It has become extremely difficult to keep up with the many travel and entry issues faced by 2026 World Cup fans, teams and officials over recent days and weeks.

First, Iran were denied a training camp in the United States, despite all their group games being in the country, and were forced to prepare in Mexico instead. Top African referee, Omar Artan, was then refused entry to the States and had to fly home.

As recently as Sunday evening, one day before their opening match, Uruguay were stopped from flying to America and were stranded in Mexico. While all that was going on, fans from many participating nations have had a nightmare trying to secure visas and enter the country for a variety of reasons.

Argentina Request FIFA Ban For Their Own Fans

Andres Cuenca via Reuters

Lionel Messi is looking to make history and lead his country to back-to-back successes on the biggest stage in international football. However, Argentina are also actively trying to stop around 13,000 of their own supporters from being inside the ground.

According to Spanish outlet AS, officials from the South American giants have provided the US government with the names of 13,000 parents who have defaulted on child payments.

Jorge Macri, the Buenos Aires mayor, has claimed that anyone unwilling or unable to provide for their own children shouldn’t be allowed to attend football matches. He said: “If they don’t provide for their children, they will not be allowed into the stadium.”

The government have a ‘Safe Stands’ program, which looks to punish those who find the cash to attend sporting events while being in arrears and owing child support money.

The initiative was expanded in 2023 and has screened over four million individuals. Bans have been handed out, with outstanding arrest warrants identified.

The US government will also be notified to prevent any Argentine fan with a history of violence from entering stadiums. Minister of National Security Patricia Bullrich has previously said:

Argentina begin their World Cup defence at Kansas City Stadium against Algeria on Wednesday. Lionel Scaloni’s side will then play Austria and Jordan with the expectation of progressing to the Round of 32 as one of the favourites to win the competition.

The World Cup of Darts, where two representatives of several countries battle it out to crown the best darting nation on earth, is over for 2026.

In line with what many had predicted, the victors were the super team of the world number one and two in the PDC Order of Merit, the two Lukes, Littler and Humphries, who took home the crown for England.

While Littler and Humphries took home the biggest payday, the money on offer, considering the tournament only consists of four days, would’ve made it worthwhile for all participants.

World Cup of Darts 2026 Summary

There was extra pressure on the English pair this year, as they were desperate to make up for their poor showing in 2025. Having come in as massive favourites, they were beaten in their first appearance, courtesy of an 8-4 defeat by Martin Schindler and Ricardo Pietreczko of the host nation, Germany.

Despite some rocky moments along the way, they eventually claimed England’s sixth World Cup of Darts trophy.

Before the big boys entered at a later stage, the tournament got underway with the group stage, consisting of 12 groups of three teams. This year, the first day of action included last year’s runners-up, Wales, now seeded number seven due to the withdrawal of Gerwyn Price. Instead, the 2021 Premier League champion and winner of two World Cups alongside Price, Jonny Clayton, was partnered with Nick Kenny.

Despite the absence of the 2021 world champion, Wales progressed to the second round alongside Germany, Belgium, Republic of Ireland, Poland, Sweden, United States, Czech Republic, France, Latvia, Spain, and Norway. Their progression came at the expense of several seeded nations as Australia, Austria, Croatia, and Finland suffered early eliminations.

The first session of round two saw no upsets. The Republic of Ireland were able to see off Poland by eight legs to five. Latvia followed by surviving a persistent France to escape with an 8-7 victory having only averaged a score of 79. There was little that Norway could do against the Scotland team of 2015 and 2016 world champion, Gary Anderson and Cameron Menzies, to send the Scandinavians home on the receiving end of an 8-0 scoreline. In the final game of the first second stage fixtures, Wales got past the USA, also by eight legs to five.

Then came the entry of the big boys. Defending champions, Northern Ireland, came back from a losing position to defeat Dimitri Van den Bergh and Mike De Decker of Belgium by one leg. Despite finding a checkout first on six occasions, the Czech Republic were bested by Germany as the hosts secured an 8-6 victory.

The first appearance of Littler and Humphries saw them matched with Spain, who held their own throughout the contest, and caused some scares for the favourites, but eventually, England advanced thanks to another 8-5 win. The final encounter of the session saw Michael van Gerwen and Gian van Veen of the Netherlands beat a resistant Sweden by a margin of only two legs.

The final eight saw two victories by a single leg, as England and Northern Ireland had their nerves tested against Wales and Latvia, respectively. The southern part of the island across the Irish Sea were eliminated, losing 8-5 to Anderson and Menzies, while the hosts’ brave effort was eventually ended by Van Gerwen and Van Veen whose 8-4 win saw them book their place in the final four.

England found their way into the final in convincing fashion, beating another old enemy in Scotland by five legs, included in that was an average of over 100. With England waiting, Northern Ireland and the Netherlands played for the final place in the last two. As the dust settled, the result of a crushing 8-2 victory, with a 101 average for the Dutch, ensured that there wouldn’t be Northern Ireland’s name on the trophy for a second year in a row.

The name that would go on it was left for England and the Netherlands to decide. For older fans of the game of arrows, it was a bit of a nostalgia trip, remembering the early days of the tournament when the last men standing were often Adrian Lewis and Phil Taylor versus Van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld. It was the nation of the former who came out on top this time around, with Littler and Humphries’ 104 average taking them to an 8-4 triumph to lift the trophy, Humphries’ second in two years after winning it in 2024 with Michael Smith.

World Cup of Darts 2026 Salaries

Regardless of the stage they got to, everyone competing was in for a decent payday for a maximum of four days’ work. Even those that went out after just two games in the group stage and finished last in their respective group, being 12 nations, took home a combined £5,000, meaning each player earned £2,500 individually.

The 12 that did one better and came second in the group earned £3,000 each. Getting to the round of 16 would net a player a sole paycheck of £5,000. If a team got to the final eight, each would receive £10,000. The earnings would go up to £15,000 for a semi-final appearance. For falling short in the final, a consolation prize of £24,000 would be awarded, and the winners of the whole thing would each become £50,000 richer.

In terms of the big names, that means Littler and Humphries now have an extra 50 grand they didn’t have before last Saturday, while Van Gerwen and Van Veen are the beneficiaries of £24,000 each. Josh Rock, Daryl Gurney, Anderson, and Menzies have £15,000 to hopefully cheer them up, and those that were eliminated before the semi-final, the eight representatives from Wales, Germany, Latvia, and the Republic of Ireland still took home £10,000 for their efforts.

Tottenham Hotspur have some clear key transfer priorities this summer, but the striker position could emerge as another in the coming weeks, according to GIVEMESPORT senior correspondent Ben Jacobs.

Tottenham‘s main focus has been on strengthening a defence that simply hasn’t been good in recent seasons, with two additions to the backline already sealed after club chiefs announced deals to sign Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi on free transfers.

Spurs want more additions to their backline and, after the good news that Pedro Porro has signed a new long-term contract at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, there could be another centre-back coming through the door.

The north Londoners are working on a deal to bring Brighton and Hove Albion defender Jan Paul van Hecke in to work alongside De Zerbi for the second time in his career.

Tottenham are looking at other positions too, with a new goalkeeper likely to come in should Guglielmo Vicario leave and return to Serie A, while they are working on an agreement to bring Joao Palhinha to the club on a permanent basis following his season-long loan spell from Bayern Munich.

Despite reports that the 30-year-old is keen to return to Portugal, Fabrizio Romano claims that he is giving priority to joining Spurs thanks to his good relationship with De Zerbi.

A winger looks set to arrive too, with talks ongoing for Manchester City winger Savinho.

Ben Jacobs: Tottenham Move for Liam Delap ‘One to Watch’

via Reuters

Tottenham could also make changes in the centre-forward position too, with Randal Kolo Muani already returning to Paris Saint-Germain following his loan spell with Spurs.

Speaking on the Last Word on Spurs YouTube channel on Sunday night, Jacobs revealed that a move for Liam Delap of Chelsea could be one to watch, although the former Ipswich man wants to fight for his spot at Stamford Bridge.

He said: “I think that Liam Delap could be one to watch from Chelsea, another club that Tottenham wouldn’t normally do too much business with.

“Newcastle, Everton, Tottenham, the three clubs that like Delap. Before we can clarify whether anything is going to develop there, Delap wants to stay and fight for his place, so he’s going to understand where he is in this pecking order, with Joao Pedro number one under Xabi Alonso, who is going to be the number two striker?

“Is it still going to be Delap? Is it alternatively going to be Nico Jackson, who’s coming back from a loan spell at Bayern? I think unlikely, but Jackson wants pre-season to see if he can change the new manager’s mind.

“Once all that falls into place, if Delap is available on the market, Newcastle, Everton and Tottenham are the three Premier League clubs I’m hearing.”

Will Tottenham Lose a Striker This Summer?

via Reuters

It appears as though there could be a permanent exit from Tottenham this summer.

According to Jacobs, Richarlison is more likely to leave the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium than Solanke this summer, with De Zerbi an admirer of the Englishman.

Spurs are said to believe that they can get a big return out of Solanke when he is fit, and they feel he can be a ‘difference-maker’ for him.

Should Richarlison end up going, then it appears as though a new striker will also be arriving at Spurs, but a move for Delap would be seen as a surprise after a difficult first season at Chelsea for the 23-year-old following a £30m transfer.