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The United States men’s national soccer team may not have any competitive stakes on the line when it meets the Turkey national football team in its Group D finale at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, but there is still a dubious streak it would love to end.
It has been more than five years since the United States men have beaten a European opponent in any match, competitive or otherwise.
As Mauricio Pochettino’s side heads into its next attempt, there is plenty of reason for the USMNT head coach to rotate his squad, but also clear motivation to put its best foot forward.
The Sporting News takes a look at the winless run against European opponents..
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How long is the USMNT winless streak vs. European teams?
After a last-gasp defeat to Turkey to conclude group stage play at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the United States men have lost 10 straight matches to European opposition, and they have gone 13 straight winless games against European nations.
The last victory against a European opponent came back on March 28, 2021 against Northern Ireland, when the USMNT won 2-1 in a friendly on goals from Gio Reyna and Christian Pulisic. The lone goalscorer for Northern Ireland, who were ranked 45th in the world at the time, was Niall McGinn who at the time played for Aberdeen.
Since then, the U.S. has played and failed to beat nine different opponents on 11 different occasions, with Germany and Switzerland being the teams they played more than once.
Across that span, the U.S. has scored seven goals and conceded 22 times, while being shut out four times. They have not scored more than one goal in any of those 11 games.
MORE: Full FIFA world rankings
Every defeat of current USMNT winless streak to European nations
The winless run began on May 30, 2021, in a friendly against Switzerland. That match is the only one of the 11 played on European soil, with the next three coming at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and the final eight taking place on home soil in the United States.
Two of the matches came during January camp, when neither side could call up first-choice players because the fixture fell outside a designated FIFA international window, giving clubs the ability to refuse player releases.
| Date | Opponent (FIFA rank) | Competition | Location | Result |
| Jun. 25, 2026 | Turkey | 2026 FIFA World Cup, Group stage | SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, CA) | L 3-2 |
| May 26, 2026 | Germany (#10) | International Friendly | Soldier Field (Chicago, IL) | L 2-1 |
| Mar. 31, 2026 | Portugal (#5) | International Friendly | Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, GA) | L 2-0 |
| Mar. 28, 2026 | Belgium (#9) | International Friendly | Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, GA) | L 5-2 |
| Jun. 10, 2025 | Switzerland (#20) | International Friendly | GEODIS Park (Nashville, TN) | L 4-0 |
| Jun. 7, 2025 | Turkey (#27) | International Friendly | Rentschler Field (Hartford, CT) | L 2-1 |
| Jan. 20, 2024 | Slovenia | International Friendly | Toyota Field (San Antonio, TX) | L 1-0 |
| Oct. 14, 2023 | Germany | International Friendly | Rentschler Field (Hartford, CT) | L 3-1 |
| Jan. 25, 2023 | Serbia | International Friendly | Banc of California Stadium (Los Angeles, CA) | L 2-1 |
| Dec. 3, 2022 | Netherlands | 2022 FIFA World Cup, Round of 16 | Khalifa International Stadium (Doha, Qatar) | L 3-1 |
| Nov. 25, 2022 | England | 2022 FIFA World Cup, Group stage | Al Bayt Stadium (Al-Kohr, Qatar) | D 0-0 |
| Nov. 21, 2022 | Wales | 2022 FIFA World Cup, Group stage | Ahmed bin Ali Stadium (Al Rayyan, Qatar) | D 1-1 |
| May 30, 2021 | Switzerland | International Friendly | Kybunpark (St. Gallen, Switzerland) | L 2-1 |
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