The last of the three hosts to kick off at the 2026 World Cup will be the United States. Mauricio Pochettino’s men are under the greatest pressure they have ever been at this home World Cup. In 1994, soccer was a footnote in American sport. It is much more than that now.
Their Group D opener pits them against Paraguay, who they beat 2-1 in a friendly as recently as November. Paraguay had a man sent off that day, though and enjoyed a glittering send off from their home fans when beating Nicaragua 4-0 last week.
Group D looks competitive throughout, with both these sides harbouring ambitions of topping the pool. It is likely to be a close-fought opener, taking place in the early hours of Saturday morning for UK viewers.
USA vs Paraguay match odds
USA vs Paraguay Tips & Predictions
Though it was just a friendly, November’s 2-1 win for the US over Paraguay provides some decent context for this clash.
The USMNT were without Christian Pulisic that day, but otherwise it was more-or-less full strength vs full strength. Two goals were exchanged early before Paraguay gamely held out for much of the second half with ten men after Sunderland defender Omar Aldarete’s red card.
Had Ecuador not conceded just five goals in 18 games in CONMEBOL qualifying, we would likely view Paraguay as a tournament-ready package. They only conceded ten themselves and beat Argentina and Brazil at home. They did not concede more than twice in any game.
The United States have proved far more entertaining, not always for the right reasons, with both teams scoring in seven of their last eight games. Something has to give either way and it may be that Paraguay have the nous to cool the tempo and the temperature in Los Angeles.
A “double chance” bet at just short of Evens rates a bet for Paraguay to earn a result and they may keep things tight for an entire 45 minutes. 0-0 at half-time at 7/4 can prove profitable, while if there is to be a scorer for the visitors, Alejandro Romero has the best goals-to-caps ratio in the squad, and took their penalty against Nicaragua. Julio Enciso’s injury means he should start.
Our Tips for USA vs Paraguay
Paraguay/Draw Double Chance @ 5/6
0-0 @ Half-time @ 7/4
Alejandro “Kaku” Romero to Score Anytime @ 11/2
USA vs Paraguay Head-To-Head
This is a match with significant World Cup history. On 17 July 1930, during the inaugural edition of the competition, the United States beat Paraguay 3-0 in the group stage en route to a semi-final place.
The USA have won five of the nine meetings between the two sides, with two draws, and two Paraguayan victories. In competitive matches, the score is 2-1 to the USMNT after two 21st century clashes in the Copa America.
That scoreline was repeated in the November friendly between these nations. However, Paraguay went down to ten men late in the first half and held out for nearly half an hour at 1-1 before Folarin Balogun scored the winner.
USA vs Paraguay World Cup Record
A semi-final effort in the first ever World Cup is still the USMNT’s best finish at the World Cup, since which time their best effort is reaching the quarter-finals in 2002, losing to Germany.
Paraguay matched that effort in 2010, outperforming their previous best of the last 16. They fell to Spain in the 2010 quarter-finals, their conquerors lifting the trophy a week later.
Commercial notice: This article on GG.co.uk contains affiliate links. The offers we promote come from operators that we trust and our experts have first-hand experience dealing with. If you open an account through one of these affiliate links then GG will earn revenue. However, we ensure that the money earned goes back into improving and enhancing our coverage of horse racing and other sports, as we look to provide an excellent service to our growing audience.