U.S. sees off Australia, advances to WC knockouts
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- USMNT beat Australia 2-0 at Lumen Field in Seattle on Friday, clinching a spot in the World Cup knockout rounds with one group-stage match still to play.
- Alex Freeman, son of former NFL wide receiver Antonio Freeman, scored his first World Cup goal on a headed finish off Sergiño Dest's deflected shot — a strike that survived a dramatic VAR offside check.
- Cameron Burgess turned Folarin Balogun's cross into his own net 11 minutes in to give the U.S. an early lead, mirroring the opening own goal the Americans forced against Paraguay a week earlier.
- Christian Pulisic missed the match with a left calf injury, never trained with teammates all week and watched in street clothes; coach Mauricio Pochettino handed Ricardo Pepi his first World Cup start in Pulisic's place.
- The win marked the first back-to-back World Cup victories for the U.S. since 1930, and a draw against Türkiye on Thursday would clinch first place in Group D and a favorable round-of-32 matchup in Santa Clara.
- A crowd of 66,925 — the first U.S. men's match in Seattle in a decade — produced 'U-S-A' chants for blocks before kickoff in a game that was described as significantly more physical than the Paraguay opener.
Why it matters: A draw against Türkiye on Thursday locks up first place in Group D and a round-of-32 matchup against a third-place team in Santa Clara — a meaningful seeding advantage in a knockout bracket. The bigger swing variable is Pulisic's left calf: U.S. Soccer described it as 'improving' but he never practiced all week, forcing Pochettino to weigh whether to risk his star in a group-stage finale versus preserve him for the knockouts.
