SIX TEAMS HAVE ALREADY QUALIFIED FOR THE 2030 WORLD CUP DUE TO UNIQUE FIFA RULE

The winners of the World Cup will not qualify automatically for the next tournament

Spain absolutely battering Argentina in the World Cup final isn’t the reason why they will automatically qualify for the next tournament in 2030.

Six host nation countries have already secured their places in the next World Cup.

The tournament's three main co-hosts, Spain, Portugal and Morocco, as well as Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay will automatically qualify for the next edition in four years time.

FIFA’s 2030 competition will be held from Saturday, 8 June to Sunday, 21 July, with the opening three matches taking place in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay.

These South American countries have been chosen to play first to commemorate 100 years of the World Cup, which was hosted and won by Uruguay in 1930.

Where will the opening 2030 World Cup game be played?

Spain were the best team in the tournament by a mile (Carl Recine/Getty Images)

The opening game will be held at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, Argentina, which boasts a capacity of 100,000.

Estadio Osvaldo Dominguez Dibb, a brand new venue in Paraguay, and the Montevideo in Uruguay will also host opening matches.

After those three games, the World Cup will shift to the Northern Hemisphere in 18 stadiums across Spain, Morocco and Portugal.

Ugly scenes at full-time (Marvin Ibo Guengoer - GES Sportfoto/Getty Images)

It comes after FIFA boss Gianni Infantino wants to controversially expand the World Cup to a 64-team tournament in 2030 following the success of the expanded 48-team competition this year.

"These are all issues that we will be examining after the World Cup," Infantino told Blue Sport.

"When organising a World Cup, it's important to organise it for the whole world - not just Europe and South America, but effectively the entire world. Every nation should be allowed to dream of participating in the World Cup.

"You can see that the quality of the teams is extremely high, and it's getting higher and higher, all over the world. If you don't give smaller countries a chance to participate in the World Cup, they'll lack the incentive to keep improving."

No Messi or Ronaldo

The end of an era (Paul ELLIS / AFP via Getty Images)

Sadly, the squads of host nations Argentina and Portugal are unlikely to include the two greatest players of all time in Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

After Spain’s convincing 1-0 final, Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni was full of praise for Messi: “He is 39 years old, it is unbelievable. It was always crystal clear to me that he would play until he chose to stop and that everyone would support him.

“I hope everyone is proud of him, because he is the best football player ever to set foot on a pitch.”

Both Messi and Ronaldo are yet to comment officially on their international futures.

On the result, Scaloni added: “I feel sadness but knowing that we left everything out there.

“I have a lot of things to say about how we got here, but it’s not worth it.

“I want to thank these guys eternally for giving us another World Cup final and for competing until the end. They were better, that’s the truth.

“But I’ll hold on to an enormous memory of what they have done, of what it’s worth to get this far. We have to give it huge validity because it takes a lot to get here.”

Featured Image Credit: Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images

- Anish Vij

KYLIAN MBAPPÉ CONDEMNS 'DESPICABLE' PARAGUAYAN SENATOR OVER VILE RACIST RANT AFTER FRANCE WORLD CUP CLASH

 

France edged out Paraguay to book their place in the World Cup quarter-finals (Picture: Getty)

Kylian Mbappe has hit back after Paraguayan senator Celeste Amarilla targeted him with a sickening racist attack on social media following France’s 1-0 win at the World Cup.

Mbappe’s 70th-minute penalty proved decisive in Saturday’s bad-tempered last-16 clash between Les Bleus, the two-time winners, and one of the surprise packages of this summer’s tournament in Paraguay.

Paraguay’s physical approach drew widespread criticism from fans and pundits alike, with ex-England goalkeeper Joe Hart branding the side’s ugly tactics and gamesmanship an ‘absolute disgrace’.

Before a ball had even been kicked, Paraguayan legend Jose Luis Chilabert had caused uproar with some vile remarks in his homeland, in which he claimed his country were essentially facing an ‘African team’ in Philadelphia.

The unsavoury war of words did not cease once France had safely secured their spot in the quarter-finals, and just days after Chilavert’s outburst, it was Amarilla who made headlines for all the wrong reasons with a shocking rant on X, formerly Twitter.

Reacting to a photograph of Mbappe supposedly celebrating in the face of Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill, Amarilla, of Paraguay’s Liberal Radical Party, wrote: ‘The brute didn’t even learn to write.

‘Instead of mother’s milk, he sucked on coconuts, and the most educated thing he heard were chimpanzees.

Amarilla suggested Mbappe had been raised by ‘chimpanzees’ in a vile social media outburst (Picture: Getty)

Mbappe is the joint-leading goalscorer at the tournament (Picture: Getty

‘You should’ve shown him the finger, Orlando Gill; I do it in the senate and nothing happens!!!’

Twenty-four hours on from Amarilla’s despicable rant, a defiant Mbappe issued his response, in which he claimed the politician had overshadowed Paraguay’s achievements at the World Cup with her ‘brazen racism’.

‘Madame Celeste Amarilla, you are a despicable woman and unworthy of your position,’ Mbappe wrote on X.

‘You do not represent Paraguay, that country which has sweated passion and honour throughout the competition.

Through your recklessness and your brazen racism, the entire world has already forgotten the journey and the historic effort that your players accomplished during this World Cup, making way for an incompetent woman who gives the worst possible image of her country.

‘I will never allow people like her the freedom to spread their hatred and racism across the world.

It comes after the French Football Federation released a statement condemning Chilavert’s pre-match remarks, with the former Paraguay goalkeeper labelled a ‘disgrace’.

‘I condemn in the strongest possible terms the racist remarks made by Jose Luis Chilavert against the French national team, which undermine the values of respect, fraternity, and diversity in our football,’ FFF president Philippe Diallo said.

‘If he was once a great goalkeeper, this man has now fallen into disgrace.’

France – the 2022 runners-up – will resume their campaign versus Morocco at 9pm BST on Thursday, with a match against one of Portugal, Spain, Belgium and the USA awaiting the victor.

Mbappe is the joint-top scorer at this summer’s tournament alongside Erling Haaland and Lionel Messi, having scored seven goals in his five appearances for Les Bleus.

- Tom Olver

ROUND OF 16 BRACKET | FIFA WORLD CUP 2026

 

REFEREE JALAL JAYED FROM MOROCCO IS THE MOTM | PARAGUAY VS. GERMANY

 

PARAGUAY STUNS GERMANY IN THE PENALTY SHOOTOUT FOR THE BIGGEST UPSET OF THE 2026 WORLD CUP

José Canale scored on the first sudden-death penalty kick, Orlando Gill made two key saves in the shootout, and Paraguay beat Germany 4-3 on penalties to earn the biggest upset of the 2026 World Cup

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- José Canale wasn’t in the starting lineup in either of his previous two appearances for Paraguay in this World Cup.

He made his first start a memorable one.

Canale scored on the first sudden-death penalty kick, Orlando Gill made two key saves in the shootout, and Paraguay beat Germany 4-3 on penalties Monday to earn the biggest upset of the 2026 World Cup.

It was a major triumph for the landlocked South American country of 7 million people that's surrounded by soccer giants like Argentina and Brazil. And it was the latest surprising exit by Germany, a four-time champion that has struggled at the World Cup since it last lifted the trophy in 2014.

“I think we deserved one more game and to be honest, considering everything that was said, everything we went through,” Canale said. “What I want to highlight from our team is how united we are. ... Today was a game we really needed to show our true colors.”

Paraguay’s goalkeeper Orlando Gill celebrates after winning the penalty shootout of the 2026 World Cup round-of-32 match between Germany and Paraguay at Boston Stadium in Foxborough on June 29, 2026 [AFP]

Paraguayans celebrated in the streets of the capital, Asunción, screaming, jumping and hugging when the match ended. Some cried and dropped to their knees in disbelief, with the familiar beat of the team’s song “Soy Albirrojo” reverberating through the crowd.

Paraguay became the first team to defeat Germany in a penalty shootout at the World Cup. The Germans missed three of six penalty tries, the last by Jonathan Tah, who blasted his attempt high over the crossbar in the first sudden-death round, setting up Canale for the winner. Tah's miss followed a save by German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer of Fabian Balbuena's attempt that would have won it for Paraguay.

Tah also thought he had the go-ahead goal in extra time. He headed in a corner kick by Nathaniel Brown in the 102nd minute, but officials concluded after a video review that Waldemar Anton has pushed Gill to the ground before the shot and the goal was disallowed.

The Round of 32 match ended 1-1 after extra time. Paraguay took the lead when Julio Enciso scored on a header late in the first half, but Kai Havertz equalized in the 52nd minute for Germany.

“We had to analyze every player, every detail. Thanks to that I was able to only miss two penalties,” Gill said. “This is for all the people of Paraguay.”

Paraguay, which entered the match ranked 41st by FIFA, became the deepest betting long shot to win a match in this World Cup. Germany came in as the 10th-ranked team in the world.

The Paraguayans will face the winner of Tuesday’s match between France and Sweden in the Round of 16 on Saturday in Philadelphia. A win on the 250th anniversary of the United States' founding would send Paraguay back to Foxborough for the quarterfinals on July 9.

Germany had won six of seven penalty shootouts in major tournaments, including six straight since losing to Czechoslovakia in the 1976 European Championship final.

“It’s not enough for German football,” coach Julian Nagelsmann said.

In the only previous World Cup match between the teams, Germany beat Paraguay 1-0 in the round of 16 at the 2002 tournament. Nearly a quarter-century later, Paraguay got its revenge.

Paraguay had appeared in five previous knockout games but failed to score in each. It had advanced only once, winning on penalty kicks against Japan in the round of 16 at the 2010 tournament in South Africa. It fell that year to eventual champion Spain in the quarterfinals.

Monday was Germany’s first knockout game since the 2014 final in Brazil, when the Germans beat Argentina 1-0. The Germans were eliminated in the group stage at the last two tournaments.

“We had very big plans for this World Cup. It’s very difficult to disappoint again,” Havertz said. “It was difficult to create chances and keep the pace.”

Paraguay broke the early stalemate in the 42nd minute Monday with some perfect ball movement to set up Enciso.

Miguel Almiron split Germany’s Aleksandar Pavlovic and Nathaniel Brown with a left-footed pass to Matias Galarza. Galarza sent a cross to Enciso, who was unmarked by Germany’s defenders and easily headed it past Neuer.

In the second half, Havertz took a cross from Florian Wirtz, which he got just enough head on to redirect it past Gill.

Germany, whose 10 goals in the group stage was tied for the most of any team, struggled to find a way through Paraguay’s 4-5-1 setup. The Germans had 78% of the possession in the first half.

Paraguay was without defender Omar Alderete, who left with an injury in the second half of its 0-0 draw against Australia. Canale started in his place.

Paraguay opened the World Cup with a 4-1 loss to the United States, then beat Turkey 1-0 while playing the entire second half with 10 men. A scoreless draw against Australia was good enough for Paraguay to reach the knockout stage as the third-place finisher from Group D.

- KYLE HIGHTOWER AP sports writer

GROUP D STANDINGS | FIFA WORLD CUP 2026

 

USA 🇺🇸 4-1 PARAGUAY 🇵🇾 | HIGHLIGHTS | FIFA WORLD CUP 2026

 

USA MAKES HISTORY IN WORLD CUP WIN VS. PARAGUAY

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 12: Folarin Balogun #20 of the United States celebrates scoring his team's third goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group D match between USA and Paraguay at Los Angeles Stadium on June 12, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

The U.S. national team reached multiple milestones in a historic 4-1 victory over Paraguay in the World Cup on Friday night at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.

For the first time ever, the U.S. built a 3–0 first half lead in a World Cup, and the U.S. won its highest-scoring World Cup match ever. Folarin Balogun scored two goals for the U.S. and became the first multi-goal scorer in a U.S. game at the World Cup since Pert Patenaude. The former U.S. standout had a hat trick in 1930. Ironically, the U.S. also beat Paraguay in that match.

Even Weston McKennie’s opening goal for the U.S. had historic overtones. He had the  third-earliest goal in an opening match by a host team in World Cup history, according to Opta. France did it in 35 seconds in the 1938 World Cup, and Germany did it in 5:08 in 2006.

With Friday’s win, the U.S. also produced its biggest output ever with four goals, and the U.S. scored three goals in a game for the first time since 2002. For the U.S., it also marked the first World Cup game on home soil since a 1-0 loss to Brazil in 1994 at Stanford, California, which also marked the last time the U.S. hosted the worldwide soccer event.

USA Came Out Strong Against Paraguay

Paraguay threatened first in the Group D match with a strong attack in the first three minutes, but U.S. goalkeeper Matt Freese made the stop in the first save of the match. The U.S. then attacked with Tim Weah’s shot, but the game stayed 0–0 with Paraguay keeper Orlando Gill’s save.

McKennie struck first for the U.S. just seven minutes into the match as he took the feed from Christian Pulisic, an AC Milan star. McKennie kept control against Paraguay defender Damian Bobadilla to punch in the goal.

As the U.S. controlled possession throughout the first half, opportunity arrived again when McKennie nearly scored his second goal in the 29th minute. Officials nixed it due to an offsides call, but the U.S. bounced back two minutes later as Folarin Balogun scored off of Pulisic’s pass. It marked Balogun’s 10th goal for the U.S. in international competition.

Despite  that many goals, Friday marked Balogun’s World Cup debut with the U.S. The New York native opted for the U.S. in 2023 after time in the English soccer system.

Chris Richards tried to make it 3-0 for the U.S., but he hit it wide with his shot at the 37th minute. Balogun then made it 3-0 with his second goal, just 12 minutes later.

The U.S. held the 3-0 lead through most of the second half, dominating possession, but Paraguay got on the board at the 73rd minute as Mauricio put a shot past Freese. Julio Enciso set it up for Paraguay with the assist. 

Gio Reyna then made it 4–1 for the U.S. after the 90-minute mark. The U.S. walked away with an opening win in front of 70,492, and it paled in comparison to the last World Cup appearance in Qatar for 2022. That year, the U.S. only scored three goals for the entire competition.

USA Still Has Paraguay’s Number

The U.S. won a fourth consecutive match against Paraguay on Friday, and the U.S. improved to 5-2-2 all-time against the country in the process. That includes the nation’s only other World Cup meeting in 1930 when the U.S. won 3-0 behind Patenaude’s hat trick.

The U.S. will take on Australia next in Group D play on June 19 at Lumen Field in Seattle. Australia opens Group Day play on Saturday against Turkey in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Another win helps the U.S. solidify chances to advance to the knockout rounds, which the U.S. has done in three of the past four World Cups. During the last World Cup in the U.S. in 1994, the U.S. made it to the Round of 16 and bowed out against Brazil. The U.S. went 4-1-1 that year. 

- Matthew Davis

USA DESTROY PARAGUAY IN THEIR OPENING MATCH | FIFA WORLD CUP 2026

 

LAST STANDINGS OF COMENBOL 2026 WORD CUP QUALIFYING

 

BRAZIL 1-0 PARAGUAY | WORLD CUP QUALIFIER

 

LIONEL MESSI JERSEYS TO TEST

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni is confident there will be Lionel Messi jerseys in the home section despite the Paraguayan Football Association's (APF) ban on rival shirts ahead of Thursday's South American World Cup 2026 qualifier.

Argentina will play Paraguay at the Defensores del Chaco stadium in Asuncion on Thursday, and APF manager Fernando Villasboa warned the home crowd to wear only Paraguayan shirts as no jerseys from Argentina, Argentine clubs or clubs that contain the names of players from other countries will be allowed.

"We won't allow the other team's shirt. It's not a problem against Messi. We respect the careers of all footballers. It's just that the home ground is very important to us," Villasboa told a news conference on Wednesday.

Paraguay coach Gustavo Alfaro said: "I have nothing to do with the T-shirt ban. I had no idea about that. I think the idea is to reduce the margin of a possible source of conflict."

"Messi is our rival tomorrow, I wish him the best game of his life against Peru, but not tomorrow," he added.

However, Scaloni said the global impact of Argentina's No. 10, the country's all-time leading scorer and World Cup winner, is far greater.

"Logically, for the Paraguayan footballer, for the fan, they all want to wear the national team shirt. But Leo [Messi] is stronger than all that and there will be Argentina shirts," Scaloni told a news conference on Wednesday.

"It doesn't mean they don't support Paraguay. I think it's good that football people recognise what he is. And it's not because you have a shirt that you become an Argentina fan."

Argentina sit atop the South American standings on 22 points, three clear of Colombia. After the Paraguay match, they will host Peru on Nov. 19.

- Reuters 

LAST-GASP LUIZ HENRIQUE EFFORT GIVES BRAZIL WIN AT CHILE

Getty

Lacklustre Brazil pulled off a last-gasp 2-1 away victory over Chile in the South American World Cup qualifiers on Thursday thanks to a goal by substitute Luiz Henrique scored in the 89th minute.

Off the back of a disappointing loss to Paraguay, Brazil had to recover from a goal down as Eduardo Vargas put the locals in front with a fine header from a Felipe Loyola cross in the second minute.

Chile wasted chances to extend their lead but Brazil managed to find the equaliser in added time before the break, when Savinho made a good run down the right and crossed to Igor Jesus who nodded a towering header past the goalkeeper.

Brazil controlled the second half and found a winner late with a fine effort by Jesus' Botafogo teammate Luiz Henrique, who slotted a curling strike from the edge of the box to rescue the five-time World Cup champions three much needed points.

The victory lifted Brazil to fourth in the standings with 13 points, two behind Uruguay and eight from leaders Argentina.

Game Information

Estadio Nacional Julio Martínez Prádanos

3:00 AM, October 11, 2024

Santiago, Chile

Line: BRA -0.5

Over/Under: 2.5

Referees: Dario Herrera

ISRAELI DELEGATION FACES THREATS AND ABUSE AT PARIS OLYMPICS

 Latest Developments

French authorities opened an investigation into spectators who carried a banner declaring “Genocide Olympics,” chanted “Heil Hitler,” performed Nazi salutes, and otherwise tormented the Israeli team and its fans at the Paraguay-Israel soccer match on July 27. Stewards removed anti-Israel demonstrators from the stadium hosting the match as part of the Paris Olympics. At Israel’s previous match against Mali on July 24, a bomb scare prompted French police to cordon off areas near the venue. Separately, a false alarm at the airport prevented Israel’s president from deplaning for 40 minutes.

Expert Analysis

“Sports are supposed to bring people together to celebrate human achievement and the camaraderie of competition. Instead, anti-Israel protests have tarnished the sanctity of the Olympics by spreading hate and threatening the athletes.” — David May, FDD Research Manager and Senior Research Analyst

“The bitter irony of spectators waving a banner falsely accusing Israel of ‘genocide’ chanting Hitler’s name to emphasize their point shouldn’t be lost on anyone.”— Ben Cohen, FDD Senior Analyst and Rapid Response Manager

Israeli Delegation Faces Death Threats

On July 18 and 19, prior to the start of the games, 15 Israeli athletes and their teams received identical emails in Hebrew warning them they would be killed if they went to France. On July 25, Israel’s National Cyber Directorate concluded that Iranian hackers published the personal information of Israeli athletes and sent them threatening messages. On the same day, Israel’s foreign minister warned his French counterpart of an Iran-backed plot to target Israeli athletes and visitors. In response to the threats, France is escorting Israeli athletes to and from matches at the Olympics with elite tactical units and providing the Israelis with 24-hour protection.

Israeli Athletes Face Discrimination

Judo competitors from Morocco and Tajikistan refused to shake their Israeli opponent’s hand following their respective matches, contravening standard practice in the sport. Judo’s governing body is investigating a separate incident in which an Algerian failed to meet the weight requirement, allegedly intentionally so that he would not have to face his Israeli opponent on July 29. Additionally, Olympic officials denied an Iraqi request to “relocate or remove” an Israeli flag at a Lyon stadium that was next to an Iraqi flag.

Meanwhile, the International Olympic Committee has not allowed Israelis to wear yellow ribbons, which represent the campaign to free hostages held in Gaza. This is in line with Olympic regulations forbidding athletes from making political statements. However, Waseem Abu Sal, one of the Palestinian delegation’s two flag-bearers wore a shirt depicting a warplane dropping missiles on children playing sports. Abu Sal described the political nature of the shirt, which “represents the current picture in Palestine,” while the president of the Palestine Olympic Committee said Olympic officials approved the shirt.

FAITH IN YOUTH CONTINUES TO PAY OFF AS JAPAN MARCH ON INTO OLYMPIC QUARTERFINALS

Japan booked their place in the Olympic men's football tournament on Saturday with a game to spare after Rihito Yamamoto scrambled home the only goal of the game in the 82nd minute for a 1-0 win over Mali. Koji Watanabe/Getty Images

 Japan are no strangers to going far in the men's football tournament at the Olympics.

Even if they are still to establish themselves among the world's top teams, Japan have finished fourth in two of the past three editions of the Games -- narrowly missing out on a coveted medal in both London and on home soil in Tokyo.

But even with the high standards they have set for themselves in recent times, the Paris Olympics are going better than expected.

With two games down and one still to go in the group stage, Japan are just one of two teams to have already booked their place in the quarterfinals -- alongside newly-crowned European champions Spain.

Granted, the Samurai Blue are hardly slouches considering they are one of Asia's traditional powerhouses and currently sit a creditable 18th in the FIFA world rankings.

Yet, the fact that Japan are the only team in the ongoing men's football tournament to have fielded an entirely under-23 team -- opting against turning to the three allowed overage players -- makes their displays so far that much more impressive.

An opening-day 5-0 rout of Paraguay was followed up by a less straightforward 1-0 win over Mali on Saturday evening.

While the emphatic triumph over Paraguay -- which was aided by an early red card for the opposition -- was a display of cohesion and panache, the victory over Mali perhaps gave a stronger indication over the legitimacy of their medal quest.

On this occasion, they faced a much tougher challenge -- especially without a numerical advantage.

It meant that, even though they still tried -- and, at times, managed -- to play with the same sort of expansiveness that they achieved against the Paraguayans, the contest was not always on their terms.

Mali, with plenty of pace down the wings and a direct approach led by spearhead Cheickna Doumbia, also caused the Japanese far more uncomfortable moments than they had endured in their campaign opener.

And still, Japan passed the test -- although it might have been a far different story if Doumbia had not missed an injury-time penalty.

Goalkeeper Leo Kokubo showed why he could be a pivotal figure -- especially for a team that is constanly looking to be on the front foot -- with a series of fine saves.

In the engine room, captain Joel Chima Fujita and Rihito Yamamoto never stopped trying to initiate the brand of football coach Go Oiwa is asking of them, with the latter eventually emerging as the match-winner with an opportunistic strike with just eight minutes remaining.

The Samurai Blue also showed they have decent depth with the likes of Ryotaro Araki and Fuki Yamada coming into the starting XI, while Kein Sato and Shota Fujio again offered an injection of energy coming off the bench.

For a squad bereft of experienced campaigners, the way they grinded out the result was exactly what will be required come the knockout round -- especially if Japan want to claim a first men's football medal since 1968.

If Tuesday's final round of group-stage action plays out as expected, the Japanese should avoid a clash with Spain and will be confident in their prospects regardless of whether it is Egypt or Dominican Republic they meet in the last eight.

Still, it could very likely be Argentina -- boasting notable names such as Julián Álvarez and Nicolás Otamendi -- that will be waiting if they reach the semis.

If they do have to settle for the third place playoff once again, it could easily be hosts France or Spain vying with them for the bronze medal.

The former, in particular, have two formidable overage attackers with Premier League experience in Alexandre Lacazette and Jean-Philippe Mateta, not to mention young starlets such as Michael Olise, Rayan Cherki and Manu Koné.

Only time will tell if Japan's decision not to bolster their team -- and their medal prospects -- with senior stalwarts of their own will come back to haunt them.

For now, however, their faith in youth is paying off.

- Gabriel Tan 

BRAZIL ARE ON FIRE 🔥 | COPA AMÉRICA 2024

 

RUSSIA'S SOCCER FRIENDLY AGAINST PARAGUAY PUT OFF INDEFINITELY DUE TO MOSCOW TERRORIST ATTACK

 MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian Football Union said Saturday that its team's friendly against Paraguay scheduled for Moscow on Monday has been put off indefinitely due to the terrorist attack near the capital.

At least 133 people were killed after gunmen opened fire with automatic weapons in a suburban concert hall near Moscow on Friday. The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility.

Officials said the match originally scheduled for Moscow’s VTB Arena would be played at a later date.

Russia has been banned from FIFA and UEFA competitions following the country’s invasion of Ukraine two years ago. It can only play friendlies.

“The Russian Football Union, together with the entire country, mourns those killed in the terrible terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall,” RFU president Alexander Dyukov said. “In the current situation, together with our colleagues from Paraguay, we have decided not to hold a match between our teams and will organize it at a later date.”

FIFA TO 'MITIGATE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT 'OF 2030 WORLD CUP

Reuters 

FIFA will take measures to "mitigate the environmental impact" of the three-continent 2030 World Cup, world soccer's governing body said.

FIFA last week named Morocco, Spain and Portugal as hosts of the 2030 tournament, while Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay will also host the opening matches to mark the tournament's centenary.

The decision to host the tournament across three continents attracted criticism from climate activists, who cited emissions related to the additional travel required.

CHILE RAILS AGAINST 2023 WORLD CUP SNUB

Chile's President. Photo:Reuters

Chile is up in arms after being left out of plans for the 2030 World Cup even though neighbours Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay were picked to host opening matches.

The news dominated headlines, street conversations and social media platforms, even drawing comments from President Gabriel Boric.

"I regret that there are institutions that operate in such an unserious and surprising manner," Boric told a press conference on Wednesday, saying he spoke with the presidents of Paraguay and Argentina who said they weren't told about the decision before the announcement.

"We're going to make sure we get all the rights that correspond to Chile because you don't play around with Chile's national integrity and name."

MOROCCO, SPAIN AND PORTUGAL TO HOST 2030 WORLD CUP

Reuters 

Morocco, Spain and Portugal have been named hosts of the 2030 soccer World Cup, while Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay will host the opening matches to mark the tournament's centenary, world soccer body FIFA said on Wednesday.

The joint bid from Morocco, Portugal and Spain was the sole candidate to host the tournament. The inaugural World Cup in 1930 was held in Uruguay and won by the hosts.

It marks the first time the World Cup will be staged across three continents and six countries.