8 June 25 - July 1, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents paratransit services in DART’s 13 member cities in 2024 (the number is now 12 cities with the withdrawal of Highland Park). In a release announcing the procurement, DART noted that there are “approximately 11,000 riders certified to use Paratransit services and with Microtransit ridership of over 886,000 in fiscal year 2023.” Smalls said “it feels good” after reaching a settlement with the company, but added that the situation could have been avoided. “The only disappointing side about it is that we left passengers in limbo,” he said. “I don’t like that, because people depend on the service, and when they have to wake up every day to ask the question, ‘Is my service going to be running tomorrow?’ Shame on the powers that be.” ▼ WORLD CUP AFTER ALL, YOU’RE MY WONDER WALL FC DALLAS STAR SCORES WORLD CUP GOAL, ENGLAND SINGS A VICTORY SONG. BY MIKE BROOKS, KELLY DEARMORE U nlike some of the pubs in town over the past few days, there have not been any reports of AT&T Stadium running out of beer during the FIFA 2026 World Cup. Yet.. It’s safe to assume that the England soccer supporters who reportedly drank a local bar dry likely put a sizable dent in the massive stadium suds supply. Any World Cup match is a major occur- rence, and anytime global stars including England’s Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Croatia’s Luka Modric take the pitch all at once, a match becomes a can’t-miss bonanza. But last Wednesday, the England vs Croatia group stage contest became the World Cup debut of a hometown hero, FC Dallas striker Petar Musa. Prior to the start of the tournament, it was not a foregone conclusion that Musa would start for the Croatian team, but perhaps it was simply meant to be, given they were playing so close to where his club team performs. Over the past couple of seasons, Musa has proven to be worth every penny of the club-record $9.7 million transfer fee that FC Dallas paid in 2024. Although Kane scored a pair of goals and Bellingham helped ensure England’s victory with an impressive strike in the second half, a North Texas soccer buff will certainly be forgiven if the match’s highlight didn’t in- volve either of those all-world talents. Just before the end of the first half, Musa nailed home a gorgeous volley past England keeper Jordan Pickford to bring his team even with England at two goals each, and to bring one of the more exciting halves of the 2026 World Cup thus far to a close. England’s insane roster depth would prove to be too much for Musa, Modric and Croatia in the second half, as both Croatian stars were subbed out while England took control with a 4-2 lead that they would not relinquish. Similar to Sunday’s match be- tween the Netherlands and Japan, however, supporters of both teamslst week never let their voices be hushed, regardless of the score. As the stadium emptied, the harmoni- cally shouted lyrics to “Hey, Jude,” “Sweet Caroline,” and “Wonderwall” echoed through the halls, sending supporters on their way. ▼ WORLD CUP THAT’S A RED CARD SOCCER FANS ANGERED AFTER THIRD-PARTY TICKETS FALL THROUGH FOR DALLAS MATCH. BY EMMA RUBY W hat was supposed to be a day of cultural celebration, years in the making, turned into a disap- pointment for Rozina Taguchi and her par- ents on June 14. For two years, the trio has vowed to travel wherever necessary to see Team Japan play in the FIFA 2026 World Cup. Her father was born and raised in Japan, and growing up, Taguchi was taught to have a deep sense of Japanese pride. The family lives in Oklahoma, but maintains a Dallas residence, so when it was announced last year that the Blue Samu- rai would play two matches at Dallas Stadium, it was a no-brainer that they’d attend. “We were thrilled,” said Taguchi. “This was going to be a great family opportunity.” They paid $1,500 for three tickets to last Sunday’s game using the third-party ticket- ing platform StubHub. In the days leading up to the match, the ticketing app promised that their passes would appear between 24 and 48 hours ahead of the game. But Sunday morning, they woke up only to find out the tickets had never materialized. StubHub notified the Taguchis that the seller whose tickets they’d bought had never handed the tickets over to the platform. They | QUEST FOR THE CUP | The first week of 2026 World Cup matches brought legendary names including Lionel Messi (top) and Harry Kane (bottom) and passionate fans from Croatia and beyond to AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Photos by Mike Brooks Still Darting Around from p6 Yeah, better read the fine print, fans. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images.jpg
