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USA 4-1 Paraguay
INGLEWOOD, CA— The United States opened its World Cup campaign with a 4-1 win over Paraguay on Friday night in the final match of Day 2 of the tournament. After weathering an early spell of pressure from Paraguay, the hosts controlled the match and put together one of the strongest performances of the tournament through its first two days. AS Monaco striker Florian Balogun led the way for the United States, helping lift the Americans to the top of Group D after their opening game. His performance also leaves him as the tournament’s leading goal scorer through Day 2.
The opening five minutes were actually all Paraguay as they mounted a strong start and caused the U.S. backline some trouble. It did not take the Americans long to flip the game on its head. In just the seventh minute, Christian Pulisic split two defenders in the box and then found Weston McKennie, who, in an attempt to find Balogun, fired a pass off Paraguayan midfielfer Damián Bobadilla. The midfielder had no option but to watch the ball roll into the back of his own net, giving the U.S. an early 1-0 lead.
OWN GOAL. 1-0 USA! 🇺🇸
THE @USMNT SCORES FIRST AND LOS ANGELES IS ABSOLUTELY ELECTRIC! pic.twitter.com/tEbJU8E9PX
— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) June 13, 2026
The U.S. carried that momentum through the next twenty minutes of the match as they continued testing the Paraguay backline. Then, in the 31st minute, it was Pulisic again down the left side, and this time his pass found Balogun, who finished the move with a first-time shot into the bottom-right corner. The goal gave the U.S. a 2-0 lead.
FLO BALOGUN. FOR AMERICA! 🇺🇸
His first career FIFA World Cup goal doubles the @USMNT advantage over Paraguay pic.twitter.com/b5jXJgNdu7
— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) June 13, 2026
The perfect first half was capped off by none other than Balogun himself. This time, it was Bayer Leverkusen’s Malik Tillman who sent Balogun through on goal. Balogun avoided one tackle, danced around another, and fired a shot into the top-left corner from inside the box, giving the U.S. a 3-0 lead going into halftime. Balogun’s two goals made him the first American to score multiple goals in a World Cup match since Bert Patenaude’s hat trick at the inaugural World Cup in 1930, also against Paraguay.
FOLARIN BALOGUN BRACE TO MAKE IT 3-0 @USMNT! 🇺🇸
A truly stellar FIFA World Cup debut for Flo. pic.twitter.com/yfjrSEtKcz
— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) June 13, 2026
It was a different eleven that took the field in the second half for the United States, as concern quickly spread when Christian Pulisic appeared on the bench and Sebastian Belharter replaced him. It was a scrappy second half that saw Paraguay start to find its footing and finally break through in the 73rd minute as Julio Enciso played a beautiful pass that allowed midfielder Maurício to fire a first-time shot into the bottom-right corner and bring Paraguay within two goals of the U.S.
Paraguay chip away at the @USMNT's lead thanks to Mauricio 🇵🇾 pic.twitter.com/WKgovjNcrd
— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) June 13, 2026
The United States put the icing on the cake late in stoppage time as Borussia Mönchengladbach’s Giovani Reyna curled a sensational trivela finish into the net, sealing a 4-1 win over Paraguay.
GIO REYNA WITH CHERRY ON TOP! 🇺🇸@USMNT WINS 4-1! pic.twitter.com/sYnNXYdIWe
— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) June 13, 2026
What’s Next for Paraguay?
The CONMEBOL side came into the World Cup with some impressive wins during the qualifying cycle over Brazil and Argentina. Known for their defensive organization during qualifying, Paraguay struggled to contain the United States throughout the match in their first World Cup appearance since 2010. They’ll now turn their attention to Türkiye on Friday, June 19, at 11 p.m. EST in Santa Clara, California.
What’s Next for the United States?
It was almost a dream start all around for the host nation. The four goals were the most the United States has scored in a World Cup match and matched the largest margin of victory in the competition’s history for them. All eyes were on Christian Pulisic’s postgame press conference for an injury update, where he had this to say regarding his availability for the next game:
“I’m gonna give everything I can to be back, that’s for sure. I’m not going to give you 100% — but yeah, I’ll be there.”
History also favors the Americans. In each of the previous three World Cups in which the United States won its opening match, it advanced to the knockout stage. The trend began with a 3-0 win over Belgium in 1930, continued with a 3-2 victory over Portugal in 2002, and happened again with a 2-1 win over Ghana in 2014. Now, they’ll look to make it happen again in 2026.
The United States will get a chance to strengthen those odds against Australia on Friday, June 19, at 3 p.m. EST in Seattle, Washington.
