Informational/Did You Know

From Canada to the top: Here is our World Cup jersey ranking

With all the World Cup jerseys finally out in the wild, it's time to create a ranking with the best and worst-dressed teams in the tournament. 

In general terms, there is consensus on naming adidas as the brand with the best designs for the event, while Nike and Puma didn't seem to have tuned in with the fans' wishes. 

I'll be honest, some collections have grown on me since their launching – France and England, to name two – but others are not moving the needle. 

Sorry, USMNT.

Here’s the list of the best countries that failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup

The 2022 World Cup is here and the field of 32 teams is set. Several World Cup regulars will be missing the big tournament this year. Here are some of the best teams not in World Cup 2022 that will be missed.

This list will go by region and is based on if the team has had previous World Cup appearances. The list also includes the country's FIFA ranking in the parentheses. 

Team-by-team guide: 2022 Portugal World Cup preview

To prepare you for the tournament, The18 has launched team-by-team previews for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Here's the Portugal World Cup preview 2022. The Seleção das Quinas will play in Group H against Ghana, Uruguay and South Korea.

Portugal World Cup Preview 2022

World Cup appearances: 8th

Best finish: Third place (1966)  

The oldest players at the 2022 World Cup

Egyptian Essam El-Hadary is the oldest player ever at a World Cup. The goalkeeper was called-up for Russia 2018 and even had the privilege of playing against Saudi Arabia in a group stage game at the age of 45 years and ten days.

Yeah, kudos to Essam.

His record, by the way, will remain untouchable during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. However, that didn't stop us from asking who's going to be the oldest players at the tournament. And well, from two Mexican goalkeepers to stars like Cristiano Ronaldo and Luka Modrić, here's the answer. 

Can an African team win the World Cup?

Many football lovers hope an African team will finally win the men’s 2022 FIFA World Cup. The world has been waiting for this since the great Brazilian player Pelé predicted (in the 1970s) that an African country would win before the year 2000. That didn’t happen, but it didn’t stop Patrice Motsepe, president of the Confederation of African Football, from saying (in 2021): "An African team must win the World Cup in the near future."

DIRECTV is giving you a chance to win a $500 youth sports scholarship

Ingrained as they are in our social fabric, sports are crucial to bringing people and communities together. And this is especially true when we talk about youth sports. Unfortunately, it's not always a level playing field for those athletes trying to break through when the opportunities are not the same for everybody.

DIRECTV knows about these difficulties and hardships, so in partnership with LeagueSide, they decided to be an agent of change in society by offering a series of sports scholarships nationwide.

México vs. Suecia, la prueba de fuego de Raúl Jiménez

México jugará este miércoles frente a Suecia su último amistoso antes de la Copa del Mundo. El duelo servirá para afinar los últimos detalles tácticos en la pizarra de Gerardo Martino, pero también para ver en qué condiciones se encuentra Raúl Jiménez de cara al torneo. 

El delantero de Wolverhampton fue nombrado en la lista final del Tri para Catar pese a que no juega desde el mes de agosto debido a una pubalgia. El jugador, de hecho, no está totalmente recuperado de la lesión y muchos se preguntan si la decisión de convocarlo fue un error de Martino.

Revelan los números que usarán los jugadores de la selección mexicana en el Mundial

Después de conocerse el nombre de los 26 seleccionados mexicanos que estarán en el Mundial de Catar faltaba por saber el número que cada uno llevará en la espalda durante el torneo.

Y bueno, el misterio se acabó.

Varios de los jugadores que estuvieron en Rusia 2018 mantendrán los mismos dorsales en esta Copa del Mundo. Guillermo Ochoa, por ejemplo, seguirá con el icónico 13 y lo mismo harán Raúl Jiménez (9), Héctor Moreno (15), Héctor Herrera (16), Andrés Guardado (18), Hirving Lozano (22) y Jesús Gallardo (23).

After a long legal telenovela, Ecuador decide to drop Byron Castillo from World Cup squad

Ecuador announced their squad for the upcoming World Cup with a big, big surprise. Coach Gustavo Alfaro decided to leave Byron Castillo out of the team to avoid future legal battles related to the player's eligibility. 

Tata Martino deja fuera del Mundial a dos favoritos de la afición

Gerardo Martino siempre supo que su lista de 26 jugadores para el Mundial de Catar no iba a dejar a todos contentos y que se iba hablar más de los que quedarían fuera que de los nominados.

Y bueno, el entrenador argentino hizo todo lo posible para que eso pasara – aún teniendo tiempo para evitarlo –, al omitir de la convocatoria a Diego Lainez y Santiago Giménez, dos favoritos de la afición.

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