USMNT chokes in final seconds, loses to Turkey in final World Cup group game

The USMNT ended group play of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on a sour note after falling in a 3-2 heartbreaker to Turkey on Thursday night.

USA started the tournament on fire, torching Paraguay in a convincing 4-1 victory then taking down Australia 2-0. This allowed to punch their ticket to the Round of 32 early on, gifting the home fans a lot to look forward to.

The Americans had one more match to deal with before preparing for the knockouts, which featured Turkey. The Turks had a disappointing tournament after losing to Australia and Paraguay, suffering a quick elimination from the global stage. They entered the game with nothing to lose, wanting to leave the U.S. on a positive note.

And that they did. Despite conceding early, Turkey outscored the U.S. 3-1 for the remainder of the match. This included a game-winning goal in the final seconds of stoppage time to stun the hosts of the World Cup.

OH MY

Kaan Ayhan with the winning goal for Turkey over USA pic.twitter.com/FmqZenq3Pl

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) June 26, 2026

What lies ahead for USMNT after Turkey loss

The USMNT mainly played their backups to rest the top players for the next round of the tournament. However, a 3-2 loss against Turkey to end group play won’t be positive for them to look back on.

Auston Trusty opened up the scoring with a great strike from a set piece in the third minute. However, defensive breakdowns from the U.S. allowed Turkey to score back-to-back goals in the 10th and 31st minutes. Arda Guler and Baris Yilmaz had the privilege of scoring Turkey’s first goals of the entire tournament.

The Americans fired back in the 49th minute with a deep shot from Sebastian Berhalter. Despite substitutions that brought Christian Pulisic and Sergino Dest onto the pitch, it wasn’t enough as Turkey delivered the final blow in the last seconds.

The U.S. will look to get back on the win column and start the knockout stage strong. They begin their path against Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Round of 32 on July 1 at 8 p.m. ET.

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