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The USMNT had a chance to change perceptions on home soil, but a 4-1 loss to Belgium instead raised familiar questions about progress, pressure and missed opportunity.

Christian Pulisic went quiet, Mauricio Pochettino fell short and the USMNT’s dream run ended with a brutal reality check against Belgium.

After building so much goodwill through the summer, the U.S. saw it all fall apart with their worst performance of this World Cup.

Cristiano Ronaldo's World Cup career was brought to a bitterly disappointing close as Portugal were defeated 1-0 by their neighbours Spain in the last 16 of the 2026 World Cup on Monday. The legendary attacker was peripheral before Mikel Merino's stoppage-time strike settled an underwhelming heavyweight tie in Dallas.

Substitute Mikel Merino scored a late winner as Spain edged Portugal 1-0 in an unexpectedly drab World Cup round-of-16 clash on Monday. The Arsenal midfielder was introduced in the 85th minute and won the game in the 91st with a tidy finish that was just about deserved. La Roja were ineffective for long stretches, and created little, but Merino proved to be the difference-maker.

Chris Wondolowski backs the USMNT to make a World Cup run as the Quakes legend reflects on his own tournament journey and the Bay Area’s soccer buzz.

Every USMNT World Cup goal has sparked joy far beyond the pitch, with families, friends, and loved ones sharing in moments years in the making.

The World Cup was actually becoming somewhat enjoyable. After the almost complete removal of jeopardy from the group stage caused by the tournament's farcical format, the overdue start of knockout football has unsurprisingly provided us with some genuine excitement - so much so, in fact, that you've probably already forgotten how disgracefully Iran were treated by the United States. Or that referee Omar Artan - along with millions of other Africans - wasn't even allowed to attend.

For some football fans, the summer is the part of the calendar that they look forward to the most - and that's not just because it's filled by a World Cup every four years! Rather, it's because the end of the season means only one thing: It's time for transfers! The 2026 window is once again proving to be busy, with some huge names making big-money moves before deadline day on September 1.

Well, it was never going to be easy, was it? If England were to win at the Azteca - something that only two teams had managed before in a competitive fixture - there were going to be bumps, bruises and a fair few scares. What probably wasn't accounted for, though, was total chaos. And that's what this was: a back and forth, gutsy, often brilliant, consistently nerve-wracking and, ultimately, glorious 3-2 win over Mexico that provided an immense boost to England's World Cup hopes.

Last week was really quite something for Tottenham Hotspur. Despite finishing 17th in each of the past two Premier League seasons, the north Londoners have signed two of the most coveted midfielders presently operating in England, Matheus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali. Spurs may have overpaid for both, but the club's long-suffering supporters are nonetheless delighted after seeing their transfer record broken twice in a matter of days, given former executive chairman Daniel Levy repeatedly refused to push the boat out to sign top talent.

Mikel Oyarzabal was one of five Real Sociedad players in Spain's Euro 2024 squad. No other club had more. But neither Oyarzabal nor his fellow Basques made a song and dance about their role in Spain's success in Germany. "That would be us," he told The Guardian. "[We] don't like being in the spotlight." It's getting harder and harder for him to avoid it, though.

Mexico’s historic World Cup run ended in heartbreak at the Azteca, as Julián Quiñones starred and Raúl Jiménez gave El Tri hope before Jude Bellingham powered England to a thrilling 3-2 win.

England produced one of their greatest World Cup performances to beat Mexico 3-2 on Sunday and book a place in the quarter-finals of the 2026 tournament. Jude Bellingham scored twice in the first half while Harry Kane kept himself in the Golden Boot race with a penalty as the Three Lions held on for victory despite playing the bulk of the second half with 10 men following a red card for Jarell Quansah.

The narrative is centered around one particular player, but Monday's Round of 16 game will need to be a team effort from the USMNT

The U.S. have their star striker back, and head into a fixture against top European opposition in a far better place than many might have imagined.

Brazil's wait to win their sixth World Cup will stretch to 28 years after they were eliminated from the 2026 tournament by Norway on Saturday. Erling Haaland's late double secured a 2-1 win for the Scandinavians, who took advantage of Bruno Guimaraes missing an early penalty to win through to the quarter-finals for the first time.