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USA beat Australia to secure spot in World Cup knockout
20 Jun 2026

The United States men's national soccer team has secured its place in the knockout stages of the FIFA World Cup, following a convincing 2-0 victory over Australia in Group D.

The match, played in Seattle, saw Cameron Burgess score an own goal and Alex Freeman head in a second goal for the co-hosts.

With this win, USA became the second team to reach the round of 32 after Mexico.

Stellar start for the USA under Pochettino
Tournament performance

Under the guidance of head coach Mauricio Pochettino, the USA team has had a stellar start to their World Cup campaign.

They kicked off their tournament with a 4-1 win over Paraguay in Los Angeles.

The team now sits at the top of Group D with six points, and is on track to finish first.

According to FIFA, they are guaranteed to qualify for the round of 32 as one of the best third-placed teams at minimum.

A look at match summary
Match highlights

The USA's first goal came in the 11th minute when Australia's Cameron Burgess inadvertently turned a cut-back from Folarin Balogun into his own net.

Freeman then doubled the lead when VAR overturned an offside call against him after he had headed Sergino Dest's deflected shot over the line following a USA corner.

Despite making three substitutions at half-time, Australia's attempts to get back into the game were unsuccessful.

Turkey next for the USA
Upcoming matches

The USA will wrap up their group stage campaign against Turkey in Los Angeles on June 26.

Meanwhile, Australia will face Paraguay in their last match of the group stage.

Despite missing star player Christian Pulisic due to a calf injury, the USA team proved they are not reliant on one player for success.