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England made a winning start to the 2026 World Cup as they beat Croatia 4-2 in their Group L opener on Wednesday. Harry Kane scored twice in the first half, only for the Three Lions to be pegged back on both occasions, and it required a brilliant solo goal from Jude Bellingham early in the second period to put Thomas Tuchel's side back ahead before Marcus Rashford made the points safe late on.

Portugal were held to a disappointing 1-1 draw by minnows DR Congo in their first World Cup group game, with a Yoane Wissa effort cancelling out Joao Neves' opener. Cristiano Ronaldo cut a frustrated figure up front, while Bernardo Silva also had an afternoon to forget as Roberto Martinez's side failed to live up to their billing as one of the pre-tournament favourites.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Argentina's World Cup title defence began nervously before Lionel Messi reminded everyone he is Lionel Messi. The 38-year-old scored a hat trick in a 3-0 win over Algeria before 69,045 fans at Kansas City Stadium. Messi's three-goal performance also moved him level with Miroslav Klose on 16 career World Cup goals, though Klose reached the mark in fewer matches.

Erling Haaland was the predictable protagonist as Norway picked up a crucial 4-1 victory over Iraq in their first World Cup match since 1998 on Tuesday. The Manchester City striker's first-half brace proved to be decisive, helping to ensure the dark horses made a winning start in Boston in the so-called 'Group of Death'.

They made hard work of it, but much-fancied France got their World Cup campaign off to a winning start as they eventually secured a 3-1 victory over Senegal in Group I. After a dire first-half display Les Bleus were transformed, with Kylian Mbappe - who had been particularly poor - delivering a brace either side of Bradley Barcola's fine finish to become his country's record goal-scorer.

Romelu Lukaku came off the bench to help Belgium avoid defeat in their World Cup opener, with the veteran striker playing a pivotal role in Mohamed Hany putting through his own net to earn the Red Devils a 1-1 draw with Egypt in Seattle. Rudi Garcia's men went into the Group G opener unbeaten in all competitions since March of last year but they looked set to slump to a shock defeat after Emam Ashour's terrific 19th-minute strike from outside the area.

Cape Verde pulled off the biggest shock of the 2026 World Cup so far by holding Spain to a 0-0 draw in Atalanta on Monday. The tournament debutants weren't given any chance whatsoever against the reigning European champions but 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha achieved instant cult status throughout the footballing world by making one save after another to keep La Roja at bay.

The Netherlands conceded a late equaliser as they were held to a 2-2 draw by Japan in their opening game of the 2026 World Cup. Second-half strikes from Virgil van Dijk and Crysencio Summerville looked to have got the Oranje over the line, but they were pegged back on both occasions as Group F began in Dallas.

Germany made an early statement at the 2026 World Cup as they ran out 7-1 winners over tournament debutants Curacao. A brace from Kai Havertz and goals from Felix Nmecha, Nico Schlotterbeck, Jamal Musiala, Nathaniel Brown and Deniz Undav ensured a relatively straightforward introduction to Group E for Die Mannschaft, though they were given something of a shock when Curacao found the net midway through the first half.

Scotland waited 28 years for this. Haiti waited five decades. In a match between two sides desperate to make their World Cup return count, John McGinn provided the moment that mattered, turning a lucky bounce into the lone goal as the Tartan Army escaped Boston Stadium with a 1-0 win, Scotland’s first victory at the tournament since Italia ’90.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Vinicius Jr scored a wonderful goal to give life to an otherwise languid Brazil performance as the Selecao settled for a 1-1 draw with Morocco to open their World Cup campaign. Brazil started slowly and conceded first, but a moment of magic from their main man restored parity before the break. Both sides, it seems, will take the point with more manageable opposition to come.

It was a near-perfect World Cup opener for Mauricio Pochettino's side as they swept away their opponents in a way that will be remembered for a long, long time.

Cyle Larin came off the bench to spare Jonathan David's blushes by earning Canada a 1-1 draw with Bosnia and Herzegovina in their 2026 World Cup opener on Friday. The Canucks were the better side for the majority of the match but looked set to slump to a seventh consecutive finals defeat after Lovo Jukic headed in a near-post flick from Sead Kolasinac midway through the first half.

The Asian powerhouse kicked off their World Cup campaign with a hard-fought win over Miroslav Koubek's men

The Feyenoord man made the difference to give his nation a perfect start to the showpiece across Mexico, USA and Canada

Mexico made the perfect start to their 2026 World Cup campaign as the co-hosts ran out 2-0 winners over South Africa in the opening game of the tournament on Thursday. Goals from Julian Quinones and Raul Jimenez ensured a routine victory for the Group A favourites in a game that featured three red cards in the second half.

England completed their World Cup preparations with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Costa Rica in their rain-delayed final warm-up friendly on Wednesday. It was a bruising encounter against a physical opponent, but Thomas Tuchel's men kept their cool to dominate in the sweltering Orlando heat courtesy of goals from Declan Rice, Anthony Gordon and Ollie Watkins.