The World Cup is one of the biggest, if not the biggest sporting event in the world. For example, the Super Bowl’s viewership averages 99.18 million viewers. The World Cup is just halfway through and has attracted over 5 billion viewers and more to come.
In the 2018 World Cup the United States Men’s National Soccer Team failed to qualify to play in Russia. This was the first time the U.S. failed to make it to the World Cup since 1986. Team Captain Tyler Adams and star player Christian Pulisic vowed that they will not miss out on the 2022 World Cup. Well they did just that, qualifying and were ready to play hard in group B. Even though their run is over here is how they did.

USA vs. Wales

In the first game of the World Cup for the U.S. they jumped out to a quick start, attacking the Wales defense. The U.S. were controlling the game, having the ball mostly on the Wales side. Because of this, it led to Timothy Weah putting the ball in the back of the net in the 36th minute with a beautiful assist from Christian Pulisic. In the second half Wales came back firing. In the 63rd minute the Welch were extremely close to scoring and tying the game back up, but Matt Turner had an amazing save to keep the U.S. ahead. One minute later Kieffer Moore was dangerously close to scoring with a clear shot at the goal with a header, but it flew over the U.S. net. In the 80th minute the U.S. defender Walker Zimmerman fouled Gareth Bale in the box which resulted in him taking a penalty kick. With this Bale smoked the ball past the goaltender Turner to tie up the score. That would be the final score as the U.S. and Wales tied 1-1.

USA vs. England
USA and England, everyone knows the history between these two countries. This was a must see game and everyone was watching. This game was the most viewed game of the World Cup so far. England got off to a quick start in the 9th minute when Harry Kane had a shot on goal, but Walker Zimmerman just barely made the clutch deflection to save his team. Up until the 25th minute England had control until the U.S. set up a great cross to Weston Mckennie, but he soared it over the net. In the 32nd minute the U.S. were gaining some momentum and Christian Pulisic was inches away from giving the U.S. the lead by kicking a laser that unfortunately nailed the crossbar. In the 45th minute England’s Mason Mount had an one on one opportunity to score, in spite of that, Matt Turner was able to make an unbelievable stop. From there the game didn’t have the same exciting moments to score until the 92nd minute where England’s Harry Kane was given an amazing opportunity to score with a header; however, he shanked it left. The game ended in a 0-0 tie.   S

USA vs. Iran
The stakes of this game were high because the US needed to win to move on. If they tied or Iran won, Iran moves on. With all things considered, both teams brought their best game. The U.S. had a couple of good crosses but no one could really get a good shot off, until the 38th minute when Sergiño Dest beautifully assisted Christian Pulisic for a goal to put them ahead 1-0. The problem was that on the play, Pulisic collided with the Iranian goalkeeper that injured him and took him out for the rest of the game. This made him go to the hospital to be treated. As the game continued, Timothy Weah scored a goal in the 51st minute, but it was called back for him being offside. In the 64th minute Iran had their first real chance to tie the game up with a shot from Ehsan Hajsafi that went just wide right of the goal. The 74th minute Josh Sargent had an awkward landing and was taken out of the game with an injury as well. In the 92nd minute Iran had one more shot with a free kick that led to a header that just went wide of the goal and because of that the U.S. advanced to the round of 16 with a 1-0 win.

USA vs. Netherlands
The U.S. was given great news before the game that Christian Pulisic was cleared to play. So with that in the 3rd minute of the game Pulisic had a one on one match up with the Netherlands goalie Andries Noppert and Noppert made an amazing save having Pulisic’s shot bang off his leg. In the 10th minute Denzel Dumfries crossed it to Memphis Depay to put the Netherlands ahead 1-0. In the 42nd minute Timothy Weah had a shot that looked like it was definitely going in, but Noppert uses all of his 6 foot 8 inch frame to make the save. In the 45th minute Denzel Dumfries crossed it to Daley Blind to put them up 2-0. In the 48th minute off a corner Tim Ream got the ball past the goalie Noppert, but Netherlands defense was able to clear it to keep the U.S. scoreless. In the 61st minute Memphis Depay was extremely close to scoring again, yet Matt Turner was there for a great save. In the 74th minute the Netherlands made a mistake by accidentally passing it to Haji Wright who had a shot on goal but lost his angle and could not get off a good shot. In the 75th minute Christian Pulisic crossed it to Haji Wright who scored to make the game 2-1. In the 80th minute Daley blind crossed it to Denzel Dumfries to make the score 3-1 Netherlands was the final score and sent the U.S. home.

The U.S. played amazing in this World Cup and most definitely better than what was expected of them compared to 2018. The U.S. future looks bright with their team having the second youngest average age out of all the teams at the World Cup. Because of this the U.S. will make it far in 2026, especially since it will be hosted in the U.S. and the players will develop into more experienced players in four years. Lastly, be ready to cheer for the U.S. while they play in the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games.