With only a few matches of the group stage remaining, the U.S. Menโs National Soccer Teamโs path to the World Cup Final has been set and itโs monstrous.
The USMNT's path to the 2026 World Cup final:
โ USMNT Only (@usmntonly) June 27, 2026
๐ง๐ฆ Round of 32 โ Bosnia
๐ง๐ช Round of 16 โ Belgium
๐ช๐ธ Quarterfinal โ Spain
๐ซ๐ท Semifinal โ France
๐ฆ๐ท Final โ Argentina pic.twitter.com/a01kJNnL44
Whoโs gonna win the World Cup? ๐๐ฟ pic.twitter.com/EI6swbC70d
โ Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 27, 2026
As it stands, USMNT's path to the World Cup Semifinal:
โ DraftKings Sports (@DKSports) June 27, 2026
R32:
- Bosnia-Herzegovina ๐ง๐ฆ
R16:
- Belgium ๐ง๐ช/ South Korea ๐ฐ๐ท
Quarterfinal:
- Spain ๐ช๐ธ/ Portugal ๐ต๐น/ Ghana ๐ฌ๐ญ/ Austria ๐ฆ๐น pic.twitter.com/4OKGuMiRzJ
The U.S. will begin their round with a winnable bout against Bosnia and Herzegovina in the newly-established Round of 32. The Round of 32 was introduced to the World Cup this year after the tournament was expanded from 32 teams to 48 teams. The U.S. will be the heavy favorite in the match, as Bosnia only managed to secure advancement as one of the 8 third-place teams to go through to the knockouts.
Should the U.S. win their match, they will advance to the Round of 16 where they will face either Belgium or South Korea. Belgium are by far the favorite to advance through their match, as they sit in the 10th spot in the FIFA World Rankings against the U.S. at 15th. The U.S. would face their toughest challenge of the tournament should Belgium advance to the Round of 16.
Things donโt let up in the Quarter Finals, either. Spain are the heavy favorites to reach the Quarters alongside a potential U.S. team. Spain came into the tournament as one of the likely winners and currently sit third in the World Rankings. Despite an unexpectedly poor result against Cinderella-story Cabo Verde, theyโve proven to be on form and capable of winning the whole thing.
Should the U.S. overcome the odds against Spain, they would then be projected to face the number 1 ranked France in the Semi-Finals. France managed to make it to the Final in 2022 where they battled with Argentina 3-3 after Kylian Mbappรฉ scored all three of Franceโs goals. They would eventually lose to Argentina on penalties.
If the U.S. pulled off the upset of the century against France, defending-champs Argentina would be their likely opponent in the Final. Argentina is still led by veteran World Cup leading scorer Lionel Messi, widely considered to be the greatest soccer player in history. Argentina currently sit at the number 2 spot on the World Rankings.
While the route to the Final is nothing short of perilous, the USMNT has seriously outperformed the expectations that many had laid out before the tournament began. With quality play, the USMNT could achieve their first knockout win in history as well advance to the Quarter Finals for the first time in the modern era.