U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter salutes goalkeeper Matt Turner after losing 0-1 to Uruguay at the end of a Copa America Group C soccer match in Kansas City, Missouri, on Monday.
Reed Hoffman/AP
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Reed Hoffman/AP
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The United States was eliminated from the Copa America with a 1-0 loss to Uruguay on a questionable second-half goal by Mathias Olivera on Monday night, a defeat that is sure to increase pressure on the U.S. Soccer Federation to fire coach Gregg Berhalter before the 2026 World Cup.
Uruguay scored in the 66th minute with a free kick from Nicolas De La Cruz in front of the American goal. Matt Turner pushed away a header from Ronald Araújo, which went past defender Tim Ream, but the rebound went straight to Mathias Olivera, who tapped the ball in with his left foot.
Olivera appeared to be offside on the initial header, but the goal was allowed to stand after a video review.
With a team comprised entirely of players from European clubs, Berhalter and the United States were hoping to show that the team had improved since its round of 16 exit to the Netherlands at the 2022 World Cup. Instead, the United States managed only a 2-0 win over Bolivia and were upset 2-1 by Panama, putting them in a difficult spot Monday night.
“We started the game well and brought a lot of energy, but in the end we didn’t have enough quality,” U.S. captain Christian Pulisic said. “I felt like we gave it our all but we couldn’t score.”
Three minutes before Uruguay scored, the United States was in position to go ahead when Bruno Miranda equalized for Bolivia against Panama in a match that began simultaneously in Orlando, Fla. But Panama cruised to a 3-1 victory and moved into second place in Group C behind Uruguay.
Berhalter was rehired in June 2023 and given a contract through the next World Cup, which the United States will co-host with Canada and Mexico. But despite a team featuring Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams, the United States failed to even match its last Copa America appearance, when it lost to Argentina in the 2016 semifinals.
On Monday night, during the second half, the home crowd began chanting “Get Gregg out.”
The United States will then play friendlies in September against Canada and New Zealand.
Uruguay played without coach Marcelo Biesla, who was suspended for letting his team play late in the second half of their first two games, with Diego Reyes and Pablo Quiroga in charge on a mild but humid evening in Kansas City.
Berhalter and the Americans were aware of the difficulty of their situation — Pulisic said at one point they would have to play “the best game of their lives” to advance — and they looked like a team with nothing to lose for much of the first half.
It was a match marked by physical play and questionable decisions.
Folarin Balogun, who had already scored two goals in the tournament, had to deal with several difficulties. He had to call for help after a collision with Uruguayan goalkeeper Sergio Rochet, then ended up on the ground after a foul by Araújo later in the half. Balogun eventually had to leave the field with a hip injury and Ricardo Pepi took his place.
Uruguay lost Maximilliano Araújo early in the first half after a scary collision with Ream near the U.S. goal. He had to be carried off the pitch on a stretcher but was able to move his arms before heading down the tunnel.
Amid the chaos was 32-year-old Peruvian referee Kevin Ortega, whose several questionable decisions have hurt the United States.
The first instance came when Ortega started to show a yellow card and stop play, then allowed play to continue — while keeping the card — when Uruguay was about to score on an attack. The second instance came when the United States had a clear advantage after a handball on Uruguay, but the Peruvian referee eventually blew his whistle and called the play off for a free kick.
Antonee Robinson called it “amateur hour” but lamented the Americans’ inability to rise above the referee.
“The result is our fault,” he said, “and we were not good enough.”
Uruguay started to apply more pressure midway through the second half, then put the Americans in desperation mode after Olivera found the back of the net. And while the U.S. had some good runs and some good chances in the box, a team that had such high expectations wasn’t able to score the two goals it needed, or even one.
“I mean, now it’s just a matter of getting some rest, regrouping and finding an identity, and we’ve got big things to accomplish,” Pulisic said. “We’re going to look forward to that.”
