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Germany's Antonio Rudiger and Canada's Alphonso Davies are among World Cup players with refugee backgrounds. Rudiger's family fled Sierra Leone's civil war, hiding in a rice sack. Davies spent early years in a Ghanaian camp after his parents fled Liberia. They support UNHCR's campaign to change narratives around refugees.
Iran striker Mehdi Taremi says political tensions have undermined the joy of the World Cup. The team faced visa issues, relocated their base camp to Tijuana, and will play under the scrutiny of a large Iranian diaspora in Los Angeles, where protests are expected.
Curacao, a Caribbean island smaller than the Isle of Man with a population of 158,000, is set to become the smallest nation by size and population to participate in a World Cup. Despite being part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the island's team, largely composed of Dutch-born players, will face Germany, Ecuador, and Ivory Coast in Group E.
