The friction between Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Alexi Lalas reached a new peak behind the scenes at Fox Sports on Tuesday afternoon.
A newly released clip from the network’s 2026 World Cup studio captured the former Swedish striker openly tormenting his fellow analyst during a break in coverage.
The behind-the-scenes footage showed Ibrahimovic singing and clapping along to a song playing on his phone, completely tuning out the rest of the broadcast set.
The musical display instantly drew the attention of a bewildered Lalas, who desperately tried to understand what his European colleague was listening to.
‘Who is this?’, Lalas asked, prompting Ibrahimovic to immediately shut down the query with his trademark confidence.
‘You will not know even if I tell you the name,’ Ibrahimovic fired back, refusing to offer a straight answer to the former USMNT star.
The on-camera friction between Zlatan Ibrahimovic andAlexi Lalas reached a new peak
Undeterred by the blunt dismissal, the former United States national team defender pressed further, asking: ‘What’s the name of the group? Tell me their name.’
In the video – which was posted by Ibrahimovic himself on X – the former striker completely ignored the follow-up question, continuing to sing and clap along.
A visibly confused Lalas made one final attempt to break through to the Swede, asking: ‘What’s she saying?’
While Ibrahimovic’s response to the question was indistinguishable in the clip, online fans quickly identified the track as a classic Balkan hit by pop star Lepa Brena.
The frosty interaction is just the latest example of the tense atmosphere between the two former soccer stars, as they continue their FOX duties at this World Cup.
Recently, Fox World Cup host Rebecca Lowe defiantly insisted that there is no tension between her colleagues Ibrahimovic and Lalas, despite multiple tense exchanges.
Ibrahimovic has branded Lalas ‘the past’ live on air and abruptly dismissed him for saying France were ‘arrogant’ in the first half against Senegal.
When Lalas then left the studio to report live from the Seattle stadium for the second United States group game, Ibrahimovic said: ‘You’re welcome, America.’
Rebecca Lowe has spoken out on the Fox World Cup tensions between the three analysts
Footage also went viral from the Fox studio where the three analysts were playing soccer and Henry mercilessly tricked Lalas with a faked back heel while the cameras were rolling.
Host presenter Lowe, however, has insisted that the trio all get along fine when the cameras are off and claims that the suggestions of unrest behind the scenes is actually a source of amusement to all in the Fox setup.
Speaking to eSPORTY, Lowe said: ‘These stories do make me laugh and we do laugh about them. We’re like, “another one”? And it is getting a little out of hand.
‘We are going through every newspaper now. Like, okay guys, maybe let’s pivot and write about something else, that would be good. The football, maybe?’
Lalas has attempted at times to get his own back, telling Ibrahimovic last weekend that his cream suit made him look like one of presenters on the 70s television show ‘Fantasy Island’.
But Lowe says that amid the jokes the trio trade off at each other, there is an underlying respect between them all.
‘There is nothing, there is no tension, nothing! We are laughing our heads off at all of this,’ she added.
‘Everybody respects everybody hugely. If people want to watch and listen to what the guys say to each other and work off each other, they would see that.
‘It’s a strange old narrative when you’re in the middle of the thunderstorm, and I am right in the middle of it with them all day every day, and it just doesn’t exist. It is crazy.’
