The United States booked their place in the Round of 32 at their own World Cup with a comfortable 2-0 win over Australia on Friday at Seattle’s Lumen Field, needing barely a quarter of an hour to take control of a Group D clash that never looked in serious doubt. The win followed an impressive 4-1 victory over Paraguay in the USA’s group opener, extending Mauricio Pochettino’s side’s winning run at the tournament. It marked just the second time since 1930 that an American men’s side has won its first two matches at a single World Cup, a stat that speaks to how different this campaign already feels from recent tournament cycles for the program.
Burgess Own Goal And Freeman’s Header Settle It Early
An own goal from Australian defender Cameron Burgess and a second from Alex Freeman put the USA firmly in control inside the first half. The opener arrived inside 11 minutes when Burgess turned a dangerous low cross into his own net under pressure, the kind of early setback that can unravel a side’s game plan before it has even settled. Freeman doubled the lead with a header just before the interval, though a VAR review was required before the goal was allowed to stand. Tony Popovic responded by making three changes to his Australia side at halftime, but there was no real shift in approach, with the Socceroos continuing to sit deep and cede possession rather than chase the game.
A Dominant Display Even Without Pulisic
What made the win notable wasn’t just the scoreline but who delivered it. Star winger Christian Pulisic was ruled out before kickoff with a calf injury picked up the previous week against Paraguay, with Ricardo Pepi starting on the left in his place. The USA didn’t miss a beat regardless, controlling the contest comfortably enough that they finished with 55% of possession to Australia’s 30%, alongside ten total shots to Australia’s five. Things did get feisty as the match wore on, with seven yellow cards shown in total, three of them to USA players including Antonee Robinson, Chris Richards, and Folarin Balogun. Head coach Mauricio Pochettino kept his post-match comments simple, crediting the win to “our attitude” rather than any tactical tweak.
What This Means For Group D
The result, combined with Paraguay’s 1-0 win over Türkiye on the same night, confirmed the USA as Group D winners and eliminated Türkiye from the tournament entirely. The Americans have now secured first place in the group, marking the first time since 2010 the USA has topped its World Cup group, with a dead-rubber finale against an already-eliminated Türkiye still to come before their Round of 32 match on July 1 in Santa Clara. Second place remains unresolved heading into the final round of group matches, with Australia and Paraguay set to meet directly to decide who advances, Australia currently holding the edge on goal difference. Not everyone left Seattle satisfied with how the night went: Australia’s Nestory Irankunda publicly criticized referee Felix Zwayer afterward, accusing him of favoring the home side.