The updated game introduces major enhancements, including the Dynasty Blueprint system, new Road to Glory mechanics, Mascot Mashup mode, and expanded on-field gameplay, like refined zone coverage and the jump snap.

The vast majority of players actively opted into the game, but there are a few notable absences in the database ahead of launch.

Here are the ratings of the Top 100+ players from the West, with their school, position, and conference.

After 72 matches played across the United States, Canada and Mexico, the group stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup has come to an end, leaving just 32 teams in the race for football’s biggest prize.

The tournament has already produced unforgettable moments, surprise results and outstanding individual performances. As the competition moves into the knockout rounds, here are my personal picks for the best team, player, match and moment of the group stage.

Best Team: France

For me, France have been the best team of the tournament so far. They won all three of their group matches and showed why they remain one of the favourites to lift the World Cup trophy.

Their attack has been outstanding, with pace, creativity and goals coming from different players. They have also shown strength in depth, allowing them to rotate players without losing quality.

While they are not yet at their absolute best, France have looked more complete than any other team in the competition. Their experience, squad depth and attacking quality make them a very difficult team to stop.

Best Player: Lionel Messi

At 39 years old, Lionel Messi continues to prove why he is regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time.

The Argentine captain has been exceptional during the group stage, scoring goals, creating chances and leading by example. His intelligence, movement and ability to influence matches remain unmatched.

Every time Messi steps onto the pitch, he creates moments that football fans will remember forever. His performances at this World Cup have once again shown that age is just a number for a player of his quality.

Best Match: Uruguay vs Cape Verde

The best match of the group stage for me was the thrilling 2-2 draw between Uruguay and Cape Verde.

The game had everything that makes football special, goals, drama, emotion and excitement. Cape Verde took the lead, fell behind and then fought back to earn a deserved draw against one of the traditional giants of world football.

Both teams created chances to win the game in the closing stages, making it one of the most entertaining and unforgettable matches of the tournament so far.

Best Moment: Cape Verde Reach the Last 32

The most memorable moment of the World Cup group stage was Cape Verde qualifying for the knockout rounds for the first time in their history.

After completing their own match, the players from the small African nation gathered together on the pitch to watch updates from the Spain versus Uruguay game. They knew their World Cup dream depended on Spain avoiding defeat.

When confirmation finally arrived that Spain had beaten Uruguay, the emotions exploded. Players, coaches and staff celebrated wildly as Cape Verde secured a historic place in the last 32.

It was a beautiful reminder of what makes the World Cup so special. For a small nation to achieve such a remarkable feat and celebrate together in such an emotional way was a moment that captured the true spirit of football.

It was a strangely unsatisfying, unedifying way to end one of the great Test careers.

Ben Stokes’s retirement was announced over loudspeakers at Trent Bridge in the midst of an almighty 11-over spell of bowling, and the attention shifted away from New Zealand’s deserved series victory to England’s captain. Stokes received guards of honour and later opened the batting, flailing for sixes, swinging at the sun. It was like the game had descended into a one-man ego trip, as if Stokes might perform the “Siuuu” at any moment.

If Stokes’s 30 off 20 balls set the tone for England’s fourth-innings chase, then that tone was self-sabotage. England abandoned all sense. It was 6pm in Nottingham and Stokes had ushered in the last days of Rome, headless bloodlust, Test cricket depravity, Harry Brook debauching the ball to fine leg – leading Michael Vaughan to describe his effort as “an absolutely pathetic Test match innings”. In doing so, Brook made a compelling case for not being Stokes’ successor.

That bizarre finale – has a cricketer ever retired between overs before? – will not diminish what Stokes achieved for England. The numbers might not sound stratospheric: a bowling average of 31; a batting average of 34, in line with Ollie Pope. Then again, only one other player, Jacques Kallis, has surpassed both 7,000 Test runs and 250 wickets.

But Stokes didn’t play cricket by numbers. His famous Headingley innings alongside the obdurate Jack Leach in 2019 was a moment of eternal sport and national meaning not because he scored 135 runs but because of how it felt to watch every agonising ball, how it defied all logic. His gift was to make every England fan place their faith in the improbable, the unfathomable, the previously untouchable. Then he went out and proved they were right to believe.

There was the breathtaking 2019 World Cup final, the rapid 258 against South Africa, the outrageous catches. Evidence of cricket beyond reason mounted up, so when Stokes took over the captaincy and said England could chase down 300 runs in the fourth innings of Test matches, and actively chose to field first, possibility rippled through the stands and in the dressing room too. He may not be the perfect captain, but no other player could have carried England on that ride.

He retires as a rare kind of English Test cricket superstar, perhaps the last of his kind, given the format’s shrinking platform. In that summer of 2019, the summer before the world’s walls closed in, Stokes broke new bounds. He was the best cricketer on the planet, perhaps the best athlete on the planet.

His legacy has since been coloured by the odd denouement to Bazball, which shone so brightly at first. McCullum was the name on the jar but Stokes was the secret sauce. It is a period that has taken a mental toll. There is an irony in Stokes falling out of love with his England role when the onus of the past four years has been on unfettered joy and entertainment.

McCullum and ECB director Rob Key have plenty to answer for. Perhaps the only reason to keep them after the Ashes was their close relationship with Stokes, but those relationships had become strained and now it is hard to see what either party brings without their talisman on the field. Is there even an argument that McCullum leaving the scene would make a dramatic Stokes return down the line more likely? Would an SOS call ahead of next summer’s Ashes, for example, be completely out of the question…?

When McCullum first took charge, he injected the new energy that England needed. Stuart Broad talked of feeling free and inspired, Joe Root spoke of seeing cricket in a whole new light. McCullum gave drifting careers fresh purpose. But that was a 12-month job, and he hasn’t shown he can lead England to a higher level. He turns up to interviews in sliders and a backwards cap looking cool and calm when they’re winning, but can seem detached when they’re losing.

Key does not seem to have the answers either. Failing to prepare the team for the actual Ashes was a red flag against the entire hierarchy and the fact that heads didn’t roll following that winter debacle on and off the field remains baffling. Key is passionate about the job but his ability to say words while saying nothing much at all is impressive and troubling in equal measure.

England have stalled. They are fourth in the Test rankings, about to lose a home series to the team ranked fifth, a first home defeat in a series of at least three Tests since 2012. Their free-wheeling approach has lost its way, and Stokes’ departure will leave a void of leadership, of character, of talent, even of intrigue.

Stokes, McCullum and Key came as a trio, and for all Stokes’ flaws, it is hard to escape the feeling England are losing the wrong one.

Golf humbles many, including those who are the best in the world.

Just ask J.T. Poston at the Travelers Championship on Sunday.

What started out as a chance to put a low score on the card at the 13th hole after getting greenside in two shots, Poston, the world No. 32 in the Official World Golf Ranking, posted a 12 in an absolute meltdown that derailed his entire day.

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J.T. Poston plays a shot from the first tee during the first round of the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Conn., on June 25, 2026. (Jordan Bank/Getty Images)

While Poston may not have been in contention, he wasn’t picturing himself at the bottom of the leaderboard by the end of the tournament, but the 12 was the main reason behind finishing 6-over and 1-over on the tournament for 69th place out of 72.

So, what exactly happened to Poston?

MICROPHONE ENDURES GOLFER SHANE LOWRY’S WRATH DURING MELTDOWN AT US OPEN

Well, the 13th hole began with a perfect tee shot that found the middle of the fairway. Then, his second shot found a greenside bunker, but professionals sometimes don’t mind finding those bunkers because of how great their short game is. A good bunker shot and Poston has a chance at birdie on the par-5.

But things went awry from there, as the bunker shot came out quite short, leaving him with a chipping situation. Again, professionals understand that’s not the end of the world, with a chance at par after a solid chip.

The nightmare was just beginning for Poston, though, as his fourth shot went clear across the green and ended up in the water on the other side.

From there, Poston had to drop not once, but three separate times because he couldn’t get his ball back on the green. On his 10th stroke, he finally got the ball into a putting position.

J.T. Poston stands on the first tee box during the second round of the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Conn., on June 26, 2026. (Ben Jared/PGA Tour)

Poston still had to keep going, putting his 11th stroke and missing it before a tap-in 12 and ending the meltdown in front of the fans.

Poston spoke about the multiple drop balls near the water that continued to roll back into the drink.

“It’s not really rough, where you can kind of blast it out,” Poston said, per Golfweek. “It’s into the grain, but it looks like you can get enough golf ball on it, which is why I kept trying to hit a good chip.”

Poston was asked if he even thought about putting it out of the greenside rough with his chips clearly not working out.

“I feel like it’s just going to hop and that takes all the speed out of it,” he responded. “And you’ve got this big false front you got to get it over. So my worry with trying to putt it was it would not have enough speed to really get there.”

J.T. Poston plays a tee shot on the first hole during the second round of the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Conn., on June 26, 2026. (Ben Jared/PGA Tour)

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Poston didn’t bounce back on the 14th hole either, as he posted a double bogey on the par-4 to put himself down even more. In the end, Poston posted a 76 on the day to finish off his tournament.

Meanwhile, the Travelers Championship will come down to a playoff that must be played on Monday after Viktor Hovland and Scottie Scheffler found themselves deadlocked at 21-under after the latter sank a putt to force it. Hovland’s putt to win it all just missed and Scheffler took advantage of the open opportunity.

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Our All-Scholastic teams for the spring sports season are coming out soon.

But before we get there, we need help from our readers.

Much like we did for the fall and winter sports seasons, our readers will have a say in who our Players of the Year are in all the spring sports. We’ve cut down the list of the best of the best into an even more elite group (no easy task). We limited each school to a maximum of one candidate.

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Vote for our Patriot Ledger/Enterprise High School Boys Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year. Reader votes will make up 20% of the tally, with our four staff reporters (Eric McHugh, Jason Snow, Ryan Vermette and Chris McDaniel) making up the rest of the vote.

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Voting will conclude on Monday, July 6.

The poll

The candidates

Nicholas Askjaer, Cohasset

Junior made almost a clean sweep of the postseason in the shot put and discus. He finished first in the shot put at New Balance Nationals (64 feet 1 inch), New Englands (season-best 65-2), the MIAA Meet of Champions (61-7), the Div. 6 state championships (61-1.75) and the South Shore League championships (59-9.25). In the discus he was fifth at nationals (season-best 196-6), took second at New Englands (183-1) and won at the MOC (187-1), Div. 6 states (182-4) and the SSL championships (180-5).

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Aiden Calcano da Silva, Abington

Junior was the 400-meter hurdle champion at both the MIAA Meet of Champions (:51.61) and Div. 6 states (:53.79). He was third in the 400m hurdles at New Balance Nationals (:51.96). The South Shore League Tobin Division MVP was runner-up in the 300m hurdles at New Englands (:37.52) and also starred in the 110m hurdles, taking second at the MOC (:14.43). He was runner-up (to his brother Nathan) in the 400m at Div. 6 states (:49.20). He and Nathan teamed with Naz Paulding and Lucas de Oliveira to set a New England 4x400m record (3:15.01). They also won the MOC in a then-state-record 3:16.06.

Mitchell Callender, Oliver Ames

Junior was runner-up in the shot put at New Balance Nationals (season-best 62-8.5), the New England championships (62-5) and the MIAA Meet of Champions (61-5.25). At the Div. 3 state championships he won both the shot put (59-10) and discus (147-11). His career-best discus throw (a winning launch of 171-10) came on May 16 at the MSTCA Shore Invitational. He also set a career best in the javelin this spring, throwing 167-10 at the MSTCA Warrior Invitational on April 23.

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JJ Faulk, Canton

Senior showcased his versatility at the MIAA Meet of Champions with top-16 finishes in three individual events — he was 15th in the long jump (21-5.75) and 100m (:11.08) and was 16th in the 200m (:22.29). At the Div. 3 state championships he was runner-up in the long jump (school-record 22-8.5), fourth in the 100m (:10.86) and eighth in the 200m (:22.30). The University of Rhode Island commit also holds school records in the 200m (:22.06), 4x100m relay (:43.85) and long jump relay (59-6).

Jiai Gonzalez, Blue Hills

Senior was runner-up in the 400m at the MIAA Meet of Champions in a school-record :47.77. He finished fourth at the New England championships in :47.83 and was the Div. 5 state champ in :49.36. He also won titles in that event at the small-school state vocational championships (:48.44) and the Mayflower Athletic Conference championships (:49.83). He placed 37th at New Balance Nationals (:48.49). He’s the school record-holder in the 200m as well.

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Ian McNeil, Duxbury

Senior had a legendary day at the Div. 4 state championships, winning both the 100m (:10.79) and 200m (:21.98) while setting school records in each event. He also ran on the seventh-place 4x100m relay (:44.79) at Div. 4 states. At the MIAA Meet of Champions he finished 11th in the 200m in :22.24. At the Patriot League championship meet he also claimed both the 100m (:11.23) and 200m (:22.40); he was undefeated in both events during the dual-meet season.

Jarred Mighty, Brockton

Senior was the Big 3 Boys Track Athlete of the Year after starring in the 110m hurdles, 400m hurdles and the 4x400m relay. His fastest 400m hurdles time of :53.25 (set at the MSTCA Shore Invitational on May 16) was a career best and ranked No. 2 in the state this spring. His best 110m time of :14.86 (set at the same MSTCA meet) ranked No. 14 in the state. He ran a career-best :11.61 in the 100m during the preliminary heat at the Ron Wayne Speed Jamboree at Brockton’s Rocky Marciano Stadium on April 21.

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Dylan Priest, Cardinal Spellman

Senior hurdler had a big day at the Div. 5 state championships, finishing second in the 110m hurdles (PR :15.11) and third in the 400m hurdles (:56.85). At the MIAA Meet of Champions he was 10th in the 400m hurdles (:55.84) and 27th in the 110m hurdles (:15.54). He ran on the eighth-place 4x400m relay team (3:33.84) at Div. 5 states. Also won the Catholic Central League crown in the 400m in :51.16.

Jonah Stephens Roye, Milton

Sophomore was the Div. 3 state champ in both the 110m hurdles (:14.81) and the 400m hurdles (:54.36 — the fastest time ever by a sophomore in the state). At the New England championships he was fourth in the 300m hurdles (:38.70) and eighth in the 110m hurdles (PR :14.68). At the MIAA Meet of Champions he was second in the 400m hurdles (:54.64) and 10th in the 110m hurdles (:14.79). He captured the Bay State Conference 110m hurdles title in :14.91.

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Vote for South Shore High School Boys Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year