Nicknamed ‘The Iceman’, Bergkamp was the crown jewel of a Dutch team brimming with talent – Patrick Kluivert, Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf and Marc Overmars among them.

Football has seen many legends, but the way a dog from South London became part of the game's greatest drama remains a truly unique story.

July 5, 1982. The stands were a sea of yellow spring, thousands of souls swaying to the wild rhythm of samba. Onto the pitch walked a team for whom football was not merely a leather ball -- it was an elusive, intangible art. Tele Santana’s Brazil, widely regarded as the most beautiful, most romantic, and yet most heartbreaking chapter in football history. They did not come to the field to win wars; they came to write poetry with their feet on a canvas of green.

Viktor Gyokeres scored a hattrick as Sweden brushed Ukraine aside 3-1 on Thursday to set up a showdown with Poland for a spot at the 2026 World Cup.

Italy's bid to end a 12-year World Cup absence will continue after beating Northern Ireland 2-0 on Thursday to reach the play-off final.

The fourth and final ticket sales phase for the 2026 World Cup will open on April 1, FIFA announced on Wednesday, without specifying how many tickets will be made available.

The Azzurri host the Northern Irish in Bergamo on Thursday trying to end a 12-year absence from the World Cup finals after failing to qualify for the last two editions in Russia and Qatar.

"The reality of the World Cups -- every World Cup FIFA has put on -- there's always been geopolitical issues. Always," he told the Business of Soccer conference in Atlanta.

A decision in a fraction of a second, a flawless reaction, was made at the very edge of human capability.

Iran were one of the first nations to qualify for the finals but their participation has been in doubt since the U.S.-Israeli conflict with the Islamic Republic broke out at the end of February.

The 1958 FIFA World Cup in Sweden was never meant to belong to France. Talented though they were, they were not considered an unstoppable force on football’s grandest stage. Yet, by the end of that tournament, they had become one, and at the heart of it stood Just Fontaine.

Supporters' group file European Commission lawsuit against FIFA over World Cup ticket prices

With the spectre of failed 2018 and 2022 qualification campaigns looming over the squad, Gattuso knows his players must overcome the mental weakness that has plagued Italy's World Cup ambitions.

In that fleeting second, he became the Icarus of myth -- the man who dared to touch the sun with wings of wax.

Federico Chiesa has been dropped by Italy after being found not fit to play in the Azzurri's 2026 World Cup qualifying play-off with Northern Ireland, the country's football federation (FIGC) said on Monday.

Was the London sky a little grayer that day? Or did the grass at Wembley bend in mourning beneath the weight of a superhuman tragedy?

Only Brazil stand ahead of Germany in terms of FIFA World Cup titles but few nations can match the depth and drama of Germany’s journey to their four crowns.

Argentina will face Mauritania this month in a World Cup warm-up match, the country's Football Association (AFA) said on Friday.

The 1990 FIFA World Cup during an Italian summer -- the pitch was ablaze with tactics, strategy, and fierce competition. Teams from Europe and South America were locked in their battle for dominance.

No country has been more successful on the world stage than Brazil. From 1958 to 2002, the Selecao authored an epic of five world titles, with each chapter standing as a unique testament to footballing greatness.