June 10, 2026
Kirby Lee/Imagn Images
The U.S. Men's National Team, which includes Media's own Auston Trusty, has a lot to prove on the World Cup stage.
To the passive observer, to the casual eye, what has the American men's soccer team really been in the past decade?
Like actually think about it, and do your best to take the blinders off if you might have them.
Who's the household name? Who's the superstar who transcends the sport and has his jersey worn everywhere across the country, like how Kylian Mbappé is that guy for France, or Lionel Messi still for Argentina, or taking it to baseball for a second, Shohei Ohtani for Japan?
Better yet, in the past 10 years, what has been the defining moment for the U.S. Men's National Team?
Is it really a couple of draws and a single 1-0 win over Iran before getting trounced by the Netherlands in the 2022 World Cup?
Or was it five years before, when the U.S. fell flat on its face in qualifying to miss the 2018 World Cup entirely, which provoked the viral and scathing rants of former national team members turned analysts Alexei Lalas and Taylor Twellman, the latter of which ESPN saw fit to archive for itself?
This is what the U.S. Men's National Team has been to most, and for a long time: Regularly disappointing and pathetically underachieving.
And once that kind of reputation takes hold, it can take so much, and forever, to break from. It's a steep climb to get people to care.
Going into its first group play match on Friday against Paraguay, the 2026 roster will be shouldering that burden, that apathy.
But if there is ever a time to flip the script, it's here: In your own country, and with the whole world watching.
The ball is in their court...or pitch.
The United States will begin play in Group D, with Paraguay, Australia, and Turkey, which have all been assigned to the West Coast.
The U.S. group play schedule is as follows:
• Friday, June 12 vs. Paraguay, 9 p.m. @Los Angeles
• Friday, June 19 vs. Australia, 3 p.m. @Seattle
• Thursday, June 25 vs. Turkey, 10 p.m. @Los Angeles
Immediately? No.
If the U.S. finishes first or second in their group, they'll automatically go to the knockout Round of 32, but either of those seedings will send them elsewhere.
The No. 1 seed in Group D will put the U.S. in San Francisco/Santa Clara, while the No. 2 seed would bring them to Dallas.
Fourth, obviously, is the worst-case scenario and would send the U.S. straight home.
Third can keep the U.S. alive with a chance to play in Philly, but everything has to go just right for that to happen, and then some.
Basically, the U.S. would be testing its luck, hoping that it finished in the top eight of the collective third-place finishers in the expanded 48-team field, all while managing just the right amount of points – not even accounting for everyone else – to get re-seeded to play the Round of 32 in either Boston (Foxboro) or New York (East Rutherford, NJ).
If, by some miracle, that does happen, then the U.S. would also have to win its Round of 32 match, which would finally bring them to Philly for the Round of 16 on the 4th of July.
It's a tall order, especially once the competition picks up in the knockout stage. The Philadelphia Inquirer has an interactive breakdown of how it would all have to work out HERE.
But to sum it up: Don't hold your breath. The U.S.'s best path keeps them far away from the Sports Complex.
Of course, any country does. But looking at it rationally, here's a look at the U.S. betting odds according to DraftKings...
| Result | Odds |
| Win Group D | +140 |
| Reach Round of 16 | +110 |
| Reach Quarter Final | +275 |
| Reach Semi Final | +850 |
| Reach Final | +1800 |
| Champion | +6000 |
Getting through group play, and even through the Round of 32, seems reasonable for what the U.S. can bring to the table.
Past that, and once you start talking about the favorites like Spain (+450), France (+475), England (+700), or Brazil (+800), that's when the U.S. is going to have some problems.
The U.S. World Cup roster actually boasts a decent amount of local ties, which makes it a shame that the team likely won't ever be anywhere near Philly.
Christian Pulisic is at the forefront of all of this. The Hershey, Pa. born soccer star is probably the best, and definitely the most recognizable, American player going right now. Still just 27, he's been an accomplished pro overseas for years now, but has also been at the heart of the U.S.'s international shortcomings.
If this World Cup is going to change the narrative and serve as a breakthrough for the U.S., it'll heavily depend on him leading the charge.
Matt Freese is a Wayne, Pa. native, a product of the Philadelphia Union youth academy, a Harvard grad, New York City FC's starting goalkeeper in MLS, and now he seems likely to have the net for the U.S. when they get started against Paraguay on Friday.
Inevitably, the U.S. is going to need a big save or two over these next couple of weeks, which will be a chance for Freese to endear himself to the whole country.
Brenden Aaronson, of Medford, N.J. and formerly the Philadelphia Union (2019-2020), will be playing in his second World Cup, and as a Premier League regular for Leeds, should offer valuable depth through the midfield.
Mark McKenzie was born in Brooklyn, but raised in Bear, Del., where he also came up as a Union Academy product and then spent three seasons with the MLS club from 2018-2020.
Now a pro for Toulouse in France, he'll be looked to to reinforce the American defense.
Auston Trusty is another former homegrown Union product and a native of Media, Pa. who will be playing in his first World Cup. A pro for Celtic in the Scottish Premiership for the past two seasons, Trusty will also be a depth defender that the U.S. can reach for as it goes, trying to hold the line.
Respectability, a reason to actually believe in American soccer (well, on the men's side, that is), and a tangible show of proof that the USMNT is improving and warrants being taken seriously.
Look, no one is expecting the U.S. to win the World Cup. All things considered, this group has some talent, but is still far, far away from a goal that lofty.
What fans – new, old, casual, or diehard – do want to see, though, is promise. They want to see heart, they want to see cohesion, they want to see effort, and they want to see a team that genuinely cares.
Because there's been none of that for almost a decade, which has left the USMNT largely stuck in the mud results-wise, and reception-wise, in a deep well of apathy.
That's why the immediate thought for most of what American soccer has been for the past decade isn't instantly associated with some momentous goal or incredible flying save that led to glory, it's tied to the old guard losing their minds in front of a camera over why this team has made it routine to come up short.
It's a brutal reputation to carry, and takes so much, and forever, to shed.
But if there's ever a time to do it – to flip the script, to reshape the story, or just write an entirely new one – it's here.
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