The United States soccer team captured the attention of the entire nation on Tuesday, securing a thrilling 1-0 victory against Iran to qualify for the knockout stage at the 2022 World Cup.
It was a huge win in the team’s biggest game in years. Now, the attention shifts to the Round of 16, where the Americans will take on the Netherlands this Saturday.
With the Yanks moving on, you might be wondering; What is the furthest the USMNT has ever advanced in a World Cup?
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1930 – Semifinals
The deepest the Americans have ever gone in the competition was at the very first World Cup in 1930, when they advanced all the way to the semifinals. However, the rules worked a bit differently back then.
After winning 3-0 against both Belgium and Paraguay to finish first place in Group 4, the team went straight to the semifinals. This was because only 13 teams actually attended the tournament. The Yanks were eliminated after being routed 6-1 by Argentina in the penultimate round.
2002 – Quarterfinals
The best performance in a modern World Cup came in 2002, when the USA went on a memorable run to the quarterfinals. The team finished second in its group to advance to the knockout rounds, then famously defeated Mexico 2-0 in the Round of 16 thanks to goals by Brian McBride and Landon Donovan.
Germany was the opponent in the quarterfinals, and the Yanks were very unlucky to lose 1-0. After Michael Ballack opened the scoring in the first half, the USA was pushing for an equalizer. In the 50th minute, a shot by Gregg Berhalter (who, coincidentally, is now the USMNT’s head coach) was blocked on the goal line by the left hand of Germany’s Torsten Frings. It could easily have been ruled a handball and a penalty kick, but the referee waved away the American protests.
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1994, 2010, 2014 – Round of 16
The United States have only made it past the Round of 16 twice. Each of the other three times they have advanced out of their group, they went on to lose in the first knockout round. They lost in extra time in each of their last two round of 16 games, first to Ghana in 2010, then to Belgium in 2014, both by 2-1 scores. In 1994, they fell to eventual champion Brazil 1-0.
If the Yanks keep their run going in 2022 with a win this Saturday, it will be just the third time they’ve reached the final 8 of the competition or better.
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