Taking inspiration from President Donald J. Trump, Team USA kicked off the 2026 World Cup in rousing fashion, dropping a 4-1 beatdown on Paraguay.
America’s dream of winning the global soccer crown in the tournament, which is being held in the United States, Mexico and Canada, has moved one step closer to fruition with the resounding victory at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, with the crowd roaring in patriotic approval after each of the record four goals.
It was the first time in history that the U.S. team had scored so many times in a World Cup match.
🚨 WOW! Team USA just historically WALLOPED in the World Cup opener, defeating Paraguay 4-1 — the biggest margin of victory in almost 100 years
Patriots! 👏🏻🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/ZCCv6rFJVi
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) June 13, 2026
Forward Folarin Balogun beat Paraguay’s goalie twice, becoming the first U.S. player to score multiple times in a World Cup match in nearly a century, with the last time that it happened being way back in 1930.
The US has guys like this now. Folarin Balogun holy hell pic.twitter.com/XfKLOsCtFk
— Dave (@davebftv) June 13, 2026
That was also the last time that the U.S. won a World Cup game by three goals, with that victory also coming against Paraguay.
On the day before the game, Trump called the team with a “message of support,” with the U.S. Soccer Men’s National Team posting a video of the president’s call on social media.
Last night, we received a message of support from POTUS ahead of our World Cup journey. pic.twitter.com/MVPITGldtS
— U.S. Soccer Men’s National Team (@USMNT) June 12, 2026
“I just called to say you’re a fantastic guy, a fantastic coach,” Trump told USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino. “I think you’ve got a real good chance of going all the way.”
“Thank you so much for your support, Mr. President,” Pochettino said. “We’re going to do everything [you proud] and all the people here in this country.”
The team then delivered on Trump’s encouragement, getting a shout-out from the White House after the game.
USA! USA! USA! https://t.co/yYluKjB4Ni
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 13, 2026
The United States overwhelmed its opponent, scoring the first three goals to go up 3-0 before Paraguay answered with its lone score, but it was too little too late to swing the momentum against the home team.
And for anyone tempted to dismiss Paraguay as a dog team, the record speaks for itself.
JUST A REMINDER.
Paraguay beat Brazil and Argentina and had the best defensive record in South American World Cup qualifying.
They just lost 4-1 to the USMNT in their opening match at the 2026 World Cup final. pic.twitter.com/7C3cPzlKuP
— USMNT Only (@usmntonly) June 13, 2026
The team’s dominant opener could be a sign of good things to come with the 24-year-old Balogun already showing signs of becoming a star in his first World Cup.
“The kid is insane,” said teammate Christian Pulisic after the match.
“It’s a dreamy night,” Balogun said of his star-making turn.
The U.S. team will play Australia in its next Group D match, which will be held at Seattle’s Lumen Field at 3 p.m. on Friday.
- Team USA gets record-breaking World Cup opening win after call from Trump - June 13, 2026
- Jennings checks CNN meltdown over SpaceX IPO – Bakari Sellers calls Elon Musk a ‘white supremacist’ - June 13, 2026
- Bongino debunks Tucker Carlson’s claim that Trump nixed Butler probe, says he ‘better back it the f**k up!’ - June 13, 2026
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.