The artist who painted a giant mural on a building in downtown Dallas of life-sized swimming whales has filed a $25 million lawsuit against soccer’s international governing body and others, saying they illegally painted over his work to promote the city’s upcoming World Cup matches.
The artist Wyland says he hand-painted the sprawling mural that covered roughly 17,000 square feet across two of the building’s walls.
The mural stood for nearly three decades before workers began painting over it last month, causing an uproar among residents who admired the mural’s grand scale and message of ocean conservation.
The area’s World Cup organizing committee said in a statement that, in place of Wyland’s mural, new artwork is planned “that captures this current historical moment and reflects the energy, unity, and global spirit surrounding the World Cup 2026.” It said a portion of Wyland’s mural would be preserved.
Wyland filed suit Monday in U.S District Court in Dallas saying that World Cup organizers, along with the building’s owner and management company, painted over his mural without his consent or even notifying him. He says their actions violated a 1990 federal law passed to protect visual artists from destruction of publicly displayed works.
Wyland is seeking at least $25 million in damages. His lawsuit says world soccer’s governing body, FIFA, and other defendants “hastily and irrevocably destroyed a civic landmark” to promote the World Cup.
“Though FIFA claims they were working to develop art for the host city, in truth, they defaced an historic fixture of the host city,” the artist’s lawsuit says.
A FIFA spokesperson said Tuesday the federation “has no involvement in this whatsoever” and referred a reporter to the tournament’s local organizing committee.
A spokesperson for the North Texas FWC Organizing Committee declined to comment. The committee isn’t named as a defendant in the lawsuit.
A spokesperson for Slate Asset Management, which manages the building where the mural was painted over, said in a statement that local World Cup organizers asked Slate in March to donate the mural space for “a new public art installation.”
“Slate is not being compensated in any way for the use of the wall space and was told by the local groups that Mr. Wyland had been notified,” the management company’s spokesperson said in an email.
Dallas is hosting more World Cup matches than any of the other sites in the event co-hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico, with nine matches set to be played at AT&T Stadium in suburban Arlington, home of the Dallas Cowboys.
Wyland’s Dallas mural, titled “Whaling Wall 82,” was finished in 1999 and is among more than 100 similar murals known as Whaling Walls the artist painted around the world to promote the conservation of ocean life.
An online petition protesting the mural’s destruction and calling for protecting of public artwork in Dallas has received more than 2,600 signatures.
Wyland’s lawsuit alleges violations of the Visual Artists Rights Act, a 1990 federal law that protects artwork of “recognized stature” even if someone else owns the physical artwork.
A judge cited that law in 2018 when he ordered a property owner to pay a group of New York graffiti artists $6.7 million for whitewashing dozens of their spray-painted murals on buildings that once housed a factory in Queens. The ruling was upheld on appeal.
Bynum writes for the Associated Press. Bynum reported from Savannah, Ga.
Tourism in Cuba has all but disappeared, as hotels close and airlines cancel routes because of fuel shortages. Photo by Ernesto Mastrascusa/EPA
June 3 (UPI) — Spanish hotel operator Meliá Hotels International said Wednesday it will stop managing 15 hotels linked to Cuba’s military-run conglomerate GAESA, expanding the withdrawal of foreign operators from the island just days before new U.S. sanctions take effect.
The decision makes Meliá the fourth international hotel company to reduce or end operations in Cuba in less than a week, following the departures announced by Blue Diamond, Iberostar and Archipelago International under its Aston brand.
Meliá informed Spain’s National Securities Market Commission that its Portuguese subsidiary, Ilha Bela, will immediately terminate management, marketing and brand-use services at hotels associated with entities controlled by GAESA, according to Forbes España.
The company said the economic impact will be limited because many of the affected properties already were closed or only partially open.
In February, the Spanish hotel chain confirmed the temporary closure of several properties due to fuel shortages, transportation problems affecting workers and a sustained decline in tourism demand, CiberCuba reported.
At that time, the company operated 35 hotels on the island and said it was not considering leaving the Cuban market.
The latest move comes two days before the deadline set by President Donald Trump‘s administration for foreign companies to sever commercial ties with Cuba’s military conglomerate or face potential economic sanctions.
GAESA controls a significant portion of the Cuban economy and dominates large segments of the tourism sector through companies such as Gaviota Tourism Group.
On Tuesday, Archipelago International withdrew from several hotels operated under the Aston brand for Gaviota, including properties in Havana, Varadero and Cuba’s northern cays.
Days earlier, Canada’s Blue Diamond announced the end of its operations on the island, while Spain’s Iberostar stopped managing 12 hotels linked to GAESA assets.
None of the companies officially attributed their departure to the U.S. measures.
The withdrawals coincide with a deep crisis in Cuba’s tourism sector. According to data cited by IndexBox, Cuba received 328,608 international visitors between January and April 2026, a 55.8% decline from the same period a year earlier.
The deterioration is also affecting air transportation, as at least 11 airlines have suspended or reduced flights to Cuba this year.
The withdrawal of Meliá and Iberostar has also raised concerns in Spain.
Jaume Bauzà, tourism, culture and sports minister for the Balearic Islands regional government, said Wednesday that authorities are closely monitoring the situation facing the two Mallorca-based companies and offered institutional support.
“We will look after them. This is a commercial matter, but if we can help in any way, we will do so,” Bauzà said, according to Forbes España.
He said he hopes the situation can be resolved “as quickly as possible” for the companies and the Cuban population.
A deadly Ebola outbreak in the DRC is spreading across borders, with no approved vaccine or treatment for this strain.
A fast-growing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has crossed borders, raising alarms far beyond Central Africa. This time, the virus is a strain with no approved vaccine or treatment. As cases rise and governments scramble to respond, can the outbreak be contained before it spreads further?
In this episode:
Catherine Soi (@cate_soi), Al Jazeera Correspondent
Episode credits:
This episode was produced by Marcos Bartolomé and Sarí el-Khalili with Spencer Cline, Tamara Khandaker, Jana Dabliz, and our host, Malika Bilal. It was edited by Tamara Khandaker.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Rick Rush mixed this episode. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer.
WASHINGTON — When nearly all the scheduled musical performers pulled out of a concert series marking America’s 250th anniversary — fearing the event had become too closely tied to President Trump — he responded by making it official.
Trump announced he’d now be the headlining act of the Great American State Fair.
That put to rest any possible scenario where a president who has built his personal and political persona on seizing the spotlight might cede the stage to avoid overshadowing a national celebration bigger than himself. It also offered a peek into how the president is likely to approach hosting the upcoming World Cup.
From his reality shows before becoming a politician, to hours spent entertaining at events in ways planned and impromptu, to proudly showing off his various properties and efforts to overhaul the White House, the president relishes hosting. Last year he even jokingly mused about leaving the presidency to do it again full time on TV.
Trump can be a gracious, personable and highly watchable master of ceremonies — but he’s also one who tends to make every event about himself.
“The president has an outsized personality,” said Timothy Naftali, former director of Richard Nixon’s presidential library and professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. “There’s a predictability to the way in which the president frames his actions — or any actions around any event associated with him — and that’s just part of who he is, and his makeup and his professional background.”
Exhibit A is the fair, which begins June 25 and was supposed to feature concerts but now will be kicked off by a Trump rally. That will follow a UFC bout at the White House on June 14. Trump is a longtime cage match fan and the event marks his 80th birthday, but the president has sought to bill it as part of the anniversary festivities.
Many presidents relished hosting — but not like this
Andrew Jackson threw open the White House for an 1829 Inauguration Day bash so unruly that staff eventually dispersed the crowd by moving tubs of whiskey and ice cream to the lawn. Franklin D. Roosevelt mixed pre-dinner cocktails for friends and aides at White House gatherings he playfully dubbed “The Children’s Hour.” Audrey Hepburn was among the luminaries Ronald Reagan hosted at the White House.
Trump frequently had first-term dinners with business leaders but has more fully embraced the role since returning to the White House. He built a patio area similar to one at his Mar-a-Lago estate and frequently travels to Florida and his properties in Bedminster, New Jersey, and Sterling, Virginia, to headline fundraisers and other swanky gatherings.
Asked if Trump might overshadow events meant to bring the country and the world together, White House spokesman Davis Ingle pointed to the president’s efforts to lead extensive renovations at the White House and around Washington. He said in a statement that the “historic beautification” gives the city “the glory it deserves during our nation’s historic semiquincentennial celebration — something everyone should celebrate.”
Still, Trump has found unprecedented ways to inject himself into the anniversary.
The State Department is issuing passports with the president’s picture and officials have designed a new $250 bill with his likeness. The Trump Organization, being run by Trump’s children while he’s president, applied to trademark “Trump 250” logos and other merchandise.
The U.S. Mint is also producing a 24-karat gold commemorative coin with Trump’s face, though that recalls a half-dollar silver coin bearing the likeness of President Calvin Coolidge to help mark America’s 150th anniversary in 1926.
Past presidents had starring anniversary roles
Ulysses S. Grant opened a Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia to mark the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1876. Richard Nixon, in 1971, inaugurated a five-year “Bicentennial Era” ahead of the 200-year mark, though he resigned before the big day arrived.
Nixon’s successor, Gerald Ford, then in the midst of an ultimately unsuccessful reelection campaign, began the week of July 4, 1976, by inaugurating the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum and attending a Kennedy Center event featuring Bob Hope, OJ Simpson and others reading patriotic texts.
On Independence Day, Ford spoke at historic Valley Forge, then traveled to Philadelphia’s Independence Hall, declaring, “Liberty is a living flame to be fed, not dead ashes to be revered.“ He also went to New York Harbor for a tall ship parade, presided over naturalization ceremonies at Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello estate and hosted a state dinner for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II.
Still, “while Ford certainly hoped to use the bicentennial to promote his reelection campaign, he didn’t do it in such a self-aggrandizing, self-centered, narcissistic way,” said Marc Stein, a history professor at San Francisco State University and author of “Bicentennial: A Revolutionary History of the 1970s.”
Ford, added Naftali, “knew when to step out of the limelight and make sure the focus was on what mattered, which was the United States of America and the Declaration of Independence.”
Trump, by contrast, “generally has contempt for norms” and rarely mentions “the great sweep of history,” Naftali said.
Dueling anniversary planners as Trump pushes to revise history
Congress charged a national organization, America250, with planning commemorative events. Ahead of the 2024 election, the group drafted a memo asking whomever the incoming president was to mobilize federal agencies and welcoming presidential involvement in events and initiatives.
Asked about Trump, America250 Chair Rosie Rios said the group “has had a very supportive and collaborative relationship with the organizations planning initiatives on behalf of the president.”
But Rios’ organization is separate from Freedom 250, a mix of public and private partnerships which the Trump administration established to fund and prepare anniversary events — which has caused confusion.
America250 aims to “inspire our fellow Americans to reflect on our past, strengthen our love of country, and renew our commitment to the ideals of democracy through programs that educate, engage, and unite us as a nation.”
That might seem a departure from the “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History” executive order Trump signed last year. It sought to beat back a “revisionist movement” responsible for “replacing objective facts with a distorted narrative driven by ideology rather than truth.”
Stein, now serving a one-year term as president of the Organization of American Historians, is helping organize “We Want More History,” a push to coordinate local events celebrating the public’s love for the subject in fact-based ways.
He said Trump’s version of history is “closer to propaganda, and it’s closer to cheerleading.”
World Cup gives Trump another platform to play host
The president has similarly taken his exceeding-normal-limits approach to the soccer tournament the U.S. is co-hosting with Mexico and Canada.
He created a federal World Cup task force, and leads it. He collected a peace prize from soccer’s governing body, FIFA, and said he’d be on stage to present the tournament’s golden trophy to the winning team.
Trump even oversaw the tournament’s draw at the Kennedy Center, which he’s sought to rename for himself, sparking legal challenges.
He returned to the same building to headline December’s Kennedy Center Honors, noting, “We never had a president hosting the awards before.” He later posted on social media, “Would you like me to leave the Presidency in order to make ‘hosting’ a full time job?”
Naftali noted, “Whatever filters there were in the first term — and there weren’t many — are gone.”
All flights in and out of Kuwait Airport were suspended until further notice Wednesday after it was hit by Iranian missiles and drones, injuring several people and causing extensive damage amid an escalation in the U.S.-Iran war after the flared up again at the weekend. File photo by Stringer/EPA
June 3 (UPI) — Kuwait closed its main airport in Kuwait City on Wednesday after Iranian missile and drone strikes injured several people and caused “significant damage” to its main terminal building as renewed hostilities between the Iran and the United States escalated.
The airport activated its emergency plan, suspending all flights indefinitely after its Terminal 1 building was the target of “Iranian aggression, resulting in significant damage to several airport facilities, in addition to recording human injuries,” the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said in an update on X.
DGCA spokesman Abdullah Al-Rajhi said it has been decided to suspend air traffic and divert flights to alternative airports until further notice pending the completion of repair work to enable the airport to resume operations, saying that inspection and comprehensive assessment by technical and specialized teams was already underway.
Kuwait International Airport only fully reopened on Monday after being closed on and off since the start of the war on Feb. 28.
The attack came hours after Iran and the United States and Iran exchanged fire across the region Tuesday with Iranian forces attacking its Gulf neighbors and the American military striking a vessel attempting to evade its naval blockade and launching “self-defense” strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island.
The airport was hit in the early hours, shortly after U.S. Central Command said a series of Iranian missiles and drones directed at its regional neighbors had either failed to reach their targets or been repelled by U.S. forces, including two Iranian missiles fired at Kuwait that “fell short or broke apart enroute,” and three others launched at Bahrain that were intercepted by U.S. and Bahrain air defense forces.
CENTCOM said later that an additional wave of Iranian drones targeting U.S. forces in Kuwait was downed by air defenses with no American personnel or assets harmed and dismissed as fake Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claims they struck U.S. 5th Fleet headquarters in Bahrain and a U.S. air base in the region with missiles and drones.
No U.S. personnel were harmed. CENTCOM forces remain vigilant and ready to defend against unwarranted Iranian aggression during the ongoing ceasefire.
Moments earlier, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces shot down three one-way attack drones launched by Iran toward civilian mariners that were rightfully transiting regional waters. American forces also conducted self-defense strikes on an Iranian military ground control station on Qeshm Island.
The American military also downed three attack drones launched by Iran toward civilian mariners that CENTCOM said were sailing legitimately in regional waters and struck on an Iranian military ground control station on Qeshm Island.
“No U.S. personnel were harmed. CENTCOM forces remain vigilant and ready to defend against unwarranted Iranian aggression during the ongoing cease-fire,” it said.
CENTCOM also released footage of a U.S. warplane firing a Hellcat missile at an empty Iran-bound oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz that it said ignored warnings to stop.
“U.S. Central Command enforced blockade measures against Botswana-flagged M/T Lexie as it transited international waters toward Kharg Island. The ship’s crew ignored repeated warnings, failing to comply with directions from U.S. forces multiple times over a 24-hour period. A U.S. aircraft ultimately disabled the vessel by firing a Hellfire missile into the ship’s engine room, preventing the tanker from reaching Iran,” CENTCOM said.
Wreathes are seen amongst the statues at the Korean War Veterans Memorial during Memorial Day weekend in Washington on May 27, 2023. Memorial Day, which honors U.S. military personnel who died while in service, is held on the last Monday of May. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
Previous World Cup appearances: 6 Best performance: Fourth place (2022) First appearance: 1970 (Mexico) Top goal scorer: Youssef En-Nesyri (3) Most appearances: Achraf Hakimi, Hakim Ziyech (10) Player to watch: Brahim Diaz FIFA world ranking: 8
The FIFA World Cup begins on June 11. You can follow the action on Al Jazeera’s dedicated World Cup 2026 page with all the latest news, match build-up and live text commentary, and keep up to date with group standings, real-time match results and schedules.
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Four years ago, the Morocco made history by becoming the first African and Arab team to reach the World Cup semifinals in Qatar, eliminating Spain and Portugal along the way, before narrowly losing to France.
They come into the 2026 edition again boasting a strong squad and hoping to replicate – or go even further – than their sensational 2022 run.
However, the Atlas Lions also find themselves in rather more chaotic circumstances this time around with a managerial departure less than three months out from the tournament, and bruised by a wild Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final that provoked a diplomatic row with Senegal.
AFCON hangover
The squad is still dealing with the fallout from one of the most incendiary episodes in African football history.
January’s final in Rabat descended into chaos when Senegal’s players walked off the pitch in protest after Morocco were awarded a contentious stoppage-time penalty following a VAR review with the game at 0-0.
The decision to award the spot kick sparked trouble among the Senegal fans in the crowd. Eighteen spectators were were later jailed following the disruption.
After Senegal finally returned to the pitch after a lengthy delay, Real Madrid and Morocco star Brahim Diaz missed the penalty with a poor attempt at a panenka. Senegal went on to win the game 1-0 with a goal in extra-time.
However, the saga did not end there. In March, CAF stripped Senegal of the title and awarded it to Morocco, ruling that Senegal had forfeited the game by leaving the pitch.
Senegal have appealed at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), and have made allegations against CAF and Morocco.
For the Atlas Lions, being belatedly crowned champions by officials has done little to ease the pain as well as a sense of injustice, and the ongoing saga continues to leave a toxic fallout for the team.
The Regragui saga
Walid Regragui, the coach who masterminded the 2022 run, parted ways with the team in March.
It is likely that he ultimately paid the price after the manner of Morocco’s narrow defeat to Senegal in the AFCON final on home soil, as well as reported arguments between him and the country’s football federation over the direction of the team.
His replacement, Mohamed Ouahbi, led Morocco’s Under-20 side to the 2025 Youth World Cup title as the federation said a “strategic decision” was behind the appointment.
“It’s a desire not to waste time and to take a different direction,” a source close to the federation told the AFP news agency.
But for Ouahbi, 49, stepping up to a first senior World Cup under such acrimonious circumstances is an extremely challenging task – especially as he has only ever managed youth teams in his career.
“I’m not here to build, because the foundations are already in place. I’m here to keep performing,” Ouahbi said after his appointment.
Whether the new coach has the authority and tactical acuity to thrive at the highest level remains to be seen, and it will be a bit of a baptism of fire.
Brahim Diaz hopes to shake off panenka nightmare
Up until that penalty miss, talented forward Brahim Diaz had been the best player at the tournament, driving Morocco to the final as he won the Golden Boot with five goals.
The Real Madrid playmaker is quick, clever and capable of producing something out of nothing – giving Morocco a touch of genuine magic between the lines.
He may be carrying a psychological weight into this tournament after the AFCON final fracas, but Morocco will hope he will channel that frustration into having an outstanding World Cup.
Teenage star Bouaddi makes the cut
While much of the squad is fairly well established, the exciting 18-year-old Lille midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi, who has switched allegiances after representing France at junior level, made the squad.
“A dream come true, but above all the start of a new chapter, with even more work, rigour and responsibilities,” Bouaddi said on X.
“I am aware of the privilege I have to defend these colours, and I will give everything to represent my country in the best possible way.
“A thought also for France. My choice in no way diminishes the pride and gratitude for having been able to wear that jersey in my youth.”
Perhaps surprisingly, Youssef En-Nesyri, who scored the winning goal against Portugal in the 2022 quarterfinal, did not make the cut.
Elsewhere, Bilal El Khannouss is a highly technical and creative attacking midfielder, while Sofyan Amrabat gives the side combative energy in defence.
Marseille defender Nayef Aguerd has been selected, despite not playing since March due to injury.
Bouaddi, left, in action with Red Star Belgrade’s Tomas Haendel in a Europa League playoff in February [Darko Vojinovic/AP Photo]
Hakimi: The world’s best right back?
Last season, the PSG right back scored 11 goals and provided 14 assists en route to helping his club win a historic treble of the Champions League, Ligue 1 and the French Cup – he was subsequently named CAF African Player of the Year.
This season has been less productive so far in terms of goals and assists. Hakimi increasingly attracts intense attention from opponents keen to neutralise his threat. His season has also been overshadowed by issues off the pitch as it was announced earlier this year that he will stand trial for rape in France – allegations which Hakimi denies.
Despite the off-field issues and reduced returns this season, his overlapping runs, delivery and goalscoring threat – on top of his defensive prowess – arguably means he remains the best right back in the world.
How does Morocco’s group look?
Group C certainly has its challenges for Morocco, not least in their opening game against Brazil. While the Brazilians no longer quite hold the fear factor of previous tournaments, they are still packed with quality.
Nevertheless, Morocco will fancy their chances of getting something from that game and sending a statement to their rivals.
Easier ties await after that, and although an improving Scotland are no pushovers and Haiti could provide an unknown quantity, Morocco should be winning both of those games if they are to mount a serious push for the title.
Morocco also faced Brazil and Scotland in the France 1998 World Cup. The Atlas Lions put in a respectable performance then – recording a 3-0 win over Scotland while losing by the same score to Brazil and drawing with Norway – but finished third in the group and failed to progress to the round of 16.
Morocco’s group matches at the World Cup
⚽ June 13: Brazil vs Morocco (New Jersey, US), 6pm ET (22:00 GMT). ⚽ June 19: Scotland vs Morocco (Boston, US), 6pm ET (22:00 GMT). ⚽ June 24: Morocco vs Haiti (Atlanta, Georgia), 6pm ET (22:00 GMT).
Al Jazeera’s prediction
Last 16.
An inexperienced coach and turmoil around the squad will probably lead them to fall short of matching their 2022 exploits.
Cape Verde’s national football team has arrived in the US ahead to take part in their first ever FIFA World Cup. Players filmed themselves dancing in the aisle of the plane and were cheered on the tarmac.
An aerial photo made with a drone shows gasses burning off near oil storage tanks and a drilling rig near Karnes City, Texas. Photo by TANNEN MAURY / EPA
June 2 (Asia Today) — U.S. crude oil exports reached a record high in May as demand from Asian and European refiners surged, market data showed.
U.S. crude exports averaged 5.6 million barrels per day in May, surpassing the previous record of 5.2 million barrels per day set in April, according to data from analytics firm Kpler.
The increase was driven in part by a widening price gap between West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark crude, and Brent crude, the global benchmark.
The spread between WTI and Brent widened to as much as $20.69 a barrel in March, the largest gap in 13 years. In April, the gap averaged $8.86 a barrel, wider than the prewar average of $4.85.
Supply disruptions in the Middle East caused by the war involving Iran also prompted refiners in Asia and Europe to seek more U.S. crude as an alternative.
Asia imported an average of 2.45 million barrels per day, making it the largest destination for U.S. crude for a second consecutive month.
Japan was the biggest Asian buyer, importing 808,000 barrels per day, up 32% from the previous month.
Europe ranked second, importing 2.4 million barrels per day.
Italy led European demand with imports of 335,000 barrels per day. Bulgaria, Croatia, Turkey and Greece also made rare purchases of U.S. crude, according to the data.
Industry analysts expect U.S. crude exports to decline from June. Consulting firm Energy Aspects projected exports would fall to an average of 4.9 million barrels per day in June and 4.6 million barrels per day in July.
Sources and analysts said declining WTI inventories in the United States are expected to encourage domestic storage and reduce export volumes.
NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang delivers his keynote speech as part of the COMPUTEX 2026 AI exhibition in Taipei, Taiwan, 01 June 2026. Jensan Huang officially announced NVIDIA’s new products and various AI integration. Photo by RITCHIE B. TONGO / EPA
June 2 (Asia Today) — Naver Cloud is moving to expand its presence in the global artificial intelligence infrastructure market through a deeper partnership with Nvidia.
The company aims to combine its HyperCLOVA X large-scale AI model and sovereign AI capabilities with Nvidia’s AI infrastructure platform to become a key player in the era of AI factories.
Industry officials said Tuesday that Naver Cloud CEO Kim Yu-won attended the Nvidia Cloud Partner Summit in Taiwan and outlined the company’s strategic cooperation with Nvidia.
The partnership is drawing attention because it goes beyond a simple graphics processing unit supply arrangement and extends across infrastructure, AI models and services.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang introduced Naver Cloud as a major AI-native cloud partner in the global AI ecosystem during his keynote speech at GTC Taipei 2026 on Monday.
The two companies also plan to expand cooperation in large language models. Naver Cloud plans to use Nvidia’s open large language model technology, Nemotron 3 Ultra, to advance HyperCLOVA X. The companies also plan to jointly study model optimization and core technologies.
Cooperation will also continue in physical AI. In March, Naver Cloud unveiled the Seoul World Model, a digital recreation of Seoul built with Nvidia’s Cosmos physical AI platform.
The Seoul World Model was trained on South Korean map data and 1.2 million panoramic images collected across Seoul, allowing it to reproduce real road environments and spatial structures.
Naver Cloud plans to target the global AI market by emphasizing its full-stack capabilities, which combine its own AI models and cloud infrastructure. The company also plans to expand sovereign AI projects that protect national data sovereignty by working with governments and local companies.
Naver board chair Lee Hae-jin and Huang are expected to meet soon in South Korea and disclose specific plans for the AI factory project.
“The AI industry paradigm is shifting from models to inference-focused AI factories that can operate large-scale infrastructure reliably,” Kim said. “Our cooperation with Nvidia is not a simple supply relationship but a strategic decision to expand the global AI ecosystem together.”
Han Seong-sook, minister of SMEs and startups. Photo by Asia Today
June 2 (Asia Today) — South Korean small business owners called for more practical labor consulting and measures to ease payroll burdens during a government meeting Tuesday.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups held a roundtable on labor difficulties facing small businesses at the Korea Certified Public Labor Attorneys Association in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul.
Minister Han Seong-sook, government officials and representatives from convenience stores, restaurants and cafes attended the meeting to discuss labor management difficulties in the field.
Participants said complicated wage rules, including weekly holiday allowances and severance pay, have become a major management burden. They urged the government to provide professional consulting support.
At the meeting, the ministry announced support measures to help small businesses manage labor issues. The measures include a question-and-answer guidebook on commonly missed labor rules, regional on-site briefings and stronger online guidance through short-form videos.
The ministry also plans to help resolve disputes through counseling centers and labor lawyers. It said it will link a 24-hour artificial intelligence labor law counseling service with Small Business 24, a government support platform for small businesses.
Small business groups, however, expressed disappointment with the measures. They said expanding online and offline counseling channels could become a formality unless the government also secures enough budget and staffing to handle a surge in labor complaints.
They also said 24-hour AI counseling may have limits because labor disputes often involve complicated facts and competing interests that differ from case to case.
Participants emphasized that small businesses need more than basic information or counseling. They said the government should build a field-based consulting system and adopt policies that directly reduce labor cost pressures.
They said the government needs a bolder approach that goes beyond publicity-focused measures to address the core problems facing small businesses, including complex employment structures and allowance management.
“We will implement the measures announced today without disruption to create an environment where small business owners can run their businesses with confidence,” Han said.
The government said it will continue listening to difficulties in the field and review possible improvements to the system.
Messi works on ‘specific exercises’ as he recovers from muscle fatigue in his left hamstring before the World Cup.
Published On 3 Jun 20263 Jun 2026
Lionel Messi has trained on his own during Argentina’s first practice session at their base camp in the United States, where the squad has assembled this week for their World Cup preparations.
The defending World Cup champions held their first pretournament training in Kansas City, Missouri, on Monday.
The Inter Miami captain has been dealing with muscle fatigue in his left hamstring since May 24 but is expected to be ready for Argentina’s opener against Algeria on June 16 in Kansas City.
Messi, 38, joined Argentina at their training base and worked on “specific exercises” along with several teammates who are also dealing with fitness concerns.
“The players who are suffering from niggles and injuries continue to work with the physiotherapy team on specific exercises on the pitch and are making good progress,” Argentina’s Football Association said.
Argentina, ranked number three in the world, will play their final tune-up match against Iceland on June 9 in Auburn, Alabama.
Messi, the two-time MLS MVP and eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, is competing in his record sixth World Cup. The midfielder is Argentina’s all-time leader in caps (198) and goals (116) since making his debut with the national team in 2005.
No-one has won the World Cup Golden Boot more than once – but two men have a good chance to become the first to do so this summer.
Mbappe scored four goals in World Cup qualifying and as one of the strongest squads in the tournament, it is likely that 2022 finalists France will reach the latter stages of the competition.
Another striker seeking a historic second boot is Kane. At 32, he is as we know significantly older than the average winner – but with 54 goals for his club this season, Kane is no average player. If Thomas Tuchel’s side go deep into the tournament, Kane is surely certain to score his fair share.
Messi has claimed plenty of personal accolades in his career, but there is a Golden Boot-shaped gap next to the eight Ballon d’Or trophies in his cabinet. Aged 38, the 2026 tournament is his final chance.
At the other end of the age scale, Yamal will turn 19 the week before the final. Spain have not progressed beyond the round of 16 since their 2010 tournament win, but Luis de la Fuente’s men showed they have the mettle to go the distance at Euro 2024 and were impressive in qualifying.
Premier League Golden Boot winner Erling Haaland has scored 26 league goals for Manchester City this season but his bid for the boot might depend on how long Norway stay in the tournament. Haaland scored 16 goals in eight qualifying games.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, right, visits the SK hynix booth at Computex 2026 with SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won on Tuesday. Photo courtesy of SK hynix
June 2 (Asia Today) — Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang visited the SK hynix booth at Computex 2026 in Taipei on Tuesday, meeting SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won for a second straight day as the companies deepen their artificial intelligence partnership.
Huang, who met privately with Chey on Monday, examined SK hynix’s major memory products and wrote “Please Make More” on an HBM4E wafer displayed at the booth.
Chey also signaled that SK plans to expand production. He said the group aims to double wafer production capacity within five years as demand for memory chips is expected to surge.
Huang toured the booth with Chey and SK hynix executives. He signed the HBM4E wafer with the message “Please Make More” and wrote “LOVE SOCAMM” on a 192GB SOCAMM product.
SK hynix currently supplies Nvidia with its latest high-bandwidth memory, including sixth-generation HBM4, as well as high-performance low-power LPDDR5X memory. Huang said in his GTC Taipei keynote Monday that Nvidia will begin full-scale production of its next-generation AI accelerator, Vera Rubin, in the second half of this year.
As AI demand increases and memory supply shortages deepen, Chey said SK is moving quickly to expand production.
“The memory bottleneck is expected to continue until 2030,” Chey told reporters at the SK hynix booth. “We are pushing forward at full speed to expand production capacity.”
“Building new memory fabs requires enormous investment and takes at least three years,” he said. “Despite these challenges, we plan to double wafer production capacity over the next five years.”
It was the first time SK Group publicly presented a specific goal of doubling its overall production capacity within five years. SK hynix is making large-scale investments to strengthen production capacity, including projects at its M15X and P&T7 facilities in Cheongju, the Yongin semiconductor cluster and an advanced packaging plant in the United States.
Consumer prices in South Korea rose 3.1% in May from a year earlier, driven by sharp increases in petroleum products, international airfares and overseas group tour fees. Data from National Data Agency. Graphic by Asia Today and translated by UPI
June 2 (Asia Today) — South Korea’s consumer price growth topped 3% in May for the first time in 26 months as a prolonged Middle East war drove up global oil prices, raising concerns that high inflation could continue through the second half of the year.
The consumer price index stood at 119.92 in May, with 2020 set as the base year of 100, up 3.1% from a year earlier, according to consumer price data released Tuesday by the National Data Agency. It was the first increase of 3% or more since March 2024.
Industrial products rose 4.2% from a year earlier, while service prices increased 2.8%. Petroleum prices showed the sharpest increase, jumping 24.2%, the largest gain in three years and 10 months since July 2022, when the Russia-Ukraine war was at its height.
Gasoline prices rose 23.1%, diesel prices climbed 33.3% and kerosene prices increased 21.7%.
Among services, international airfares, which are directly affected by fuel costs, rose 33.5%, while overseas group tour fees increased 26.3%.
The living price index, which tracks frequently purchased items with a high share of household spending, rose 3.3% from a year earlier, showing a worsening burden felt by consumers.
Lee Doo-won, an official in charge of economic trend statistics at the data agency, said petroleum prices rose more sharply because of higher international oil prices caused by the Middle East war.
“International airfares and prices for travel and lodging-related items rose sharply as fuel surcharges linked to global oil prices increased and the number of peak-season days, including holidays, grew,” Lee said.
The government said it will work to reduce price uncertainty by stabilizing petroleum prices.
A Finance Ministry official said the government’s petroleum price cap and fuel tax cut reduced the May consumer price increase by 0.6 percentage point.
“We will make every effort to stabilize prices felt by households through petroleum price stabilization measures and a task force on livelihood prices,” the official said.
Experts said inflation led by higher global oil prices is likely to continue in the second half.
“Although the United States and Iran have announced plans to discuss reopening the Strait of Hormuz, the high oil price trend is likely to continue in the second half even if the war ends, given the destruction of local oil facilities,” said Jeong Se-eun, an economics professor at Chungnam National University.
“For South Korea, which imports all of its oil, oil prices affect overall inflation. There is also concern that abnormal weather forecast for this summer could raise agricultural prices,” Jeong said.
“With no notable downward factor in the second half, inflation is expected to stay around 3%,” she added.
Park Jin, a professor at the Korea Development Institute School of Public Policy and Management, said prices are determined by market supply and demand.
“On the supply side, there are inflation concerns caused by unstable oil prices. On the demand side, there are price-increase factors such as a strong domestic stock market,” Park said. “Preemptive steps, including consideration of an interest rate hike, are needed.”
Charlotte Edwards says there was never any doubt around Heather Knight’s place in England’s World Cup side as the former captain returned to form in a series-clinching win in the third T20 against India.
Knight, 35, made a magnificent unbeaten 70 as England emphatically chased 181 to win the series 2-1, after she had endured a lean start to the summer.
But under pressure in the series decider, Knight, who became England women’s most-capped cricketer last month, was at her fluent best with 10 fours in a 42-ball knock.
“It’s been quite interesting listening to some of the press this week,” head coach Edwards told BBC Sport.
“I think the more that people have been writing her off, the more I just knew she was going to put in a performance like this.
“I spoke to her after her record game [at Chelmsford] about her character and how that is one of her biggest attributes, and we saw that in abundance tonight.
“It was really lovely for her to have that performance going into the World Cup, but there were no doubts in our dressing room about Heather.”
Knight added 137 for the fourth wicket in a flawless stand with Alice Capsey, who made 81 off 43. The pair toyed with India’s wilting bowlers throughout, with Knight reverse-sweeping and scoring cannily behind square while Capsey struck beautifully straight down the ground.
It is easy to forget Capsey is still only 21 years old, having burst on to the English cricket scene as a teenager, and it was a knock that has surely cemented her place in Edwards’ starting XI for the World Cup opener against Sri Lanka on 12 June.
Edwards said it was the best she had seen Capsey play, and praised her work ethic over the winter.
“To play the way she did from that position [38-3], I couldn’t be prouder,” Edwards added.
“We spoke to her at the start of the winter about the areas we wanted her to work on and she has worked so, so hard. Now she’s bearing the fruits of that and there’s nothing more satisfying than to win a game of cricket for England in that manner.”
Colombian President Gustavo Petro said he has evidence of software modifications that allegedly introduced hundreds of thousands of voter identification records that were not properly registered and altered voting tables. Photo by EPA
June 2 (UPI) — Colombian President Gustavo Petro reiterated allegations Tuesday of possible electoral fraud in the first round of the country’s presidential election, claiming irregularities in the voter registry and vote-counting systems ahead of the June 21 runoff.
In a message posted on X, Petro said he was presenting the “verified basis of possible fraud” and claimed he could submit evidence to the relevant authorities.
Petro said he has evidence of software modifications that allegedly introduced hundreds of thousands of voter identification records that were not properly registered and altered voting tables.
Presento las bases comprobadas del posible fraude. Que puedo entregar a autoridad competente.
Dije que no reconocí los datos del preconteo del software de los hermanos Bautista es porque tengo datos.
Mi compromiso con mi pueblo y el amor a mi país por el que he luchado toda mi…— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) June 2, 2026
Petro contended that last-minute technical changes to systems operated by Colombia’s National Civil Registry, known as the Registraduria Nacional, resulted in irregularities, including an increase of 885,409 voter identification records in the electoral roll and the appearance of 1,493 additional voting tables that he claimed were not authorized.
He also alleged that the algorithms used in private software for preliminary vote counting and official tabulation were secretly modified three times during the final week of the campaign.
As a result, Petro said, he would only recognize the final official results certified by judicial authorities serving on Colombia’s electoral review commissions.
He said the alleged irregularities benefited far-right candidate Abelardo de la Espriella and harmed his preferred candidate, left-wing Sen. Ivan Cepeda.
After preliminary results showed De la Espriella leading with 43.74% of the vote and Cepeda in second place with 40.90%, Petro said he would not accept the preliminary count and pledged to present evidence to electoral authorities.
Before the election, several polls had projected Cepeda as the frontrunner, although analysts noted a rapid surge in support for De la Espriella during the final weeks of the campaign.
Petro intensified his criticism Tuesday, claiming electoral authorities were seeking to “close the vote count quickly” to avoid reviewing his allegations.
The National Civil Registry reported that the official count had reached 99.98% completion and said final results matched the preliminary count of 99.94%, rejecting claims of widespread manipulation.
According to Colombian media reports, Cepeda significantly softened his position Monday after initially supporting Petro’s concerns on election night.
The candidate of the Historic Pact coalition said that after an extensive review conducted by his monitoring team, no evidence was found of irregularities significant enough to call the legitimacy of the first-round results into question.
Voters will return to the polls June 21 to choose between two sharply different political visions.
De la Espriella, a political outsider associated with what supporters describe as a “new right,” has centered his campaign on public security and advocates a hardline approach to crime inspired by the policies of El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele and Argentine President Javier Milei.
Cepeda, meanwhile, has campaigned on social justice and supports continuing and expanding Petro’s agrarian reform and energy transition agenda, while promoting negotiations with armed groups as part of a broader peace strategy.
The average number of children per woman in Chile last year fell to 0.99 live births, a 59.4% decrease from 1993, according to government statistics. File Photo by Alberto Valdes/EPA
SANTIAGO, Chile, June 2 (UPI) — Chile has recorded a historic decline in births, with the birth rate falling 46.9% over the past 32 years and the total fertility rate dropping below one child per woman for the first time, raising concerns about long-term population replacement.
According to the National Statistics Institute, or INE, report “Demographic Overview of Chile,” the number of births declined to 146,446 in 2025 from 275,916 in 1993. The average number of children per woman last year fell to 0.99 live births, a 59.4% decrease from 1993.
At the same time, the share of births to foreign mothers has increased significantly. Between 2017 and 2025, the proportion nearly tripled, rising to 19.7% of live births from 6.9%.
“These are concerning figures. Chile is the most aged country in Latin America, with one of the region’s highest life expectancies at 81.5 years, comparable to Canada,” public health specialist Claudia Rodriguez, head of the Public Health Department at the University of the Andes, told UPI.
“As a result, Chile is beginning to display the demographic characteristics of a developed country without being one, and the country could soon reach a point where deaths outnumber births,” she said.
Sara Parada, director of obstetrics at Andres Bello University, said the decline reflects a combination of social, economic, cultural and institutional changes.
“Women are making reproductive decisions in a more informed environment. Greater female participation in higher education and the labor market has contributed to delaying motherhood,” she told UPI.
She said additional factors include the high cost of raising children, uncertain or unstable employment conditions, and limited support from partners in caregiving responsibilities.
“There has been a significant cultural shift. Motherhood is no longer viewed as an obligatory path for all women, but as an autonomous and informed decision that coexists with other life goals,” Parada said.
“That in itself is not negative. The problem arises when people who do want children do not find the material, labor, family or institutional conditions needed to have them.”
Parada noted that Chile’s situation is not unique and reflects a broader trend across Latin America and the Caribbean.
“Fertility has been steadily declining across the region. According to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, fertility reached 1.8 children per woman in 2024 and has remained below the replacement level of 2.1 children per woman since 2015,” she said.
“In 2024, 76% of countries and territories in the region recorded fertility rates below that threshold.”
She said Costa Rica registered 1.32 children per woman, Uruguay 1.40 and Argentina 1.50.
Uruguay’s birth rate continues to decline. The country recorded about 50,000 births in 2016, but the figure fell to 29,000 within a decade. The National Institute for Educational Evaluation estimates the number of students will decline by 25% by 2045.
“In less than 10 years, Argentina’s birth rate has fallen 40%. The countries facing the most severe fertility crises in the region are Uruguay, followed by Chile and then Argentina,” family specialist Lorena Bolzon told Argentine newspaper La Nacion.
Parada said Chile stands out not only for having one of the region’s lowest fertility rates, but also for the speed of the decline.
Analysts warn that a sustained drop in births could have significant long-term consequences by reducing the future working-age population, potentially affecting labor availability, productivity and economic growth unless accompanied by adaptation policies.
“It also increases the proportion of older adults relative to the active population, placing greater pressure on pension systems, healthcare spending and long-term care services,” Parada said.
She said governments should not focus solely on encouraging births, but instead adopt comprehensive measures that support families, including access to child care, work schedules compatible with family life and financial assistance for raising children.
Sit at a table with a bunch of actors and it inevitably becomes an impromptu acting class, one in which even theMichelle Pfeiffer is leaning over to observe. At least that’s what happened on a recent afternoon when The Envelope gathered six actors from some of this season’s most talked about television series for its 2026 Emmy Drama Roundtable.
It all began when Pfeiffer (“The Madison”) shared that, while studying acting, she couldn’t grasp the technique created by Sanford Meisner, which trains actors to stop overthinking and encourages them to listen and respond actively to their scene partners. The revelation immediately activated Katherine LaNasa (“The Pitt”), who beckoned Tom Pelphrey (“Task”) to join her in a spontaneous application. (Both had studied the method.)
“I like your jacket,” LaNasa said, locking eyes with Pelphrey.
“You like my jacket?” he replied playfully.
“I do like your jacket … You’re smiling at me.”
The exchange, which had a flirtatious energy, continued for a minute, before Pelphrey and LaNasa emphasized that it’s essentially looking at and listening to what the other person is doing.
“Somehow I was doing it wrong and I didn’t understand why I was doing it wrong,” Pfeiffer said.
This openness and encouragement carried the entire conversation, which brought together Pfeiffer, who plays Stacy Clyburn, a wealthy New York City matriarch whose life is upended by the tragic death of her husband, which compels her to move to Montana; LaNasa, who brings depth to the burnout plaguing steadfast, straight-talking charge nurse Dana Evans; Pelphrey, in his turn as Robbie Prendergast, a sanitation worker who robs drug houses at night to provide for his family; Zahn McClarnon, who stars as Det. Joe Leaphorn, a stoic man battling his past and the loss of his son in “Dark Winds”; Billy Magnussen, who portrays Duncan Park, the eccentric and profit-hungry CEO of a tech company in “The Audacity”; and Karolina Wydra, who plays Zosia, the eternally cheerful liaison to a utopian, hive-minded collective in “Pluribus.” Read on for excerpts from our discussion.
I know all your characters are going through some personal things, but if you were to transform into them for 24 hours, what would you do with that day?
Magnussen: I live with Duncan daily because I think your job as an actor is to check the morality of the character you’re playing. And at the same time, you have to question your own morality, see where you stand, to then deal with that character. Duncan’s a really messed-up guy, and doing it for five months … I was on set 16 hours a day every day. I was with him nonstop. And his temperament and pace was just out of this world. It’s exhausting. So what would I do? I would try to go to a spa, personally, because it’s exhausting.
Wydra: Do you find that it gets blurry after a little while?
Magnussen: I still know who Billy is.
McClarnon: But there’s times where you can’t see that line between [fiction and] reality, just moments. I’ve found myself in those moments where I know the difference, obviously, but I’m so emotionally attached to Deanna Allison, who plays my wife on the show, where I can’t separate them anymore. It’s not like 24 hours, but just moments where I’m like, “Wait a second, where am I? Am I in the show? Is this Joe Leaphorn or is this Zahn?” Usually in the middle of the season, it starts to get a little blurry for me.
Magnussen: Do you think it’s the job, though, to keep it separated? Or do you guys believe in Method acting?
Wydra: Rhea Seehorn, who is on “Pluribus,” who’s incredible, who’s my partner in crime, she gave me a book about Method [acting] — the Method and what really Method was. And it’s not what we think it is. We all do Method acting, but it’s not staying in the character and living in the character forever. … And that’s what people think Method is, is that you never break the character, you take the character home, but it’s not. It’s building a world. Building it, personalizing it.
Pfeiffer: Isn’t that what we all do? Some actors will go live on the ranch. They won’t take a bath for six months. They really take it to another level, which I’m not willing to do … From the minute I commit to something, it’s right there [in my head], I’m thinking about it. It can be a year away, and it’s right here torturing me, which is I think why I’m a bit of a commitment-phobe. My agents always call me “Dr. No” because I know no matter what, even if I’m not consciously aware of it, it’s there just badgering me.
LaNasa: I have found that people want Dana, want my character, in real life. And it’s cool because she’s very comforting to people. But I had an experience recently in New York where this table of girls, they were having some party, and someone said, “Oh, you mean a lot to us.” And I said, “Oh, are they nurses?” Well, some of them are. And then they asked at the end of their dinner would I take a picture. And then one girl told the other people to leave and then she told me her illness journey. And I had breast cancer. She was going through breast cancer. And it was really interesting. And it was the most meaningful that I’d ever felt about taking a character home where it’s like … I think I spoke about my wellness journey because I was playing the role. It ended up coming up through the press. … And for some reason, because I was Dana in someone’s mind, it meant something. And I thought, “Well, this was actually useful. This breaking of that wall between character and person was actually useful.”
Tom, you get the call that you’re cast as Robbie in “Task.” What’s the first thing you do to figure him out?
Pelphrey: When I read the first two episodes, I felt like I understood Robbie’s soul perfectly, but I knew that I would have to break my ass to get that accent right. So that was where I focused most of my conscious energy and discipline and time, was just [on the] technical, just on the accent. The fun part was, because he would be my age, thinking about growing up in Philly at that time and who his heroes would be, having ideas for tattoos, stuff like that. We had more time than you get sometimes before we had to start filming because we knew and then the writers’ strike happened. I had a lot of months to sit with him and emotionally and spiritually. And I’d just become a father. Obviously [with] Robbie, everything he does is for his kids.
Pfeiffer: It changes everything. It opens your heart.
Pelphrey: I was a new person. And I understood him in that regard perfectly and I couldn’t have before. I could have imagined it and now I knew for sure.
For “The Audacity,” Billy, you spoke with some tech folks. What did you come to understand about what they’re after as innovators versus what you’re after as a creative?
Magnussen: Listen, no one’s a villain in their own story. I believe that from Day 1, these people probably came to the Valley with genuine ideas. The genesis of their idea was to connect and really bring something powerful and important to society and people. And, “Oh wait, we’re making a lot of f— money.” And through that lens, you start being blinded by this humanity that’s around you or caring for people around you rather than a bottom line. When you’re in an incestuous pool or in a small bubble, culture is created. And like Facebook, their slogan was “Move fast and break things.” Being a bull in a china shop is not a good idea anywhere, but for some reason that was the culture. People just started doing that more and more and breaking things and breaking things and breaking things. I don’t think they started off that way, but the culture just bred them to become this way. I personally relate that to, I don’t want to say Hollywood or the entertainment world, but we’ve seen the toxicity. And we’ve been slowly trying to filter that out, I think, of Hollywood. But when you have a microclimate kind of culture feeding in toxic behavior and rewarding toxic behavior over and over again, it breeds it. So you start to have to scrape away that cancer. But again, the genesis of all these ideas were pure. We were 6 years old just dreaming to be something or being like, “I could do this.”
Pfeiffer: Pretending to be something else, other than what we were.
Magnussen: I empathize with that. I don’t think people are bad. I just think they’re lost sometimes.
Karolina, your character in “Pluribus,” Zosia, is carrying the weight of almost every person in the world. What do you remember about those discussions with [creator] Vince Gilligan and how he helped you unpack this character and the relationship with Carol, Rhea [Seehorn]’s character?
Wydra: I took a break for five years from acting before Zosia came into my life. I walked away at 39 to have kids and my agent and my manager dropped me and it was really terrifying to also be a woman and turning 40, to have children at that time. When Lou [her second son] was maybe a year-and-a-half [old], I got the itch of like, “God, I miss acting so much. How am I ever going to come back? How am I going to get an opportunity?” And I was 43 at the time and out of nowhere I got an email being like, “Hey, there’s this thing …” from a commercial agent that I was on their roster, but I did not work with them. And they said, “There’s this audition.” And I go, “OK.” I read it and I said, “Who wrote it?” And she said, “Vince Gilligan for Apple TV.” I went, “What? OK.” And I didn’t know anything about the project and it was always my dream to work with Vince from when I saw “Breaking Bad.”
Long story short, I’m here and the whole journey has been so wild, so insane. When I first would talk to him about Zosia, I was like, “God, how am I going to tackle the world and someone that has the highest emotional intelligence, someone that does all these different things? And how do you see the Others? How do you want them to move about the world and the complexities of who they are?” Vince is such a beautiful human being. He’s like, “They’re just happy and content.” You go, “OK, yeah, but … what else?” For me, Zosia is extremely spiritual. Meditation was my key, my go-to to get into that zone of connection to humanity, not in the physical but very spiritual way where, [if] you meditate enough, the ego gets lifted and you truly feel connected, and you feel one with everyone. And the wild thing, I think the greatest gift, was becoming a mother; I understood what it means, unconditional love. Because my heart lives outside my body all the time. And so becoming a mother was a gift to play Zosia, because I unconditionally love Carol. And now, no matter what she throws at me, I just love her, and take care of her, and I want to nurture her.
Michelle, you get the call from Taylor Sheridan, who also created “Landman” and “Yellowstone.” He says he wants to meet with you and he wants to do it on his turf in Texas, not yours. There’s no script. What does someone like Taylor Sheridan say to someone like Michelle Pfeiffer that will get her to agree to the show?
Pfeiffer: Well, he gave me a lot of tequila.
LaNasa: Writing this down: Tequila, check.
Pfeiffer: I got a call that he wanted to meet with me, that he had an idea for something, “But you have to come to Texas.” And I said, “Is there anything? Is there an outline? Is there a paragraph?” “No, no. He wants to explain it to you in person.” I had to stay the night in Fort Worth and then met with him and he gave me tequila, and then after a while I had to stop drinking. He gave me a very rough outline of the show, of the character … She’s been with the love of her life for 50 years. It’s the marriage that we all dream of having. And he dies suddenly, tragically, and … all of a sudden the rug is really just emotionally and psychologically pulled out from underneath them. And it’s how do you rebuild a life and it’s the study of grief. He said that I had committed that night, which I did not. I’d had a few cocktails. We went back and forth a little bit about [the fact] that I really would like to read something. And he said, “Well, I would really like to cast this before I write anything.” Then I realized I wasn’t going to win this battle and I reached out to Helen Mirren [who starred in Sheridan’s “1923”], who I don’t know, but I figured she doesn’t suffer fools and she would give me the truth about what it’s like to do this. She couldn’t have spoken [more] highly of everything. She said the scripts are wonderful. The production is wonderful. And loves Montana. And so I took a leap of faith. I never do that.
What stands out to you about his process versus then working with your husband, David E. Kelley, also a prolific writer, who adapted “Margo’s Got Money Troubles”?
Pfeiffer: I couldn’t be luckier working for two of the most talented and prolific writers in the history of television. [They’re] not that much different. I purposefully didn’t want to bug David because it’s not like we had any hard-and-fast rules about not working together, but we weren’t really actively seeking it out because that can get a little dicey, just looking at it from afar. I really cherish my marriage, and our family, and I just didn’t want to mess it up. I really mostly went to the director and every now and then I might throw a little something his way. And [with] Taylor … I would go through Christina [Alexandra Voros], our director, because he’s just not honestly that accessible because he’s got a bit going on. I personally don’t like to spend my time trying to rewrite things. It’s more interesting to me to try to make something work and then I end up finding something I never would’ve decided. It just takes you to a new place and it’s so much more interesting than anything I would have conjured up.
Zahn, you’re not only the lead in “Dark Winds,” but also an executive producer and directing episodes. I know there was a moment where your character was supposed to shoot someone in the face early on. And you felt strongly, “My character’s not someone that would do this.” Talk to me about leaning into speaking your mind.
McClarnon: There’s not a lot of Native characters on television. The foundation of that character obviously comes from Tony Hillerman’s books. So the foundation was set for that character. And when I got to a point in the season where I’m supposed to kill a man, shoot him in the head in the middle of the desert — first off, I didn’t see that in the books. And I know it’s television and we want drama and all that stuff, but also, to be honest with you, I want Native kids — see, I’m going to cry now — to have something to look up to. We grew up with these stereotypes and we grew up with these tropes of Native Americans. The only one I can really remember that I really looked up to was Will Sampson in “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” because he was playing a trope, but he becomes the hero at the end of the story. It’s one of my favorite films. So when it came to that point where the writer said, “He’s going to kill this rich white man in the desert and shoot him in the head,” morally, I think Joe Leaphorn is more than that.
And it was simple. I sat down with the showrunner [John Wirth] and we talked about it, and we went back and forth for about a week. And I’m so glad that I have access to somebody like that. I have access where they’re not telling me, “No, this is the way it’s written. This is what you’re going to do.” So yeah, we decided not to shoot the guy in the head, where I’d just leave him out in the desert to fend for himself.
Katherine, you’ve talked to nurses and medical professionals in the making of “The Pitt,” but you were also a patient during your breast cancer journey, interacting with them a lot from the other side. What is something that they’ve told you or even something you observed in that time that really spoke to you about what they’re going through on the day to day in these jobs?
LaNasa: It’s funny, I’d always wanted to work with John Wells. I go through this period of all this unemployment, and then I get this job for John Wells. I had had cancer a year before and then had complications up to like six months before. It wasn’t until I got to the emergency room set that I was like, “Oh, this whole period … ” — the spirituality of that. I really believe that we need to be grateful for our life while we’re living it, no matter what’s going on. Because I still have my children, and I have nature, and I have my husband, and cooking, and my dog, and so many wonderful things. And I was really trying to hold onto that. It’s always this idea that maybe something is for a reason or whatever — now I’m going to cry. The fact that that was so purposeful, that I understood so deeply what it was to be a patient, what it was to be terrified going into the emergency department. I also understood how much it mattered when a nurse took a little extra time and was a little bit kind.
Pfeiffer: You’re going to make me cry.
LaNasa: And there was one particular nurse — I had my cancer, went through my radiation and then [went] back and forth, back and forth [to the ER]. And there was a week, the second trip to the ER [they thought I might have multiple sclerosis]. “Now do I have MS on top of having had cancer?” And I had a breakdown in the ER. And she’s like, “Listen, first six months after cancer are really bumpy, and it’s not going to stay like this. Do you need an Ativan?”
Magnussen: Did not see that turn.
LaNasa: It was that human touch. Or when they would come and give you a warm blanket or something. There’s a nurse, Kathy Garvin at County, who told me she wouldn’t do the job that she does being the [emergency department] charge nurse if it wasn’t in a county hospital. She wants to do that hard work for people that really need her. For the most underprivileged, for the unhoused. And I try to honor that in the story and to just bring that to life — their generosity and their humility.
The Envelope’s 2026 Emmy Drama Roundtable: From left, Zahn McClarnon, Michelle Pfeiffer, Tom Pelphrey, Katherine LaNasa, Billy Magnussen and Karolina Wydra.
There’s a lot of discussion in the industry right now about runaway production and can L.A. rebuild and what’s lost. I’m curious how you feel about this topic.
Magnussen: I live in Georgia and … one of our biggest exports as Americans is our culture. And if we just keep it isolated to Hollywood, I think we lose out at expressing everything we are as Americans.
McClarnon: We shoot on the Tesuque Pueblo. There’s 19 pueblos in New Mexico. We have taken over their old casino and we’ve converted it into a soundstage. We use their back lot. We obviously help out the tribe with renting the place out. And so I like shooting in New Mexico and supporting the local community, especially local Natives.
Pfeiffer: I think there’s room for all of it. We shot [a movie] in London that took place in Los Angeles. And it’s ridiculous that our entire industry has left. Los Angeles is really hurting. And a lot of people are hurting. All those jobs, all of those restaurants where people used to eat, people used to shop. And I think to not give the same sort of tax incentives that other states are doing — look, if it takes place in Georgia, you should go to Georgia. But I think Los Angeles was really built on the movie [industry].
LaNasa: I have a 34-year-old and a 12-year-old. I remember with my 34-year-old, even just being a young, starting-out mother, I would be like, “Well, I’m not going out of town. I have a child.” I would never go do a TV show out of town. I had a kid and the kid was in school and I needed to provide consistency for that child. And then with my second one, that was impossible. We would just not have been able to work. But it’s really hard on families. We are actors and we’ve come here to pursue the industry. We’ve moved here and we’ve risked something … L.A., for all of its problems, is a city of dreamers. It’s a city of people that came to pursue their art. And I am one of those people. And so in a way, I wasn’t really a citizen like the other citizens of Atlanta. I was outside. I didn’t have my community.
Magnussen: I know, but that’s the thing I have an issue with is this idea that, “It’s only there.”
Pelphrey: I’ll say this. Love that we get to film all over our beautiful country. Would love to keep the jobs in this country. That would be the nice part. Because when everybody’s like, “Oh great, we can go to Belarus or London.” Guess what? All of us get to go. Our crew doesn’t get to go — the people that we know that we need, that we work with, that we make these things with. We get to go wherever the f— we want, actors, directors, but the crew doesn’t.
The countdown to the FIFA World Cup 2026 has entered the single-figure mark, with the tournament getting under way in nine days in Mexico City.
The biggest edition of the World Cup, with 48 nations and 104 games, will be hosted by three countries for the first time, as the United States and Canada share the honours with Mexico.
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All 48 teams heading to the tournament have released their final 26-man squads, marking possible final appearances for greats like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Young stars looking to dethrone the icons, including Spain’s Lamine Yamal and Brazil’s Endrick, will look to make their mark in their first appearance at the global event.
Here are all 48 World Cup squads for the FIFA World Cup 2026:
Midfielders: Houssem Aouar, Nabil Bentaleb, Hicham Boudaoui, Fares Chaibi, Ibrahim Maza, Yassine Titraoui, Ramiz Zerrouki
Forwards: Mohamed Amine Amoura, Nadir Benbouali, Adil Boulbina, Fares Ghedjemis, Amine Gouiri, Riyad Mahrez, Anis Hadj Moussa
Argentina World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Emiliano Martinez, Geronimo Rulli, Juan Musso
Defenders: Leonardo Balerdi, Gonzalo Montiel, Nicolas Tagliafico, Lisandro Martinez, Cristian Romero, Nicolas Otamendi, Facundo Medina, Nahuel Molina
Midfielders: Leandro Paredes, Rodrigo De Paul, Valentin Barco, Giovani Lo Celso, Exequiel Palacios, Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernandez
Forwards: Julian Alvarez, Lionel Messi, Nicolas Gonzalez, Thiago Almada, Giuliano Simeone, Nicolas Paz, Jose Manuel Lopez, Lautaro Martinez
The World Cup 2026 will be Lionel Messi’s swansong [File: Gustavo Garello/AP]
Australia World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Patrick Beach, Paul Izzo, Mathew Ryan
Defenders: Aziz Behich, Jordan Bos, Cameron Burgess, Alessandro Circati, Milos Degenek, Jason Geria, Lucas Herrington, Jacob Italiano, Harry Souttar, Kai Trewin
Midfielders: Cameron Devlin, Ajdin Hrustic, Jackson Irvine, Connor Metcalfe, Aiden O’Neill, Paul Okon-Engstler
Goalkeepers: Patrick Pentz, Alexander Schlager, Florian Wiegele
Defenders: David Affengruber, David Alaba, Kevin Danso, Marco Friedl, Philipp Lienhart, Phillipp Mwene, Stefan Posch, Alexander Prass, Michael Svoboda
Midfielders: Christoph Baumgartner, Carney Chukwuemeka, Florian Grillitsch, Konrad Laimer, Marcel Sabitzer, Xaver Schlager, Romano Schmid, Alessandro Schopf, Nicolas Seiwald, Paul Wanner, Patrick Wimmer
Forwards: Marko Arnautovic, Michael Gregoritsch, Sasa Kalajdzic
Belgium World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois, Senne Lammens, Mike Penders
Defenders: Timothy Castagne, Zeno Debast, Maxim De Cuyper, Koni De Winter, Brandon Mechele, Thomas Meunier, Nathan Ngoy, Joaquin Seys, Arthur Theate
Midfielders: Kevin De Bruyne, Amadou Onana, Nicolas Raskin, Youri Tielemans, Hans Vanaken, Axel Witsel
Forwards: Charles De Ketelaere, Jeremy Doku, Matias Fernandez-Pardo, Romelu Lukaku, Dodi Lukebakio, Diego Moreira, Alexis Saelemaekers, Leandro Trossard
Bosnia and Herzegovina World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Nikola Vasilj, Martin Zlomislic, Osman Hadzikic
Defenders: Sead Kolasinac, Amar Dedic, Nihad Mujakic, Nikola Katic, Tarik Muharemovic, Stjepan Radeljic, Dennis Hadzikadunic, Nidal Celik
Midfielders: Amir Hadziahmetovic, Ivan Sunjic, Ivan Basic, Dzenis Burnic, Ermin Mahmic, Benjamin Tahirovic, Amar Memic, Armin Gigovic, Kerim Alajbegovic, Esmir Bajraktarevic
Defenders: Alex Sandro, Bremer, Danilo, Douglas Santos, Gabriel Magalhaes, Ibanez, Leo Pereira, Marquinhos, Wesley
Midfielders: Bruno Guimaraes, Casemiro, Danilo Santos, Fabinho, Lucas Paqueta
Forwards: Endrick, Gabriel Martinelli, Igor Thiago, Luiz Henrique, Matheus Cunha, Neymar Jr, Raphinha, Rayan, Vinicius Jr
Brazil’s forward Neymar has found himself in the five-time champions’ World Cup squad despite recent injuries [File: Mauro Pimentel/AFP]
Canada World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Dayne St Clair, Maxime Crepeau, Owen Goodman
Defenders: Alistair Johnston, Derek Cornelius, Richie Laryea, Niko Sigur, Joel Waterman, Luc de Fougerolles, Moise Bombito, Alphonso Davies, Alfie Jones
Midfielders: Stephen Eustaquio, Ismael Kone, Tajon Buchanan, Mathieu Choiniere, Ali Ahmed, Nathan Saliba, Liam Millar, Jacob Shaffelburg, Jonathan Osorio
Attackers: Jonathan David, Cyle Larin, Tani Oluwaseyi, Promise David
Forwards: Gilson Benchimol, Jovane Cabral, Dailon Livramento, Ryan Mendes, Nuno da Costa, Garry Rodrigues, Willy Semedo, Helio Varela
Colombia World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Camilo Vargas, Alvaro Montero, David Ospina
Defenders: Davinson Sanchez, Jhon Lucumi, Yerry Mina, Willer Ditta, Daniel Munoz, Santiago Arias, Johan Mojica, Deiver Machado
Midfielders: Richard Rios, Jefferson Lerma, Kevin Castano, Juan Camilo Portilla, Gustavo Puerta, Jhon Arias, Jorge Carrascal, Juan Fernando Quintero, James Rodriguez, Jaminton Campaz
Forwards: Juan Camilo Hernandez, Luis Diaz, Luis Suarez, Carlos Gomez, Jhon Cordoba
Defenders: Josko Gvardiol, Duje Caleta-Car, Josip Sutalo, Josip Stanisic, Marin Pongracic, Martin Erlic, Luka Vuskovic
Midfielders: Luka Modric, Mateo Kovacic, Mario Pasalic, Nikola Vlasic, Luka Sucic, Martin Baturina, Kristijan Jakic, Petar Sucic, Nikola Moro, Toni Fruk
Forwards: Ivan Perisic, Andrej Kramaric, Ante Budimir, Marco Pasalic, Petar Musa, Igor Matanovic
(Standby: Lovro Majer, Franjo Ivanovic, Dion Drena Beljo, Ivan Smolcic, Karlo Letica, Adrian Segecic, Luka Stojkovic)
Defenders: Dylan Batubinsika, Gedeon Kalulu, Steve Kapuadi, Joris Kayembe, Arthur Masuaku, Chancel Mbemba, Axel Tuanzebe, Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Midfielders: Brian Cipenga, Meshack Elia, Gael Kakuta, Edo Kayembe, Nathanael Mbuku, Samuel Moutoussamy, Ngal’ayel Mukau, Charles Pickel, Noah Sadiki, Aaron Tshibola
Forwards: Cedric Bakambu, Simon Banza, Fiston Mayele, Yoane Wissa, Theo Bongonda
Ecuador World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Hernan Galindez, Moises Ramirez, Gonzalo Valle
Defenders: Piero Hincapie, Willian Pacho, Pervis Estupinan, Felix Torres, Joel Ordonez, Jackson Porozo, Angelo Preciado, Yaimar Medina
Midfielders: Moises Caicedo, Alan Franco, Kendry Paez, Gonzalo Plata, Pedro Vite, Jordy Alcivar, Denil Castillo, John Yeboah, Nilson Angulo, Alan Minda
Forwards: Enner Valencia, Kevin Rodriguez, Jordy Caicedo, Anthony Valencia, Jeremy Arevalo
Egypt World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Mohamed El Shenawy, Mostafa Shobeir, El Mahdy Soliman, Mohamed Alaa
Midfielders: Rouzbeh Cheshmi, Saeid Ezatolahi, Mehdi Ghaedi, Saman Ghoddos, Mohammad Ghorbani, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Mohammad Mohebi, Amir Mohammad Razzaghinia, Mehdi Torabi, Aria Yousefi
Forwards: Ali Alipour, Dennis Dargahi, Amirhossein Hosseinzadeh, Mehdi Taremi, Shahriar Moghanlou
Iraq World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Fahad Talib, Jalal Hassan, Ahmed Basil
Defenders: Hussein Ali, Manaf Younis, Zaid Tahseen, Rebin Sulaka, Akam Hashem, Merchas Doski, Ahmed Yahya, Zaid Ismail, Frans Putros, Mustafa Saadoon
Midfielders: Amir Al Ammari, Kevin Yakob, Zidane Iqbal, Aimar Sher, Ibrahim Bayesh, Ahmed Qasim, Youssef Amyn, Marko Farji
Forwards: Ali Jassim, Ali Al Hamadi, Ali Yousef, Aymen Hussein, Mohanad Ali
Ivory Coast World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Yahia Fofana, Mohamed Kone, Alban Lafont
Goalkeepers: Yazid Abulaila, Noor Bani Attiah, Abdallah Al Fakhouri
Defenders: Mohammad Abu Hashish, Abdullah Nasib, Hussam Abu Dhahab, Yazan Al Arab, Mohammad Abu Alnadi, Salem Obaid, Saed Al Rosan, Ehsan Haddad, Anas Badawi
Midfielders: Amer Jamous, Noor Al Rawabdeh, Rajaei Ayed, Ibrahim Sadeh, Mohannad Abu Taha, Nizar Al Rashdan, Mohammad Al Dawoud, Mahmoud Mardahi
Forwards: Mohammad Abu Zraiq, Ali Olwan, Mousa Al Tamari, Odeh Fakhoury, Ibrahim Sabra, Ali Azaizeh
Mexico World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Raul Rangel, Guillermo Ochoa, Carlos Acevedo
Defenders: Jorge Sanchez, Israel Reyes, Cesar Montes, Johan Vasquez, Jesus Gallardo, Mateo Chavez, Edson Alvarez
Midfielders: Erik Lira, Orbelin Pineda, Alvaro Fidalgo, Brian Gutierrez, Luis Romo, Obed Vargas, Gilberto Mora, Luis Chavez
Forwards: Roberto Alvarado, Cesar Huerta, Alexis Vega, Julian Quinones, Guillermo Martinez, Armando Gonzalez, Santiago Gimenez, Raul Jimenez
Morocco World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Yassine Bounou, Munir El Kajoui, Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti
Defenders: Noussair Mazraoui, Anas Salah-Eddine, Youssef Bellammari, Achraf Hakimi, Zakaria El Ouahdi, Nayef Aguerd, Chadi Riad, Redouane Halhal, Issa Diop
Midfielders: Samir El Mourabet, Ayoub Bouaddi, Neil El Aynaoui, Sofyan Amrabat, Azzedine Ounahi, Bilal El Khannouss, Ismael Saibari
Defenders: Kristoffer Vassbakk Ajer, Fredrik Bjorkan, Henrik Falchener, Sondre Langas, Torbjorn Heggem, Marcus Holmgren Pedersen, Julian Ryerson, David Moller Wolfe, Leo Ostigard
Midfielders: Thelonious Aasgaard, Fredrik Aursnes, Patrick Berg, Sander Berge, Oscar Bobb, Jens Petter Hauge, Antonio Nusa, Andreas Schjelderup, Morten Thorsby, Kristian Thorstvedt, Martin Odegaard
Forwards: Erling Haaland, Alexander Sorloth, Jorgen Strand Larsen
Panama World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Orlando Mosquera, Luis Mejia, Cesar Samudio
Defenders: Cesar Blackman, Jorge Gutierrez, Amir Murillo, Fidel Escobar, Andres Andrade, Edgardo Farina, Jose Cordoba, Eric Davis, Jiovany Ramos, Roderick Miller
Midfielders: Anibal Godoy, Adalberto Carrasquilla, Carlos Harvey, Cristian Martinez, Jose Luis Rodriguez, Cesar Yanis, Yoel Barcenas, Alberto Quintero, Azarias Londono
Forwards: Ismael Diaz, Cecilio Waterman, Jose Fajardo, Tomas Rodriguez
Defenders: Juan Caceres, Gustavo Velazquez, Gustavo Gomez, Junior Alonso, Jose Canale, Omar Alderete, Alexandro Maidana, Fabian Balbuena
Midfielders: Diego Gomez, Mauricio Magalhaes, Damian Bobadilla, Braian Ojeda, Andres Cubas, Matias Galarza, Alejandro Gamarra
Forwards: Gustavo Caballero, Ramon Sosa, Alex Arce, Isidro Pitta, Gabriel Avalos, Miguel Almiron, Julio Enciso, Antonio Sanabria
Portugal World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa, Jose Sa, Rui Silva
Defenders: Tomas Araujo, Joao Cancelo, Diogo Dalot, Ruben Dias, Goncalo Inacio, Nuno Mendes, Matheus Nunes, Nelson Semedo, Renato Veiga
Midfielders: Samuel Costa, Bruno Fernandes, Joao Neves, Ruben Neves, Bernardo Silva, Vitinha
Forwards: Francisco Conceicao, Joao Felix, Goncalo Guedes, Rafael Leao, Pedro Neto, Goncalo Ramos, Cristiano Ronaldo, Francisco Trincao
Qatar World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Salah Zakaria, Meshaal Barsham, Mahmoud Abunada
Defenders: Boualem Khoukhi, Pedro Miguel, Sultan Al Brake, Al Hashmi Al Hussain, Ayoub Al Alawi, Issa Laye, Lucas Mendes, Homam Al Amin
Midfielders: Ahmed Fathi, Jassim Gaber, Assim Madibo, Abdulaziz Hatem, Karim Boudiaf, Mohammed Mannai
Forwards: Almoez Ali, Akram Afif, Tahsin Mohammed, Edmilson Junior, Ahmed Al-Janehi, Ahmed Alaa, Hassan Al Haydos, Mohammed Muntari, Yusuf Abdurisag
Saudi Arabia World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Nawaf Al Aqidi, Mohamed Al Owais, Ahmed Alkassar
Defenders: Saud Abdulhamid, Jehad Thakri, Abdulelah Al Amri, Hassan Tambakti, Ali Lajami, Hassan Kadesh, Moteb Al Harbi, Nawaf Boushal, Ali Majrashi, Mohammed Abu Alshamat
Midfielders: Ziyad Al Johani, Nasser Al Dawsari, Mohamed Kanno, Abdullah Al Khaibari, Alaa Al Hejji, Musab Al Juwayr, Sultan Mandash, Ayman Yahya, Khalid Al Ghannam
Forwards: Salem Al Dawsari, Abdullah Al Hamdan, Feras Al Brikan, Saleh Al Shehri
Scotland World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Craig Gordon, Angus Gunn, Liam Kelly
Defenders: Grant Hanley, Jack Hendry, Aaron Hickey, Dom Hyam, Scott McKenna, Nathan Patterson, Anthony Ralston, Andy Robertson, John Souttar, Kieran Tierney
Midfielders: Ryan Christie, Findlay Curtis, Lewis Ferguson, Tyler Fletcher, Ben Gannon-Doak, John McGinn, Kenny McLean, Scott McTominay
Forwards: Che Adams, Lyndon Dykes, George Hirst, Lawrence Shankland, Ross Stewart
Forwards: Arda Guler, Baris Alper Yilmaz, Can Uzun, Deniz Gul, Irfan Can Kahveci, Kenan Yildiz, Kerem Akturkoglu, Oguz Aydin, Yunus Akgun
Uruguay World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Sergio Rochet, Fernando Muslera, Santiago Mele
Defenders: Guillermo Varela, Ronald Araujo, Jose Maria Gimenez, Santiago Bueno, Sebastian Caceres, Mathias Olivera, Joaquin Piquerez, Matias Vina
Midfielders: Maximiliano Araujo, Giorgian de Arrascaeta, Rodrigo Bentancur, Agustin Canobbio, Nicolas de la Cruz, Emiliano Martinez, Facundo Pellistri, Brian Rodriguez, Juan Manuel Sanabria, Manuel Ugarte, Federico Valverde, Rodrigo Zalazar
Forwards: Rodrigo Aguirre, Federico Vinas, Darwin Nunez
USA World Cup squad
Goalkeepers: Chris Brady, Matt Freese, Matt Turner
Defenders: Max Arfsten, Sergino Dest, Alex Freeman, Mark McKenzie, Tim Ream, Chris Richards, Antonee Robinson, Miles Robinson, Joe Scally, Auston Trusty
Midfielders: Tyler Adams, Sebastian Berhalter, Weston McKennie, Cristian Roldan, Brenden Aaronson, Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna, Malik Tillman, Tim Weah, Alejandro Zendejas
Forwards: Folarin Balogun, Ricardo Pepi, Haji Wright
The FIFA World Cup begins on June 11. You can follow the action on Al Jazeera’s dedicated World Cup 2026 page with all the latest news, match build-up and live text commentary, and keep up to date with group standings, real-time match results and schedules.
“Being so close to a childhood dream of mine, to play in a World Cup, and now it has been taken away from me with an injury. It’s been a tough one to get my head around.
“Your support and kind messages over the last few days mean the world to me and haven’t gone unnoticed, so thank you so much.
“I’ll see you all back doing what I love again soon, but until then, let’s get behind the team and cheer them on. Come on Scotland!”
Scotland have qualified for their first World Cup finals since 1998.
Head coach Steve Clarke and his squad left Glasgow for the United States on Sunday and face Bolivia in their final warm-up friendly on Saturday in New Jersey.
Scotland start their Group C campaign against Haiti on Sunday, 14 June before playing Morocco and Brazil.
