The United States defeated Paraguay 4-1 in Group D play at the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Friday at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, with Folarin Balogun bagging a brace and Gio Reyna adding a late strike to give the Americans a commanding start to their tournament. Find a full USA vs. Paraguay recap of Friday’s World Cup game, with updated Group D standings below.
2026 World Cup USA vs. Paraguay Recap, Folarin Balogun Stars
USA opened the scoring in the 7th minute when a Damián Bobadilla own goal handed them the early advantage. Balogun doubled the lead in the 31st minute, converting to cash in at his pre-match odds of +235 to find the net. Christian Pulisic, +500 to record an assist before kickoff, made his mark, setting up Balogun for the finish. Balogun then delivered a second goal just before the break to put the US up 3-0 at halftime. Pulisic was substituted off at the interval, sparking intrigue over his status.
Paraguay pulled one back in the 73rd minute through Maurício, who finished off a Julio Enciso assist to make it 3-1 and give their fans something to cheer.
Gio Reyna put the result firmly to bed in the 98th minute with an outrageous trivela finish deep in stoppage time. The United States entered as +110 favorites and delivered a performance that justified the billing, setting themselves up nicely with two group stage matches still to play.
USA vs. Paraguay Match Timeline
- 7′ Own Goal, Paraguay, Damián Bobadilla
- 31′ Goal, USA, Folarin Balogun
- 45+5′ Goal, USA, Folarin Balogun
- 73′ Goal, Paraguay, Maurício
- 90+8′ Goal, USA, Giovanni Reyna
2026 World Cup Group D Standings
After Friday’s USA-Paraguay game, here are the updated Group D standings:
- USA (1-0-0) 3 points
- Australia (0-0-0) 0 points
- Turkey (0-0-0) 0 points
- Paraguay (0-0-1) 0 points
More World Cup Coverage
For additional World Cup coverage from the DraftKings Network, check out the World Cup landing page here:
