Tim Howard issues bone-chilling warning to Bosnia before knockout match vs USA
The U.S. men’s national team handled their first two opponents, Paraguay and Australia, with ease at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, only to fall 3-2 to Turkey in their final group stage match on Thursday night.
The United States had already earned the top spot in Group D and punched its ticket to the Round of 32, so the game was in many ways meaningless. But it’s also the kind of loss that can kill momentum heading into the knockout rounds.
Despite the loss, it remains Team USA’s best-ever group stage finish, with six points from three matches, and former USMNT goalkeeper Tim Howard was quick to remind fans that Bosnia is the real team that should be worried right now.
“It’s really good to play in hard games. That’s great. Playing in a hard game that didn’t go our way when the result didn’t matter is success to me,” Howard said on the “Unfiltered Soccer” podcast, before delivering a pointed warning to the Dragons. “Bosnia … they’re better off not even getting on a plane and going to San Francisco because the U.S. is gonna put work in against them.”
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Managed by Sergej Barbarez and captained by the 40-year-old Edin Dzeko, Bosnia faced Canada, Switzerland, and Qatar in the opening group stage of the World Cup.
They drew 1-1 with co-hosts Canada, lost 4-1 to Switzerland, and beat Qatar 3-1, finishing third in Group B and barely advancing to the Round of 32, the furthest they’ve gone in program history.
But against a hungry USMNT squad that’s looked elite on home soil, and will have back a fully fit Christian Pulisic, the gap in talent feels significant.
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The match takes place on Wednesday, July 1, at 8:00 p.m. ET at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
American soccer has been waiting for a moment like this for decades, and a deep World Cup run on home turf has this young squad and the entire country fully bought in.
