SEATTLE (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump intervened on behalf of American star forward Folarin Balogun, whose suspension was lifted in a decision that allows him to play in a World Cup match against Belgium on Monday. Balogun, the American leader with three goals, received a red card for stepping awkwardly on the right ankle of Tarik Muharemović of Bosnia-Herzegovina in a 2-0 round of 32 win on Wednesday. A red card triggers an automatic one-game suspension. FIFA announced Sunday that the suspension had been lifted, triggering praise from Trump and outrage from Belgium’s team.
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Jude Bellingham scored two goals 98 seconds apart, Harry Kane converted a penalty when England was down to 10 men, and England handed Mexico its first World Cup loss at Estadio Azteca, a wild 3-2 victory to reach the quarterfinals. England moves on to face Norway on Saturday in Miami Gardens, Florida, for a spot in the semifinals. Bellingham stunned the crowd of more than 80,000 at a venue where Mexico was unbeaten in 10 World Cup matches, including three this tournament, when he scored on a header in the 36th minute and again in the 38th on a pass from Kane.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Erling Haaland headed in the go-ahead goal in the 79th minute and scored again before the end of regulation time, carrying Norway into the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time with a 2-1 win over Brazil that showcased the young striker on soccer’s biggest stage. Haaland, with two goals, tied Lionel Messi for the most in the tournament with seven each. Brazil's streak of reaching the quarterfinals ended at eight, with its first round-of-16 exit since 1990. Norway next faces England with a spot in the semifinals at stake.
LONDON (AP) — Naomi Osaka outslugged top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-2, 7-6 (2) to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the first time. Sabalenka had beaten Osaka in all three of her previous matches with Osaka this year including at the same stage of the French Open last month. But this time Sabalenka couldn’t handle Osaka’s pace and flat groundstrokes It was Osaka’s first win over a No. 1 player since beating Ash Barty in Beijing in 2019. That was before Osaka took a breaks from the tour to manage her mental health in 2021 and for maternity leave that resulted in her missing all of 2023. Coco Gauff, Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner also won.
SEATTLE (AP) — The United States is aiming for back-to-back World Cup knockout wins for the first time. Coach Mauricio Pochettino expects a full lineup Monday against Belgium. The U.S. last faced Belgium at the World Cup in 2014, losing 2-1 in extra time. A quarterfinal spot against Spain or Portugal is at stake. Belgium advanced by overcoming Senegal 3-2 in extra time. The U.S. ended a 10-game losing streak to European teams by beating Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-0 in the round of 16. Folarin Balogun is eligible to play after his suspension was lifted. A sellout crowd is expected at Lumen Field.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Vinícius Júnior had the ball at the penalty spot, a perfect chance to give Brazil the lead. And he handed it to Bruno Guimarães. And by the time Neymar took and made Brazil’s second penalty kick, it was too late for the five-time World Cup champions. Guimarães had his penalty shot stopped by Ørjan Nyland in the 14th minute and Brazil couldn’t get one past Norway’s goalkeeper until deep in stoppage time, losing 2-1 on Sunday in the round of 16 for its earliest World Cup exit since 1990. It was Brazil’s first unsuccessful penalty kick in the World Cup — not counting shootouts — since 1986.
JOLIET, Ill. (AP) — Chase Briscoe held off Christopher Bell in NASCAR’s return to Chicagoland Speedway, racing to his first Cup Series victory of the season. Briscoe was followed closely by Bell in the final laps on the 1.5-mile oval about 50 miles southwest of downtown Chicago. But Bell was unable to run down his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate. The 31-year-old Briscoe, an Indiana native, celebrated his sixth career win with a burnout before standing in the window of his car and waving to the sellout crowd. It was Bell’s fourth runner-up finish this season. He raced with a splint on his arm as he continues his recovery after breaking his left wrist in a crash at Michigan on June 7.
SILVIS, Ill. (AP) — Chris Gotterup has won the John Deere Classic for his fourth PGA Tour title in the last 12 months. Gotterup shot a 62 in the final round at the TPC Deere Run. That helped him make up a five-shot deficit. And then he needed some help at the end. Ben Kohles was tied for the lead with Gotterup and in the middle of the 18th fairway. But he pulled his 8-iron into the water and then missed a short putt and took double bogey. Max Homa wound up in second for his best finish in more than three years.
LONDON (AP) — There’s not usually a clock ticking down in tennis. Yet for Coco Gauff at Wimbledon on Sunday the 11 p.m. curfew made it seem like there was. And Gauff hit the winning shot at the buzzer. Two minutes before 11 Gauff converted her first match point with a service winner out wide to reach the quarterfinals at the grass-court Grand Slam for the first time. After beating Belinda Bencic 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 Gauff tapped her left wrist to acknowledge the timely ending. If Gauff hadn’t ended it in that game the match would have been suspended until Monday. Gauff says that “playing tennis we’re used to not having a clock. But honestly today I felt the pressure.”
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Catcher Eliézer Alfonzo has made his major league debut for the Los Angeles Dodgers with his sister and stepmother still missing after Venezuela’s catastrophic earthquakes. The 26-year-old Alfonzo batted ninth and caught Emmet Sheehan in the Dodgers’ home game against the San Diego Padres. Alfonzo’s sister and stepmother have been missing since multiple earthquakes hit his homeland on June 24. Several Latin American media outlets reported their bodies had been found in the wreckage of the hotel in La Guaira where they were staying, but the Dodgers announced no confirmation of the news. Alfonzo spent nearly a decade in the minors before getting his first call-up this weekend.
Finals
INTERLEAGUE
Final Cincinnati 3 Baltimore 2
Final Kansas City 5 Philadelphia 2
Final Miami 9 Athletics 8
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Minnesota 6 N.Y. Yankees 1
Final Chicago White Sox 7 Cleveland 6
Final Houston 2 Tampa Bay 0
Final Detroit 6 Texas 3
Final Seattle 4 Toronto 0
Final Boston 7 L.A. Angels 5
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Final N.Y. Mets 10 Atlanta 9
Final Pittsburgh 11 Washington 5
Final Chicago Cubs 6 St. Louis 4
Final Colorado 7 San Francisco 6
Final Milwaukee 3 Arizona 2
Final San Diego 5 L.A. Dodgers 2