There's going to be a halftime show 💅

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cge1q41np7go

18 minutes ago, London Wanderer said:

BBC Sport

World Cup 2026: Somali referee Omar Artan to miss tournam...

Omar Artan, who was set to be the first Somali to referee at the World Cup finals, is dropped from the list of officials after he was denied entry to the United States.

Embarrassing

Just imagine the outrage if Qatar did something like that.

Or Russia.

love this

10 minutes ago, desperado said:

love this

i need an itemised list and where he got them from

1 hour ago, deeane Koontz said:

Just imagine the outrage if Qatar did something like that.

Aye. Let's let more in.

3 hours ago, bolty58 said:

Anticipation growing every day for me then I watched an in depth report about ticket pricing on Sky Sports and ended up hoping it's all an abject failure just to stick it right up that bent cunt Infantino.

"It's a mature market used to staging major sporting events. FIFA is a non profit organisation so all monies received go into the betterment of football worldwide". Aye, reet.

Ticket pricing for this tournament being an absolute scandal is not new news!

UEFA are a disgrace as much as FIFA are, but at least they have a pretty even handed approach to selling tickets for the Euros. Still committing to selling batches of cheap tickets for Euro 28.

45 minutes ago, L/H White said:

i need an itemised list and where he got them from

Detail in the replies

7 minutes ago, desperado said:

Detail in the replies

great work

Beers with no alcohol? GTF......

11 minutes ago, jeep said:

Beers with no alcohol? GTF......

Like going down on your sister; tastes the same, but isnt quite right

On 31/05/2026 at 21:01, gonzo said:

Might do a sweepstake...

 

is this happening?

10 hours ago, bolty58 said:

Anticipation growing every day for me then I watched an in depth report about ticket pricing on Sky Sports and ended up hoping it's all an abject failure just to stick it right up that bent cunt Infantino.

"It's a mature market used to staging major sporting events. FIFA is a non profit organisation so all monies received go into the betterment of football worldwide". Aye, reet.

Indeed, they're bent as fuck FIFA.

9 hours ago, London Wanderer said:

BBC Sport

World Cup 2026: Somali referee Omar Artan to miss tournam...

Omar Artan, who was set to be the first Somali to referee at the World Cup finals, is dropped from the list of officials after he was denied entry to the United States.

Embarrassing

What I don't get with this is why have they dropped him altogether? If he couldn't get a US visa could they not explore the option of reffing in Canada or Mexico?

2 hours ago, bwfc6ix said:

What I don't get with this is why have they dropped him altogether? If he couldn't get a US visa could they not explore the option of reffing in Canada or Mexico?

Infantino loves Trump, he won’t be seen criticising him over this.

Bets

Portugal winners, Ronaldo and Martinez are a worry, but they've a serious team. Have us losing to them in the semis

Portugal v Spain final

Group E highest scoring group

Haiti lowest scoring team

Gakpo, Alvarez and Havertz golden boot (ew 4 places) germany in the weakest group, so hoping he'll do the damage in the group stage

Group forecasts, Mexico - Canada, Brazil - Moroco, Turkey - USA, Germany - Ecuador, Spain - Uruguay

bout it for now

Edited 15 hours ago15 hr by L/H White

@gonzo 😂

3 hours ago, bwfc6ix said:

What I don't get with this is why have they dropped him altogether? If he couldn't get a US visa could they not explore the option of reffing in Canada or Mexico?

BBC Sport

World Cup referee barred: Somali's Omar Artan had 'right...

Somali referee Omar Artan says he was subjected to an 11-hour immigration interview before being denied entry to the United States for the World Cup despite holding the "right papers" and "right visa"

He claims he did have a US visa, but even if he did...

It would not be possible for Artan to stay outside the United States and only referee matches played in Canada or Mexico.

Referees' chief Pierluigi Collina has created a training hub for the tournament's 52 referees and 88 assistant referees in Miami.

All on-pitch officials must stay at the base in Florida for training, preparation and security.

Edited 15 hours ago15 hr by Cheese

13 hours ago, London Wanderer said:

BBC Sport

World Cup 2026: Somali referee Omar Artan to miss tournam...

Omar Artan, who was set to be the first Somali to referee at the World Cup finals, is dropped from the list of officials after he was denied entry to the United States.

Embarrassing

It's obvious when it comes to Fifa competitions, any team, including the supporters and officials of that team, who qualify for a World Cup, need to have access to the country, otherwise there is no World Cup," Infantino said.

Iran fans have had their match tickets cancelled too, apparently

USA & Iran can play each other in the 2nd round

:D

4 minutes ago, L/H White said:

USA & Iran can play each other in the 2nd round

:D

Iran will be expelled if that's on the cards.

1 minute ago, Traf said:

Iran will be expelled if that's on the cards.

I really hope the stars align and it happens

5 minutes ago, L/H White said:

I really hope the stars align and it happens

If it does it wouldn’t surprise me if (most of) the world would be cheering for an Iranian victory.

Unlikely but all the refs should say fuck off if he's not allowed.

1 hour ago, L/H White said:

USA & Iran can play each other in the 2nd round

:D

Iran will withdraw the day before their first match in protest at the restriction on their delegation.

That will leave FIFA unable to replace them and give a problem in deciding best third placers in unbalanced groups.