The first stage of the 2026 World Cup 2026 features 12 groups. We’ve ranked them and picked the favourites to advance.
![Greece's culture ministry on July 8, 2025, ordered a partial closure of the Acropolis, the country's top monument, to protect visitors amid heatwave conditions. [File: Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP]](https://aljazeeranews-mggx1uo47w.edgeone.app/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/000_663Z4G3-1751972969.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
The European Union’s border control policies may not be as visible as Trump’s but they are just as brutal.
Zoran Milanovic, a NATO critic, comfortably wins re-election, securing 74 percent of the vote.
Incumbent president narrowly missed an outright win, securing 49.1% of the vote, while rival Primorac garnered 19.35%.
Opposition Social Democrats’ candidate on track to win second term in office, according to preliminary results.
Harsh weather causes havoc across the region, with snow drifts also shutting down highways and halting trains.
Prosecutors accuse suspects of ‘accepting and giving bribes, abuse of position and authority and money laundering’.
We explore youth in power. The median age of leaders is 62, but young people are pushing for change.
Ban comes after Montenegrin lawmakers adopted a resolution to remember people killed in Jasenovac prison camp.
![A member of the election commission sets the coat of arms during a presidential election at a polling station in Zagreb, Croatia, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024. [AP Photo/Darko Bandic]](https://aljazeeranews-mggx1uo47w.edgeone.app/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/croatia-1735538672.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
![Croatia's former health minister Vili Beros was arrested alongside other health officials and hospital directors [File: /Olivier Hoslet/EPA]](https://aljazeeranews-mggx1uo47w.edgeone.app/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/7502737-1731671425.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
