There's no reason why they can't win it all
On a Friday night in Seattle, the United States men's national team did something the country had not witnessed in ninety-six years — winning consecutive matches at a World Cup. A 2-0 result over Australia, built on an own goal and a header from Alex Freeman, was more than a scoreline; it was evidence that a culture of belief, quietly cultivated under manager Mauricio Pochettino, had begun to take root in the broader national imagination. The knockout rounds now await, where the distance between ambition and history grows shorter with every match.
- A nation that had largely written off its own team just weeks ago is now watching with genuine anticipation as back-to-back World Cup wins — the first since 1930 — rewrite the story in real time.
- The goals themselves were almost secondary: an own goal forced by Folarin Balogun's pressure and a clinical header from Alex Freeman, arriving on the heels of a 4-1 opening rout of Paraguay, signaling that something structural has changed.
- Even Zlatan Ibrahimovic, a man whose confidence rarely extends to others, answered a simple question about American championship potential with a single, unambiguous word: yes.
- Players like Chris Richards and Sebastian Berhalter are pushing back against the idea that this belief is sudden — they insist it has been building since Pochettino arrived, and they are tired of being underestimated.
- The knockout rounds now loom as the true reckoning, where margins collapse and any opponent can end the dream — but for the first time in a long time, the USMNT enters that territory as believers, not hopefuls.
Seattle was the stage, and the American men's national team had just done something they hadn't managed in nearly a century. A 2-0 victory over Australia — sealed by an own goal created by Folarin Balogun and a header from Alex Freeman — sent the USMNT into the World Cup knockout rounds and marked their first consecutive World Cup wins since 1930. The number carried weight beyond the statistic itself.
The win followed a 4-1 demolition of Paraguay in the opener, and the cumulative effect was visible. The outside world had begun to notice. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, asked whether he believed the USMNT could win the World Cup, answered simply: yes. Coming from someone whose confidence rarely extends beyond himself, that single word meant something.
The belief, players insisted, was not new. Sebastian Berhalter noted that it had been growing since Mauricio Pochettino took over — and offered a quiet reminder that the same voices now predicting success had written the team off entirely just three weeks prior. Defender Chris Richards was direct: wanting to win the whole thing, he said, was not ridiculous.
The mathematics were clear — three points against Australia secured passage to the knockouts. What remained was the harder part: rounds where margins narrow, mistakes become fatal, and the world's best teams converge with everything at stake. No guarantees exist. But for the first time in a long time, a team and a country were learning to believe in the same thing at the same time.
Seattle was the stage, and the American men's national team had just done something they hadn't managed in nearly a century. A 2-0 victory over Australia on Friday night—sealed by an own goal created by Folarin Balogun and a header from Alex Freeman—sent the USMNT into the World Cup knockout rounds. More than that, it marked their first consecutive World Cup wins since 1930, a statistical fact that seemed to carry weight beyond the numbers themselves.
The win arrived on the heels of a 4-1 demolition of Paraguay in the tournament opener, and the cumulative effect was palpable. Something had shifted. The outside world was beginning to notice. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, the legendary Swedish striker whose career has been defined by outsized confidence and occasional exaggeration, was asked a straightforward question: Did he believe the USMNT could win the World Cup? His answer was equally straightforward. Yes.
That single word carried significance precisely because it came from someone accustomed to making bold pronouncements. But this time, Ibrahimovic wasn't talking about himself. He was speaking about a team that, for the better part of a year and a half, has been the project of manager Mauricio Pochettino. The Argentine coach arrived with a mandate to build something—not just a competitive squad, but a culture of belief. On Friday night, in Seattle, that culture seemed to extend beyond the locker room.
Chris Richards, the team's defender, articulated what the players had been saying all along: "Every game, every time that we play, we want to win. I don't think it's ridiculous to say that we want to win it." He acknowledged the distance still to travel—more games before any trophy ceremony, the knockout rounds where the world's best teams converge with everything on the line. But the tone was different now. Not naive, but grounded in the belief that advancement was possible.
The mathematics were straightforward: three points against Australia secured passage to the knockout stage. The group stage might still demand attention, but the immediate objective had been achieved. What remained was the harder part—the knockout rounds, where margins narrow and mistakes become fatal. No World Cup offers guarantees. The USMNT could stumble. They could be eliminated by any number of superior opponents waiting in the later rounds.
But here was the other side of that equation: there was no reason they couldn't advance further. That's what the players believed. That's what the fans were beginning to believe. That's what even Zlatan believed. Sebastian Berhalter, the midfielder, pushed back gently against the notion that this confidence was new. "We've had this belief since a while ago," he said. "It's been something that's been growing ever since Mauricio took over." He also offered a note of caution about the volatility of public opinion: three weeks earlier, the same voices now predicting success had written the team off entirely.
What mattered now was momentum. Two victories to start a home World Cup. A nation watching. A team that had learned to believe in itself, and a country that was learning to believe alongside them. The knockout rounds awaited, and with them, the real test.
Notable Quotes
Every game, every time that we play, we want to win. I don't think it's ridiculous to say that we want to win it.— Chris Richards, USMNT defender
It's been something that's been growing ever since Mauricio took over, and we're just trying to keep it going.— Sebastian Berhalter, USMNT midfielder
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does Zlatan's endorsement matter so much here? He's not even involved in this tournament.
Because he's Zlatan. He's spent a career saying things that sound absurd until they happen. When someone like that says yes to a question about winning the World Cup, people listen. It's permission to believe.
But the article itself says there are no guarantees. So what's actually changed since the Paraguay game?
The narrative has shifted from "we have a chance" to "why couldn't we?" That's not nothing. The own goal and Freeman's header weren't brilliant goals—they were efficient ones. But they proved the team could execute under pressure against a real opponent.
Pochettino has been building this for eighteen months. Did he know this moment was coming?
He was building toward it, yes. But you can't manufacture belief. You can create conditions for it. Two wins in a row, at home, with the world watching—that's the condition where belief becomes contagious.
Richards says they take it one game at a time. Is that just coach-speak?
Partly. But it's also the only way to survive a World Cup. You can't think about lifting the trophy in the knockout rounds. You think about the next ninety minutes. The difference now is that the players sound like they actually believe those ninety minutes are winnable.
What happens if they lose in the round of sixteen?
Then the narrative flips instantly. The same people who are boarding the bandwagon now will say it was always too much to ask. That's the volatility Berhalter was warning about. But that's also why these two wins matter—they've bought the team time and goodwill.