Today’s sports headlines ranged from football’s global politics to the strange theatre around its fringes. FIFA president Gianni Infantino hit back hard at World Cup critics, using social media to accuse detractors of spreading “hate” and falsehoods while insisting the 2026 tournament stood for unity and inclusion, even as scrutiny over visas, officiating and governance continues. On the field, Cape Verde’s Sidny Lopes Cabral claimed World Cup goal-of-the-tournament honors for his stunning strike against Argentina, a rare unifying moment in a tense post-tournament mood. In England, authorities are trying to protect the flow of games too, with a coming trial aimed at cutting goalkeeper time-wasting disguised as treatment. Off the pitch, police are hunting a man in a lobster costume after a serious assault at the World Darts Championship, while North Carolina placed football GM Michael Lombardi on paid leave without explanation just days before preseason camp.