The United States and Australia first battled each other in an international friendly in 1992, in a game the latter won by the odd goal. Some 34 years later, there’s so much more on the line when the do come together at the 2026 World Cup.
Mauricio Pochettino’s Stars and Stripes got its tournament off to a phenomenal start, comprehensively dispatching Paraguay 4–1 in front of a mesmerized SoFi Stadium. Striker Folarin Balogun was the two-goal hero—the second was an absolute peach—but there was so many standout performances from a game that will live long in the memory.
But laurels could not be rested on against Australia. Deemed to be the underdog against Türkiye, Tony Popovic led his team to a deserved 2–0 win, setting up a potentially decisive showdown with the USMNT at Lumen Field in Seattle.
Pochettino’s men came out buzzing, though, and there was no stopping them in front of a home crowd. The hosts secured a 2–0 win to punch their tickets to the round of 32 with time to spare.
