1. CANADA VS BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA — TORONTO, TODAY
Canada make their long-awaited home World Cup debut against Bosnia and Herzegovina at BMO Field in Toronto this afternoon (3pm ET / 7pm Ghana). The history is not kind to Canada — six World Cup games played across 1986 and 2022, six losses, not a single point won. After a pointless campaign in Qatar four years ago, this is their chance to finally register a positive World Cup result on home soil. Bosnia and Herzegovina are appearing in only their second World Cup finals. The second opening ceremony of the tournament takes place beforehand, with performances from international stars before the match.
2. USA VS PARAGUAY — LOS ANGELES, TONIGHT
The United States open their home World Cup tonight against Paraguay at Los Angeles Stadium in Inglewood (9pm ET / 1am Ghana Saturday). It is the first meeting between the two nations at a World Cup since 1930 — when Bert Patenaude scored the first hat-trick in World Cup history for the USA in a 3-0 win. The stakes are entirely different this time. Mauricio Pochettino's side are ranked 16th in the world and carry the weight of a nation's expectations in their first World Cup under the Argentine. Paraguay arrive unbeaten in eight matches including wins over Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, conceding just 10 goals in 18 CONMEBOL qualifiers — one of the most miserly defences in South America. Chris Richards is fit after recovering from his ankle injury and starts alongside Tim Ream. Predicted USA lineup: Freese; Freeman, McKenzie, Ream, A. Robinson; McKennie, Adams; Dest, Tillman, Pulisic; Balogun. Key Paraguay man to watch: Atlanta United winger Miguel Almiron. Referee: Danny Makkelie.
3. BRAZIL OPEN TOMORROW VS MOROCCO — NEYMAR STILL A DOUBT
Brazil begin their World Cup campaign tomorrow against Morocco — 2022 semi-finalists — at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Neymar remains a major doubt with his Grade 2 calf strain, having missed every warm-up game. Carlo Ancelotti is expected to start without him, with Raphinha and Vinicius Junior leading the attack and Endrick or Igor Thiago through the middle. Brazil are the most successful nation in World Cup history but have not won the title in 24 years — the longest drought of their history. Ancelotti, in his first major tournament as Brazil coach, faces immediate pressure in what is considered a winnable group opener.
4. GROUP A WIDE OPEN AFTER DAY ONE — MEXICO AND SOUTH KOREA BOTH WIN
Group A produced the most dramatic opening day in World Cup history on Thursday. Mexico beat South Africa 2-0 through goals from Julian Quinones and Raul Jimenez, but the game is remembered for three red cards — the most in a single World Cup match ever, with South Africa finishing with nine men. In the late game, South Korea came from behind to beat Czechia 2-1 — Krejci's opener cancelled out by goals from Hwang In-beom and Oh Hyeon-gyu in an eight-minute spell. Both Mexico and South Korea sit on three points after day one. South Africa face their second game already down two suspended players — Sithole and Zwane both miss out through suspension.
5. CAN THE USA WIN IT ALL? THE STATS CASE
ESPN published an extensive statistical breakdown this week making the case that the United States could realistically win the 2026 World Cup on home soil — pointing to their favourable group draw, home advantage across all group games in Los Angeles and Seattle, and the historical precedent of host nations performing above expectations (France 1998, South Korea 2002 semi-final, Russia 2018 quarter-final). Pochettino has called the USA's recent 5-2 defeat to Belgium a "reality check" that came at the right time. Tonight's game against Paraguay is the first real test of whether that talk translates to results. The USA have reached the knockout stage in each of their last three World Cups — matching or beating that would already represent progress for a golden generation built around Pulisic, Adams, McKennie and Balogun.
