Sports
No Pulisic, no problem: USMNT beat Australia 2-0, win Group D
United States men’s national team players celebrate after beating Australia 2-0 at Seattle Stadium on June 19, 2026. SEATTLE — Mauricio Pochettino’s plan to take the long view to the United States men’s national team’s run at the 2026 World Cup proved wise on Friday.
The U.S. coach kept star Christian Pulisic on the bench against Australia, and his side responded with a 2-0 win over the Socceroos at Seattle Stadium to secure a spot in the knockout round.
When Paraguay defeated Turkey 1-0 late Friday night, the U.S. sealed first place in Group D.
With Pulisic recovering from a calf injury sustained in the opening win over Paraguay, Pochettino opted to start Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Pepi up front. The pair kept constant pressure on Australia, which struggled against the Americans’ speed despite playing five defenders.
It was Balogun who forced the issue with a run down the left wing in the 11th minute. His pass into the six-yard box was intended for Pepi but never reached its target. That’s because Swansea City defender Cameron Burgess got in between, only to have the ball deflect off him and past goalkeeper Patrick Beach.
“(Pochettino has) always given us different ideas to attack. So, to play with Pepi today wasn’t a shock,” said Balogun, who added that he did not know Pulisic’s status until before the match. “It wasn’t like a plan B before CP was out. It didn’t feel like that to me.
“It just felt like another solution to win the game.”
It was the second own goal the Americans have benefited from in as many matches and set the tone for the remainder of the day. The U.S. added a second goal when defender Alex Freeman headed a ball past Beach. Initially ruled offsides, the call was overturned by VAR.
The victory gave the Americans (2-0-0) six points in Group D. By topping the group, the U.S. will play their round-of-32 match in Santa Clara, Calif., on July 1.
Australia (1-1-0) remain in contention to advance with their final group game coming Thursday against Paraguay (1-1-0).
Despite Pulisic being seen at team training on Wednesday, Pochettino said after the game that it was “impossible” for him to play Friday. While saying earlier in the week that Pulisic would face Turkey if he wasn’t able to play against Australia, after the match he offered only that he hopes Pulisic can “help the team as soon as possible.”
For Balogun, Friday continued a torrid start to the World Cup, which began with two goals against Paraguay. He also helped force an own goal in that game, making the United States the first team in World Cup history to benefit from own goals in consecutive games.
Freeman’s third international goal came just minutes after he and Australian midfielder Paul Okon-Engstler were attended to following a head collision. The son of former NFL wide receiver Antonio Freeman, who once scored a touchdown in the same stadium, Alex Freeman admitted he was anxious while waiting for the VAR.
“When it was a goal, I looked back and I saw all my teammates running at me,” Freeman said. “I was like, ‘Oh Lord, now they’re running.’ And then, I ended up running and celebrating with them, and I think it just made me very emotional in the moment.”
Both teams managed only a pair of shots on goal. The Aussies’ first came in the opening minute of play, when Mohamed Toure’s attempt was easily saved by goaltender Matt Freese. The Americans would dominate the remainder of the half.
Australian coach Tony Popovic attempted to switch the flow with a trio of substitutions coming out of halftime. That included removing Toure and playing Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe up top. While the Aussies did apply more pressure on Freese in the second half and created multiple frantic moments in front of the goal, they were unable to find the back of the net.
The U.S. finished with a clear edge in possession at 56%, according to FIFA, while Australia was credited with 33%, and the remainder was contested.
It was also a physical match, with U.S. midfielder Tyler Adams the target of multiple hard tackles in the first half.
“It was a physical game. I don’t think it was anything different than what we expected,” Adams said. “Fouled a couple times, fouled other people a couple times. It’s the nature of the game.
“I think you need to play into it a little bit and understand what the game requires, and that’s what it required today.”
The tone was set early for a match that saw 28 combined fouls and seven yellow cards.
“Very physical, a lot of challenges,” Balogun said. “I think the referee did his best to try and contain it, but this is a World Cup. So it’s expected for the passion to sometimes spill over. But I think we kept our cool, and it was a really professional performance from us.”
The U.S. have now won games in front of partisan crowds in Los Angeles and Seattle, and will return to L.A. to face Turkey. Friday’s game included a helicopter flyover and a vibrant crowd in the home of MLS’ Seattle Sounders, whose fans are known to stand for the entirety of matches.
“I’m just so happy they were able to come out and to be able to kind of have that atmosphere,” Freeman said. “And kind of sing those songs that calm and make us, you know, kind of accept the fact that we’re here and we have such an amazing thing to do. And now we have more stuff to do.”
And even though first place in Group D is now clinched, work remains to be done ahead of the knockout round.
“We kind of need to put a 24-hour rule on things,” Adams said. “Enjoy the moment. Enjoy your time with the families. Disconnect a little bit. And then when it’s time to work, we got to go back to work.
“Another important game against Turkey. And I feel like in my head, it’s like, ‘Do the job.’ Focus on the next one until you’re out of games to play, because then you did something right.”
–Derek Harper, Field Level Media
Sports
Layne Riggs wins wild NASCAR Truck debut race at Naval Base Coronado
NASCAR Truck Series driver Layne Riggs (34) races during the Allegiance 200 at Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tenn., Friday, May 29, 2026. CORONADO, Calif.– Short on fuel and long on perseverance and good fortune, Layne Riggs won Friday’s inaugural Navy 250 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Naval Base Coronado on the Qualcomm Circuit.
It wasn’t until the final two corners of overtime that Riggs was able to claim his fourth victory of the season and the ninth of his career. The driver of the No. 34 Front Row Racing Ford was running second behind Tyler Reif entering the chicane that precedes the final corner at the 3.4-mile, 16-turn street circuit.
Under pressure from Riggs, Reif blew the chicane, steered to the inside of the tire barriers defining the racing line and came to a stop after exiting. Riggs grabbed the lead and reached the finish line 1.332 seconds ahead of runner-up Daniel Hemric, who ran the final circuit with a tire losing air.
“Layne van Risberger came to play today, man,” Riggs chortled after climbing from his car — a facetious reference to road course superstar Shane van Gisbergen in the NASCAR Cup Series. “We’re undefeated in street course races — much respect, Shane. I hope I can be as good as you one day, man. I’m going to take all my glory here in the truck series.
“I don’t even know what happened at the end — sparks flying, people wrecking, staying in the throttle. I was running out of fuel the entire last lap. It was like St. Pete all over again (an earlier Riggs victory this season in an inaugural street race).”
Entering the chicane on the final lap, Riggs was trying to force Reif into a mistake — and succeeded.
“I faked left to scare him, and he missed the corner,” Riggs said. “I really wasn’t going to dive it in there, and it worked for me … An amazing, historic win.”
Reif was trying to win in only his seventh start in the series. He finished 19th after being assessed a 30-second penalty for short-cutting the course on the final lap.
“I hear (Riggs was) one (car-length) back from me, and I didn’t want to give him a chance to get to me,” Reif said. “It was my mistake. It’s very unfortunate that I did that. I don’t know how many more chances I’ll have like this, but I’m sure there’ll be more, and I’m going to make sure not to make that mistake again.”
The final two laps featured a surfeit of twists and turns. Superior strategy put Chandler Smith at the front of the field for the overtime restart on Lap 52, with fresher tires and more fuel than Riggs, his teammate.
Smith led the field to green with Kaden Honeycutt beside him, but Honeycutt brushed the wall on the downhill run toward Turn 2, and Smith crashed trying to avoid him. As cars bounced off each other behind them, Henric took the lead briefly, only to be challenged and passed by Reif, who blocked Hemric’s Chevrolet into the wall approaching the chicane on the white-flag lap.
Reif held the lead from that point on until his mistake in the tight, freshly-paved chicane. In the overtime melee, Kaz Grala finished third, followed by Landen Lewis (a career best) and Ty Majeski.
Smith and Honeycutt ran 22nd and 23rd, respectively. Seven-time NASCAR Cup champion Jimmie Johnson led two laps but finished 30th after spinning twice and losing power in the final stage. Johnson was making his second start in the series, 18 years removed from his first.
The race featured 16 lead changes among six drivers, with Riggs leading a race-high 21 circuits and Smith 13. There were seven cautions for 13 laps.
Riggs, who won the first stage, increased his series lead to 65 points over Honeycutt, with Smith trailing by 128 points in third place with five events left in the Truck Series regular season. Parker Kligerman won Stage 2 before finishing 18th.
NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Race — Navy 250
San Diego Street Course
San Diego, California
Friday, June 19, 2026
1. (2) Layne Riggs, Ford, 53.
2. (32) Daniel Hemric, Chevrolet, 53.
3. (16) Kaz Grala, Toyota, 53.
4. (9) Landen Lewis, Chevrolet, 53.
5. (8) Ty Majeski, Ford, 53.
6. (17) Justin Haley, RAM, 53.
7. (34) Brenden Queen #, RAM, 53.
8. (13) Ben Rhodes, Ford, 53.
9. (30) Christian Eckes, Chevrolet, 53.
10. (6) Giovanni Ruggiero, Toyota, 53.
11. (23) Mini Tyrrell #, RAM, 53.
12. (35) Tanner Gray, Toyota, 53.
13. (24) Kris Wright, Chevrolet, 53.
14. (33) Adam Andretti, Toyota, 53.
15. (25) Cole Butcher #, Ford, 53.
16. (28) Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, 53.
17. (29) Austin Varco, Ford, 53.
18. (10) Parker Kligerman, Chevrolet, 53.
19. (14) Tyler Reif, Chevrolet, 53.
20. (27) Frankie Muniz, Ford, 53.
21. (7) Andres Perez De Lara, Chevrolet, 53.
22. (3) Chandler Smith, Ford, 53.
23. (1) Kaden Honeycutt, Toyota, Accident, 52.
24. (11) Connor Mosack, Chevrolet, 52.
25. (31) Justin Marks, Chevrolet, 51.
26. (18) Dawson Sutton, Chevrolet, 51.
27. (26) Jackson Lee, Ford, 50.
28. (20) Nathan Nicholson, Chevrolet, Accident, 48.
29. (5) Grant Enfinger, Chevrolet, 48.
30. (4) Jimmie Johnson(i), Toyota, Electrical, 47.
31. (12) Tyler Ankrum, Chevrolet, Accident, 46.
32. (19) Jake Garcia, Ford, Transmission, 40.
33. (22) Stewart Friesen, Toyota, Power Steering, 29.
34. (21) Jamie McMurray, RAM, Accident, 22.
35. (15) Corey LaJoie, RAM, Accident, 14.
Average Speed of Race Winner: 64.274 mph.
Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 48 Mins, 13 Secs. Margin of Victory: 1.332 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 7 for 13 laps.
Lead Changes: 16 among 6 drivers.
Lap Leaders: K. Honeycutt 1-2;L. Riggs 3-5;K. Honeycutt 6;L. Riggs 7-12;K. Honeycutt 13-16;J. Johnson(i) 17-18;C. Smith 19;P. Kligerman 20;L. Riggs 21;P. Kligerman 22-26;C. Smith 27;K. Honeycutt 28-30;C. Smith 31-33;L. Riggs 34-43;C. Smith 44-51;T. Reif 52;L. Riggs 53.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Layne Riggs 5 times for 21 laps; Chandler Smith 4 times for 13 laps; Kaden Honeycutt 4 times for 10 laps; Parker Kligerman 2 times for 6 laps; Jimmie Johnson(i) 1 time for 2 laps; Tyler Reif 1 time for 1 lap.
Stage #1 Top Ten: 34,11,1,38,9,18,99,44,45,42
Stage #2 Top Ten: 75,88,9,18,44,42,38,11,1,91
–By Spencer Reid, NASCAR Wire Service. Special to Field Level Media
Sports
Brazil coach: Neymar will be available to play vs. Scotland
June 17, 2026; Morristown, New Jersey, U.S.; Brazil’s Neymar Jr. during training. Mandatory Credit: Caean Couto-Imagn Images PHILADELPHIA — After Brazil defeated Haiti 3-0 in their second World Cup match on Friday night, Selecao coach Carlo Ancelotti said he expects Neymar to be available for the Group C finale.
Neymar, 34, has been rehabbing a right calf ailment. He last played for Santos in Brazil’s top flight on May 17.
The Selecao will oppose Scotland on Wednesday in Miami Gardens, Fla., needing only a win or a draw to advance to the round of 32.
“Neymar will be training tomorrow individually, and on Monday, he’s going to be training with the rest of the team,” Ancelotti said in the post-match press conference via an interpreter. “He will be available for the match against Scotland.”
Injuries limited Neymar during Brazil’s 2026 qualifying campaign. However, he was influential when he played, scoring twice and contributing three assists in four appearances.
Meanwhile, Ancelotti did not commit to continuing with Matheus Cunha at center forward despite the Manchester United player’s first-half brace against Haiti. Cunha started in place of Igor Thiago after coming on in the 61st minute of Brazil’s 1-1 draw with Morocco in their tournament opener.
“He may,” Ancelotti said when asked if Cunha would remain in the center forward role.
“I think that Matheus’ position was a good position for creating problems to the defense,” Ancelotti said. “And he filtered his passes very well, and his position was a good position to be effective at the front.
“It can be an option. We discussed this yesterday. I don’t want a clear identity. Maybe we will change this on the next match.”
Brazil, on four points, currently lead Morocco on goal-difference in Group C after the Atlas Lions defeated Scotland 1-0 earlier Friday.
The Scots could be playing for their tournament lives on Wednesday, but Ancelotti insisted he is focusing on the bigger picture.
“We don’t think about knocking out. We think about playing well and improving, and we analyze the match,” Ancelotti said. “If we can reach the first position of the group, that would be important for the future. So we want to prepare well for that match.
“Scotland has its features. It can create a problem. It created problems to Morocco today. And so we have to focus on the match and be calm and be tranquil and keep on working to improve.”
–Ian Nicholas Quillen, Field Level Media
Sports
Lynx rally past Valkyries, stay perfect in all-time series
Jun 19, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Minnesota Lynx guard Courtney Williams (10) drives in against Golden State Valkyries guard Kaila Charles (6) during the first quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images Nia Coffey missed her career-high by one with 22 points, Courtney Williams added 21 as part of a double-double and the Minnesota Lynx continued their lifetime winning streak over the Golden State Valkyries with an 81-75 victory Friday night in San Francisco.
Kayla McBride chipped in with 17 points and Natasha Howard added 10 to go with eight rebounds for the Lynx (13-3), who overcame a 1-for-10, seven-point, six-turnover night from rookie star Olivia Miles.
Seeking a fifth straight win, the Valkyries (10-6) led by as many as 12 in the first half, but were held to 29 second-half points in a duel of the league’s top two defensive clubs.
The Lynx took the lead for good at 63-62 on a jumper by Williams with 1:39 remaining in the third quarter, then let their suffocating defense dictate the outcome in the final period, during which they outscored the hosts 18-13.
Golden State got within three with 26.0 seconds left and 77-75 after a Cecilia Zandalasini 3-pointer with 21.8 seconds remaining. But the Lynx kept the hosts at arm’s length thanks to a pair of free throws each by Williams, Miles and Anastasiia Olairi Kosu.
Williams completed her double-double with a game-high 12 rebounds and also found time for a team-high five assists for Minnesota, which has prevailed in all eight meetings with Golden State since the Valkyries joined the league last year.
Miles aided the Minnesota cause with five rebounds, four assists, three steals and three blocks. The Lynx blocked nine shots, including two apiece by Williams and Kosu.
Zandalasini connected on four 3-pointers to account for a majority of her game-high 23 points for the Valkyries, who outscored the Lynx 36-18 from beyond the arc, but needed 27 more attempts (40 to 13) to do it.
Gabby Williams had a team-high eight rebounds to complement 15 points and Janelle Salaun also had 15 for Golden State, which had won four in a row.
Veronica Burton had a team-high five assists and two steals for the Valkyries.
–Field Level Media
Layne Riggs wins wild NASCAR Truck debut race at Naval Base Coronado
Brazil coach: Neymar will be available to play vs. Scotland
