World Cup: Morocco edge Scotland, USA march into last 32, Brazil beat Haiti

The United States men's national soccer team has advanced to the knockout stage of the 2026 World Cup, securing their place in the last 32 with a convincing 2-0 victory over Australia. The win, achieved through an early own goal by Cameron Burgess and a second-half header from Alex Freeman, guarantees the co-hosts progression with one group game remaining.

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It was a fantastic game again, very good first half. I think we dominated the game against a very tough team.

This strong performance follows a dominant 4-1 win against Paraguay, marking a much-improved start to the tournament for the Americans after a less convincing build-up. Coach Mauricio Pochettino praised his team's "fantastic game" and "very good first half," noting their dominance against a "tough team."

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When the draw happened in December, I thought it was going to be a really difficult, a really tough game.

Australia's coach, Tony Popovic, attributed his team's defeat to "lethargy" and a slow reaction to the ball, describing his players as "flat" in the first half. The loss means Australia will not advance to the next round.

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We were slow to every ball, and we couldn’t really wrestle back any momentum, which made it difficult. We conceded a couple of really soft goals, but we just looked flat and lethargic in the first half.

In other Group C matches, Brazil rediscovered their scoring touch with a decisive 3-0 win over Haiti, effectively eliminating the Caribbean nation from contention. Manchester United striker Matheus Cunha scored twice, with Vinicius Junior adding another goal. However, Brazil's victory was overshadowed by an apparent injury to star forward Raphinha, who left the field in the 40th minute. Brazil now sits level on points with Morocco, who secured a narrow 1-0 win against Scotland thanks to an early goal from Ismael Saibari.

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Two goals from Manchester United striker Matheus Cunha and a Vinicius Junior strike sealed a comfortable win for the Brazilians in a one-sided game at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field.