CHICAGO (July 11, 2023) – After a thrilling shootout win against Canada, the U.S. Men’s National Team will take on Panama in the 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup Semifinals on Wednesday, July 12. The USA aims to reach a record 13th Gold Cup Final when it faces Los Canaleros, the team’s most frequent opponent at this tournament.
Coverage of USA-Panama from Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, Calif. begins at 7 p.m. ET on FS1, Univision and TUDN, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. ET. Live Spanish-language audio for the match will be available on Fútbol de Primera radio platforms.
The U.S. won its first penalty-kick shootout in the tournament since 2005 to reach the semifinals, boosted by two saves from goalkeeper Matt Turner after tying the game late in extra time. Panama rolled Qatar 4-0 after topping its group with an undefeated record to reach the semifinals for the fifth time.
Fans will be able to follow the match via Facebook, Twitter @USMNT, Instagram @USMNT and the official U.S. Soccer App.
GOALKEEPERS (3): 18-Sean Johnson (Toronto FC/CAN; 13/0), 23-Gaga Slonina (Chelsea/ENG; 1/0), 1-Matt Turner (Arsenal/ENG; 31/0)
DEFENDERS (8): 15-DeJuan Jones (New England Revolution; 5/0), 3-Aaron Long (LAFC; 34/3), 4-Matt Miazga (FC Cincinnati; 27/1), 20-Jalen Neal (LA Galaxy; 6/0), 5-Bryan Reynolds (Roma/ITA; 6/1), 12-Miles Robinson (Atlanta United; 24/3), 21-John Tolkin (New York Red Bulls; 2/0), 2-DeAndre Yedlin (Inter Miami; 80/0)
MIDFIELDERS (6): 6-Gianluca Busio (Venezia/ITA; 12/1), 14-Djordje Mihailovic (AZ Alkmaar/NED; 10/3), 16-Aidan Morris (Columbus Crew; 4/0), 10-Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders; 36/0), 8-James Sands (New York City FC; 12/0), 24-Jackson Yueill (San Jose Earthquakes; 16/0)
FORWARDS (6): 11-Cade Cowell (San Jose Earthquakes; 7/1), 9-Jesús Ferreira (FC Dallas; 22/14), 22-Julian Gressel (Vancouver Whitecaps/CAN; 5/0), 13-Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders; 54/11), 19-Brandon Vazquez (FC Cincinnati; 7/4), 17-Alex Zendejas (Club América/MEX; 7/1)
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Time (ET) / Result | TV Info |
| Saturday, June 24 | Jamaica | Soldier Field; Chicago, Ill. | 1-1 D | -- |
| Wednesday, June 28 | St. Kitts and Nevis | CityPark; St. Louis, Mo. | 6-0 W | -- |
| Sunday, July 2 | Trinidad and Tobago | Bank of America Stadium; Charlotte, N.C. | 6-0 W | -- |
| Sunday, July 9 | Canada | TQL Stadium; Cincinnati, Ohio | 2-2 D (3-2 PK) | -- |
| Wednesday, July 12 | Panama | Snapdragon Stadium; San Diego, Calif. | 7:30 p.m. ET | FS1, Univision, TUDN |
Following a dramatic 2-2 draw in extra time, the USMNT utilized two penalty kick saves from Matt Turner to defeat Canada 3-2 in a shootout to advance to the semifinals. After a deadlock for nearly all of regulation, the USA broke through in the 88th minute when left back DeJuan Jones teed up a header for second-half substitute Brandon Vazquez, playing in front of his raucous FC Cincinnati hometown fans. The lead was short-lived, as Canada was awarded a penalty for a U.S. hand ball four minutes into second-half stoppage time and captain Steven Vitoria hammered it home to send things to extra time.
Forward Jacob Shaffelburg scored on a hard-hit shot early in the second period of extra time, but the U.S. found an answer in the 114th. Midfielder Gianluca Busio fired a strike from close range, and after a save by Canada goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair the ball bounced off defender Scott Kennedy and into the back of the net. In the ensuing shootout, Turner saved the first two Canadian penalty kicks, forward Cade Cowell, Busio and forward Jesús Ferreira nailed their PKs and Canada hit the crossbar with its final attempt to send the U.S. to the semis.
Sunday night marked the seventh time that the USMNT has gone to a penalty shootout in official competition, advancing on five occasions. It was the first shootout win since the 2005 Gold Cup Final, a 3-1 penalty kick victory against Panama following a scoreless 120 minutes of play. Turner became the first U.S. goalkeeper to make multiples saves in a shootout since Kasey Keller in the 2002 Gold Cup Semifinal vs. Canada. In his professional career for club and country, Turner has saved a remarkable 11 of 25 penalty kicks (not including shootouts).
| USMNT Shootout Record in Official Competition | |||
| Date | Opponent | Score | Competition |
| July 7, 1991 | Honduras | 0-0 D (4-3 W) | Gold Cup Final |
| July 17, 1995 | Mexico | 0-0 D (4-1 W) | Copa America Quarterfinal |
| Feb. 19, 2000 | Colombia | 2-2 D (1-2 L) | Gold Cup Quarterfinal |
| Jan. 30, 2002 | Canada | 0-0 D (4-2 W) | Gold Cup Semifinal |
| July 24, 2005 | Panama | 0-0 D (3-1 W) | Gold Cup Final |
| July 25, 2015 | Panama | 1-1 D (2-3 L) | Gold Cup Third Place Match |
| July 9, 2023 | Canada | 2-2 D (3-2 W) | Gold Cup Quarterfinal |
Forward Brandon Vazquez once again played hero late for the USMNT, netting the go-ahead goal in the 88th minute in front of his home club fans. With the goal, Vazquez became the first USMNT player to find the back of the net three times as a substitute in in Gold Cup play. The FC Cincinnati forward also scored in the 88th minute of the USA’s Gold Cup opener vs. Jamaica in Chicago, earning the USMNT a 1-1 draw to kick off the tournament. He then tallied the final goal in the fourth minute of second half stoppage time in the USA’s 6-0 rout of Trinidad and Tobago on July 2 in Charlotte. Vazquez’s goal at TQL Stadium on Sunday made him the first U.S. player to score in his home club stadium since Clint Dempsey tallied in the Copa America Centenario Quarterfinals in 2016 at Lumen Field in Seattle.
Panama rolled guest nation Qatar 4-0 in the quarterfinals to reach its fifth Gold Cup semifinal after topping Group C with an undefeated 2-0-1 record. Los Canaleros opened the tournament with a 2-1 win against Costa Rica on goals from forward José Fajarado and midfielder Yoel Bárcenas and a 2-1 victory vs. Martinique with tallies from Fajarado and defender Michael Murillo, conceding in second-half stoppage time both matches. In its Group C finale, Panama played El Salvador to a back-and-forth 2-2 draw, with defender Fidel Escobar equalizing after an early Salvadoran lead and forward Ismael Díaz giving the side the advantage again before conceding another goal in second-half stoppage time to settle for a draw.
In the quarters, Bárcenas opened the scoring in the 19th minute against Qatar before the floodgates opened in the second half with a hat trick from Díaz. The Ecuador-based forward’s three goals came in the span of just nine minutes to send Panama flying into the final four.
Panama is the USMNT’s most frequent opponent at the Concacaf Gold Cup, as Wednesday marks the nations’ 12th meeting at the tournament. The U.S. holds a 6-1-4 record all-time vs. Panama at the Gold Cup and is 17-2-6 across all competitions.
Seven of the previous clashes have come with high stakes in the knockout stage. The USA’s last penalty-kick shootout victory came in the 2005 Gold Cup Final against Panama, a 3-1 triumph following 120 scoreless minutes of play. The U.S. also topped Panama in the 2013 Gold Cup Final, a 1-0 victory on a goal from Brek Shea.
| USA-Panama Gold Cup Series | |||
| Date | Score | USMNT Goal Scorers | Round |
| July 14, 1993 | 2-1 W | Wynalda, Dooley | Group Stage |
| July 24, 2005 | 0-0 D | - | Final |
| June 16, 2007 | 2-1 W | Donovan, Bocanegra | Quarterfinal |
| July 18, 2009 | 2-1 W (AET) | Beckerman, Cooper | Quarterfinal |
| June 11, 2011 | 1-2 L | Goodson | Group Stage |
| June 22, 2011 | 1-0 W | Dempsey | Semifinal |
| July 28, 2013 | 1-0 W | Shea | Final |
| July 13, 2015 | 1-1 D (1-3 PK) | Bradley | Group Stage |
| July 25, 2015 | 1-1 D (3-1 PK) | Dempsey | 3rd Place |
| July 8, 2017 | 1-1 D | Dwyer | Group Stage |
| June 26, 2019 | 1-0 W | Altidore | Group Stage |
The USMNT has played more matches in California than any other state, but Wednesday will be the USA’s first visit to Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, the home of San Diego Wave FC in the National Women’s Soccer League and San Diego State Aztecs football. The U.S. is 1-5-3 overall in America’s Finest City, most recently playing Serbia to a 0-0 draw in 2017 at the conclusion of the team’s January training camp. The USA is 55-30-32 all-time in the Golden State.
The USMNT squad features several connections to Southern California. Forward Brandon Vazquez hails from nearby Chula Vista. Defender Jalen Neal is from Lakewood and is a homegrown player for LA Galaxy, defender Aaron Long comes from Oak Hills and currently plays for LAFC, while midfielder Cristian Roldan grew up in Pico Rivera. Midfielder Jackson Yueill played two years of college soccer at UCLA.
GOALKEEPERS (3): 1-Luis Meijía (Unión Española/CHI), 22-Orlando Mosquera (Monagas/VEN), 12-César Samudio (Marathón/HON)
DEFENDERS (8): 14-Eduardo Anderson (San Carlos/CRC), 16-Andrés Andrade (Arminia Bielefeld/GER), 25-Ivan Anderson (Monagas/VEN), 3-Harold Cummings (Monagas/VEN), 15-Eric Davis (DAC 1904/SVK), 4-Fidel Escobar (Saprissa/CRC), 5-Roderick Miller (Turan Tovuz/AZE), 24-Omar Valencia (New York Red Bulls/USA)
MIDFIELDERS (8): 10-Yoel Bárcenas (Mazatlán/MEX), 8-Adalberto Carrasquilla (Houston Dynamo FC/USA), 20-Aníbal Godoy (Nashville SC/USA), 13-Freddy Góndola (Alajuelense/CRC), 6-Cristian Martínez (Najran/KSA), 19-Alberto Quintero (Cienciano/PER), 7-Jovani Welch (Academico de Viseu/POR), 21-César Yanis (Potros del Este)
FORWARDS (4): 11-Ismael Díaz (Universidad Católica/ECU), 17-José Fajardo (Cusco/PER), 9-Azarías Londoño (Comunicaciones/GUA), 18-Cecillio Waterman (Cobresal/CHI)
After taking home one continental title earlier this month with a dominant performance at the Concacaf Nations League, the USMNT is aiming for a record-tying eighth Concacaf Gold Cup this June/July. Another championship would mark the first time ever that one nation has won four straight Concacaf titles.
The U.S. entered the tournament as Gold Cup champion following a strong performance in the 2021 competition. There, the U.S. rattled off six-straight wins and allowed just one goal en route to the title. The championship run was punctuated with a dramatic 1-0 win against Mexico in the tournament final, as defender Miles Robinson headed home the game-winning goal in added extra time. It marked two continental titles in two months for the USMNT with two almost entirely different rosters.
Held every two years, the Gold Cup has crowned a confederation champion biennially since 1991. Similar to the UEFA European Championship or the Copa America, lifting the trophy brings prestige and regional supremacy across North America, Central America and the Caribbean. The U.S. has won the tournament seven times (1991, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2017, 2021), just behind all-time leader Mexico (1993, 1996, 1998, 2003, 2009, 2011, 2015). Canada is the only other tournament champion, winning in 2000.
The Gold Cup roster is anchored with players who have tournament action under their belts. A total of 12 have previous experience at this competition, with nine having won at least once and 11 having reached a final. Matt Turner and Miles Robinson earned a spot on the 2021 Tournament Best XI, leading a total of seven players to lift the ’21 championship trophy. Five players helped the USMNT lift the 2022-23 Concacaf Nations League trophy last month: Turner and Robinson plus goalkeepers Sean Johnson and Matt Turner, midfielder Alan Soñora and forward Alex Zendejas.
In addition, the squad features seven players from the 2022 FIFA World Cup team: Johnson and Turner plus defenders Aaron Long and DeAndre Yedlin, midfielder Cristian Roldan and forwards Jesús Ferreira and Jordan Morris.
Sean Johnson becomes the ninth USMNT player named to five or more Gold Cup rosters, joining DaMarcus Beasley (6), Landon Donovan (6), Frankie Hejduk (6), Kasey Keller (6), Clint Dempsey (5), Brad Guzan (5), Cobi Jones (5) and Eric Wynalda (5).
Complementing the veteran core is a number of young, hungry players looking to make their mark on the senior USMNT. Seven players are age-eligible for next summer’s 2024 Olympics, the U.S. men’s first appearance at the tournament since 2008: goalkeeper Gaga Slonina, defenders Jalen Neal, John Tolkin and Bryan Reynolds, midfielders Gianluca Busio and Aidan Morris plus forward Cade Cowell.
Eleven players brought six or less caps and will look to gain valuable international tournament experience during the USA’s quest for an eighth Gold Cup: Cowell, Morris, Neal, Reynolds, Slonina and Tolkin plus defender DeJuan Jones, midfielder Djordje Mihailovic and forwards Julian Gressel, Brandon Vazquez and Alex Zendejas.
Prior to the 2021 Gold Cup, goalkeeper Matt Turner and Miles Robinson had a combined four international caps. The pair played every minute for the U.S. at the tournament, allowing just one goal and earning Best XI honors, catapulting them to some of the first names on the team sheet for the USMNT. Now, these players have the opportunity to take a similar step forward.
As expected, this Gold Cup roster has a more U.S.-based influence than the Concacaf Nations League squad, with a total of 17 of 23 players coming from Major League Soccer. Players also join from clubs in England (2), Italy (2), Mexico (1) and Netherlands (1).
With two selections each, FC Cincinnati, San Jose Earthquakes and Seattle Sounders lead the list of 12 MLS teams represented on the roster, followed by Atlanta United, Columbus Crew, FC Dallas, Inter Miami, LAFC, LA Galaxy, New England Revolution, New York City FC and New York Red Bulls.
