Iran Wiretap

Austria and Algeria played to a thrilling 3-3 draw Saturday, a result that sent both teams into the World Cup knockout round while eliminating Iran from tournament contention.

Marko Arnautovic and Marcel Sabitzer gave Austria an early two-goal cushion, but Algeria fought back, with Rafik Belghali and captain Riyad Mahrez each scoring to level the match. Algeria finished with a 1.67-to-1.49 edge in xG (expected goals).

Mahrez appeared to have won the match outright with a second goal roughly a minute into stoppage time, putting Austria on the brink of elimination. Sasa Kalajdzic responded almost immediately, heading home an equalizer to secure Austria's advancement and salvage the draw.

Austria finished second in Group J behind Argentina, advancing to the knockout stage for the first time since 1982. The team will face European champion Spain on Thursday in Los Angeles.

Algeria finished third in the group but secured passage as one of the best third-place finishers, becoming the ninth of 10 African nations to reach the knockout round this tournament. Algeria will face Switzerland on Thursday in Vancouver.

Iran, which would have advanced had either Austria or Algeria won outright, was eliminated as a result of the draw.

Egypt advanced to the World Cup knockout round for the first time in program history after a 1-1 draw with Iran on Friday, securing second place in Group G.

Mahmoud Saber gave Egypt an early lead in the fifth minute, firing between the legs of goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand after strong buildup play from Mohamed Salah. Ramin Rezaeian equalized for Iran nine minutes later. Iran finished with a commanding 1.97-to-0.84 edge in expected goals despite the result.

Iran nearly secured a dramatic win in stoppage time when Shoja Khalilzadeh fired past Beiranvand in the 93rd minute, but the goal was overturned after a video review for offside. A successful goal would have clinched a knockout round berth for Iran outright.

Belgium won Group G with a 5-1 victory over New Zealand in Vancouver, leaving Egypt in second place. Egypt will face Australia in the round of 32 on July 3 in Arlington, Texas.

Iran can still reach the knockout round for the first time in the tournament's expanded 48-team format, but the team no longer controls its own fate and must wait for other results to determine its status. 

Iran and Belgium settled for a 0-0 draw Sunday, with goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand making seven saves to preserve the result after Belgium dropped to 10 men in the second half. Belgium had a 1.79 to 0.62 edge in xG (expected goals), highlighting the performance of Beiranvand in goal for Iran.

Belgium defender Nathan Ngoy was shown a straight red card in the 66th minute for fouling Mehdi Taremi and denying a clear scoring opportunity. Despite the numerical disadvantage, Belgium generated stronger chances late, with Maxim De Cuyper denied twice by Beiranvand, including a golden opportunity in the 86th minute.

The result marked a second straight draw in group play for both sides. Iran will regret missing the chance to defeat Belgium, ranked 10th by FIFA, in front of a supportive crowd in the Los Angeles area. Taremi had an early goal disallowed for offside following video review after a well-executed set piece.

Iran's tournament has been disrupted since the United States began its war with the country on Feb. 28. The team relocated its training base from Arizona to Mexico and operates under travel restrictions requiring departure from Los Angeles within hours of each match.

Belgium remains without a goal through two matches, having scored only via an own goal in their opener against Egypt. The Red Devils have gone scoreless across 53 consecutive shots at the World Cup dating back to their lone goal in Qatar four years ago, despite an unbeaten run of 15 consecutive competitive matches.

Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois matched Beiranvand's performance, stopping several strong Iranian chances. Coach Amir Ghalenoei fielded the oldest starting lineup at a World Cup match since 1966, according to ESPN Research, while Romelu Lukaku made a surprise start and recorded one shot in 73 minutes.

Iran overcame significant off-field obstacles to earn a 2-2 draw with New Zealand in their 2026 World Cup Group opener at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, with Ramin Rezaeian and Mohammad Mohebbi each scoring to cancel out a Eli Just brace.

Iran carried the 44th-ranked roster valuation among all 48 World Cup nations entering the tournament at $36.86 million, per Transfermarkt, compared to New Zealand's 43rd-ranked squad at $39.50 million. Iran held a 1.50-to-1.24 advantage in xG (expected goals) over the course of the match.

The path to the tournament was turbulent for Iran. The team relocated training from the United States to Mexico due to visa complications, and 11 non-playing staff members were blocked from entering the country entirely.

New Zealand striker Chris Wood combined with Just to set up the opening goal in the seventh minute, with the Motherwell midfielder steering a volley past goalkeeper Alireza Behranvand. Iran captain Mehdi Taremi struck the post before Rezaeian leveled in the 32nd minute, poking home after New Zealand defender Finn Surman blocked a shot from Shahriyar Moghanloo.

Just completed his brace 10 minutes into the second half, finishing a composed team move. Iran responded when Rezaeian's cross from the right found Mohebbi, who guided a header off the post and in.

Inside SoFi Stadium, members of Los Angeles' Iranian diaspora displayed Lion and Sun flags, the symbol of pre-revolutionary Iran, despite FIFA's attempts to prohibit them. The national anthem was met with audible booing from sections of the crowd before supporters rallied behind the team throughout.

Both sides created chances to claim all three points in the closing stages, but neither converted.

France enters the 2026 World Cup with the most valuable roster in the tournament at $1.76 billion, according to squad valuation data from Transfermarkt, with England ($1.507 billion) and Spain ($1.449 billion) ranked second and third.

Portugal, Germany, and Brazil round out the six nations surpassing the $1 billion threshold in total squad value.

Spain's Lamine Yamal and Norway's Erling Haaland share the top individual valuation at $238 million. Haaland alone accounts for roughly 33 percent of Norway's total $691 million squad value. Kylian Mbappe ranks third among individual players and leads France's roster.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia ranks seventh among individual players but will not appear in the tournament after Georgia failed to qualify.

2026 World Cup Squad Valuations

1. France: $1.760 billion
2. England: $1.507 billion
3. Spain: $1.449 billion
4. Portugal: $1.173 billion
5. Germany: $1.148 billion
6. Brazil: $1.049 billion
7. Netherlands: $962.78 million
8. Argentina: $940.13 million
9. Norway: $691.15 million
10. Belgium: $624.34 million
11. Ivory Coast: $610.54 million
12. Morocco: $561.43 million
13. Senegal: $543.84 million
14. Turkiye: $543.61 million
15. Sweden: $492.18 million
16. Uruguay: $466.10 million
17. Croatia: $448.16 million
18. United States: $438.90 million
19. Ecuador: $432.63 million
20. Switzerland: $382.49 million
21. Colombia: $350.46 million
22.Japan: $320.74 million
23. Algeria: $295.44 million
24. Austria: $278.53 million
25. Ghana: $269.50 million
26. Canada: $226.15 million
27. Mexico: $220.63 million
28. Czechia: $216.41 million
29. Scotland: $195.79 million
30. Paraguay: $176.70 million
31. Bosnia-Herzegovina: $174.34 million
32. DR Congo: $165.49 million
33. South Korea: $159.91 million
34. Egypt: $133.95 million
35. Uzbekistan: $98.13 million
36. Australia: $89.07 million
37. Tunisia: $80.44 million
38. Haiti: $64.29 million
39. Cape Verde: $62.68 million
40. South Africa: $56.64 million
41. Saudi Arabia: $46.78 million
42. Panama: $39.73 million
43. New Zealand: $39.50 million
44. Iran: $36.86 million
45. Curacao: $29.65 million
46. Iraq: $24.38 million
47. Jordan: $23.58 million
48. Qatar: $22.92 million

What happened in one snapshot in the 2018 World Cup, Match 34, Group B: Portugal 1, Iran 1.

What happened in one snapshot in the 2018 World Cup, Match 3, Group B: Iran 1, Morocco 0.

Cambridge University Press has completed a study to find the three words most frequently used during the World Cup to describe all 32 teams.

The team at Cambridge scoured over 15,000 football-specific online sources to produce the following chart.

Lionel Messi headlines the WhoScored Best XI leading up to the World Cup Final with a rating of 8.77.

Arjen Robben ranks second, followed by James Rodriguez, Neymar and Miralem Pjanic.

Tim Howard is in goal behind a back line of Ron Vlaar, Stefan de Vrij, Serge Aurier and Ricardo Rodriguez.

Thomas Müller, who has scored five goals with three assists, is also on the team.

Lionel Messi's goal in the 91st minute gave Argentina a 1-0 win over Iran.

Argentina struggled to break through despite dominating possession due to Iran's well-organized defensive efforts.

“I’m happy about the result, for our qualification in what was a complicated and difficult game, in which at no time could we find a way through their solid defense, which didn’t allow us any spaces.”

“We weren’t expecting a game like this, but those of us in attack couldn’t find spaces against such a strong defense. They weren’t letting us get onto balls between the lines, which we like so much and from which we can cause so much harm for opponents.”