World Cup notes: Messi among injured international stars

With the World Cup set to kick off in about two weeks, we covered the latest news about the Canadian team in yesterday's newsletter. Today, let's check in on a few of the other 47 countries in the tournament, along with something that's angering fans everywhere.

Canada isn't the only team with injury concerns.

The biggest story around the Canadian team right now is the status of star captain Alphonso Davies, who hasn't played for Canada since tearing the ACL in his right knee in March 2025 and is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury he suffered earlier this month with his club team, Bayern Munich. Davies is absent from Canada's training camp in Charlotte, N.C., this week, and coach Jesse Marsch said he doesn't expect his best player to be ready in time for Canada's first World Cup match on June 12 in Toronto against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Marsch believes Davies will return at some point during the World Cup, but right now no one knows for sure.

This, of course, is a terrible break for Canada. But it's not the only country holding its breath over an injured star.

The great Lionel Messi, who led Argentina to the World Cup title in 2022, is dealing with a hamstring injury of his own as he prepares for would will be his sixth appearance on soccer's biggest stage. "The initial updates aren't entirely bad," Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said after Messi took himself out in the second half of Inter Miami's match on Sunday night due to what the Major League Soccer team called "muscle fatigue" in his left hamstring. "Now, we must wait to see how he evolves."

Messi still planned to report to Argentina's training camp, but it's unclear how much he'll be able to participate, and Scaloni did not expect him to play in the