USMNT vs – The U.S. men’s national team plays Bosnia and Herzegovina in the World Cup round of 32 on Wednesday, July 1, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. Kickoff is set for 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT), with lineups arriving about an hour before kickoff.
SANTA CLARA, CA — Levi’s Stadium is filling in under World Cup lights as the U.S. steps into a knockout match with a role it has rarely been forced to play: favorite.
On Wednesday. July 1. the United States will face Bosnia and Herzegovina in the World Cup round of 32 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. California. home to the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers. The venue has been renamed as San Francisco Bay Area Stadium for the World Cup. The matchup kicks off at 8:00 PM ET (5 p.m. PT), with lineups scheduled to be announced approximately an hour before kickoff.
For the U.S., the stakes are straightforward and heavy. It is entering a World Cup knockout game as the favorite for the first time. The U.S. impressed early with back-to-back wins to open the tournament. defeating Paraguay and Australia. before a much-changed side fell to Turkey in an inconsequential group-stage finale.
Bosnia and Herzegovina arrive with history that cuts both ways. It is set to play its first-ever World Cup knockout match, but it has earned belief the hard way, defeating Qatar and drawing Canada to clinch third place in Group B.
The path ahead is already mapped. If the U.S. wins, it will know before kickoff who it will face in the round of 16. Belgium and Senegal are underway in Seattle, and the winner of the USA-Bosnia matchup will meet the winner of that game.
The U.S. has played in eight World Cup knockout games and lost seven times. It has never won the World Cup, and its best-ever finish was third place in 1930, the inaugural edition of the tournament.
As kickoff approaches, the tournament picture keeps pressing. After two late goals, Belgium tied its match against Senegal 2-2. The round of 32 tie—whose winner will face the USA-Bosnia winner—is now in extra time.
There is also a practical chessboard the U.S. will need to navigate immediately: whether it can break down a team that is likely to sit back and defend for its life. The U.S. has already shown it can penetrate deep-lying opponents this tournament, and that skill could matter even more against Bosnia.
Projected outcomes from the game’s experts vary, but they circle the same basic question—how quickly the U.S. can find openings.
Seth Vertelney predicted: USA 2-0 Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Jon Arnold said: USA 3-0 Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Jesse Yomtov forecast: USA 1 – 2 Bosnia and Herzegovina (AET).
Victoria Hernandez put it as: United States 2-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina, adding that Christian Pulisic is back and that the United States will ride the wave of winning the group stage right through to the round of 16.
Lineups will be announced approximately an hour before kickoff, and the match itself is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. Central Time.
If the U.S. can start quickly, the floodgates may open. If it can’t, the earlier sting still lingers: the group-stage finale against Turkey ended with a much-changed U.S. side losing, and that last-minute loss was described as a gut punch as the team looks toward Bosnia in the knockout round.
Either way, this one has no margin for error—just 90 minutes, and then whatever comes next.
USMNT Bosnia and Herzegovina World Cup round of 32 Levi's Stadium Santa Clara live score lineups