The United States couldn’t have dreamed of a better start to their home World Cup 2026 campaign. In front of 70,492 roaring fans at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, the hosts dismantled Paraguay 4-1 with a first-half performance for the ages.
It took just seven minutes for the Americans to strike. Christian Pulisic sliced between two defenders before finding Weston McKennie, whose cutback was inadvertently turned into his own net by Paraguay’s Damian Bobadilla. The early goal set the tone for a dominant evening of soccer.
The Monaco forward delivered a performance that will be remembered for decades. Balogun became the first player to score a brace at World Cup 2026, and only the second American ever to score multiple goals in a single World Cup match.
His first arrived in the 31st minute, finishing Pulisic’s perfectly weighted pass. His second came deep in first-half stoppage time. Balogun took a through ball from Malik Tillman, evaded two defenders, and curled a left-footed strike into the top corner. The stadium erupted. The US led 3-0 at halftime.
Paraguay pulled one back in the 73rd minute through Brazilian-born midfielder Mauricio, briefly giving the South Americans hope. But the US wasn’t finished.
With the final kick of the match in the 97th minute, substitute Gio Reyna received the ball at the edge of the box and curled a breathtaking shot with the outside of his right boot into the far corner. It marked the first time the US has ever scored four goals in a men’s World Cup match.
The victory puts the United States top of Group D as they prepare to face Australia on June 19 in Seattle. For a team that scored just three goals across four matches in Qatar 2022, this was a thunderous statement of intent.
