Gianni Infantino went too far and it might now cost him his job as FIFA president. Oh no, what a shame… 😈

You already know how Infantino’s plans to privatise the World Cup blew up his face. However, have you seen the group of Swiss fans telling their compatriot to “f*** off”? Because if you haven’t, you need to!

More on the backlash to Infantino and his failed scheme below.

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Elsewhere, AC Milan’s players paid tribute to Franco Baresi, Nigeria bounced back with an important win at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations and the new Scottish Premiership season got under way.

Let’s take a look at everything 👇

Something deserved

One might think Infantino would be able to count on some support from within Switzerland, his homeland?

Surely that’s where the football community might be a little kinder to the FIFA president? Ehhhhh, not really if this banner displayed by these Lausanne fans is anything to go by!

“True football mafia. The whole world has turned against you,” read the first part of the banner. You can probably translate the last bit.

Something at WAFCON 🌍

Last week’s in-depth newsletter focussed on Malawi’s sensational win over Nigeria, probably the biggest upset in WAFCON history!

Well, the Super Falcons bounced back with an important 1-0 win over Zambia to boost their chances of retaining their title. Meanwhile, Malawi continued their incredible story by beating Egypt 3-1.

Keep in mind this is Malawi’s first-ever WAFCON! 👏

Something on his debut

Remember Tim Payne? The unknown New Zealand player who became more followed on Instagram than Kylie Jenner on Instagram? (Don’t fact check that)

He’s got a new club - Olimpia in Paraguay - and this is the goal he scored on his debut!

Something en route

Last week’s VAR newsletter included news for Vozinha’s impending move to Colo-Colo in Chile.

There has, however, been a whole lot of drama since then. The Cape Verde goalkeeper reportedly failed to board his flight from Portugal as RS Berkane in Morocco attempted to hijack the move.

On Sunday, though, Vozinha was pictured on a flight to South America (via Fabrizio Romano).

Something Thai 🇹🇭

Thailand continued their perfect start to their ASEAN Championship campaign with a comfortable 2-0 win over Malaysia.

Defending champions Vietnam, meanwhile, were held to a 0-0 draw by Singapore. They have some work ahead of them to ensure they make the knockout rounds of the competition.

Something Belgian 🇧🇪

Union Saint-Gilloise opened the 26/27 season by beating Club Brugge in the Belgian Super Cup!

Kevin Mac Allister found the back of the net for the team that finished second in the Belgian First Division last season. Union won the penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw, ensuring Mac Allister and co. didn’t go home alone…

Something sent off 🟥

Pico Lopes was one of the stars of Cape Verde’s unexpected run at the 2026 World Cup. That, however, seems a long time ago for the Irish-born defender.

Lopes was shown a straight red card for a reckless tackle in Shamrock Rovers’ draw against Drogheda United in the League of Ireland. You’re not in Kansas anymore - literally!

Something back to earth

Last season, Hearts came agonisingly close to winning the Scottish title. This season, they’ve already been brought back to earth.

The Jam Tarts have lost their manager, their top scorer, their captain and half their squad over the summer. Another title challenge seems extremely unlikely, especially after losing 2-1 to Aberdeen on Saturday.

They were leading 1-0 until the 90th minute. Ouch!

Something back home

Jude Bellingham was back at St Andrews for a Birmingham City pre-season game and was given a hero’s homecoming!

Keep in mind this is the club that retired Bellingham’s shirt number when he left to join Borussia Dortmund as a teenager. That decision has aged pretty well, to be fair.

Something en memoriam

A true legend of the game left us when Franco Baresi died at the age of 66 last week.

The former AC Milan and Italy defender was one of the icons of Italian football in the 1980s and 90s. He won six Serie A titles and three top European trophies, also winning the 1982 World Cup with the Azzurri.

Ruben Amorim and his Milan players paid tribute.

Something legendary 🐐

Erling Haaland made quite an impression on the United States during the World Cup. He attracted plenty of new fans, apparently including one notable former basketball player and shoe salesman.

Haaland shared a picture of a meeting with Michael Jordan. Game recognise game!

Something robotic 🤖

The 26/27 Scottish Premiership kicked off this weekend and Kilmarnock have a new grass pitch to replace their old plastic one!

Check out this little robot they have to line the playing surface. I want one. I have no need for one, but I want one.

Something in the air

29 minutes into Saturday’s USL Championship match against Louisville City, the Tampa Bay Rowdies found themselves 3-0 down.

By full time, though, the table-toppers had won 5-4, scoring twice in the final few minutes in the 400th match for goalkeeping coach Stuart Dobson who was chucked high into the air to celebrate.

Something from waaaaay out

You can always count on the Argentine lower leagues to produce some absolute madness!

Check out this howitzer by Maximiliano Rueda for Patronato against Quilmes in the Argentine second division. The match ended 3-3, but this was the pick of the bunch! What is he doing even shooting from there?!

Something inspiring

Readers of this newsletter might remember Motherwell last season and their incredible manager Jens Berthel Askou.

He’s now at Toulouse and led his new team to a very impressive friendly win over Real Sociedad in his first match at the helm.

Remember the name - I’m tipping this guy for the big time!

Some TSD content you might have missed… 🗞️

On their Women’s Africa Cup of Nations debut, Malawi produced the biggest upset in the competition’s entire history.

Most considered it a given that the 10-times WAFCON champions Nigeria would comfortably sweep aside the Scorchers in Tuesday’s group game. Instead, Malawi scored three times in the final 17 minutes to secure a famous 3-2 win.

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In a tournament overshadowed by CAF’s woeful governance, Malawi served an important reminder of why WAFCON matters and why it deserves so much better.

So what’s next for the Scorchers and could the 2026 WAFCON be defined by more surprise results from an underdog class catching up to the continent’s best?

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You thought the international football was over for the summer with the end of the World Cup? You thought wrong!

The 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations kicked off this weekend as Algeria made a big statement in their opener against Senegal.

More on WAFCON below as well as the 2026 ASEAN Championship which similarly got under way over the weekend.

VAR (Valuable Alternative Reading) is a weekly newsletter sent every Monday reviewing all the good stuff you might have missed from the weekend in football!

Please subscribe by clicking the button below 👇

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In other news, Vozinha has a new club after the World Cup, La Masia has produced an 11-year-old wonderkid (because they needed another young star) and the world’s oldest player found the back of the net.

Let’s take a look at everything 👇

Something at WAFCON 🌍

Algeria made a big statement in the 2026 WAFCON opener as they beat Senegal 2-0 when most expected a comfortable victory for the Lionesses of Teranga!

Senegal had beaten Algeria 4-1 and 3-0 in two recent friendlies, but suffered a shock defeat when it mattered most. This stunner by Melissa Bethi capped a tremendous performance.

Something in ASEAN 🌏

Last week’s in-depth newsletter focused on Vietnam’s growth as a football nation with the Golden Star Warriors kicking off the defence of their ASEAN Championship title.

Vietnam made good on their status as pre-tournament favourites by thumping Timor-Leste 7-0. There was also a statement win by Thailand over Laos. The pair will be difficult to stop.

Something 59 years old

The world’s oldest professional football player is a guy called Kazuyoshi Miura who plays in the Japanese third tier and he scored his first competitive goal in nearly four years this weekend.

Miura, nicknamed ‘King Kazu,’ found the back of the net for Fukushima United in a 7-0 victory in the Emperor’s Cup. The forward has been playing professionally since 1986 when he started out at Santos.

What a career!

Something in high school

Pedri is accustomed to being around children, being a Barcelona player and all that.

Not even this explains why the World Cup winner showed up to a national high school final in Suzhou, China. Won’t somebody let this poor guy have some time off! He’s played about 20,000 minutes in 12 months!

Something poker-faced ♣️

Neymar played his first club match since the World Cup and scored. Twice, actually!

The 34-year-old (he’s only 34?!) found the back of the net and used his celebration to hit back at allegations that he is spending all his time playing online poker through the night.

There’s always something with Neymar.

Something in Chile 🇨🇱

Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha was one of the icons of the 2026 World Cup and the brick wall who kept a clean sheet against Spain and Uruguay has a new club!

Colo-Colo have signed the 40-year-old for the 2026/27 season. “Aura” is right. Where can this newsletter writer find a Vozinha jersey? I need one!

Something at a wedding 💒

The Viking Row was one of the abiding memories of the 2026 World Cup and Erling Haaland is still performing it every opportunity he can.

MetLife Stadium, Oslo city centre, Gianluigi Donnarumma’s wedding… all the places you would expect to see a giant 6ft 5” Scandinavian leading a group of people sat on the ground in a rowing routine…

Something classy

Como released their new kit for the 2026/27 season in an unusual way.

The Serie A club gave the jersey to various local figures for their promotional campaign. A butcher, a baker, quite possibly a candlestick maker. All very quaint for a club that spent €60m on a single player this summer…

Something from the halfway line

Eloy Room was a star for Curacao at the World Cup. On Saturday, however, he was lobbed from the halfway line in the USL Championship.

Marco Micaletto found the back of the net from 40 yards out to give the Tampa Bay Rowdies a 3-2 win over Miami FC.

Life comes at you fast, I guess.

Something in Venezuela 🇻🇪

This goal in the Venezuelan second division has to be seen to be believed!

Any goalkeeper intent on playing out from the back should be shown this video. When it works, it can work really well. When it doesn’t work, though, well… this sort of thing can happen.

Something on a plane ✈️

We have featured some imaginative tifos in this newsletter over the years, but this one might just have set a new standard!

This effort by Motherwell’s ‘Well Boys’ supporters group depicted their European journey complete with plane to the Faroe Islands. That’s just quality stuff!

Something French in Florida 🇫🇷 🐊

New Orlando City signing Antoine Griezmann is loving life in Central Florida. Alligators, Disney churros, crippling humidity… what’s not to love?

Central Florida seems to love Griezmann too with this mural of the former Atletico Madrid and Barcelona forward appearing in Orlando last week.

Something Swiss 🇨🇭

The 2026/27 Swiss Super League season kicked off in suitably chaotic fashion on Saturday!

Vaduz of Liechtenstein had to play the final 10 minutes of their season opener against Lugano with an outfield player in goal after their starting keeper was sent off and they didn’t have a number two on the bench.

Something prodigious

It’s probably not a good idea to hype up an 11-year-old as the next best player in the world. That’s not fair and is only establishing expectations that no kid should be burdened with.

But also… HAVE YOU SEEN HOW GOOD HUGO GALDEANO IS?! This is insane. Get him in the Barcelona first team right now.

Something United

Bruno Fernandes is enjoying some well-earned time off after the World Cup.

The Portuguese shared an image of himself having a kick-about wearing the shirt of a former Manchester United teammate. Game recognises game! 🫡

Some TSD content you might have missed… 🗞️

More Asian nations participated in the 2026 World Cup than any other World Cup in history

All nine nations exited in the group stage or round of 32, but Asian football was represented in a way it had never been before. Nobody could ever doubt the region’s fervour for the sport.

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Vietnam watched from home. They’ve watched every World Cup from home having never qualified in 51 years of trying as a unified nation. It would be easy to write off the country as a footballing backwater.

That, however, would be in ignorance of the thriving football scene in Vietnam.

The country of over 100 million people is one of the sport’s largest sleeping giants and there are signs that it is finally waking up. The 2030 World Cup could be in their sights.

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Argentina might not have won the 2026 World Cup final, but they took over New York for Sunday’s game.

Thousands of Albiceleste supporters filled the streets of The Big Apple for the final, setting up camp in Times Square to barbecue, chant songs about Las Malvinas and wear Messi jerseys. That’s what they do!

More on the scenes below!

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This was THE World Cup. The biggest World Cup by almost every measure.

The most teams, host nations, viewers, sponsors. The highest attendances, revenue, ticket prices.

It was the World Cup of extremes. The good stuff was very good - Cape Verde’s run, Mexico v England at the Azteca, the thrill of Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland all showing up in a big way.

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The bad stuff, however, was very bad in a way that might have serious repercussions for the future of the sport. The 2026 World Cup might have been a watershed. Football may never be the same again.

So was it worth it? FIFA would say so. The rest of us? Hmmmm.

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Norway might be out of the 2026 World Cup, but they - and their supporters - left a lasting impression on the tournament.

Had it not been for Alexander Sorloth’s shoddy decision-making, Erling Haaland and co. might have made it through to the semi-finals. As it was, they’re rowing home.

More on Norway’s impact on the World Cup below!

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Nobody predicted Switzerland would be among the dark horses of the 2026 World Cup.

Colombia, Ecuador, Norway and Turkey were all favoured over Murat Yakin’s team. In Norway’s case, understandably so. But while Erling Haaland and co. are preparing for a World Cup quarter-final this week, so too are the Swiss.

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This is a team that has made the knockout rounds of every major tournament it has played going back to the 2010 World Cup.

Saturday’s clash with Argentina will be Switzerland’s first World Cup quarter-final since 1954, but they made the final eight of Euro 2024 and Euro 2020 before that too. The Nati are a big game side.

And yet Swiss football and the country’s national team, on the brink of a World Cup semi-final, still doesn’t get the respect it deserves.

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Cape Verde might not have won the 2026 World Cup, but they won the respect of everyone who watched their heroic performance against Argentina.

The Blue Sharks returned home on Sunday and were greeted by thousands of supporters eager to show their gratitude. Vozinha surely won’t buy another drink in his homeland ever again!

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Carlos Queiroz had just 59 days to prepare Ghana for the World Cup.

Hired as a ‘break glass in case of emergency’ option, the former Portugal, Colombia, Iran, Egypt, Qatar and Oman manager was brought in to quell the chaos that had engulfed The Black Stars in the build-up to the tournament.

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Not many fancied Queiroz’s chances of achieving this and yet Ghana have been everything the veteran coach wanted them to be at the 2026 World Cup so far.

Far from being the peak of a crisis, this summer could prove to be a catalyst for Ghana. Against all odds, this could be The Black Stars’ best-ever showing at a World Cup.

One of the powerhouses of African football is a force to be reckoned with again.

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The European mind can’t comprehend the stadiums at the 2026 World Cup according to some of the people on social media.

It also can’t comprehend the demolition of a team’s training base while they’re training there, as was the case when Sweden turned up to FC Dallas’ Toyota Stadium while the wrecking ball was being swung.

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Curacao’s draw against Ecuador was so momentous that The Blue Wave were visited by royalty afterwards.

King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima and Princess Ariane of the Netherlands celebrated with the team in Houston. Curacao, which has a population of just 158,000, remains part of the Dutch kingdom.

More on Curacao’s triumph at the 2026 World Cup below…

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Sergej Barbarez spent years telling anyone who would listen how he would change Bosnian football, and the Bosnian national team in particular.

The former forward, who featured for several Bundesliga clubs in his playing days before becoming a professional poker player, was a regular on Bosnian TV and earned a reputation for being outspoken in his views.

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So one day the Bosnian FA called his bluff. They appointed Barbarez national team manager and gave him the license to overhaul the set-up.

Two years later, Bosnia and Herzegovina are playing in only their second-ever World Cup and Barbarez has been vindicated. One man’s agenda proved to be the roadmap for the national team’s revival.

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Scotland’s first World Cup in 36 years was one to savour and The Tartan Army made the most of their night in Boston.

Steve Clarke’s side may not have impressed much in their nervy 1-0 win over Haiti, but the travelling Scotland support have already set a high bar for the most passionate fanbase at this tournament.

See more of The Tartan Army’s antics belo…

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No team will arrive at the World Cup this summer with a more remarkable backstory than Haiti.

At their first World Cup since 1974, Les Grenadiers haven’t played a match in their homeland since 2021 due to the volatility within the Caribbean country. It’s simply not safe enough.

World Cup offer - $5 for a full year!

There is a humanitarian crisis. Destitution and poverty is widespread. Armed gangs control large parts of the country and its infrastructure. It’s miraculous that Haiti are even at the 2026 World Cup.

Haiti, however, won’t be at the tournament purely to make up numbers. In fact, there’s a growing sense they could be one of the surprise packages of the whole thing.

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Paraguay might have won the World Cup before it’s even kicked off if the spectacle of their send-off match is anything to go by!

Los Guaranies had one big pyro party before travelling to the USA for Friday’s tournament opener against the co-hosts in Los Angeles. And to think FIFA have banned refillable water bottles for the World Cup…

See more of Paraguay…

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Like so many international teams right now, the Republic of Ireland are in North America for a training camp.

Heimir Hallgrimsson’s side have been in Canada all week ahead of a friendly encounter in Montreal on Friday. While Canada is preparing to host the 2026 World Cup, though, Ireland will head home before the party starts.

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It’s been 24 years since The Boys in Green last appeared at a World Cup.

Between 1990 and 2002, Ireland qualified for two out of three World Cups, but the drought currently being experienced has raised concerns about the direction of the sport in the country.

Can the Republic of Ireland count on being at the 2030 World Cup or are there signs that their long absence from international football’s top table will continue?

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For the first time since 2003, Toluca are champions of CONCACAF! El Diablos Rojos are back on top!

Just like the Champions League final between Arsenal and PSG, Saturday’s CONCACAF Champions Cup showpiece went to a penalty shootout and it was Toluca who got the better of Tigres.

More on Toluca’s triumph below!

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Neither Jamaica nor Nigeria will be at this summer’s World Cup, but the two teams will meet in the final of another international tournament this weekend.

The Unity Cup is a competition designed to fortify ties between, and showcase, some of London’s largest diasporas. India, Jamaica, Nigeria and Zimbabwe are all taking part this year.

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It’s a tournament with a sporadic history in the 21st century, held in 2002 and 2004 before being revived last year. Now recognised by FIFA, the Unity Cup has a competitive spirit on the pitch and a party atmosphere in the stands.

This might not be the tournament anyone involved wanted to play in this summer, but the Unity Cup epitomises some of the things that make international football special.

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The magic of the cup is real and second-tier Torreense proved it in Sunday’s Portuguese Cup final!

From a town 25 miles north of Lisbon where they usually play in front of no more than 2,000 fans, Torreense scored an extra time penalty to beat Sporting CP and win their first trophy in their 109-year history.

What an incredible story! Scroll down to see mo…

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