Key events
That’s all for now. Here’s Jeff Rueter’s match report off today’s send-off match. Thanks as always for following along with us and let the countdown to Paraguay begin.
“Ultimately, we saw what we wanted to see in this game in the send-off,” USA midfielder Tyler Adams tells TNT. “Obviously, the result didn’t go our way. To concede that early in a game like this is always going to make it difficult. But the character we showed, the energy, the resilience – guys were going at it like it was a World Cup final and I think that’s what we wanted to see.”
He continues: “We want to show our skill and our quality, but it doesn’t come without being combative, being competitive, fighting, winning duels, those kinds of things. If I see one of my guys get kicked, I’m going right after them.
“You’ve got to test yourself against the best and I think we did that tonight. I think we feel good about what we’re doing and where we’re going. On a personal note, I ended the season strong at Bournemouth, so I think I’m here with the right energy and ready to go.
“First things first, it’s about getting to LA, getting on the time zone, settling in where we’re going to be and familiarizing ourselves with the area. It’ll be good to get over there because I feel like we’ve been traveling a lot with these send-off games. It’s important to give the fans a bit of a show before we leave, but now I think it’s down to business. Once we settle in LA, you’re going to feel like you’re really ready to go.”
Full time: USA 1-2 Germany
And there’s the final whistle from Soldier Field. The US fall short in their World Cup send-off game while Germany make it nine straight going into the tournament.
90+2 min: An aggressive but clean tackle from Weah leads to brief extracurriculars between the two sides near the corner flag. Weah is shown yellow, but it appears to be for a previous foul on Schotterbeck. Beier was also given a yellow moments ago for a clattering challenge on Weah.
90 min: Six minutes of stoppage time incoming.
86 min: Germany have outshot the US by an 8-2 margin since half-time, even as the hosts have enjoyed a slight edge in possession.
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83 min: Amiri comes thisclose to making it 3-1, but his low shot that has Freese beaten is fired just wide of the left post.
81 min: A sound chance on goal for the sub Scally, but Baumann turns it away.
80 min: Another wave of substitutions, this time for Germany. Amiri, Stiller, Beier and Gonetzka are on in place of Wirtz, Nmecha, Musiala and Pavlovic.
76 min: Today’s attendance of 63,636 at Soldier Field is announced as a sellout. Meanwhile, Reyna has his first attempt on goal since coming on but Baumann corrals it without trouble.
73 min: Six more substitutions for the United States. Pepi, Aaronson, Arfsten, Weah, Scally, Roldan are on, while Balo, Tillman, Ream, Dest, Freeman and Adams are off. Additionally, Leweling replaced Sané for Germany during that last hydration break.
69 min: Another hydration break coming and more waves of substitutions expected with it. Additionally, Raum has been shown a yellow card for a challenge on Tillman.
65 min: Antonee Robinson, the US goal-scorer, appeared to be limping as he came off the pitch. The US can only hope it was a cramp.
64 min: Reyna, Trusty, McKenzie and Berhalter are on for the United States. McKennie, Pulisic and the Robinson (Miles and Antonee) are off.
63 min: A bevy of substitutions are happening at the hour mark. Anton, Raum and Undav are on for Germany in place of Kimmich, Havertz and Brown.
GOAL! USA 1-2 Germany (Sané, 57 min)
The Germans are back in front after Sané runs on a ball from Havertz in the center of the area and rolls a shot that takes a deflection past the outstretched arms of Freese.
54 min: Sané sends it high over the crossbar. A hockey style line shift for the US appears imminent with a platoon of subs getting loose along the goal line.
53 min: Germany win a free kick from a dangerous position. Sané stands over it …
49 min: Nmecha’s low shot from just outside the box is saved by Freese.
48 min: Almost immediately it’s a chance for the US, who have picked up right where they left off in the first half. Tillman finds Pulisic on the left side of the area and the striker is turned back not once but twice by Baumann. Tillman then puts a third shot over the crossbar. The offside flag goes up so it wouldn’t have counted.
46 min: The second half is under way in Chicago. No changes for either side.
“Overall I think it was a good competitive game against one of the best teams in the world,” USA coach Mauricio Pochettino tells TNT. “It was difficult after [the early goal] to be in the game, but we did very good things, we need to keep pushing. In the second half, we’re going to start with the same starting 11 but we’re going to do all the changes we can.”
Jeff Rueter
A very impressive response by the USMNT after conceding so early. They haven’t appeared overwhelmed by Germany’s (expected) physicality, showing less fear in the final third to work out attempts that have yielded in crucial corner kicks. No small feat to outshoot Germany 11-4 in any half.
Will be a trick to sustain this initiative after the break, especially as the expected changes occur. A lot of encouraging signs in that first half on the whole.
Half-time: USA 1-1 Germany
A surprisingly fun opening half after a messy start. Pulisic looked especially threatening over the last quarter hour. But it’s unlikely we’ll see more of him today with wholesale substitutions expected at the intermission.
45+3 min: The US corner goes to Antonee Robinson, who finds Pulisic on the edge of the box. Pulisic has a go on goal but it’s deflected out for another corner, which is quickly snuffed out by Germany.
45+2 min: Pulisic makes a 30-yard run with the ball into the final third before he’s tracked down by a defender. The ball is out for another US corner.
45 min: The fourth official signals for three minutes of stoppage time.
44 min: Another big chance by Pulisic, whose shot is deflected out by Tah over the top-left corner for the United States’ fifth corner. It comes to nothing but the Americans’ are headed toward half-time with momentum to burn.
42 min: Dest runs on to a pass from Antonee Robinson, but his angled shot rises over the crossbar. The crowd is right back in it now.
40 min: Germany on the back foot now with the hosts riding a tailwind of momentum, but the US interplay on a couple of attacks can’t quite connect.
GOAL! USA 1-1 Germany (A Robinson, 37 min)
Another corner for the US. Pulisic swings it in and Germany only half-clear. The ball drops invitingly for Antonee Robinson 25 yards from goal and the left-back unleashes a thunderous first-time strike. It grazes the underside of the crossbar and into the roof of the net before anyone can react. A stunning goal from Robinson and Soldier Field erupts as the United States pull one back. Game on.
35 min: A mildly nervy moment as Pavlovic’s shot from the edge of the box takes a tricky deflection, but Freese tracks and corrals it.
32 min: Dest tries to send in a corner but it’s deflected off course past the goal line by a Germany defender for the US’s third corner of the afternoon. The outswinging effort is easily cleared by the visitors.
28 min: The pace has slowed over the past six minutes since the break, probably to be expected amid these human conditions.
Jeff Rueter
A bit funny to add a hydration break when the players were so thoroughly doused for the first 10 minutes. Germany will be grateful for the reprieve as the US had finally begun to pose a threat in possession, while Germany’s best looks since Havertz’s opener have come by spraying the ball beyond the defense for Leroy Sané to run onto down the right.
Matt Freese has been awfully timid to leave his line since conceding, doing little to project confidence compared to Matt Turner’s first-half performance against Senegal.
22 min: The teams pause for a hydration break.
20 min: A bit better from the US over the past few minutes. They’ve responded nicely from a dismal start as Germany’s attack has gone on walkabout. The US win another corner, but Pulisic’s offering comes to nothing.
15 min: The Americans win their first corner of the afternoon. It’s played to Dest a few steps outside the area and he takes a crack that sails safely over the crossbar.
14 min: The US are keeping the ball in the midfield for the first time today. It’s a start.
13 min: Cheers from the crowd as the rain subsides as quickly as it arrived and the sun comes back out. Behind every cloud …
10 min: Another deadly serious Germany chance is denied by the offside flag. The US are two narrow calls away from being down 3-0 after 10 minutes.
9 min: Dest runs on to a long throughball but he’s chased down by a Germany defender and the United States’ first hint of a chance is thwarted.
8 min: Germany in total control with 70% possession and all of the scoring chances in the early stages.
6 min: Havertz nearly has a second goal after six minutes but he’s denied by the offside flag.
Jeff Rueter
An uncredited assist owed to Nico Schlotterbeck for a perfectly executed screen on Tim Ream, leaving Havertz unmarked with Miles Robinson on the wrong side of the Arsenal midfielder.
4 min: Almost on cue, the skies have opened above Soldier Field and umbrellas come out all over the park.
GOAL! USA 0-1 Germany (Havertz, 3 min)
All too easy. Sané puts it right on the head of Havertz, who calmly deposits it into the back of the net with a gaggle of US defenders in his wake. One week after scoring for Arsenal in the Champions League final, the 26-year-old striker has found the score sheet in Chicago.
2 min: An early free kick given to Germany as Nmecha is brought down by Adams. Sané will take it.
1 min: And we’re off! The US kick off and attack from left to right in their all-blue strips. Germany are going from right to left in white shirts and blue shorts.
Jeff Rueter
And here’s Guardian US soccer correspondent Jeff Rueter from the Soldier Field press box:
A lovely show of appreciation from the German fans stationed near the press box during a rousing belted edition of the Star-Spangled Banner. Some fans in Mättheus, Kimmich and Müller jerseys opted to applaud the opponent’s anthem throughout its entirely. There’s an opera enthusiast inside many of us, apparently.
A nice pre-match ceremony as well, with members of the 1994 roster given an ovation before all 26 players on this summer’s squad were named and applauded by the fans in attendance. That included Chris Richards, whose status remains in limbo as he recovers from a late-season ankle injury.
Alexander Abnos
Guardian US soccer editor Alexander Abnos has entered the chat with a dispatch from the ground at Soldier Field.
The vibes are high here in Chicago – fans are still sprinting to the stadium entrance and the crowds have been legion outside for hours. In an era when so many US friendlies fail to sell out or create much atmosphere, this is about as rousing a send-off as they could possibly ask for.
It’s a picture-perfect 79F (26C) day in Chicago. The fans are out in full regalia as the teams make their way from the tunnel for the anthems. We should be under way in a few minutes.
Adams: ‘We believe that we can do something special’
USA midfielder Tyler Adams speaks with a TNT sideline reporter on the telecast. Asked what will be important for his team in today’s game, he says: “Minimizing spaces, but that’s easier said than done when you’re playing against such high-level players. We know there’s going to be times where they break us down, where they’re going to get in open spaces. It’s about how we defend and get numbers around the ball and ultimately not conceding many chances.”
He adds: “We’re playing in front of a home crowd. We need to get used to this atmosphere and bring the game to them. So playing balls in behind, pressing after we lose the ball. … We’re just excited. Ambitious. We believe that we can do something special. Now it’s about showing it.”
New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani may not have had much time to study the World Cup field, but that did not stop him from making one of the tournament’s boldest predictions.
Playing the Guardian’s World Cup Bracketology game, Mamdani picked Morocco to win the 2026 World Cup, backing the Atlas Lions to beat France in the final. He admitted the choice was driven as much by emotion as analysis, saying he ultimately decided to “go with my heart”.
If it happens, Morocco would become the first African nation ever to win the World Cup.
The prediction reflects Mamdani’s long-standing connection to both soccer and New York City’s North African communities. When Morocco became the first African team to reach a World Cup semi-final in Qatar in 2022, he joined celebrations on Astoria’s Steinway Street after the quarter-final victory over Portugal.
Mamdani’s bracket also features Haiti reaching the knockout stage, Japan upsetting Brazil and the United States advancing to the quarter-finals before losing to England.
Preamble
The wait is nearly over. Six days before the start of the World Cup, the United States get one final chance to cut their teeth on elite opposition as Mauricio Pochettino’s side plays host to Germany before an expected capacity crowd at Soldier Field, the soon-to-be-former home of the NFL’s Chicago Bears.
The Americans arrive with some momentum after last week’s entertaining 3-2 victory over Senegal in Charlotte, where goals from Sergiño Dest, Christian Pulisic and Folarin Balogun helped the USMNT quell a second-half fightback from Sadio Mané and co. Today’s challenge, at least on paper, stands to be more imposing. Germany, the four-time world champions sitting at 10th in Fifa rankings, provide the kind of measuring-stick opponent the United States are likely to encounter should they advance to the knockout stage later this month. The teams have met three times at the World Cup, most memorably in the Americans’ controversial 1-0 quarter-final defeat in 2002. (Try mentioning Torsten Frings to US supporters of a certain age.)
Pochettino makes five changes from the Senegal win, with Matt Freese starting in goal alongside Weston McKennie, Malik Tillman, Miles Robinson and Balogun. Tim Ream captains the side, while Pulisic earns his 86th cap and enters within one goal of Eric Wynalda for fourth place on the USMNT’s all-time scoring table.
The lineups are in. We should be under way in just about half an hour.
The lineups!
USA
Freese; A Robinson, Ream (C), M Robinson, Freeman; Adams, McKennie; Pulisic, Tillman, Dest; Balogun
Germany
Baumann; Kimmich (C), Tah, Schlotterbeck, Brown; Nmecha, Pavlovic; Sané, Musiala, Wirtz; Havertz
Bryan will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s the latest on the Chris Richards situation.
