Tournament has completed its first week and while the logistics have sometimes been challenging, the people and the football have been good

It was quite a contrast touching down in sleepy Kansas City hours after having witnessed the bedlam on the streets of New York when the Knicks won the NBA Finals and Brazil drew with Morocco. But this is a World Cup full of contrasts, from Fifa’s never-ending quest to make a quick buck ($5 a pop for a bottle of water in the media centre) to the warmth shown by locals I’ve encountered in the Big Apple, Kansas City and Dallas. Then there’s the football. It’s been hard to keep up with the volume of matches, but the opening round served up some classics, with DR Congo’s draw against Portugal on the same day as England beat Croatia capping a thrilling first week of action. Let’s hope it continues. Ed Aarons

It took nearly the full opening round, but a US scene that is usually focused on other sports has fully turned its eyes to socc– sorry, I mean football, forgot to code-switch. Fitting, actually, because at times this state of affairs has been awkward, like when the standard “loud men yelling” sports talk shows are forced to reckon with international football being the No 1 talking point and employing nobody that knows the scene. But these are growing pains. The sport is on at bars and delis, it is being discussed at school pickups and on the rides home. It’s beautiful and exactly what so many of us here in the States have been fighting for. Alexander Abnos

In ‘middle Israel’ there are fears Iran could rebuild stronger – and there is particular ire for Donald Trump

In the Tree brasserie off Herzl Street in Rehovot, there was much that almost everyone agreed on. Few contested that the ceasefire deal concluded by Iran and the US a few days earlier was very bad for Israel. “We were betrayed by President Trump,” said Avi Perez, 55.

They believed, too, that Israel, more than ever, was surrounded by danger that it would have to confront alone. “It is strange. One day we were in the [bomb] shelters with our children … The next day, everything is supposed to be normal. But nothing has been resolved,” said Shaham Nowick, 35, as he studied the menu.

In ‘middle Israel’ there are fears Iran could rebuild stronger – and there is particular ire for Donald Trump

In the Tree brasserie off Herzl Street in Rehovot, there was much that almost everyone agreed on. Few contested that the ceasefire deal concluded by Iran and the US a few days earlier was very bad for Israel. “We were betrayed by President Trump,” said Avi Perez, 55.

They believed, too, that Israel, more than ever, was surrounded by danger that it would have to confront alone. “It is strange. One day we were in the [bomb] shelters with our children … The next day, everything is supposed to be normal. But nothing has been resolved,” said Shaham Nowick, 35, as he studied the menu.

Ten-man Paraguay clung on after Matías Galarza’s early strike to secure a famous win and ensure Turkey will go home at the end of the group stage

A surprise start for attacker Isidro Pitta, who was so certain he wouldn’t be called up to Paraguay’s squad for the World Cup that he had already booked a holiday to Spain with his family during the tournament.

Nicknamed ‘Viking’ due to his long hair and big ginger beard, he’s found form at Red Bull Bragantino and is described as “a fighter, a tireless worker and a constant nuisance for opposition defences” in the Guardian’s World Cup player guide.

Ten-man Paraguay scored the fastest goal of the World ⁠Cup so far to beat a hapless Turkey 1-0 in a dramatic Group D match, breathing life into their campaign ⁠and condemning their opponents ⁠to a miserable ​early exit.

Fired up after their humiliating 4-1 opening match defeat by the USA, Paraguay went ahead 64 seconds in when ⁠Matías ⁠Galarza rifled in a long-range shot, then clung on for the entire game against a tide of Turkish attacks.

⚽️ Matías Galarza’s early strike seals win that sends Turkey for early exit
⚽️ Player guide | Bracketology | Golden Boot | Mail Sam

A surprise start for attacker Isidro Pitta, who was so certain he wouldn’t be called up to Paraguay’s squad for the World Cup that he had already booked a holiday to Spain with his family during the tournament.

Nicknamed ‘Viking’ due to his long hair and big ginger beard, he’s found form at Red Bull Bragantino and is described as “a fighter, a tireless worker and a constant nuisance for opposition defences” in the Guardian’s World Cup player guide.

A quickfire Matheus Cunha double was added to by Vinícius Júnior as Brazil secured a comfortable win over their Caribbean opponents

Neymar would probably not even be in North America this summer had Rodrygo been fit. Instead the Real Madrid winger is recuperating from an ACL injury by penning thoughtful columns.

The pressure of wearing the Brazil shirt can be heavy but also creates a positive kind of responsibility. That pressure exists solely because of the greatness of our football, the titles we’ve won, and our historic standing in the sport. The fans’ mood often hinges on the result, which is only natural in a country so used to winning regularly.

So, as a player you have to realise that a barrage of criticism isn’t the end of the world, just as a massive wave of praise doesn’t mean everything is sorted out and that you will win the tournament. It is crucial to distinguish facts and balanced analysis from comments born of raw emotion and frustration.

If Vinícius is now Brazil’s undisputed star, the 25-year-old has also yet to really make the team his own. He has turned in frustrating and often fruitless performances at major international tournaments, while scoring a mere nine goals in 49 appearances entering this, his second World Cup.

He has yet to wrest top billing from Neymar, whose jersey was worn by huge swaths of the Brazilian fans in their draw with Morocco on Saturday.

Yes there’s the party side, the buoyant side, one that makes friends everywhere it goes. But there’s the other side too

In a disconcerting development, Americans have started wearing kilts. Some of them are even doing it on the TV as they try to wrap themselves around the Tartan Army. On the local Boston news on Thursday night, things were so giddy that people were predicting victory over Morocco and a passage out of the group for the first time. It was only when the camera returned to the news anchor that she reminded everyone; actually Morocco are African champions and World Cup semi-finalists.

The US has a bit to learn about football still and maybe more to understand about the Scots. Yes there’s the party side, the buoyant side, the one that makes friends everywhere it goes. But there’s the other side too, the sceptical one (some call it realist), the one that knows you should party now because things will find a way of going wrong in a minute. The one that spies a challenge like Morocco with foreboding.

Long a hotbed of American soccer, Seattle showed on Friday why it should no longer be a rare visit for the national team

One does not have to go far in Seattle, Washington, to be reminded that it’s a soccer town. Two days before Friday’s 2-0 win for the US over Australia, all I had to do was get on the train.

Riding the light rail to lunch on Wednesday and hopping off at Westlake Station, I was a few blocks from Pike Place Market, the city’s famous waterfront gathering spot. The train car I’d arrived on had been overflowing with US jerseys and Australia kits. Riding the escalator up into the resplendent afternoon sun, someone tugged at my bag.

Guardian readers in the US share concerns about how the SpaceX IPO and AI boom affect their retirement accounts

Elon Musk became the world’s first trillionaire last week after SpaceX debuted on the stock market with a valuation of $1.77tn.

Millions of Americans could soon become indirect investors in SpaceX and other emerging AI-focused companies as US markets increasingly shift toward AI-driven investments.

Developments in Ukraine and Iran show that the military superpowers are not getting it all their own way

Our age of what Mark Carney called global rupture is also often described as following the “law of the jungle”, in which the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must, with international law shattered and multilateral organisations hollowed out. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Israel’s onslaught on Gaza, and the US and Israel’s attacks on Iran and Lebanon seem to confirm this bleak outlook. On closer inspection, however, these wars offer a different, and far brighter, clue to the way forward.

Russia, once seen as a formidable military power, was expected to overwhelm Ukraine, a much smaller and weaker country backed by a divided, fearful and hesitant west. Even after the war settled into a protracted stalemate, the prevailing belief was that Ukraine was doomed to lose. But the narrative has shifted.

Nathalie Tocci is a Guardian Europe columnist

Exclusive: European Commission planning to rewrite key law to allow water-intensive mines in regions suffering from drought

The European Commission plans to rewrite the EU’s flagship water protection law to speed up the development of critical minerals mines, despite many being located in drying and water-stressed regions, analysis has found.

Mining is a water-intensive industry, requiring large volumes of water for ore processing, dust suppression, waste management and mine dewatering. While modern projects recycle water, they still require significant amounts, and in water-stressed regions those demands can add to pressure on already stretched rivers, aquifers and water supplies.

Tests taken in Western Australia suggest a second bird was also infected, but there is no evidence poultry or agriculture systems are affected

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The deadly H5N1 bird flu strain has arrived on the Australian mainland with test results confirming a migratory seabird found on the Western Australian coast was positive for the disease.

The agriculture minister, Julie Collins, confirmed a brown skua – found unwell last Sunday at Cape Le Grand national park near Esperance in southern WA had died from H5N1.

Apart from effort to electrify, there were geopolitical tensions around climate science and the 1.5C goal at pre-Cop31 climate talks

Electrifying the world – with electric vehicles, electric heating and cooling, and modernised heavy industry – could be the next biggest step towards phasing out fossil fuels, replacing the 80% of global energy that still comes from hydrocarbons. As using electrical energy is much more efficient than combustion, the move would save billions of dollars for consumers and businesses – global energy demand could be halved, according to one estimate.

For decades, electrification has been a nerdish backwater of global climate action. But in the last two weeks, at preparatory talks in Bonn before the forthcoming UN Cop31 climate summit, the subject finally took centre stage.

Apart from effort to electrify, there were geopolitical tensions around climate science and the 1.5C goal at pre-Cop31 climate talks

Electrifying the world – with electric vehicles, electric heating and cooling, and modernised heavy industry – could be the next biggest step towards phasing out fossil fuels, replacing the 80% of global energy that still comes from hydrocarbons. As using electrical energy is much more efficient than combustion, the move would save billions of dollars for consumers and businesses – global energy demand could be halved, according to one estimate.

For decades, electrification has been a nerdish backwater of global climate action. But in the last two weeks, at preparatory talks in Bonn before the forthcoming UN Cop31 climate summit, the subject finally took centre stage.

US-Iran meeting in Switzerland cancelled because of Lebanon fighting; Trump unveils new Air Force One – key US politics stories from Friday 19 June at a glance

After a meeting due on Friday in Switzerland between the US and Iran to hammer out details of a peace plan was cancelled because of renewed violence in Lebanon, Israel and Hezbollah agreed to renew their ceasefire.

The diplomatic back-and-forth between Washington and Tehran about a Middle East peace deal has sent energy prices soaring and threatened global economic chaos. Clashes between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon have threatened to damage Donald Trump’s efforts to extricate the US from the Middle East war.

New craft, called VC-25B Bridge, had provoked protest since $400m jet wildly exceeds limit on unsolicited gifts

Donald Trump unveiled the new, temporary Air Force One at a hangar at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Friday, a day after White House officials bid farewell to one of two Boeing 747s used to transport presidents for more than 30 years.

The new jet, designated VC-25B and decked out in a punchy red, white, dark blue and gold livery, was gifted to Trump by the Gulf emirate of Qatar, provoking howls of political protest since the $400m jet wildly exceeds the limit on unsolicited gifts of $50 in value in a single calendar year from the same source.

Age verification means that the sector’s biggest players will now have access to information that will only make them richer and more powerful

This week, the UK announced a wide-ranging ban on social media that will soon block users from communicating or accessing information on apps such as X, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, TikTok and Snapchat unless they prove that they’re over the age of 16.

The prime minister, Keir Starmer, called the policy “a line in the sand”. “Tech giants had their chance and failed,” he said, “but we’re stepping in to protect children, back parents and set a new normal for future generations.” All internet users, especially children, should be protected from exploitative systems online, but this new law will only foster more harm and help the largest and most powerful tech companies consolidate power and influence over everyone’s lives.

Taylor Lorenz is a technology journalist who writes the newsletter User Mag and is the author of the bestselling book Extremely Online: The Untold Story of Fame, Influence, and Power on the Internet

Amid UK government proposals for a ban, experts discuss what other activities might really serve children well

When a Lancashire schoolgirl was asked what she would do if the proposed social media ban for under-16s came into effect, her answer hit a national nerve: “Stare at a wall,” she deadpanned.

The clip went viral, not least because it distilled a question many parents have been asking themselves about the consequences of the government’s proposed social media ban.