World Cup 2026 LIVE: Fifa blamed for travel chaos as Iran prepare for controversial opener

Japanese fans had plenty to celebrate after their 2-2 draw with the Netherlands at the Dallas Stadium in Texas but once again they will make headlines for an incredible gesture after the full-time whistle of the World Cup 2026 clash.

As usual in sporting events of this size, the stands of the stadium became littered with rubbish, such as food trays and empty drinks cups, but Japan’s supporters remained behind and cleaned up before departing the stadium.

Experts in Japanese culture cite a proverb: “tatsu tori ato wo nigosazu” which, when translated into English, means “stand up, take care of it, without leaving any traces behind” as one reason why Japan supporters tidy up after themselves.

One of the big challenges for successive Sweden managers has been how to get the best out of Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres on the same pitch, at the same time. Graham Potter’s solution against Tunisia was to play a 3-5-2 formation in which his star strikers were paired together, and it paid off with a 5-1 win in which both players got on the scoresheet – as Brighton’s Yasin Ayari scored two belters from range against his mother’s country.

The forward pair were helped by some poor Tunisian defending and goalkeeping, and there remain some question marks over their link-up play. At one point during the second half, Gyokeres should have played Isak through on goal but the Arsenal striker dallied and when he eventually passed, Isak was offside. Gyokeres’s goal might technically have been an Isak assist, but Isak was trying to score himself and the ball only ran to his strike partner when he lost control under pressure.

So perhaps there is still something to work on to develop a thriving partnership in which they are as happy to pass to one another as to take on the shot. But for Potter and Sweden, just seeing their star duo play together is a huge boost after Isak’s season of injuries. Group F rivals Netherlands and Japan will be wary of the threat Sweden pose.

As England continue to build up to Wednesday’s game with Croatia, Jordan Henderson has leapt to the defence of teammate Jude Bellingham, claiming external criticism of the Real Madrid midfielder is way off the mark.

It has been suggested that one of the reasons Thomas Tuchel wanted veteran Henderson in his World Cup squad was his good relationship with Bellingham, who has developed a reputation externally as something of a tricky character.

“I know a lot gets written in the media and I really find it hard to read sometimes because I just know how big an influence Jude is on this team, how good a teammate he is off the field,” said Henderson.

“And what he gives us is just something really special, he really gives us the X-factor in our team.

“I do think a lot of the media and the stuff that gets written isn’t all true to be honest, or a lot of it is actually untrue. But we all know what he can do, and how much we all love him inside the camp, and I suppose that’s the main thing.”

For two ageing greats who contested an epic rivalry over years, the World Cup could provide a last duel. Not Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi – or not definitely, anyway, given the number of results required to ensure that Portugal actually do meet Argentina in the Kansas City quarter-final – but Kevin De Bruyne and Mohamed Salah.

They have met in the Community Shield, the Champions League and the Carabao Cup but theirs is primarily a Premier League battle. Now for the north-west of the United States not the north-west of England. They meet in Seattle as captains of Belgium and Egypt and arguably the Premier League’s two best players of the last decade.

There are cases for Harry Kane and Virgil van Dijk, one for Erling Haaland that is based on a much briefer stay in the division, but De Bruyne and Salah allied creativity with class, assists with goals, medals with magnificence, individual exploits with collective achievement.

Richard Jolly analyses a final showdown between two Premier League greats:

Iran captain Mehdi Taremi has criticised Fifa, with his team is having a challenging World Cup experience amid the multifold disruptions created by their nation’s war with the US.

The Iranians arrived in the Los Angeles area on Sunday from their training base in Tijuana, Mexico, ahead of their clash with New Zealand this evening, while visa issues have plagued members of their delegation and travelling fans have been stripped of match tickets.

“I have felt the tension from the first moment we arrived at this World Cup,” said Taremi. “This kind of tension, it undermines that joy and it undermines the message of Fifa and our people, which is that football brings about peace. I feel like this World Cup could have provided a better atmosphere than it has.”

Uruguay’s national team have blamed Fifa after a chaotic start to their World Cup campaign following the delay to their travel from their Mexico base to Miami for their first match.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side have travelled to Cancun for final preparations before getting their World Cup underway against Saudi Arabia on Monday but the squad were left waiting as their prepared plane didn’t have clearance to fly to the US. The problem facing the team was reportedly due to issues with paperwork for the aircraft which meant it had not been approved to take the route from Cancun to Miami.

The Uruguayan FA maintained Fifa was responsible, while adding in a statement: “Due to problems beyond the control of the AUF, the departure from Mexico has been delayed. The squad is resting at the hotel. The new departure time set by FIFA is 4.15pm.”

A Fifa statement read: “Due to an airline permitting error in Mexico, the Uruguay national team’s departure from Cancun to Miami was delayed. The airline has apologised for the inconvenience caused.”

Welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of the 2026 World Cup.

The tournament rolls on after a goalfest on Sunday, with Uruguay’s travel chaos and Iran’s litany of issues dominating the news