The United States begin their 2026 FIFA World Cup journey as they take on Group D opponents Paraguay in their opening match of the summer competition.
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The United States have begun their 2026 FIFA World Cup in explosive fashion as they pummeled Paraguay 4-1 to get Group D play started in style.
After a Paraguay own-goal got the scoring started, a brace from Folarin Balogun led the way, and Gio Reyna finished it off with a highlight-reel goal at the death.
It was a resounding performance from the United States, who scored four goals in a World Cup match for the first time in the nation's history.
The Sporting News brings you a full list of player ratings for the match, analyzing the USMNT's individual performances from the opening kickoff to the final whistle.
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Location: SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, CA) Referee: Danny Makkiele (NED)
USA (4-2-3-1, right to left): 24. Freese (GK) — 16. Freeman, 3. Richards, 13. Ream, 5. A. Robinson — 4. Adams, 17. Tillman (Reyna, 82') — 2. Dest (Weah, 72'), 8. McKennie, 10. Pulisic (Berhalter, 46') — 20. Balogun (Pepi, 72')
USA substitutes: Turner (GK), Brady (GK), Arfsten, McKenzie, M. Robinson, Scally, Roldan, Aaronson, Zendejas, Wright.
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This starting lineup for the UMSNT against Paraguay was almost identical to the XI deployed against Germany in the final tune-up friendly last weekend. The only difference was that Chris Richards, now recovered from his ankle injury, slotted in for Miles Robinson along the back.
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After an early intervention just a minute into the match, Matt Freese was nothing more than a passenger through the first half, and that's just the way they like it.
Had one safe moment where he came off his line strong to collect a Miguel Almiron free-kick in first-half stoppage time.
A very safe presence both on and off the ball, with 50 touches in the first half where he hardly put a foot wrong. His ability to defend both out wide and in the middle as part of a back three was exceptional, and his maturation journey over the past year has its culmination.
Unfortunately, after a sensational performance overall, Freeman was largely at fault for the lone Paraguay goal, as he lost his positioning and stepped to the ball where Miguel Almiron was already engaged with U.S. defenders, leaving the back post wide open for Mauricio to apply the finishing.
Active early repelling any Paraguay sights on the six-yard box. Also managed to get forward on set pieces and provide an aerial threat repeatedly, coming inches away from a goal in the 38th minute when he put a corner agonizingly wide with his head.
Was beaten for strength late in the game by Miguel Almiron just before the Atlanta United winger came off. There were a couple of rusty moments for Richards who has not played in a month.
Still, a shout-out to Richards for what was an incredible, unblemished evening distributing the ball, a perfect 83-of-83 passing. It is the most passes by a player with a 100% success rate in a World Cup match since 1966, according to Opta .
Compared to the warm-up friendlies, where Ream seemed shaky at best, he was very calm and collected to begin World Cup play. His inventiveness was impressive, as he headed a ball over to Alex Freeman when under pressure from the Paraguay press in the 23rd minute.
Had a nervy moment in the 45th minute where he slipped, but Paraguay couldn't take advantage. Seemingly picked up a yellow card early in the second half near the end line, but the decision was changed to a dive by Miguel Almiron.
Ream finished with a 93% passing mark, with over 100 touches in the game. He even completed eight of his 10 long balls, a fabulous performance by the 38-year-old who was a possessional star and defended strongly as well.
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With Christian Pulisic cooking on the left wing, Jedi was largely an afterthought in possession for the U.S early on. That's not an insult, but simply a product of the game state.
That changed, however, on the half-hour mark as Robinson's exceptional vertical ball sprung Pulisic to begin the move that resulted in the second USA goal. At that point, he started to get forward more and try to occupy the space on the wing vacated by Pulisic running at defenders and cutting inside.
Put Juan Caceres in a spin cycle in the 57th minute down the left, but overhit the cross straight after, a constant theme of the match for Robinson.
Logged his usual active midfield performance, as he was a constant problem for Paraguay breaking up counter-attacks in the middle of the pitch. With Paraguay sinking back into a lower and lower block throughout the first half, Adams began to get forward more as they needed his shielding presence less.
Was a perfect 30/30 passing in the first half, but started the second half shaky as he had a bad giveaway that sparked a Paraguay chance.
His second-half yellow card is frustrating, because it came on an unnecessary foul in midfield that leaves him at risk of a suspension. If he is booked next game against Australia, he would have to sit out the third group stage match against Turkey, a possibility the U.S. would love to avoid.
Playing in a deeper role than usual, he was effective in progressing the ball forward. Had a delicious flick to Weston McKennie in the 21st minute that nearly sprung an attacking moment. Looked to be limping just before the first-half hydration break, but played through whatever was bothering him.
Blew an early second-half chance as the Paraguay goalkeeper just gave him the ball in the attacking third, but he underhit the feed to a teammate and the chance disappointingly ended. Played well in midfield and was the recipient of a number of fouls by Paraguay.
Tillman had a wide-open chance in the 75th minute as he ran a two-on-one with Ricardo Pepi, but put his shot straight to the goalkeeper weakly. Overall a very strong performance from Tillman tonight in a deeper role, but his final-third contributions left a good bit to be desired.
Moving well up and down the pitch. Flubbed a wide-open chance in the 17th minute as he received a square pass from Folarin Balogun but took a very heavy touch which took him too close to the goalkeeper and end line for him to do anything with it.
Got more joy in the second half when Christian Pulisic had come off. He had a great moment in the 63rd minute when he skillfully brought down a long ball and struck a great cross along the face of goal, but nobody was there to receive it.
Dest did a lot of good work, taking on defenders and getting involved further up the pitch, but lacked cutting edge in the end. It's a positive performance, but the U.S. will hope he can find more end product down the road.
Very strong start combining with Folarin Balogun. Created a good chance three minutes in by receiving a long ball and heading it down to the striker. Combined well with Christian Pulisic over and over, before starting to play with freedom and crop up in different areas all across the pitch.
His ability to crop up on the ball in just about any area on the field caught the Paraguay players completely off guard, and they had no idea who was meant to mark him at any given moment.
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Extremely active early on as he was a man possessed taking on the right side of the Paraguay back line. He continually took on defenders one-on-one or even one-on-two and won those battles. His slip through two defenders created the opening goal, and he continued to cause problems.
He began to repeatedly shred Juan Caceres on the left wing, drawing fouls and dribbling past defenders over and over and over. He put the Paraguay right-back on roller skates once again in the 35th minute, floating a cross that Folarin Balogun couldn't quite get on top of.
Worryingly, Pulisic was taken off at halftime and replaced by Sebastian Berhalter. After the match, he claimed he took a kick in the calf but called his substitution "a precaution." USMNT fans will hope for the best, as his absence in the second half was blatantly obvious.
Heavily involved early in the game as he always is. Should have done better with the first chance three minutes in, but put a weak shot right at the goalkeeper. Started to cook as he touched across to Sergino Dest for a blown opportunity, and then seemed to score a goal ultimately disallowed for offside in the 28th minute.
Balogun would find his goal three minutes later as he finished a Christian Pulisic cross expertly, a display of fine finishing. He would then remain a threat, scoring a brace just before halftime with an absolutely delicious finish on a postage stamp into the top corner.
Had great vision to see a late run from Sebastian Berhalter on a 64th-minute counter, but the execution of the layoff was poor and given straight to a defender.
The first U.S. change came at the break as Mauricio Pochettino brought Christian Pulisic off. It sparked significant injury worries amongst the U.S. fanbase and media.
Managed to keep the wheels on the bus, even if it looked much shakier without Pulisic and with Berhalter. Was loose with his passing, and flubbed a difficult chance to chip the goalkeeper as second-half added time began.
Came on for Folarin Balogun late in the game. Ran a two-on-one in the 75th minute with Malik Tillman, but probably should have taken the shot himself as a striker. Not a traditional Pepi super-sub performance.
Came on for Sergino Dest with 18 minutes to play. Fired a very impressive long-distance shot in the 77th minute that required a touch by the goalkeeper, but did not result in a corner as the referee missed it and gave a goal kick.
Replaced Malik Tillman in the 82nd minute. For substitute minutes, Reyna was excellent, winning fouls before scoring a truly disgusting outside-of-the-foot goal with the final kick of the game.
The Mauricio Pochettino tactics worked to absolute perfection. The pressing system completely threw Paraguay for a loop, and the South American side had no idea how to handle the constant pressure from the U.S. players.
When the United States had the ball, their unpredictable movement allowed them to crop up in areas that Paraguay did not see coming, causing chaos at the back.
This was nothing short of a masterclass from Pochettino, who put every position in their best position to succeed, and set the team up to maximize every individual's best traits.
The signature move here from Pochettino was moving Malik Tillman into a deeper role next to Tyler Adams, while Weston McKennie was given the freedom to roam and create chaos in the No. 10 position. It was a masterstroke, as McKennie was a nightmare for the Paraguay defenders and Tillman won repeated fouls in midfield.
Kyle Bonn is a Syracuse University broadcast journalism graduate with over a decade of experience covering soccer globally. Kyle specializes in soccer tactics and betting, with a degree in data analytics. Kyle also does TV broadcasts for Wake Forest soccer, and has had previous stops with NBC Soccer and IMG College. When not covering the game, he has long enjoyed loyalty to the New York Giants, Yankees, and Fulham. Kyle enjoys playing racquetball and video games when not watching or covering sports.
