Day 2 | The US rolls back the clock, to 1930!

Match synthesis:

Despite a creditable showing in Qatar, Canada left World Cup 2022 without a single point. In fact, it had lost every World Cup match it had ever played. Surely, in 2026, on home soil, at Toronto Stadium, with Ryan Reynolds and Mike Myers watching, the hoodoo would finally end. Well, not for most of the 90 minutes. The co-hosts entered carrying the hopes of a nation and promptly discovered that football does not care about narratives (just ask Italy). Bosnia & Herzegovina stunned the crowd in the 21st minute when Jovo Lukic found the net after Canada failed to deal with a set piece. Suddenly, the dream opener felt more like a nightmare. For the next hour, Canada huffed, puffed, pressed, crossed, cornered, and occasionally panicked. The possession was there. The crowd was there. The urgency was certainly there. The goal, however, was nowhere to be found. Then Jesse Marsch rolled the dice. One of those dice was named Cyle Larin. Having entered only moments earlier, Larin latched onto a clever ball from Promise David in the 78th minute and drove his finish home. Toronto erupted. Somewhere, thousands of Canadian supporters simultaneously remembered how to breathe. The final minutes were frantic. Canada searched desperately for a winner. Bosnia searched just as desperately for an escape route. Neither found one. A fair result. Both live to fight another day.

Predictions:

23 of 72 poolsters called the draw, and 19 had the score exactly right.

Kudos to (🔥 = hot pick): Adrian C, Alexandre Mayor, Big Marv, Catherine H, Cheryl Andros, David R, Gerald H, Ian M, Jackie C, Matthew C, Mehdi L 🔥, Mike Davis, Mike H, Moises R, Peter Andros, Ran I, Steven Whittingham, Umang Desai, Yuval S

Match synthesis:

The United States Men's National Team (USMNT) played three matches in the 1930 FIFA World Cup, resulting in two wins and one loss, and officially claimed third place in the tournament. The US won their second group match 3-0 to advance to the semi-finals, featuring the first-ever hat-trick in World Cup history scored by American forward Bert Patenaude. That match was against Paraguay who had made the short trek to Uruguay for football’s inaugural showpiece. Fast forward to 2026 and no one could have imagined a performance of that vintage. Yet, the USMNT did once again dismantle Paraguay 4-1in a performance so confident, fluid, and purposeful that many Americans spent the evening wondering whether they were watching the USMNT or the USWNT. The stars certainly came out. Hollywood, sports, and music royalty filled the stands. Among those spotted were Tom Cruise, Kendrick Lamar, LeBron James, and Eva Longoria. They arrived expecting a World Cup spectacle, and the Americans delivered one. From the opening whistle, the U.S. pressed aggressively, moved the ball with purpose, and attacked with a conviction that has often been missing. Paraguay simply could not cope with the pace and movement. By halftime, the Americans had seized control. By full time, they had announced themselves as something more than hosts. The question now is whether this was a breakthrough—or merely a team pulling out all the stops to impress on a first date.

Predictions:

50 of 72 poolsters called the United States win. Nobody nailed the exact score.