For U.S. Team, a Week to Forget and a Ticking Clock

By BY ANDREW KEH from NYT Sports Illnesses, injuries and a suspension marred the start of World Cup qualifying for a talented U.S. team. A trip to Honduras offered a chance to right the ship.https://nyti.ms/3yQczm5

A Year of Amazing Sports Feats, Both Heroic and Historic

By CHRISTOPHER CLAREY from NYT Sports There were great, game-winning shots, stunning plays and an unbelievable, no-look basket by Stephen Curry.https://nyti.ms/2A6r75r

Luka Modric Wins Ballon D’Or, Ending Decade of Ronaldo and Messi Triumphs

By ANDREW DAS from NYT Sports Modric, the Real Madrid and Croatia midfielder, ended a 10-year streak in which either Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi took home the award. The results were leaked online before the announcement.https://nyti.ms/2RrCBH7

Mesut Özil Quits German National Team, Citing Racism

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS from NYT Sports Özil, whose family is from Turkey, responded to criticism over his posing with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan before the World Cup and announced he was quitting.https://nyti.ms/2uE25aS

Belgium Earns Its Best World Cup Finish, Beating England for Third Place

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS from NYT Sports Thomas Meunier and Eden Hazard each scored a goal as Belgium defeated England, 2-0, in the third-place match.https://nyti.ms/2KY5vzF

Youth Soccer Participation Has Fallen Significantly in America

By JOE DRAPE from NYT Sports Not having the American team in the tournament robbed officials of an opportunity to re-energize the sport among youth distracted by other diversions.https://nyti.ms/2LezO10

Why Does Every Soccer Player Do This?

By DAVID GENDELMAN from NYT Sports We’ve seen it a hundred times in the World Cup: A player misses a shot and his hands immediately go to the top of his head. Why? Psychology has the answer. https://nyti.ms/2m9tddb

Belgium’s Blueprint, Croatia’s Chaos, and the Murky Path to World Cup Glory

By RORY SMITH from NYT Sports Belgium’s soccer program has been hailed as a model. Croatia’s is often in disarray. Yet both countries, with plenty of help, have reached the semifinals.https://nyti.ms/2KVJIb2

Russia’s Most Soccer-Mad City, Excluded From the World Cup

By IVAN NECHEPURENKO from NYT Sports Krasnodar, a city in the Russian south, has a huge soccer following and a brand new stadium built by a local entrepreneur, but it doesn’t host a single World Cup game.https://nyti.ms/2J9nQnz

Nigeria Captain Played Key World Cup Match Hours After Learning His Father Was Kidnapped

By DANIEL VICTOR from NYT Sports John Obi Mikel opted not to tell his teammates or coaches. “I knew that I could not let 180 million Nigerians down,” he said.https://nyti.ms/2lOJeFw

Stuck in Soccer Limbo, in the Shadow of the World Cup

By JERÉ LONGMAN from NYT Sports The Crimean soccer league is neither Russian nor Ukrainian, leaving its teams and its players marooned in sporting purgatory since Russia annexed the peninsula in 2014.https://nyti.ms/2IK2Zae

Iceland’s Chant Is Mighty, but It Comes From Scotland — via Hollywood

By SARAH LYALL from NYT Sports The Viking Thunder Clap has nothing to do with Vikings, and a lot to do with a Scottish club named Motherwell. Which is how it often works in soccer.https://nyti.ms/2Kp8sVB

Xhaka and Shaqiri Are Fined, Not Suspended, by FIFA

By ANDREW DAS from NYT Sports They made double-eagle hand gestures after scoring goals for Switzerland against Serbia.https://nyti.ms/2IpFfbl

Watching the World Cup in a War Zone, Where Every Shot Matters

By JERÉ LONGMAN from NYT Sports The tournament’s opening game provided a welcome distraction for Ukrainian soldiers in a war zone far away from Moscow, even though it was Russia on the field.https://nyti.ms/2HOZ6R1

A Fashion Expert and a Soccer Expert Had a Conversation About World Cup Kits

By VANESSA FRIEDMAN and RORY SMITH from NYT Sports Or, if you prefer: A fashion expert and a soccer expert had a conversation about World Cup uniformshttps://https://nyti.ms/2sZE5yd

In Russia’s Car Capital, a Production Line for Players

By RORY SMITH from NYT Sports Tolyatti, the city that once churned out Ladas by the millions, is home to Russia’s top soccer academy. But some of its founders’ dreams remain unfulfilled.https://nyti.ms/2JSC1Se

FIFA’s Infantino Calls for Rare Emergency Meeting Amid $25 Billion Offer

By TARIQ PANJA from NYT Sports Soccer’s leader is seeking discussion on a $25 billion proposal from investors that would mean major changes for the sport’s club and national team calendar.https://nyti.ms/2qPLe3i

Memo to Theresa May: In Premier League, Russian Roots Run Deep

By RORY SMITH from NYT Sports Amid threats to divest Russian oligarchs of their valuable British assets, it’s worth noting just how hard that would be.http://nyti.ms/2ppDpzQ

Saudi Stars Arrive in Spain, With One Eye on Russia

By JAMES MONTAGUE from NYT Sports Nine Saudi players have headed to Spain ahead of this summer’s World Cup as part of an agreement between the Saudi Arabian soccer federation and La Liga.http://nyti.ms/2smeq57