Turkey Stuns USA With Stoppage-Time Winner in World Cup Group Finale, 3-2

The United States men's national team closed out a historic World Cup group stage run with a dramatic 3-2 loss to Turkey on Thursday night at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, as Kaan Ayhan buried a stoppage-time winner on the literal final kick of the match. The result carried no tournament consequences for either side — the U.S. had already clinched Group D, and Turkey had already been eliminated — but it denied the Americans a perfect 3-0-0 group stage that would have been unprecedented in program history. A Record-Setting Group Stage, Even in Defeat Despite the loss, the U.S. wrapped up the group stage with its best-ever finish, taking six points from three matches: a 4-1 win over Paraguay on June 12, a 2-0 win over Australia on June 19 in Seattle, and Thursday's defeat to Turkey. The Americans automatically qualified for the tournament as one of three co-host nations alongside Mexico and Canada. Auston Trusty opened the scoring for the third straight match, finding the net in the third minute off a Sebastian Berhalter corner kick — the second-fastest goal in USMNT World Cup history. It marked the third consecutive game in which the U.S. had scored first, and Trusty's goal was also his team's seventh of the tournament, tying the program's scoring record for any World Cup before the knockout rounds had even begun. The goal carried broader tournament significance too: it was the 173rd goal scored at this World Cup, breaking the record for most combined goals in a single tournament, set in Qatar four years ago — and the new mark was reached in four fewer matches than it took to set the previous record. Turkey Answers Twice Before the Break Turkey, already eliminated after losses to Australia and Paraguay despite out-shooting both opponents by a wide margin, found an answer almost immediately. Real Madrid's 21-year-old rising star Arda Güler leveled the score in the 10th minute, beating U.S. defenders Mark McKenzie and Miles Robinson before finishing left-footed past backup goalkeeper Matt Turner, who started in place of Matt Freese. Güler turned creator soon after, setting up Orkun Kökçü's close-range finish in the 31st minute to put Turkey ahead 2-1 at the half — the first time the U.S. had trailed at any point in this World Cup. Turkey dominated possession for the remainder of the first half but couldn't add to its lead before the break. Berhalter Levels It, Pulisic Returns The U.S. came out of halftime with a response. In the 49th minute, a long throw-in from Mark McKenzie was partially cleared just outside the box, where Sebastian Berhalter met the loose ball and drilled a strike from roughly 20 yards past goalkeeper Uğurcan Çakır to make it 2-2. The U.S. crowd got another lift in the 58th minute when head coach Mauricio Pochettino brought on Christian Pulisic for Tim Weah — the AC Milan winger's first action since halftime of the tournament opener against Paraguay, after he'd missed the Australia match with a calf injury. Pulisic immediately created danger with a dynamic run down the left, nearly setting up a third U.S. goal in the 63rd minute when his shot off a Berhalter pass clipped the post, with Brenden Aaronson unable to convert the rebound. A Late Sting for the Hosts Pochettino had made nine changes from the lineup that beat Australia, rotating heavily with the knockout rounds already secured and several players a yellow card away from suspension. Weston McKennie, the lone regular starter retained, captained the rotated side. Turkey pushed hardest in the closing stages. As the match wore into extra stoppage time, a floating ball found Can Uzun on the back post, who calmly slotted past a sprawling Turner in the eighth minute of stoppage time to make it 3-2. Moments later, in the literal final kick of the match, Kaan Ayhan — who had only entered as a substitute in the 88th minute — found the back of the net to seal Turkey's only win of the tournament and send the sellout SoFi Stadium crowd home stunned. There was also a scare for the Americans late on: Trusty appeared to twist his ankle attempting a cross late in the match, slapping the turf in pain, though he waved off a stretcher and was able to walk off under his own power before returning to the field after sideline treatment. What's Next Both Berhalter and Pochettino struck a measured tone afterward, with Berhalter acknowledging the U.S. "let some moments get away from us" while praising his rotated teammates' overall performance. The result has no bearing on the bracket: the U.S. finishes atop Group D and advances to the Round of 32 to face Bosnia and Herzegovina, who finished third in Group A with four points. That match is set for July 1 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California — though some reports have also referenced a meeting date of July 1 in Santa Clara, with Türkiye-focused coverage noting the same opponent set for the following Wednesday. The U.S. has historically struggled in the knockout stages of the World Cup, with only a single Round of 32-equivalent win to its name in program history, and that result now 24 years in the past. With the group stage's best-ever American finish now complete and a healthier, increasingly available Pulisic working his way back into form, the bigger test for Pochettino's side begins next week.