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The United States opened its 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign with a commanding 4-1 victory over Paraguay on Friday at Los Angeles Stadium, moving to the top of Group D after a confident attacking performance.
The result gave the U.S. an early advantage, while Paraguay fell to the bottom of the standings after its opening match.
The breakthrough came in the seventh minute when Paraguay midfielder Damian Bobadilla scored an own goal while trying to clear a cross into the penalty area. An own goal is scored when a player accidentally sends the ball into his own team’s net. The chance was created by Christian Pulisic, whose forward movement helped put Paraguay under early pressure.
The U.S. kept pushing forward after the opener and doubled its lead in the 31st minute through striker Folarin Balogun, who fired the ball into the net after another move shaped by Pulisic’s attacking run.
Balogun then scored again before halftime, giving the U.S. a 3-0 lead at the break. The three first-half goals matched the team’s total goal count from its entire 2022 World Cup campaign, underlining the strength of its opening performance.
The U.S. continued to control the match early in the second half, with Paraguay struggling to deal with its quick and fluid attacking play.
Paraguay pulled one goal back in the 73rd minute through midfielder Mauricio, scoring the team’s first goal of the tournament. However, the late response did not change the direction of the match.
Giovanni Reyna added the final goal in stoppage time, scoring in the 90+8th minute to restore the U.S. team’s three-goal lead and complete a 4-1 victory.
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