The World Cup represents football's pinnacle, the ultimate prize every young player dreams of winning. But whether the tournament is where the very best football is played is a different question entirely.
The coach of the first North Korean sports team to visit the South in eight years batted away questions Tuesday about the prospect of South Koreans cheering his side, saying: "We are here solely to play football."
The 2026 World Cup has bucked the trend of international football's struggles to compete with the riches of the club game when it comes to securing some of the world's best coaches.
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Technology
A joint European-Chinese spacecraft blasted off into orbit Tuesday to investigate what happens when extreme winds and giant explosions of plasma shot out from the Sun slam into Earth's magnetic shield.
May 19, 2026
RECENT NEWS
Freiburg have never won a trophy nor qualified for the Champions League, but could achieve both with victory against Aston Villa in the Europa League final in Istanbul on Wednesday.
May 19, 2026
RECENT NEWS
Aston Villa are taking inspiration from the club's former European champions as they seek to end their 30-year trophy drought in the Europa League final against Freiburg on Wednesday.
May 19, 2026
Jannik Sinner will head into the French Open as the most overwhelming favourite to win the men's title since Rafael Nadal's hey-day and with the career Grand Slam firmly in his sights.
May 19, 2026
Nvidia boss Jensen Huang expects China to eventually open its market to high-end US chips that can train and run artificial intelligence systems.
May 19, 2026
Economy
Asian markets were mixed Tuesday as oil prices eased on hopes of a US-Iran deal, though elevated crude levels capped investor appetite for risk.
May 19, 2026
RECENT NEWS
From gardens to inspire younger generations, to havens of peace and sanctuary, to a hothouse space designed to stir desire, the UK's top flower show is flourishing.
Every Sunday, percussionists, dancers and everyday residents of the US capital gather in a Washington park for a drum circle -- a decades-old tradition that historically celebrated Black liberation.
In a lot behind a disused West Virginia gas station at the foot of the Appalachian Mountains, Roy Funkhouser is surrounded by about a dozen beekeepers and countless buzzing bees.
It's the middle of the night in Havana, but Alejandro Benitez is just getting down to work.
May 19, 2026
Technology
Scientists attempting to determine whether or not hantavirus is present in Argentina's Ushuaia on Monday laid the very first traps to catch rodents potentially carrying the disease, AFP journalists observed.
May 19, 2026
RECENT NEWS
The United States said Monday it is bolstering precautions to prevent the spread of Ebola, including screening air travelers from outbreak-hit areas and temporarily suspending visa services.
Global stock markets were mixed Monday and oil prices rose while investors digested shifting developments in the Middle East as US President Donald Trump said he postponed a planned attack on Iran at the request of Gulf leaders.
US President Donald Trump said Monday he had held off on imminent plans to resume attacking Iran, piling pressure as Tehran rebuffs his demands for ending the war.
A teenager nicknamed "The Girl in the River Main" after her body was found floating in Germany a quarter-century ago bearing signs of abuse has finally been identified, leading to her father's arrest, Interpol said Monday.
May 18, 2026
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