The World Cup craze is back this year, promising more excitement than ever, thanks to the participation of a world-class Thai K-Pop artist, LISA Manoban, in the opening ceremony of the 2026 World Cup.

LISA, a renowned artist with numerous accomplishments in singing, dancing, acting, modeling, presenting, and brand ambassadorship, is an idol for children, teenagers, and adults worldwide. Her participation will undoubtedly add vibrancy to the World Cup and significantly enhance Thailand's Soft Power image.

Meanwhile, in Thailand, the government hastily announced that Thais will definitely be able to watch the live broadcast of the World Cup this year. However, the problem is: where will this money come from in this struggling economy? Recently, they rushed through the Emergency Decree for a 400 billion baht loan.

Many parties have opposed this, arguing it's like giving the government a blank check. The opposition cannot question the details of how the money will be used or how it will be recouped and sustained in Thailand. Spending the money isn't difficult, though. However, raising funds for the country is more difficult.

Therefore, the government must be clear about who is hosting the World Cup broadcast and who the main and secondary sponsors are, to avoid long-term problems for Thailand.

While sports are beneficial and help inspire Thai children and teenagers to develop into professional footballers, generating income for themselves, their families, and the nation,

everything must be transparent and clear, with sufficient budget distributed to various sports to ensure the development of all Thai sports. There are many talented Thai athletes who have brought fame to Thailand in various sports, such as jet skiing, triathlon, golf, volleyball, football, basketball, snooker, Muay Thai, taekwondo, and others. This will boost the morale of Thai youth who love sports, allowing them to develop and pursue world-class athletic careers in the future.