The United States are through to the Round of 16 in the 2026 World Cup. After leaving Bosnia and Herzegovina out of the tournament, the Stars and Stripes have reason to believe, and dream big. That was made crystal clear after Mauricio Pochettino addressed the media after the game.
“Everything is possible, why not us?,” Pochettino said to a reporter during his postgame interview at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium.
The U.S. Men’s National Team knows its potential path to the 2026 World Cup final, and it will be far from a walk in the park. Still, the Americans won’t back down. For the time being, though, the Stars and Stripes must first deal with Belgium, and they already know when and where the Round of 16 game will be played.
Pochettino makes USMNT history
Thanks to the goals scored by Folarin Balogun and Malik Tillman against Bosnia and Herzegovina, the U.S. Men’s National Team secured its third win of the 2026 World Cup. With that, Pochettino has become the winningest USA manager in FIFA World Cup history.
USA coach Mauricio Pochettino during a game.
However, all he cares about is the next game, in which the Stars and Stripes will once again be facing elimination, this time against a tougher side than Bosnia and Herzegovina.
What’s next for the USMNT?
After knocking Bosnia and Herzegovina out of the 2026 World Cup, the USMNT will take on Belgium at Seattle Stadium. The Americans will be without their leading goalscorer in the tournament, Folarin Balogun, after he was shown a red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Christian Pulisic lamented Balogun’s red card, but the team is still optimistic.
If the United States defeat Belgium, they will advance to the quarterfinals. The last time they reached that stage was in 2002. However, the U.S. have never won a World Cup quarterfinal. Still, they can’t get ahead of themselves.
