USMNT’s Tournament Comes to an End | Day 27 Preview | Morning Cupdate, Presented by The Home Depot

0:00Quick word for our dear friends at Christopher Ward, the official watch partner of Men in Blazers. Now, many of you know Men in Blazers and Christopher Ward first came together through football. But what I genuinely love about Christopher Ward is what they're becoming here in America. They've expanded across the U.S.'s showrooms now in New York City, Chicago, Northern Virginia, Dallas and more. They're building something really rare, real connection. They're not just selling watches, trying to foster community. Places where people can gather to obsess over craftsmanship, design, engineering, and the stories we carry through time.

0:34I love these watches. They're precision built, thoughtfully designed, proper mechanical craftsmanship. They're luxury watches at a real value price, and they somehow still feel deeply human and accessible. So whether you're already a watch obsessive or you're just curious, go and have a look. Visit a showroom or visit the website. If not, try one on. Have a conversation. Christopher Ward, they're building something really special here in the United States. We're incredibly proud to have them alongside us in this community. Now, back to the football. Hello from Atlanta. This is your morning cup day.

1:06It is the morning after the night before. The USMNT have been knocked out of the World Cup. Their unbelievable journey has come to an end. But if you were wondering what sort of impact that this team have had on this country, take a look behind me. Soccer being played out on the street. We're going to debrief it all and, of course, preview day 27 of the World Cup.

1:32Yes, hello and welcome to Morning Cup Update, built by the Home Depot. The Home Depot is your winning assist to host the ultimate watch party with fast free delivery to get your backyard match stay ready, subject to availability. Right, let's get into it then. The USMNT's dreamy World Cup journey is over after losing 4-1 to Belgium in the round of 16. It was like a fairy tale, like Cinderella. The beautiful, beautiful carriage turning into a pumpkin. A human agony. We're going to wait four more years to do it again. It's a round of 16 again. Why always us? Rucho Pochettino said after the match, we were not good enough today.

2:13We don't need to find another excuse. It was a disappointing performance. We've been seeing the US players flying around the pitch with intensity and energy in this tournament. Yesterday, though, they looked like a totally different side. Through no fault of his own, Flo Balogun became a headline coming into this, being the focal point of FIFA controversy. The US's star strikers started after President Donald Trump asked FIFA to review his red card ban from the previous game, which they did, suspending the ban. But even having their top scorer at the tournament didn't help. He was largely isolated as Belgium dominated.

2:47The atmosphere in the Seattle Stadium was dampened after just nine minutes when Charles de Quetelara tapped in from close range. But the USA got the equaliser in the 31st minute. Malik Tillman, deflected free kick.

3:09That was the only thing USMNT fans had to cheer for, though. The real killer blow came just before the hour mark. Matt Freese came out of his area to claim a loose ball, but fumbled his clearance, then Tim Ream couldn't clear it, and Hans Vaneken's shot slid into an open goal. Spirits dropped, and you could sense panic setting in amongst the USMNT. Belgium brought on the cavalry in Jeremy Doku and Romelu Lukaku, who eventually bagged a late fourth in injury time. It felt sloppy and unfocused, with a host of unforced errors. It was the nail in the coffin. Former USMNT two-time World Cup champion Becky Sauerbrunn said on the night cup that there was a lack of fight.

3:47What I wanted to see were players sprinting after the ball. It goes out of bounds, you're sprinting after it to get it back in. You're bringing people into the box, you're going for it. Even if it's a Hail Mary, you're never going to get back in this game, you at least show the fight. And that's what I think for me, leaving the game, I feel most upset about is that I didn't see that fight. This defeat is not going to get rid of everything that this team has accomplished over the last month, though. Nor will it change how brilliant the likes of Weston McKenney, Malik Tillman and Flo Baligan have been on this stage up to this point.

4:22All the moments that had millions of Americans believing for the first time. Here's Rory's take on the nightclub.

4:28Roger Bennett:Football is not about destinations. That's the thing that we mistake all the time. It's about journeys. because if it was about destinations, no one would like it. It's about the journey that you go on with the people that you share it with, the 3.2 billion Americans who were on that march. We'll reflect more on those USMNT World Cup memories at the end of the show, but it's on to yesterday's early kickoff. Spain against Portugal in Dallas, neighbours and two powerhouses of European football. Yesterday, we told you about the last time that they met each other in the 2018 World Cup when it finished 3-3 and Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat-trick.

5:05It was a thriller. Woo, World Cup! No, there was none of that in this one. Scrap that. It was more this. That is sad, isn't it? This game had 0-0 draw written all over it, extra time and penalties. That was what we were waiting for. That, though, was until the clock struck 90 and substitute Mikel Moreno scored a late, late winner for Spain. These were the scenes in the capital in Madrid.

5:37A massive moment for Mikel Moreno, who's had huge injury problems this year, so what a way to bounce back. That 1-0 win means that Spain have set up a clash with Belgium on Friday in LA. They've reached the quarters without conceding a goal, by the way. The first team in World Cup history as well to keep six clean sheets in a row. That is unbelievable. But you can't help but think there is more to come from them. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo's final World Cup match for Portugal ended in tears. He is the only player to score in six World Cups and one of only two players to feature in six alongside Messi.

6:13But despite all of that, he will never get his hands on the big one, the World Cup trophy. The final games of the round of 16 are coming up. It all begins at 12pm Eastern here in Atlanta as Egypt try to take down the world champions Argentina. As with every game Argentina have played at this tournament, it will be a sea of blue and white pretty much everywhere you look.

6:44That was on Friday night in Miami as Argentina played Cape Verde. This was supposed to be a walk in the park for Lionel Scaloni's cropper champions, but it was so far from straightforward. Debutants Cape Verde equalised twice, including one of the best goals the tournament has ever seen from Sidney Lopez Cabral. It is four days on, and honestly, I'm just not sure I'm over it. Are you guys? No. No, I'm still thinking about it. Never will be. Rog definitely isn't over it either. They're king of the Cape Verde bandwagon. What we have just witnessed, we will remember for the rest of our lives. Egypt had their own dramatic route to this match, as they beat Australia in a 4-2 penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw.

7:25The Egyptians were undoubtedly the better side, and even though Australia subbed on penalty specialist Matt Ryan for the spot kicks, he couldn't save any of them. Egypt had never won a World Cup match before this tournament, let alone a knockout game. However, all of that history is child's play compared to the history they could make today. And could there be a factor that makes this a good time to play the world champions? Well, let's dive into it.

7:54Today's drill down brought to you by Makita is all about whether Argentina might have pushed their main man a little bit too far.

8:05Lionel Messi has defied his age at this tournament. In the sapping heat of Miami against Cape Verde, he scored, he assisted and he was the best player once again on the pitch. He has scored in eight consecutive World Cup matches, by the way, which is astounding. That win against Cape Verde came at a huge cost, though, as Leo had to play for the full 120 minutes. Afterwards, boss Leonor Scaloni said his players were absolutely knackered. At the ripe old age of 39, Argentina protects Messi in order to get the best out of him. He doesn't really press or track back because he has Rodrigo de Paul, Alexis McAllister and Enzo Fernandes doing the dirty work so that he can ghost into pockets and be decisive.

8:46In Argentina's third group game, Scaloni only played Messi for 30 minutes in order to manage his game time, so his freshness is clearly a concern. Therefore, Egypt's game plan has got to be clear. Sit deep and frustrate Argentina for as long as they can. Scaloni will be desperate to use Messi for as few minutes as possible, but he will be unlikely to sub him off, unless the game is won. The longer Egypt can hang on in there, especially with the pace of Salah and Marmusha up top to hit Argentina on the counter, the stronger the possibility of an upset becomes. Has cruel fate smashed your dreams of footballing glory during this FIFA World Cup?

9:23Fear not. You're now a sporting free agent. With your choice of squads, the opportunity to pick someone new, the teams with the catcher songs, the country you studied abroad in, the goalkeeper with the magnificent hair. When your team's gone, fun doesn't have to be, because on the Leys bandwagon, every match is another excuse to grab a snack and pick a new favourite. There are no wrong answers, only good times and tasty snacks. So jump on and enjoy the rest of the tournament, because Leys keeps the party going and the bandwagon has never tasted better. Leys, official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2026.

10:00Has cruel fate smashed your dreams of footballing glory during this FIFA World Cup? Fear not. You're now a sporting free agent with your choice of squads, the opportunity to pick someone new. The teams with the catcher songs, the country you studied abroad in, the goalkeeper with the magnificent hair. When your team's gone, fun doesn't have to be because on the Lays bandwagon, every match is another excuse to grab a snack and pick a new favourite. There are no wrong answers, only good times and tasty snacks. So jump on and enjoy the rest of the tournament because Lays keeps the party going and the bandwagon has never tasted better.

10:36Lays, official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2026. And as the world arrives in the United States for the biggest spectacle in sports, we're going coast to coast, host city to host city to meet the world with the Men in Blazers Match Day Live Tour. These are free college game day style live events taking place just before kickoff at some of the biggest games of the summer. But we'll be taking the stage with celebrity guests in front of thousands of fans. It's going to be amazing. Come and be with us in person or from afar on YouTube. And let's celebrate this summer the way it's meant to be celebrated.

11:13Head to the events tab on meninblazers.com for all the details. To the football, to more together courage.

11:24Then the final game today at 4pm Eastern is Switzerland against Colombia in Vancouver. Reaching the last eight would see both nations match their best ever World Cups. The Swiss have made fairly light work of the tournament so far since that surprise draw with Qatar. They smashed Bosnia and Herzegovina. They got past Canada with relative ease and then breezed past Algeria in the round of 32. They are a well-rounded team, even though they lack that same swagger and flair of some of the other nations. Meanwhile, Colombia were branded dark horses before the tournament, and they've lived up to it.

11:56They also love a draw. Three shutouts in a row now. They seem to have swapped that stereotypical chaos for functionality. The same can't be said for their fans, though, who've been gathering in Vancouver's Jackpool Plaza. It is safe to say, they are definitely pumped for this one, aren't they? Team news then Colombia have a bit of an issue up front as John Cordova went off early in their round of 32 win over Ghana Luis Suarez is expected to start in his place Switzerland are expected to name an unchanged starting 11 from that Algeria win Tonight, Rog, Rory and James Horncastle will be live on Night Cup to break down today's matches and also look ahead to the quarters Come and check it out It takes place after the final whistle right here on the Men in Blazers YouTube Right, everyone, it is time for predictions.

12:53Yesterday, I went head-to-head with Rory. We both correctly predicted the result in the Spain against Portugal game, but we're perhaps a little bit too optimistic on the goal front, going for 2-1 and 3-1 respectively, so no points. Then, in the other day's fixture, we both missed the mark by backing the USMNT to beat Belgium, which means it is a tie between Cup Day and Night Cup. So we keep our noses out in front just about with a 9-8 lead as we head into the crunch stage of the tournament. This is it. This is the bit that means everything. All still to play for. And because Rory loves predictions with me so much, he's back for a second round.

13:32Rory, hello. How are you? I'm all right. How are you? Good. Thank you. Ready to beat you at predictions today. Let's start with Argentina against Egypt. Interesting. What were your thoughts?

13:44Roger Bennett:Well, Argentina got a bit of a scare in Cape Verde, didn't they? So they'll have a point to prove that they won't want a repeat of that, I think. Egypt are limited, but they're very, very passionate. They're very well organized, defensively quite secure. It'll take a lot for Argentina to break them down, but I would expect this to be one of those games where Argentina have the ball and Egypt are trying to catch them on the counterattack. I'm not sure Mohamed Salah's got the pace to do that. Omar Mamouche isn't playing brilliantly, which means they don't really have anyone to score any goals. So I'm going to say a slightly grindy 2-0 win for Argentina.

14:19I was going to go 1-0 to Argentina. I think it's going to be a bit of a rubbish game, probably. But I think Argentina will just get over the line. Just have enough. OK, next one. We've got Colombia against Switzerland. Now, I've been told by my producer that I cannot go for a Switzerland win because I need to take this seriously. So I'll go for a Colombia win. Don't have your own opinions, Betty. No, but I will go for a 2-0 Colombia.

14:46Roger Bennett:So this is the round of 16 game that no one's looking forward to. It feels like the afterthought. They're always the good ones, though. I think it'll be an absolute cracker. Switzerland are good. It's Switzerland, so there's a limit to how excited you can be about it. But they are a good team. They've been playing really well. I think we are kind of low-key sleeping on them, as children say. I know what the youth talk like. I know the words. I am in my 60s, famously. But despite that, I know the words. so I think it's I think Columbia wins I think they're better but I reckon it's 3-2 Columbia oh thriller yeah maybe after extra time okay oh okay extra points if I get the straw and the length of time of the match no no Elizabeth is shaking her head she's very on this she takes this seriously I went to Texas for two days and the rules of this of engagement here have changed completely it's very stressful we just make them up really

15:38on today's finishing touch brought to you by bear paint we wanted to look back once more at the usmnt's incredible summer it's easy to forget now but before a ball was kicked many fans were just focused on one thing and that was getting out of the group then on that balmy friday evening in la as potcher's team took on paraguay

16:06What a night that was A 4-1 win with Flo Balogun Scoring two And then Gio Reyna Scoring an iconic fourth With the outside of his foot Rodgers ever Was super chill I don't like to be hyperbolic But was day two Of this Cooper That's go Baz The greatest day in American history Since maybe Washington Crossing the Delaware Up there Up there. Man on the moon? Up there. Invention of the cronut? Now I'm being crazy. This was the match that made the nation stand up an almost perfect evening. Take me back. It was then up to Seattle for game two as Australia came to town. And the pre-match atmosphere before in the city was like nothing I've ever seen before.

16:48Roger Bennett:There's an idea still in Europe that there isn't a proper football atmosphere in this country. I think Seattle proves that wrong today. This is the day that Europe wakes up to see, literally possibly, to see what American fans can do. It was an incredible experience and the players delivered on the pitch as the US scored two first-half goals to breeze past Australia. Two games, two wins and top spot in Group D secured. These were uncharted waters for the USA and belief was growing amongst players and fans. A 3-2 defeat to Turkey in a dead rubber didn't dampen the mood as it was time for the knockouts.

17:23The US were drawn against Bosnia and Herzegovina. They hadn't recorded a win against anyone from the other side of the pond for five years. Clint Dempsey pre-match called for a replica of one of their previous performances and what Clint asks for, Clint tends to get. What they did against Australia, winning the game and getting the clean sheet, if we can replicate something like that, I think we'll finally be on to something. But yeah, I'm definitely feeling optimistic. The USA beat Bosnia 2-0 in San Francisco. Goals from Flo Balogun and Malik Tillman were enough to get the job done. And despite Balogun picking up a red card, US fans here in Atlanta were absolutely buzzing.

18:03Pure exhilaration. America is going to bring you home, baby. You know it. USA! USA! USA! Why not just win the whole thing? F*** it. On to the round of 16, and it was time to go back up the West Coast to Seattle once again. and this team were given a hero's welcome from the crowd at the Seattle Mariners. Thank you for the love and support. Let's go win a World Cup. Go USA, go Mariners! They of course went on to face Belgium. Semi-finalists at the World Cup just eight years ago who still have some world-class players and ultimately it was one game too far. However, this team has given soccer in the US hope for the future.

18:42It feels like the whole world is coming together and that's what I did love for this World Cup and I think hosting this World Cup will allow more people to fall in love with this beautiful game and fall in love with the unity. Even from my perspective, from a small Georgian town, you know, in northeast Georgia, I'm having guys from my hometown talk about it, and they're excited that I'm down in Atlanta watching at the FIFA Fan Fest and watching here, so I believe there's been a cultural shift. I've loved the World Cup. Like, every morning I wake up like it's Christmas morning and just love watching the games, watching the world come together around the sport.

19:15I'm going to be really sad when it's over. That is it for Morning Cup Date today, built by the Home Depot. The Home Depot is your winning assist to host the ultimate watch party with fast free delivery to get your backyard match day ready, subject to availability. The Match Day Live Tour rolls on to stop seven this Thursday, July the 9th. Yes, the big orange bus is shipping up to Boston, where Rod and Rory will be joined by the following. Get your pens and your paper out. World Cup champion and host of the women's game, Sam Mewis. World Series champion and Red Sox legend Pedro Martinez and even the mayor of Boston, Michelle Wu.

19:51Come and join the fun at the Marriott Long Wharf ahead of the quarterfinal match between France and Morocco. That is going to be spicy, isn't it? As always, the show is free to enter and you'll also get your chance to win free tickets to the final with the Marriott Take Your Shot Challenge. The link for more is in the notes below. Heads up, by the way, guys, no show tomorrow as there will be no games, but we will be back on Thursday. I'll miss you Hope you miss me See you then