- USA Beat Bosnia 2-0 to Reach World Cup Last 16
- Balogun scored before receiving a second half red card.
- Tillman’s late free kick sealed the Americans’ victory.
The United States booked their place in the round of 16 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a resilient 2-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday, overcoming a second half red card to secure just their second knockout stage win in the tournament’s history.
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EKO HOT BLOG reports that Folarin Balogun gave the Americans the lead in first half stoppage time, scoring his third goal of the tournament after seeing an earlier effort ruled out for offside.
Balogun had found the net in the 31st minute, but the goal was disallowed after the offside flag was raised. He eventually broke the deadlock in the 45th minute with a well taken finish to hand the United States a deserved advantage before the break.
The match took a dramatic turn in the 64th minute when Balogun was shown a straight red card for a challenge on Bosnia defender Tarik Muharemovic, leaving the hosts to play the remainder of the game with 10 men.
Despite being reduced to a man down, the Americans remained disciplined defensively and continued to threaten on the counterattack.
Christian Pulisic thought he had doubled the lead in the 78th minute, but his goal was ruled out for offside.
Four minutes later, Malik Tillman put the result beyond doubt with a superb free kick from just outside the penalty area. His curling effort beat goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj despite the Bosnian shot stopper getting a hand to the ball.
“We had to dig deep for that one,” Pulisic said after the match.
“It didn’t go exactly to plan with the red card, but that just shows what a good team we are. We said in the hydration break, you know, this is what it takes to be a really strong team. And, we were able to do it.”
The victory sends the United States into the last 16 and marks only the country’s second knockout stage win at a FIFA World Cup. Their previous knockout victory came in 2002 when they defeated Mexico in the round of 16 after reaching the semifinals in the inaugural tournament in 1930.
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