00:10Welcome to beyond the game the ball stays fear Spain booked their place in the 2026 FIFA World
00:15Cup semifinals after a thrilling 2-1 victory over Belgium in a match filled with intensity
00:20La Roa opened the score in the 30th minute through Fabian Ruiz but Belgium quickly responded Charles
00:25de Cattellere equalized in the 41st minute keeping the contest wide open Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut
00:31Courtois was a key figure in keeping the score level for much of the match producing several
00:36important saves to deny Spain's attack however Courtois was forced to leave the game in the
00:41second half after picking up an injury a turning point in the encounter Spain continued pushing
00:47forward and finally found the winning goal in the 88th minute when Miquel Merino delivered the
00:51decisive strike to send Spain into the semi-finals so let's see how the road to the semi-finals is
01:04shaping up France and Spain have already secured their places and will meet in a blockbuster
01:09semi-final on Tuesday after defeating Morocco and Belgium respectively attention now turns to the
01:14two what mouth-watering code of finals as early Haaland's Norway faces Hurricanes England before
01:20Lionel Messi leads Argentina against a discipline Switzerland the winners will complete the semi-final
01:27lineup and face each other on Wednesday so the first quarterfinal of the day pits together the two
01:37teams that have earned their place through resilience and clinical finishing Norway has emerged as one of
01:43the tournament's biggest surprises knocking out both Cote d'Ivoire and five-time champions Brazil to reach the
01:48last eight led by Erling Holland and an organized defensive unit Norwegians have shown they can't
01:54compete with anyone standing in their way is England who survived tough tests against the art Congo and
02:00host nation Mexico to keep their title hopes alive with Hurricane and Jude Beligan and a talented
02:05supporting cast the three Lions have relied on their depth and experience in key moments
02:15and dozens of Norway fans performed the Viking role in Miami in support of their team ahead of the
02:22quarterfinal against England let's see I think it's going to be a tough game I think I think both teams
02:34are
02:34really good I think it could go either way if Norway plays well and they have a little bit of
02:39luck they
02:39will beat England I think it's just a symbolism right now that it's bringing Norwegians together and
02:45it's just unifying everybody across cultures across cultures across the entire world to be able to just
02:52support Norway today we're here to it's like day before the match we always meet and we we're here
02:59to support Norway we're going to roll we're going to have fun
03:07an Argentina national football team fans pouring downtown Kansas City's on Saturday for the traditional
03:12pre-match banderazo held on the eve of the defending champions 2026 FIFA World Cup quarterfinal against
03:20Switzerland hundreds of supporters wearing national team jerseys and waving flags gathering in a city
03:25park to cheer on the team dance and enjoy the festive atmosphere a banderazo is a common tradition in
03:31many Latin American countries where large groups of passionate fans gathered before matches with
03:36flags drums and chants to boost their team's morale the albis celeste are the clear favorites heading
03:42into the quarterfinal after surviving two consecutive thrillers in the round of 32 the world champions
03:46defeated Cabo Verde 3-2 after extra time in the round of 16 down Escalon inside trail Egypt 2-0
03:54in
03:54the 80th minute before scoring free goals in 12 minutes to complete a dramatic turnaround for the
03:59quarterfinals fans say they have confidence in the squad and expected reaches the semifinals
04:08I'm ready I've been waiting almost 40 years for this experience I think Argentina has it Argentina is
04:16gonna you know go to the next round you probably you know they get score one goal you know but
04:22that's
04:23about it I think Argentina is gonna go through until the next round it's messy and this atmosphere it's it's
04:30incredible like I couldn't imagine it for the world it's like never trading this moment in my life for
04:37anything else they're a great team they've made it really far for a reason and honestly it's the
04:43World Cup so you can't expect anything it's gonna be a good game no matter what and it's Argentina
04:50yeah and I hope Argentina but it's the World Cup but I I believe I believe in in it
05:06and the 2026 FIFA World Cup features the largest percentage of players born outside of their
05:12represented countries let's learn more in 2020 FIFA relaxed its national team selection eligibility
05:21rules making it easier for dual nationality footballers to switch the country they represent
05:25this expansion benefits national teams from countries that were once colonized and now have
05:30diaspora communities around the world football is part of the entire colonial process France once
05:41ruled much of Africa and those social economic and cultural ties can't simply be broken they're
05:46part of the globalized world we live in today the 2026 FIFA World Cup featured the largest percentage
05:56of players born outside of their represented countries Morocco squad was a prime example as 19 of its 26
06:01players were born abroad these players were born in countries such as France Spain the Netherlands Belgium
06:06and Canada there's a lot of migration from Africa to Europe and that has helped raise the level of
06:14African football tremendously it makes the game more exciting and competitive which I think is great it
06:19also allows people from other places to integrate into French society those from other places can still
06:24become part of the country 99 players born in France will compete in the 2026 FIFA World Cup but only
06:3223 will
06:33represent the French national team the remaining 76 players are competing for countries including Algeria
06:37Senegal the Democratic Republic of the Congo the Ivory Coast Haiti and Morocco
06:44these days if you look at Morocco for example most of the players are actually French or Spanish very few
06:50were born in Morocco this diversity is beautiful because ultimately we share culture migration is important
06:58because it brings people together we're all citizens of the world the impact is so significant that nearly one in
07:07every four players at the 2026 FIFA World Cup will represent a country other than the one in which they
07:12were born
07:12many people are forced to migrate not because they want to but because they have to just look at Mexico
07:19we have
07:20a lot of people who have happened to this country and we have to start with the country in Argentina
07:22they are still working with this country despite the persistent issue of racists incidents in its
07:27stadiums Argentine football has its roots in the labor of migrant workers there is a clear cultural influence
07:34especially among the working class the Italian migrants who arrived in South America at the beginning
07:39of the 20th century brought more than just labor along with trade unionism and anarchism they also likely brought a
07:44passion for football
07:47The transatlantic kidnapping and trafficking of enslaved Africans constituted the largest
07:51forced migration in human history. Brazil received more enslaved Africans than any other country.
07:56The football of the nation's most successful World Cup champion
07:59is also a product of the struggle and cultural traditions of that population.
08:03The concepts of improvisation, jinga, skill, and a more fluid, creative approach to football
08:11are closely linked to capoeira and Afro-Brazilian musical traditions.
08:19The first 48-team World Cup reaffirms that football is inextricably linked to migration
08:23and geopolitics, as well as the legacy of colonial oppression.
08:27Ignacio Lemus and Julia Nassif for Telesur.
08:30This is all for this edition of Beyond the Game, the Boses Pure.
08:33Today, as we have been announcing, we have an afternoon of great football,
08:37firstly with Norway versus England, and later into the night, Argentina versus Switzerland.
08:42So stay tuned for all of those details.
08:44We go back to you, Ali.
08:46Thank you, Luisi, for keeping us posted, and we are going to be seeing you
08:50in the upcoming emissions of the day.
08:53And after these informations, we have come to the end of this news brief.
08:57Remember, you can find this and many other stories on our website at telesurenglish.net.
09:02Also join us on social media.
09:03We are on Facebook, X, Instagram, Telegram, and also TikTok.
09:08For Telesur English, I'm Alejandra García.
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