World Cup Daily Report - 2026-05-23

Iran's football federation said FIFA approved moving the team's World Cup base from Tucson, Arizona, to Tijuana, Mexico, with president Mehdi Taj announcing the decision on Saturday. The move removes a major logistical hurdle for Iran, which had been scheduled to train in Tucson but had faced uncertainty over travel, visas and security concerns linked to the Middle East conflict.

Iran are due to play their first two group matches in Los Angeles and will now be based closer to the U.S.-Mexico border, which should simplify movement between camp and games. Several reports note that FIFA has not publicly confirmed the relocation, but the federation says the approval was granted and the team will use Tijuana as its camp.

England's World Cup squad has triggered the day's biggest selection shock, with Thomas Tuchel leaving out Phil Foden, Cole Palmer and Trent Alexander-Arnold from his 26-man group. RNZ reported that Ivan Toney earned a surprise recall despite playing only seven minutes of international football since Euro 2024, while Kobbie Mainoo was included after a strong finish to the season.

The omissions underline how aggressively Tuchel has reshaped England ahead of the tournament, and the debate is likely to intensify because Foden and Palmer were expected to be central attacking options. The squad is being viewed as one built for balance rather than reputation, with the fallout already dominating pre-tournament coverage.

South Africa have returned to the men's World Cup after 16 years, qualifying for the 2026 tournament on merit and restoring the Bafana Bafana to the game's biggest stage. CGTN's report says they have been drawn into Group A with Mexico, South Korea and Czechia, and will open against Mexico on June 11 at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.

That opening fixture gives South Africa an immediate test in one of the tournament's most iconic venues, while the group draw offers a clear path to measure how far the team has come since the 2010 home World Cup. For a nation that has spent more than a decade outside the competition, simply qualifying again is a major statement about the state of its football.

The Democratic Republic of Congo booked their place at the 2026 World Cup after beating Jamaica in the inter-confederation playoff in Guadalajara, with Axel Tuanzebe scoring in the 99th minute after 90 goalless minutes. Khel Now says the goal ended a 52-year wait, as DR Congo last qualified for the World Cup in 1974.

The significance is huge for one of Africa's most historic football nations, because the qualification came in a pressure game that had been locked at 0-0 deep into extra time. A single late strike turned a playoff stalemate into a breakthrough that will define Congolese football for years.

The expanded 48-team World Cup is producing an unprecedented fixture list, with multiple outlets highlighting that 27 group-stage matches will be senior international firsts. World Soccer Talk noted that Portugal and Colombia are among the sides involved in these never-before-seen meetings, while HITC said the tournament will run with 12 groups of four, 104 matches and a new Round of 32.

That matters because the 2026 edition is no longer just bigger; it is structurally different, creating new pairings that would not have existed under the old format. The scale of novelty also feeds the wider debate over whether FIFA's expansion is broadening the sport or stretching the competition too far.

Saudi Arabia named a preliminary World Cup squad featuring Salem Al-Dawsari of Al Hilal and Firas Al-Buraikan of Al Ahli, with Greek coach Georgios Donis leading the Green Falcons. The squad announcement keeps the core of the side that famously beat Argentina at the 2022 World Cup in the spotlight as preparations intensify.

The inclusion of Al-Dawsari is especially important because he remains the team's biggest attacking reference point, while Donis brings experience from Al Hilal, Panathinaikos and Maccabi Tel Aviv. A preliminary list at this stage is less about final answers than about showing which players will shape the final build-up.

Malappuram Municipality marked the countdown to the World Cup by installing a giant football sculpture made from more than 6,000 discarded plastic bottles at Kunnummal. The artwork, which shows a football and a booted leg performing a bicycle kick, was presented as both a celebration of football and a push against plastic waste.

Municipal chairperson V.T. Rinisha said the project is meant to welcome the tournament while raising environmental awareness, showing how the World Cup is already spilling beyond stadiums into local civic life. With just 22 days left before kickoff, the sculpture is a vivid example of how host-region excitement is building across the wider football world.