The United States launched their FIFA 2026 World Cup campaign in style with a commanding 4-1 victory over Paraguay, inspired by a brilliant two-goal performance from Folarin Balogun in Los Angeles.
Balogun became only the second U.S. player to score more than once in a World Cup match, joining Bert Patenaude, who recorded the tournament’s first-ever hat-trick during the inaugural World Cup in 1930, also against Paraguay.
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The result also matched the United States’ biggest-ever World Cup victory, equalling their 3-0 wins over Paraguay and Belgium in 1930, when they finished third.
Early pressure rewards dominant hosts
The co-hosts took just seven minutes to break the deadlock in front of a vibrant home crowd, courtesy of an own goal from Paraguay midfielder Damian Bobadilla.
Christian Pulisic played a key role in the move, bursting between two defenders before finding Weston McKennie, whose cut-back was inadvertently turned into his own net by Bobadilla.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side thought they had doubled their advantage in the 28th minute when Balogun found the net, only for the goal to be ruled out for offside.
The Monaco striker was not to be denied for long. Three minutes later, he emphatically finished from a Pulisic pass to make it 2-0.
Balogun makes history
Balogun struck again before the break, latching onto a through ball from Malik Tillman, shrugging off a challenge from Omar Alderete and curling a superb finish beyond goalkeeper Orlando Gill into the top corner.
His brace firmly put the United States in control and etched his name into the country’s World Cup record books.
The Americans continued to dominate after the restart, but Paraguay briefly threatened a comeback when Brazilian-born Mauricio reduced the deficit.
Former Brighton forward Julio Enciso supplied the assist, slipping Mauricio through on goal before he calmly finished past goalkeeper Matt Freese.
Reyna seals victory in style
Any hopes of a Paraguay revival were extinguished with the final kick of the match as substitute Giovanni Reyna produced a moment of brilliance.
The midfielder curled a spectacular 20-yard effort into the net with the outside of his right foot, providing a fitting finale to an impressive American performance.
The emphatic victory gives the United States an ideal start to their World Cup campaign and underlines their ambitions of making a deep run on home soil under Pochettino.
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