The Socceroos have secured a 0-0 draw with Paraguay, booking their place in the World Cup knockout round for the third time in their history. The match, played in the San Francisco Bay Area stadium, was attended by about 12,000 Australians, while thousands more gathered at live sites in Australian cities to watch the tense 90 minutes.
Coach Popovic Praises Team
Tony Popovic, the Socceroos' coach, expressed pride in the entire travelling party after the match. “The staff, the players – just a wonderful young group of men – and now we go to Dallas and we’ll try and do something special,” he said.
Next Opponent Uncertain
Australia’s opponent in the next round is yet to be determined, with four teams – Egypt, Iran, Belgium and the Kiwis – all possible match ups.
Group Stage Results
The Socceroos v Paraguay stalemate was one of six matches on Friday as the group stages came to a climax. In the other match in Group D, hosts the United States had some wind taken out of their sails as Turkey scored a late 3-2 victory. Elsewhere, Ecuador came from a contentious goal down after less than two minutes to beat Germany 2-1 and reach the last 32. In the same group, Côte d’Ivoire qualified to the knockout stage for the first time and eliminated Curaçao with a 2-0 win. Japan and Sweden both advanced from Group F with a 1-1 draw, while the Netherlands beat Tunisia 3-1.
Other News
In other news, Karl Stefanovic is leaving Nine immediately after the Today presenter used his independent podcast to interview British far-right activist Tommy Robinson. Nine Entertainment and Stefanovic agreed that it is no longer possible for him to continue hosting Today at the same time as his independent podcast. Stefanovic was unrepentant and posted a farewell message on social media, saying “I’m free, truly independent.”
Meanwhile, the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool in Washington DC will have to be drained again. Donald Trump has blamed vandalism for the failure to keep the water “American-flag blue”. Jonathan Freedland speaks to Arwa Mahdawi about why this project, which has cost the taxpayer millions, is proving to be such an embarrassing failure for a man obsessed with image.
Sarah Steele, a British academic, has come forward to speak about the “distressing and degrading” experience she had with the US military justice system after she was assaulted by an American fighter pilot in Cambridge. Although Jacob Wulfson assaulted Steele on UK soil in late 2023 after the pair met on a dating app, American military police quickly took over the case and the pilot was tried by US air force prosecutors.
