As World Cup opener nears, U.S. men know they’ll play under a spotlight

With the U.S. hosting men’s World Cup games for the first time since 1994, the attention is on whether the U.S. can go far under coach Mauricio Pochettino.

IRVINE, Calif. — Compared with what it was like playing in his first World Cup in 2022, this year’s version will be a “slightly different experience,” U.S. midfielder Cristian Roldan said this week.

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That’s an understatement.

Four years after the U.S. men advanced to the round of 16 in Qatar, half a world away from their families and fans, the team will open the tournament Friday in Inglewood, California, just 14 miles from where Roldan starred in high school. When the U.S. plays its second group-stage game in Seattle a week later, it will be in the same stadium where Roldan plays professionally for Seattle’s MLS team.