FRANCE

Les Bleus’ glittering attack assembled

Kylian Mbappe will spearhead France at the World Cup after coach Didier Deschamps announced his 26-man squad for the World Cup.

Deschamps, who captained France when it won the World Cup in 1998 and guided France to World Cup glory in 2018 and second in Qatar four years ago will leave his role after 14 years in charge.

Mbappe is part of a glittering French forward line, also featuring Ballon d’Or holder Ousmane Dembele and Désiré Doué of Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise. Like Doué and Olise, Manchester City wizard Rayan Cherki will make his World Cup debut. 

• France: Roster

SEATTLE

Puget Sound set for floating soccer celebration

During the World Cup, the Seattle Sounders and Seattle Reign will host a floating festival (with pitch) against the backdrop of Elliott Bay at Waterfront Park’s Pier 62.

Seattle Soccer Celebration on the shoreline will highlight the Puget Sound’s deep maritime history and be the culmination of RAVE Foundation’s 52 Fields initiative, building 52 free mini-pitches in underserved communities across Washington State.

• Seattle will host six matches at Lumen Field: four group-stage games (including USA-Australia on June 19) and two knockout rounds (including a potential fifth USMNT game).

• World Cup countdown: Guide to soccer documentary series

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• Los Angeles: Hundreds of corner seats have been ripped out of SoFi Stadium and truckloads of freshly harvested sod were beginning the 1,200-mile journey from Washington state as the Los Angeles venue puts the finishing touches on its facelift for the World Cup.

The $5 billion stadium in Inglewood has also had to bury its NFL-standard synthetic turf under a complicated overlay of sand and flooring material, and remove all corporate sponsor signage, in the race to be ready for the USA’s first match against Paraguay on June 12.

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• Iran: A send-off ceremony was held for Team Melli with players, dressed in red and black tracksuits, presented on stage in the central Tehran square of Enghelab to crowds of cheering fans. Coach Amir Ghalenoei and the president of Iran’s federation, Mehdi Taj, were also present.

The national team, Taj said, is the “national soccer of wartime,” adding that it would be a “pillar of authority and resistance.” Iran is due to be based in Tucson, Arizona, and open against New Zealand on June 15 at SoFi Stadium.

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SOCCER AMERICA TRIVIA

Congratulations to Connor Oven on being selected randomly as the winner of Soccer America Trivia contest #14.

Kudos to Owen Krucoff, Michael Wortham, Witt Wortham, Gustavo Escobar, Calvin Burn, Lawrence Dockery, Ryan Smith, Yevgeniy Muravchik, Stan Kull, Rick Derella, James Geluso, Steven Torres and Travis Smith for also correctly answering all five questions.

Trivia contest #14
1️⃣ Which team did the USA beat, 1-0, in its must-win, final group-stage game at the 2022 World Cup to advance to the knockout stage? Iran
2️⃣ Who scored the USA’s game-winner that prevented it from being eliminated at the group stage of the 2022 World Cup? Christian Pulisic
3️⃣ Which player — 19 when the Qatar tournament began — was the youngest U.S. player to see action at the 2022 World Cup? Yunus Musah
4️⃣ Who, at age 35, was the oldest player on the USA’s 2022 World Cup squad? Tim Ream
5️⃣ Who was the only U.S. player at the 2022 World Cup who had played at a previous World Cup? DeAndre Yedlin

• Play: Soccer America Trivia contest #15 (USMNT World Cup opponents)

World Cup Watch is edited by Paul Kennedy and Mike Woitalla.

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