JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Rassie Erasmus will coach South Africa to the 2031 Rugby World Cup in the United States after his contract was extended by four years on Friday. SA Rugby president Mark Alexander made the announcement at the general meeting of member unions.

The draw for next year’s FIFA World Cup took place at the Kennedy Centre in Washington DC, the USA, which is one of the co-hosts of the tournament. The ceremony drew all 48 teams in their respective groups.

Mexico's Edoson Álvarez said that playing at home will also help the team try to at least reach the quarterfinals.

Cameroon, Congo, Gabon and Nigeria clash for entry into the FIFA intercontinental playoff tournament for the World Cup.

World leaders with the Group of 20 rich and developing nations will meet this weekend in Johannesburg for the bloc’s first summit in Africa.

A record number of teams from the Middle East and North Africa have qualified for the 23rd FIFA World Cup, which will take place in the US, Canada and Mexico from 11 June 2026. Following the draw in Washington on Friday, Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia now know their opponents in the initial group stages.

The white descendants of Europeans who colonized the country are getting greater access to American officials this year, both in Washington and in Pretoria.

Gunmen stormed a hostel near Pretoria and opened fire, killing 11 people including a three-year-old.

As co-hosts alongside Canada and the United States, Mexico was an automatic qualifier for the 2026 World Cup. This will be the ninth consecutive World Cup appearance for El Tri, which failed to get out of the group stage at the 2022 World Cup had reached the Round of 16 in each of the seven World Cups prior.