USMNT scores four goals on Paraguay in World Cup opener, Folarin Balogun begins generational run

USMNT scores four goals on Paraguay in World Cup opener, Folarin Balogun begins generational run

The United States beat Paraguay 4-1 on Friday night at SoFi Stadium in the World Cup opener and for the first time in the 96-year history of the program, the USMNT scored four goals in a World Cup match.

Folarin Balogun, a 24-year-old Arsenal academy product born in Brooklyn and raised in London, scored twice before halftime and became the first American to score multiple goals in a World Cup game since 1930.

Folarin Balogun – WOW

Gio Reyna added the historic fourth in the dying seconds to put an exclamation point on a night that every country who has ever laughed at American soccer should be studying on film right now.

I wrote last week that the world thinks American soccer is a punchline and that Friday night was the USMNT’s chance to start shutting them up. Consider the shutting up officially underway.

The World Cup is on American soil, everyone thinks the USMNT is a joke and it’s time to prove them all wrong >>

Four goals, three points, and a performance that had SoFi Stadium shaking from the opening whistle while every condescending European pundit, every smug tweet about Americans not understanding football, and every comment section full of people laughing at the idea of the USMNT making a run on home soil can collectively go straight to hell.

The Golden Generation showed up and put four past Paraguay in a game that was over before halftime, and anyone who still wants to make jokes about American soccer can step right up and get the same treatment.

Balogun Chose America Over England and America Is Reaping Every Bit of It

The story of Folarin Balogun is one of the most fascinating in American soccer history and Friday night was the moment the whole country got to see why.

Born in Brooklyn to Nigerian parents, raised in London, discovered at age eight playing Sunday League football, brought into the Arsenal academy as a kid, and given the choice between playing for the United States or England at the international level.

He chose the United States because he took a vacation here in 2023 and felt so much support from American fans on social media that it influenced his decision to pledge his allegiance to this country, which is the kind of origin story that makes you proud to be American regardless of how much you care about soccer.

A kid who grew up in London playing for one of the biggest clubs in English football chose to represent America because American fans showed him love before he’d ever worn the jersey. Friday night at SoFi was the payoff for every person who tweeted at Balogun in 2023 telling him to pick the Stars and Stripes.

His first goal pushed the lead to 2-0 in the 30th minute, making it the third-fastest the USMNT has ever reached a two-goal cushion in a World Cup match behind the 2002 game against Portugal and the 1930 meeting with, of all teams, Paraguay. His second goal right before halftime was the one that turned the stadium into something I’ve never seen at an American soccer match.

He raced onto a pinpoint pass from Malik Tillman and curled a shot into the top-left corner with the kind of finish that would make any striker in the world proud while the crowd completely lost its mind and the game was effectively over at 3-0 before anyone went to the locker room for halftime.

Two goals in a World Cup opener on home soil from a 24-year-old who chose this country over England. If he keeps this up throughout the tournament, the legend of Folarin Balogun is going to be something this country talks about for generations.

The Game Was Over Before Paraguay Knew What Hit Them

Paraguay’s Damián Bobadilla scored an own goal in the sixth minute and the USMNT had a lead before most fans had found their seats. SoFi Stadium erupted immediately and the energy from that opening goal set the tone for everything that followed because Paraguay never recovered from conceding that early against a home crowd that was already at a fever pitch. The USMNT smelled blood in the water and kept pressing for more in a way that this program has historically never done at a World Cup.

Usually the USMNT gets an early lead and then sits back, tries to protect it, and sweats through 70 minutes of anxious defending while the entire country stress-eats on the couch. Friday night they kept their foot on the gas with a three-goal advantage because this team understands that goal differential matters in group play and that making a statement in the opener sends a message to every other team in the tournament who might face the Americans down the road.

The only concern from the entire night was Pulisic going down with an injury before Paraguay pulled one back in the 73rd minute, and that needs to be monitored closely heading into the Australia match on June 19th because Pulisic is the captain, the most important player on the roster, and the USMNT with him and the USMNT without him are two completely different teams. If it’s minor and he’s available for Australia, this team is in fantastic shape. If it’s anything more than minor, the depth behind him gets tested in a way that nobody wants to see this early in the tournament.

Reyna’s fourth goal in the final seconds was the one that put the USMNT into the history books with their largest World Cup victory margin since 1930, which means a 23-year-old scored the historic fourth to cap off a night where a 24-year-old scored twice and the entire roster played with a confidence and swagger that this program has never displayed on the World Cup stage.

USMNT VS EVERYBODY

Paraguay is ranked 40th in the world and nobody should pretend this was a statement win against a powerhouse because it wasn’t but the way the USMNT dismantled them is what should have the rest of the tournament taking notice.

Four goals with three different scorers, an attacking shape that created chances all night long, a defensive structure that held firm for 70 minutes, and a midfield that controlled the pace of play without allowing Paraguay to establish any sustained pressure until the game was already decided.

The USMNT controlled this game from start to finish against a team they were supposed to beat and they beat them by three goals instead of squeaking by 1-0 in a nervy performance the way American teams have traditionally handled World Cup group stage games.

That’s the difference between the old USMNT and the Golden Generation.

The old USMNT would have scored in the sixth minute and then spent 84 minutes praying. The 2026 USMNT scored in the sixth minute and then scored three more because this roster is too talented, too deep, and too confident to sit back and hope.

USMNT GROUP SCHEDULE

Three matches over two weeks, all on FOX:

  • Friday, June 12 at 9 PM ET: United States vs. Paraguay (WIN)
  • Friday, June 19 at 3 PM ET: United States vs. Australia
  • Thursday, June 25 at 10 PM ET: Turkey vs. United States

Australia watched this happen from their hotel room and they better be adjusting their game plan accordingly because the USMNT that showed up Friday night is not the team that most international observers expected to see. The Socceroos always compete hard at World Cups but grinding out a result against a team that just put four past Paraguay with this kind of attacking intent and home crowd behind them is a completely different challenge than what Australia prepared for.

Turkey is after that on June 25th, and if both the USMNT and Turkey have already qualified by then, the match becomes about who wins the group and gets the favorable knockout draw. If the USMNT handles Australia the way they handled Paraguay, the group could be wrapped up before the Turkey game even matters.

Fuck the Doubters and For the Cup

The Golden Generation is playing on home soil with the entire world watching and every country that has ever laughed at American soccer is about to find out what happens when this program shows up with talent, coaching, and 80,000 screaming fans behind them at every venue.

Paraguay was just the appetizer and Australia better be paying attention because the USMNT isn’t here to participate in this tournament or make it out of the group stage and call it a success. We’re here to win the whole thing and every nation that thinks American soccer is a cute little side project can line up and get the same treatment Paraguay got Friday night.

I asked last week why not us and nobody gave me a good answer. After Friday night, the answer is even more obvious. The talent is there with Balogun, Pulisic, McKennie, Aaronson, and Reyna. The coaching is there with Pochettino running the show. The home advantage is there with American crowds turning every stadium into a fortress. The draw is favorable with a path to the quarterfinals that this team should navigate comfortably if they keep playing the way they played against Paraguay.

Fuck the doubters. Fuck the European pundits who laughed at us. Fuck every international soccer account that spent four years telling American fans they don’t understand the sport. We just put four on Paraguay in our opening match and we’re coming for everyone else next.

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