We’re just about recovering from one of the most relentless periods of football most of us have ever lived through. The expanded 2026 FIFA World Cup — the first-ever with 48 teams — meant six straight weeks of matches across the US, Mexico and Canada, and it delivered everything: so many goals, so many sleepless nights watching kick-offs at odd hours, so much drama, and enough controversy to fill a whole season’s worth of talk shows. If your work backlog is a mess and your MC count is looking suspicious, you’re not alone.
Some moments will stick around for a while. The third-place playoff between England and France on 18 July was pure chaos — England raced to a 4-0 half-time lead, France stormed back to make it 4-3, and the match eventually finished 6-4 to England, the most goals scored in a World Cup match since 1982. Kylian Mbappé scored twice in that game, which was enough to make him the all-time top scorer in World Cup history (22 goals) and hand him the Golden Boot for this tournament with 10 goals, edging out Lionel Messi’s 8.
And that’s really the story of Messi’s World Cup too. In all likelihood his last one, Messi went into the final still hoping to defend Argentina’s title and add a record-extending achievement to his legacy — but it wasn’t to be. Spain’s disciplined, well-oiled side beat Argentina 1-0 in the final on 19 July, with substitute Ferran Torres striking in extra time to seal it. Spain picked up their second World Cup star to go with the one from 2010, and Messi was left to walk away from his final World Cup without the trophy.
So, what now for football fans?
First things first: catch up on your sleep, and maybe start clearing that backlog of work you’ve been putting off during those late-night and early-morning kick-offs.
The players who were at the World Cup get a well-earned break, but football doesn’t actually stop — pre-season friendlies are already underway. And since the English Premier League is what most fans around here follow closely, here’s what’s coming up on that front.
EPL 2026/27 kicks off 21 August
The new season starts on Friday, 21 August, with defending champions Arsenal hosting newly-promoted Coventry City at the Emirates. Coventry are joined in the top flight by fellow promoted sides Ipswich Town and, somewhat surprisingly, Hull City — who pipped Middlesbrough in the play-off final at Wembley to seal their return.
Arsenal will be looking to defend their title, with the usual suspects — Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham, and Aston Villa — all determined to stop that from happening.
Before the season proper gets going, there’s one more fix for fans: the FA Community Shield on Sunday, 16 August at Principality Stadium, Cardiff, where Manchester City take on Arsenal in the traditional curtain-raiser to the new season.
Between now and then
Expect the next month to be dominated by transfer news, as fans hold out hope their club lands a marquee signing to bolster their squad for the new campaign. And if your club happens to be doing a pre-season tour in this part of the world, it might be worth keeping an eye out and planning around it. One month down, one to go before it all kicks off again.