Spain Wins Second World Cup, Beating Argentina 1-0 in Extra Time

Spain won its second World Cup title on July 19, beating defending champion Argentina 1-0 in extra time before a crowd of more than 80,000 at MetLife Stadium.

Substitute Ferran Torres scored in the 106th minute, finishing a header back from Nico Williams after a cross from Pedro Porro, early in the second period of extra time. Argentina had been a man down since second-half stoppage time, when midfielder Enzo Fernández was sent off for a second bookable offense. Goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez was credited with 11 saves, a record for a World Cup final, though Argentina became the first finalist not to attempt a shot in regulation time.

Spain, coached by Luis de la Fuente, completed the tournament unbeaten, conceding one goal in eight matches. Rodri won the Golden Ball, Unai Simón the Golden Glove and defender Pau Cubarsí the Best Young Player award. France's Kylian Mbappé took the Golden Boot with 10 goals. Lionel Messi, 39, became the oldest outfield player to appear in a final. England beat France 6-4 for third place.

The tournament, held June 11 to July 19, was the first men's World Cup with 48 teams and 104 matches, and the first co-hosted by three countries, with matches played in 11 U.S. cities, three Mexican cities and two Canadian cities. FIFA reported 6.8 million spectators, nearly double the 1994 total across twice as many matches, at 99.7% of capacity.

All three hosts reached the knockout stage and exited in the round of 16: Canada to Morocco, Mexico to England, the United States to Belgium. Bank of America reported host-city spending up 6.3% year over year from June 10 to 21, though economists noted international arrivals trailed projections and most tournament revenue accrued to FIFA.

 

Trump Rounds Out His Administration, Threatens New Tariffs

President-elect Donald Trump has largely filled major administration positions after his victory over Kamala Harris earlier this month.

Major picks include Florida Sen. Marco Rubio as secretary of state, Army National Guard major and political commentator Pete Hegseth as defense secretary, hedge fund manager Scott Bessent as treasury secretary, and former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi as attorney general (replacing the withdrawn nominee Matt Gaetz).

Susie Wiles, his co-campaign manager and daughter of sportscasting legend Paul Summerall, will become his chief of staff, the first woman to hold that position.

On the policy front, Trump has threatened to raise tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China, intending to implement a 25% tariff on all goods entering the United States from Canada and Mexico, as well as a 10% tariff on all Chinese imports, on top of existing tariffs. These sweeping measures would affect a wide range of products, potentially impacting automotive manufacturing, agriculture, and consumer goods.

Trump has stated that these tariffs will remain in place until certain conditions are met. For Canada and Mexico, the tariffs would be lifted when the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs, particularly fentanyl, into the United States is controlled. For China, the country would need to halt the export of illegal drugs to the US before the additional tariff would be removed.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has visited Mar-a-Lago in an effort to begin talks with Trump prior to the tariff implementation. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has taken a more aggressive approach, threatening retaliatory tariffs and blaming American drug consumption for the opioid crisis.

 

Hurricane Beryl Becomes Earliest-Forming Category 4 in Atlantic Basin

Hurricane Beryl, only the second storm of what has been predicted to be a highly active Atlantic hurricane season, has become the earliest forming major hurricane in the Atlantic basin as well as the earliest forming category four storm in the basin, beating the record set by Hurricane Dennis in July 2007. Beryl, which only became a tropical storm on June 28th, rapidly intensified into a major hurricane, reaching category 4 status on Sunday.

The storm has the potential to reach category 5 strength, which would displace Hurricane Emily in 2005 as the earliest forming category 5 in the Atlantic.

Beryl will move through the Windward Islands this coming week, with major impacts expected in St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, and Tobago. Afterwards, the storm will head towards the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico, where it faces an uncertain path forward through the Gulf of Mexico. The European model has Beryl heading into Mexico south of Tampico, while the US model takes Beryl on a more northerly path towards Corpus Christi, Texas.

 

Re-openings Continue as Coronavirus Continues to Strike

States across the US have begun or continued their efforts to re-open their economies while the coronavirus pandemic continues to infect thousands across the country and around the world. Politicians and health officials have cited a declining trend in new cases and the reduced threat of hospital overcrowding in allowing certain businesses to re-open, often at a reduced capacity. For example, restaurants in Texas were initially allowed to re-open at 25% capacity, with further increases scheduled.

Meanwhile coronavirus cases have increased in Latin America, believed to be the next hotspot for the pandemic. Brazil’s dramatic increase has led US President Donald Trump to block entrance of those from Brazil into the US. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has been criticized for not taking aggressive enough measures to fight the virus, as has Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. Health officials in San Diego have said that nearly half of the new cases of the virus are related to recent border crossings, which have nominally been closed to regular visitors and only open to business.