Author: Jonathan Tannenwald

SEATTLE — Like any sport, soccer is a game of players, tactics, skills, and decisions. But when it comes to emotions, no sport is like the world’s most famous one.

Not for nothing did soccer resist the long march of analytics far longer than increasingly-global basketball, baseball, ice hockey, gridiron football, and others. (Americans might not know cricket, for example, but that bat-and-ball game has its own volume of statistics.)

So, yes, we can talk about player matchups in Friday’s U.S.-Australia showdown for first place in Group D (3 p.m., Fox29, Telemundo 62). We can talk about the Socceroos’ impressive striker Nestory Irankunda and 6-foot-6 centerback Harry Souttar. And we can certainly talk about whether Christian Pulisic will shake off his calf strain in time.

But it’s impossible to avoid this moment’s romantic side. The Emerald City is rich with a half-century of soccer history, from the NASL’s Sounders to the MLS version, always drawing big and passionate crowds. In recent years, the NWSL’s Reign have joined them, with their own robust fan base watching stars of the women’s game.

For all that time — from hosting Pelé at the Kingdome to hosting Lionel Messi at Lumen Field, from Bobby Moore to Clint Dempsey, from Michelle Akers to Megan Rapinoe — Seattle’s soccer tapestry has missed one piece.

Until this year, it had never hosted a World Cup.

Now, at last, that hole is filled, and with style. Since the day in early 2024 when FIFA announced the U.S. would play a group game here, Seattle has been counting down to this moment, and so have fans across the country.

A game in this city, with its stage towering over the south side of downtown, is a joy any time. But a World Cup game here is on American soccer’s bucket list. So it’s natural that U.S. and Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan, in his 12th season with the only club of his career, has led the welcome committee for the squad.

“I’ve told them that the city is ready, that the city is energized,” he said before Thursday’s practice at the University of Washington, his alma mater — with its own famed sports theaters in football’s Husky Stadium and basketball’s Palestra-like Hec Edmundson Pavilion.

“We haven’t had a game here in a long time, and we’ve been desperate to host a World Cup game, a U.S. men’s national team game,” Roldan added. “So they’re going to feel the crowd, feel the energy, and it’s about feeding off it.”

He felt it even more as he set foot on his old college field, with glittering Lake Washington a stone’s throw away and Mount Rainier towering beyond. On the same day that Penn product Duke Lacroix returned to his alma mater in Philadelphia ahead of Haiti’s clash with Brazil on Friday, a similar scene unfolded thousands of miles west.

“I’m thankful to have this full circle moment,” Roldan said. “I don’t think people realize how special it is for me to be here and enjoying this experience with the men’s national team.”

Come lunchtime, a walk through downtown showed what awaits. Fans in U.S. jerseys were all over, from Pike Place Market (Seattle’s version of Reading Terminal) to the glistening waterfront.

Fox’s studio show set up shop on one of the piers, with the ferries crossing Puget Sound as one backdrop and a boisterous crowd as another.

It’s a different vibe from sprawling Los Angeles, and they’ll tell you that here as much as a visitor from out east naturally senses it.

Everything will come together at noon local time on Friday, when a capacity crowd of just under 67,000 will roar the U.S. team onto the field.

The vibrant scene in Seattle as Fox’s studio show goes on air:

#USMNT

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— Jonathan Tannenwald (@jtannenwald.bsky.social) June 18, 2026 at 2:23 PM

The players are excited to experience it, especially those who haven’t before. Because the stadium usually has artificial turf, the U.S. men haven’t been here since the 2016 Copa América Centenario, when grass was installed like it has been this summer. (The World Cup’s grass also helped bring the women’s team here in April, ending a nine-year drought.)

“I’ve obviously spoken to ‘Roldy’ and other people who’ve said how much of a soccer culture Seattle has, and I’m really looking forward to experiencing that firsthand,” defender Antonee Robinson said. “The first game that was played in that stadium looked amazing. So I’m looking forward to being a part of it, too.”

Roldan isn’t expected to start, and he knows it. But if he gets on the field as a substitute, the roar that rises will no doubt be as great as a U.S. goal.

“I’m getting goosebumps just thinking about it,” he said. “This is a place that I call home, and I’ve called home for a while. … I’ve given my heart and soul to this club. To be able to see the field would be a dream come true, and I think it would be special not only for me, but I think for the city of Seattle as well.”

IRVINE, Calif. — Sebastian Berhalter was just over a year old when he went to South Korea to see his father, Gregg, play in the 2002 World Cup. But he knows a lesson from back then applies today.

The U.S. men’s soccer team opened that tournament with its biggest win on the biggest stage since 1950, a 3-2 upset of Luis Figo’s Portugal. It stunned the world, even if it only made a limited impact back home.

It also was just one game. The Americans followed it with a 1-1 tie vs. co-host South Korea, then a 3-1 loss to Poland in the group stage finale. They backdoored their way into the round of 16 only because South Korea edged Portugal at the same time as the U.S.-Poland game, which allowed the Americans to finish second.

Longtime U.S. fans will remember their shredded nerves of that morning, as Portugal hammered away in the final minutes but could not find the net. An equalizer would have put the Americans out on goal difference, since Portugal had routed Poland, 4-0.

The odds of that scenario repeating are lower now, not least because the U.S. is the co-host. The caldron on Friday in Seattle will be theirs this time, instead of the opponent’s.

Still, it’s worth turning to that page of the history book to bring some perspective to the upcoming U.S.-Australia showdown for first place in Group D (3 p.m., Fox29, Telemundo 62).

“Yeah, it is one game, and we know we have tough teams coming up, and they’re all going to present different challenges,” the now-25-year-old Berhalter said after Tuesday’s practice. “But for us, it’s just taking it one moment at a time, one game at a time, and we’ll be good.”

Winger Tim Weah has had his own moments of fandom lately, as a Brooklyn native and New York Knicks diehard. But when he put on his work clothes, his focus was clear.

“From a fan standpoint, I think it’s amazing to celebrate it,” he said. “But for us, we want to not get too high. We want to make sure that we’re focused on what we need to focus on. I think staying humble is the key. As a group, we just have to prepare for our next game and be ready to fight.

The familiarity between these teams extends beyond their friendly meeting in suburban Denver last October, a 2-1 comeback U.S. win. Australia midfielder Aiden O’Neill and defender Kai Trewin play for New York City FC, highly regarded defender Lucas Herrington plays for the Colorado Rapids, and veteran defender Miloš Degenek used to play for the Columbus Crew.

If it becomes the kind of physical contest that friendly was or the defense-first game Australia played in upsetting Turkey, Berhalter said the U.S. will be ready.

“I love the way they defend,” he said. “You like teams that have that brotherhood. You like teams that when you go against them, you can see they’re hungry and that they want to fight, because it makes you raise your level that much more.”

He also had the line of the day when he praised manager Mauricio Pochettino’s influence on the team’s intensity.

“I think one is that we’re American, we don’t take s—, and I think that’s something that he really put in,” Berhalter said, drawing laughs with his turn of phrase. ”Even though he’s [Argentine], he has that mindset of, ‘Look, this is what we do, and this is who we are, and this is what America’s about.’ Even from an outside perspective, he showed us Americans what we’re about, and he really drilled that into us, and I think that’s something that has helped us this last cycle.”

IRVINE, Calif. — The U.S. men’s soccer team’s big win over Paraguay electrified this World Cup, especially for American fans. But the players can’t spend too long reveling in the moment, because the next game is now on the horizon.

Monday was always going to be a natural moment to turn the page, since it marked the return to work after two days off. But there was also a wakeup call over the weekend, when Australia upset Turkey and blew Group D wide-open.

The players got the message.

“We saw a team that went out against Turkey and competed at a very, very high level,” stalwart U.S. midfielder Tyler Adams said of his team’s next opponent. “They’re combative, they’re smart, tactically they were unbelievably sound. So I think it’s going to be an extremely difficult game.”

As he got ready for Monday’s practice, Adams said it was “pretty easy” for the team to shift its focus ahead.

“I think that having a day off is obviously nice to just be able to disconnect,” he said. “I think having this amount of time in between games is really nice, just for the body, the mind, everything in between. It was a good start — it’s exactly what we wanted and we set out to do. That being said, the focus has to be on Australia now.”

Australia’s win raises the stakes even higher in what was already a much-anticipated game (3 p.m., Fox29, Telemundo). The scene will be just as much of the story as the action on the field, as soccer-mad Seattle finally hosts the U.S. after not being part of any previous World Cup in this country, from the 1994 men’s tournament to the 1999 and 2003 women’s ones.

The city looked terrific in its first time on the big stage, Egypt’s 1-1 tie with Belgium on Monday.

When the U.S. and Australia met in a friendly last October, striker Haji Wright scored both American goals in the 2-1 win. He reflected Monday on watching tape of the Turkey game, and how these Socceroos compare to last fall.

“Saw a well-executed game plan from Australia,” he said. “They’re tough to break down, they’re dangerous on counterattacks, they have good players at the top of the pitch, and they were able to be effective and damage Turkey. I think Turkey kind of came into the game a bit overconfident, and I think we won’t make that same mistake.”

That was a reference to team captain Hakan Çalhanoglu claiming a few days earlier: “I think we will dominate the game, because we have more qualities and a more talented team.”

Some U.S. pundits have done some boasting of their own, and Adams was asked about that. He quickly brushed it off.

“I don’t think any commentary helps anybody,” he said. “And no, it’s not going to be a layup. If anything, it’s going to be one of the most difficult games that we play.”

The U.S. will be on alert not just for Australia forward Nestory Irankunda, already justifying the hype as a breakout star. Adams’ yellow card in the second half against Paraguay means that if he’s is booked again in this game, he’ll miss the group finale against Turkey on June 25. Card accumulation is then reset after the group stage ends, and after the quarterfinals.

“I live with yellow cards,” Adams said. “I think that for me, it’s something that you have to manage of course, but especially in the second game, you can’t take your foot off the gas.”

When kickoff arrives, it will have been a week since the Americans’ group opener. That’s a rare sight in a World Cup, created by FIFA’s expansion of the field to 48 teams. In the past, there were usually three or four days between games.

“I absolutely love it after playing a long season,” said Adams, who plays his club soccer for the English Premier League’s Bournemouth, noting too that the last World Cup in 2022 — his first — was the first moved from the summer to autumn because of Qatar’s heat.

“Your body feels it, obviously, a little bit more coming into the end of the season, into a World Cup where there’s so much emotion, so much adrenaline, all these things,” he said.

Pulisic trains separately

As he nurses the hamstring knock that sent him out of the Paraguay game at halftime, Christian Pulisic did not take the field with his teammates Monday morning. He emerged separately a few minutes later, and worked on his own with a trainer on the next field over.

A U.S. Soccer spokesperson said Pulisic was scheduled to do a “modified training session” with “gym and individual field work.”

Pochettino wasn’t scheduled to meet with the media on Monday, but he came over during practice to say hello and talk casually for a few minutes. When a reporter asked him how Pulisic is doing, Pochettino answered “Good.”

Adams shared the sentiment, and a few more words.

“Come on — Christian will be ready, everyone. Let’s relax,” he said with his usual spirit. “I think that he picked up a knock a few days before the game, and I think he got kicked in the same spot again during the game, and when you go in at halftime, things obviously get tight within the 15-, 20-minute break. But he’ll be fine.”

U.S. Soccer also announced that 20-year-old goalkeeper prospect Julian Eyestone of English club Brentford has joined the camp as a training player. Diego Kochen of Spain’s Barcelona departed last week, while the Union’s Andrew Rick has stayed all along.

Though U.S. Soccer didn’t say why Kochen left, ESPN reported last week that the 20-year-old is on the verge of a season-long loan to Danish club Lyngby to get some regular playing time. Lyngby earned promotion to Denmark’s top flight last month, and its ownership includes the Union holding a partial stake.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Twenty-four years ago, the U.S. men’s soccer team scored three goals in the first half of a World Cup game.

They were halfway around the world, in South Korea. It was just before 6 a.m. in Philadelphia, and only the die-hards woke up early.

On Friday, a new generation did it again. This time, it was on home turf, in the shadow of Hollywood, and the nation watched in prime time.

The 3-2 win over Portugal in 2002 marked the start of an era. Friday’s 4-1 rout of Paraguay was the greatest proof of how far things have come.

Yes, it was only one game, and these U.S. players know that better than anyone. But they also know how big this was.

It’s not an overstatement, especially for a fan base that has endured so much frustration over the last 12 years. It’s OK to savor a moment of real happiness, and the rest of the nation is welcome to join the party.

It’s especially worth saying that this team’s biggest players delivered on the biggest stage.

Christian Pulisic was dazzling, especially with his playmaking on the first two goals, before exiting at halftime as a precaution after a hit to his left calf.

Folarin Balogun again showed why he’s the striker the U.S. program craved, with clinical finishes on the second and third goals. Weston McKennie drove the play from the engine room, starting with a charge downfield to set up the first tally.

Tyler Adams was the midfield general, and Chris Richards was impeccable on the back line: 6 of 10 duels won, three clearances, and a perfect 84-of-84 passing. Gio Reyna, so long maligned, capped the night with a thunderbolt.

A ‘culture shift’

While the instinct at halftime was to compare this game to the Portugal one in 2002, the final whistle brought another comparison.

Just 15 months ago, many of these players left this Los Angeles-area stadium at a low point: humiliating losses to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League final four.

Richards and Adams were asked if they thought about that time as they returned to the ultramodern venue typically known as SoFi Stadium, and both said they did not. But they had no doubt about how far their program has come.

“I think you’ve seen a complete culture shift,” Richards said. “There [were] a lot of question marks last March about if we have that fight, if we can do it, if we can go all the way, especially without having any real competitive games. But I think we proved it to everybody tonight.”

Adams spoke of the team’s growth “as players and individuals, but also just understanding what the manager wants, exactly how to instill that every single day, the culture of the team, bringing more players into the fold. We’ve come a very long way.”

It bears saying that Balogun missed those Nations League games because of injury. But the search for a marquee striker had gone on long before then. But it bears repeating: He has delivered.

“When I committed, and throughout the whole cycle and the whole journey to me being at this point, I’ve always said the fans gave me so much motivation, showed me so much support,” he said. “And for me, the most important thing has always been to be able to repay that. I feel like today’s a great opportunity, and I just want to continue to show the fans I made the right decision.”

He called it “a dreamy night,” and speaking soon after the final whistle meant he had only started to process it.

“I’ve not been able to take it all in,” he said. “When I get back to my hotel and I rest, I’m sure I’m going to really be able to be in the moment and experience how much of an amazing night this is.”

A true home advantage

Another contrast between last year and this one came from the stands. While the players were the best actors, the crowd of 70,492 played more than just a supporting role.

The compounded fear of seeing laid-back LA pay FIFA’s exorbitant ticket prices vanished when the national anthem singers found themselves joined by a rising chorus. There were “USA!” chants all night, real and organic, from the moments before kickoff to a key stretch late in the game when the players needed a boost after Paraguay’s goal.

Player after player said they felt it on the field.

“Walking out to that makes it feel real,” Adams said. “Seeing that support, you don’t want to let the fans down and the country down.”

Pulisic said: “It meant everything for us. A half like that, for it to go as it did, and have the fans really excited about it our performance, it felt amazing.”

Last summer, McKennie stood at the White House with his club team, Juventus, and watched President Donald Trump make that moment about something totally unrelated to his visit. This time, the Texas-born son of a retired Air Force staff sergeant could express his own form of patriotism.

“Hearing the national anthem and hearing the fans singing it, in that moment, it’s one of those things that just pushes the feeling even further,” McKennie said. “Where you’re like, ‘I’m proud to be American, this is my home, this is my country.’ And that’s something that is hard to describe — it’s something that as a player you just feel whenever you just see that.”

Medford’s Brenden Aaronson said the anthem gave him “goose bumps,” even though he was on the bench and didn’t play. Cristian Roldan, another unused substitute, called the atmosphere “beautiful.”

Even goalkeeper Matt Freese, renowned for his laser focus while on the clock, admitted to taking a moment to soak in the scene.

“I had gotten some texts from a few mentors that said, ‘Make sure you take a moment to take it in,’ because they know I otherwise I wouldn’t,” he said. “And so I did. I just looked up, and it was a breathtaking sight, I would say.”

Pochettino, an Argentine who has spent his coaching life in Europe, felt something, too.

“It was amazing for our fans to watch this type of game,” he said. “And today, I am so proud, and we are so proud, because I think we are winning a lot of fans, adding fans [of] that sport here in America.”

This was just one game, of course. But it was a big one, and not just because it was the highest-scoring U.S. men’s game in World Cup history. At the final whistle, it opened a path toward even bigger things to come.