Bielsa takes responsibility for Uruguay's debacle, says he left nothing good for Uruguayan soccer

GUADALAJARA, Mexico (AP) — Coach Marcelo Bielsa looked desolate after Uruguay's World Cup campaign ended in disappointment Friday, saying he was fully responsible for the team's elimination and blaming himself for leaving nothing good for Uruguayan soccer during his stint with the national team.

Uruguay lost 1-0 to Spain, leaving the tournament without any victories. It was coming off draws against Saudi Arabia and Cape Verde. It was newcomer Cape Verde that advanced from Group H in second-place behind Spain.

Bielsa, the Argentine coach whose contract with Uruguay's soccer federation was valid through the World Cup, said in the past that his work with the national team would end after the tournament in the U.S., Mexico and Canada. He voice had a farewell tone on Friday.

“What do I leave for Uruguayan soccer?" he said. “Nothing, because any contribution that a coach might make to soccer in a country after three years of work never truly takes hold if results aren’t achieved. Fourth place in the qualifiers didn’t count for much, and a third-place finish in the Copa América didn’t, either. And there is obviously no need to spell it out after what happened now.

"A tenure that left nothing behind.”

The veteran coach took full responsibility for the team's campaign at the World Cup, saying he should have been able to get the team to do more considering the quality of its players. But he did feel that Uruguay should have had better luck considering its performances.

“I think we deserved to win seven points from the three matches, but we leave with only two points,” he said.

At 19th in the FIFA rankings, Uruguay is the highest-ranked team to be eliminated so far.

It was the second time Bielsa coached a team that didn't advance past the group stage at the World Cup, following Argentina's debacle in the 2002 tournament in South Korea and Japan. He helped Chile reach the round of 16 of the tournament in South Africa in 2010 for his best World Cup result.

See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa, left, protests to referee during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Uruguay and Spain in Zapopan, near Guadalajara, Mexico, Friday, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko )

Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa reacts during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Uruguay and Spain in Zapopan, near Guadalajara, Mexico, Friday, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko )

Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa reacts during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Uruguay and Spain in Zapopan, near Guadalajara, Mexico, Friday, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko )

Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa watches sits on a cooler during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Uruguay and Spain in Zapopan, near Guadalajara, Mexico, Friday, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko )

Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (AP) — Burkina Faso’s military government severed diplomatic ties with France, its former colonial ruler that had been a key security partner for the West African nation before relations fractured.

The junta said in a statement Friday it broke off relations with France effective immediately, accusing it of "blatant neo-colonial ambitions and active support for subversive networks and terrorists,” without providing evidence.

France’s Foreign Minsitry spokesman Pascal Confavreux said in a statement that the country regrets the “hostile and unfounded decision, which illustrates the worrying drift of the Burkinabè authorities.”

“Necessary reciprocal measures are currently under review,” he said. Confavreux added that France is monitoring the safety of French government personnel and citizens in Burkina Faso and urged them to exercise heightened vigilance.

The West African country of 23 million people has been battered by yearslong violence perpetrated by extremist groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, as well as government forces often accused of extrajudicial killings. Its wider Sahel region is the world’s deadliest region for extremism.

It was unclear what would follow the end of diplomatic relations or how the French embassy in Burkina Faso would be affected.

“The conditions essential for fostering relations based on mutual respect, reciprocal trust, and respect for the principle of non-interference in internal affairs and national sovereignty are no longer met,” Burkina Faso’s Communications Minister Pingdwende Gilbert Ouedraogo said in a statement.

The two sides suffered broken relations for years.

Burkina Faso's military government has in the past targeted foreign diplomats, including the French, whom it has often accused of working against its interests. In 2023, the junta asked France to recall its ambassador and declared the United Nations’ resident and humanitarian coordinator in the country persona non grata, while in 2024, it expelled three French diplomats for alleged subversive activities.

France was Burkina Faso's major security partner until a 2022 coup. The junta then sacked hundreds of French forces sent to fight extremist groups.

The violence has worsened under the military government that had promised to curb it, analysts say.

In the two years following the coup, Burkina Faso forces allegedly killed twice as many civilians as extremists, according to a recent report by the Human Rights Watch, which blamed government forces for at least 1,200 of the 1,837 civilians killed in the country between January 2023 and August 2025.

FILE - In this photo provided by RIA Novosti, Burkina Faso President Ibrahim Traore arrives at the Grand Palace at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on May 10, 2025. (Stanislav Krasilnikov/RIA Novosti via AP, File)