Morocco Scattered All the Favorites: Africa in a World Cup Quarterfinal for the First Time

The round of 16 at World Cup 2026 spares no one. Morocco knocked out the Netherlands on penalties and became the first African national team to reach the quarterfinals of a World Cup - something no team from the continent had managed before. For the Balkans, which has spent decades watching the „small ones" have to be twice as good to be acknowledged, this is a story that needs no translation. The Moroccans didn't reach this stage by chance or by the draw; they beat the ones who have spent generations teaching everyone else how football is played.

Paraguay Toppled Germany, Canada in the Ninety-Second Minute

If anyone thought the big names were safe, this round took that comfort away. Paraguay eliminated Germany on penalties - a result that a month ago would have sounded like a joke, and now sits in the table. Canada, meanwhile, beat South Africa 1:0 on a goal by Eustáquio in the 92nd minute, its first knockout win in its history as a host. Football again showed that the balance of power on paper means little once the ball gets rolling. The question that remains: how much of these upsets is a real rise, and how much is just a night when the favorites forgot to show up?

France and Mbappé March Like a Machine, Mbappé Already on Six Goals

While others fall, France advances with cold certainty. Kylian Mbappé already has six goals at the tournament and is carrying the French to a fourth consecutive quarterfinal, this time against the surprise Paraguay. Unlike Morocco or Canada, there's no romance here - there's budget, depth, and the habit of winning. And that's exactly why France is the team everyone is quietly waiting to trip up, because the predictable one's victory warms no one the way a favorite's fall does. Croatia, the only Balkan representative in the final stage, went out to Portugal 1:2 - a reminder that even a good generation eventually reaches the end of the road.

Vardar Left Short by Two Before the Duel With KuPS in the Champions League

Just two days before the first match against Finland's KuPS in the first qualifying round of the Champions League, Vardar parted with two players on loan - among them Manuel Cuestas, who's off to a club in Montenegro. A third leaving in the coming days isn't ruled out. A tough moment to be thinning out the squad: when the most important match is around the corner, you usually reinforce the locker room, not empty it. Is this a plan or a necessity? The red-and-blacks' fans have every right to ask what exactly is being built here, two days before Europe rings the doorbell.

Shkendija Brought Back Ramadani, the Fifth Signing for the New Season

While Vardar sees players off, Shkendija is collecting them. The Tetovo club brought back Florent Ramadani after a six-month spell at Kosovo's Drita, and that's already the fifth signing for the new season. A familiar name for the fans, which is always easier to accept than an unproven foreign investment. The two Macedonian clubs are heading into summer with opposite movements - one opening up spots, the other filling them. By autumn we'll see whose approach was the right one, and whose was just the faster one.