USA defeats Bosnia-Herzegovina, first World Cup knockout win since 2002

First, the good news: The United States men's national team beat Bosnia-Herzegovina, 2-0, in the World Cup round of 32 here on Wednesday night.

Now, the bad: If they're going to go any farther, they may have to do it without their top goal scorer.

Folarin Balogun scored what proved to be the decisive goal for the U.S. just before halftime -- his third of the tournament -- but was then sent off just after the hour mark in a controversial decision that could see him suspended for the round of 16 match against Belgium.

The red card came after Balogun collided with Bosnian defender Tarik Muharemovic just inside the U.S. attacking third. Both players lay on the ground initially, but then the referee, Brazilian Raphael Claus, was called to the monitor by the video assistant referee.

After watching the slow-motion footage, Claus determined that Balogun had raked his cleats down Muharemovic's leg and onto his foot and ankle, resulting in a serious foul and sending him off. Balogun looked shocked; he trudged to the sideline, where he was consoled by Christian Pulisic and Tim Weah. A one-game suspension is the standard for a red card at a World Cup, though the U.S. is likely to appeal.

Balogun is the fifth American to receive a red card at a World Cup and is the first player from any country to score and receive a red card in the same knockout game since France's Zinedine Zidane in the 2006 final.

Playing with 10 men, the US did more than simply hold on -- Malik Tillman's gorgeous free kick past the Bosnian wall in the 82nd minute sealed the victory for the U.S., which won just the second World Cup knockout game in program history and first since 2002.

The Americans also snapped a 10-game losing streak against European opposition and will now face another European side, Belgium, with a chance at revenge: The Belgians knocked them out of the 2014 World Cup in the round of 16.

The U.S. entered this match in an unusual position -- as favorites. And despite their historical struggles with European opposition, there was no denying that the U.S. had more talent on its roster and a much stronger showing in the group stage (not to mention a passionate home-crowd advantage).

The early part of the game, though, felt more even. The U.S. controlled play and had most of the ball, but that felt very much like what Bosnia wanted -- they soaked up the American moves, rotated defenders nimbly, and largely shepherded play towards the edges of the field. There were dangerous moments, but as halftime approached, the U.S. had recorded just a single shot on target.

Balogun was among the most frustrated, swiping the ground with his hand more than once. He claimed the Bosnian defenders were constantly pulling his shirt, asked for a penalty he didn't get from the referee, and had the ball in the back of the net in the 33rd minute, only to have it (correctly) ruled out for offside.

Bosnia surely thought they'd done enough to take the match to halftime, even. But in the 45th minute, Tim Ream forced a turnover in the middle of the field and sent the ball toward Tyler Adams, who sent a deft flick to Tillman. The midfielder sent a pass through that took a fortuitous bounce -- a Bosnian defender tried to clear it but deflected it off a teammate -- and the ball fell for Balogun, who rolled it under the goalkeeper.

Mexican health authorities said Wednesday that four people died during massive celebrations in downtown Mexico City after the national team's victory over Ecuador secured a place in the World Cup Round of 16.

Two women and one man were found unconscious on streets near the iconic Angel of Independence monument, where thousands had gathered Tuesday night to celebrate, Mexico City's Health Secretariat said on the social platform X. The victims, who authorities said died of asphyxiation, were 48, 44 and 19 years old. Authorities did not provide additional details about the circumstances of the deaths.

Later Wednesday, Mexico City Health Secretary Nadine Gasman, told a news conference that another man, about 30, was treated by emergency personnel after suffering an epileptic seizure, convulsions, and gastrointestinal bleeding. He died shortly afterward at a hospital of cardiorespiratory arrest.

Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada said on social media that emergency crews responded immediately after receiving reports of the three unconscious people, but they had already died.

Brugada also urged the public to celebrate "responsibly, carefully and with empathy."

Fireworks lit up the sky around the Independence Monument - popularly known as "El Ángel" - on Tuesday night as thousands of Mexicans celebrated along the 5-kilometer (3-mile) Paseo de la Reforma, which links the capital's main square, the Zócalo, with Chapultepec Park.

In a video posted Tuesday on social media, Brugada said about 1.4 million people were celebrating in the streets and urged the public to stop heading to the city center to ease overcrowding. Instead, she encouraged people to attend a concert by a popular cumbia band in the eastern part of the city.

All of Mexico City seemed overwhelmed Tuesday night. Improvised bands sprang up on street corners, while carts loaded with rockets known as "toritos" inched through streets so packed that people could barely move.

Bottles of alcohol were passed from hand to hand among young revelers as hundreds more tried to push closer to the city center, some succeeding, many others turned back by the crush of the crowd.

The U.S. men's national team will face their highest-stakes 2026 World Cup match so far on Wednesday night.

After an impressive first-place group stage finish, the USMNT will play Bosnia-Herzegovina in San Francisco on Wednesday, July 1, at 8 p.m. ET.

The USMNT finished with impressive 2-1 record in the group stage with wins over Paraguay and Australia before a loss to Turkey, which occurred once the team had already clinched a spot in the next round.

The matchup versus Bosnia-Herzegovina represents the U.S. men's team first knockout game following the group stage.

After 48 teams descended upon Canada, Mexico and the United States, 32 teams remained in the knockout stages, which started earlier this week, vying to hoist the trophy on July 19.

The winner of the U.S. and Bosnia-Herzegovina matchup on Wednesday will face off against the winner of Belgium and Senegal, who also play Wednesday, in another knockout round game on July 6 in the round of 16.

The loser of the game will be eliminated from the World Cup.

The round of 32 kicked off to a dramatic start, with Brazil coming from behind to beat Japan 2-1 before Paraguay eliminated Germany in penalty kicks Monday, in one of the most shocking upsets of the tournament so far.

Morocco also topped the Netherlands on Monday to clinch a spot in the next round.

The U.S. match will be broadcast live on FOX on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET.

Kylian Mbappé and France are sizzling - and not just because of MetLife Stadium's broiling conditions.

Mbappé had his third two-goal game of this World Cup and set a career scoring record for the tournament's knockout rounds, leading Les Bleus over Sweden 3-0 on Tuesday to set up a round of 16 match against Paraguay.

"I personally haven't seen a better team," Sweden coach Graham Potter said. "The quality they have all over the pitch and then the options for them off the bench are very, very strong, so they've got as good a chance as anybody, I would suggest."

France's 27-year-old star scored the go-ahead goal with a brilliant crossover step in the 45th minute and added his sixth goal of the tournament in the 74th to tie Lionel Messi for the tournament scoring lead. He has 18 goals in 18 World Cup games, one behind the Argentine's career scoring record of 19 in 29 matches.

In between, Bradley Barcola had a 53rd-minute goal for France, which became the first nation to score three or more goals in five consecutive World Cup matches.

"I'm very aware of who I am, how I play, what I shall do, but it's not just about me," Mbappé said through a translator. "The entire team is aware of what should be done. It is a new competition that has started today. We did play well, but we were timid. We could have done better at the beginning."

Mbappé's 10 knockout round goals are two more than the previous high by Brazilian greats Leonidas and Ronaldo.

France coach Didier Deschamps bowed when Mbappé came to the bench after he was substituted in the 85th minute.

"We're on a mission - so am I with them," Deschamps said through a translator.

France has outscored opponents 13-2. Michael Olise has five assists, the most in a World Cup since Germany's Thomas Hassler had five in 1994.

"They are skilled at knowing when to change the pace and increase it, when to possess the ball, went to fall back," Sweden captain Victor Lindelöf said through a translator.

Seeking to reach its third straight World Cup final, France plays Paraguay on July 4 in Philadelphia. The winner advances to a quarterfinal against Canada or Morocco five days later at Foxborough, Massachusetts.

It was 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius), sunny and humid at the 5 p.m. kickoff with poor air quality at the site of the July 19 final. Many fans in the club areas stayed inside their air-conditioned suites.

France outshot Sweden 25-7 in the first World Cup meeting between the nations, including 15-3 in the first half.

Mbappé hit a post in the 32nd minute, raising both hands in disgust, and France nearly went ahead four minutes later on Olise's spectacular bicycle kick from just inside the penalty area, which also clanked off a post.

"I said I think we needed a couple of miracles. We had a couple, but we ran out of them," Potter said. "So we needed a few more."

Mbappé scored after goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterström tipped Olise's shot just outside the post.

Olise played a short corner kick to Ousmane Dembélé, who passed to Mbappé near the byline. Mbappé took a crossover step to get around Viktor Gyökeres and from just outside the 6-yard box sent a diagonal shot inside the far post.

Mbappé ran up the center of the field to celebrate, colliding with Dembélé, and jogged to the bench to hug Deschamps, who returned for the match after going to France for his mother's funeral.

"He knows that he will never be alone with us, and we will support him," Mbappé said.

Gustaf Lagerbielke lost the ball ahead of France's second goal. Aurélien Tchouaméni passed to Olise, who nutmegged Lagerbielke, and Barcola took a centering touch and sent the ball past Zetterström's outstretched right hand.

Mbappé entertained the crowd with a backheel pass to Barcola in the buildup to France's third goal, the 62nd of his international career. Barcola passed to Olise, who sent the ball forward as Mbappé sprinted into the penalty area, took a touch and fired the ball inside the far post.

"We continue to deliver great performances," Mbappé said.

A crowd of 80,663 raised the record total for the expanded 104-match tournament above 5 million. A majority of fans wore France's blue, with a pocket in Sweden's yellow at one end.

"I have no complaints to the players whatsoever. I said to them after the game I don't think it's a disgrace to lose to France," Potter said. "For us it's about using this as a foundation to go forward and to be proud of what we've done so far."

Speaking just after the final whistle, Mbappé wasn't quite ready to turn his attention to Paraguay just yet.

"I'm looking forward to the changing room and the AC," he said.