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The second day of the confirmed the strong start of the three host countries: the United States won 4-1 against Paraguay on Friday, Canada managed to secure a 1-1 draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Mexico maintains its perfect record following the inaugural victory on Thursday.
The standout performance was delivered by United States, which crushed Paraguay at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles with an offensive display that placed the team at the top of Group D.
The match kicked off with an own goal by Damián Bobadilla in the seventh minute. Then, Folarin Balogun, forward for AS Monaco, took the spotlight, scoring in the 31st minute and 45+5 to secure the match before halftime.
Paraguay was only able to score through Maurício Magalhães Prado in the 73rd minute, before Giovanni Reyna capped off the rout with a spectacular curling shot in the 90+8 minute.
Balogun was named Player of the Match, and his double was historic: the first American to score two goals in a World Cup since Bert Patenaude in 1930, 96 years ago.
The Argentine coach Mauricio Pochettino, in charge of the national team since August 2024, watched as his team dominated from start to finish in what CBS Sports described as a "masterclass in attacking play."
Meanwhile, in Toronto, Canada struggled more than expected to avoid starting the tournament with a loss in front of their own fans at BMO Field.
Bosnia and Herzegovina took the lead with a goal from J. Lukić in the 21st minute and controlled much of the match, being close to achieving a historic victory.
It was Cyle Larin, Canada's all-time leading goalscorer in qualifying with 31 international goals, who rescued the draw for the hosts in the 78th minute to secure a valuable point.
The result leaves Group B completely open, with Switzerland and Qatar yet to debut this Saturday at Levi's Stadium.
One day earlier, Mexico had inaugurated the tournament with a 2-0 victory over South Africa at the Estadio Azteca, with goals from Julián Quiñones in the ninth minute and Raúl Jiménez in the 67th.
It was the first victory of Mexico in a World Cup opening match after seven previous attempts throughout its history.
After the initial presentations from the three organizers, the outcome is positive: Mexico and the United States have each earned three points, while Canada has one in Group B.
The 2026 World Cup, taking place from June 11 to July 19 with 48 teams and 104 matches, is the first in history co-hosted by three countries and the first with that number of participants, which expands the qualifying opportunities for teams from around the world.
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