Finally to Los Angeles, where the United States will put on the third and final World Cup opening ceremony. Getting started at 12:30am BST on Saturday 13 June before the US’ clash with Paraguay, the spectacle will be staged at the SoFi Stadium - the newest stadium being used at this summer’s tournament.

International pop star Katy Perry will headline in her home state, joined by rapper Future.

Tyla will also appear at her second ceremony having performed across the border in Mexico, along with Thai-born star Lisa from K-pop band Blackpink, Nigerian artist Rema and Brazilian singer Anitta.

The US has a history of memorable moments when it comes to World Cup opening ceremonies, including Diana Ross's famous missed penalty ahead of the 1994 World Cup in Chicago.

Canada will then take the spotlight for their opening ceremony in Toronto, kicking off at 6:30pm BST on Friday 12 June at BMO Field ahead of the host nation’s clash with Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Leading the line-up is none other than Canadian icon Michael Buble, with the likes of Alessia Cara and Alanis Morissette among the other featured performers.

Palestinian singer Elyanna will also perform while French artist Vegedream, who is best known for his the timeless anthem “Ramenez la coupe a la maison” which celebrated France’s World Cup win in 2018.

Jessie Reyez, Nora Fatehi, Sanjoy and William Prince are also on the bill.

Mexico will get World Cup proceedings underway with their opening ceremony at 6:30pm BST on Thursday 11 June in Mexico City.

Held at Mexico City Stadium, better known worldwide as the Estadio Azteca, the ceremony will take place ahead of the Group A clash between Mexico and South Africa, a repeat of the clash that rose the curtain on the 2010 World Cup in Johannesburg.

Additional performers include Alejandro Fernández, Belinda, Danny Ocean, J Balvin, Lila Downs, Los Ángeles Azules, Maná, and Tyla.

This year’s World Cup finals are the first to be hosted by multiple countries, with the United States, Canada and Mexico all staging the competition, boasting the elusive element of home advantage for football’s greatest showpiece.

Three host nations means three separate opening ceremonies for each of their opening games, as is traditionally done, with the trio roping in A-list artists and other performers to set the tone for the biggest event on the football calendar.

These three elaborate productions are being orchestrated by Italian producer Marco Balich, renowned for his work on this year’s Milan Cortina Winter Olympics opening ceremony.

Let’s run you through who’s performing at each...

Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan says he has had his World Cup dreams dashed after he was refused entry at the US border.

“I am very, very disappointed,” Artan told the New York Times in a telephone interview from Istanbul, where he was flown to after being turned away. “I’m just simply a referee who’s trying to live his dream, the biggest dream of my life, to come to the World Cup.

“I had the right papers and everything. I had the right visa.”

He added that he had also showed documentation from Fifa as well as photographs of his career of over a decade as a professional referee.

Haiti also join the fun and will be making just their second World Cup appearance, as well as their first since 1974. The Caribbean nation are first up for Steve Clark’s side, whose hopes of becoming the first Scotland team to advance from a group stage of a major tournament could rest on that opening clash in Foxborough. Ooft.

Group C, after all, is the only pool at this expanded World Cup to feature two top-10 nations in Brazil, the record five-time champions, and Morocco, the (massive asterisk) African champions and World Cup semi-finalists from four years ago. It’s a belter of a group.

Here’s everything you need to know about Scotland’s group:

England reside is Group L at this summer’s finals and Thomas Tuchel will hope to steer them safely into the knockouts, preserving as much energy as possible for the challenges ahead.

This Panama team look like a tougher nut than their predecessors but, conversely, Ghana are not the same force they were when only the hand of Luis Suarez denied them a semi-final spot in 2010. There is value in winning Group L, given that the runners-up would likely be on a collision course with tournament favourites Spain in the last 16.

Here’s everything you need to know about England’s group:

It is the ultimate list of footballing greats, based solely on their displays in the most prestigious tournament on the planet. Star players the world over can perform for their club – but who are those who have shone brightest for their nation in the history of the men’s Fifa World Cup?

Indy Sport’s writers put our heads together to come up the tournament’s top-50 players of all time:

In case you missed it, here’s the big story of the day so far.

Iran's ​football federation (FFIRI) have claimed that its ⁠ticket allocation for the World Cup has been pulled ⁠just ​days before ⁠football's global showpiece kicks ⁠off.

This leaves supporters ​who ⁠had already ‌made travel plans unable to ‌attend their team's ‌matches, with the FFIRI calling it a decision “to sabotage the presence of Iranian fans” at the tournament.

“This is despite the fact that ⁠many Iranian football fans, relying on the officially announced process, had already made the ‌necessary plans ​to attend ‌the matches,” ⁠it added ⁠in a statement.

It said the move was “contrary to the spirit governing international competitions and the principle of equality among participating countries”.