World-cup

The first post covered everything around the 2026 World Cup. This one is about the football itself. A group stage that mixed the enduring brilliance of Messi and Mbappe with a wave of breakout stars, a couple of genuine fairy tales, and two of the biggest names in the game already on flights home.

The group stage of the first 48-team World Cup is done, and before we get to the football itself, it is worth pausing on everything happening around it. A new format, a fresh batch of rule changes, the divisive hydration breaks, and a ticket-pricing saga that turned into FIFA's own goal.