The World Cup hands Los Angeles soccer fans an early classic. With both the United States and Australia winning their openers, Friday’s meeting in Seattle is effectively a fight for control of Group D. The winner takes a commanding step toward the Round of 32, while a draw keeps everyone honest heading into the final matchday.
The hosts opened their Group D campaign with a 4-1 victory over Paraguay in Los Angeles, with Folarin Balogun scoring twice and Gio Reyna adding a late goal.
Australia began the tournament with a 2-0 win over Turkey. Goals from Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe secured the result, while 22-year-old goalkeeper Patrick Beach produced a strong performance on his World Cup debut.
The main injury concern for Mauricio Pochettino’s side is Christian Pulisic, who was replaced at halftime by Sebastian Berhalter in the win over Paraguay and has been working to regain full fitness ahead of this match. Australia, meanwhile, entered the tournament without reported injury concerns and fielded a settled squad in their opening fixture.
When is USA vs. Australia? Date, kickoff time, and where to watch
Kickoff is set for Friday, June 19, at noon local time in Seattle. It’s an ideal Friday-afternoon slot for fans on the West Coast. English-language coverage runs through FOX, with broadcasts split across FOX and FS1 throughout the tournament. Cord-cutters can stream the match for free on Tubi, or through live-TV services such as Fubo and the Fox Sports app.
The stadium: Lumen Field, Seattle
The game is played at Lumen Field — branded “Seattle Stadium” for the tournament — in the city’s SoDo district, with a World Cup capacity of around 69,000. Home to the Seahawks and Sounders, its fans twice set Guinness World Records for the loudest crowd roar at an outdoor stadium, hitting 137.6 decibels in 2014. Expect a wall of sound this Friday!
Possible future lineups
United States (4-3-3): Freese; Dest, Richards, Ream, Robinson; Adams, McKennie, Tillman; Weah, Balogun, Pulisic.
Australia (4-2-3-1): Beach; Italiano, Circati, Souttar, Bos; O’Neill, Okon-Engstler; Irankunda, Metcalfe, Irvine; Touré.
Reviewed by Sarah Nash.
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