15/06/2026
If you’re not excited about the World Cup yet, don’t worry. There’s still plenty of time to get into it.
There’s more than a month to go before the July 19 final at the Meadowlands in New Jersey.
So you don’t have to decide yet whether this is the best World Cup ever or the worst. Some people are already trying to declare it one or the other, which is a bit of a rush to judgement when you realize that several of the big-name teams have yet to play.
Spain’s first game is tonight at 11 p.m. vs. Cape Verde. France’s first game is tomorrow night, 2 a.m., vs. Senegal. Argentina play Wednesday morning at 8 a.m. vs. Algeria, and England play Wednesday night at 3 a.m. vs. Croatia, just after Portugal open group play at 12 midnight vs. Congo.
We’ll be showing all of those at Danny’s on Soi Buakhao.
As for whether the American public is embracing the Cup, there’s already some evidence that it is. Fox television announced a record audience for Team USA’s 4-1 opening win over Paraguay last Friday.
And now that both the NBA Finals (won by the New York Knicks for the first time since 1973) and the NHL Stanley Cup Final (won by the Carolina Hurricanes for first time since 2006) are both over, there are fewer big events to distract interest.
There are big non-World Cup sports events in the world this week. Wednesday brings State of Origin II in Australia, a game that is more highly anticipated than usual after New South Wales’ big comeback win in Origin I last month. Tuesday through Saturday is Royal Ascot, always among the biggest events on England’s horse racing calendar.
But neither Origin nor Ascot will bother many American fans. And the fact that the American team was impressive in its opening game will have gotten some people’s attention, heading into USA vs. Australia on Friday night at 2 a.m.
For us at Danny’s Sports Bar, the tournament is already off to a good start, despite the difficult late-night and early-morning start times in Thailand. Interest should only build, especially when we get to the knockout rounds starting June 28.
We’ll continue to show all games that start at 3 a.m. or earlier, and all games that start at 8 a.m. or later. And also any of the other games if it seems there will be significant interest.
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The State of Origin game this week is the neutral-site game at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, kicking off just after 5 p.m. on Wednesday. With Queensland hosting the last game of the three-game series on July 8 in Brisbane, the Maroons still have a big chance in this year’s series.
As for Royal Ascot, coverage begins each night at 7:30, with the first race at 8:30. There are three Grade 1 races on the first night. The two richest races are the £1 million Prince of Wales Stakes at 10:20 p.m. Wednesday and the £1 million Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at 10:20 p.m. Saturday.
Golf’s US Open gets underway Thursday night at Shinnecock Hills on Long Island, a few miles away and a few hours before the Knicks hold their tickertape parade through the streets of Lower Manhattan.
Little known fact: This will be the first tickertape parade the Knicks have ever had. When they won in 1971 and 1973, then-mayor John Lindsay decided against the traditional parade down the Canyon of Heroes.
