World Cup
Following along for live coverage from Boston Stadium of England and Ghana’s World Cup matchup.
Ghana’s Inaki Williams during the World Cup matchup against England at “Boston Stadium.” AP Photo/Martin Meissner
June 23, 2026 | 3:25 PM
3 minutes to read
England and Ghana have kicked off their World Cup matchup at “Boston Stadium” (Gillette Stadium), with a large crowd on hand to watch two squads vying for first place in Group L.
Tuesday marks the end of the second wave of group stage games. A win for England and a Panama loss to Croatia would clinch first place in Group L for the Three Lions, while a win for Ghana and a Croatia loss to Panama would clinch it for the Black Stars.
Regardless of whether first place is ultimately sewn up or not, both squads will be pushing for a result in Foxborough.
Check out the latest live updates in our match blog below.
England vs. Ghana live updates
4:51 p.m.: That’s halftime. Groans from the English fans and cheers from the Ghana fans tell the story. Neither team has had a shot on target, which plays right into the Black Stars’ hands.
4:47 p.m.: Harry Kane fires off half a chance, and England gets another corner. Prior to the action, England’s striker had only touched the ball six times this half, tying the Ghana keeper for the lowest number of touches by a player in the match so far. Obviously, that’s not enough.
4:45 p.m.: Rice takes another English corner as we head into stoppage time. A minimum of six minutes.
4:42 p.m.: Antoine Semenyo briefly brings the Ghanaian supporters alive with a run into the box, but can’t find the space to take a shot.
4:41 p.m.: Rice gets the first card of the game after a catching the foot of a Ghana defender.
4:40 p.m.: A mixture of cheers and boos as David Beckham is shown on the Jumbotron.
4:35 p.m.: England has completed 250 passes to Ghana’s 34, but no goals yet. The crowd (and a few in the press box) are beginning to buzz in frustration.
4:30 p.m.: England have tried the left side a little more following the break, with Spence occasionally playing an inverted fullback role and giving Anthony Gordon room to roam.
4:25 p.m.: After that long layoff following the James/Ayew collision, we’ve reached the hydration break. England has had the ball almost the whole match, but has struggled to break down Ghana’s low block.
4:23 p.m.: A collision of heads between England’s Reece James and Ghana’s Jordan Ayew leads to an extended break. Both players are thankfully able to continue.
4:18 p.m.: England’s first corner amounts to nothing, but the Three Lions once again retain possession. The team has kept their shape so far, particularly in the defense.
4:13 p.m.: Declan Rice fizzes a free kick over the crossbar! The midfielder’s grimace tells you he wishes it had been a bit closer to the target, and Ghana’s keeper ultimately isn’t bothered.
4:11 p.m.: Most of England’s build-up play has come through the ride side of the pitch so far. The closest they’ve come to goal started with a Noni Madueke posssesion, who worked it into the box for Bellingham.
4:05 p.m.: England have had the lion’s share (pardon the pun) of possession so far, minus an ill-fated pass from Jude Bellingham that trundled out of bounds. England fans’ hearts were briefly in their throats after Ghana’s Inaki Williams made an uncontested run, but he was clearly offside.
4 p.m.: After stirring renditions of both national anthems, we are underway at Boston Stadium!
3:45 p.m.: We’re approximately 25 miles from Fenway Park, but fans at Boston Stadium belt out “Sweet Caroline” like they’re Red Sox season ticket-holders. (Though the song has a longstanding tie to the Red Sox, England fans have added it to their lengthy song catalog as well in recent years.)
3:15 p.m.: England and Ghana have unveiled their starting lineups.
Playing a 4-2-3-1 formation, England is making two changes to its squad, both in defense, from its 4-2 victory over Croatia. Tottenham fullback Djed Spence and Manchester City defender Marc Guehi are replacing John Stones and Nico O’Reilly.
England: Pickford; James, Konsa, Guehi, Spence; Anderson, Rice; Madueke, Bellingham, Gordon; Kane.
Ghana, playing in a 4-3-3, is making four changes from their 1-0 opening victory over Panama.
The most notable is central midfielder Thomas Partey, whose visa application was rejected by Canada due to a pending criminal case. The other three changes to the squad are goalkeeper Benjamin Asare, midfielder Kwasi Sibo, and forward Inaki Williams.
Ghana: Asare; Mensah, Opoku, Adjetey, Senaya; Yirenkyi, Partey, Sibo; Ayew, Williams, Semenyo.
3 p.m.: We’re live at Boston Stadium, with kick off just over an hour away. It’s a rainy, overcast day in Foxborough — the first match held at the stadium thus far with less-than-perfect weather.
A rainy, overcast day at Boston Stadium ahead of England vs. Ghana. First World Cup game in Foxborough to have less-than-perfect weather thus far, but the fans are in good spirits. pic.twitter.com/NEiquOAjbu
— Kevin Slane (@kslane) June 23, 2026
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