SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The U.S. Men’s National Team will open its knockout stage campaign with a test against Bosnia and Herzegovina at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. on Wednesday, July 1 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. The Stars and Stripes are seeking their first knockout stage victory since 2002 and a spot in the Round of 16 for the fourth time in as many tries.
Follow along below for live updates from sunny San Francisco Bay Area Stadium here in Santa Clara, Calif.
Knock Knock. 🚪
— U.S. Soccer Men's National Team (@USMNT) July 1, 2026
IT'S MATCHDAY FOR THE USA! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/gLsTmnTp44
Head coach Mauricio Pochettino rolls out a full-strength squad—the same starting lineup used in the opening FIFA World Cup 2026 victory against Paraguay. Only Mark McKenzie and Cristian Roldan are unavailable for selection.
RED WHITE & BLUE FOR THE ROUND OF 32! 🇺🇸#USMNT x The @HomeDepot pic.twitter.com/JBxpH4CQiY
— U.S. Soccer Men's National Team (@USMNT) July 1, 2026
Today’s USMNT Starting XI vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina: 24-Matt Freese, 2-Sergiño Dest, 3-Chris Richards 4-Tyler Adams, 5-Antonee Robinson, 8-Weston McKennie, 10-Christian Pulisic, 13-Tim Ream (Capt.), 16-Alex Freeman, 17-Malik Tillman, 20-Folarin Balogun
Substitutes: 1-Matt Turner, 25-Chris Brady, 6-Auston Trusty, 7-Gio Reyna, 9-Ricardo Pepi, 11-Brenden Aaronson, 12-Miles Robinson, 14-Sebastian Berhalter, 18-Max Arfsten, 19-Haji Wright, 21-Tim Weah, 23-Joe Scally, 26-Alex Zendejas
Not Dressed: Mark McKenzie, Cristian Roldan
The USMNT is 14W-6L-3D in the San Francisco Bay Area (Oakland, Palo Alto, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Clara). Specifically in Santa Clara and at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium, the USMNT is 1W-1L-0D after a 2-0 loss against Colombia in a non-official match in 2016 and a 2-1 win against Jamaica in the 2017 Concacaf Gold Cup Final.
The last USMNT World Cup knockout stage match contested on home soil took place just 13 miles northwest of San Francisco Bay Area Stadium at Stanford Stadium. The result was a narrow 1-0 loss against eventual champions Brazil in the Round of 16 of the 1994 FIFA World Cup.
The USMNT is seeking its second knockout stage victory in program history. The only previous instance of the USMNT winning in the knockout stage of the World Cup was the famous ‘Dos a Cero’ victory against Mexico in the Round of 16 at the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Korea Japan. That victory paved the way for the USMNT’s path to the Quarterfinals, its best finish at a World Cup in the modern era.
2 - The #USMNT have two knockout round wins against European opposition in their history:
— OptaJack⚽️ (@OptaJack) July 1, 2026
1924 Olympics: 1-0 vs Estonia (Rd 1)
2009 Confederations Cup: 2-0 vs Spain (SF)
Opportunity. pic.twitter.com/tkLKoHrdhk
To advance to the Round of 16 for the fourth time in as many tries, the USMNT will need to defeat a European side in Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, not since a 2021 victory against Bosnia and Herzegovina in December 2021 in Carson, Calif., has the USMNT has defeated a European opponent.
A victory would send the USMNT back to Seattle, Wash. to face the winner of Belgium-Senegal at Seattle Stadium on Monday, July 6 in the Round of 16.
Pochettino said that defender and goal scorer against Türkiye Auston Trusty is “much better than we expect” and could be available for this evening’s match, pending a final assessment. The coaching staff is waiting on more information to determine the availability of center back Mark McKenzie and midfielder Cristian Roldan.
“It’s going to be difficult, but we need to wait because in 24 hours things can change pretty quick,” Pochettino said.
The USMNT will face Bosnia and Herzegovina for the fourth time—the first in official competition. In the pair’s first meeting in 2013, the USMNT overcame a 2-0 deficit in Sarajevo to win 4-3 thanks to a three-goal, one-assist performance from Jozy Altidore. In the following two meetings, the USMNT did not allow the Dragons to score, notching a scoreless draw and later a 1-0 win—both in Carson, Calif. in 2018.
Bosina and Herzegovina is anchored by an imposing trio of center backs: 23-year-old US Sassuolo man Tarik Muharemović, 33-year-old Atalanta BC veteran Sead Kolašinac, and 29-year-old Nikola Katić of FC Schalke 04. The Bosnian defense is also bolstered by rising 23-year-old talent Amar Dedić, who recently earned a move to SL Benfica.
The Dragons have a collection of talented attacking midfielders and forwards. 21-year-old Ermin Mahmić of Czech First League side FC Slovan Liberec leads Bosnia and Herzegovina with two goals through the group stage, while two other players have scored for the national team at this year’s tournament: FC Universitatea Cluj’s Jovo Lukić and 18-year-old Kerim Alajbegović, with the latter earning an upcoming transfer from FC Red Bull Salzburg to Bayer 04 Leverkusen. Additionally, European journeyman and current VfB Stuttgart goalscorer Ermedin Demirovic is searching for his first World Cup goal.
The club is captained by all-time appearance (150) and scoring (73) leader Edin Džeko. The 40-year-old—fresh off a 2. Bundesliga title to help FC Schalke 04 return to the top-flight Bundesliga—has enjoyed a decorated career featuring English Premier League titles at Manchester City FC, a victorious Bundesliga campaign at VfL Wolfsburg, two Coppa Italia crowns at Inter Milan and much more.
Finally, Bosnia and Herzegovina feature Appleton, Wisconsin-born winger Esmir Bajraktarević. The 21-year-old is a product of the Chicago Fire FC and New England Revolution academies, making his professional debut in USL League One with the Revs’ reserve team in 2021 before going on to make appearances with New England (2022-25) in Major League Soccer (MLS), the Concacaf Champions Cup, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and Leagues Cup. Today, he plays alongside USMNT players Sergiño Dest and Ricardo Pepi at PSV Eindhoven, where he has won back-to-back Dutch Eredivisie titles. A previous member of the U.S. Youth National Teams, Bajraktarević made one USMNT appearance in a non-official contest against Slovenia in January 2024. FIFA granted Bajraktarević’s one-time switch to Bosnia and Herzegovina in August 2024.
From Eindhoven to the World Cup 🌍❤️🤍
— PSV (@PSV) June 10, 2026
Who will go the furthest? 👀#CreatingStarsTogether pic.twitter.com/h5Zu4W2nU8
Since earning its independence from Yugoslavia in 1992, Bosnia and Herzegovina have participated in the World Cup twice: first in 2014 and second in 2026. The Dragonswere the lone debutants at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, exiting after the group stage following a 1W-2L-0D record. Despite the group stage record, Bosnia and Herzegovina did impress, losing by a single goal against knockout stage participants Argentina and Nigeria before defeating Iran by multiple goals.
This year, the Dragons advanced to the knockout stage for the first time after finishing third in Group B. A 1W-1L-1D group stage record featuring a 1-1 draw against co-hosts Canada, a 4-1 loss against group winners Switzerland and a 3-1 victory against Qatar ensured Bosnia and Herzegovina would finish as the fifth-best third-place team to advance to the Round of 32.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is currently ranked 61st in the FIFA/Coca-Cola Men’s World Rankings, rising three spots since the last official ranking on June 11 thanks to a 1W-1L-1D record in the group stage.
Concluding its group stage run with a 3-1 victory against Qatar—its second-ever World Cup victory—Bosnia and Herzegovina snapped a seven-match winless run dating back to November 2025. Before that, the Dragons finished without a victory in the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League and were relegated to League B, albeit navigating a daunting League A group which featured Germany, the Netherlands and Hungary.
In UEFA World Cup qualifiers, Bosnia and Herzegovina constructed an 8W-1L-2D record in Group H—featuring victories against Romania, Cyprus and San Marino and a draw against Austria, among other results—to advance to the playoffs. From there, the Dragons shocked Wales in the semifinals and Italy in the Final—both on penalties following 1-1 draws—to advance to its second-ever World Cup.
Fans can watch Wednesday’s match against Bosnia and Herzegovina on FOX in English and Telemundo and Peacock in Spanish on July 1 at 8 p.m. ET.
The match will be broadcast live on FOX with English commentary. Spanish commentary can be found on Telemundo and Peacock starting at 8 p.m. ET. Pregame coverage begins at 6 p.m. ET.
Fans can stream USMNT vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina on the FOX One app with English commentary and Telemundo and Peacock with Spanish commentary starting at 8 p.m. ET. Pregame coverage begins at 6 p.m. ET.
Spanish-language commentary can be found on Fútbol de Primera. Coverage of the United States vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina will begin at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Tune in. Turn us up. pic.twitter.com/NXuznViXBY
— U.S. Soccer Men's National Team (@USMNT) July 1, 2026