Better luck next time?
At the World Trade Center Oculus, the gray skies and rain Saturday reflected the mood of roughly 100 US soccer fans and staff members watching the US men’s national team get ejected by the Netherlands in the round of 16 match.
“There is a lot of young kids out there playing their hearts out,” said Kyle Slendorn 22, who traveled from Hoboken, NJ, to watch the game. “It just kind of caught up to them here, playing a Dutch team that had a lot more experience in it.”
After trailing by two goals for the majority of the match, the Americans had managed to get on the board with 15 minutes left, thanks to a bizarre cross from Christian Pulisic that spun off Haji Wright’s foot and past Dutch goalkeeper Andries Noppert.
The Netherlands retaliated soon after with a third goal, ringing the death knell for the day’s match.
“When the US scored I was excited, at that point it made it 2-1, so they had a chance again,” sighed Michael Sandor, 23, a combat engineer from Woodbridge, NJ. “In the group stage we played very well, it seems that we had that winning mentality, that competitive edge, but today it just didn’t seem they were as aggressive.”
“I expected a better result from the US — a little more effort.”
Fans and players already are looking forward to a better showing in 2026, when the US will host the World Cup with Mexico and Canada.
“So proud of the boys the World Cup 🇺🇸 #USMNT,” tweeted US women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe. “2026 is going to be LITTY!”
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