The 43-year-old Spaniard, who replaced Carlo Ancelotti at the helm, along with new arrivals Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dean Huijsen add a fresh look to a team that emerged battered and bruised from a domestic season dominated by bitter rivals Barcelona.

So far, 13 teams have sealed their place. Alongside co-hosts Canada, Mexico, and the USA, ten more countries have booked their spots:

Celebrities and soccer stars were due to walk the red carpet at the Fox Studio Lot in Los Angeles - one of the host cities - for the year-to-go event there, a day after President Trump deployed Marines and the National Guard to quell protests.

The 24-year-old from Fuerte Apache, long tagged as a “gamble” in Argentina’s setup, has finally shed that label and cemented his place as a genuine national team player.

“Not the result we wanted! But we can be proud as a team and as a nation!! We need to stay positive because we’re only just getting started and inshaAllah we will be where we want to be very soon!” Hamza wrote in a heartfelt social media post after the match.

The five-time world champions -- the only team to appear in every edition of the World Cup - punched their ticket to the finals with the first win of new coach Carlo Ancelotti's reign.

Tony Popovic's Socceroos, who went into the third round's final match day heavy favourites to progress, defeated direct rivals Saudi Arabia 2-1 in Jeddah to seal the second automatic qualification spot in Group C.

Argentina were dealt a major blow when Enzo Fernandez was shown a red card, leaving the hosts with ten men for a large portion of the match. Colombia capitalised on the numerical advantage early, taking the lead through Luis Diaz in the 24th minute.

Senegal became the first African team to beat England in 22 games on Tuesday, winning 3-1 in a friendly at the City Ground thanks to goals from Ismaila Sarr, Habib Diarra and Cheikh Sabaly.

"Let me be clear, it's not about ideology. It's not about whether I'm right, or you're wrong. It's just about the love of life, about the care of your neighbour."

Banners bearing the portrait of Hamza Choudhury waved high as supporters of all ages celebrated the occasion like a festival-- proving that when the stakes are high, Bangladeshi football can still command a crowd.

Since making his senior debut in 2005, Messi has scored 112 goals in 192 appearances for Argentina, winning the World Cup in 2022, two Copa America titles and a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

The instructions were shared through a press release from BFF’s media department yesterday. According to the notice, although the match kicks off at 7 pm, stadium gates will open for spectators at 2 pm.

Elsewhere Manchester City star Erling Haaland's goal lifted Norway past Estonia, Luka Modric was among the scorers in Croatia's 5-1 rout of the Czech Republic, and the Faroes Islands left it late to down Gibraltar 2-1.

Ahead of their highly anticipated second-round match of the Asian Cup Qualifiers against Singapore on Wednesday at the National Stadium (7pm Bangladesh Time), the Bangladesh team held a training session under the guidance of head coach Javier Cabrera to fine-tune preparations today.

Ahead of Bangladesh’s crunch AFC Asian Cup Qualifier match against Singapore on June 10 -- a sold-out home fixture during the Eid-ul-Adha break -- Mitul finds himself once again in the spirit of sacrifice.

Uriah Rennie, the first Black referee in the Premier League, has died aged 65, the Sheffield and Hallamshire County Football Association said on Sunday.

Cristiano Ronaldo's coach and team-mates praised his leadership after Sunday's Nations League final win over Spain in Munich.

The triumph, which left the five-times Champions League winner in tears, was Ronaldo's third on the international stage, accompanying his 2016 European Championship and 2019 Nations League winners' medals.

Bangladeshi-origin footballer Nabil Irfan has earned a call-up to the Qatar men’s national team after head coach Julen Lopetgui summoned him for their AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers match against Uzbekistan on June 10.