Qatar face El Salvador in final World Cup warm-up as Lopetegui weighs…

Doha: Qatar will play their final friendly match before the 2026 FIFA World Cup when they take on El Salvador on Saturday, June 6, 2026, at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. catcrossgame.com

The fixture represents the last opportunity for head coach Julen Lopetegui to assess his squad before the tournament gets under way in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The Asian champions are currently based in Santa Barbara, California, where they are completing their final training camp ahead of the World Cup. Qatar arrive after a narrow 1-0 defeat to Republic of Ireland in Dublin on May 28.

Saturday's encounter is expected to help Lopetegui settle on the core of his starting line-up before Qatar begin their Group B campaign against Switzerland in San Francisco on June 13.

Qatar will then travel to Vancouver to face hosts Canada on June 18 before concluding the group stage against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Seattle on June 24.

Lopetegui has named a 26-man squad for the tournament, featuring established figures including Akram Afif, Almoez Ali, Hassan Al Haydos and Karim Boudiaf. The Spanish coach has also introduced several new faces, with 12 players set to make their World Cup debut.

Having won back-to-back Asian Cup titles in 2019 and 2023, Qatar will hope to carry that success onto the global stage. The El Salvador friendly is viewed as a key final test, offering both tactical preparation and a chance to build confidence ahead of the tournament.

Qatar are seeking to improve on their previous World Cup appearance in 2022, when they competed as hosts.

This time, having qualified through the competition pathway, the team is aiming to progress beyond the group stage for the first time and challenge for a place in the knockout rounds.

Berlin: Serena Williams will take part in the women's doubles at June's WTA event in Berlin, organisers announced Friday, the next stop in her comeback after a near four-year absence.

"Every tournament I add to my schedule right now is special, and Berlin is no exception," Williams, 44, said in a statement.

"I look forward to playing in front of the German crowd and continuing to build momentum for the grass-court season."

Her doubles partner will be announced at a later date.

On Monday, the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion confirmed her return to the sport to play at London's Queen's Club tournament starting June 8.

The Berlin Tennis Open begins in the German capital on June 15 and is a traditional warm-up event for Wimbledon, which starts on June 29.

Nine of the WTA's top 10 players are set to take part in the tournament in Berlin's west.

Williams' third-round exit at the US Open in September 2022 was her final match on the tour.

The American's final opportunities to fine-tune her comeback will be in tournaments at Bad Homburg, in Germany, and Eastbourne, in England, before Wimbledon begins.

Williams has won Wimbledon seven times in singles and six times in doubles.

Berlin: Teenage Germany forward Lennart Karl has been ruled out of the World Cup after sustaining an injury in training, the German Football Federation (DFB) said on Friday.

"Lenny tore a muscle bundle today in the final training season and is ruled out because of this injury. Have a good recovery, we're thinking of you," the DFB said on Instagram.

Germany have called up RB Leipzig midfielder Assan Ouedraogo to replace the 18-year-old Bayern Munich player.

Head coach Julian Nagelsmann had said earlier in Chicago ahead of Saturday's friendly against the United States that Karl's injury "didn't look good" and that he had been taken to hospital for a scan.

The loss of Karl is a blow to Germany. He was one of the revelations of the Bundesliga season after making his top-flight debut this season, quickly establishing himself as part of Vincent Kompany's league-winning side.

He started his first match for Germany in Sunday's 4-0 win over Finland, setting up a goal.

Nagelsmann also confirmed that veteran goalkeeper Manuel Neuer would not be fit in time to face the US, but hoped he would return for Germany's first World Cup match against Curacao on June 14.

Neuer, 40, a World Cup winner in 2014, was surprisingly recalled for the tournament in May almost two years after announcing his international retirement.

"At his age, he doesn't need a warm-up phase," Nagelsmann said. "He knows how to handle high-pressure situations.

"He's on his way to peak fitness. However, we don't want to take any risks tomorrow."