EYDER PERALTA, HOST:
This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Eyder Peralta, and it's time for sports.
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PERALTA: World Cup matchups are set. So what's in store for the heavyweights and underdogs in the MLS Cup final? Sports reporter Michele Steele joins me now. Hey there, Michele.
MICHELE STEELE: Good morning, Eyder.
PERALTA: Good morning. So yesterday, the Kennedy Center in D.C. hosted the draw for the largest World Cup ever. Michele, let's look at how three favorites to win - Spain, France and, of course, the defending champion, Argentina - how do their groups look like?
STEELE: Yeah. Let's start with Argentina. I would say Argentina and Leo Messi got what you can call, Eyder, the champions' welcome.
PERALTA: (Laughter).
STEELE: The defending champs - they face Algeria, Austria and first-timers Jordan. I think the only drama here is going to be whether Messi needs to play...
PERALTA: (Laughter).
STEELE: ...The full 90 minutes or not. OK. Moving on to the European champion - Spain - also drawing a friendly hand here in Group H. They got Cape Verde, Uruguay and Saudi Arabia. Uruguay might be tricky, but the biggest opponent for Spain, in my opinion, might be their own jet lag. And then finally here, two-time winners France - they got what's called the group of death, if you can...
PERALTA: Oof.
STEELE: I see it that way, at least. Kylian Mbappe, the France star - he's going to have to work for his dine, as they say in France. They're going to have to survive Senegal and Norway, but if they do, they'll be battle-tested.
PERALTA: So, Michele, as we mentioned earlier, it's the biggest World Cup ever, with 48 teams qualifying, which means many more underdogs qualified. What are some of the notable ones, and how did they fare in the draw?
STEELE: Yeah. Yeah. More teams, and that means a lot more underdogs. There's a few of them I want to focus on. Let's focus on Haiti first, back for the first time in 50-plus years. Boy, are they in the deep end of the pool here with the group that they got - Scotland, Morocco and, you know, just Brazil.
PERALTA: Brazil. Ugh.
STEELE: Yeah. Yeah. But we'll see if they can be kind of like a determined mosquito here at a picnic...
PERALTA: (Laughter).
STEELE: ...With some bigger boys. Cape Verde is in Spain's group, so they've got their work cut out for them, for sure. And Curacao - or if you're Wayne Gretzky at the draw, Curocco (ph), one of many cringe elements from the draw yesterday - Curacao is one of the least populous countries to ever qualify. Their coach noted, though - I should say this, Eyder - they're a team of fighters. They're going to need that fighting spirit.
PERALTA: So sticking with soccer, the MLS Cup final is later today. Inter Miami face the Vancouver Whitecaps. Miami's captain - you mentioned him - Lionel Messi, the Argentine, is perhaps the greatest player ever. This is his third season in the MLS but his first shot at the title. How do you see this matchup?
STEELE: Yeah. This is exactly what Major League Soccer was hoping for - a matchup involving Lionel Messi's Inter Miami against the Vancouver Whitecaps for the title. I should say that Miami has been an absolute offensive juggernaut. They've scored 98 goals this season. Now, the problem here is that the Whitecaps beat Miami 3-1 earlier this season. They're dangerous. They're hardworking. And of course, they've got a German star - Thomas Muller - themselves. Now, Muller has said, guys, it's not about Messi against Muller. It's Miami against the Whitecaps. But we're going to be looking at Messi and Muller tonight.
I'm going to lean into the fairy-tale outcome here. I think Miami takes it. I think it's going to be high-scoring. And it's going to be - it is going to be a little bit about a fairy tale, with Lionel Messi potentially winning here at home in Fort Lauderdale - his first shot at the title. And this back-to-back with perhaps another World Cup win next year - that's fairy tale.
PERALTA: So I have to say, the image of a determined mosquito will stay with me for a long time. Sports reporter Michele Steele, thank you for being with us.
STEELE: You bet. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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