Soccer (FIFA)
fromESPN.com
19 hours agoNigeria using WC 'pain' as motivation at AFCON
Victor Osimhen vows Nigeria will channel World Cup qualifying disappointment into Africa Cup of Nations success in Morocco.
I obviously want to thank everyone who's here, all the players, the staff and all the people who make sure everything runs smoothly behind the scenes. I'm proud to be the captain of Oranje and to lead you every single time. I'm already excited for the final tournament and to achieve success together. The specific phrase the final tournament has been picked up by fans as the crucial detail.
Spain were almost guaranteed to finish top of Group E ahead of kick-off unless Turkiye could pull off a miraculous goal swing, but Dani Olmo got them off to a flying start. The Barcelona forward finished past Altay Bayindir in the fourth minute in Seville, but the visitors restored parity just before the break through Deniz Gul's strike from close range.
Austria came from behind to salvage a 1-1 draw with Bosnia-Herzegovina, which booked their place at the 2026 World Cup. Bosnia-Herzegovina were on course to leapfrog Austria into top spot in Group H after Haris Tabakovic gave them a 12th-minute lead. Ralf Rangnick's side were then denied an equaliser just before the break, when Konrad Laimer drilled in off the post, only for it to be chalked off after a VAR review for a foul in the build-up.
Led by a core of five Bayern players, Germany claimed a comprehensive 6-0 win over Group A rivals Slovakia in their final game of World Cup qualifying to secure their place in next summer's tournament in Canada, Mexico and the USA. "The World Cup is the greatest thing there is. We're not used to it being so tight in Germany, so I'm really happy," said Joshua Kimmich, who captained the team in Leipzig on Monday.
Best odds: 4/5 Bookmaker: Olympusbet Scotland and Denmark will battle for a place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup when they meet at Hampden Park on Tuesday evening. Despite losing on Saturday, the hosts still have a chance to qualify automatically: Scotland must win to reach next year's finals, while Denmark only need a draw. Scotland Two hard-fought home victories over Belarus and Greece last month lifted Scotland to 10 points, level with Denmark at the top of Group C.
Supporters and the media in Hungary have turned on the team and their manager, Marco Rossi, as they woke up to the fact that their World Cup dream is over. Hungary only needed a draw at home to Ireland to make the playoffs, but they threw away a 2-1 lead to lose 3-2 and it's the Hungarians who now face a grim spell of 10 months before their next game of consequence.