U.S. advances to round of 16 with thrilling win over Bosnia-Herzegovina despite red card
U.S. midfielders Sebastian Berhalter and Weston McKennie sings “Country Road” along with fans after defeating Bosnia-Herzegovina during a World Cup match at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Folarin Balogun was still learning to walk the last time the U.S. won a knockout round game in a World Cup. On Wednesday, he helped lead the Americans to another with his goal in the waning seconds of the first half, sparking a 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina that sends the team on to the round of 16 of this summer’s tournament.
The other goal came from Malik Tillman in the 82nd minute. The Americans have scored multiple goals in every game of the tournament for the first time ever, also setting a national record with 10 goals overall in the tournament.
U.S. survives stoppage team, holds on for win over Bosnia
U.S. forward Christian Pulisic claps toward fans as he leaves a World Cup match against Bosnia-Herzegovina at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. 2, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, final
It wasn’t easy, but the U.S. held on for a win over Bosnia.
The final minutes of stoppage time offered considerable drama.
After the U.S. cleared a series of crosses, the Americans finally regained control of possession and took a little heat off U.S. goalkeeper Matt Freese.
Gio Reyna replaced Weston McKennie in the fifth minute of stoppage time.
The U.S. is consistently winning duels for the ball despite being short handed since the 64th minute.
Ricardo Pepi could not bring down a bouncing pass ahead to him in the box, but the deflection fell to Alex Freeman. Freeman’s shot sailed wide to the right.
Ermin Mahmic took back-to-back shots that forced U.S. goalkeeper Matt Freese to dive for dangerous balls that whistled off target.
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U.S. makes substitutions and pushes to hold on during stoppage time
U.S. 2, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, 90th minute
Ricardo Pepi replaced Christian Pulisic and Sebastian Berhalter replaced Sergino Dest in the 87th minute.
The U.S. narrowly avoided a Bosnia goal, with Matt Freese committing early and failing to clear a cross that his teammates helped clear in the 90th minute.
The team must hold on for at least 10 minutes of stoppage time.
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Malik Tillman scores off free kick to give U.S. breathing room
U.S. midfielder Malik Tillman celebrates with Giovanni Reyna and other teammates after scoring against Bosnia-Herzegovina at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. 2, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, 82nd minute
In the 79th minute, Malik Tillman’s shot was blocked and Christian Pulisic appeared to score off the rebound. He was later ruled offside.
Bosnia’s coach later howled that the U.S. was too slow to restart after injuries and too physical without getting called for fouls, holding the ball when it was supposed to be a U.S. inbound pay and he was hit with a yellow card.
In the 80th minute Stjepan Radelikic was shown a yellow card for a foul near the box.
Tillman took the free kick on the left side of the field and looped the ball over the wall to the top left corner of goal to extend the Americans lead to 2-0.
It was a massive score for a U.S. team down to 10 men after a red card.
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Folarin Balogun hit with red card, U.S. down to 10 men
A referee gives a red card to U.S. forward Folarin Balogun (20) while Bosnia-Herzegovina’s Ermedin Demirovic (10) reacts at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(David M. Barreda/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. 1, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, 70th minute
The U.S. appeared to be in control until a catastrophic moment in the 61st minute.
Folarin Balogun crashed into Tarik Muharemović and Balogun landed on Muharemović’s foot. Muharemović was treated on the field and the referee opted to use VAR to review the play.
The result was massive penalty for the U.S., with Balogun handed a red card and ejected from the game. Balogun is the Americans’ top scorer and also will be suspended from the team’s next match if the team advances.
Bosnia immediately applied more pressure on the U.S. goal, but Matt Freese made comfortable saves in the 65th and 68th minutes.
The U.S. made it to the hydration break without conceding a goal and will get a chance to regroup.
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U.S., Bosnia push tempo early in second half
Bosnia-Herzegovina defender Sead Kolasinac heads the ball in front of U.S. defender Sergino Dest during a World Cup match at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. 1, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, 51st minute
The U.S. and Bosnia were both aggressive to start the second half, with lots of collisions around the field. The U.S. continued to dominate possession with dangerous runs toward the Bosnia goal.
In the 49th minute, Bosnia captain Edin Dzeko called for a substitution after appearing to suffer a knee injury. Bosnia opted for three substitutions. The lull along with the new energy on the field slowed what had been a frantic pace that favored the U.S.
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U.S. narrow misses scoring second goal, leads at halftime
U.S. forward Christian Pulisic and Bosnia-Herzegovina defender Nikola Katic vie for the ball during a World Cup match at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. 1, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, halftime
In the second minute of stoppage time as Bosnia was pressing to mount a run after the U.S. goal, there was a hard collision midfield and Tyler Adams was treated for several minutes.
Adams had to briefly leave before returning to action a minute later.
After another U.S. run, Sergiño Dest fell backward as he tapped the ball to Folarin Balogun, whose touch was a bit too strong as the ball shot off the crossbar and bounced out.
Adams later slid into Bosnia’s Kerim Alajbegović, who had to be treated on the field, extending stoppage time.
Time finally expired and the U.S. headed to the locker room with a lead and momentum.
The Americans’ quick, precise passing carved up a formidable Bosnia defense during run after run.
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Folarin Balogun delivers goal in traffic, gives U.S. lead
U.S. forward Folarin Balogun scores in front of Bosnia-Herzegovina defender Tarik Muharemovic and Nikola Katic during a World Cup match at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. 1, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, 45th minute
Folarin Balogun is fouled and earns a free kick to the right of the box.
A pass into Balogun at the edge of the penalty area, was kicked out of bounds and far off target.
Bosnia then enjoyed its most extended possession stretch since early in the first half, but the U.S. kept creeping forward and stepping up its pressure.
The Bosnia goalkeeper delivered a kick toward midfield the U.S. controlled and flicked forward to Tim Ream, passed toward Balogun. The ball was deflected and still landed at Balogun’s feet and he nutmegged the goalkeeper for the score.
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Folarin Balogun goal erased by offside call
U.S. 0, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, 33rd minute
Folarin Balogun was hoping for a penalty kick on a tackle in the box soon after the hydration break, but it was ruled a clean play.
Shortly afterward, Balogun received the ball on the run, beat the Bosnia defense and appeared to score. The U.S. celebrated, but he was quickly ruled offside.
The play, however, still got the crowd fired.
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U.S. and Bosnia scoreless at the first hydration break
Bosnia-Herzegovina forward Ermedin Demirovic grabs U.S. defender Chris Richards during a World Cup match at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(David M. Barreda/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. 0, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, 24th minute
After Bosnia earned two shots on goal, the U.S. took control of possession and attacked.
In the 15th minute, the U.S. made a strong run, with Folarin Balogun missing a shot from the center of the box off a pass from Antonee Robinson.
A few minutes later, there was a collision in the Bosnia box and goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj was treated by medical teams before deciding he could continue to play.
The U.S. made one more run, but the team had difficulty getting in position and controlling the ball in the final third. Christian Pulisic was passed the ball on the right side of the box and could not retain possession before the ball rolled out of bounds.
The referee then signaled for the hydration break.
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U.S. goalkeeper Matt Freese delivers two early saves, game remains scoreless
U.S. goalkeeper Matt Freese passes the ball during a World Cup match against Bosnia-Herzegovina at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(David M. Barreda/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. 0, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, 11th minute
U.S. goalkeeper Matt Freese delivered back-to-back saves in the 10th and 11th minutes.
Ermedin Demirovic broke free for a shot from the right side of the box that was on target and blocked by Freese in the 10th minute.
Bosnia then earned a corner and nearly scored directly from the spot, but Freese punched the sure goal away.
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U.S. vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina kicks off
U.S. fans before a World Cup match against Bosnia-Herzegovina at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. 0, Bosnia-Herzegovina 0, 1st minute
The U.S. World Cup Round of 32 match against Bosnia-Herzegovina is under way at Levi’s Stadium Santa Clara.
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Photos: Fans cheer on the U.S. and Bosnia-Herzegovina at Levi’s Stadium
U.S. fans cheer before a World Cup round of 32 match against Bosnia-Herzegovina at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(David M. Barreda/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. fans cheer before the World Cup round of 32 match against Bosnia-Herzegovina at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. players Tim Ream (13), Christian Pulisic (10) and others walk onto the Levi’s Stadium field before a World Cup round of 32 match against Bosnia-Herzegovina on Wednesday.
(David M. Barreda/Los Angeles Times)
Bosnia-Herzegovina players walk onto the Levi’s Stadium field before a World Cup round of 32 match against the U.S. on Wednesday.
(David M. Barreda/Los Angeles Times)
Bosnia-Herzegovina fans cheer before a World Cup match against the U.S. at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
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Christian Pulisic returns to U.S. starting lineup
U.S. forward Christian Pulisic warms up before a World Cup match against Bosnia-Herzegovina at Levi’s Stadium on Wednesday.
(David M. Barreda/Los Angeles Times)
Christian Pulisic has returned to the United States starting lineup after recovering from a calf injury.
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Swanson: Christian Pulisic is the spark the U.S. will need in the World Cup’s knockout stages
U.S. forward Christian Pulisic returned to World Cup action Thursday against Turkey, entering in the second half and making an impact.
(Kelvin Kuo / Los Angeles Times)
Christian Pulisic is back. Back like Captain America, revived and ready to go after being put on ice for a spell, needed to save the day.
Forget everything else about Thursday’s match against Turkey at SoFi Stadium and marinate on that.
Never mind the United States’ 3-2 loss in their final World Cup Group D match; the result was inconsequential. The Americans knew they were going through to the round of 32, and more, they’d already won the group. No pressure is a privilege, well-earned.
Never mind how the match ended, with a gut punch of a goal from Kaan Ayhan in the final moments of stoppage time.
‘Why not us?’ How Mauricio Pochettino taught the U.S. to believe it could win a World Cup
Mauricio Pochettino is the first U.S. men’s coach to win the group stage of a World Cup in 96 years.
(Ronaldo Bolanos / Los Angeles Times)
A bowl of lemons sits on a table in the conference room Mauricio Pochettino has turned into an office at the U.S. men’s soccer team’s beachfront resort in south Orange County. The citrus fruit, the coach believes, has the spiritual ability to absorb negative energy. On the corner of another table, the flame from a candle flickers.
“I like candles,” says Pochettino, who believes they release therapeutic fragrances and create a calming environment.
But it is the massive, blood-red mural covering the entire south side of the room that truly reveals what Pochettino believes. In the center of the wall, just behind the coach’s desk, white block letters spell out “Why Not” above a script “U.S.,” which, despite the periods, is meant to be read as “us.”
Born in Brooklyn, raised in London, Folarin Balogun lights up the World Cup for the U.S.
U.S. forward Folarin Balogun, left, scored twice against Paraguy during the USMNT’s World Cup group stage opener on Friday, the first American player to score multiple goals in a World Cup match in 96 years.
(Ronaldo Bolanos / Los Angeles Times)
SEATTLE — If a pregnant Nigerian woman had been allowed to board a plane 25 years ago, the U.S. team’s path through this summer’s World Cup may have unfolded much differently. Instead, a gate agent turned her away, insisting it wasn’t safe for her to fly from New York to London.
So Florence Balogun returned to Brooklyn, where she had been visiting relatives, and waited for her second son to be born. And when Folarin arrived a few weeks later, entering the world just hours before Independence Day dawned, he did so as an American citizen.
It was that quirk of fate that allowed Balogun, who lived just two months in the U.S., to represent the country on soccer’s biggest stage.
‘The clear choice by far.’ Why rising U.S. star Alex Freeman chose soccer over the NFL
U.S. defender Alex Freeman, left, and Paraguay forward Julio Enciso battle for control of the ball during the United States’ 4-1 win in its World Cup opener on June 12.
(Kelvin Kuo / Los Angeles Times)
SEATTLE — Growing up the son of an NFL wide receiver, Alex Freeman said he felt a lot of pressure to play the American version of football, not the one the rest of the world plays.
“I always got asked if football was the path,” he said last summer. “But I always had a secret love for soccer.”
And he had to keep it a secret because he wasn’t sure his father Antonio, a Super Bowl winner with the Green Bay Packers, would understand.
Swanson: From poker pro to World Cup coach: Sergej Barbarez all in with Bosnia-Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina coach Sergej Barbarez shakes hands with one of his players before a loss to Switzerland in the World Cup Group B play at Los Angeles Stadium (SoFi Stadium) on Thursday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Imagine it. A neophyte coach, leading a team for the first time at any competitive level, and it being a high-profile assignment on the biggest of big stages.
A self-assured broadcaster, critical and competitive, having his bluff called, being invited to not just talk about it, but to be about it: Walk the walk, why don’t you?
A former player — scorer, shooter — being challenged to step up and right a listing ship while navigating politics and the push and pull of history and high hopes.
U.S. loss to Turkey in final World Cup group match: A small bump, or cause for concern?
U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino during the first half of a World Cup group stage match against Turkey at SoFi Stadium.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Through the first two games of this summer’s World Cup, the U.S. was about as perfect as a team could be. It won both games, never trailed, gave up just a goal and won its group handily, playing with a verve and confidence that erased all the doubts that had shadowed it coming in.
Then came Thursday.
With Mauricio Pochettino making a record nine changes to a lineup that had given the U.S. its most successful start to a World Cup in 96 years, the B team that closed the group stage at SoFi Stadium with a 3-2 loss to Turkey served to remind everyone how flawed this group can be.
For Sebastian Berhalter, a shot with the U.S. national team was well worth the wait
U.S. midfielder Sebastian Berhalter waves to the crowd during his team’s World Cup match against Turkey at SoFi Stadium last week.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Some kids grow up with video games and summer camp. Sebastian Berhalter grew up with the World Cup.
He was 13 months old when his father, Gregg, played in the tournament for the first time and 5 when his dad was called back. And four years ago, when Sebastian was already a professional in his own right, he went to Qatar to watch his father coach the U.S. to the round of 16.
Yet none of that prepared the younger Berhalter for his own World Cup debut earlier this month.
Pico Rivera’s Cristian Roldan may be last made-in-high-school U.S. World Cup star
U.S. men’s national team player Cristian Roldan, center, and his teammates arrive at SoFi Stadium before the World Cup group stage match between the United States and Paraguay on June 12 in Inglewood.
(Kelvin Kuo / Los Angeles Times)
SEATTLE — Cristian Roldan and Haji Wright grew up less than three years and 30 miles apart, Roldan in Pico Rivera and Wright in Culver City. The odds that they would go on to become teammates on not one, but two, U.S. World Cup teams seem astronomical.
Yet despite starting at the same time and place and arriving together at the same destination, the two players followed completely different paths to get there.
Wright joined the Galaxy’s academy at 14 and signed with Schalke of the top tier German Bundesliga days after his 18th birthday. Roldan was still playing for El Rancho, when he was 17, making him the only member of the U.S. World Cup team to play four years at a public high school.
‘I love America!’: With the World Cup, Inglewood becomes an international hub
Bartender Elijah Gonzalez mixes a drink at the Nile Bar in Inglewood while customers watch Croatia play England as businesses and locals embrace the World Cup soccer tournament.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Daiki Kaneko had only 24 hours before his World Cup journey took him to Dallas, where his home country’s squad will take on Sweden.
The Japanese soccer fan was making the most of it on Tuesday in Inglewood, snapping pictures of SoFi Stadium before taking in a different kind of monument: a space-age, two-story branch of the chicken chain Raising Cane’s, complete with a 308-square-foot screen, a mirrored dog sculpture and a massive halo hovering around the exterior.
For Kaneko, 25, who lives in the Tokyo suburbs, it was the perfect encapsulation of American grandeur.
Harvard alum Matt Freese took an unusual path to starting in goal for U.S. at World Cup
U.S. goalkeeper Matt Freese directs his teammates before Paraguay takes a free kick during a World Cup match at SoFi Stadium on June 12.
(Kelvin Kuo/Los Angeles Times)
Playing in goal for the U.S. men’s national soccer team is a little like playing right field for the Yankees. You’re following a long line of great players, making the comparisons — and the high expectations — unavoidable.
Matt Freese is the latest to be thrown into that crucible. But he considers that pressure to be a privilege, not a problem.
“I wouldn’t say it’s intimidating, I would say it’s inspiring,” he said before the U.S. training session Tuesday morning in Irvine. “It’s a long line of goalkeepers that I’ve looked up to for my whole life — and there were some before my life as well.”
Swanson: World Cup shows MLS still needs to achieve major goals to grow the game
Canadian fans react after Stephen Eustáquio scores in stoppage time of a 1-0 win over South Africa at the World Cup at SoFi Stadium on Sunday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Remember when we were sure the World Cup would suffer from all the issues that had everyone seeing red before the first ball was kicked?
And remember when we were certain soccer could never catch on in this country?
Despite controversies over visas and ticket prices and transportation, and in spite of consternation over expansion and new rules, the game has, as usual, proved too good to fail.
And we, the American people, have become unusually engrossed in it.
World Cup Round of 32 live updates, schedule, results and highlights
Live updates from Wednesday’s knockout round games at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Get the latest news, results and highlights from the 39-day tournament.
2026 World Cup knockout round TV schedule, game previews and results
Argentina star Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring against Jordan at the World Cup on June 27. Argentina faces Cape Verde on Friday.
(David Ramos / Getty Images)
Group play is over and it’s knockout time at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The round of 32 is in progress, with several teams already moving on the round of 16, including tournament co-hosts Canada and Mexico. The U.S. will be looking to do the same when it faces Bosnia-Herzegovina on Wednesday.
Here’s everything you need to know about World Cup knockout stage matches being played Wednesday, Thursday and Friday across the U.S., Mexico and Canada (all times Pacific).