Soccer
USA's potential route to the 2026 World Cup final
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The World Cup returns to the United States, with the Americans acting as the main hosts for the 48-team competition.
With a roster of players scattered throughout Europe and MLS, the potential is high for the U.S.
Helmed by Mauricio Pochettino, the USA will aim to make a long run on home soil.
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USA's World Cup group
Headlining Group D, the Americans are in with some tricky company as Paraguay, Australia and Turkey could all cause trouble.
Based on the West Coast for the group stage, the U.S. play twice in Los Angeles with a match in Seattle.
| Group D |
| USA |
| Paraguay |
| Australia |
| Turkey |
Who could the USA face in the Round of 32?
If they top their group, the Americans would take on a third-place finisher from Group B/E/F/I/J. From those groups, potential opponents for the San Francisco match could be Canada, Ivory Coast, Tunisia, Norway, Senegal, and others.
A second place finish in Group D means the USA would travel to Texas to take on the runners-up from a group featuring Belgium, Egypt, Iran and New Zealand.
Getty
USA's potential opponents in the Round of 16
As winners of their group, the Americans would head back to Seattle for this match, where the aforementioned Belgians would be favoured to provide the opposition.
If the U.S. moves on as runners-up of Group D, their pool of opponents for this game includes Argentina and Uruguay.
Powerhouses await in the quarters
Should the United States top the group and progress to the quarter-finals, then their most likely opponents would be Spain in Los Angeles.
As runners-up, the Americans would travel to to Kansas City, where they could face Portugal, Colombia, or even neighbours Canada.
Omar Vega/USSF/Getty Images
Semi-finals
Dallas Stadium awaits for the United States if they take the group winners path to this match, which would likely also feature one of the Netherlands, France or Germany.
If the Americans take the runners-up path, they'd travel to Atlanta and could be up against Mexico, England or Brazil.
The final
That match is scheduled to take place at MetLife Stadium in the New York area on July 19.
At this point, the opponent would be an elite side no matter the route the Americans took to get there.
Who made Mauricio Pochettino's squad?
Here is the USA squad for World Cup 2026.
| Shirt Number | Position | Player |
| 1 | Goalkeeper | Matt Turner (New England Revolution) |
| 2 | Defender | Sergino Dest (PSV) |
| 3 | Defender | Chris Richards (Crystal Palace) |
| 4 | Midfielder | Tyler Adams (AFC Bournemouth) |
| 5 | Defender | Antonee Robinson (Fulham) |
| 6 | Defender | Auston Trusty (Celtic) |
| 7 | Midfielder | Giovanni Reyna (Borussia Mönchengladbach) |
| 8 | Midfielder | Weston McKennie (Juventus) |
| 9 | Forward | Ricardo Pepi (PSV) |
| 10 | Midfielder | Christian Pulisic (AC Milan) |
| 11 | Midfielder | Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United) |
| 12 | Defender | Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati) |
| 13 | Defender | Tim Ream (Charlotte FC) - captain |
| 14 | Midfielder | Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver Whitecaps) |
| 15 | Midfielder | Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders) |
| 16 | Defender | Alex Freeman (Villarreal) |
| 17 | Midfielder | Malik Tillman (Bayer Leverkusen) |
| 18 | Defender | Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew) |
| 19 | Forward | Haji Wright (Coventry City) |
| 20 | Forward | Folarin Balogun (Monaco) |
| 21 | Midfielder | Tim Weah (Marseille) |
| 22 | Defender | Mark McKenzie (Toulouse) |
| 23 | Defender | Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach) |
| 24 | Goalkeeper | Matt Freese (New York City FC) |
| 25 | Goalkeeper | Chris Brady (Chicago Fire) |
| 26 | Midfielder | Alejandro Zendajas (Club America) |
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