Match Preview: USA v Australia | FIFA World Cup 2026™

Australia will take on host nation USA in their second game in Group D of the FIFA World Cup 2026™.

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Both teams were victorious in game one - USA defeated Paraguay 4-1, while the Socceroos defeated Türkiye 2-0 - and will carry that momentum into Matchday Two in Seattle.

Read our preview of the big game below.

The Squad

Head Coach Tony Popovic confirmed that the full 26-player squad will be fit and available against the United States.

The game against Türkiye was full of World Cup debuts, with ten of the starting eleven making their first appearance at a global finals. Young goalkeeper Patrick Beach impressed in goals in only his third appearance in a Socceroos shirt while the likes of Paul Okon-Engstler, and goalscorers Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe, will be ones to watch in game two.

Experienced players like Mat Ryan and Jackson Irvine will be options for Popovic to bring back into the starting team.

"Everyone's fit and available, which is a real positive for us," Popovic said.

"We worked on a few different areas and ways that we believe we can try and manage the US team when they are attacking. It'll be a difficult challenge, but one that we've prepared well for, and we come in with confidence. We have our own belief as well that we can also cause them some problems."

Last Game

Australia defeated Türkiye 2-0 on Sunday (AEST), the fifth time that the Socceroos have been victorious at a World Cup. Nestory Irankunda scored in the first half before Connor Metcalfe sealed the result in the second half.

Players stressed throughout the week that while the win was something to celebrate, it was important to refocus on the upcoming games as quickly as possible.

The Socceroos last came up against USA in October 2025 in Denver, Colorado. The United States came away with a hard-fought 2-1 victory, something that their Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino referenced throughout the week as one of the hardest fought in his tenure. Jordan Bos scored for the Socceroos in the first half before a Haji Wright brace saw USA secure the win.

"We take what we need out of that game," Popovic explained.

"We wanted to experience playing in the US. We experienced playing in altitude, with travel. We tested ourselves with travel. So, for us - I can only speak for us - we got what we wanted out of that game. We had a fantastic hit out against a very good opponent, so we were pleased with that. Since then, we feel we've improved. We're a better team now than what we were in October, and I'm sure the US is as well. It should be a really good game tomorrow."

The Opponent

The United States are a formidable opponent, ranked No.15 in the world and featuring players who are at the height of world football.

The host nation was highly impressive in their first game against Paraguay. Folarin Balogun scored a brace before young star Giovanni Reyna scored a fourth in stoppage time. They dominated chances and possession against a Paraguay team who possess plenty of talent of their own.

Christian Pulisic is a key player for USA. The 27-year-old is a regular in Serie A for AC Milan, after previously having spent several years at Borussia Dortmund and Chelsea. There have been doubts raised this week about his fitness for the match and it is one of the many intrigues that Australia and Tony Popovic will be preparing for.

Souttar said pre-match that the team was expecting a fast start against a talented side.

"We know that they're going to start sharp, start fast, just like they did in their opening game," he said.

"So, we've got to match that. When we have the ball, we've just got to keep it, try and open them up, try and play to our strengths. We've got some really good threats in the team, and it's about getting the ball to them and using them well."

FIFA World Rankings

Australia: 23
USA: 15

Head-to-head

Played: 4
Wins: 1
Draws: 1
Losses: 2

Form Guide

Australia form guide: W-D-L-W-W

USA form guide: W-L-W-L-L

What They Said

Tony Popovic

We could go through a lot of different scenarios and different positions on the field where they are very strong, and they showed that against Paraguay. They had a wonderful start, and they continued on. In the second half, when it went to three one, they had another gear that they could go again. But we have focused on ourselves as well, and we want to cause them problems, and we believe we have some threats. It's like: how do we get the ball to those players in the best positions that they can cause the US some problems?

Harry Souttar

It takes a long time to grow that belief, but certainly being in camp since the start of May, every training session has gotten better, the standard has gotten better, and the two friendlies were great for us in terms of different challenges.

It's just looking around the dressing room and looking beside you, who you're walking out into the pitch with, and seeing the threats that we've got on our team. We've got some really exciting players, some young, hungry players, mixed with that experience as well. When you play that together, it makes for a good starting eleven.

Kai Trewin

I have never wanted to win a game more than this one, I can tell you that for free.

Aiden O’Neill

We all have social media and we see the comments. There was comments before the Turkey game. We’re quite okay with people commenting. We just go out and play our game.

Alessandro Circati

The pressure is quite similar [from game one]. We approach each game to win. Individuals are a little bit different, maybe they’re a bit more powerful, a bit quicker, so in that sense we’re more wary of that. But our approach is exactly the same.

Awer Mabil

We cannot forget [game one], but we cannot stop there. It’s a night that we slowly put behind us, but knowing what we have to do. We have more to do.

Connor Metcalfe

[The win is] the best start we could possibly get. Before the game we spoke about believing in ourselves and just enjoying the moment, and for a lot of boys it didn't feel like we were nervous at all at the start of the game. The fact that we started well really set us up, and we're going to go into the next game full of energy, full of confidence.

Cameron Burgess

Every nation here has their own threats. We're playing against a host nation with some tremendous talent in their squad. We faced them only a few months ago. We're going to have to be ready for what they can bring, and the same goes for them. They're going to have to be ready for what we can bring, so it's going to be a hard-fought game. Both teams coming off a win as well. We're ready to go to battle, and I'm sure they'll be the exact same. It's going to be a pretty big spectacle, hopefully.

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