Mauricio Pochettino gave Sebastian Berhalter his USMNT debut in June 2025 and his 14th cap in the World Cup opener against Paraguay.
men’s national team
Posted inSoccer America Daily
Time is on USMNT’s side at the World Cup
There will be two measurements of success for the 2026 World Cup that matter. How far the USMNT goes in the tournament and how much excitement its run generates in the American public.
Posted inSoccer America Daily
The game of their lives
It states the obvious to observe that Mauricio Pochettino will need to get career performances out of his players if the USMNT is to go far at the 2026 World Cup. He got them all across the park on Friday in the 4-1 win over Paraguay. We think of Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie still as kids, but they just completed […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily
USA-Paraguay match draws almost 25 million TV viewers
Victories by the USA and Mexico (and prime-time kickoffs) will make U.S. broadcasters big winners this summer. Fox averaged 15,986,000 viewers for its broadcast of Friday night’s USA-Paraguay game, which was simulcast on Fox One and Tubi streaming platforms. Telemundo averaged 8.9 million viewers for its coverage that included its streaming platforms, including Peacock, making […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential
Gio Reyna seizes his second World Cup chance on a team where ‘everybody loves each other’
When the USA ended a four-decade absence by qualifying for the 1990 World Cup, a dynamic 20-year-old attacker earned a spot on the roster. Eric Wynalda added a spark of creativity and struck the ball with unique accuracy. But 52 minutes into the USA’s opener, a 5-1 loss to Czechoslovakia, Wynalda was red-carded. Wynalda said […]
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Intensity key to US dream World Cup start, says captain Ream
United States captain Tim Ream told AFP an “intense” training camp was vital to his team’s dream World Cup start, as a 4-1 thrashing of Paraguay turbo-charged the co-hosts’ hopes of unlikely glory. The US squad has spent three weeks with coach Mauricio Pochettino since assembling for pre-tournament friendlies. Preparation racheted up several gears last […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential
Folarin Balogun does his job
Folarin Balogun knew what he wanted from his World Cup debut. He got so much more. The Brooklyn-born, London-bred striker scored two fine goals, had a third wiped away, and with better fortune might have scored a few more as the United States eviscerated Paraguay in Friday evening’s Group D opener, making for what he […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily
With fervid fan support, the USA opens World Cup to widespread critical acclaim
“I’m on red-carpet duty for the opener,” said the photographer I chatted with in the World Cup media credential pickup line. “I don’t even go inside the stadium.” Such was the dose of Tinseltown at the Los Angeles Stadium, which lies 10 miles south of Hollywood, that they set up an Academy Award-like entrance. The […]
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Net twice and chill: US star Balogun relaxed after brace
He netted twice on his World Cup debut but US striker Folarin Balogun is not about to celebrate wildly, telling reporters Friday he plans to finish his epic night by curling up in front of Netflix. Balogun’s two first-half goals, including a sumptuous finish curled into the very top left corner of the Paraguay goal, […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily
Pochettino hails entire squad after World Cup opening win
United States coach Mauricio Pochettino refused to single out any individual player for praise following the co-hosts’ dream World Cup opening win, insisting the 4-1 victory on Friday over Paraguay was a collective effort. The US demolished Paraguay on an electric night in Los Angeles, with Folarin Balogun bagging a brace and Gio Reyna scoring […]