The Underdogs Are Turning the World Cup Upside Down, and the Favorites Are Sweating

The expanded 48-team format was meant to make life easier for the big nations. Instead, the small ones are turning the group stage on its head. Cape Verde, a nation of just over half a million on its first World Cup, held European champions and one of the favorites Spain to 0:0 - goalkeeper Vozinha, at 40, repelled 27 shots in a single night. Then a 2:2 draw with Uruguay. Norway, at a World Cup for the first time in 28 years, is soaring on the wings of Erling Haaland: four goals in two games, a 4:1 over Iraq and a win over Senegal. Who said money always decides the outcome on the pitch?

Koeman Is Gone, and the Netherlands Are Left Without a Coach and Without Illusions

Ronald Koeman has resigned as Netherlands manager after a painful World Cup exit. The Oranje went out in the round of 32 after losing on penalties to Paraguay - the end of any dream of a deep run. Koeman, a former Barcelona and Valencia coach, said the decision wasn't easy after so many years with the same squad, but that he wants more time for his family. At 63, he hinted this might be the end of his coaching career. The penalty shootout, once again, proved an old truth: no big name in the shirt guarantees anything once the ball is on the spot.

UEFA Punished the Clubs That Spend Beyond the Limit

UEFA has sanctioned four Premier League clubs for breaching financial sustainability rules. Aston Villa got the worst of it - a 22.5-million-euro fine (15 of it suspended) plus restrictions on registering new players in European competitions. Chelsea were fined 3 million euros (2 suspended), Newcastle an unconditional 3 million plus a separate three-year settlement, and Nottingham Forest 2.5 million. The offense is the same for all of them: they spent over 70 percent of revenue on wages, transfers, and agents' fees. A rule written to curb the appetites - and the clubs read it as a small charge in the budget.

Ristovski Has Left Bohemians, and the Next Stop Might Be Indonesia

Macedonian international Milan Ristovski is no longer a footballer of Bohemians Prague 1905, his contract with the Czech top-flight club having expired after three seasons. The club officially confirmed the collaboration is over and thanked him for his contribution. Now there's an official offer from Indonesia on the table - a destination that would have sounded exotic for a Balkan striker ten years ago, and today is the reality of a market where the money is moving east. Ristovski decides whether his career continues in Europe or heads for a league knocking ever louder on the door of our players.

The FFM and UEFA Draw Up a Five-Year Plan, but Paper Doesn't Play Football

The Football Federation of Macedonia, in cooperation with UEFA, has begun drafting a new five-year strategy for the development of Macedonian football. At the forefront are financial stability and rationalization, and a working meeting between representatives of both sides has been held. It sounds solid on paper - strategies, working meetings, priorities. The question every fan here asks is a familiar one: how many of these five-year plans have so far ended as a trophy or a qualification, and how many as another document in a drawer? The answer comes in five years, if anyone still remembers the plan by then.