CHICAGO — The crowd packed into Soldier Field. Chicago icon Jim Cornelison finished revving up the fans with his signature rendition of the national anthem. The stage was set for a wild send-off for the U.S. men’s national team before the FIFA World Cup begins next week.
And then Germany‘s Kai Havertz scored a goal in the second minute.
It was something of a buzzkill for the crowd of 63,636 on Saturday afternoon on the lakefront. But for U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino, it was an opportunity for his side to show what kind of fight it has.
“I was thinking that we were lucky because to face a situation, conceding a goal (early) in the game, it was an amazing challenge for us to see how we react, how we show character, how we show togetherness and how we start to play under pressure,” Pochettino said.
Ultimately, Germany pulled out a 2-1 victory, but the U.S. team did respond and gave the fans in red, white and blue something to cheer about.
An electric goal by U.S. defender Antonee Robinson in the 37th minute brought the home crowd back to life and evened the score at 1-1. A deflected corner kick fell in front of Robinson, who didn’t hesitate to boot a laser out of the air with his left foot.
“I just thought I’d commit to it and hit it as hard as you can, and if it goes out, it goes out,” Robinson said. “Luckily it flew in the back of the net.”
German midfielder Leroy Sané scored the deciding goal in the 57th minute.
Regardless of the outcome, Saturday was a celebration of soccer for Chicago. And with the World Cup set to begin Thursday, it was the city’s only real chance to be a part of the action.
Eleven U.S. cities — plus three in Mexico and two in Canada — will host World Cup games over the next month and a half, but Chicago is not among them.
The city passed on the opportunity to host World Cup games at Soldier Field when the U.S. was bidding to host the event in 2018. At the time, a spokesperson for then-Mayor Rahm Emanuel criticized FIFA’s “inflexibility and unwillingness to negotiate” and stated that further pursuing a bid was not in Chicago’s best interest.
So Chicago — which hosted the opening ceremony when the U.S. last staged the World Cup in 1994 — was left with no World Cup games. Instead, Kansas City is the only Midwestern city hosting. Of the 104 total games in the tournament, 78 will be played in the U.S., including the final match July 19 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Even so, Chicago gave the U.S. team the atmosphere it needed to battle with Germany on Saturday.
“Incredible,” U.S. midfielder Tyler Adams said. “This is what you wish for, no matter if it’s a send-off game or a regular game. These are the atmospheres we need.
“Obviously Chicago’s an unreal sports city and they love football. But, yeah, it’s incredible to be sent off like that with fans who are so passionate about the game.”
Before the match, the U.S. recognized members of the 1994 team. Among them was longtime U.S. defender Marcelo Balboa, who was born in Chicago and whose father played for the Chicago Mustangs of the North American Soccer League.
“I was bummed that there was no games here and Denver, to be honest,” Balboa said before the game. “I was surprised Chicago didn’t get one. You’re going to see it today, it’s going to be sold out. This is a soccer town.
“So I was a little disappointed. I would’ve loved to have come to Chicago and watched a game or two, but I guess I’ll have to come back and watch the Bears.”
Balboa noted how far U.S. soccer has come since 1994. He joked that in 1994, “no one knew who we were.” Now the U.S. has players such as Christian Pulisic on AC Milan playing at the top levels of European soccer.
“Love this 2026 group,” Balboa said. “And the pressure? They’ve played in big games. They’ve played in Champions League. So when the pressure comes, it’s can you do something special at home?”
The U.S. will open its quest Friday against Paraguay at SoFi Stadium outside Los Angeles. The U.S. will face Australia on June 19 and Turkey on June 25 in Group D play. If it advances out of the group stage, the knockout round begins June 28.
This year’s team features one local player in Chicago Fire goalkeeper Chris Brady. A native of Naperville, Brady came up through the Chicago Fire Academy and was the Fire’s first homegrown player and academy graduate named to a World Cup roster. He’s the third player named to the national team roster as an active member of the Fire.
Brady, 22, didn’t play Saturday but did make his national team debut last week against Senegal in Charlotte, N.C.
“Once you’ve gotten a debut out of the way, now you’re able to really focus on what you’re being asked instead of the emotional aspect,” Brady said this week.
Brady is expected to back up starting goalkeeper Matt Freese, who played all of Saturday’s match.
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