A near-perfect World Cup opener takes the USMNT into uncharted territory

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — It began with thunderous chants of “U-S-A” and climaxed with the best 45 minutes in U.S. men’s World Cup history.

It was seven years and 364 days in the making, and it was worth every day, hour, second of waiting.

U.S. soccer fans and players had, for years, dreamed of this moment, a glitzy World Cup opener on home soil, an unparalleled stage for their sport. They had dreamed of meeting it, of igniting America, of elevating soccer.

But no one could have realistically envisioned this — a rousing 4-1 win over Paraguay, patriotic glee on the field and in the stands, silky soccer and eruptions of noise.

“I mean, my whole life I feel like I’ve envisioned it,” U.S. defender Chris Richards said. “But tonight was way better than what I could’ve envisioned. It was surreal.”

In front of 70,492 fans at SoFi Stadium near Los Angeles, it was more than a near-perfect start to this home World Cup.

It was, as Sebastian Berhalter said while recalling the victory lap to thank the fans, “what U.S. soccer should be.”

It was a launchpad into a new U.S. men’s national team era.

Eight years ago, when this World Cup was awarded to North America, the U.S. men’s soccer program was at a nadir. It was absent from the 2018 World Cup, starving for stability and talent. And that’s when the “golden generation” first began to appear. Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams joined Christian Pulisic on the scene. Promise and potential began to surface.

And for eight years, in many ways, it remained just that.

Talented players appeared, and won some regional trophies, but as a U.S. team, they never rose beyond that.

In Qatar, they played to their level, winning one game, scoring three goals, conceding four. On Friday, in 90-plus minutes, on one remarkable night, they surpassed that scoring haul.

They seized a World Cup game in a way U.S. men never previously had. They scored four goals in a World Cup game for the first time in program history.

For years, there were intermittent hints that they were capable. Pulisic would score a brilliant goal or light up Italy’s Serie A. Adams would look like a world-class defensive midfielder. At their best, many agreed, this group of U.S. players could be better than ever before, but there always remained one problem: they never actually were at their best simultaneously.

Some were always injured. Some were always absent. Some, perhaps, slumbered through repetitive regional games and inconsequential friendlies. In 2025, a malaise seemed to set in. Questions swirled about whether this generation would ever reach its potential. Did they have the heart? Was their talent overblown? Fans grumbled and became apathetic.

But their head coach, Mauricio Pochettino, told us all to be patient.

The most important thing — no, the only important thing — was to arrive at the World Cup in prime condition, he’d constantly remind us.

Pochettino, an accomplished European club coach, was brought in to elevate the players. He was handed the fattest contract in U.S. Soccer history, with some help from deep-pocketed donors and corporate sponsors, to help them meet this moment.

Players, too, structured their careers around the summer of 2026. Pulisic took last summer off, with an eye on managing his body for the big year ahead.

Even fans laid low, saving their money and energy for the one moment that mattered.

On Friday, the moment arrived. And everyone met it.

Fans met it from the time they first arrived well over four hours before kickoff. They came in star-spangled overalls and facepaint, with Pulisic jerseys and posters, with plans for Instagrammable photos, yes, but also with genuine, take-in-the-moment, awestruck excitement.

They roared when 26 U.S. players first took the field. The players inhaled all the enthusiasm and channeled it. All 10, minus goalkeeper Matt Freese, buzzed around SoFi Stadium’s temporary grass.

“Being in America, having this crowd around us, seeing the red, white and blue, all our red and white striped shirts in the crowd, it’s awesome,” Pulisic said. “I mean, hearing the ‘U-S-A’ chants, it’s really pushing us forward. So we just hope it continues like that, and I’m sure it will.”

Pulisic, before exiting at halftime with a calf injury, darted between defenders, like the player everyone one knows he can be. McKennie ran the game from midfield. Richards made World Cup history with an 83-for-83 passing performance, the best at this storied tournament in at least 60 years. Malik Tillman helped the U.S. boss the proceedings. And Folarin Balogun showed why he’s the best USMNT striker in a decade.

“It’s a dream,” Balogun, who became the first U.S. man to score twice in a World Cup game since Bert Patenaude’s hat trick vs. Paraguay in the inaugural 1930 World Cup, said afterward. “It’s a dream.”

The players fed off the fans, and the fans fed off the players, and together, they soared into a new stratosphere.

Ticket prices instantly spiked by hundreds of dollars for their second match, next Friday in Seattle against Australia.

American fans watching nationwide surely began to let themselves wonder: Could they do it? Could the U.S. win the World Cup?

The pragmatic answer is: Slow down. It’s still only one game. Pochettino will drive home that message over the coming days. Players will stay level-headed.

But the era of potential is over. On this near-ideal night, all the ills of the past few years faded away, and an era — or at least a month — of real ambition began. Fan support is booming. Players are jelling. Paraguay was suffocating. The Americans are flying, and there’s no telling how high they can fly over the coming weeks.