The second round of the 2026 World Cup continued overnight with four matches, and the United States, the main host, became the first team in the tournament to clinch a place in the round of 32. The Americans beat Australia 2-0, Morocco stayed on track with a 1-0 win over Scotland, and Brazil responded to its frustrating draw with Morocco by routing Haiti 3-0. Turkey and Paraguay were set to meet in a match between two teams looking to recover from opening-day defeats.
Against Australia, the U.S. took control early when Cameron Burgess scored an own goal in the 11th minute. Alex Freeman then sealed the result with a close-range header. It was the first time the U.S. had won more than one match in a World Cup since 2002, when it reached the quarterfinals. Australia, which had surprised Turkey 2-0 in the first round, now needs a positive result against Paraguay in its final group game to avoid elimination.
Morocco beat Scotland 1-0 in a crucial game for the group, which also includes Brazil and Haiti. After the 1-1 draw with Brazil, Morocco again struck early, with Ismail Saibari scoring in the second minute. The match then became a tense, tactical battle, but Morocco held on for a small yet important victory. With one match left against Haiti, qualification is now close to secured.
Brazil needed a strong response and got it. Neymar was ruled out before kickoff as unfit, but the team led 3-0 by halftime. Matheus Cunha, the Manchester United forward, scored twice in the 23rd and 36th minutes, with the second goal set up by Vinicius. Vinicius then added Brazil’s third in first-half stoppage time for his second goal of the tournament. Carlo Ancelotti recorded his first-ever World Cup win as a coach, but Brazil still has not clinched advancement and must get a good result against Scotland in the final round.
