WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — The World Cup comes with global attention and yet Germany’s national team found an ideal spot to concentrate on its tasks without some of the distractions that might exist elsewhere.

The team arrived at its temporary summer home and World Cup headquarters in Winston-Salem on Monday. A few hours later, players were on the pitch at Wake Forest’s soccer stadium for a workout open to the public.

Considerable fanfare from the community greeted the Germans, but the general vibe was more of a feeling of seclusion as the squad began putting the finishing touches on preparation for its World Cup opener Sunday against Curacao at Houston.

“We want to thank this community for the hospitality that we have received from the first moment,” Bernd Neuendorf, president of the German Football Association, said during the public greeting at Spry Stadium.

Five months ago, Germany’s national team and Wake Forest finalized their partnership for the summer. The connection was forged because of the university’s high-level collegiate facilities that were viewed as ideal by German officials.

Wake Forest men’s soccer coach Bobby Muuss has been touting the benefits of having the Germany team on campus. If all goes well, Muuss said he’s ready to play tour guide through the end of July if the traveling party wants to explore the Carolinas.

“What we want to do is just be the best host that we can as a community, as an institution, as a resort, and help them hopefully be here until the end of July,” Muuss said.

Team headquarters at Graylyn Estate, a boutique hotel seen as more of a wedding venue with its castle-like stone, felt like home. Flag-waving supporters greeted the Germans upon their arrival at the 55-acre spread Monday.

Most days, the location that sits a few miles from the Wake Forest campus, will be a place for quiet for the German team.

“To know some of the world’s best players, one of the greatest nations in the world to play in the World Cup, a four-time champion, is using the same facilities, the same locker room, the same coach’s room, the same grass, that I get to call home every day, you’ve got to pinch yourself,” Muuss said.

To be sure, there’s a theme connected to Germany’s presence in the city. Signage around campus has been put in place to make the Germans feel at home.

Free tickets for the open session were gobbled up in only a few minutes last month. Players signed autographs following the initial workout before the rest of the team’s practices are closed to the public.

Germany is utilizing Smith Reynolds Airport, a small facility in Winston-Salem that generally caters to charter flights and corporate needs. It is another boost of convenience that helped make the area a preferred destination.

Temperatures this week in the Triad part of North Carolina are regularly projected to rise above 90 degrees (32.2 celsius). So German coach Julian Nagelsmann will be cognizant of the conditions and the possible heat and humidity that could greet the squad at many outdoor World Cup venues. The team’s opener Sunday will be played inside a dome.

Midfielder Assan Ouedraogo already arrived ahead of his teammates after the midfielder was added to the roster. Ouedraogo is set to replace Lennart Karl, who headed home to receive treatment following an injury Saturday in a friendly against the United States at Chicago.

Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer was on hand for the workout in Winston-Salem after the 40-year-old dealt with a calf injury the past three weeks.

This region of North Carolina has another World Cup participant working out less than 40 miles away. Norway are set up in Greensboro at UNC Greensboro and Grandover Resort.

–Bob Sutton, Field Level Media

With three days to go until Canada’s World Cup opener, star fullback Alphonso Davies has yet to participate in full training for manager Jesse Marsch’s side and uncertain to play in Friday’s clash against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Toronto.

Multiple reports showed Davies, 25, continuing to train apart from the full group on Tuesday as Canada prepares for its Group B opener.

Its latter two group matches will come on June 18 and 24 in Vancouver, B.C., where Davies turned pro as a prodigious teenager with the Vancouver Whitecaps before moving on to Bayern Munich for a then-MLS-record fee of $13.5 million after the 2018 season.

Davies has been out since he suffered a left hamstring injury in Leg 2 of his club’s UEFA Champions League semifinal against Paris St. Germain.

That was the latest in a string of injury issues that began with an ACL tear suffered while playing for Canada against the United States in a CONCACAF Nations League third-place match in March 2025.

“I think one of the biggest challenges Alphonso is going through right now is just trusting his body,” Marsch said in an interview with “Men In Blazers” media published over the weekend. “As soon as he gets himself going, he starts to experience a new injury. And you can imagine how frustrating that is for a young man that plays at a high level and believes in himself, and in a moment when he wants to represent the country as a captain in all the right ways.”

Concerns over Davies’ fitness have been compounded by Moise Bombito’s thigh injury, an ailment that could rule out the influential center back for the tournament’s entirety.

Marsch’s squad already made another injury replacement earlier Tuesday, calling in midfielder Jayden Nelson to fill the spot of Marcelo Flores, who suffered an ACL tear playing for UNAL Tigres in the CONCACAF Champions Cup final on May 30.

Canada’s World Cup expectations were heightened by a fourth-place finish in the 2024 Copa America, the best performance of the six CONCACAF guest sides.

Davies played in all six of those matches, starting five, while Bombito played every minute.

But Davies made only 23 appearances across all competitions for Bayern this season (eight starts), and hasn’t suited up for Canada since his March 2025 ACL tear.

Without him, Canada lost on penalties to Guatemala in the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinals following a 1-1 draw.

“We’re motivated to get him healthy,” Marsch said. “We’re motivated to give him a chance to play in this tournament. We’re doing everything we can to work with our medical team and Alphonso is, too. And then in the meantime, the team feels (his) energy. The team feels having him back in the group is a different feeling than it was without him.”

–Ian Quillen, Field Level Media

The Canadian Open provides a final U.S. Open tune-up for the PGA Tour, while Nelly Korda teams with a good friend as she seeks to follow up her win at last week’s U.S. Women’s Open.

PGA TOUR

THIS WEEK: RBC Canadian Open, Toronto, June 11-14

Course: TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley, North Course (Par 70, 7,389 Yards)

Purse: $9.8M (Winner: $1.764M)

Defending Champion: Ryan Fox

FedEx Cup Leader: Scottie Scheffler

HOW TO FOLLOW

TV: Thursday-Friday: 3-6 p.m. ET (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday: 1-3 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (CBS)

Streaming (ESPN+): Thursday-Friday: 7 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday: 7:45-6 p.m.

X: @RBCCanadianOpen

NOTES: Dating back to 1904, the RBC Canadian Open is the second-oldest non-major on the PGA Tour behind only the BMW Championship (1899). … The top three players who make the cut and are not otherwise exempt will earn spots into The 154th Open at Royal Birkdale as part of The Open Qualifying Series. … The top 60 players this week who are not otherwise exempt will earn spots into next week’s U.S. Open. … The field includes 21 Canadian players, with Nick Taylor the most recent player to win his country’s national event in 2023. He became the first Canadian to win the event since Pat Fletcher in 1954. … This is the final event for players to earn spots into the Travelers Championship signature event via the Aon Swing 5. The top five are currently Eric Cole, Brandt Snedeker, Mac Meissner, Mark Hubbard and Jackson Suber. All but Snedeker are in this week’s field. … Brooks Koepka, who has six top-20 finishes so far in his return to the PGA Tour, is in the event for the first time since 2019. … Viktor Hovland is making his event debut as he attempts to kick-start a season that has seen him record just one top-10 finish so far. … Sponsor exemptions include former Masters champion Mike Weir, fellow Canadians Adam Hadwin, Ben Silverman and Roger Sloan, past champion Sean O’Hair and Padraig Harrington along with Joey Savoie and Ashton McCulloch.

BEST BETS: Tommy Fleetwood (+1150 at DraftKings) has four top-10s in his past eight starts and briefly held the lead last Sunday before settling for a T4. … Matt Fitzpatrick (+1200) is the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 4. With two wins already this year, Fitzpatrick is seeking to rebound from a T36 at the Memorial. … Sam Burns (+1275) lost to Fox on the fourth playoff hole last year and is coming off a T4 at the Memorial. … Wyndham Clark (+2350) has regained his form, following up his win at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson with a solo third last week. … Collin Morikawa (+2400) had five consecutive finishes of T7 or better before going T62 and T55 in his past two starts. … Kristoffer Reitan (+2500) is a career-high 24th in the world rankings with his T6 last week coming two weeks off his maiden tour win at the Truist Championship.

Last Tournament: the Memorial Tournament (J.T. Poston)

Next Tournament: U.S. Open, Southampton, N.Y., June 18-21

LPGA TOUR

THIS WEEK: Dow Championship, Midland, Mich., June 11-14

Course: Midland Country Club (Par 70, 6,287 Yards)

Purse: $3.3M (Winner’s share: $402,691)

Defending Champions: Jin Hee Im, Somi Lee

Race to CME Globe Leader: Nelly Korda

HOW TO FOLLOW

TV: Thursday-Friday: 11 a.m.-2 p.m. ET (Golf Channel); Saturday: 2-3 p.m. (Golf Channel Digital), 3-5 p.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday: 12-1 p.m. (GC Live), 1-3 p.m. (CBS)

X: @dowchampionship

NOTES: This is the only official team event on the LPGA Tour calendar. While it does not award Rolex Rankings points to the competitors, the winners are credited with an official victory on tour and the standard two-year winner’s exemption on the LPGA Priority List. … Teams will compete in foursomes in the first and third rounds and a best ball format for the second and fourth rounds. … The field will be cut to the low 33 teams and ties after 36 holes. … Im and Lee defeated Lexi Thompson and Megan Khang on the first playoff hole last year. … Korda is in the field for the first time since 2022 as she teams with friend Olivia Cowan. Korda has four wins and three runner-ups through her first eight starts in 2026.

Last Tournament: 81st U.S. Women’s Open (Nelly Korda)

Next Tournament: Meijer LPGA Classic, Belmont, Mich., June 18-21

PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS

THIS WEEK: Principal Charity Classic, Des Moines, Iowa, June 12-14

Course: Wakonda Club (Par 72, 6,865 Yards)

Purse: $2M (Winner: $300,000)

Defending Champion: Miguel Angel Jimenez

Charles Schwab Cup leader: Stewart Cink

HOW TO FOLLOW

TV: Friday: 10 p.m.-Midnight ET (Golf Channel – Tape Delay); Saturday: 5-7 p.m. (GC); Sunday: 3-6 p.m. (GC)

X: @ChampionsTour

NOTES: Iowa native Zach Johnson is No. 2 in the Charles Schwab Cup standings as the Champions Tour rookie makes his event debut. … Ernie Els holds the tournament scoring record of 21-under 195 set in 2024.

Last Tournament: American Family Insurance Championship (Darren Clarke, Ben Crane)

Next Tournament: Dick’s Open, Endicott, N.Y., June 26-28

LIV GOLF

THIS WEEK: OFF.

2026 Season Leaders: Individual: Jon Rahm; Team: 4Aces GC

Last Event: LIV Golf Andalucia (Individual: Tyrrell Hatton; Team: Legion XIII)

Next Event: LIV Golf United Kingdom, July 23-26

DP WORLD TOUR

THIS WEEK: OFF.

Race to Dubai Leader: Patrick Reed

Last Tournament: KLM Open (Eugenio Chacarra)

Next Tournament: Open d’Italia, Torino, Italy, June 25-28

–Field Level Media