'I' on Sports
World Cup Soccer Isn’t the ONLY Thing on This Weekend
By Drew Gallagher
ADVANCE COLUMNIST
The World Cup has finally arrived, and with it lots of television coverage as well as nine collector’s cups from McDonald’s including David Beckham, Christian Pulisic, and Grimace, which begs the question, which one of the original nine soccer players held out for more money until McDonald’s said forget it and plugged the final spot with everyone’s favorite dinosaur not named Barney. (And yes, I know Grimace is a taste bud and not a dinosaur, but you tell your young child that and see if they ever sleep again.)
Saturday, June 13
World Cup 3 p.m. on Fox or Telemundo (remember to put Telemundo on “Last Channel” so you can switch over immediately from Fox after a score to listen to the Telemundo announcers’ “GOOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!”)—Qatar vs. Switzerland. Qatar, which bought its way to hosting the tournament back in 2022, is still looking for its first World Cup victory. They did score one goal during the 2022 competition, which I’m sure they dedicated to the thousands of migrant workers who perished while constructing stadiums all over Qatar in record time. That first World Cup victory is unlikely to come against the Swiss in this Group B matchup unless Switzerland’s starting forward’s entry is again delayed or rescinded by U.S. officials investigating his past criminal convictions. (Note to Argentina and Messi: Fear not, that minor tax fraud transgression can be paid off using TrumpCoin before you open with Algeria.)
World Cup 6 p.m. on FS1 or Telemundo—Brazil vs. Morocco. Morocco went on an improbable run to the semifinals in 2022, so this has the potential to be one of the best matches of the weekend. Brazil of course has won the most World Cups in the tournament’s history with five and is a favorite to take home a sixth. This game could determine who gets the top seed out of Group C.
World Cup 9 p.m. on FS1 or Telemundo—Haiti vs. Scotland. With the tournament expanding to 48 teams, there are three or four who really don’t belong which could make for some lopsided scores. Haiti could be one of those bad teams, but they are unlikely to get exposed by a Scottish side that revels in defense. When they play Brazil or Morocco it could be a different story. Size does matter, at least when it comes to goal differential.
College World Series 3 p.m. on ESPN—Alabama vs. Oklahoma. First game for both of these football, er, baseball schools in the final eight World Series in Omaha. Of note, one of the United States’ best soccer players, Chris Richards, was born and raised in Alabama. See, “World Cup is everywhere.”
College World Series 8 p.m. on ESPN—Georgia vs. Texas. The Bulldogs had some rousing comebacks in the super regional, and very little effective pitching, so if you are looking for the antidote to the expected dearth of World Cup scoring then give this game a look.
WNBA 8 p.m. on CBS—Minnesota Lynx at Las Vegas Aces. CBS is airing 20 WNBA games this season, and this matchup features two of the top teams in the Western Conference. This is the only game airing on CBS this season that does not feature Caitlin Clark. Kidding.
Major League Baseball Game of the Week 7 p.m. on Fox—Phillies at Brewers or Astros at Royals (if you pissed off your regional cable provider for some reason). Phillies and Brewers could be a National League playoff preview. Astros at Royals could make you a soccer fan.
NBA Finals (Game 5) 8:30 p.m. on ABC—New York Knick fans were dreaming of a sweep of the San Antonio Spurs and their first championship since 1973, but the Spurs and Donald Trump had other dreams. (How can you sleep at the Garden during an NBA Championship game when you don’t drink alcohol?) The Spurs win in Game 3 prevented a sweep and prevented scalpers from retiring on the proceeds from Game 4 sales. Now they’ll actually have to work the World Cup in Jersey.
Sunday, June 14
World Cup 1 p.m. on Fox or Telemundo—Germany vs. Curacao. As mentioned above, some of the teams that qualified for this bloated World Cup do not belong. Curacao is one of them. I’m typically not one to give away gambling advice for free, and I would never encourage anyone without a toilet made of gold at their Miami beach house to bet $4,362.00 to win $100 on Germany to win. But there is value in the game’s total of four goals. Goal differential counts, and this is an easy way for the Germans to take an early lead in Group E. The prediction here is that Germany alone scores more than four goals to cover the number and possibly in the first half.
World Cup 4 p.m. on Fox or Telemundo—Netherlands vs. Japan. Should be a nice competitive match after the Germany blitzkrieg bop. Both have a chance to Win Group F.
World Cup 7 p.m. on Fox or Telemundo—Ivory Coast vs. Ecuador. I fully expected to be in Philadelphia sitting in the Ivory Coast climate-controlled suite after I offered up my fandom to this plucky little African nation that just beat tournament favorite France in a friendly. Instead, crickets from the Ivory Coast embassy. Both teams desperately want a point out of this game before they have to run through Germany and then run over Curacao.
World Cup 10 p.m. on Fox or Telemundo—Sweden vs. Tunisia. The Eagles of Carthage have one of the coolest nicknames in the tournament, but Sweden has ABBA. This fourth match of the day could prove to be a Waterloo moment for even the most ardent of soccer fans.
College World Series 2 p.m. on ESPN—This game will feature losers of Friday night games between West Virginia and Troy, and North Carolina and Ole Miss. UNC has a stud second baseman named Gallaher, so I’m guessing they won’t lose ever again. Quick, which state placed two teams in the College World Series?
College World Series 7 p.m. on ESPN—This game will feature the winners of the Friday night games outlined above. Based upon last names of second basemen alone, it stands to reason that the Tar Heels will be playing in this 7 o’clock time slot.
Major League Baseball Game of the Week Part II 7 p.m. on NBC—I pay a lot of money to watch every Boston Red Sox game on television over the course of a season, but the way they have played in 2026 might have me switching over to watching the Elephants from Ivory Coast. And that does not necessarily mean the soccer match. Nature Channel might work, too. Germany may score more goals against Curacao than the Red Sox offense scores against the Rangers in this tilt at Fenway. MLB might be looking to the NFL on how to flex games out of the Sunday night slot when teams disappoint to the extent that the BoSox have.
UFC Birthday Bash at the White House Octagon 8 p.m. on….wait for it…come on, you know this…network just fired Stephen Colbert…CBS!—Main Card starts at 8 p.m. with cake and ice cream to follow. (Please note, time and location are subject to change based upon ongoing litigation and Department of Justice growing a spine.)
Stanley Cup Playoffs (Game 6) 8 p.m. on ABC—Ice hockey originated in Canada. President Trump hates Canada so he can’t be happy that the Carolina Hurricanes evened the series at 2-2 with a win on Tuesday which means there will be a Game 6 on Sunday and competition for his birthday bloodbath. And since it’s hockey, there might even be more fighting.