Happy Friday! Last Friday, we all got to enjoy the U.S. kicking off its World Cup campaign with an emphatic win. Hopefully, the Yanks can replicate that performance in today’s game. It should be a fun start to a weekend filled with soccer, including an Orlando City B home game on Sunday. If the soccer bug has bitten you this month, make sure to go out and support the Young Lions!

USMNT Hosts Australia Today in World Cup

The United States Men’s National Team returns to action this afternoon with a match against Australia in Seattle — the team’s second game of this year’s World Cup. Both teams won their first games of the tournament, with the U.S. dominating Paraguay 4-1 and Australia beating Turkiye 2-0. American forward Folarin Balogun scored a brace in that win and the U.S. will look to keep the attacking momentum flowing against a formidable Australian defense. A win tonight by either side would go a long way towards winning Group D, which would notably face one of the third-place teams to start the knockout stage.

Christian Pulisic’s Availability Up in the Air

It’s still unclear if American star Christian Pulisic will play for the USMNT today as he works his way back from injury. The 27-year-old notched an assist in the win against Paraguay but had to exit at halftime after aggravating a calf injury picked up in training. Sebastian Berhalter came on for him in that match, but it will be interesting to see if USMNT Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino opts for Giovanni Reyna or Tim Weah instead. Pochettino did state that he’ll be available for the game against Turkiye if he doesn’t play today, so that’s good at least.

Canada Cruises to Big Win Over Qatar

Orlando City goalkeeper Maxine Crepeau started in goal but had little to do in Canada’s 6-0 win over Qatar, which was its first-ever win at a World Cup. Former Lion Cyle Larin got the scoring started for Canada in the 16th minute with his second goal of the tournament and Jonathan David scored a hat trick. Qatar was reduced to 10 men when Homam Al-Amin was shown a straight red in the 32nd minute, and then Assim Madibo was sent off early in the second half for a tackle that resulted in a gruesome leg injury to Ismael Kone. The Canadian midfielder was stretchered off, and his replacement, Nathan Saliba, scored from a free kick and raised Kone’s shirt in celebration. Canada now sits atop Group B with a better goal differential than Switzerland, meaning it will win the group with a win or draw against the Swiss on Wednesday.

Keeping Up With the World Cup

As for the other Group B game, Switzerland beat Bosnia and Herzegovina 4-1 by scoring four times in the second half after the hydration break. Substitute Johan Manzambi scored twice, but Bosnia’s consolation goal from Ermin Mahmic could play a role in goal-differential tiebreakers. In Group A, South Africa kept its hopes alive thanks to a late penalty that Teboho Mokoena converted in a 1-1 draw against Czechia.

Along with the U.S. game, today’s action includes Morocco taking on Scotland and Brazil playing against Haiti in Group C. We’ll also get to see if Orlando City midfielder Braian Ojeda takes the field when Paraguay faces Turkiye late tonight.

Free Kicks

• Make sure to check out Ivory Coast winger Yan Diomande’s article on The Players’ Tribune, as it’s a heartfelt letter to his late sister, Roxane. It’s one of the best things I’ve read in quite some time and it’s important to remember that players are people too.
• While we’ve been keeping a close eye on our Lions, here’s a nice breakdown on how other players throughout MLS have been doing at the World Cup so far.
• James Sands has returned to New York City FC after his loan with FC St. Pauli and signed a contract extension through the 2029-2030 season.
• Liverpool signed Spanish winger Victor Munoz from Osasuna for a $46 million transfer fee. The 22-year-old had a breakout season with Osasuna, recording seven goals and five assists.
• Neymar was ruled out of Brazil’s match today against Haiti due to a lingering calf injury. We’ll see if he will be ready to roll for Brazil’s final group stage game against Scotland on Wednesday.

That’s all I have for you all this time around. I hope you all have a fantastical Friday and rest of your weekend

We’re a week into this year’s World Cup and I’ve been enjoying the action so far. The star players have been living up to expectations for the most part, and it’s been fairly competitive in my opinion. Before we get to today’s links from around the soccer world, let’s all wish a happy birthday to Orlando Pride defender Rafaelle and Orlando City midfielder Eduard Atuesta!

Marco Pasalic’s Journey to the World Cup

Orlando City winger Marco Pasalic made his World Cup debut Wednesday, coming off the bench for Croatia and putting a shot on target in his team’s 4-2 loss to England. While not a great result, it’s still a momentous time for Pasalic, who spoke prior to the tournament on his soccer journey. The 25-year-old shared details about his upbringing as part of a refugee family in Germany and the importance of maintaining his connection with Croatia over the years. Pasalic also gave insight on the gratitude he has towards Orlando City for the opportunities he’s had since becoming a Lion.

“You saw it when I played my first game here, that I felt really well, two goals in the first match. No other club did I score in my debut,” he said. “The last season speaks for itself, that I felt really good. I have to be thankful that this club gives me the opportunity to play so many games. I got the recall up for the national team, because I gained it here through the trust of the club, the trust of everybody here, and I could provide it on the field.”

Analyzing Australia Ahead of USMNT Match

The United States Men’s National Team will play Australia on Friday in a pivotal World Cup game with control of Group D on the line. This will only be the fifth match between the two nations, with the most recent match being a 2-1 U.S. win in October. Australian goalkeeper Patrick Beach surprisingly started over captain Mathew Ryan and had eight saves in Australia’s 2-0 win over Turkiye, with center backs Alessandro Circati and Harry Souttar doing their part defensively as well. As for Australia’s attack, the U.S. will need to find a way to limit Nestory Irankunda, who scored against Turkiye and can do damage on the counter or from set pieces. At 6-foot-6, forward Tete Yengi is another Australian to keep an eye out for and he could make an impact off the bench.

Angel City FC Parts Ways With Alex Straus

Alex Straus is no longer Angel City’s head coach, with the two parting ways during this break in the league schedule. Angel City got off to a hot start this season, with Straus named NWSL Coach of the Month for March, but has since only won one of its past eight games. Straus officially joined the club in June of last year after winning three consecutive league titles with Bayern Munich, and now his time with Angel City comes to a close just a little over a year later. Leif Gunnar Smerud will serve as Angel City’s interim head coach moving forward while the club searches for its fourth head coach in its short club history.

Gotham FC and Angel City Make Big Moves

Angel City will also be without Kennedy Fuller, as the 19-year-old midfielder was traded to Bay FC in exchange for $500,000 in Intraleague Transfer Funds and $20,000 in Allocation Money. That’s not all Angel City is up to though, as it has reportedly signed American attacker Ally Sentnor from the Kansas City Current for a $850,000 transfer fee as well.

Gotham FC is wheeling and dealing too, trading 2025 NWSL Rookie of the Year Lilly Reale to the Boston Legacy for $350,000 in Allocation Money and $50,000 in Intraleague Transfer Funds. The Massachusetts native should bolster a Boston defense still searching for its first clean sheet. Gotham is also reportedly set to sign Australian forward Sam Kerr as a free agent. The 32-year-old previously played for Gotham back when the club was named Sky Blue FC and should bring some firepower to a loaded team that’s somehow only scored 12 goals in 11 games this season.

2026 FIFA World Cup Roundup

Harry Kane scored twice in England’s aforementioned 4-2 win over Croatia in Arlington. FC Dallas forward Petar Musa scored an equalizer for Croatia right before the half in an emotional moment, but Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford both scored in the second half to lift England to victory. In Houston, Portugal and the Democratic Republic of the Congo battled to a 1-1 draw. While an unexpected result, the DR Congo is a talented side that eliminated Nigeria, Jamaica, and Cameroon in order to qualify. Ghana beat Panama 1-0 thanks to Caleb Yirenkyi scoring deep in stoppage time in a rainy match in Toronto.

Today’s action features Group A and Group B, with Orlando City goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau and Canada set to take on Qatar. Fellow co-host Mexico will face South Korea and either nation can qualify for the knockout round with a win if Czechia and South Africa draw in the other Group A game.

Free Kicks

• Here’s the first look at next year’s biopic about Marta, with Alice Carvalho starring as the legendary forward.

• Orlando City B may be climbing the MLS NEXT Pro standings, but it remained in seventh in the power rankings. Hopefully the Young Lions can make it five straight wins when they host Philadelphia Union II on Sunday.
• The Colorado Rapids transferred Connor Ronan to Aberdeen in the Scottish Premiership, with him signing a two-year contract with his new club.
• The Philadelphia Union waived defender Olivier Mbaizo, who has been with the club since 2018.
• Portuguese midfielder Bernardo Silva signed a two-year contract with Real Madrid after nine years with Manchester City.
• Mexico’s military brought down a drone that was seen near South Korea’s training camp as it prepares to play against Mexico.

That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your week!

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers! We’re into the thick of the World Cup group stage, and so far it’s been undeniably entertaining. My only complaint is that I’m not independently wealthy and still have to work during the day rather than travel to and pay the stupid ticket prices to watch whichever matches I want. Oh well, until that happens let’s get to the links, but not before we wish Orlando Pride midfielder Summer Yates a happy birthday.

Griezmann Signing Graded

There were plenty of big signings this summer transfer window, including Orlando City securing the services of Antoine Griezmann. Unsurprisingly, the Lions earned top marks for bringing the Frenchman to the City Beautiful. You might not know all there is to know about Orlando City’s newest Designated Player and may want more information on him and why he isn’t with France at the World Cup. Obviously, he retired from international football. Fortunately, he didn’t retire from club football.

USMNT vs. Australia

The USMNT plays Australia in the second match of the group stage this Friday at 3 p.m. The U.S. is coming off a dominating win over Paraguay, but Australia managed a pretty good win over a tough Türkiye team. There has been a lot of talk by U.S. pundits before the tournament about Mike Grella’s remark that Australia would be a “layup,” and the Socceroos are using that as bulletin board material. It’s an intriguing matchup since Australia, like Paraguay, favors a low block and attacking on the counter. The U.S. effectively shut down Paraguay when it tried the same thing. Can the U.S. replicate its performance from the first match on Friday? That is why they play the game. If you’re looking for somewhere to watch the match in the Orlando area, here is your guide.

Even More USMNT News

It’s all too often that we get over-hyped after a win like the USMNT over Paraguay, but is that the case this time, or can the team make a deep run into the tournament? With Australia up next, U.S. supporters are concerned about the health of Christian Pulisic. According to Mauricio Pochettino, he’s all good. Meanwhile, Haji Wright remembers scoring a brace against the Aussies when the teams met in a friendly. Wright was an unused sub in the first World Cup match, but perhaps he’ll have a chance on Friday. Wright says that Türkiye came into the match too confident, but the U.S. knows how dangerous Australia is and won’t make that same mistake.

World Cup Results

The two early matches on Tuesday were enjoyable even if the results were a little more what we expected. Kylian Mbappé scored a brace in France’s 3-1 win over Senegal. Bradley Barcola scored France’s second goal and Ibrahim Mbaye scored Senegal’s lone goal. In the second match, Erling Haaland also scored a brace in Norway’s 4-1 victory over Iraq. Aymen Hussein scored Iraq’s only goal. Unfortunately for him, he also scored an own goal for Norway. It is nice that Mbappé and Haaland wanted to emulate Folarin Balogun. Thankfully, the Argentina versus Algeria match was late enough that I did not have to write about it or that Lionel Messi guy.

Free Kicks

• Tyler Adams just seems like a good dude, and it’s stuff like this that proves it. He is working with the U.S. Soccer Foundation to build mini pitches in areas of need across the country.
• England hasn’t played a match in the World Cup and the team has already had to replace Tino Livramento, who has been ruled out due to a calf injury. Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah is his replacement.
• Remember during the opening match between Mexico and and South Africa, when Fox aired commercials during the hydration break? Remember how they didn’t come back until play had already resumed? FIFA could have punished the network but has decided not to do so. Hopefully, it doesn’t happen again.
• The Chicago Stars signed Spain national team defender Leila Ouahabi to a three-year contract through the 2028 NWSL season.
• We know that Mauricio Pochettino won’t be heading to AC Milan, since the club appointed Ruben Amorim to the head coach post.
• Are Scotland supporters drinking all the beer in Boston? I’m betting that the Tartan Army is giving it a try.
• There’s nothing quite like getting called out by your middle school teacher as an adult.

That will do it for today. We’re only two days from the USMNT versus Australia, and I’m ready to run through a brick wall — metaphorically speaking. We also have OCB this weekend, so make time to watch the Young Lions. Vamos Orlando!