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05:44τελευταία, δεν έχει πρόβληση.
05:46Τι είναι η εξαιρετική,
05:47πώς το βλέπουμε την Ευρωπαϊκή Έχιση
05:49σε ένα πολύ δύσκολο σημαίο,
05:52αλλά δεν είναι καταστροφικό σημαίο.
05:54Δηλαδή, η δημόσια,
05:55μας έκανε να δημιουργήσουμε την Ευρώπη πιο ριζιλία.
05:58Αυτό είναι το πρόκλημα που δούμε.
05:59Δηλαδή, δεν είναι το καλύτερο σημαίο,
06:01αλλά δεν είναι το καλύτερο σημαίο.
06:04Δηλαδή, δεν είναι το καλύτερο σημαίο.
06:06Τα είτε, τι έχει προσφανθεί.
06:07Βέγε μείρους, μείρους που ερώτηκόται
06:10τα γιατί να υποστηρίζουν τα περιοχές και τους θέλης θα χρησιμοποιηθούν
06:13το οποίο να μας δημιουργείραμε.
06:14Τα παιδιέξουμε, τι λέμε.
06:16Βέβαια, что οι ευρ μιας που έκανε αυτό,
06:19αποκsections τα ευρώπους τα ευρώπων και οι Λορφυσαν
06:22και στη σημερινή δηλαδή,
06:24πως είναι τα πιο προδικαθή και τα επιπιμετωμένα σηματικά πολιτικά.
06:27μιλικά, δεν seheσκανόμα.
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08:43The 2026 World Cup, which is the largest World Cup to date, will kick off with historic ceremonies across the
08:49host countries, the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
08:52Today, one of the hosts, Mexico, will be facing South Africa in Mexico City and then South Korea taking on
08:58Czechia in Guadalajara in Mexico.
09:00The excitement, of course, is palpable.
09:03But this year, the high spurts could be marred by geopolitics, immigration enforcement and the Trump administration's travel ban.
09:10For the view from Brussels, we can bring in now the EU Commissioner for Sports, Glenn Michailov.
09:14Good morning.
09:15Good morning, me.
09:15Great to have you with us. I know you're a big football fan.
09:18I am a huge football fan.
09:20And I know you're actually not too bad at football as well. We have some pictures there we can play
09:24of you showing off your football skills there.
09:27Did you ever dream of being a professional football player?
09:30I actually played football when I was younger. So ever since I could walk, I always remember myself carrying my
09:37football around.
09:38So how are you feeling then today? Could you even sleep last night over the World Cup?
09:40I can't wait for the kickoff later on today. So I've been, for the past few months, immersing myself. I
09:46have World Cup fever at the moment.
09:48You have World Cup fever. And does the Berlimont too? Does the European Commission? What's the vibe like there?
09:52I know there are a couple of people in the corridors of the Berlimont who are also really keen on
09:58what's happening and following the developments of their favourite football teams.
10:03And will you even stay up late to watch some of the games?
10:05I will try to watch all of the games.
10:07So there are 16 European teams that are participating. I'm really looking forward to watching all their matches, but all
10:15other matches as well.
10:16Because this is one of the biggest sporting events on the planet, along with the Olympic Games.
10:21Who are you up for? Who's going to take it home?
10:23You know, my prediction would be two teams, either Spain or France, but I think Spain will win it at
10:29the end.
10:29Well, you've got football fever. And of course, everyone's talking about the games, from TikTok influencers to schoolgoers who are
10:34swapping football stickers.
10:36Because last time, 1.5 billion of us tuned in for the final.
10:40And now for the view from the EU quarter here on who could take home the Cup.
10:44Euro News' Adlan Leal went out with the Euro News mic.
10:48The biggest ever World Cup starts today. For the first time, three different countries will host the event.
10:53A record number of 104 games will be played. And the number of participants has been extended to 48.
10:59Here in Brussels, not only Europe's capital, but also one of the most international cities in the world, people will
11:05surely be watching closely.
11:07But who do they think is going to win and why? Let's find out.
11:10I want England to win the World Cup because after 60 years of hurt, now it's finally time for football
11:17to come home.
11:18But who's going to win the World Cup? Probably France. What can I say?
11:21I think Belgium is going to win because they deserve it.
11:23We have Italian coaches abroad. Ancelotti is coaching Brazil. Cannavaro is coaching Uzbekistan. And Montella is with Turquille. We can
11:33take comfort in their successes.
11:37I think Portugal will win the World Cup because of Cristiano Ronaldo's last tournament.
11:43I believe Brazil because I'm Brazilian. Even living in Europe, I believe it's Brazil. Not because I believe we're the
11:49best. We will only know at the end.
11:50I want that Mexico wins because of Orbelin-Beneda. But I think Spain or France will win it.
11:59Back-to-back for Messi, Argentina. And we also support Willy Semedo and Cape Verde.
12:04I would love Scotland to win it. So after 20 years, it's the first time back. And I think either
12:08France or Spain can win it.
12:10At the end of the day, I want my country to win the World Cup. So Islamic Republic of Iran,
12:15always.
12:16I want Uzbekistan to win.
12:18Who I think should win is Ghana. But who I think will win, Brazil or France.
12:28So many there reckon France will take it home. And of course, the bookies are saying it's between France and
12:33Spain.
12:33We'll have to wait and see.
12:34It's on both predictions there.
12:35We'll have to wait and see. Because of course, football is meant to unite, Commissioner.
12:39But this year, thousands cannot go. They're left out due to travel bans, visa restrictions.
12:44L'Equipe here, a French daily, kind of captured the mood this year.
12:48The kind of vibe that's overshadowing a lot of the headlines.
12:51How will these games bring the world together if so many people are left out?
12:55Well, for starters, I hope that this World Cup will be remembered for pure football excitement,
13:00for the joy and passion it brings on the pitch, but also for millions of fans around the world
13:06who, in times like these, come together in squares, in bars, in cafes to watch their favourite teams.
13:12Of course, it's about accessibility.
13:14These decisions on who has access are for the host country also to take decisions on.
13:22But I hope that this will be one of the World Cups that's remembered for football excitement
13:27and for the joy it brings.
13:28Because the reality is that it's not. That is not the case.
13:31We've seen one top African referee, a Somali national.
13:34He cannot enter the US. He cannot participate.
13:36And these are the headlines that are overshadowing and kind of dampening the mood this year.
13:41Well, of course, you always have around big sporting events, whatever they are, controversies.
13:48And these are, of course, issues that merit attention.
13:52But my hope is that for the time being, we focus on sport, on football and on the joy it
13:59brings.
13:59And what about Iran? We saw some lady there.
14:01She was expressing her hope that Iran would win.
14:03But we've seen many Iranian-Americans out on the streets as well telling FIFA
14:07they should have cancelled Iran's participation due to the ongoing war
14:10because the Iranians are using their players to try to make themselves look good on the world stage.
14:15What's your view here?
14:16Well, it's good that finally there is a solution and the Iranian national team can participate in the tournament.
14:22I think the Iranian team qualified and on merit they should participate.
14:27So I think it's good that finally they can be on the pitch and show the world what football is
14:34about,
14:35which is bringing people together and big countries together.
14:39Bringing people together, of course.
14:40And it's the topic that we dived into as well this week on The Ring.
14:43That is Eury News' debating show.
14:45We asked did Donald Trump perhaps, you know, kill the vibe a little bit this year.
14:49We've seen ticket sales and hotel bookings are below expectations, especially in the United States.
14:54we can take a listen out to MEPs that we're debating in the European Parliament this week.
14:58The Austrian MEP, Lukas Mandl, and Rasmus Andersen from the Greens.
15:03Dear colleague, you have advocated for boycotting the World Cup.
15:07I don't agree with that.
15:08I think the excitement about football is much bigger than politics can ever be.
15:12And the direct question would be, how would you explain to, let's say, a child excited about football,
15:17just interested into football and this exciting game,
15:20how would you explain to such a child to boycott the game?
15:24I did not advocate to boycott the tournament, especially not for supporters.
15:28But what I think politicians should do is to take a clear stance and to criticize both the FIFA,
15:34but also the current U.S. administration on the mistakes they are making when it also comes to organizing sports.
15:41And there, I think that politicians have a different kind of responsibility,
15:47meaning that they should not travel there and be part of the tournament
15:53and green light both the actions of the FIFA and of the U.S. president.
15:59So for me, it's not a general boycott, but I think as politicians, we should not go there and support.
16:07A glimpse of the ring there that you can catch the rest of, of course, on Euronews.
16:11What's your view here? What would you say to a kid?
16:13Well, first of all, I don't think boycotts will solve anything in this respect.
16:17I think we should not deprive fans of the opportunities to follow their favorite teams.
16:22This is, I think, one of the moments where people can come together.
16:28This being said, I think, of course, football should be accessible to everyone.
16:34And I'm quite happy to see politicians around the world organizing and making spaces available
16:40for people to come and watch their favorite teams.
16:43And this is also an opportunity to highlight that here in Europe,
16:47there are governing bodies in sports like UEFA, who has a fan first policy,
16:53which makes these games, these sporting events accessible to people.
16:58And that's the kind of sport that I want to see.
17:00Well, you mentioned UEFA just on the Champions League we saw a few weeks ago.
17:03Unfortunately, the games were dampened by the violence that broke out in Paris.
17:07What's your responsibility here as the EU commissioner for sport to try and improve the situation?
17:11Well, of course, sporting events have to be safe.
17:15But this also involves a lot of coordination between the hosts, in this case,
17:20the countries which would be hosting these games, and the bodies which are organizing them.
17:25So there needs to be a lot of coordination in this respect to make these sporting events as safe as
17:31possible.
17:32OK. Commissioner Glenn Micheleff, thank you so much for coming into us this morning
17:35on this very exciting day as that World Cup gets underway.
17:38But as we've been discussing, the headlines about this year's World Cup
17:43have focused less on football and more on issues like exploding ticket prices,
17:47fan boycotts, security and visa bars, etc.
17:50Our Jakob Janus takes a closer look at the long list.
17:56FIFA president Gianni Infantino must love the view from Trump Tower.
18:00He runs a Manhattan office there.
18:02Where's Maga Thais?
18:04And is called by Donald Trump, the king of soccer.
18:07I call it soccer, you know, it's just easier to do,
18:11because we have football and they have two footballs, right?
18:14They call it football.
18:15But while the football elite rub shoulders in Washington,
18:18the game is hitting a metaphorical and physical wall at the U.S. border.
18:22You see, the international teams, referees and everyday fans
18:26find it a bit difficult to see the games which start today.
18:29What is going on there?
18:33FIFA expects to pocket more than $3 billion from ticket sales and hospitality alone.
18:39But corporate pricing has broken the marketplace.
18:42Ticket packages to follow a team to the final
18:44are now estimated to cost five times more than four years ago.
18:49On top of that, nearly 180,000 tickets are flooding the official resale market
18:54and median resale prices have plunged by 20% in a single month.
18:59But the biggest bust is happening at the border security checkpoints.
19:03Infantinos sports diplomacy means nothing to U.S. immigration officers
19:07enforcing hard travel bans against four qualified nations, including Iran and Somalia.
19:13And U.S. border agents just locked Somalia's top referee in a cell for 11 hours
19:18before throwing him out of the country.
19:20Iraq's star striker was detained in Chicago for seven hours.
19:24And currently the Iranian squad is stranded,
19:27training across the border in Tijuana because Washington refused visas
19:31to 15 members of their staff, including the head of the Football Federation.
19:36So it looks like the very definition of a global sporting event
19:40is being rewritten before our own eyes.
19:43The opening week proves that football does not unite the world.
19:46It is national borders and strict immigration laws
19:49that are defining who gets to play and who stays at home.
19:53So can FIFA hold this World Cup together?
19:56Tune in on tonight to find out
19:58as Mexico opens the tournament playing against South Africa.
20:02Oh, and remember, Euronews will be covering the games
20:05and the whole political sideshow surrounding them for you.
20:12So there you go, Euronews.com.
20:14That is your source to find out all about the games.
20:17You can also write to us here at
20:19Europe Today at Euronews.com
20:20to tell us what you think of this year's World Cup 2026.
20:24But that does bring this edition of Europe Today to an end.
20:27Thank you so much for tuning in.
20:29As always, take care and see you soon here on Euronews.
20:39and back to the world website with our new podcasts.
20:41See you soon.
20:42Bye.
20:42Bye.
20:43Bye.
20:44Bye.
20:44Bye.
20:44Σας ευχαριστώ.
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