When Hideki Matsuyama walked off the 15th green at TPC Scottsdale on Sunday, his path to a win was clear.
The 2021 Masters champion needed to par the final three holes on the Stadium Course to avoid a playoff with Chris Gotterup and take home his third WM Phoenix Open title. That Matsuyama found himself in that position was no small feat, given how he struggled off the tee in the final round. He hit just two fairways but still found a way to keep a clean card as he arrived at the 18th hole still nursing a one-shot lead over Gotterup.
Matsuyama had been fighting to keep things from unraveling all afternoon in Scottsdale, but they finally came undone on the final hole. It was a collapse that Matsuyama built the foundation for with his shaky play and that bad luck cemented.
First, he pulled his tee shot left into the church pew bunkers but got a favorable kick back into the center of the bunker. On-course reporter Dottie Pepper said Matsuyama should have no problem navigating the lip of the trap and getting his approach near or on the green. But Matsuyama’s second came out low and clipped the lip of the bunker, causing the ball to come up 43 yards short of the green.
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A shaky chip to a firm green left him 23 feet for par and the win.
That’s when events beyond Matsuyama’s control began to accelerate his crash.
Matsuyama sized up the lengthy but makable par putt. Just as he was preparing to take his putter back, a member of the gallery yelled, causing him to back off and restart his process. The par putt slid by the hole and Matsuyama marched toward a sudden-death playoff.
“Was grinding all weekend. Didn’t have my best stuff, but hung in there,” Matsuyama said through a translator afterward. “I wanted to avoid the playoff as much as I could, but I just hit a bad tee shot there in regulation at 18.”
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Matsuyama went back to the 18th tee box, and things continued to spiral.
After Gotterup put his drive in the fairway, Matsuyama readied to answer. But in the middle of his downswing, a loud noise pierced the desert air. Matsuyama ground his swing to a halt, looked at the crowd and had to once again regroup. When he finally unleashed his driver, it sailed left toward the church pew bunkers again. The drive barely cleared the water, but the ball hit a pole that was holding a gallery rope, causing it to ricochet back into the pond. Ten minutes later, Gotterup poured in a birdie putt to secure his second win of the 2026 season.
The noise that completed Matsuyama’s disintegration? An accidental chair drop by a member of the event staff, according to The Athletic‘s Gabby Herzig.
A spectators video from the tee box picks up the sound that caused Hideki to back off mid swing during the playoff.
After the round, Chris Gotterup said “I think on the tee box a chair fell. Of course that happens in the playoff.”
“It’s a good thing that there’s so many people,” Gotterup said of the hyped-up TPC Scottsdale crowd after he secured the playoff win over Matsuyama. “You hear it, but it’s all — you have so much going through your brain, it’s almost like white noise. Obviously, I think on the tee box, a chair fell. Of course, that happens in the playoff.”
A dropped chair might have put the final nail in Hideki Matsuyama’s WM Phoenix Open coffin, but he laid the groundwork for the collapse long before it hit the cement in Phoenix.
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For the week, Matsuyama ranked 70th in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee. He was T68 in driving accuracy, hitting just 44 percent of his fairways. But he was second in approach and third in putting. He Houdini-ed his way out of jam after jam that he created with an uncooperative off-the-tee game. For 71 holes, Matsuyama’s irons and putter were enough to patch over a glaring weakness.
But the bill finally came due on the 72nd hole, when his magic act was unable to conjure one final escape, setting the stage for an unintentional dropped chair to seal his fate.
“It’s disappointing,” Matsuyama said via translator after the loss. “Shock. Learn from it, and just get back up on the horse next week.”
As Hideki Matsuyama digested an unthinkable collapse, Gotterup’s emotions came pouring out after a win that raised him to No. 5 in the Official World Golf Rankings.
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“There’s just so many people that believe in me, and to be able to share it with them,” Gotterup said, fighting back tears. “I won’t be able to get through it. It’s just so much fun.”
NEW DELHI: Rishabh Pant’s bold move to open the innings didn’t go as planned as Lucknow Super Giants slumped to a defeat against Delhi Capitals in their IPL 2026 opener, raising questions about his role at the top.Pant’s outing ended in a bizarre run-out in the third over. A straight drive from Mitchell Marsh was deflected onto the stumps by Mukesh Kumar, catching Pant well short at the non-striker’s end. The LSG skipper, who scored 7 off 9 balls, walked off visibly frustrated after the unlucky dismissal.
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Angkrish Raghuvanshi focused only on team’s wins
Reflecting on the moment, Pant said, “I think the best way to recover from it is to ignore. I think that’s the best way looking forward because you know something like that, you can’t control, but thinking about it definitely puts you on the back-foot.” He also admitted that the team struggled to build partnerships: “See, it’s always the case, but you know the way we batted, we couldn’t get a partnership going for long.”Pant’s promotion to the top, breaking the established pair of Aiden Markram and Marsh, raised eyebrows. Addressing whether he will continue as opener, he said, “I think it’s a 50-50 call, but we’ll see. But definitely see me in the top order.”LSG’s batting faltered throughout, managing just 141 in 18.4 overs despite starts from Markram and a fighting 35 from Marsh. Lungi Ngidi and T Natarajan starred with three wickets each, while Kuldeep Yadav chipped in with crucial breakthroughs.
Rizvi, Stubbs seal win for DC
Chasing 142, Delhi were in early trouble before Sameer Rizvi (70*) and Tristan Stubbs (39*) stitched a match-winning 119-run stand. Rizvi’s fearless hitting turned the game on its head as DC chased down the target in 17.1 overs.With the opening experiment failing and LSG’s batting misfiring, Pant now faces a crucial call on his position going forward.
A two-event stop in Texas concludes this week with the 2026 Valero Texas Open beginning on Thursday at 8:30 a.m. ET at TPC San Antonio – The Oaks Course. Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are both out this week ahead of major play, but there’s still a strong Valero Texas Open field headlined by top-10 OWGR players such as Tommy Fleetwood and Russell Henley. The latest 2026 Valero Texas Open odds via FanDuel list Fleetwood and Ludvig Aberg as the +1500 co-favorites. Russell Henley (+1600), Jordan Spieth (+1800) and Robert MacIntyre (+1800) are among the other favorites. Collin Morikawa and Gary Woodland have both withdrawn from the field.
SportsLine’s proprietary model, built by DFS pro Mike McClure, simulated every PGA Tour event 10,000 times and reveals golf betting picks that have a history of being extremely profitable.
This same model has also nailed a whopping 16 majors entering the weekend, including the 2025 Masters — its fourth Masters in a row — as well as last year’s PGA Championship and Open Championship. Anyone who has followed its sports betting picks could have seen massive returns on betting sites.
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Now that the 2026 Valero Texas Open field is locked in, the model simulated the tournament 10,000 times, and the results were surprising. Head to SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard, which you can use for PGA picks, one and done contests or Texas Open DFS lineups.
2026 Valero Texas Open predictions
One major surprise the model is calling for at the Texas Open 2026: It projects that Henley barely cracks the top 5 despite being one of the favorites. Henley has yet to finish inside the top 5 in any event this year, so the model isn’t ready to project him near the top of the leaderboard. He finished fourth in this event in 2024, but didn’t play it in 2025 and he finished T52 and missed the cut in his other two Texas Open appearances. See who else to fade here.
Another surprise: The model projects Sepp Straka as a top-10 contender despite him not being in the top group of favorites at +2700. The 32-year-old Austrian has finished inside the top 20 in four of his last five events, including a strong T8 finish at The Players Championship last time out. He struggled during his first two appearances at this tournament, but turned a corner last year, finishing T22 after a strong weekend, so the model likes his value this week. See who else to pick here.
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Tommy Fleetwood +1500 Ludvig Åberg +1500 Russell Henley +1600 Jordan Spieth +1800 Robert MacIntyre +1800 Si Woo Kim +2200 Sepp Straka +2200 Hideki Matsuyama +2200 Maverick McNealy +2700 Michael Thorbjornsen +3000 Rickie Fowler +3000 J.J. Spaun +3300 Denny McCarthy +3300 Alex Noren +3300 Keith Mitchell +3500 Ryo Hisatsune +3500 Johnny Keefer +4000 Nick Taylor +5500 Sudarshan Yellamaraju +4500 Thorbjørn Olesen +4500 Richard Hoey +4500 Marco Penge +5000 Alex Smalley +6000 Tony Finau +6000 Will Zalatoris +6000 Brian Harman +6000 Jordan Smith +6500 Stephan Jaeger +6500 Christiaan Bezuidenhout +7000 Austin Smotherman +7000 Davis Thompson +7000 Matt Wallace +7000 Max McGreevy +7000 J.T. Poston +7000 Mac Meissner +7000
The Lucknow Super Giants vs Delhi Capitals IPL 2026 match at the Ekana Cricket Stadium saw heated words being exchanged between Delhi Capitals’ Tristan Stubbs and Lucknow Super Giants pacer Prince Yadav. The incident happened in the fifth over. After the fifth ball of the over, Prince Yadav went all the way to Tristan Stubbs and stared at the South African batter. Stubbs did not hold back and returned the gesture.
Earlier, Lucknow Super Giants put up an embarrassing batting display with some questionable tactical calls, getting shot out for 141 in 18.4 overs in their IPL match against Delhi Capitals on Wednesday. Delhi Capitals skipper Axar Patel opted to bowl first, and even though the Ekana Stadium wicket wasn’t a belter, there could be no tangible excuse for the LSG unit for its pathetic batting display.
A fit-again T. Natarajan (3/29 in 4 overs), Kuldeep Yadav (2/31 in 4 overs) and the brilliant Lungi Ngidi (3/27 in 3.4 overs), who bowled perhaps a contender for the ‘ball of the tournament’, made life miserable for the home team, which looked as bad on the field as it had seemed on paper, as per pre-tournament predictions.
Captain Rishabh Pant, in a surprising move from the team’s perspective, broke the successful opening pair of Aiden Markram and Mitchell Marsh and promoted himself to the top of the order.
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Pant (7 off 9 balls) started with a nice back-drive off Mukesh Kumar, but in the next over was run out at the non-striker’s end when the bowler got a fingertip to a smashing straight hit from Marsh.
But, to be frank, Pant didn’t look comfortable once, despite that opening boundary, and it seemed more like a desperate attempt to get his India T20 slot back.
Aiden Markram (11) hit a six and a four, but DC skipper Axar Patel’s wicket-to-wicket delivery breached his defence.
The highly rated Ayush Badoni (0) edged one from T. Natarajan that was angled across, but it was Ngidi’s newfound confidence in executing slower deliveries that became the standout moment of the first half.
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It was a floating off-cutter that beat the dangerous Nicholas Pooran (8 off 8 balls). Pooran, whose philosophy hinges on bat speed, saw the loopy trajectory of the delivery dip late as the ball sneaked between bat and pad to hit the stumps.
In Ngidi’s case, there was no perceptible change in his arm speed as he took considerable pace off the ball.
Ngidi, who has perfected pace-off deliveries with variable lengths, tightened the noose on the LSG batters. He also accounted for Shahbaz Ahmed with a wide slower yorker, which is a difficult art to execute.
As for Kuldeep, he took some punishment initially but did the job well by dismissing the dangerous Marsh with a googly that saw the bat face turn in his hand, the leading edge flying to mid-off
Are NFL teams supposed to trade up the draftboard for running backs? Absolutely not — it’s taboo. Should the Minnesota Vikings do it anyway? Maybe — if the temptation is to grab Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love. And thanks to some reporting from NFL insider Jason La Canfora, one trade partner might just do the trick if the Vikings want Love.
Cleveland could be the pivot point if Minnesota wants the Notre Dame star.
That team is the Cleveland Browns, a franchise apparently open to trading down at the No. 6 spot.
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Cleveland Could Hold the Key to a Love Deal
How much would you give up to Love?
Jeremiyah Love breaks into the open field after a catch, gaining extra yards during second-half action on Sep. 30, 2023, at Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham. The Notre Dame running back showcased acceleration and balance against Duke, turning a routine play into a chunk gain while stressing the Blue Devils’ defensive pursuit angles. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports.
La Canfora: The Browns Are Open for Business
Jot the Browns down as a likely trade listener. La Canfora wrote this week, “With so many holes and wanting to stockpile picks, this may end up being a prime opportunity to trade down. In all likelihood, Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza will be the only offensive skill player off the board when Cleveland is up to pick, and with many executives identifying Washington as a prime spot for Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, and the Browns being connected with Ohio State running back Carnell Tate.”
“Perhaps they are sitting in a bit of a sweet spot in which some other team will be motivated to move up to grab their pick on the best pass catcher or runner in this draft.”
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Cleveland pulled off a blockbuster deal in the last draft, too, allowing the Jacksonville Jaguars to spend big in their pursuit of Travis Hunter.
La Canfora added, “The Browns have long been in the rebuilding business and the ‘asset relocation’ business, putting together an analytically-minded front office with execs from other sports involved that has left a lasting impression on owner Jimmy Haslam, even as some of those individuals have moved on.”
“Cleveland just hired an older head coach in Todd Monken, who has never done the job before, and the team seems years from contending. Even in more times of more robust rosters, the Browns were generally seen as willing listeners at the very least in regards to trades, and draft trades.”
There’s a path to Love if the Vikigns want him, at least in the rumor mill.
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Jumping in Front of the Commanders
For a while in March, the Tennessee Titans became a mock-draft darling to pick Love at No. 4. While that remains in play until draft night, the tide has turned a bit in favor of Tennessee taking the plunge with Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles.
If the Titans don’t take Love, and the New York Giants decide Cam Skattebo and Tyrone Tracy are enough for the 2026 backfield, the Commanders are the next logical spot for Love — at pick No. 7.
With the Browns trade, the Vikings would jump ahead of Washington, disqualifying them from the Love pick and making him a Viking. That’s the working theory behind a trade up the draftboard so high; a team might have to box out the Commanders, who have Jacory Croskey-Merritt and Rachaad White on tap for running back duty in 2026.
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The Trade Price
This is the part where you avert your eyes. A trade all the way up to No. 6 in Round 1 won’t be cheap for the Vikings or any franchise.
Stacey Dales conducts an on-field interview with Jeremiyah Love during NFL Scouting Combine activities on Feb. 28, 2026, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. The Notre Dame running back discussed preparation and performance while evaluators observed closely, as prospects navigated media sessions alongside drills during one of the league’s most visible pre-draft events. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images.
Minnesota could also sell next year’s 1st-Rounder while possibly getting a late-rounder back from Cleveland. There are options.
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A Vikings Playground with Love, Murray, Jefferson, Addison, and Hockenson
The Vikings’ rushing offense has never been solved by head coach Kevin O’Connell, although it improves each year. Trading for and drafting Love would immediately fix the problem, so long as O’Connell committed to using him like a bellcow RB1 in a balanced offense.
A Cleveland Browns helmet sits on display near the sideline ahead of kickoff on Jan. 4, 2025, at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. The close-up captures team branding and game-day readiness as players prepared to take the field against the Ravens in a divisional matchup with late-season implications. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images.
Minnesota already boasts a Top 3 defense over the last couple of seasons under Brian Flores; adding Love to an offense with Kyler Murray, Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson would strike fear into the hearts of, well, everybody.
If the offensive line stayed healthy — it did no such thing in 2025 — the Vikings’ roster wouldn’t really have any weaknesses, and the club would flirt with Super Bowl aspirations.
That’s the upside of dreaming big about Love in purple and gold. The Browns could hold the key.
This week, reporters asked Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luka Dončić to make their respective cases for the Most Valuable Player award. Both MVP candidates declined to do so.
“I never [made a case for myself],” Dončić said after scoring 42 points in the Los Angeles Lakers‘ 127-113 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday. “I’m not the one voting. But I think I’ve been playing pretty good, we’ve been winning, so that’s it. That’s all I got to say.”
This year’s MVP race is particularly tight. Rational arguments can be made in favor of Gilgeous-Alexander, Dončić, Victor Wembanyama and Nikola Jokić. Since Jokić is averse to self-promotion, it appears that Wembanyama will be the only one who publicly states why he believes he should win. Last week, he told reporters in Miami that he’s the right choice because defense is 50% of the game (and he’s the league’s most impactful defender), his San Antonio Spurs almost swept the Thunder in the regular season and his impact on offense goes beyond scoring.
The only other thing Gilgeous-Alexander said about the MVP race is that it’s “good for the league” because it drives interest.
“I think it’s good chatter,” Gilgeous-Alexander told reporters. “It gives people something to talk about. There’s a lot of good players in this league and a lot of guys in the conversation because of that.”
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That doesn’t mean, however, that he wants to participate in that conversation.
On one of the last days of March, Germany play Ghana in the final international break before World Cup preparations begin. Many fans started their journey first thing in the morning, including Dennis and Kai.
The two friends from the north of Germany put on their kits and boarded the train early, keen to support the team in person that evening in Stuttgart.
For Dennis in particular, trips like this are routine; he has been following the national team since 2015, and the 40-year-old has hardly missed a game since. Kai has been a regular since Euro 2024 on home soil.
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“Wearing the eagle on your chest and singing the national anthem is something special,” Dennis told DW. “You always meet up with other fans, travel to tournaments — it always gives you goosebumps.”
The two are what are known as regulars, fans who accompany the team to every match — wherever the location.
The buzz before the tournament
No wonder, then, that the upcoming FIFA World Cup is firmly marked in their calendars.
“I’m really looking forward to it,” said Kai, his eyes lighting up as he speaks. “I want to soak up everything that’s going on in the cities. Dennis has always talked so much about it.”
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The anticipation begins long before the tournament, added his mate Dennis: “The excitement starts two years in advance; you start saving up and thinking about what the trip might look like.”
Both have already bought tickets for Germany’s group games, and their itinerary is all planned out. They’re really looking forward to it, and the current political situation in the United States isn’t dampening their spirits.
“Politics should really stay out of sport. Sport is meant to build bridges and bring people together, but politics often likes to exploit tournaments like this,” said Dennis.
How big will Germany’s support be in the USA?Image: Maximilian Koch/picture alliance
Löw warns against traveling
Not everyone is as relaxed, though. Most recently, former Germany head coach Joachim Löw warned against traveling to North America.
“We had debates even before the 2018 World Cup in Russia and calls for a boycott ahead of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. But playing in a country that is currently actively at war is even more dangerous,” warned Löw at an event in Cologne.
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Löw, who led Germany to victory at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, was referring to the policies of US President Donald Trump, who started war with Iran at the end of February. On top of this, operations by immigration agency ICE and other geopolitical conflicts are causing unrest and uncertainty. The political situation is “completely overshadowing the tournament,” said Löw.
Green party politician worried about personal freedom
There has also been, and continues to be, strong criticism from the political sphere.
“What FIFA is organising there together with Donald Trump is not something that makes my heart beat faster,” Green Party politician and human rights activist Boris Mijatovic told DW.
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Green party politician Boris Mijatovic has warned against traveling to the USA this summerImage: dts-Agentur/picture alliance
“The disclosure of personal data, such as email addresses, mobile phones, computers or social media accounts, should not be ignored. These are all infringements on personal freedom that I would not tolerate,” Mijatovic said. “A state that snoops into your privacy in this way should not be rewarded with a visit.”
Mijatovic also fears further “bizarre moments of vicarious embarrassment” such as FIFA President Gianni Infantino presenting the newly created FIFA Peace Prize to Trump during the World Cup draw.
“I find it utterly grotesque the way one has to pay homage to this president to win his favor. This applies just as much to Gianni Infantino as it does to [German] Chancellor Friedrich Merz,” added the politician, including DFB German FA President Bernd Neuendorf in his criticism.
Mijatovic feels there is a lack of courage to voice criticism of FIFA.
“I miss that stance,” he said. “What we once built, with respect and fair play, has gone down the drain.”
For Germany fan Bengt Kunkel this year’s World Cup will be one he watches on television at home rather than in person. Kunkel, who has worked hard to generate a great atmosphere at Germany games for several years, will not be traveling to the US.Bengt Kunkel (center) was one of many fans cheering at Germany games at Euro 2024Image: Matthias Koch/picture alliance
“I take a very critical view of the World Cup,” he said. Trump is a huge problem, he added, because he is trying to make the World Cup his own and exploit it for his political agenda.
“On top of that, there are the restrictions on press freedom and freedom of expression, plus FIFA’s political pandering in awarding the Peace Prize to Donald Trump,” said Kunkel, who is also critical of the cost to fans.
“We worked out that for the group stage alone, we would probably have had to spend between €5,000 and €8,000 ($5,800-$9,280),” explained the Germany fan. “This isn’t a fan-friendly tournament. Nothing about this World Cup appeals to me, so it was clear I wouldn’t be going.”
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The stricter entry requirements for fans are also a cause for concern for the 27-year-old.
“When it comes to saying, ‘we’re going to check all social media activity of people wanting to enter the US and see if anyone has liked or posted anything against Donald Trump,’ then that has nothing to do with inviting the world into your home and wanting to celebrate a football festival.”
Germany fans are hopeful the country can seal their fifth star at the 2026 World CupImage: Matthias Schrader/AP Photo/dpa/picture alliance
Can the team win the World Cup together?
Kunkel knows that the 2026 World Cup is currently dividing fans.
“But I understand anyone who goes there,” said Kunkel, adding that he does not believe a boycott is the answer.
“It has to be OK to support the national team, despite everything. So let’s just make the best of it and have a brilliant World Cup summer.”
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Even Dennis and Kai admit it’s “not a fan-friendly World Cup.” Nevertheless, they’re confident that the US will ensure everyone’s safety and that it will be a fantastic football festival.
“We want to become world champions,” Dennis said. “We have to be a team and act as a team, and if we fans stand behind the team, we can go a long way.”
The Nigeria national football team have remained in 26th place in the latest men’s world ranking released by FIFA on Wednesday.
The team, led by Éric Chelle, played two matches in March. They recorded a 2-1 win over Iran national football team and later settled for a 2-2 draw against Jordan national football team.
Despite their results, the Super Eagles remain the third highest ranked team in Africa. Morocco national football team are still the continent’s top side in 8th place, followed by Senegal national football team in 14th.
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Algeria national football team and Egypt national football team complete the top five teams in Africa.
At the global level, France national football team have moved to the top of the ranking, replacing Spain national football team.
The next FIFA men’s world ranking is expected to be released on June 10, 2026.
Ghana lost 2-1 to Germany in a friendly match in Stuttgart. Ghana will kick off their World Cup campaign on June 18 against Panama, before facing England and Croatia.
The final piece of the FIFA World Cup puzzle has fallen into place for Canada.
Bosnia and Herzegovina upset Italy on Tuesday in a European playoff to clinch a berth at this summer’s tournament, marking its return to the World Cup for the first time in 12 years.
Canada already knew it would be hosting Qatar on June 18 and Switzerland on June 24 at BC Place in Vancouver in Group B action at the World Cup. Bosnia’s victory over the Italians means Canada will face them in its group stage opener on June 12 at BMO Field in Toronto.
What kind of team is Bosnia? What should Canada expect from their Balkan nation?
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Here’s a look at Canada’s first opponent at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Nickname: Zmajevi (The Dragons) FIFA world ranking: No. 65 All-time caps leader: Edin Džeko (148) All-time to scorer: Edin Džeko (73) Current coach: Sergej Barbarez
How Bosnia qualified for the 2026 World Cup.
Bosnia posted a 5-2-1 record during the first round, finishing behind Group H winners Austria and beating out Romania for second place, and a spot in Path A of the European Playoffs.
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Down 1-0 against Wales in Cardiff, Bosnia was on the verge of elimination when Edin Džeko scored a late equalizer. After a goalless extra time, Bosnia completed the comeback, winning 4-2 on penalties.
The Bosnians trailed 10-man Italy by a goal in the finale of the Path A playoffs before drawing level and then winning 4-1 on penalties to send the hometown fans at Zenica’s Bilino Polje Stadium into a state of delirium.
Bosnia’s World Cup history
Bosnia competed at the World Cup as part of Yugoslavia from 1930 to 1990. The breakup of the country saw Bosnia become an independent country that first took part in World Cup qualifying for the 1998 tournament in France.
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After four failed attempts, the Bosnians qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 2014 in Brazil, where they bowed out in the group stage.
The Dragons will be back at the World Cup this summer for the first time in 12 years after failing to qualify in 2018 and 2022.
Scouting report on Bosnia
Canada’s opening match will be a tricky one, considering the form that Bosnia and Herzegovina have been on — seven wins, three draws and only two losses since March 2025. This is also a team that can score and is hard to break down, with 24 goals scored and three clean sheets in that same period.
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Although Bosnia has deployed a 4-2-3-1 formation at times, coach Sergej Barbarez tends to rely on a traditional 4-4-2 setup with forward Ermedin Demirović forming an attacking partnership up top with Džeko.
Key to Bosnia’s attacking success are wingbacks Amar Memić and Esmir Bajraktarević, who prefer to deliver dangerous crosses into the penalty area, rather than cutting into the middle off the wing. Typically, Memić and Bajraktarević look to penetrate deep before crossing into the box, where one striker attacks the near post and the other goes towards the back post, thus making life difficult for opposing defenders.
Džeko provides a tall target man (he stands six-feet-four) and is renowned for winning his aerial battles against opposing centre backs. Most of Bosnia’s best scoring chances come off Džeko’s attempts on goal or from his headed passes. How Canadian centre backs Moïse Bombito and Derek Cornelius deal with the Bosnian dangerman will be one of the more important tactical questions that Jesse Marsch’s side will have to answer.
It’ll also be important for Canada to shut down Memić and Bajraktarević and prevent them from supplying crosses into the box. Bosnia is also dangerous from set pieces, so Canada would be well advised to limit the number of fouls they commit in and around the box.
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Bosnia’s major weakness is its lack of experience. Džeko has 148 caps for his country, but only three other players on the squad who took part in this month’s pair of qualifying matches have played in 30 games for their country. The overwhelming majority of players on the roster have fewer than 20 caps. That lack of experience often leads to inconsistent performances across 90 minutes.
And while Džeko is an experienced campaigner who is capable of conjuring a magical moment, the team is far too reliant on him; it lacks variation in its attacking play and fails to provide consistent support for the veteran striker.
Most recognizable name on Bosnia’s team
At 40 years of age, Edin Džeko is still going strong for Bosnia.
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The veteran striker was his country’s top scorer during European qualifying with six goals, accounting for over one-third of his country’s offence.
Džeko has a wealth of experience at international and club level, having previously turned out for some of Europe’s top outfits, including Manchester City and Inter Milan. He’s currently playing for FC Schalke 04 in Germany’s second division.
What Canada is saying about Bosnia
“Their players grew up in a war-torn country, and a lot of them were lucky to escape, found their ways to different countries. I coached Amar Dedić (at Red Bull Salzburg) — his family moved to Austria and had to find a new life there,” said head coach Jesse Marsch. “So, these players have been through a lot in life, and I think it really served them well in the (European playoffs) where they were in difficult situations.
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“I have a lot of respect for what Bosnia has achieved, what those people have been through, what those players have been through, and I’m happy for them to be at the World Cup. I know we’re in for a really difficult first match.”
Midfielder Ismaël Koné added that “to be fair, Bosnia is a very good team. I didn’t know this was their level. I’m very surprised Italy didn’t go through. I thought with the experience they have, with the high-quality players they have, by now, after missing two World Cups, they would be here, but you know, it’s football.”
Winger Liam Miller noted that while watching the game against Italy, “you could tell Bosnia were a good team. They had more passes, obviously. I know Italy had a red card. But even before Italy got their red card, I felt like (Bosnia) were the better team in the game. So, they’re a good team. We can’t underestimate them. They’re going to come here with energy.”
Goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau echoed those sentiments, saying “Bosnia was pretty much the team that was most in form (in Path A) of the four that could have been a possibility (for Canada). It’s going to be a very tough opponent.”
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Editor’s note
John Molinaro is one of the leading soccer journalists in Canada, having covered the game for over 27 years for several media outlets, including Sportsnet, CBC Sports and Sun Media. He is currently the editor-in-chief of TFC Republic, a website dedicated to in-depth coverage of Toronto FC and Canadian soccer.
Famed for his willingness to fight and his desperation for legacy, Terence Crawford retired as an undefeated pound-for-pound great just a few months ago.
However, when reflecting on his career, there is one opponent whom ‘Bud’ wishes he could have fought.
Crawford became boxing’s third four-belt undisputed champion when he trumped Julius Indongo to take control of all four titles back in August 2017, before repeating the feat up at welterweight six years later with a dominant beatdown of Errol Spence Jr.
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Last September, Crawford then made the sizeable jump up to super-middleweight, where he dethroned long-reigning 168lb superstar Canelo Alvarez to become the first three-division undisputed titleholder since Henry Armstrong in 1938.
Soon after, the Omaha operator announced his retirement from the sport, hanging up the gloves with a record of 42-0 at the age of 38 years old.
Despite all of his success, Crawford admitted that the man he most wishes he could have fought is boxing’s only eight-division champion, Manny Pacquiao, in a clip captured by Jai McAllister.
“Pacquiao, for sure. 1000%.
Man, I tried to fight Pacquiao for [so long]. That was a fight that I was chasing for years, since I was 140lbs.
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“To see him fight [Adrien] Broner, Tim Bradley, Keith Thurman and all of those fights. I was like, man, what is going on. These guys is not [on my level].
“I am [up] here, [on a level above,] and he was fighting these guys. I just couldn’t understand it.”
While Crawford has retired, Pacquiao remains active, still competing at 47.
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