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Connect the World

Trump on Qatar-gifted Air Force One for Inaugural Flight; Trump Made More Than $1B From Crypto Businesses in 2025; People Scouring Rubble by Hand While Machinery Sits Idle; String of Alligator Attacks Puts Florida Residents on Alert; U.S. Lifts Restrictions on Anthropic's Most Advanced AI Models. Aired 9-9:45a ET

Aired July 01, 2026 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: Well, this is the scene in Washington where new disclosures show that U.S. President Donald Trump made

more than a billion dollars from crypto ventures in his first year back in office. 09:00 a.m. in Washington, it is 05:00 p.m. here in Abu Dhabi.

I'm Becky Anderson. You're watching "Connect the World". Also coming up, desperation and rage. CNN on the ground in Venezuela, where families of

those still missing are turning their anger on the government there. And the world's oceans hit a worrying new heat record, with summer's hottest

temperatures still to come.

Stock market in New York opens about 30 minutes from now. This is the picture. The markets are weaker on the futures market, that is an

indication generally of the way that the markets will open. Back there in half an hour for that opening. Well, this hour, U.S. President Donald Trump

is on board the new presidential Air Force One, bound for North Dakota.

The inaugural fight happening on a Boeing 747 gifted by Qatar. $400 million aircraft underwent significant modifications ahead of the flight. It is

meant to bridge the gap between two additional planes undergoing modifications in the small fleet of aging 747s that have been used to

transport U.S. Presidents around the world. Donald Trump talked about it before boarding.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: -- this will be the first flight of what I think is maybe the greatest commercial plane

ever built. They said to Boeing, what's the best one? They said this is the best plane ever built, and you're going to have the privilege of flying it,

and I have a privilege also of flying it, but this is the first flight.

We're going to the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library opening, and that'll be very good. That'll be a lot of fun, but I think you know, to be

honest with you, I'm excited about the first one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, the other big story involving President Trump today, his newly released financial disclosure, which shows that he made more than a

billion dollars from cryptocurrency ventures in his first year back in office. That includes 526 million from sales of crypto tokens tied to a

firm managed in part by his sons, Eric and Don Jr.

Well more than 900-page disclosure offers the most extensive look to date at Mr. Trump's growing fortune during his second term. The earnings are

frankly unprecedented for a sitting president. And the White House says there are no conflicts of interest tied to his business ventures.

Well, CNN's Senior White House Reporter Kevin Liptak with us today. Let's talk about these presidential earnings, or Donald Trump's earnings, while

he has been in office. What did he have to say about the disclosure today?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, he's really trying to shrug off any suggestion that he could be profiting off the presidency, but

I think when you pour through this disclosure, it's almost 1000 pages long. It is evident that being president has been very good for President Trump's

bottom line.

The other, I think, take away from this document is that President Trump is no longer just in the property business, he is very much in the crypto

business. That is where the vast majority of his revenues have come from over the last year, and even though he is insisting that he himself is not

making any of these decisions.

It is evident that some of the moves that he has made since taking office, rolling back some of the Biden-era regulations on the crypto atmosphere,

has allowed him to take advantage of this new budding money-making area for him. Now, he did address this when he was getting on Air Force One. Listen

to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I purposely, I never speak to any of the people that run the money, but they're at big institutions, and they invest in whatever they invest.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But to critics who said -- to critics who say you're profiting off the presidency, Mr. --

[09:05:00]

TRUMP: Well, you know why I'm profiting, because the stock market's going up, everybody's profiting, if you have a 401(k). How's your 401(k) done?

You got up 85 percent Thank you, President Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIPTAK: I want to take out two things that he said there. One, he said he never talks to the people who are managing his money. The people who are

managing this crypto firm are his sons, Eric and Don Jr. Don Jr. was literally standing behind him on the tarmac, so that allegation doesn't

particularly hold up.

The other thing that he claimed was that this massive windfall that he saw over the last year was because of the rising stock markets, when in fact

the bulk of his money, more than a billion dollars, came from these two crypto ventures, one World Liberty Financial, which has been selling

certain coins, has been a number of a large stake of the company was actually bought by the United Arab Emirates.

So that's really separate from the stock market, the other area in which he was able to profit in the crypto realm was this meme coin. He brought in

more than $600 million from that, from this coin that was stamped with his face, that also directly profited from a change in regulations very, very

early in his term.

And so, the president seems to be suggesting that because the stock market is doing well, that he himself is doing well, but when you look at the

disclosures, it is evident that his massive revenues, really unprecedented for any president, are largely derived from other ventures.

Now, when it comes to his sort of traditional businesses, they too are doing well, and just to pick out one example, Mar-a-Lago, his club down in

South Florida brought in $77 million last year. That is a major increase from the year before.

ANDERSON: Well, I've got you, Kevin, the new Qatari gifted Air Force One, and we've seen the images of Donald Trump there getting onto that flight

today. It's the inaugural flight of this plane. I spoke to the Prime Minister of Qatar when this transaction was announced, and he called it a

very simple government to government dealing, but it is one that Donald Trump was pretty excited to show off today, right?

LIPTAK: Very much so. And the president is making a couple of points here. One is that the old Air Force One, the old 747 that had been in service for

more than 30 years, was becoming very expensive to maintain and was getting very old in the interior, which is accurate.

You know, I've flown on this plane, a lot, and it is quite dated on the inside, and the new plane, by all accounts, is much nicer. They actually

didn't change the interior at all, so he is flying in the same environs as the Qatari royal family. The other point that the president is making is

that this was simply a gift from the Qatari government.

And when you talk to White House officials, they have consistently sort of shrugged off all of the ethical, legal, national security concerns that

would be incumbent on a plane that came from a foreign government, and they did spend the better part of the last year trying to retrofit some of the

security protocols from the plane, presumably that included looking for anything that the Qataris may have left in the aircraft before they handed

it over to President Trump.

And so, this is, I think, a major moment for him. The main difference that you see in this plane is the exterior. He has done away with the robin's

egg blue that was on these planes since Jacqueline Kennedy designed it back in the 60s.

He's put in place a much bolder color scheme, the red, white, and blue, and I think it's notable. It very much looks like the private plane that the

president flies around in when he is not president.

ANDERSON: Good to have you -- Kevin. Thank you very much indeed. I want to now connect you, the viewers, to this region, where I am in the Gulf, and a

flurry of new diplomatic activity. A source says that U.S. and Iranian officials are having indirect, lower-level discussions through Qatari and

Pakistani mediators.

The Iranian delegation met Qatar's Prime Minister, a short time ago. Iran's Chief Negotiator said there can be no further talks with the U.S. unless

the conditions laid out in this memorandum of understanding are met.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMAD BAGHER GHALIBAF, IRANIAN CHIEF NEGOTIATOR: A lot more harmony at the moment we are coordinating and holding discussions to ensure those

conditions in MOU are fulfilled. I will explain further later. Until those commitments are in place, we will not move on to the remaining provisions

at all.

But Iranian sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz rests with Iran and Oman, and with the arrangements that Iran determines there.

[09:10:00]

From the day that we in fact lifted the blockade. Until today, we have exported more than 40 million barrels of oil. Today we are receiving the

same price of our oil as the bread price quoted on international markets.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, on Tuesday, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and President Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, met with Qatar's Prime Minister. Both

Iran and the ceasefire in Lebanon came up with Qatari mediators, we are told. One of the critical sticking points remains the future of the Strait

of Hormuz.

Sources say Oman has delivered a proposal to the U.S., which includes shipping companies paying fees for use of that waterway. And next hour on

"Connect the World", we'll look more closely on where these Qatar-mediated talks stand. What are both sides really looking to gain at this point, and

what about that clock ticking on the 60-day deadline?

Sina Toossi from the Center for International Policy is my guest next hour. It's been one week since devastating twin earthquakes hit Venezuela. The

death toll continues to rise. Nearly 2000 people now have been confirmed dead. The U.S. Charge dAffaires in Venezuela, John M. Barrett has been

touring the rubble of collapsed buildings.

He met with American teams as the search and rescue operations continue, but there has been anger now about how the rescue has been handled, with

many Venezuelans being forced to dig through the rubble with their bare hands as heavy duty equipment goes unused. CNN's Isa Soares has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ISA SOARES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With nothing more than borrowed tools, Deivis Ramos digs through the rubble. The twin mattresses of his two

little girls are within sight, and he anchors his strength in knowing that soon he will hold them close, even if it's a final goodbye.

DEIVIS RAMOS, FAMILY MISSING AFTER EARTHQUAKE: I can't think about crying right now. I can't beat the thought of it -- it tears my soul apart --

because tears -- tears won't move a stone.

SOARES (voice-over): While we hear rescue team from North Carolina arrive looking for signs of life or death.

JACK THORPE, RESOURCE RESCUE INTERNATIONAL: I know that we have still been finding people alive in these buildings, so I'm not ready to give up yet.

SOARES (voice-over): Almost a week since those fateful back-to-back earthquakes, hope of finding survivors is fading fast. But in the midst of

unimaginable grief, a moment of compassion and humanity between an American rescuer and a grieving Venezuelan father.

The scene here in La Guaira is apocalyptic, with countless buildings pancaked by the ferocity of the quakes, and while families wait for

answers, heavy machinery sits idle.

SOARES: Sir. Why is the machine not on?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't have fuel.

SOARES: He doesn't have petrol. He doesn't have fuel. I mean, tell that to the families.

SOARES (voice-over): A sorry sight for one of the world's largest oil reserves. Hassell Mendoza has seen this first hand. She traveled from

Tampa, Florida, to search for her loved ones.

HASSELL MENDOZA, FAMILY MISSING AFTER EARTHQUAKE: This guy worked with the nails.

SOARES: The hands.

MENDOZA: They try -- yeah, the hands, they try to do everything without nothing. They don't have, you know, shoes, they don't have machine-like

drills, big drills that you need, they don't have sensors, they don't have anything.

SOARES (voice-over): We walk from building to building. The scale of destruction stretches for blocks around every corner.

SOARES: Didn't have a chance.

SOARES (voice-over): A house of horrors. Still Venezuelans did, with rickety tools, shovels, and buckets. As we depart La Guaira, an arresting

scene of casket after casket and of overwhelming loss. Isa Soares, CNN, La Guaira, Venezuela.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well Ukraine's President says that his forces have hit a Russian oil refinery more than 1300 kilometers from the front line, as well as a

missile components factory. Now that is another display of Kyiv's focus on targeting Moscow's infrastructure. On Tuesday, Ukraine hit one of Russia's

largest satellite communication centers for a second time.

Now Russia hasn't confirmed the strike, but said a six-month-old baby died when a Ukrainian drone hit a home south of the capital, Moscow. Meanwhile,

authorities say at least two people died when a Russian glide bomb hit the Ukrainian City of Zaporizhzhia on Tuesday.

[09:15:00]

That comes as head and NATO said the members will pledge long-term assistance to Kyiv at a summit next week. Well, our Sebastian Shukla is in

Berlin, where the NATO Secretary General was speaking earlier today. And the big question mark over next week's NATO summit in Turkey will be

American commitment to what is this long-term pledge?

You pushed Mark Rutte on that point today, Sebastian. What did he say?

SEBASTIAN SHUKLA, CNN PRODUCER: Yeah, good afternoon, Becky. The U.N., the NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, came and attended a German cabinet

meeting in a room here known as the submarine at the German Defense Ministry. It's a sort of relic of the Cold War act, I think, for the times

facing the continent more broadly.

But the message that is supposed to be being delivered by all of the European alliance members of NATO is that they have heard the message

coming from the White House and from Donald Trump about increasing defense spending, reducing reliance on Washington for their support, and investing

in their own defensive capabilities.

For weeks now, we've seen a swathe of different political events, from the chancellor here to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Macron in Paris, trying

to appease Donald Trump for their spending, and that they have heard what he has wanted them to do, and they have acquiesced.

I pushed Mark Rutte on the question, though, about the defense spending commitments of the European allies, and that, given that the Americans are

taking a step back in NATO across the board, does that mean that the reliance and that the defense of Ukraine rest solely on the Europeans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK RUTTE, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: When it comes to the defense of Ukraine, the U.S. is still indispensable. The flow of key support from the

United States into Ukraine continues, paid for by Canadians and Europeans, and I think that's only fair.

This is this famous PEARL program, and these are, for example, the interceptors for the patriot systems, protecting the critical

infrastructure in Ukraine, energy infrastructure, the inner cities, and only the U.S. can do this at scale, and is still doing that, and helping in

so many other ways.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHUKLA: And that is the same message that followed immediately after that by the German Chancellor, who said and reminded me that we should look at

what happened in Evian, where President Trump remained on the same page as European partners, and that they believe now that all of those G7 members

believe that the president is fully behind them and supporting and pledged his support not only to the European nations and NATO, but also to Ukraine.

But, Becky, as you well know, the proof is almost certainly in the pudding. The flour has been added, the eggs are in the bowl, it's all been stirred

up now, Becky, that we have to wait to see whether the summit in Ankara next week goes exactly to plan. The Europeans have been trying so hard to

make sure that it doesn't get derailed at all by Donald Trump and the cross hairs that the alliance has been in for some time.

And so that the main topic of the alliance, and one of the themes that they can focus on entirely, is ending the war in Ukraine, Becky.

ANDERSON: Yeah, good to have you, Sebastian. Thank you very much indeed. Important stuff. Well, still to come, the warning beneath the waves, the

world's oceans have reached record June temperatures. Why scientists say the impacts could be felt far beyond the coast?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:20:00]

ANDERSON: Well, the world's oceans have just hit their hottest, hottest, hottest average temperature ever recorded for the month of June. New data

from Europe's Copernicus Climate Service shows the global average sea surface temperature reached 20.86 degrees Celsius, or 69.5 degrees

Fahrenheit, on June 21st.

Scientists say the combination of human-driven climate change and a growing El Nino could push the planet into what they call uncharted territory.

Well, CNN Chief Climate Correspondent Bill Weir here with more. We are seeing Bill, record breaking heat on land now record-breaking ocean

temperatures. How, if at all, connected are these events?

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: Directly, directly, Becky, the heat wave in Europe this last couple of brutal weeks directly connected to

an overheating Arctic Ocean as well, and its only June, and a super El Nino has only just begun.

But if you look at all the data that's gathered with satellites and ships and buoys, as you mentioned, that near 70 degrees Fahrenheit, 21 degrees

Celsius, just shy of those, which is off the charts compared to the 30 year average, but then edges past 2024 we live in the age of broken record

breaking, where these records maybe last a day on land, maybe they last a year on these sea surface temperatures, Becky, but the oceans have covered

a multitude of sins for humanity.

90 percent of the excess heat is stored in the oceans, about the energy of maybe 10 Hiroshima-sized atomic bombs are absorbed every second, and as

that ice sheet at the North Pole, which really shields the earth from both the heat in the oceans from rising out and above, it's disappearing, which

means a lot more energy is absorbed day by day.

ANDERSON: These climate issues, Bill, can seem really quite overwhelming for many of us, and I'm sure our viewers feel the same when you and I have

talked about this in the past. Is there anything that can be done is being done at this point?

WEIR: Well, if you look at the trajectory of fossil fuel pollution that's putting the lid on this pot of planet Earth right now, there's not a whole

lot of movement there. There's some adaptation as a result of the wars and the oil shocks that came out of them to switch to more renewable energy.

Huge booms in the United States last month, a solar power eclipsed coal for the first time ever. So, there are these fits and starts of humanity moving

towards this more sustainable and safer path, but every gigaton burn makes this problem worse, Becky, it's really it comes down to decisions and

decision makers.

ANDERSON: Yeah, in an era of energy security, the issue of climate crisis and fossil fuel pollution seems to be sort of on the back burner to a

degree, doesn't it. We will continue to chat and continue to report on this. Bill, always good to have you. Thank you very much indeed.

Well, we are learning new details about a fatal alligator attack in Florida. These are photos of 31-year-old Brittany Clark, who was killed

while swimming in a river. Her boyfriend calling her the strongest, most outgoing person he's ever known. Officials later captured a nearly four-

meter-long gator and a slightly smaller one, saying either could have been responsible.

Now, look, this attack and others leaving Florida residents on alert. Randi Kaye has more. And a warning, her report does contain disturbing details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Somebody got bit by gator.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bad. Real bad. Please hurry.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We got to get rid of the gator. Get away from the gator.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK and how bad is the bite?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Horrible.

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A frantic scene Sunday afternoon in Seminole County, Florida, just north of Orlando, a 31-year-old

woman attacked by an alligator while swimming in the Econlockhatchee River in just three feet of water.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Does she still have her arms attached to her or does the gator have them?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One of them is like barely hanging on by a thread and the other one's off.

KAYE (voice-over): Authorities say the woman was with her boyfriend and another friend.

[09:25:00]

CHAD WEBER, PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE, FLORIDA FISH AND WILDLIFE: She was bitten off on both of her arms, the boyfriend was the one that made the

phone call. He was trying to get her from the alligator's mouth.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you know where the other arm is?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Gone.

WEBER: And on the way to the hospital, she did pass away from her injuries.

KAYE (voice-over): Hikers were left in disbelief.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I've seen really big gators in here. I've never heard of an attack, though.

KAYE (voice-over): According to FWC, two alligators were captured in the area.

WEBER: One was 12 feet. The other one was 13 feet.

KAYE (voice-over): A day earlier, at Nelson's Fish Camp in Marion County, Florida, an alligator bit a boy on his hand while he was fishing with his

father. FWC tells CNN they've captured and killed that gator, and that it measured nearly 9 feet. On June 21st, a snorkeler suffered an alligator

bite in the Rainbow River, about 100 miles away from Sunday's fatal attack in Seminole County.

KAYE: There are alligators in all 67 counties here in Florida, and that's why they have signs like these, beware of alligators, warning people that

there are alligators around, and we understand there was a sign at the trail head where that woman was attacked on Sunday, where she died in

Seminole County.

We just don't know where she entered the trail, and if she ever saw that sign. It's also worth noting that it is alligator mating season here in

Florida right now, until September, so the alligators are especially aggressive and territorial. And I know it sounds like there are a lot of

alligator attacks happening in recent days, but Florida Fish and Wildlife say it's actually pretty rare.

Last year there were 13 alligator attacks, 2 of them fatal. Randi Kaye, CNN, Palm Beach County, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, staying in the U.S., markets set to open just moments from now. The first six months of 2026 saw one of Wall Street's strongest

performances in years. We'll see how stocks kick off the second half of the year this June, sorry, July the first, as investors await a key speech from

the new Chairman of the Fed.

That is the picture on the futures markets, an indication generally of the way that we will start. We will be back there in a couple of minutes for

you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Welcome back. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi. You are watching "Connect the World" from our Middle East programming headquarters here in

Abu Dhabi. Time here is just before half past five. It is just before half past nine on Wall Street.

That means we are about to hear the opening bell. It is July the first, of course, today, the beginning of the second half of the year, or the third

quarter.

[09:30:00]

And Mobility Global will be ringing in that opening bell in New York. So, we'll just wait on that. The market certainly, as far as the futures were

concerned, had indicated a slightly weaker opening this Wednesday. Let's pause just for a moment to hear that opening bell.

All right. It is bang on 09:30. We are out of the gate. We're going to check in on how the markets are doing. It often, as you watch this show

regularly, you'll know the NASDAQ and the S&P take a little bit of time to settle out. This is the picture on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, off of

about a quarter of 1 percent.

We'll let the other two markets settle. Worth looking at the cryptocurrency stocks today as well. Bitcoin and Ether, both up, but only slightly. The

bigger picture is very different, though, since hitting a record high of 126,000 last year. Bitcoin has dropped to, as you can see, just under

60,000 that has raised over a trillion in market cap in a matter of months.

So, despite the reporting that we have today about the president's own financial gains when it comes to crypto, Bitcoin in general has not done

particularly well during his second term. And a look at a few of the tech stocks that have been driving a lot of the gains that we have seen across

the markets, as we say the first half of the year, really pretty sterling performance across the board for these tech stocks.

And you see a smattering of them there, Nvidia, the only Big Tech stock down today, and we'll check back in on those as we move through the trading

session. A major reversal from the Trump Administration in its ongoing tug of war with AI leader Anthropic.

The company now says the U.S. government has lifted controls on its most advanced AI models, Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5. Just last month, the U.S.

Commerce Department issued an export ban that forced Anthropic to suspend all use of these models by foreign nationals, including Anthropic's own

employees.

At the time, the government said they needed to address a security risk. Well, our Tech Reporter, Clare Duffy, has been looking into this. She's

live out of New York. Clare, let's just remind ourselves what was behind the U.S. government's decision to lift these restrictions and why now.

CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER: Well, Becky, you'll remember that when Anthropic released this most advanced AI model, Mythos, itself warned of

cybersecurity risks and cybersecurity benefits, because this technology is so good at finding vulnerabilities in software.

That is why Anthropic had released it on a limited basis to begin with, but CNN has learned that last month one of Anthropic's customers found a

potential jailbreak in this technology, a potential vulnerability, and that is what set off these restrictions. You had the U.S. government ordering

Anthropic to remove access to Mythos and Fable 5, which is a version of Mythos with more guardrails built in, remove access for foreign nationals,

that prompted the company to remove access to this technology altogether.

Then a few weeks later, June 26, the U.S. government allowed Anthropic to add back access for a limited number of government agencies, and then you

have yesterday the government saying that it has lifted these export controls, presumably because they have addressed that cyber security

vulnerability.

You had Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick saying in a post yesterday, over the past two weeks we have worked closely with Anthropic to analyze and

improve Fable 5 to ensure alignment across the U.S. government and strengthen America's leadership in AI.

Again, Becky, sort of technical speak there, but implying that they have addressed that cybersecurity risk with these models.

ANDERSON: Just looking at the sort of tech stocks, we know that AI sort of dominates the story across the markets and across the new listings market,

of course. Anthropic has an upcoming IPO, as does OpenAI. We've seen the SpaceX IPO already in the past couple of weeks.

Do you think this now removes a major hurdle for Anthropic going to market? Or are there still bigger challenges ahead do you think?

DUFFY: Well, Becky, I think certainly this is a big deal for Anthropic. They've said that today they're going to start to restore access to these

two very powerful models, but I think when you back up a little bit, this does underscore the uncertainty in terms of government regulations of this

technology, and just how much the U.S. government is in some senses kind of scrambling to keep up with the advancements of this technology.

[09:35:00]

Anthropic had said that it didn't believe that a single jailbreak like this should be reason to remove access to this very powerful technology. So,

you're seeing where the government and these companies are not always on the same page in terms of how this technology should be regulated and

controlled.

ANDERSON: Good to have you. Thank you very much indeed. And we will keep an eye on the story as it develops. Thank you. Well, ahead on "Connect the

World", massive celebrations across the country as Mexico win their first knockout game in a World Cup in 50 years. More on that after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: James will be playing in a record 24th NBA season, but he won't be doing it with the Lakers. His agent confirms that James will enter free

agency and leave Los Angeles, where he has played for the last eight seasons. In a post on X, the Lakers called James, quote, one of the

greatest athletes in history.

He led the team to a championship in 2020. Now the rumor mill is already swirling about where King James might end up next. Well, as that rumor mill

continues. Let's get you to the World Cup, where the facts are in front of us. Joint hosts Mexico through to the round of 16.

They beat Ecuador two-nil with two first half goals, erasing decades of heartbreak in World Cup knockouts. The match delayed by thunderstorms for

an hour, but it didn't dampen fan spirits. The streets of the capital were filled with jubilant fans as fireworks lit up the sky.

My colleague CNN's Valeria Leon was in the middle, literally in the middle of the celebrations.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VALERIA LEON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is the celebration of Mexico's victory over Ecuador. Thousands of fans are screaming "Long live Mexico"

after this 2-0 game in the fourth game of the World Cup in the Mexico City stadium. We heard "Yes we did it". And the foam fight.

And if -- yes, this is how they celebrate. And it's also -- the solidarity of the people here on the streets. They're helping with the famous "Quiere

Volar". That's a type of celebration this World Cup. In Mexico City, there are more than 500,000 people here surrounding the Angel of Independence.

It's become --

[09:40:00]

The World Cup celebration. This is how it's lived here in Mexico City. "Long live Mexico".

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: You just got to love it. That's a beautiful game for you, and we can expect Mexico and their fans to be watching the game tonight. Today,

that is England, the three lines in action in just over two hours' time against the DR Congo, and the winner will take on Mexico in Mexico City in

the Group of 16. Patrick Snell joining me now.

PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Becky, guess where I'm headed in a short while?

ANDERSON: Mexico City --

SNELL: Straight to the match, straight to the big match. No, right here in Atlanta. No, I'm going to the big match right here in Atlanta, because

England are playing Congo. Yeah, I'm going straight to the game.

ANDERSON: Of course, yes.

SNELL: Yeah, I can't wait, because I know.

ANDERSON: Superb.

SNELL: And you know.

ANDERSON: Yeah.

SNELL: We both know England tried the three lines looking to end 60 years of World Cup pain. They haven't won it since the 1966 as we both well know.

But hopes are high. I will say, Becky, I watched Congo play Uzbekistan the other night, and they were one-nil down for much of the game Congo, but

they never panic.

ANDERSON: Yeah.

SNELL: They scored three late goals, and they won the game. So, I think it's going to be a tough one. They'll make it tough for England, now

coaxed, of course, by the German manager, Thomas Tuchel. So, we'll see how it all pans out, but England, look, they haven't really convinced me so far

at this World Cup.

So many Brits, so many English fans, I should say, are hoping specifically for a really statement performance from England to get through, but boy,

it's not going to be tough for whichever of these two sides gets through to play at the iconic Azteca Stadium, Becky, next against El Tricolor,

ANDERSON: Yeah. Yeah, at altitude in Mexico City. Good luck, whoever gets through. You and I hope it will be England. Have you eaten your Marmite?

SNELL: I did.

ANDERSON: You know you've got to eat toast and Marmite before this game. If you eat toast and Marmite, England will win by two goals.

SNELL: I should --

ANDERSON: Go home and eat your toast and Marmite, mate.

SNELL: I should have done this off the top. I love that video about you, did about Marmite. It was absolutely fantastic, so thank you for that.

ANDERSON: Good stuff.

SNELL: I'm going to eat some Marmite on my toast.

ANDERSON: Good stuff. All right. We got to go taking a break. "World Sport" after this.

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[09:45:00]

(WORLD SPORT)

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