Troubled World Cup 2026 Gets Underway

We’re back, Insiders. Jesse Whittock here reporting from Dubrovnik, where I’ve been working this week as the troubled 2026 World Cup gets underway. Let’s kick off, and make sure to sign up for the full newsletter here.

World Cup Winners & Losers

Worst Cup 2026?: Arguably the most toxic sporting event in modern history kicked off this week, the 2026 World Cup in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. What should be the greatest celebration of the globe’s most popular has been blighted by controversy, politics, deportations and visa denials, allegations of criminality and bad faith accusations levelled at organizer FIFA over ticket prices and perceived deference to the Donald Trump administration. The unpleasantness was summed up when U.S. Customs and Border Protection denied entry to Somalian referee Omar Artan on unspecified accusations of associations with “suspected members of terrorist organizations.” Meanwhile, the Iranian team is being forced to base itself in Mexico and fly in and out of the U.S. for group matches on the same day. Sports journalists are now questioning whether FIFA President Gianni Infantino has lost control of his tournament, with the bureaucrat astonishingly telling fans to “chill” in response to this question at a press conference. Still, if you can stomach the stench, Mexico got the tournament underway yesterday by beating South Africa 2-0 in front of a wild crowd in Mexico City. That was one of seven games Andreas identified as ones to watch due to their intriguing subplots. Prior to the game, Andrea Bocelli and Ejae performed at the opening ceremony alongside Shakira and Burna Boy, and South Africa’s Tyler, who sung the national anthem. The good vibes certainly aren’t translating everywhere, though. Social media videos of Canadians booing the American flag emerged overnight, while a good portion of U.S. sports fans barely registered anything was happening and instead went wild over the Knicks’ historic comeback win in the NBA finals.

Catching Up in Cologne

Greifeneder’s next generation: The beer was flowing in Cologne this week as Deadline headed to Seriencamp to take the temperature of one of the most bustling industries in Europe. We were in town early to give the Deadline German TV Disruptor Award to Anke Greifeneder, HBO Max’s head honcho in Germany who has had a fascinating career during which she has trained as a lawyer, penned seven novels and launched a number of American brands locally. HBO Max is her latest challenge, and potentially her most thrilling, and Greifeneder explained to us on stage how she plans to unearth the next voices of a generation, the German Lena Dunham or Richard Gadd. Elsewhere, Seriencamp may be all about the small screen, but it was a clutch of box office hits from Gen-Z creatives that were really creating buzz. Executives were keen to discuss how Reddit, YouTube and fandoms and online communities can be leveraged for TV projects, with the hope that this could become a valuable source of IP. Deadline’s deep dive analysis of this trend can be found here, and all of our Seriencamp coverage can be found over here.

Doctor Struck Off

Who’s to blame?: With Doctor Who‘s ratings plummeting and Disney walking away from a co-production deal with the BBC, the Doctor himself has been in need of emergency treatment for some time now. This week, the BBC decided there would be no new regeneration surgery – for now, at least – and canceled the planned Christmas special. Showrunner Russell T. Davies said he had no script in place, nor a new Doctor. It was shocking, albeit unsurprising news for an iconic British TV brand that has been slipping for several years now. Jake moved things on by speaking to senior figures in UK drama, with informed sources saying Doctor Who will stay off air until at least 2028 and maybe longer. That could be tough to take for dedicated fans – Whovians – but is arguably necessary for creative renewal to take place. For now, the Tardis goes into storage.

The Insider Interview

When the relatively unknown Ellis Howard landed a role in the BBC’s adaptation of Paris Lees’ What It Feels Like For a Girl two years ago, he “couldn’t believe we would even get a British audience” let alone one on the other side of the pond. Now, Howard finds himself in L.A. promoting What It Feels Like For a Girl after it sold to Prime Video, a deal that he described as “a revolutionary act, an act of protest” for this “ketamine-laced queer odyssey.” Howard chatted to us about making the show, his next set of projects, and the “gorgeous kinship” between What It Feels Like For a Girl and Adolescence. >>>Read The Interview

The Essentials

🌶️ Hot One: Amazon MGM Studios is developing a sequel series to its psychological drama miniseries The Girlfriend, an entirely standalone story titled The Boyfriend.

🌶️  Another One: Jennifer Saunders, Sean Teale, Simone Ashley, Amar Chadha-Patel, Rhea Norwood, Matthew Beard and Sharon Horgan have been cast in recurring guest star roles in Season 6 of Only Murders in the Building.

🔥 A third: BUFF Studios is developing documentary feature Who’s the Daddy? about Shirley Crabtree, the British wrestling icon better known to generations of fans as Big Daddy.

🇭🇷 First NEM terms: European big-hitter execs Sam Barnett and Henning Tewes both laid out their views on the future at a sunny NEM Dubrovnik in Croatia.

🛑 Blocked: Kyrgyz drama Kurak, directed by Erke Dzhumakmatova and Emil Atageldiev, has been denied a censor certificate in its home country, forcing the film to withdraw from the ongoing Bishkek International Film Festival.

👉 You’re hired: Hawco Productions has hired theater producer Philip Riccio, as the Canadian production house behind Saint-Pierre implements a “structured” push into development.

🤝 You’re hired too: Showrunner and writer Jörg Winger has joined Dynamic Television’s new German arm as President. At the same time, his new thriller series, Conspiracy, has gone into development at ZDF.

🍿 Preview: Matt Carey wrote this preview of Sunny Side of the Doc, the international documentary marketplace held in La Rochelle, France, ahead of its 37th edition.

🖋️ Signed: Anonymous Content has signed Bollywood megastar Hrithik Roshan, one of the highest-grossing Indian actors of all time.

🍿 Box office: The first day returns for Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day were around $12M, sources told Deadline.

Photo of the Week

Mexican wave – The 2026 World Cup got underway in Mexico amid mounting controversy about the tournament’s organization north of the border.

International Insider was written by Jesse Whittock and edited by Max Goldbart, who also contributed. Send any tips, comments or ideas for international coverage to jwhittock@deadline.com and mgoldbart@deadline.com