The U.S. men’s national team made a strong first impression in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, defeating Paraguay 4-1 in front of a home crowd at Los Angeles Stadium in Inglewood, California. Folarin Balogun scored a first-half brace, while Gio Reyna provided a stunning goal off a 26-pass team move.

Upcoming Match

The U.S. team will face Australia on Friday, June 19, at Seattle Stadium, home of the Seattle Seahawks. The match is scheduled to kick off at 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT/12 p.m. PT. Fox will carry the English broadcast, while the Spanish broadcast will air on Telemundo.

Australia is coming off a World Cup-opening victory, defeating Turkey 2-0 at BC Place in Vancouver, Canada. The Socceroos are 23rd in FIFA’s latest world ranking, while the U.S. is 15th. However, the Americans may be without star Christian Pulisic due to a calf injury.

This will be the first-ever meeting between the U.S. and Australia on the World Cup stage, and the match comes with both countries battling for the top spot in Group D. The U.S. currently holds the tiebreaker for first over Australia thanks to a superior goal differential.

Original reporting: NBC10 Boston — read the source article.