The Reading / Listening - 2026 FIFA World Cup - Level 3

There has been a last-minute change to how teams sing their national anthems at the 2026 World Cup. FIFA, the organization that runs the World Cup, announced the change last week. It said that for the first time in World Cup history, all of the players in the squads will come onto the pitch to sing their anthem. FIFA president Gianni Infantino commented on the change to the national anthem ceremony. He said: "As the FIFA World Cup grows, we continue to innovate the way the game is experienced. The pre-match ceremonies… will be no different." He added: "The FIFA World Cup is about every player and every fan and this new pre-match ceremony reflects that."

FIFA said more players will have a role in adding to the pre-match atmosphere. In the new ceremony, all squad members will stand around the centre circle and sing their national anthem. Mr Infantino said: "Having all players and referees face each other in the centre circle during the national anthems will create a moment of unity, pride, and emotion that truly belongs to the teams and to everyone in the stadium." Other parts of the pre-game ceremony remain unchanged. Team captains will still participate in the coin toss and exchange pennants with the opposing captain. Another tradition kept for the 2026 tournament is players from each team shaking hands with players from the other team.

Try the same news story at these easier levels:

    2026 FIFA World Cup - Level 0,  2026 FIFA World Cup - Level 1   or  2026 FIFA World Cup - Level 2

Sources
  • https://www.si.com/soccer/fifa-makes-major-pre-match-change-ahead-2026-world-cup
  • https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/fifa-announce-fan-centric-change-081952835.html
  • https://worldsoccertalk.com/world-cup/fifa-president-gianni-infantino-announces-new-national-anthem-protocol-for-2026-world-cup/


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Warm-ups

1. 2026 FIFA WORLD CUP: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Change partners often and share your findings.
2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, talk about these topics or words from the article. What will the article say about them? What can you say about these words and your life?
       last-minute change / national anthem / World Cup / soccer players / innovate / FIFA /
       atmosphere / ceremony / referees / pride / captains / coin toss / shaking hands
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. NATIONAL ANTHEMS: Students A strongly believe we should sing our national anthems at public events and in schools; Students B strongly believe the opposite. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.
4. SPORTING EVENTS: What do you know about these sporting events? How good do you think they are? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.


Event

What I Know

How Good

FIFA World Cup

 

 

Summer Olympics

 

 

Winter Olympics

 

 

Tour de France

 

 

Wimbledon tennis

 

 

Formula 1

 

 
MY e-BOOK
ESL resource book with copiable worksheets and handouts - 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers / English teachers
See a sample

5. FOOTBALL: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word "football". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
6. PLAYING POSITIONS: Rank these with your partner. Put the best position at the top. Change partners often and share your rankings.

  • Goalkeeper
  • Centre-back
  • Right-back
  • Defensive midfielder
  • Central midfielder
  • Attacking midfielder
  • Striker
  • Winger

 

Vocabulary

    Paragraph 1

      1. anthem a. To control or manage something.
      2. organization b. A country's official song.
      3. run c. Gave information to many people.
      4. announced d. A group of players in a sports team.
      5. squad e. A large group of people working together for a purpose.
      6. pitch f. To introduce new ideas or new ways of doing something.
      7. innovate g. The area (field) where a sports game is played.

    Paragraph 2

      8. role h. The feeling or mood in a place.
      9. atmosphere i. When people are together as one and are supporting each other.
      10. ceremony j. A job or function that a person has.
      11. referee k. A formal event with special actions.
      12. unity l. To stay the same or continue to be there.
      13. remain m. An official who makes sure the rules are followed in a sports game.
      14. coin toss n. The act of people or teams throwing a coin into the air to decide something.

 

Before reading / listening

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if 1-8 below are true (T) or false (F).

  1. A change will come to the World Cup a minute before kick-off.     T / F
  2. The whole squad of a soccer team always sings the national anthem.    T / F
  3. All players will have to sing the U.S. national anthem.     T / F
  4. There'll be a change to the pre-match ceremony for World Cup games.   T / F
  5. The new rule will mean all players standing around the centre circle.     T / F
  6. FIFA said only the players will feel unity and pride during the anthems.    T / F
  7. Other parts of the pre-match ceremony will stay the same.     T / F
  8. The custom of shaking hands will stop at this World Cup.     T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

  1. runs
  2. squads
  3. continue
  4. fan
  5. reflects
  6. role
  7. atmosphere
  8. unity
  9. remain
  10. exchange
  1. go on
  2. stay
  3. shows
  4. mood
  5. supporter
  6. manages
  7. harmony
  8. swap
  9. teams
  10. part

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

  1. There has been a last-
  2. the organization that runs
  3. all of the players
  4. we continue to innovate the way the
  5. The pre-match ceremonies will be no
  6. more players will
  7. all squad members will stand around
  8. all players and referees face
  9. Team captains will still participate in
  10. shaking
  1. each other
  2. game is experienced
  3. in the squads
  4. the centre circle
  5. hands
  6. different
  7. minute change
  8. the coin toss
  9. have a role
  10. the World Cup

Gap fill

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
announced
different
minute
reflects
commented
squads
fan
innovate

There has been a last-(1) ______________________________________________ change to how teams sing their national anthems at the 2026 World Cup. FIFA, the organization that runs the World Cup, (2) ______________________________________________ the change last week. It said that for the first time in World Cup history, all of the players in the (3) ______________________________________________ will come onto the pitch to sing their anthem. FIFA president Gianni Infantino (4) ______________________________________________ on the change to the national anthem ceremony. He said: "As the FIFA World Cup grows, we continue to (5) ______________________________________________ the way the game is experienced. The pre-match ceremonies... will be no (6) ______________________________________________." He added: "The FIFA World Cup is about every player and every (7) ______________________________________________ and this new pre-match ceremony (8) ______________________________________________ that."

Put these words into the spaces in the paragraph below.
tradition
stand
pride
hands
coin
role
stadium
referees

FIFA said more players will have a (9) ______________________________________________ in adding to the pre-match atmosphere. In the new ceremony, all squad members will (10) ______________________________________________ around the centre circle and sing their national anthem. Mr Infantino said: "Having all players and (11) ______________________________________________ face each other in the centre circle during the national anthems will create a moment of unity, (12) ______________________________________________ and emotion that truly belongs to the teams and to everyone in the (13) ______________________________________________." Other parts of the pre-game ceremony remain unchanged. Team captains will still participate in the (14) ______________________________________________ toss and exchange pennants with the opposing captain. Another (15) ______________________________________________ kept for the 2026 tournament is players from each team shaking (16) ______________________________________________ with players from the other team.

Listening — Guess the answers. Listen to check.

1) FIFA, the organization that runs the World Cup, announced the ______
     a.  change lest week
     b.  change past week
     c.  change last weeks
     d.  change last week
2)  all of the players in the squads will come onto the pitch to ______
     a.  sing there anthem
     b.  sing their anthem
     c.  sing them anthem
     d.  sing they're anthem
3)  Gianni Infantino commented on the change to the ______
     a.  national anthem ceremony
     b.  national anthem ceremonial
     c.  nationally anthem ceremony
     d.  international anthem ceremony
4)  we continue to innovate the way the ______
     a.  game is experience
     b.  game is experiences
     c.  game is experienced
     d.  game has experienced
5)  about every player and every fan and this new pre-match ______
     a.  ceremonial reflects that
     b.  ceremony reflect that
     c.  ceremony reflects what
     d.  ceremony reflects that

6)  FIFA said more players will have a role in adding to the ______
     a.  pro-match atmosphere
     b.  per-match atmosphere
     c.  pry-match atmosphere
     d.  pre-match atmosphere
7)  In the new ceremony, all squad members will stand around ______
     a.  the centre circle
     b.  the centre square
     c.  the centre oval
     d.  the centre triangle
8)  the national anthems will create a moment of unity, ______
     a.  fried, and emotion
     b.  tried, and emotion
     c.  pride, and emotion
     d.  bride, and emotion
9)  participate in the coin toss and exchange pennants with ______
     a.  the opposing captain
     b.  the imposing captain
     c.  the proposing captain
     d.  the supposing captain
10)  players from each team shaking hands with players from ______
     a.  the another team
     b.  the other team
     c.  the others team
     d.  the other's team

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

There has been a (1) __________________________________________________ to how teams sing their national anthems at the 2026 World Cup. FIFA, the organization that runs the World Cup, announced the change last week. It said that for the first time in World Cup history, all of the players (2) __________________________________________________ will come onto the (3) __________________________________________________ their anthem. FIFA president Gianni Infantino (4) __________________________________________________ change to the national anthem ceremony. He said: "As the FIFA World Cup grows, we continue to (5) __________________________________________________ the game is experienced. The pre-match ceremonies... will be no different." He added: "The FIFA World Cup is about every player and every fan and this new pre-match (6) __________________________________________________."

FIFA said more players will have a (7) __________________________________________________ to the pre-match atmosphere. In the new ceremony, all squad members (8) __________________________________________________ the centre circle and sing their national anthem. Mr Infantino said: "Having all players and referees (9) __________________________________________________ in the centre circle during the national anthems will create a moment of unity, pride, and emotion that truly belongs to the teams and to everyone (10) __________________________________________________." Other parts of the pre-game ceremony remain unchanged. Team captains will still participate in (11) __________________________________________________ and exchange pennants with the opposing captain. Another tradition kept for the 2026 tournament is players from each team (12) __________________________________________________ players from the other team.

Comprehension questions

  1. When was the change to the national anthem rule done?
  2. What does the article say FIFA is?
  3. Which players will sing the national anthems?
  4. What did FIFA say it would continue to do as the game grows?
  5. Who did FIFA's president say the World Cup is about?
  6. Where will the players stand when they sing the national anthems?
  7. What did FIFA say the new anthem ceremony would create?
  8. What will team captains continue to participate in?
  9. What will team captains continue to exchange?
  10. What will players from each team continue to do?

Multiple choice quiz

1) When was the change to the national anthem rule done?
a) at the last minute
b) a year ago
c) last month
d) yesterday
2) What does the article say FIFA is?
a) the best organization in the world
b) an important organization
c) the organization that runs the World Cup
d) a money-making machine
3) Which players will sing the national anthems?
a) the 11 players selected to start
b) the whole squad
c) those who want to
d) those with a good voice
4) What did FIFA say it would continue to do as the game grows?
a) develop talent
b) make money
c) help poorer countries
d) innovate
5) Who did FIFA's president say the World Cup is about?
a) every player and fan
b) the whole world
c) club teams
d) the captains

6) Where will the players stand when they sing the national anthems?
a) near the tunnels
b) on the edge of the penalty box
c) on the half-way line
d) around the centre circle
7) What did FIFA say the new anthem ceremony would create?
a) a beautiful sound
b) unity, pride, and emotion
c) many, many tears
d) a perfect environment
8) What will team captains continue to participate in?
a) a lottery
b) a staring match
c) a discussion
d) a coin toss
9) What will team captains continue to exchange?
a) autographs
b) small talk
c) pennants
d) football shirts
10) What will players from each team continue to do?
a) warm up
b) shake hands
c) hug
d) their best

Role play

Role  A – Goalkeeper
You think goalkeeper is the best position in football. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their positions. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): centre-back, striker or winger.

Role  B – Centre-back
You think centre-back is the best position in football. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their positions. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): goalkeeper, striker or winger.

Role  C – Striker
You think striker is the best position in football. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their positions. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): centre-back, goalkeeper or winger.

Role  D – Winger
You think winger is the best position in football. Tell the others three reasons why. Tell them what is wrong with their positions. Also, tell the others which is the worst of these (and why): centre-back, striker or goalkeeper.

After reading / listening

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words...

'national anthem'

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • and 'football'.

  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________
  • ________________

    • • Share your findings with your partners.

    • Make questions using the words you found.

    • Ask your partner / group your questions.

    2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

    •Share your questions with other classmates / groups. •Ask your partner / group your questions.

    3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

    4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

    5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

    • minute
    • runs
    • pitch
    • continue
    • different
    • fan
    • role
    • stand
    • face
    • everyone
    • toss
    • tradition

    Student survey

    Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

    (Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

    Discussion - 2026 FIFA World Cup

    STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

    1. What did you think when you read the headline?
    2. What images are in your mind when you hear the word 'anthem'?
    3. What do you think of football?
    4. What do you think of the FIFA World Cup?
    5. What do you think of your national anthem?
    6. How often do you sing your national anthem?
    7. How do you feel when you see sport stars singing national anthems?
    8. What will the new-style ceremony change?
    9. What other changes should FIFA make to football?
    10. How excited are you about the World Cup?

    STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

    1. Did you like reading this article? Why/not?
    2. What do you think of when you hear the word 'football'?
    3. What do you think about what you read?
    4. Football is called 'the beautiful game'. Do you think it is?
    5. What do you think of the atmosphere at football matches?
    6. What is your favourite football team?
    7. How excited are you about the World Cup?
    8. Is the World Cup the world's best sport tournament?
    9. What advice do you have for the FIFA president?
    10. What questions would you like to ask the FIFA boss?

    Discussion — Write your own questions

    STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

    (a) ________________

    (b) ________________

    (c) ________________

    (d) ________________

    (e) ________________

    STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

    (f) ________________

    (g) ________________

    (h) ________________

    (i) ________________

    (j) ________________

    Language — Cloze (Gap-fill)

    There has been a last-(1) ____ change to how teams sing their national anthems at the 2026 World Cup. FIFA, the organization that (2) ____ the World Cup, announced the change last week. It said that for the first time in World Cup history, all of the players in the (3) ____ will come onto the pitch to sing their anthem. FIFA president Gianni Infantino commented on the change to the national anthem ceremony. He said: "As the FIFA World Cup (4) ____, we continue to innovate the way the game is experienced. The pre-match ceremonies... will be no (5) ____." He added: "The FIFA World Cup is about every player and every fan and this new pre-(6) ____ ceremony reflects that."

    FIFA said more players will have a (7) ____ in adding to the pre-match atmosphere. In the new ceremony, all squad members will stand around the centre circle and sing their national anthem. Mr Infantino said: "Having all players and referees face each (8) ____ in the centre circle during the national anthems will create a moment of unity, pride, and emotion that (9) ____ belongs to the teams and to everyone in the stadium." Other parts of the pre-game ceremony remain unchanged. Team captains will still participate (10) ____ the coin toss and exchange pennants with the opposing (11) ____. Another tradition kept for the 2026 tournament is players from each team shaking (12) ____ with players from the other team.

    Which of these words go in the above text?

    1. (a)     extra time     (b)     minutes     (c)     minute     (d)     minutia      
    2. (a)     runs     (b)     walks     (c)     shoots     (d)     scores    
    3. (a)     squads     (b)     penalties     (c)     fouls     (d)     squids    
    4. (a)     grows     (b)     refs     (c)     blows     (d)     whistles    
    5. (a)     differences     (b)     difference     (c)     differ     (d)     different    
    6. (a)     watch     (b)     catch     (c)     pitch     (d)     match    
    7. (a)     role     (b)     roll     (c)     rule     (d)     roar    
    8. (a)     others     (b)     othering     (c)     another     (d)     other    
    9. (a)     truly     (b)     studs up     (c)     headed     (d)     saved    
    10. (a)     on     (b)     in     (c)     up     (d)     by    
    11. (a)     striker     (b)     captain     (c)     winger     (d)     defender    
    12. (a)     hands     (b)     heads     (c)     chests     (d)     ankles

    Spelling

    Paragraph 1

    1. the nogritaonzai that runs the World Cup
    2. docenannu the change
    3. all of the players in the udqssa
    4. the national anthem ermcoyen
    5. we continue to eniavont
    6. the way the game is eercxeindep

    Paragraph 2

    1. adding to the pre-match aehpotsrem
    2. players and ereeefsr
    3. unity, idpre, and emotion
    4. everyone in the mtausdi
    5. iacpritteap in the coin toss
    6. Another ioidrntta

    Put the text back together

    (    )   "Having all players and referees face each other in the centre circle during the national anthems will create a
    (    )   ceremony. He said: "As the FIFA World Cup grows, we continue to innovate the way the game is
    (    )   experienced. The pre-match ceremonies... will be no different." He added: "The FIFA World Cup is about every
    (    )   FIFA said more players will have a role in adding to the pre-match atmosphere. In the new ceremony, all squad
    (    )   for the 2026 tournament is players from each team shaking hands with players from the other team.
    (    )   members will stand around the centre circle and sing their national anthem. Mr Infantino said:
    (    )   moment of unity, pride, and emotion that truly belongs to the teams and to everyone in the
    (    )   participate in the coin toss and exchange pennants with the opposing captain. Another tradition kept
    (    )   pitch to sing their anthem. FIFA president Gianni Infantino commented on the change to the national anthem
    (    )   player and every fan and this new pre-match ceremony reflects that."
    (    )   stadium." Other parts of the pre-game ceremony remain unchanged. Team captains will still
    (    )   the 2026 World Cup. FIFA, the organization that runs the World Cup, announced the change last
    (  1  )   There has been a last-minute change to how teams sing their national anthems at
    (    )   week. It said that for the first time in World Cup history, all of the players in the squads will come onto the

    Put the words in the right order

    1. a   change   how   last-minute   sing   teams   There's   to   .
    2. Cup   first   For   history   in   the   time   World   .
    3. anthem   ceremony   change   national   The   the   to   .
    4. experienced   game   Innovate   is   the   the   way   .
    5. about   and   every   fan   FIFA World Cup   is   player   The   .
    6. A   adding   atmosphere   in   pre-match   role   the   to   .
    7. around   centre   circle   members   Squad   stand   the   will   .
    8. centre   circle   each   face   in   other   Players   the   .
    9. ceremony   of   Other   parts   pre-game   remain   the   unchanged   .
    10. from   hands   other   players   Shaking   team   the   with   .

    Circle the correct word (20 pairs)

    There has been a last-minute change to how teams singing / sing their national anthems at the 2026 World Cup. FIFA, the organization that walks / runs the World Cup, announced the change past / last week. It said that for the first time in / at World Cup history, all of the players in the squids / squads will come onto the pitch / patch to sing their anthem. FIFA president Gianni Infantino commented on / in the change to the national anthem ceremony. He said: "As the FIFA World Cup grows, we continue to innovate the way the game is experiences / experienced. The pre-match ceremonies... will be no difference / different." He added: "The FIFA World Cup is about every player and every fan and this new pre-match ceremony reflects / reflect that."

    FIFA said more players will have a roll / role in adding to the pre-match atmosphere. In the new / news ceremony, all squad members will stand up / around the centre circle and sing their national anthem. Mr Infantino said: "Having all players and referees head / face each other in the centre circle during the national anthems will create a moment of unity / unite, pride, and emotion that truly belongs / belong to the teams and to everyone in the stadium." Other parts of the pre-game ceremony remains / remain unchanged. Team captains will still participate on / in the coin toss and exchange pennants with the opposing captain. Another tradition keeps / kept for the 2026 tournament is players from each team shaking / shook hands with players from the other team.

    Talk about the connection between each pair of words in italics, and why the correct word is correct. Look up the definition of new words.

    Insert the vowels (a, e, i, o, u)

    Th_r_  h_s  b__n  _  l_st-m_n_t_  ch_ng_  t_  h_w  t__ms  s_ng  th__r  n_t__n_l  _nth_ms  _t  th_  2026  W_rld  C_p.  F_F_,  th_  _rg_n_z_t__n  th_t  r_ns  th_  W_rld  C_p,  _nn__nc_d  th_  ch_ng_  l_st  w__k.  _t  s__d  th_t  f_r  th_  f_rst  t_m_  _n  W_rld  C_p  h_st_ry,  _ll  _f  th_  pl_y_rs  _n  th_  sq__ds  w_ll  c_m_  _nt_  th_  p_tch  t_  s_ng  th__r  _nth_m.  F_F_  pr_s_d_nt  G__nn_  _nf_nt_n_  c_mm_nt_d  _n  th_  ch_ng_  t_  th_  n_t__n_l  _nth_m  c_r_m_ny.  H_  s__d:  "_s  th_  F_F_  W_rld  C_p  gr_ws,  w_  c_nt_n__  t_  _nn_v_t_  th_  w_y  th_  g_m_  _s  _xp_r__nc_d.  Th_  pr_-m_tch  c_r_m_n__s...  w_ll  b_  n_  d_ff_r_nt."  H_  _dd_d:  "Th_  F_F_  W_rld  C_p  _s  _b__t  _v_ry  pl_y_r  _nd  _v_ry  f_n  _nd  th_s  n_w  pr_-m_tch  c_r_m_ny  r_fl_cts  th_t."

    F_F_  s__d  m_r_  pl_y_rs  w_ll  h_v_  _  r_l_  _n  _dd_ng  t_  th_  pr_-m_tch  _tm_sph_r_.  _n  th_  n_w  c_r_m_ny,  _ll  sq__d  m_mb_rs  w_ll  st_nd  _r__nd  th_  c_ntr_  c_rcl_  _nd  s_ng  th__r  n_t__n_l  _nth_m.  Mr  _nf_nt_n_  s__d:  "H_v_ng  _ll  pl_y_rs  _nd  r_f_r__s  f_c_  __ch  _th_r  _n  th_  c_ntr_  c_rcl_  d_r_ng  th_  n_t__n_l  _nth_ms  w_ll  cr__t_  _  m_m_nt  _f  _n_ty,  pr_d_  _nd  _m_t__n  th_t  tr_ly  b_l_ngs  t_  th_  t__ms  _nd  t_  _v_ry_n_  _n  th_  st_d__m."  _th_r  p_rts  _f  th_  pr_-g_m_  c_r_m_ny  r_m__n  _nch_ng_d.  T__m  c_pt__ns  w_ll  st_ll  p_rt_c_p_t_  _n  th_  c__n  t_ss  _nd  _xch_ng_  p_nn_nts  w_th  th_  _pp_s_ng  c_pt__n.  _n_th_r  tr_d_t__n  k_pt  f_r  th_  2026  t__rn_m_nt  _s  pl_y_rs  fr_m  __ch  t__m  sh_k_ng  h_nds  w_th  pl_y_rs  fr_m  th_  _th_r  t__m.

    Punctuate the text and add capitals

    there has been a lastminute change to how teams sing their national anthems at the 2026 world cup fifa the organization that runs the world cup announced the change last week it said that for the first time in world cup history all of the players in the squads will come onto the pitch to sing their anthem fifa president gianni infantino commented on the change to the national anthem ceremony he said as the fifa world cup grows we continue to innovate the way the game is experienced the prematch ceremonies will be no different he added the fifa world cup is about every player and every fan and this new prematch ceremony reflects that

    fifa said more players will have a role in adding to the prematch atmosphere in the new ceremony all squad members will stand around the centre circle and sing their national anthem mr infantino said having all players and referees face each other in the centre circle during the national anthems will create a moment of unity pride and emotion that truly belongs to the teams and to everyone in the stadium other parts of the pregame ceremony remain unchanged team captains will still participate in the coin toss and exchange pennants with the opposing captain another tradition kept for the 2026 tournament is players from each team shaking hands with players from the other team

    Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

    Therehasbeenalast-minutechangetohowteamssingtheirnationalan
    themsatthe2026WorldCup.FIFA,theorganizationthatrunstheWorld
    Cup,announcedthechangelastweek.ItsaidthatforthefirsttimeinWorl
    dCuphistory,alloftheplayersinthesquadswillcomeontothepitchtosin
    gtheiranthem.FIFApresidentGianniInfantinocommentedonthechan
    getothenationalanthemceremony.Hesaid:"AstheFIFAWorldCupgro
    ws,wecontinuetoinnovatethewaythegameisexperienced.Thepre-
    matchceremonies...willbenodifferent."Headded:"TheFIFAWorldCup
    isabouteveryplayerandeveryfanandthisnewpre-matchceremonyre
    flectsthat."FIFAsaidmoreplayerswillhavearoleinaddingtothepre-ma
    tchatmosphere.Inthenewceremony,allsquadmemberswillstandaro
    undthecentrecircleandsingtheirnationalanthem.MrInfantinosaid:"H
    avingallplayersandrefereesfaceeachotherinthecentrecircleduringth
    enationalanthemswillcreateamomentofunity,pride,andemotionthat
    trulybelongstotheteamsandtoeveryoneinthestadium."Otherpartsof
    thepre-gameceremonyremainunchanged.Teamcaptainswillstillpa
    rticipateinthecointossandexchangepennantswiththeopposingcaptai
    n.Anothertraditionkeptforthe2026tournamentisplayersfromeachte
    amshakinghandswithplayersfromtheotherteam.

    Free writing

    Write about FIFA World Cup for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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    Academic writing

    We should all sing our national anthem at sporting events and in cinemas. Discuss.

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    Homework

    1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.
    2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about this news story. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.
    3. THE 2026 FIFA WORLD CUP: Make a poster about the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
    4. NATIONAL ANTHEM: Write a magazine article about people being required to stand up for and sing national anthems at sporting events and other public performances. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and against this.
    Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).
    5. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.
    6. LETTER: Write a letter to an expert on the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Ask him/her three questions about it. Give him/her three of your ideas on how to improve it. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

    A Few Additional Activities for Students

    Ask your students what they have read, seen or heard about this news in their own language. Students are likely to / may have have encountered this news in their L1 and therefore bring a background knowledge to the classroom.

    Get students to role play different characters from this news story.

    Ask students to keep track of this news and revisit it to discuss in your next class.

    Ask students to male predictions of how this news might develop in the next few days or weeks, and then revisit and discuss in a future class.

    Ask students to write a follow-up story to this news.

    Students role play a journalist and someone who witnessed or was a part of this news. Perhaps they could make a video of the interview.

    Ask students to keep a news journal in English and add this story to their thoughts.

    Also...

    Buy my 1,000 Ideas and Activities for Language Teachers eBook. It has hundreds of ideas, activity templates, reproducible activities for:

    • News
    • Warm ups
    • Pre-reading / Post-reading
    • Using headlines
    • Working with words
    • While-reading / While-listening
    • Moving from text to speech
    • Post-reading / Post-listening
    • Discussions
    • Using opinions
    • Plans
    • Language
    • Using lists
    • Using quotes
    • Task-based activities
    • Role plays
    • Using the central characters in the article
    • Using themes from the news
    • Homework

    Buy my book

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    Answers

    (Please look at page 26 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

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