It looks like it, but the designation sheet for that "Game 1,000" actually called their kit "orange." Who knows, maybe they just suck at this.
according to everything I’ve seen, FIFA decides. The “home” team does not automatically get to wear its home or preferred kit.
My father-in-law left behind a binder of all of his WC'94 info. He was the Referee Liaison in Dallas, as well as a ticket-holding fan. The binder has Ref instruction, ticket info, etc. It's a time capsule to a pre-internet world & pre-$150 parking passes.https://t.co/Fa734sMaFm pic.twitter.com/PKuHgh9PdZ— Jonathan Johnson (@AsstRef) July 13, 2026 The seminar slide show linked is interesting. There's a lot of stuff that feels like grassroots ref information now.
Couldn't it also indicate that the field refs are biased against Argentina and constantly need the VAR to get it right? I'm being sarcastic, but I don't see why that couldn't be the interpretation versus the implication of the VAR being biased. But yeah more than likely just statistical noise either way.
Indeed. That thought occurred to me as well. Another reason why to always take a jaundiced view at graphics like this - and especially any leading editorializing trying to tell you how to interpret the data.
🚨 Exclusive: Growing support within UEFA to back a candidate to run against Gianni Infantino at the next presidential election.Unlikely to be Aleksander Čeferin or Nasser Al-Khelaifi despite support for latter. Dariusz Mioduski floated by executives.https://t.co/XHfqwRWFwf— Ben Jacobs (@JacobsBen) July 14, 2026 @MassachusettsRef called this exact scenario. Ben Jacobs of TalkSport reporting that UEFA is looking to run a candidate against Infantino and it seems largely spurred on by the Balogun thing
FIFA to break football's laws by having half-time break at World Cup final of up to 30mins to accommodate glitzy Super Bowl-style show. ITV will cover half-time show in full and BBC expected to do so too. https://t.co/Ri0jKslpR1— Martyn Ziegler (@martynziegler) July 14, 2026 We knew this was coming, but just another sign that FIFA really doesn't care about the Laws of the Game at all. Also, why is the US anthem being played when it hasn't been played at non-US games all tournament? It's not an American sporting event. First World Cup match, I believe, where the anthem of a country not playing in the game is being played.
Oh, but it has been. Before Canada v South Africa in LA? US anthem. Before Canada v Morocco in Houston? US anthem. I think that it's been done at all US stadiums before each game.
This has been threatened by UEFA several times before. It goes nowhere because of the voting structure in FIFA and the power of the sitting president. PH
At some point, you'd think UEFA would just threaten to take their ball and go home, a la the Big Tenteen and the SEC with the NCAA. CAF/AFC may have the majority of votes, but I suspect that UEFA brings in way more money than FIFA would be willing to walk away from.
The thought certainly crossed my mind, but that's basically the sports equivalent of nuclear war. Things would need to get a lot worse for UEFA for them to go down that road.
The U.S. anthem is legally required to be played at sporting events in the Meadowlands - where the Final is being played. It became a political issue at some point before 2007 when the Republican candidate for Governor was asked why the U.S. anthem wasn't played before some international friendly at Giants Stadium. Sure enough, I was there in 2007 for England/Columbia. As soon as the stadium was opened for fans to enter, they played the Star Spangled Banner fulfilling their legal obligation. That way they didn't have to play it as part of the ceremonial introductions before the game.
Absolutely. But few politicians will ever vote on a minor bill (or rider) in such a way that a future opponent can use to make them appear anti-American. It's totally cynical. And in New Jersey, at least, it's the law. Including it in the game ceremony, however, is on FIFA.
I've done a number of searches. This does not sound correct. What federal, state, or local law requires this?
It was something to do with venues that involved state funding or financing. I think if any anthem was played, the U.S. anthem had to be played as well. It was over 20 years ago. I definitely have found that finding information freely available on the internet back then is harder to locate. Edit: I found this: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/sport/archives/2005/06/04/2003257966 I was at that game. I remember the brouhaha after it. And my memory from earlier in this thread is a bit scrambled obviously. I do remember showing to a neutral international shortly after that game - and that was when the U.S. anthem was played as soon as the gates for fans were opened.
Having a World Cup of 48 teams when 30+ were from UEFA would be a gigantic bummer. Because that's how the Big Ten/SEC dream of football playoffs in the NCAA.
No great surprise with the kits for the last two games of the World Cup - though France in the tricolore and England in white-navy-white was fine for the 2022 quarter-final pic.twitter.com/Z0RGSraDnb— The Football Kit Podcast 👕 (@footballkitpod) July 17, 2026 Sanity prevailed although FIFA's instance on having even the shorts and socks not be of the same color as the teams drives me insane. They made France go monoblue against England so why didn't they do that against Spain so Spain could go all white instead of wearing the red shorts?