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SEATTLE STADIUM What could it possibly feel like for a Super Bowl champion to watch his son score a goal in a World Cup? "Oh, it was amazing," Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame wide receiver Antonio Freeman proudly told me by phone on Fathers Day. "I think the fact that he had a head-to-head [collision] three minutes prior and then had the audacity and the nerve to go back and hit it with his head, as a parent, Im concerned like, Didnt he just get hit in the head? But Im just jumping around in excitement, and it was amazing." "I can see those box jumps that he was doing paid off because he jumped high in the air," Antonio added, "let the ball go through, and then he had to circle around and find the ball like a punt returner would do. He found the football, he attacked it, and he hit it with his head. Man, just a phenomenal, phenomenal play." In the 43rd minute of the U.S. mens national teams convincing 2-0 win over Australia on Friday in Seattle, Alex Freeman found space in the box and turned a deflected shot by Sergio Dest into the Americans' second goal. It was initially ruled offside before VAR determined that it stood. "For me, it was like, Yes!" Antonio said, reenacting how he emphatically cheered for his son in the moment. "It was everything. It was just an emotional wave for the rest of the night." The entire U.S. team burst into celebration once the goal was confirmed and chased Alex to the opposite side of the field in pure jubilation. "The VAR took a really long time, and I was anxious to see whether it was a goal or not," Alex told reporters later. "And then when it was, I looked back and saw my teammates running at me, and I was like, Oh lord, I have to run." Antonio loved witnessing everything unfold. "Just the respect and appreciation from the older guys when he scored that goal, watching them all have a kids moment where you know your friends are gonna chase you, and youre like, no, Im going to run from them, but Im not going to try to outrun them," Antonio said, his voice brimming with happiness. "It looked like they were all just running together on one accord. And I know how hard it is sometimes being the youngest guy on the team to kind of find your way and find your niche. But hes just Alex, and hes figured that out and man, it was just amazing." At 21 years old, Alex is the youngest player on this World Cup roster. And his emergence has been meteoric over the last year and a half. He made his first professional start for MLS club Orlando City on March 1, 2025, and earned his senior national team debut just three months later, on June 7. He then started all six matches for the U.S. at the Gold Cup, becoming the youngest player in program history to make six consecutive starts in a single tournament. His rapid ascent continued in October when he was named MLS Young Player of the Year. A month later, he scored twice in a friendly against Uruguay. In January, he transferred to Villarreal CF in La Liga, and in May, he earned a spot on his first World Cup roster. The young defender has started both World Cup matches and his speed, versatility and composure on the ball have benefited the squad. He had an assist in the Americans tournament opener against Paraguay and followed it up by scoring against Australia, making that three international goals on his glowing resume. Alex said celebrating with his team "made me very emotional." "Its hard for me to take it all in," Alex told reporters after the game. "But its good to go through these challenges at such a fast pace at a young age. And I feel like, for me, its just going to make me an even better player to be able to kind of adjust to the different atmospheres and be able to kind of adjust to the different circumstances and now that Im here, how can I give 100% and do it for my country and how can I make everyone proud?" Antonio also scored in Seattle once upon a time. Nearly 30 years ago, on Sept. 29, 1996, he caught two touchdown passes in the Packers' 31-10 win over the Seahawks at the Kingdome. Green Bay would go onto win the Super Bowl that season. Alex wasnt born yet. "I think thats one-of-one," Antonio told me. "I dont know any father-son duo that probably has that, so its something very special and unique. Only Packer fans were rooting for me. He really got to have his moment where everybody was rooting for Alex Freeman and the U.S. team. It didnt matter if you were a Seahawks fan, a Packers fan, a Steelers fan. You were an Alex Freeman fan and I think that, when you look at it, its far bigger." Alex had no idea his dad had found the end zone in the same city. "I think for me, thats a full-circle family moment," Alex said, beaming. "Just shows how great the family tree is. He can be great, and I can be great in my own way as well. That just shows you how amazing it is to have a dad whos successful and that can mentor me to be able to be ready for moments like these." Antonio appreciates the credit, but is quick to note his son was raised by a village that includes coaches, teachers, family and friends. Antonio won Super Bowl XXXI with the Packers and is a former Pro-Bowler, but always tells his son that this is his story and "Im just here if you need me." "Hes just being modest," said Antonio, who was sitting on Alexs couch at his home in Spain when he found out hed made the World Cup roster. "He put the work in, he chose his path, he dedicated himself and worked when other kids were at Fourth of July parties and hanging out. He was with the trainers trying to get better." "This is his journey," Antonio continued. "Im his fan." Alex chose soccer over football when he was little, and has always been "super competitive," Antonio said. "You could be going from the car to the front door and theres a race that you didn't even know about and all you hear is Alex say, I won! I won!" Antonio said, laughing. "I knew whatever he would do, hed give it 100% and be great. But to be honest, all of this happened in a year and a half. Id be lying if I said I saw this coming all along." Alexs teammates are effusive when they speak about him. Christian Pulisic described him as "a beast" last week. After the Australia game, Folarin Balogun called him a "humble kid, very down-to-Earth, and I think as long as he continues to develop, and hes able to show hes doing it on the biggest stage, I think hes gonna have a bright future." Their manager wholeheartedly agrees, and took it a step further. "Its difficult to explain the evolution of him," Mauricio Pochettino said with a chuckle during his press conference after Fridays game. "He [is such a] humble guy, he has an amazing profile, he wants to learn, he always listens, hes a player that you really enjoy being with him. Not only coaching, but just being with him. Hes a lovely guy and an amazing player. For me, he has the potential to be one of the best players in his position in the world." Comments like those make Antonio emotional. "Cried my eyes out," Antonio exclaimed. "In the world? Are you kidding me? I could have been the best receiver for Green Bay. I would never be considered one of the best in the world. I always had Jerry Rice and then came Randy Moss and a host of other guys. To come from a coach like that who is so accomplished and has seen so much soccer in his life to make such a statement, man, it just brought tears to my eyes. This kid is all in. He loves soccer, he loves his job, and man, that was just next level." Antonio paused before continuing, soaking it all in in real time. "When you say, Hes a Pro Bowler, OK, hes one of the best in the NFL," Antonio said. "When you have somebody say one of the best in the world, like, were not even talking about the U.S., we are talking about international soccer and [Pochettino has] seen a lot of soccer. For me, its a huge statement." The Americans have Sunday off to take time for themselves, disconnect, and spend time with family before gearing up to face Trkiye in their final group stage match on Thursday in Los Angeles. After consecutive wins, the squad has already won Group D and clinched a spot in the round of 32 in Santa Clara on July 1 against a yet-to-be-determined opponent. Being that their rest day occurred on Fathers Day, Antonio said the plan was to spend time with Alex. But he also knows what its like to prepare for high-pressure games and doesnt want to take up all of his sons time. "Listen, every day is Fathers Day for me," Antonio said. "Let me get this clear: I dont need one day. I get it every day."

Egypt face New Zealand in a key Group G matchup on Sunday

SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. Wyndham Clark had just missed a six-foot par putt on the 17th hole at Shinnecock Hills on Sunday, and when you miss a putt that late in the proceedings, the results can be catastrophic. Clark, who'd entered the day with a six-stroke lead on the field, now stood just one stroke clear. In other words, he needed to make a par on the final hole to clinch the U.S. Open.He could have used a few "hang in there"s from the fans, a few "you got this"es or "go get 'em Wyndham." Instead, he got someone singing. Badly."Doo doo doo de-de-doo doo," yelped one atonal fan, adding a helpful "Under pressure!"Hey, at least this tone-deaf fellow had the courtesy to massacre a classic between holes, not while Clark was in his backswing, or when his shot was in the air. That, in itself, was an improvement over the previous 17 holes, when Clark, who's from Denver, Colorado, was treated like he was a Ryder Cup intruder on American soil."Man, they definitely didn't want me to win," Clark said afterward, the U.S. Open trophy by his side. "It's pretty rare in an Open Championship or a major to have fans kind of boo against your shots or cheer for bad shots."From the very first tee, when fans serenaded Clark's playing partner Scottie Scheffler with "Happy Birthday" he turned 30 on Sunday all the way to the last tee, when as Clark was lining up a potential Cup-winning putt the crowd again sang "Happy Birthday," Sunday was one long torrent of abuse directed Clark's way. Every missed putt, every flown green, every ball that didn't end up precisely where Clark wanted it to, and the fans pounced some so abusive they were kicked out of the golf course."The crowd was tough today. I mean, New Yorkers, they are tough people," Scheffler said after the round. "Being in the arena is not for everybody, and I think it shows a lot about Wyndham, how he handled not only this golf course, but I think the crowd today as well, and is a well-deserving champion."That's all correct, and Scheffler was wise to take the high road and pivot the story into one praising Clark's mental toughness. So we'll say what the players inside the ropes are too diplomatic to: this was an embarrassment to Long Island, to New York, and to the game of golf.For a mostly-genteel sport, golf has a long, well-documented history of galleries abusing certain players. Arnie's Army absolutely tormented a still-young, still-baby-fat Jack Nicklaus so badly that Nicklaus pretty much destroyed their hero. More recently, Brooks Koepka-loving bros tormented Bryson DeChambeau with shouts of "Brooksie!" for several weeks in the pre-LIV days. Patrick Reed received only modest applause when he won the damn Masters. And then, of course, there's the Ryder Cup, where fan abuse is a key component of what counts as home field advantage these days.The Ryder Cup crowds tipped over from boisterous to malicious last fall, ripping on everything from Rory McIlroy's personal life to Shane Lowry's weight. And get this in a shocking coincidence, that Ryder Cup was held at Bethpage, just down the road from Shinnecock. What are the odds?To be clear, this gallery didn't come close to Bethpage's for abusiveness and general jackassery. This was less "we hate you and want you deported" and more "we're rooting for the other guy and simply don't know how not to be jerks." Screaming "Get in the bunker!" may not be profane, but it also isn't even clever the first time, much less the 40th.To be clear, this antipathy toward Clark didn't come out of nowhere. He's got a history of bad behaviors smashing a sign at the PGA Championship and smashing a locker at the U.S. Open last year, to start that don't sit well with a good slice of golf fandom. Plus, much like DeChambeau, he's got a little too much of the please-like-me bro vibe to him, and golf fans have a kind of sixth sense to sniff out, and bully, that kind of thing.But he's trying, man. He's trying really hard to put that behind him. He's taken responsibility all week for the locker room incident, putting it in the context of turmoil engulfing his entire personal life. "After what happened at Oakmont was obviously the lowest point," Clark said Sunday. (Don't focus on the passive-voice sentence construction, focus on the bigger picture.) "I was in a dark place, didn't really go outside much. It was a really negative, dark place. At that moment I just felt a lot of my career, world ranking, reputation, everything just dwindling. That's a terrible feeling."Clark worked his way back from those depths, and the trophy sitting next to him as he spoke is proof that his work is paying off. Maybe this will quiet the gallery critics, and maybe not. There isn't a major or significant tournament on the schedule for Long Island anytime soon, and that's probably for the best."It sucks being the underdog or getting rooted against, but I can pull through," Clark said. "There's nothing like winning kind of an away game, if you will."The New York crowds had their say. But by every measure, Clark had the last word. Winning is, without a doubt, the best revenge.

It wasn't easy for Clark. The crowd was against him, and his game was shaky. But Clark made enough shots to win.

Socceroos assistant coach Mile Jedinak has hit back at criticism of Australias defensive approach at the World Cup, declaring you can never make everyone happy.

Fans of the Crows and Dockers great were overjoyed with the news that he'd emerged from facial surgery on Saturday, and now they have more to celebrate.

On Sunday, the president flew by helicopter over the refurbished landmark, which is plagued by algae and peeling paint. He claims vandals are partly to blame.

Alexander Schlter berichtet aus Winston-Salem ber den aktuellen Stand um Abwehrspieler Nico Schlotterbeck.[mehr]