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World Cup 2026 World Cup Draw Koji Watanabe / Getty Images WASHINGTON — The United States will play Paraguay in its 2026 World Cup opener, and will also face Australia and a to-be-determined European team in Group D at next summer’s tournament. The U. S. men’s national team, often known as the USMNT, learned its three group-stage opponents at Friday’s World Cup draw at the Kennedy Center — though the third of three will be determined by a European playoff in March. It could be Turkey, Romania, Slovakia or Kosovo. Advertisement After the opener against Paraguay at So Fi Stadium in greater Los Angeles on June 12, the U. S. will head to Seattle’s Lumen Field for a June 19 matchup with Australia. It will then go back to Southern California for the group finale against the unknown European team on June 25. Kickoff times will be confirmed on Saturday when FIFA reveals the World Cup’s full match schedule beginning at noon ET (5 p. m. GMT). The U. S. , seeded in Pot 1 as a co-host of the tournament, will be expected to advance from its group — and perhaps even win it — especially with eight of 12 third-place teams progressing to the round of 32 under the World Cup’s new 48-team format. The USMNT is currently riding a five-game unbeaten streak, and is ranked 14th in the world by FIFA — though only 34th by the more predictive Elo ratings. Advertisement Two of those recent U. S. wins were over teams that the U. S. will play in June. The Americans beat Australia 2-1 in October. A month later, they beat Paraguay 2-1 as well. The U. S. could also face another familiar opponent, too, after having lost to Turkey, in another 2-1 game, a friendly in June in East Hartford. The Australians were the lowest-ranked team in Pot 2, and represented a favorable draw for the U. S. Paraguay was rated somewhere in the middle of Pot 3. After the U. S. drew those two teams, it was guaranteed to draw a European playoff team from Pot 4. In the European playoff, Turkey will face Romania in one semifinal, while Slovakia and Kosovo would play in the other. The winners will meet in a playoff final, and the winner of that final will take the final spot in Group D. Turkey would be the toughest, with an Elo ranking of 15th. Slovakia is 47th, Romania is 53rd and Kosovo is 42nd. If the winner is not Turkey, Group D would be arguably the weakest of the 12 at this World Cup. At previous men’s World Cups, the U. S. advanced from much tougher groups, including the Ghana-Portugal-Germany gauntlet in 2014. Since the tournament expanded to 32 teams in 1998, the Americans have advanced to the knockout rounds four times, fallen in the group stage twice (in 1998 and 2006) and failed to qualify for the tournament once (in 2018). In 2026, they will be expected to be led on the field by forward Christian Pulisic and a collection of other players in their primes, many of whom play their club soccer in Europe. They will be led on the sideline by Mauricio Pochettino, a pedigreed Argentine coach hired last year to elevate them after a period of stagnation. In the buildup to the World Cup, the U. S. will play two friendlies in March, against Portugal and Belgium in Atlanta. They will then play two more tune-up matches on May 31 in Charlotte (against a to-be-determined opponent) and June 6 in Chicago (against Germany) as they prepare for their June 12 opener. Advertisement The answer is we don’t know yet. FIFA has announced that, for the first time ever, the full tournament schedule won’t be confirmed on the same day as the draw itself. Instead, FIFA president Gianni Infantino will preside over a second ceremony on Saturday, beginning at 12 p. m. ET (5 p. m. GMT), where the all-important when and where for each of the fixtures will be revealed. FIFA says the game allocation process will aim to “ensure the best possible conditions for all teams and spectators while, where possible, enabling fans all over the world to watch their teams play live across different time zones. ” The final version of the game schedule will then be confirmed in March, once the inter-confederation playoffs and European playoffs have been completed and the final 48 tournament teams confirmed. What is their World Cup pedigree? This will be Australia’s seventh World Cup and sixth consecutive appearance. The last five have come since Football Australia switched from the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) the AFC in 2006, a move partially made to help Australia avoid a qualification path usually ended by a final play-off against South American opposition. It also ensured a higher standard of regular competition between World Cups. Australia have won four of their 20 finals matches, advancing to the round of 16 twice (2006 and 2022). In Germany, they lost 1-0 to 10-man Italy after a Francesco Totti penalty in stoppage time, and 16 years later in Qatar, it was a plucky 2-1 defeat against eventual winners Argentina. How do they play? There was a sense of adventure from Australia in Qatar under former coach Graham Arnold, with a 4-3-3 formation that committed players forward and wide, and sought to feed Mitchell Duke at every opportunity. Arnold was sure Australia could win the 2023 Asian Cup, but an extra-time defeat against South Korea in the quarter-finals was devastating. Arnold resigned not long after, saying the team needed a fresh voice. Advertisement That voice exudes pragmatism. Australia love a low block under Tony Popovic and while results have improved, the disjointed nature of ball progression through a 3-4-2-1 formation often made performances uninspiring. Since qualification was secured, Popovic has opted for a 5-4-1 that has looked even more passive, but there has been better fluidity on the counter, too, showing clear development in play and an awareness of what they could face come the summer. Who is their key player? It has been an injury-hit run for Jackson Irvine, but the St Pauli captain remains crucial to Australia’s midfield and he is missed when he does not figure. That has been the case in recent months after foot surgery. He is a de facto leader of the group off the pitch, as he illustrated by being one of few players to question Qatar’s record on LGBTQI+ rights before the 2022 World Cup. Feyenoord’s Jordan Bos, 22, is among the talented young players to catch the eye. By Michael Bailey What is their World Cup pedigree? This will be Paraguay’s ninth appearance at the World Cup after a long 16 years away. That was their best run in the tournament, reaching the quarter-finals, where they were narrowly beaten by eventual champions Spain in 2010. They were one of the 13 teams to compete in the first World Cup in 1930, and will host a game at the 2030 edition in celebration of the tournament’s centenary. How do they play? Paraguay already had a reputation as one of the stingier South American sides, but since Gustavo Alfaro took over as coach in August 2024, they have kept seven clean sheets and conceded just seven goals in 12 competitive games. Famous home wins over world champions Argentina and Brazil, averaging just 23 and 29 per cent of the ball in each, showed them at their stubborn best. The team is anchored on towering centre-backs; Gustavo Gomez is the long-standing captain of Brazilian giants Palmeiras, while Omar Alderete has impressed since joining Premier League side Sunderland. The midfield is packed with tough-tacklers and willing runners, while there are flashes of excitement out on the wings, with the rapid Ramon Sosa and the ever-inventive Julio Enciso looking to provide the inspiration on the break. Advertisement Who is their key player? Defensive pillars aside, Enciso is that one player who possesses the ability and drive in attack to win games by himself. He took 14 shots and created six chances in just three games during their dismal Copa America 2024 showing, playing an active part in almost half of Paraguay’s attempts on goal. Fizzing with energy, the 21-year-old can overdo it at times; former national team coach Daniel Garnero told Enciso that he does not always need to “save” the team or “take charge of every moment” after a 4-1 defeat by Brazil in that same tournament. That said, he is able to strike the ball magnificently from distance — winning the Premier League goal of the season award in 2022-23 — and remains the most likely to blow a cagey contest apart. By Thom Harris Turkey vs Romania and Slovakia vs Kosovo, with the two winners meeting in the final (Slovakia or Kosovo will be the home team) If you’re just judging this path on the quality of players involved, Turkey should take it at a canter. With the talents of Arda Guler, Kenan Yildiz, Can Uzun, Hakan Calhanoglu, Baris Alper Yilmaz and Kerem Akturkoglu, among others, it is a bit of a shame we cannot already definitely count on their presence at the World Cup. They finished second behind Spain in their qualifying group, and had they been drawn with someone other than the reigning European champions, they might already be booking flights across the Atlantic. It would be a surprise if any of the other three teams in Path C tripped them up. Romania finished third in their qualifying group, ahead of only Cyprus and San Marino, and are at this stage thanks to their results in League C (its third tier) of the Nations League. Slovakia are stronger, having performed pretty well in qualifying and had the misfortune to be in Germany’s group, and while the idea of Kosovo making it to the World Cup is very romantic, they will struggle to get past Slovakia and, unless Romania spring a surprise, Turkey. By Nick Miller Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle Henry Bushnell is a senior writer for The Athletic covering soccer. He previously covered a variety of sports and events, including World Cups and Olympics, for Yahoo Sports. He is based in Washington, D. C. Follow Henry on Twitter @Henry Bushnell