When Folarin Balogun decided in 2023 to switch allegiances from England, where he grew up competing for youth teams on the international level, to the United States, it was for this very reason: a chance to stand out for the home team at the most-watched sporting event on the planet.
After scoring a pair of goals—a one-timer off a beautiful Christian Pulisic pass, and a stunning 62 mph left-footed fastball from eight feet out, drilled into the top corner of the net—in the first half of Team USA’s rousing 4-1 win over Paraguay in its World Cup opener on Friday night, the 24-year-old striker was the toast of the 70,492 charged fans in Los Angeles Stadium, as well as millions of Americans who combusted in their homes and at watch parties in Minneapolis; Columbus, Ohio; and elsewhere across the country.
Balogun’s second goal put the U.S. up 3-0 before the break. “It was a real statement,” says Balogun. “It’s a dream. It’s a dreamy night.”
Forgive American soccer nuts for dreaming pretty big themselves. The U.S. men have never before scored four goals in a World Cup game. Before Balogun’s brace on Friday, the last American man to score more than one goal in a World Cup game was Bert Patenaude, who had a hat trick, against Paraguay, in 1930 (the Americans reached their only World Cup semifinal that year). And Paraguay is no pushover. La Albirroja beat both Argentina and Brazil in World Cup qualifying.
George Lucas, Tom Cruise, Hilary Duff, David Beckham, Katy Perry, and Jamie Foxx were among the celebrities in the stands Friday. Since the last U.S. World Cup, in 1994, soccer has grown into a mainstream spectator sport: This was the largest crowd to watch the U.S. men’s team play since ‘94. Why shouldn't the sport’s ascendance spark a memorable moment? America’s 250th birthday, the USMNT clicking: It’s shaping up to be a fun summer.
“When we walked out and heard the national anthem, seeing the crowd and people singing along, I got goosebumps,” says American midfielder Weston McKennie. “The accumulation of all the work that your team puts in, and all the guys, all the paths that they took to be here in this moment together, I think that was the turning point for us.”
The team looked inspired, and cohesive, from the start. The opening salvo, a Paraguay own-goal that resulted from the fancy attacking footwork of the team’s two brightest international lights, Pulisic, of AC Milan, and McKennie, of Juventus, happened within the first seven minutes of the game. American players came out with flair, an approach they need to continue in their second game against Australia in Seattle on June 19. Pulisic split a double team. Malik Tillman tried a back-heel pass, because why not? Former U.S. standout Alexi Lalas, often a tough critic of the men’s team, on Fox Sports called the first 45 minutes plus stoppage time “the greatest half of group play from a men’s team at a World Cup in history.”
“There's a lot of people here that maybe have never come out to support us,” says McKennie. “But hopefully today, with this performance, they can connect with us. We want to be relatable. They can see the joy that we have when we play.”
The game wasn’t all roses. Before the World Cup, Pulisic grew frustrated with all the talk about his goal-scoring slump, for both club and country. “Such bad questions,” Pulisic told TIME in an April interview about this drought. “I'm not concerned about it, man.”
Pulisic did score a goal in a World Cup tune-up game against Senegal in late May, but more importantly, on Friday night, showed how he can shape a game with his playmaking. Pulisic came out blazing, but got kicked in the calf and sat out the second half. “When he finished the first half, he could not walk,” U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino said afterward. “We’re hopeful the next game he’ll be available.”
That potential setback shouldn’t overshadow the team’s accomplishment, or its promise. Defender Chris Richards, the reigning U.S. Soccer men’s player of the year, returned to action from a May ankle injury: All he did was complete all 83 of his passes, the most passes with 100% accuracy by any player in a World Cup match since 1966, according to ESPN Insights. Remember Gio Reyna, whose alleged lack of effort nearly got him sent home by former coach Gregg Berhalter at the last World Cup, and led to a stunning public feud between the Reyna and Berhalter families? Reyna, a reserve on Friday, chipped a shot into the net right before the final whistle, making his case for a super sub role. “He deserves it,” says Pulisic, of Reyna’s goal. “We see stuff from him like that every day."
Meanwhile, Balogun’s effort has fans praising birthright citizenship. His mother, seven months pregnant with him, was deemed unfit to fly back to London from a family visit in New York City. So she gave birth in Brooklyn before the family returned to England.
After one night’s work in Southern California, he’s already tied for fifth for most career World Cup goals in USMNT history.
“Why not us?” says Balogun.
English (US) · 