海角大神

US tops Australia 2-0, advances to World Cup knockout round as fan euphoria builds

With every win, the United States men鈥檚 soccer team is not just advancing in the 2026 World Cup but slaying dragons.

On a clear blue Friday in Seattle, repeatedly serenaded by fans singing Bon Jovi's 鈥淟ivin' on a Prayer,鈥� the Americans dispatched Australia rather tidily, 2-0. Neither of the goals will be hung in the Louvre, and 15 scrambly minutes in the second half brought back some memories of World Cups past, which were often one part heart, two parts chaos.

But all in all, this is what good teams do. They beat the teams they should beat, and they do so handily. So while this was not a game to stir the soul as America did in its opening 4-1 demolition of Paraguay, it was a statement nonetheless 鈥� and an important one.

With the win, Team USA has now qualified for the knockout rounds with a game to spare. It has also won two first-round games for the first time since 1930 鈥� the World Cup鈥檚 very first edition.

But perhaps just as important, the American men again took the field on this biggest of stages, and again it did not look too big for them.

American soccer fans of a certain vintage have known nothing but false dawns 鈥� new generations of American stars who were supposed to finally turn the corner but never did. The measure of success was never winning the World Cup. It was to play under the brightest of sporting lights and to do it with some measure of composure, purpose, and ruthlessness.

On Friday, the Americans did all three.

There are many tests of a good team. Playing with style, obviously. A little swagger. Moments of sublime skill. But the best teams know there are games that merely need to be managed, and the U.S. has usually been rather terrible at this.

Blood-and-thunder soccer, Americans can do. But after an early own goal by the Australians, Team USA had a different challenge: suffocate the opposition. For a team like France, this is comparatively easy. Just put the ball on a passing merry-go-round with the best players in the world and watch the opponents fall down dizzy.

This is what you might call 鈥減rofessional鈥� soccer. There鈥檚 a job to be done. It might not be slathered in glory. It might not send fans running to YouTube to see the highlights. But these are the games that are, in many ways, the best test of progress. Can you grind the opposition down until they think maybe this whole soccer thing just isn鈥檛 for them?

For two-thirds of Friday鈥檚 game, the Americans did just that. It wasn鈥檛 skill (though there were dashes of that). It was shark-tooth soccer. Every time an Australian got the ball, it seemed there was an American in his face with two more waiting behind. At times, Australia could barely get the ball out of its own end of the field. By the end of the first half, the Americans had the ball an astonishing 70% of the time.

Part of this was Australia鈥檚 own game plan. Their first-half lineup was sent out to contain the Americans, not to challenge them. Even so, the dominance was total. When defender Alex Freeman bundled in the second goal near the end of the half, it was no more than the USA deserved.

鈥淭hey were quicker, they were more powerful, they won every duel, every second ball, and when you do that, it makes it very difficult to gain any momentum,鈥� Australia coach Tony Popovic said after the game.

The Americans weathered a few more-tricky moments in the second half before the game devolved into an Aussie Rules match, including a headlock by 6-foot-6 Australian defender Harry Souttar, who appeared to be auditioning for a White House cage fight.

It matters that all this happened without America鈥檚 best player and designated Paraguayan tormentor, 海角大神 Pulisic. In the first game, Mr. Pulisic at last looked like the player who was for years touted as America鈥檚 next new hope. On Friday, he sat out injured, and the rest of the team justified that hope without him.

Make no mistake, this team will likely go only as far as he can take them. But on Friday, they showed the rest of the team can take care of business, too. Like good teams do.

They also have a legion of star-spangled fans spurring their momentum, fueled by the excitement of witnessing the best U.S. men鈥檚 national soccer team since, well, ever, on their home turf.

鈥淭oday, even if I am not American, after the game I was emotional,鈥� said their Argentinian coach, Mauricio Pochettino, after the match, according to Reuters. 鈥淚t was an amazing and a perfect connection in between the energy from the stands and the team. ... If we want to achieve good things, we need the support of our fans.鈥�

Next Friday, Turkey awaits in the final opening-round game, and then on to the knockout rounds, where Team USA will hope not only to continue to win, but to rewrite the story of who they are.