The USA advanced to the knockout stage of the men’s U-17 World Cup in Qatar after earning a perfect nine points in the group stage.

The team’s three-game stretch was anything but easy. A key to the success was its defense, which conceded just one goal over the 270 minutes.

Christopher Cupps, 17, has been at the heart of the team’s backline all cycle and the Chicago native started all three games in central defense. In the 2-1 win over Tajikistan, Cupps wore the captain’s armband.

This World Cup marks the culmination of a two-year cycle for this generation of American players, and it is their first major tournament. The journey has included some ups and downs along the way, but overall Cupps is happy with how the cycle has progressed and where the team stands.

“We’ve had a lot of good tests — since all the way back with our first camp in Palm Beach more than two years ago, actually,” Cupps told Soccer America. “Playing Germany, playing Argentina, playing Uruguay, playing a lot of good teams. We’ve been challenged and had to face adversity, but at the same time, we’ve been learning, we’ve been adapting our style, we’ve found a few tactical tweaks that I think are going to be really helpful for us in the World Cup.

“To finally have everyone in a camp at the time has been really good because over the course of the cycle, it’s been guys being successful with their clubs and so they’re getting pulled somewhere else. It feels like we’re going to peak at the right time in the World Cup.”

Now in the knockouts, the team must win for that journey to continue and Morocco awaits in the round of 32. The North African nation has become a nemesis to U.S Soccer in recent years after eliminating the U.S. from the 2024 Olympics in the quarterfinals and the U.S. U-20 team from its World Cup last month, also in the quarterfinal round.

The USA advanced to the knockout stage of the 2025 U-17 World Cup with wins over Burkina Faso (1-0), Tajikistan (2-1) and the Czech Republic (1-0).

Entering this tournament, Cupps had the advantage of being one of the team’s few players that has already earned first team minutes at his club, the Chicago Fire. His first start came on May 3 in an impressive 0-0 draw with Orlando.