,” De Paul said of England.“Those concerns simply keep us focused. We spend our time making sure they’re under control.”But the overwhelming emotion of being so tantalizingly close to the final is excitement.“Being just one step away from playing in another World Cup final... there’s no greater motivation than that,” De Paul told reporters as Argentina held their last training session.“Everyone loves playing in a World Cup. Every match is a final; that’s always how we’ve approached it. We’re facing a team we’ve never played before, a powerhouse that has done very well in this World Cup, just like the other four teams still here. It’s going to be a great match.“I’m very happy and full of adrenaline. Personally, I really enjoy these kinds of matches. I’m trying to fully experience the moment without letting emotions overwhelm us. So we’re putting a lot of thought into preparing for tomorrow’s game, especially staying calm and level-headed.”No team since Brazil in 1962 has ever successfully defended the trophy, and De Paul is under no illusions that Argentina will have to pull out all the stops if they are to keep their title.“We have done it in the Copa America, but I believe it’s always much harder to win again after you’ve already won. To stay at the top for so many years isn’t easy, and we’ve managed to do that. I’m very proud of my teammates,” De Paul added.“Yes, in the end, a World Cup and tournaments of this magnitude are decided by small details.”(Writing by Mark Gleeson in Atlanta; Editing by Christian Radnedge)Folarin Balogun Says Red Card Furor Caused ‘Outside Noise’ That Was ‘Hard To Avoid’U.S. star Folarin Balogun admitted Tuesday that the controversy surrounding his World Cup red card caused “outside noise” that made it “difficult” to focus ahead of his team’s exit from the tournament.The forward was sent off during the United States’ 2-0 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina, leaving the U.S. men’s national team without its leading goal scorer for the round of 16 clash against Belgium.Against the backdrop of claims the Monaco striker was unfairly dismissed, FIFA’s disciplinary committee lifted the suspension. But the furor ballooned when it emerged President Donald Trump called FIFA head Gianni Infantino to make the case that Balogun should not have been forced to sit out.Infantino insisted Trump’s intervention did not influence the reversal.In the event, the U.S. lost 4-1 to Belgium, exiting the World Cup with a disappointing performance.Appearing on “CBS Mornings” on Tuesday, Balogun was asked about the controversy. “My initial reaction was I was happy to be back in the team, but when I kind of started to reflect, I knew it was going to cause a lot of controversy, and I could almost see within my teammates a bit of nerves, because it’s something that is so unique,” he said.“But the closer we got to the game, I tried to just focus as best as I could, but it was difficult. A lot of outside noise, and that’s hard to avoid.”Folarin Balogun tells CBS Mornings what was going through his mind when he received a red card at the U.S. men’s #WorldCup game against Bosnia and Herzegovina: “I was definitely in shock.”He said he was “happy to be back on the team” after President Trump spoke to FIFA… pic.twitter.com/zY6Y46Tmjc— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) July 14, 2026'Intolerable': Top Spanish Official Apologizes For Ex-PM's Racist Remarks On French TeamMADRID/PARIS July 14 (Reuters) - Spain has apologized for a column penned by conservative former Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy contending that France’s men’s soccer team lacked French players, Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said on Tuesday.Albares told his French counterpart that Rajoy’s “intolerable” remarks, which he said “carry the poison of racism and xenophobia,” did not reflect the view of the overwhelming majority of Spaniards.“It’s a very serious matter to go around using skin color to determine who can be a citizen and who cannot,” Albares told Cadena SER radio, hours before Spain and France were to meet in the World Cup semi-finals.Rajoy, who was premier in 2011-2018, wrote in online publication El Debate on Friday that France would be a formidable adversary, before questioning the team’s “Frenchness” in an apparent reference to some players’ African and Afro-Caribbean heritage.“France has a squad of the very highest calibre. Mind you, there are no French players in it,” he said.Rajoy could not be immediately reached for comment.Borja Semper, a spokesperson for Rajoy’s People’s Party (PP), downplayed the issue, saying the column was written without ill intent and was meant as a sarcastic expression.Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who was in Paris for France’s National Day on Tuesday, had criticized “those who measure nationality by a person’s surname, birthplace or skin color” in a post on X describing Rajoy’s words as shamefully xenophobic. CONDEMNATION IN FRANCERajoy’s quip, which came days after a scandal over a racist rant by a Paraguayan senator against France captain Kylian Mbappe, was met with rare unity in France, drawing condemnation from the government and the far-right opposition party National Rally.“These comments are pathetic,” Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told BFM TV on Monday. “Once and for all, France has no skin color. Any statement to the contrary is a sign of idiocy, racism, or both combined.”National Rally spokesman Julien Odoul told Franceinfo TV Rajoy’s comments were “scandalous, shameful, deplorable”.“Rajoy is a racist, it’s as simple as that,” he said.Earlier in the championship, Paraguayan Senator Celeste Amarilla wrote a racist tirade on X following Paraguay’s elimination, describing Mbappe as a “colonized Cameroonian, desperately trying to pass himself off as French”.Mbappe responded defending not only himself but also the Paraguay players and describing Amarilla as despicable and unworthy of her job.The French Football Federation said it was filing a criminal complaint and Paraguay’s government dismissed Amarilla’s comments as “contrary to the values” promoted by the country.(Reporting by Javi West Larrañaga and Michel Rose; Editing by David Latona and Andrei Khalip)David Beckham Has Hilarious Explanation For Victoria’s Viral World Cup FaceVictoria Beckham has gone viral at the 2026 World Cup after a photo captured her looking distinctly nonplussed while her husband, former England soccer star David Beckham, leaped to his feet and punched the air in celebration.The fashion designer and former Spice Girl, famously known as Posh Spice, remained seated as her husband celebrated England’s dramatic 2-1 quarterfinal victory over Norway at Miami Stadium on Saturday.The image quickly spread online, prompting comedian Jenny Johnson to joke on Instagram:“There’s nothing like cheering your heart out for England from home, then they cut to Victoria and we see that classic Posh Spice smile! It’s so infectious! I used to think I got animated while watching sports, but Victoria blows my enthusiasm out of the water! Each time I see her I shout, ‘SPICE UP YOUR LIFE!!!!’ because her energy is electric!!! See for yourself!”David Beckham joined in on the joke in the comments, writing: “She was celebrating inside I promise,” alongside a crying-laughing emoji, before adding: “Her reactions were slightly slower than mine.”Other photos from the match show Victoria Beckham looking far more animated. Scroll to see.1/22/2Jimmy Fallon Puts Trump's Iran War Debacle In World Cup TermsJimmy Fallon on Monday put President Donald Trump’s Iran war ceasefire collapse into terms that World Cup fans could understand. Read more below.Spain Star Lamine Yamal’s 3-Year-Old Brother Becomes World Cup SensationKeyne, the 3-year-old brother of Spain soccer player Lamine Yamal, has become one of the breakout stars of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.Photos and videos of the toddler enthusiastically cheering on his 19-year-old brother have gone viral on social media. One moment in particular that captured fans' attention was when he was pictured on a stadium's gigantic screen sticking out his tongue and Lamine was filmed laughing at the sight from the pitch.Spain faces France in the first World Cup semifinal on Tuesday.Read more on The Guardian:Norway World Cup Star Erling Haaland Returns Home With Unexpected CompanionNorway soccer star Erling Haaland returned home from the World Cup with an unusual souvenir.The Manchester City striker was photographed carrying what appeared to be a taxidermied raccoon under his arm as he disembarked from a plane in Norway."It followed me home," Haaland quipped on X.World Cup Weather Watch: France vs. SpainHere's what fans can expect in Dallas for the first 2026 FIFA World Cup semifinal game between France and Spain on Tuesday, including temperatures, the Fan Comfort Index (FCI) level and any weather concerns.See more World Cup weather news on The Weather Channel.1/22/2See All Updates