USA World Cup Survival
Team USA Advances in World Cup Round of 32, Surviving with 10 Men Against Bosnia
The U.S. Men's National Team survived one of its most dramatic World Cup moments yet, beating Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0 on July 1 while playing the final 26 minutes with only 10 men. FOX Sports reported the final whistle blew at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara before a crowd of 68,827. The win sends the USA into the Round of 16 for only the second time in modern history, Sports Illustrated noted.
Forward Folarin Balogun went from hero to villain in the span of 19 minutes — scoring the opening goal in the 45th minute, then getting sent off in the 64th after a VAR review upgraded his yellow card to a straight red. Midfielder Malik Tillman then sealed the result with an 82nd-minute strike off a free kick, per Los Angeles Times.
Balogun's Red Card Turns the Match Upside Down
Balogun's red card came after referee Raphael Claus reviewed a foul on Bosnia's Tarik Muharemovic at a pitchside VAR monitor and upgraded the call to a "serious foul." FOX referee analyst Mark Clattenburg sharply criticized the decision. "I don't believe it's a good use of VAR," Clattenburg said. "This is just an accident. This doesn't meet, for me, the criteria of a red card," he told FOX Sports.
Despite the numerical disadvantage, the U.S. held firm. Captain Tim Ream led the defense through 26 tense minutes. Tillman's late goal off a set piece gave the 10-man side a two-goal cushion and killed the game. Coach Mauricio Pochettino had called the match a "Final" before kickoff, and his team delivered under enormous pressure, Sportskeeda reported.
Balogun Makes U.S. World Cup History Before His Exit
Before his red card, Balogun scored his third goal of the tournament — a tally that puts him in rare company. TSN noted he joins Landon Donovan (2010) and Bert Patenaude (1930) as the only Americans to score three goals in a single World Cup. It was a stunning individual performance cut short by one reckless challenge.
The loss of Balogun now looms large. He is the team's leading scorer, and he is suspended for the next match. Analysts are already calling it a "huge hole to fill" heading into the Round of 16, per Bolavip. Pochettino will need to reshuffle his attack before Monday's game.
USA vs. Belgium: A Rematch 12 Years in the Making
The USA will face Belgium in the Round of 16 on July 6 at Lumen Field in Seattle, North Jersey reported. It is a direct rematch of the 2014 World Cup Round of 16, where Belgium knocked the USA out 2-1 in extra time. The U.S. holds an all-time record of just 1 win and 5 losses against Belgium, according to U.S. Soccer.
Seattle is one of the most soccer-passionate cities in the country, and The Seattle Times described the matchup as exactly what fans in the Pacific Northwest had hoped for. Pochettino's record now stands at 3 World Cup wins — the most ever by a USMNT manager — but he has made clear the only goal is lifting the trophy.
Pochettino Clashes With Media After Historic Group Stage
The win caps a group stage in which the USA went 4-1 over Paraguay, lost 3-2 to Türkiye, and still topped Group D. The Guardian reported that Pochettino openly scolded reporters after the Türkiye loss for failing to "congratulate" the team for finishing first, calling the negativity "a little bit sad." He softened his tone before the Bosnia match, offering an apology for his earlier "curt" manner, the Associated Press noted.
Off the pitch, an ABC7 reporter sparked international backlash after admitting on a live broadcast that she could not find Bosnia and Herzegovina on a map and "didn't want to know" anything about the country. The reporter later issued a formal apology, Firstpost reported. Critics called the comments "insensitive and inappropriate" and said they undermined the World Cup's message of global unity.
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