By Andrew Warshaw
May 18 – Morocco’s attempt to wrest the 2026 World Cup away from the North American favourites reaches its most decisive point to date on May 29 when FIFA’s evaluation Task Force delivers its verdict on whether the north Africans have met the criteria and can be on the ballot paper in Moscow.
May 17 – The Argentine Football Association has apologised for the publication of a World Cup manual that included advice on how to seduce Russian women.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 16 – Morocco’s request for four countries to be pulled from next month’s 2026 World Cup vote has received a non-committal response from FIFA with the simmering controversy quite possibly coming to a head at the ballot itself in Moscow.
May 16 – South Africa’s football leadership are being urged not to break ranks with the Continent and to back Morocco’s bid to host the 2026 World Cup.
May 15 – Peru’s joy has quickly turned to disappointment after captain Paolo Guerrero was ruled out of the World Cup after his doping ban, which had just expired, was increased from six to 14 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
May 14 – Peru’s football federation have confirmed captain Paolo Guerrero has been selected in the team’s World Cup squad despite an appeal by anti-doping authorities to have his ban for a positive test increased.
By Samindra Kunti
May 11 – The Argentine government will sign an agreement Russia to prevent more than 3,000 Argentine hooligans from entering Russia and the host venues this summer during the World Cup.
May 11 – Morocco’s rivals to stage the 2026 World Cup have defended the right of four US-governed territories to take part in next month’s vote after the north Africans complained in writing to FIFA about a potential conflict of interest.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 10 – The new voting process to select the 2026 World Cup hosts has led to yet more claims of unfair tactics by underdogs Morocco who have requested FIFA exclude four United States-governed territories from the ballot in June.
May 10 – South African Football Association (SAFA) president Danny Jordaan has been forced to diplomatically backtrack over a previous pledge that his federation would be voting for Morocco to stage the 2026 World Cup.
May 9 – Sepp Blatter, who continues to speak out about the way FIFA has been operating since he was forced to step down before being banned from the game, has urged his old organisation to allow Morocco to take part in the 2026 World Cup ballot.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 8 – Any suggestion that next month’s 2026 World Cup ballot will be refreshingly void of politics has been wiped away in one fell swoop by South Africa’s sudden change of heart about supporting fellow Africans Morocco.
By Paul Nicholson
May 8 –The United 2026 bid chairmen have reinforced their commercial credentials for hosting FIFA’s first 48-team World Cup, predicting a record revenue of $14 billion for FIFA, a profit of $11 billion.
May 8 – Saudi Arabia has given yet another giant hint that it is backing the joint bid of United States, Canada and Mexico to stage the 2026 World Cup as the tournament increasingly becomes a political combat zone in the Gulf region.
May 4 – The joint North American bid to host the 2026 World Cup insists its campaign has not been damaged by U.S. President Donald Trump’s controversial series of tweets calling for support from Africa and beyond.