meagan fitzgerald, thank you for your coverage. rhodes, as a former deputy national security advisor and i assume a soccer fan, it went further than that. the secretary of state, you heard him say, this is not about geopolitics. all attempts by iran through the state media are trying to disparage america. >> yeah. there's nothing new about that, andrea. they have been doing that for years. i think the problem for iran is that the whole world can see what the view of the iranian people is through these protests and the view of iranian people through these protests. their efforts to try to distract from that by spotlighting america's problems, america's racial disparities is not going to take away the attention from what the world can see happening in iran. most importantly, the fact that the iranian soccer team seems to be in solidarity with iranian's women and the protesters. that's a huge embarrassment to the government. the stance they are taking, that is the most interesting thing that's happening at the world cup. the thing tha

meagan fitzgerald has been all over this live from doha. >> reporter: it was an unexpected distractionteam usa says they were blind-sided by, we're going to fill you in with all of the latest details coming up after the break. coming up after the break. ♪ birds flyin' high, you know how i feel. ♪ ♪ breeze driftin' on... ♪ [coughing] ♪ ...by, you know how i feel. ♪ if you're tired of staring down your copd,... ♪ it's a new dawn, ♪ ♪ it's a new day... ♪ ...stop settling. ♪ ...and i'm feelin' good. ♪ start a new day with trelegy. no once-daily copd medicine has the power to treat copd in as many ways as trelegy. with three medicines in one inhaler, trelegy makes breathing easier for a full 24 hours, improves lung function, and helps prevent future flare-ups. trelegy won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. do not take trelegy more than prescribed. trelegy may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tong

joining us now is nbc's meagan fitzgerald.e seems to be just like unexpected victories over unexpected victories. >> reporter: jose, i'm telling you, this is the tournament where you have to expect the unexpected. i mean, so many to talk about, but morocco, number 22nd in the world defeating belgium ranked number two in the world 2-0. i mean, we're constantly seeing these upsets. we're seeing people following the game, the news on the field, but then, of course, there's the news off the field. as you mentioned, now iran upset with the u.s., calling for them to be suspended for ten games, calling for them to be kicked off the world cup after the u.s. soccer federation removed that emblem from their flag on the social media sites. team usa says they were blindsided. they knew nothing about this. we've been talking to fans who are paying attention to all that's happening and i want you to hear from what they had to say. >> i think politics has become part of the game. but both domestically and more so even internationally. but it

nbc's meagan fitzgerald live from doha.nk you very much. >> the iranian media should focus more on girls getting gunned down in the street by the thugs. >> the morality police. >> the morality police and young girls getting sexually assaulted and abused by those people. they should probably focus more on that. >>> coming up, will smith talks about the slap that got him banned from the oscars and tries to explain why he reacted that way. "morning joe" will be right back. (snorting) if you struggle with cpap... (groan) (growling) (chuckle) ...you should check out inspire. no mask. no hose. just sleep. (beeping) learn more and view important safety information at inspiresleep.com. i'm javi, i'm 31, and i'm a fitness instructor. i saw myself in a photograph. and we were all smiling, and i looked closer, and i was like that- that's what everybody sees? i'm back, and i got botox® cosmetic. the lines were so prominent it's all i saw in the photograph, so now when i take photos, and i see myself in photos, its- it's me, i just have

. >> i want to bring in meagan fitzgerald who is at the world cup in doha.'s been like there given that the big world stage that the world cup has at this moment and everything we've seen happen off the soccer field. >> reporter: well, you know, hallie, there's some contradiction here, right? the qatari government has said that everyone is welcomed here. they don't discriminate and just come as you are. but at the same time, being openly gay here is illegal. you can be thrown in jail for being who you are. body an opportunity to sit down with an openly gay qatari who actually is living right now in san francisco. he was able to speak freely and had some good perspective to share on what it's really like. let's listen to a little bit of our conversation. >> for the fans themselves that are going to qatar, the message is to honestly watch out for their safety. you need to understand that the concept of the lgbtq community is completely lacking over there. just lgbt visibility would be perceived as a provocative gesture. >> reporter: and then of course there's

thank you very much, meagan fitzgerald.g of this hit, but you won in the end, my friend. thank you. >>> what is going to do it for me today. i think she got the joke. i think it's coming over, there's a delay and she's laughing about it now. that will do it for me today. hallie jackson picks up our coverage next. today hallie jackson picks up our coverage next. remember this? but i spoke to our advisor, and our vanguard investments are on track. “we got this, babe.” so go do what you love. thanks for being our superhero. only at vanguard, you're more than just an investor—you're an owner. giving you flexibility to follow your dreams. that's the value of ownership. with fidelity income planning, we'll help you create a clear, personalized plan for cash flow, even when you're not working. a plan that includes all your accounts so you can enjoy whatever comes next. that's the planning effect. from fidelity. want your clothes to smell freshly washed all day without heavy perfumes? try downy light in-wash freshness boosters. it

and meagan fitzgerald.orld cup focus is on soccer but in this instance, there is so much more going on beyond the field of play. >> reporter: yes, you're absolutely right. we have been speaking with fans who flew all this way to be a part of this massive event, to kind of get a flavor of what they're feeling and what they're thinking, and look, these fans are paying attention, they understand that this is a collision of sports, with social justice issues, and politics, all wrapped up in one and they are very supportive of the players who are trying in the case of the europeans trying to take a stand against what they believe is the right thing to do. they are in favor of iran, not singing the national anthem, standing in solidarity with the women in their country, and this game is shrouded in controversy. and it certainly is hard to overlook. but you know, we've got a fan base here that is really embracing that, and really sort of, as you say, rolling with the punches. we asked them about the severe situati

meagan fitzgerald is live from doha, what's the reaction on the ground, and what do we know about theric. people are so excited, i mean this is what the fans travel here for, to try and see team usa pull off a win, and they did. now, they're heading to the next round. today, as far as team usa is concerned, they had the day off. they're hanging out with their families. they're relaxing. going in the pool. tomorrow, it is back to work. they've got two more practices that they'll get in before the big game against the netherlands on saturday. but look, the fans, they're just celebrating. take a listen to what they said. >> yes, it's amazing. we waited eight years for this. to be back in the world cup. >> i feel fantastic. freedom always wins. >> electric. it was, it was loud. it was really loud. my voice is gone. i couldn't hear the person sitting next to me for 90 minutes. it was great. better that we won. >> reporter: a stream of happiness just pouring out of that stadium. listen, note team usa is not favored to win on saturday. but the reality of the situation here is we have seen up

and it's the craft is sponsorship system known as capella to elo meagan workers to change jobs without needing their employee years. consent says winning the rights to host the world. cop cut that has show keys is major though a lot more projects for the tournament, and also taken diesel paternity to turn its capital doha into world wide cultural, social, and educational hub, reflect in heritage and life of the region. education city now host 8, prestigious international universities and new museums and libraries preserve the history of the country and the region with experts comprising more than 2 thirds of its population cut that has created many green spaces and social and entertain facilities. a bigger strategy in terms of, you know, modernizing the country, developing its infrastructure capabilities and even just kind of putting it on the map so to speak, in terms of it being not just obviously a hub of, of natural resources. you know, as a, as a, one of the biggest gas exporters in the world. but thinking about it also in terms of a cultural hub with the construction of its schoo

this is meagan. i'm a former sfusd teacher, also currently at coast state director for grassroots (indiscernible) of california and i want to ex cothe sentiments regarding the empowering situation. that's devastating and you've got to fix that. i called about early literacy. i -- i signed the petition because it's a critical part of education for literacy. you know, the foundation of all other learning and it is (indiscernible) attention. we're so excited that sfusd and (indiscernible) of the curriculum and urge the district to follow the audit. i want to bring to your attention, a podcast published a few days ago that really exposes how sfusd's method are counter to science. pod cost is called told the story by amp report and all parents and evenly caters really must -- all educator must listen to this. this is a critical topic and we're at a critical juncture, thank you. >> thank you. i will call the final three callers. sarah, betty, and h. kelly. again, that's sarah, betty, and h. kelly. sarah, g

meagan fitzgerald in doha, and set the stage for us, and are there plenty of americans there to cheeram usa? >> chris, first of all, the atmosphere here is electric. i mean these fans are pumped up. they're so excited. they're ready to go. they're ready to cheer on team usa to victory. and they're not worried about other things, they traveled in from all over, from california, from north carolina, new york, kansas, and many of them just got in today. i asked them if it is worth it, and they said they would do it over and over and over again for this moment. they're not worried about the odds. we know that team usa is going into this as the underdog. england is ranked fifth. the reality of it is, it is not all lost, it puts more pressure on them and they absolutely have to defend next week against iran. and what we know about this tournament, it is unpredictable. we have seen upsets, over and over again. we saw saudi arabia, versus argentina, obviously that's the biggest one, but we also saw japan beat germany. so what we know for sure is that anything is possible. all eyes on team usa

meagan fitzgerald is live with more. >> how did team usa celebrate their big win?porter: they are so excited and want to continue this momentum. they had a late night yesterday. they slept in today. they took the day off. they're relaxing, recuperating, spending time with their family. they're hitting the pool. but the bottom line is, they say they came here to doha, qatar regardless of what the odds are to win a world cup title. they're staying focused. they'll practice tomorrow ahead of the big game on saturday where they take on the netherlands. the fans are ready to party. take a listen to what they told me yesterday. >> how did it feel? >> it's amazing! we waited eight years for this, to be back in a world cup. >> how did it feel for you? >> great. >> it feels really exciting to get a win for the u.s. >> what was it like inside of the stadium? >> it was very intense. we're so happy that we won. >> reporter: so much excitement here. and, look, team usa not favored to win against the netherlandss. they're ranked eighth. team usa is ranked 16th. what we've seen i

what can we expect today, meagan fitzgerald?to talk about as you just mentioned there. but let's start there. team usa has a chance of winning today against wales. they are evenly matched. they are one of the youngest teams in the tournament. only one player on the team has world cup experience. look, they say they are fired up, they're ready to go. the first of 32 teams to arrive here in doha, hitting the ground running, even practicing late last night. we went to one of their games. i had an opportunity to sit down with star goalie matt turner to talk a little bit about how he's feeling. i want you to listen to part of our conversation. >> reporter: is team usa going all the way here? >> one step at a time, obviously. we can't look too far ahead. our biggest thing is we've set milestone goals along the way. >> and so i also had an opportunity to talk to him about all this controversy, this cloud of controversy that's really hanging over the tournament and he said, look, we are focused on one thing and one thing only and that's

meagan fitzgerald, thank you. a lot of controversy in doha.eporting on the human rights abuses of those laborers who often went back to their home countries and were deported without being fully paid. remember, telemundo and peacock are home to spanish language coverage of the world cup. >>> this morning two lucky turkeys received the best news a bird could get three days before thanksgiving at a chilly white house ceremony in the rose garden. president biden pardoning chocolate and chip, making them the latest to take part in an annual condition that makes us nostalgic for another west wing turkey moment >> why are there two turkeys? >> the press secretary decides which is the two finalist as more photogenic. their names -- >> i don't want to know their names. >> eric and troy. >> eric and troy? >> yeah. >> and i have to choose the more photogenic of the two to receive a pardon. >> yeah. >> i have a master's degree from the university of berkeley. >> that's a good school. >> yeah. >> she's a berkeley woman. how could she be asked to identify,

meagan fitzgerald, tony blinken has been weighing in on this.h all we have seen. >> reporter: what we have seen over the last several days, since this tournament began, is politics, human rights and supports colliding together. when the iranian men, for example, took the field in their first match, they stood silent as their national anthem rang out, seemingly standing in solidarity with the women of their country that are fighting for basic human rights. we saw that same game, protesters in the stands. a couple of days later, at the second match, we saw pro-iranian government protesters clashing with anti-iranian government protesters. as you mentioned, we had the u.s. soccer federation, what they were trying to do. that angering the iranians, catching the team in the crosshairs. secretary of state blinken at a press conference today basically saying we need to watch the game and let the players do what they came to do. >> i'm sorry to interrupt. we have to go back to the white house. >>> we have kevin mccarthy now talking about the meeting tha

meagan fitzgerald has made her way to doha. joins us this morning with more good morning. >> reporter: craig, good morning to you team usa came out hot. they were doing well the majority of the game but in the end it wasn't the result they were looking for tying with wales now making it more challenging to advance to the next round a disappointing start for team usa in their first world cup appearance in nearly a decade. the americans tying wales in their first round match after leading the game most of the way. tim scoring the first goal for team usa, but minutes before the end of the game a penalty kick from wales star player gareth bale tying the match which ended 1-1. but before the game started controversy. u.s. journalist grant wall taking to twitter saying he was briefly detained for wearing a rainbow shirt in support of lgbtq rights, being openly gay is illegal in qatar. back on the field in the same group as the americans, all eyes on the iranian team, using their match against england to send a statement to the world

. >> meagan fitzgerald, live from doha, qatar. thank you so much, and we greatly appreciate it. have fun there, at least during the game if you can. >>> not word association, we're going to do year association. i'm going to name a random world, and you tell me what comes to mind. >> oh, i wouldn't want to play this game. what are you doing? >> 1966, katty. >> so we're not going there again, right? the state of the game we played against the usa the other day, it didn't look so good for the england team. i'm hoping, you have just spoken about one great rivalry today, which is usa match. you completely forgot to mention the england wales match which is almost as big a rivalry happening at the same time to see who comes out of group one. the prince of wales actually asked who he was supporting in this, which might be awkward, given he's the prince of wales, and clearly english and had to admit he was clearly english. i thought you guys looked great over the weekend on friday. it's a younger fitter team than the english team, and the doha weather is tough on teams that don't have st