World Cup 2026: What to Know Halfway Through Opening Round

Team USA and Mexico record commanding hometown victories. England, Argentina, and other World Cup favorites play their first games this week.
World Cup 2026: What to Know Halfway Through Opening Round
Folarin Balogun, No. 20, of the United States celebrates scoring his team's second goal with Weston McKennie, No. 8, during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group D match between the United States and Paraguay at Los Angeles Stadium in Los Angeles on June 12, 2026. Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
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Four days into the largest World Cup ever, only half of the nearly 50 qualifying teams have made their FIFA World Cup debut.

Those four days gave soccer fans a multi-goal display of home team dominance from Mexico City and Los Angeles, an up-and-comer’s push to neutralize an established favorite outside New York City, a victory in Boston nearly 40 years in the making, and more.

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T.J. Muscaro
T.J. Muscaro
Author
T.J. Muscaro is an award-winning reporter and NASA Correspondent for The Epoch Times, covering the Artemis program, Space Force, and other public and private ambitions within the growing space industry. Based in Tampa, Florida, he also covers stories of extreme weather and disaster relief, as well as various matters of national and international politics.