The United States booked their place in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 with a hard-fought 2-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday, overcoming the challenge of playing with 10 men for the final stages of the match.
Folarin Balogun continued his impressive tournament by scoring his third goal of the World Cup just before halftime, but his night took a dramatic turn when he was sent off in the 64th minute after a foul on Tarik Muharemović.
Bosnia started brightly and created the better opportunities early on, forcing goalkeeper Matt Freese into a couple of important saves. However, the United States gradually took control, with Balogun proving to be a constant threat in attack. After seeing one effort ruled out for offside and coming close on multiple occasions, the striker finally broke the deadlock in the 45th minute when Malik Tillman set him up following Tim Ream's interception in midfield.
Balogun calmly slotted home to register his third goal of the tournament, moving within one goal of the US men's single-World Cup scoring record set by Bert Patenaude in 1930.
The match changed dramatically midway through the second half when Balogun was shown a straight red card, leaving Mauricio Pochettino's side to defend their slender advantage with a man down. Despite the setback, the Americans remained disciplined and frustrated Bosnia before Tillman doubled the lead in the 82nd minute with a superb free-kick from just outside the penalty area that beat goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj, effectively sealing the victory.
The victory marks only the second knockout-stage win for the United States in World Cup history and their first World Cup victory over European opposition since defeating Portugal in 2002. The result also ended the Americans' 13-match winless streak against European teams at the tournament.
The United States became the third of the three co-hosts of the World Cup to qualify for the Round of 16.
Round of 32
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 2, 2026Round of 16 ????
Canada, Mexico and USA move on at the #FIFAWorldCup! pic.twitter.com/tvOnfXPQSn
Round of 16 ????The hosts will now take on Belgium in the Round of 16, looking to avenge their heartbreaking extra-time defeat to the Red Devils at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
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