Analysis

World Cup semifinal ref assignments confirmed — every team feels cheated and wronged

After a controversial and emotionally charged quarterfinal round (who could've predicted that?), the 2022 FIFA World Cup semifinal referees have been announced before Tuesday and Wednesday's matches of Argentina vs. Croatia and France vs. Morocco, respectively.

World Cup semifinal referees

On Tuesday, the Argentina vs Croatia ref is Italian Daniele Orsato. You know he's legit because he took charge of Qatar's opener and Ecuador won it 2-0. He was also in charge of Argentina's victory over Mexico.  

Man-mark Messi? Croatia's three-headed midfield monster ready to immobilize entire team

DOHA - Croatia will not attempt to stop Argentina superstar Lionel Messi by man-marking him but instead will focus on immobilizing the entire team in their World Cup semifinal on Tuesday, they said.

Croatia are bidding to make it to the final for the second World Cup in a row after losing in the 2018 showcase match to France.

They stunned tournament favorites Brazil in the quarterfinals after going a goal down in extra-time but dug deep to bounce back with a late equalizer and force a penalty shootout that they ended up winning.

World Cup top scorers 2022: Who will win the Golden Boot?

The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar has entered the knockout phase, and one of the top honors players will be competing for is the Golden Boot, awarded to the player with the most goals in the tournament.

The number of assists by a player is considered in the case of a tie for goals scored. If players are tied on both counts, the winner is decided by who played the fewest minutes.

5 pieces of s**thousery that took Argentina-Netherlands to a glorious level

Argentina and the Netherlands delighted the globe with one of the greatest World Cup quarterfinals of all time on Friday. Argentina took a 2-0 lead with Lionel Messi providing an outrageous assist before converting from the penalty spot and that advantage remained until the 83rd minute.

Croatia's win over Brazil reminds soccer fans that life is not fair

Brazil’s loss is a reminder that life is not fair.

Making the right decisions does not guarantee success. Like some sort of natural disaster, Croatia has taken that which is entirely good and reduced it to rubble. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Despite their best effort and the world’s wishes, Brazil has been sent home prematurely from Qatar after losing on penalties.

World Cup quarterfinals: Power Rankings

After two days of really not knowing what to do with ourselves, the World Cup finally returns Friday with the start of the quarterfinals. At this point, the bracket doesn't lie — the eight remaining teams all fully deserve their places, and we've got a nice variety with five European nations, two South American and one African.

Action begins Friday at 10 a.m. ET with Croatia vs. Brazil and continues at 2 p.m. ET with Netherlands vs. Argentina. Saturday features Morocco vs. Portugal at 10 a.m. and England vs. France at 2 p.m. 

Complete calendar for all the biggest soccer events in 2023

Soccer fans have a different circadian rhythm than others. They're up early to see what's going on in Europe, they're in bed late to follow along with MLS and Liga MX, they reach an emotional peak on Wednesday afternoons and frequently block off entire month-long periods in the summer for international festivals of footie. It's a delicate balance, but the 2023 soccer tournaments calendar is packed with both a Women's World Cup and Concacaf Gold Cup to look forward to.

England v France preview: If there's one man capable of stopping Mbappé, it's Kyle Walker

DOHA - One of the most mouth-watering aspects of Saturday’s World Cup quarterfinal between England and France will be a head-to-head battle between Kylian Mbappé and Kyle Walker as the tournament’s most devastating forward faces its fastest defender.

Mbappé has been on fire in Qatar, scoring fabulous goals and playing with a freedom, zest and pure joy rarely seen at international level and particularly within the sometimes stultifying tension of a major tournament.

Concacaf’s 2022 World Cup grades from best to worst

After the Round of 16 there are no teams from Concacaf still competing at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Of the five confederations that competed in Qatar, Concacaf had the lowest number of victories with a measly three. None of the four teams finished with a winning record.

The gradebook is coming with full force Concacaf, and it’s not pretty. Here are the 2022 Concacaf World Cup grades.

10 coaches for the USMNT to consider who aren't Gregg Berhalter

Wednesday's news is that the search for the next USMNT coach could be a short one — Gregg Berhalter and U.S. Soccer have opened discussions on a new contract with the manager's current deal expiring at the end of the year. 

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