"It is literally impossible for the US to win the World Cup." That's not a pundit hedging. That's Tim Howard — the most capped goalkeeper in USMNT history — watching his country beat Paraguay 4-1 and Australia 2-0 and still refusing to entertain the dream.
Howard made the comments on the Unfiltered Soccer podcast alongside Landon Donovan, and the bluntness was vintage Howard. "The US will need to play the greatest game they've ever played three times in a row," he said, before catching himself. "Sorry, four games in a row!"
He's not wrong about the math. To lift the trophy, the US would need to beat elite opposition across four knockout matches — a stretch that would require a level of performance this squad has never sustained at a tournament. Backing them to go all the way at current odds is bold regardless of what the group stage has shown.
What the group stage actually proved
To be clear, the USMNT's opening two matches were genuinely good. The 4-1 win over Paraguay was emphatic. The 2-0 victory against Australia was controlled, professional, and secured top spot in Group D with a game to spare against an already-eliminated Türkiye side. Pochettino's squad entered the tournament ranked 17th globally and have climbed to 13th in the live rankings on the back of those results.
They also became the first team to officially win their group at World Cup 2026. And for historical context: consecutive World Cup wins hadn't happened for the USMNT since 1930. These are real milestones.
But group stages have a habit of flattering hosts, and the knockout rounds have a habit of exposing them. Howard gets that. Donovan, to his credit, is more optimistic — saying the US "can absolutely compete against any team in this World Cup" — but even he stopped well short of predicting a title run.
Zlatan vs. Howard: the one-word rebuttal
The sharpest counterpoint to Howard came from the most unexpected source. During FOX Sports' coverage after the Australia win, presenter Rebecca Lowe asked Zlatan Ibrahimović directly: can the US win this tournament?
His answer: "Yes."
One word. No elaboration. Maximum impact. Whether that's genuine belief or Zlatan being Zlatan is a conversation worth having — but it landed, and it instantly became the quote of the tournament so far.
The gap between Howard's cold realism and Ibrahimović's single syllable probably contains the actual truth somewhere. The US are better than they've been. They're not yet better than the teams that will show up in the quarterfinals.
"That's just the reality," Howard said. And at this point, he's earned the right to say it.
