World Cup Week Two: Eight Draws in 16 Games, Iran Expelled After Each Match, and Fan Safety Questions Mount

Since the tournament kicked off in the first week of June, the 2026 World Cup has produced a statistical anomaly that no previous edition ever managed: eight draws from the first 16 matches, according to BBC Sport. The previous record was seven, set in three separate tournaments — 1974, 1982, and 1986.

A Record Nobody Wanted

Monday's four matches were the proximate cause. Spain and Cape Verde finished 0-0. Belgium and Egypt drew 1-1. Saudi Arabia and Uruguay shared a 1-1 result. Iran and New Zealand played out a 2-2. BBC Sport noted it was the first time since June 15, 1958 that four World Cup matches on a single day all ended without a winner.

Seven of the ten European teams that have played so far failed to win their opener. Germany, Scotland, and Sweden are the only three to have taken maximum points. Belgium coach Rudi Garcia declined to blame the heat in Seattle, where temperatures climbed above 30°C at a lunchtime kickoff, but acknowledged the pitch was suffering: "The grass really needed watering. It was very dry and as a result it was slowing the ball down."

The expanded 48-team format almost certainly plays a structural role. With only 16 of 48 sides eliminated after the group stage, a single draw no longer carries the same threat it once did. Football Meets Data calculates that three draws delivers an 87.5% chance of progression, provided a team's goal difference stays at -1 or better.

Iran: Ordered Out After Every Whistle

The most charged storyline of the opening week has been Iran's treatment on U.S. soil. As covered here yesterday, Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei told reporters after the 2-2 draw with New Zealand that his staff was informed immediately after the final whistle that the team had to leave Los Angeles and fly back to their training base in Tijuana, Mexico. "They are forcing us to go back early. They are making the situation more and more difficult, more hurdles," he said, according to BBC Sport.

Iran relocated from their originally planned base in Tucson, Arizona to Tijuana in late May after visa and logistical problems. Multiple backroom staff were denied U.S. entry visas entirely. The Iranian Football Federation had its ticket allocation revoked on the eve of the tournament.

The U.S. position rests on a real constraint: the country is in an active war with Iran, and the Department of Homeland Security has a legitimate security mandate. Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House's World Cup task force, told CBS that Iran's team will have to leave U.S. soil "on the day that the match wraps up" and framed it as a security matter for stadiums and base camps alike. A DHS spokesperson told BBC Sport: "The Iranian National Football Team agreed to these terms."

Whether those terms were genuinely agreed or effectively coerced under threat of exclusion is a question the sources do not resolve. FIFA president Gianni Infantino visited Iran's dressing room after the New Zealand match. The Iranian Football Federation has called on FIFA to "uphold the principles of neutrality, fairness, and established regulations." Iran returns to Los Angeles to face Belgium on June 21.

FIFA's Ticket Problem

Off the pitch, a separate safety concern is developing. Ronan Evain, executive director of Football Supporters Europe, told BBC Sport that the absence of fan segregation at most group matches is "not normal for a tournament like this" and constitutes a genuine risk.

"FIFA has zero control with what's happening with these tickets," Evain said. "There's so many tickets on the resale platforms. The possibility — or the risk — to have fans from 'Team A' in the middle of the crowd of 'Team B' is stronger than ever before." BBC Sport observed Dutch and Japanese fans sitting together in Dallas on Sunday with no visible segregation.

FIFA pointed to the 8% allocation reserved for each participating nation's supporters as consistent with past tournaments. That is a defensible position for normal circumstances. An open secondary market with no identity verification makes those allocations largely unenforceable once tickets change hands.

Evain also flagged inconsistent flag policies across venues, with some stadium staff confiscating flags that are normally permitted under FIFA rules, appearing to follow NFL-style venue protocols instead. The venue hosting England's opener against Croatia on Wednesday is the same Dallas stadium where flags were removed.

Squad News and the Cost of Attendance

England lost Newcastle United right-back Tino Livramento, 23, to a calf injury sustained in training on Sunday, according to BBC Sport. Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah has been called up as a replacement and is traveling to England's Kansas City camp. England's opener against Croatia is scheduled for Wednesday at 21:00 BST in Arlington, Texas.

FA chief executive Mark Bullingham confirmed to BBC Sport that Tuchel's two-year contract extension running through Euro 2028 contains performance clauses, while stating the FA can hold Tuchel to the deal regardless of any break clause he might seek to invoke.

For fans actually attending, the costs are significant. BBC Sport detailed the experience of Morten Oftedal, a Norwegian living in Atlanta, who spent roughly $4,000 for himself and two family members to attend Norway's match in Massachusetts, covering tickets at $380 each, over $1,100 for a hotel, and $80 per person for stadium transport.

On the broader experience of international visitors, NPR reported that fans from Japan, Scotland, and elsewhere have been warmly received across host cities, with visiting journalists and tourists documenting encounters with Southern barbecue, Waffle House, and Buc-ee's as genuine highlights. Scottish tourist Shaun Alexander told NPR: "It's just remarkable the types of warmth that you kind of find and come across in the States."

The unresolved question heading into week two is whether FIFA has any mechanism to address the segregation and ticketing control problems before a high-stakes knockout match creates the conditions Evain described. No enforcement action has been announced as of June 16.