The United States started their journey to the 2026 World Cup in the best possible way when they defeated Paraguay 4-1, in the opening match of Group D, played at SoFi Stadium, in Los Angeles. Driven by the support of the fans, the host team performed at a great level and achieved a convincing victory, led by striker Folarin Balogun, scorer of two goals.
The team coached by Mauricio Pochettino came out determined to take control of the game from the first minutes and soon found the way to the advantage. After just seven minutes, an offensive attack led by Christian Pulisic ended with an unfortunate deflection by Damián Bobadilla into his own goal, putting the North Americans at an advantage and setting the stands in the Californian venue on fire.
With greater intensity, organization and ability to explore spacesthe Americans continued to be on top of the match. The superiority would end up being reflected again on the scoreboard in the 31st minute, when Christian Pulisic assisted Folarin Balogun for the hosts’ second goal. The striker, one of the team’s main figures, scored again in first-half stoppage time, making it 3-0 and leaving the United States in a comfortable position before the break.
In the second half, Paraguay tried to react and managed to reduce the difference in the 73rd minute, thanks to a goal from Maurício, who took advantage of one of the rare dangerous approaches of the South American team. Even so, the Paraguayan response proved insufficient to truly call into question the superiority of the home team, which continued to control the match with maturity.
In the final moments, Giovanni Reyna put an end to doubts by scoring the fourth goal for the United States, closing the result at 4-1 and confirming a dream debut for the hosts in the World Cup. The victory leaves the North American team in a comfortable position at the start of Group D and reinforces confidence for the competition’s next commitments.
After this result, the United States returns to the field against Australia, while Paraguay will have to react against Turkey to keep their qualification aspirations for the next stage of the tournament intact.
