GUADALAJARA, Mexico — When the 2026 FIFA World Cup’s Group A leaders take the field at Estadio Guadalajara on Thursday night, the stakes could scarcely be higher. Mexico and South Korea, the only two teams in Group A yet to drop a point, meet in what amounts to a de facto battle for group supremacy — and potentially, an early ticket to the knockout stage of a tournament that has already delivered some of its most memorable moments.

After winning their respective opening matches at the World Cup, Mexico and South Korea will fight to claim all three points again and book their place in the next round when they face each other in Guadalajara on Thursday. Mexico, playing the first match of this World Cup, humbled South Africa 2-0 in an electrifying atmosphere at the Mexico City Stadium. South Korea, meanwhile, were trailing against Czechia but turned it around in the second half to claim all the points in a 2-1 win.

Both sides are on three points with first place in Group A on the line. Win this and you are all but through to the knockout rounds and likely topping the group.

Mexico’s Path to This Moment

Mexico’s opening-day performance was everything the raucous crowd at the historic Estadio Azteca in Mexico City could have hoped for. Julián Quiñones settled any early nerves by firing El Tri ahead just eight minutes into the match. While South Africa’s discipline unraveled with red cards handed to Sphephelo “Yaya” Sithole and Themba Zwane, Mexico maintained their composure. Raúl Jiménez sealed all three points with a clinical finish in the 66th minute, though a late red card for defender César Montes marred an otherwise perfect evening.

Centre-back César Montes will serve a one-match ban after his red card against South Africa. Expect Mateo Chávez to replace him in a like-for-like change at the back. No further changes are expected from Javier Aguirre following the opening-day win.

The loss of Montes is a manageable blow for a squad with depth in defensive positions, and Aguirre’s side come into the game in settled, confident form. Mexico arrive in excellent form, winning four of their last five matches and drawing one. Their most recent pre-tournament result was the 2-0 victory over South Africa, and they also recorded a commanding 5-1 win over Serbia in a pre-tournament friendly on June 5.

There is also a layer of history embedded in this fixture. Goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa is in the squad for a record sixth World Cup appearance, bringing experience and presence to the back line. Rafael Márquez serves as assistant to Aguirre and has been confirmed as Mexico’s next head coach after this tournament, adding a layer of narrative continuity to a group of players who understand the weight of what they are representing on home soil.

South Korea’s Resilience on Display

South Korea arrive in Guadalajara with momentum after one of the tournament’s most compelling early performances — a composed, character-driven comeback that announced them as genuine contenders. Hwang In-Beom was named Player of The Match after scoring South Korea’s first goal and setting up the second. The spotlight in the team is mostly reserved for stars like Son Heung-Min, Lee Kang-In and Kim Min-Jae, but it was Hwang who grabbed the headlines with his outstanding performance in the 2-1 win over Czechia.

South Korea showed real character to come from behind in the opener, and they arrive full of confidence. The team is built around its attacking talent: Lee Jae-Sung and Lee Kang-in operate just behind Son Heung-Min, and that trio carries the creativity and finishing to trouble any defense. Hwang In-beom, who scored the equalizer against Czechia, anchors the midfield.

Son Heung-min, now playing his club football at Los Angeles FC after a storied tenure at Tottenham Hotspur, enters the match as the most decorated player on either side. Son, with 56 international goals from 144 caps, remains the creative focal point, and Lee Kang-in’s ability to unlock defenses from midfield means South Korea are not simply a reactive side.

Two South Korea players appeared on the World Cup injury table after their comeback win over Czechia. Kim Tae-Hyeon and Bae Jun-Ho both resumed team training and could be options for this clash. Coach Hong Myung-bo is otherwise expected to name a nearly identical lineup to the one that dispatched Czechia.

The Head-to-Head History

The sides have previously met 15 times, with Mexico winning both of their World Cup meetings: 3-1 in the 1998 tournament in France and 2-1 in the 2018 edition in Russia. Their most recent meeting was a 2-2 draw in 2025.

The 2018 result carries particular resonance for a South Korean side motivated to reverse that outcome. Eight years ago in Russia, Mexico’s 2-1 Group F victory helped El Tri through to the round of 16, while South Korea were eliminated. The most notable meeting came at the 2018 World Cup, when Mexico beat South Korea 2-1 in the group stage on the way to the round of 16.

A 2-2 tie in a friendly last September continued a recent goal-heavy head-to-head trend, with the Mexicans edging a five-goal thriller in 2020 and winning 2-1 when they met at the 2018 World Cup.

The Tactical Picture

Mexico looked the better side against South Africa even before the red cards, and at altitude with the crowd behind them, they will fancy this. Estadio Guadalajara sits at roughly 1,566 meters above sea level — a factor that has historically favored Mexican sides playing at home in World Cup competition and one that can significantly affect teams unaccustomed to the thin air.

The central battle here is Edson Álvarez against the South Korea forward press. Álvarez, with 98 caps to his name, is the axis around which Aguirre’s entire structure rotates. When Mexico win the ball in midfield, they move quickly through Álvarez and into the forwards. South Korea, however, defend with a compact mid-block and rely on Son Heung-min pressing from the front to force errors in the opposition’s build-up.

South Korea’s counter-attacking quality through Son means this could just as easily end level. At the same time, there are signs of inconsistency at the back, having shipped four goals against Ivory Coast and five versus Brazil in the last 12 months. Even against a Czechia side that struggled to create chances, they still conceded, suggesting that they can be exposed when under pressure.

Under Javier Aguirre, who guided the side to a 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup triumph, El Tri have rebuilt steadily and their 2-0 opening win over South Africa demonstrated defensive solidity and the cutting edge of a side motivated to go deep in a home tournament. With Raúl Jiménez and Santiago Giménez available up front, Mexico have genuine attacking threat against a South Korea defense that was breached in the opener.

What a Win Means

Javier Aguirre’s side know that a point here will all-but-mathematically seal their place in the knockout stages. A victory would go further, all but guaranteeing Group A top spot heading into the final matchday. For South Korea, a win would produce the same result — and likely set up a more favorable bracket draw for the knockout rounds.

The match kicks off at 9 p.m. ET on Thursday and will be televised on Fox Sports in the United States.

Lloyds Engineering on Thursday announced the acquisition of an 88.12% stake in Steel Infra Solutions Company (SISCOL) in a deal valued at about Rs 1,073 crore, with boutique investment firm MK Ventures, owned by veteran investor Madhu Kela, among the shareholders who will receive Lloyds Engineering shares as part of the transaction.

The acquisition will be executed through a combination of cash and share swap. Lloyds Engineering will acquire a 52.16% stake in SISCOL for around Rs 635.4 crore, while group entities Lloyds Enterprises and Streamland Estate LLP will each acquire a 17.98% stake for Rs 219 crore.

As part of the share swap, MK Ventures, which owns a 4.27% stake in SISCOL, will transfer 17.33 lakh shares of the company and receive about 72.95 lakh equity shares of Lloyds Engineering through a preferential allotment, according to the company’s filing.

The overall transaction values SISCOL at around Rs 1,220 crore.

Lloyds Engineering’s board also approved a preferential issue of up to 7.06 crore equity shares worth Rs 503.56 crore to SISCOL’s selling shareholders through the share swap route. It separately approved a preferential issue of 7 lakh shares worth Rs 4.99 crore for cash. Both proposals are subject to shareholder approval at an extraordinary general meeting scheduled for July 15.

The acquisition significantly expands Lloyds Engineering’s presence in engineering, structural fabrication and EPC services, positioning the combined entity to undertake large infrastructure, industrial and commercial projects.
SISCOL has executed 187 structural steel projects across 22 states since 2018. Its portfolio includes Delhi Airport Terminal 1, Noida International Airport, the Dwarka Convention Centre, the International Hockey Stadium in Rourkela, railway and road bridges, data centres and industrial projects in India and overseas.The company counts L&T, Shapoorji Pallonji, Tata Projects, Adani Group companies, KEC International, Jindal Stainless and DP World among its clients.

Following the acquisition, the combined platform will have more than 10 manufacturing facilities, six engineering and design centres, structural fabrication capacity of around 1.5 lakh metric tonnes per annum, with plans to expand it to 2 lakh MTPA, along with enhanced EPC and civil execution capabilities.

Lloyds Engineering said the acquisition will strengthen its ability to offer integrated design-to-delivery solutions across airports, industrial infrastructure, transportation, defence, data centres and urban development while creating operational synergies across procurement, engineering, manufacturing and project execution.

Waterways Leisure Tourism, the operator of Cordelia Cruises, has fixed the price band for its IPO at Rs 769-808 per equity share. The public issue will open for subscription on June 23 and close on June 25. The IPO is entirely a fresh issue worth up to Rs 585 crore. Investors can bid for a minimum of 18 equity shares and in multiples of 18 shares thereafter.

The company plans to utilise Rs 480 crore from the issue towards deposits, advance lease rentals and monthly lease payments for its step-down subsidiary, Baycruise Shipping and Leasing (IFSC). The remaining funds will be used for general corporate purposes.

Waterways Leisure Tourism is India’s largest cruise operator by value, accounting for about 79% market share in FY25, according to a CRISIL report. It currently operates the MV Empress, which has hosted more than 7.3 lakh guests and sailed over 3.21 lakh nautical miles along the Indian coastline and neighbouring countries as of March 31, 2026.

The cruise liner offers domestic routes covering Mumbai, Goa, Kochi, Chennai, Lakshadweep, Visakhapatnam and Puducherry, while international itineraries include Sri Lanka, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia.

The company is also preparing to expand its fleet with the addition of Norwegian Sky and Norwegian Sun, which together will add nearly 2,000 cabins and accommodate over 3,900 additional passengers. The expansion is expected to significantly enhance its capacity and support future growth.

Besides leisure cruises, the company caters to meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE), destination weddings and corporate events by offering integrated hospitality, accommodation and entertainment services onboard.
On the financial front, Waterways Leisure Tourism reported revenue from operations of Rs 580 crore in FY26, compared with Rs 444 crore in FY24. The company posted a net profit of Rs 52 crore in FY26, reversing a net loss of Rs 123 crore reported in FY24.The issue comes at a time when India’s cruise tourism industry is witnessing growing interest, supported by rising disposable incomes, improving port infrastructure and increasing demand for experiential travel.

The IPO is being managed by Centrum Capital as the book-running lead manager.

Markets regulator Sebi’s board is set to meet on Friday to deliberate on a wide-ranging agenda, including a proposal to reintroduce open-market buybacks, faster clearance for AIF schemes and relaxed intraday borrowing rules for mutual funds, people familiar with the matter said.

These measures are aimed at improving market efficiency.

A key proposal before the board is to reintroduce open-market share buybacks through stock exchanges, along with shortening execution timelines.

The regulator has proposed that open market buybacks through stock exchanges be completed within 66 working days from the date of opening of the offer, instead of the earlier framework that allowed a duration of up to six months.

Also, Sebi proposed retaining the existing requirement that companies should utilise at least 40 per cent of the earmarked buyback amount during the first half of the offer period.

This will be the sixth board meeting chaired by Sebi Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey since he assumed office on March 1, 2025.
Apart from the reintroduction of open-market buybacks, the Sebi board will clear a proposal regarding a new green-channel mechanism – GARUDA – to speed up the launch of schemes by alternative investment funds (AIFs), allowing them to begin fundraising within 10 working days of filing their placement memorandums, compared with the current 30-day wait.GARUDA, or Green-Channel: AIF Rollout Upon Document Acknowledgement, aims to streamline the processing of placement memorandums (PPMs) filed with Sebi and further ease fundraising by AIFs.

In addition, the board is expected to consider a proposal allowing mutual funds to use intraday borrowing lines for a wider range of cash management needs, including trade settlements, forex obligations and derivative margin payments beyond just meeting redemption payouts.

The proposal seeks to address operational challenges faced by asset management companies (AMCs) due to timing mismatches between outflows and receivables within a scheme.

At present, intraday borrowing serves as an important cash flow management tool for mutual fund schemes, helping fund managers meet payout obligations and settlement requirements efficiently.

Under the proposal, AMCs are expected to be permitted to avail intraday borrowings not only for redemption or unitholder payouts but also for purposes such as pay-in obligations for trades, forex settlements, mark-to-market payments on derivative positions and repayment of existing borrowings.

More than four and a half months after 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie was abducted from her Tucson, Arizona, home, federal and local investigators have yet to identify a suspect or locate the mother of NBC Today show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie — a case that has drawn national attention, generated more than $1.2 million in reward money, and exposed both the possibilities and limitations of modern forensic investigation.

On February 1, 2026, Nancy Guthrie, the American 84-year-old mother of NBC News journalist and Today co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, was kidnapped from her home in Catalina Foothills, a suburb of Tucson, Arizona. Evidence recovered at the residence indicated that Guthrie had been taken against her will, and Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos stated that he believed she had been abducted.

Bloodstains found at the scene were confirmed to be Nancy’s. Multiple ransom notes of undetermined origin demanded payment in cryptocurrency, with two deadlines that had passed by February 9. As of this week, no ransom has been confirmed paid and no proof of life has been established.

What the Evidence Shows

On February 10, FBI Director Kash Patel released four black-and-white images on social media showing a masked and armed intruder, wearing gloves and a backpack outside Guthrie’s home. Investigators reported that the intruder attempted to tamper with the video doorbell by attempting to knock it off with light taps, and when unable to, subsequently covered the lens with foliage from a potted plant. However, Patel stated that data from the device had been successfully recovered. He also said the intruder was armed with an apparent gun placed in a holster.

On February 12, 2026, based on the footage, authorities released additional details about the suspected kidnapper’s appearance, including an estimated height of 5 feet 9 inches to 5 feet 10 inches, an average build, and a black mustache.

The FBI recently received and is now analyzing potentially critical DNA recovered months ago from Guthrie’s Tucson home, sources familiar with the investigation told ABC News. A private Florida lab that works with the Pima County Sheriff’s Department sent the sample to the FBI, which is now using new technology to conduct advanced analysis on the DNA sample to see if it can lead to Nancy Guthrie’s kidnapper.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has previously described the DNA recovered from Guthrie’s home as a sample that came from more than one person and therefore needed to be untangled. Sheriff Chris Nanos recently said it could take six more months to separate the strands and isolate what investigators need. He also said as many as five other labs around the country are working on the Guthrie case.

About two dozen Pima County and FBI investigators are still actively working the Guthrie case.

The Nearby Kidnapping That Raised Questions

The investigation took on an additional dimension in recent weeks when a separate violent crime near Guthrie’s home drew public attention and renewed questions about the broader criminal landscape in the Catalina Foothills area.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department confirmed that 40-year-old Coral Michelle Smith was taken into custody on an active arrest warrant tied to a May aggravated assault and kidnapping case. According to authorities, Smith allegedly assaulted a woman who later died from her injuries. The alleged kidnapping occurred about 7 miles from the Catalina Foothills home where Nancy was last seen.

Law enforcement has not indicated any connection between Smith’s alleged crimes and Nancy’s disappearance, which remains unsolved.

While many suspected that Coral Michelle Smith could be a suspect in the Guthrie case, her involvement has since been ruled out. A notable physical discrepancy between Smith and the suspect in Guthrie’s doorbell footage further undermined theories connecting the two cases. According to Fox News Digital reporter Michael Ruiz, Smith has tattoos, but none are on her wrist — a distinguishing feature visible on the masked assailant captured in the FBI’s doorbell camera footage at Nancy Guthrie’s residence.

Despite the lack of a direct connection, retired homicide detective Chris McDonough noted the investigative value of interviewing individuals with violent histories operating near the scene. “In any major missing person or abduction-type of investigation, the investigators are going to cast a wide net,” McDonough said. “She may not be involved in any way, shape or form, but she may have information that may connect something. They’re going to ask her about any familiarity around the Guthrie home. What’s the word on the street?”

The Investigation Upgraded to Homicide

After reaching its fifth month, the joint investigation into Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance by the FBI and local police has deepened. It recently upgraded the case to a homicide investigation from a missing persons case. The elevation of the case’s classification does not confirm Nancy Guthrie is deceased, but it reflects investigators’ assessment of the circumstances and the evidence recovered at the scene, including the bloodstains confirmed to be hers.

Retired detective Jon Buehler told NewsNation he fears Nancy Guthrie is no longer alive, based on bleeding at the scene and her poor health, along with the fact that multiple ransom letters did not lead to her return. “The reason I’m fearful she didn’t survive the abduction is kind of twofold. No. 1, no instantaneous demand for a reward with indication that she’s fine and that they’ll release her. That’s a pretty big stretch there to think that she survived it,” he said. “But the amount of blood that was present there in the front of the house suggests to me a wound that was bleeding a lot.”

Social Media Chaos Near the Scene

The investigation has also been complicated by a proliferation of social media personalities and online sleuths descending on the Catalina Foothills neighborhood, prompting the Pima County Sheriff’s Department to take action.

Social media streamers Alexander Zabel Jr., Troy Lewis Bradshaw, and Damian Todd Enderle were arrested near Nancy Guthrie’s home for allegedly displaying disruptive behavior. Zabel Jr. returned to the neighborhood and conducted a livestream, only to be arrested again and was given a felony charge of resisting arrest.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said: “We are now into the fifth month of this, and we started getting calls from the neighbors about a certain group of these — I’ll use the word YouTubers. The complaints got to be pretty egregious in that the behavior of those individuals was becoming pretty scary and frightful to the neighborhood.”

Savannah Guthrie Speaks Out

In her first interview since her mother’s disappearance, Savannah Guthrie told friend and former co-host Hoda Kotb that it’s “too much to bear to think that I brought this to her bedside, that it’s because of me.” “I’m so sorry, Mommy, I’m so sorry,” she said. She added that the family “cannot be at peace” without answers.

In a June 2026 interview with Parade, retired FBI agent Jason Pack suggested a suspect in Guthrie’s case might soon “start to crack” and eventually turn themselves in to police. “Four months is a long time to keep a secret, and people start to crack,” Pack said. “They make calls they shouldn’t make. They spend money they can’t explain.”

The FBI’s cash reward of $100,000 for any information that could lead to her recovery remains active. The Guthrie family’s $1 million reward brings the total available reward money to over $1.2 million. Anyone with information is urged to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or the Pima County Sheriff’s Department at 520-351-4900.

Capital markets regulator has proposed a series of changes to the Margin Trading Facility (MTF) framework aimed at improving operational efficiency for brokers while strengthening risk management amid rising trading volumes.

In a consultation paper released on Wednesday, the market regulator invited public comments on a package of reforms. These include expanding funding avenues for brokers, increasing the minimum net-worth requirement to offer MTF, permitting limited liability partnerships (LLPs) to provide the facility, and streamlining collateral management.

Sebi said the review was necessary in light of the growing scale of MTF transactions to ensure the framework remains robust while promoting ease of doing business.

Among the key proposals is an increase in the minimum net-worth requirement for brokers offering MTF to Rs 5 crore from the current Rs 3 crore. The regulator has also proposed allowing brokers operating as LLPs to offer margin trading, expanding the eligibility beyond corporate brokers.

To widen funding options, Sebi suggested permitting brokers to raise money through non-convertible debentures (NCDs) and other debt instruments in addition to existing sources such as bank borrowings, NBFC loans, commercial papers and promoter loans.

The regulator has also proposed changes to collateral rules. It plans to allow all collateral currently accepted by clearing corporations in the cash market to be used uniformly for MTF transactions. In addition, early pay-in (EPI) sell credits could be accepted as collateral for fresh MTF positions under specified conditions.
To address operational challenges arising from stock reclassification, SEBI has proposed a 30-day rebalancing window if a funded security moves out of the Group I category, shifts to the trade-for-trade segment or is suspended from normal trading.On broker exposure limits, Sebi has suggested retaining a portion of brokers’ net worth exclusively for core broking operations while allowing the balance to be deployed for MTF. The overall exposure would remain capped at 5.5 times the broker’s net worth.

The consultation paper also proposes relief for brokers in cases of passive breaches of client-level exposure limits. Where a client’s exposure exceeds regulatory limits solely because the broker’s total MTF exposure declines, brokers would be given 30 days to restore compliance, during which no fresh exposure can be extended to that client.

To improve standardisation, Sebi has proposed a common Rights and Obligations document for MTF clients across all stock exchanges instead of exchange-specific formats. Other proposals include allowing fungibility between MTF and non-MTF client ledgers, permitting periodic settlement of excess cash collateral, enabling auto-pledge of funded shares used as maintenance margin and revising reporting timelines for brokers.

The regulator said the proposals were formulated after discussions with the Brokers’ Industry Standards Forum, market participants and the Secondary Market Advisory Committee. Public comments on the consultation paper have been invited before the proposals are finalised.

Capital markets regulator has proposed a series of changes to the Margin Trading Facility (MTF) framework aimed at improving operational efficiency for brokers while strengthening risk management amid rising trading volumes.

In a consultation paper released on Wednesday, the market regulator invited public comments on a package of reforms. These include expanding funding avenues for brokers, increasing the minimum net-worth requirement to offer MTF, permitting limited liability partnerships (LLPs) to provide the facility, and streamlining collateral management.

Sebi said the review was necessary in light of the growing scale of MTF transactions to ensure the framework remains robust while promoting ease of doing business.

Among the key proposals is an increase in the minimum net-worth requirement for brokers offering MTF to Rs 5 crore from the current Rs 3 crore. The regulator has also proposed allowing brokers operating as LLPs to offer margin trading, expanding the eligibility beyond corporate brokers.

To widen funding options, Sebi suggested permitting brokers to raise money through non-convertible debentures (NCDs) and other debt instruments in addition to existing sources such as bank borrowings, NBFC loans, commercial papers and promoter loans.

The regulator has also proposed changes to collateral rules. It plans to allow all collateral currently accepted by clearing corporations in the cash market to be used uniformly for MTF transactions. In addition, early pay-in (EPI) sell credits could be accepted as collateral for fresh MTF positions under specified conditions.

To address operational challenges arising from stock reclassification, SEBI has proposed a 30-day rebalancing window if a funded security moves out of the Group I category, shifts to the trade-for-trade segment or is suspended from normal trading.

On broker exposure limits, Sebi has suggested retaining a portion of brokers’ net worth exclusively for core broking operations while allowing the balance to be deployed for MTF. The overall exposure would remain capped at 5.5 times the broker’s net worth.

The consultation paper also proposes relief for brokers in cases of passive breaches of client-level exposure limits. Where a client’s exposure exceeds regulatory limits solely because the broker’s total MTF exposure declines, brokers would be given 30 days to restore compliance, during which no fresh exposure can be extended to that client.

To improve standardisation, Sebi has proposed a common Rights and Obligations document for MTF clients across all stock exchanges instead of exchange-specific formats. Other proposals include allowing fungibility between MTF and non-MTF client ledgers, permitting periodic settlement of excess cash collateral, enabling auto-pledge of funded shares used as maintenance margin and revising reporting timelines for brokers.

The regulator said the proposals were formulated after discussions with the Brokers’ Industry Standards Forum, market participants and the Secondary Market Advisory Committee. Public comments on the consultation paper have been invited before the proposals are finalised.