🚨 Canada thrash Honduras to kick off Gold Cup campaign
Scorers: Sigur 27', Oluwaseyi 45+2', Buchnnan 48', 65', David 75', Saliba 90'
While it was one-way traffic in the early stages, it took Jesse Marsch's side nearly 30 minutes to take advantage of the superiority when Niko Sigur scored his first Canada goal to give the hosts the lead.
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But the best of the bunch came in first-half stoppage time when Minnesota United forward Tani Oluwaseyi somehow found the roof of the net from an acute angle.
A pair of Tajon Buchanan goals in the second-half hammered home the final nails in the Honduras coffin, yet the hosts scored twice more before all was said and done run up the score and collect their biggest win against Honduras in team history.
Next up for Jesse Marsch's men is a showdown with Curaçao.
📸 Rich Lam - 2025 Getty Images
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San Francisco Chronicle
27 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
ICE fears deter some from Mexico's Gold Cup win at Levi's: ‘La Raza is a little more tranquil'
Gustavo Kamo was born and raised in Mexico. He moved to the U.S. when he was 15, became a naturalized American citizen, and built his own business. Ahead of the CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal between Mexico and Honduras, he looked forward to spending the evening at Levi's Stadium with friends and colleagues. Kamo said he invited upwards of 30 people who declined to accompany him Wednesday, for fear that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents would show up. 'They can't risk it,' Kamo told the Chronicle. 'I mean, anyone who's having like a green card or a temporary permit, a work permit, because they're not respecting any of that.' The perceived threat, though ultimately unfulfilled, appeared to temper what CONCACAF expected to be a sellout in Santa Clara on Wednesday — the final preview before a World Cup that will feature the Bay Area as one host of the host destinations. The Rapid Response Network for Santa Clara County released a statement on Instagram about an hour and a half before the match began, citing confirmation via Santa Clara Mayor Lisa M. Gillmor, that Department of Homeland Security officers were present at Levi's 'for security purposes' as 'is standard protocol for large-scale international events.' 'Importantly, they are not conducting immigration enforcement,' said the statement from the volunteer group whose mission is to protect the community against ICE actions. Mexico, the defending Gold Cup champions, won 1-0 at Levi's, which has a 68,500-seating capacity that can expand to more than 75,000 for select events. CONCACAF announced a crowd of 70,975 but did not clarify whether that number represented tickets sold or turnstiles. 'I do think 'La Raza' is a little more tranquil, they're a little more subdued, because if this wasn't going on right now with ICE and everything, it would be like 10 times rowdier right now,' said Leo Gonzalez, a Mexican American and U.S. Air Force veteran, and a friend of Kamo. Gonzalez served actively for about four years and was in the reserves for another four. People often asked him how he could support the Mexico men's national team, as a member of the U.S. military. He reminded them he also cheered the U.S. men's national team, 'unless they played Mexico.' He grew up watching Mexico in the World Cup with his brother and father, set to turn 80 years old in 2026. He plans to get tickets for what'll be his first World Cup experience in-person, and his dad's first since the 1980s. The U.S. and Mexico will play Sunday in the Gold Cup finals. Without hesitation, Gonzalez pledged his support for Mexico, then asked Kamo if there was a world in which he would ever consider backing the USMNT. 'It'd have to be a major change, dude, I just can't do it right now,' Kamo said. 'I'm a U.S. citizen, dude, I'm walking with (the thought), 'OK, what do I say if I get stopped? '' Gonzalez remembered vividly his reaction when rumors surfaced that ICE could have a presence at Levi's: 'They can f— right off.' Though the crowd at Levi's appeared short of a true sellout, it grew considerably and got close as the night progressed. Mexico fans especially made their presence felt after Raúl Jimenez scored in the 50th minute to give Mexico a 1-0 lead. By the 70th minute, the lower bowl of Levi's coordinated a wave, Mexico and Honduras fans alike, during a stoppage in play that served as an enduring moment of unity. For Kamo, the party started almost immediately after he parked. 'When I was coming out, I was getting beers from everybody left and right,' he said. 'Dude, I was hungry, starving when I parked. When I got to the gate, I was full, I was happy. 'I just don't want to see this country be so divided.'
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
'That is football': Mauricio Pochettino lauds Guatemala fans, challenges U.S. soccer culture after Gold Cup win
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He has inherited players who, he seemingly feels, do not have the same level of life-or-death desire that gets ingrained in kids throughout South and Central America. Advertisement In many countries, 'you play [to] survive. You play for food. You play for pride,' Pochettino said. 'You play for many things. It's not to go and enjoy, and go home, and laugh, and that's it. 'The moment that we — now, this roster — start to live in this way, I think we have big room to improve.' He hasn't explicitly said that his players go home and laugh after wins. But many grew up in a country, the U.S., where soccer is not played to survive, to escape poverty, to change a family's life; it typically begins as a recreational pursuit, often in middle-class suburbs. It becomes something more as talented kids join academies, and then turn pro, of course; there is a level of 'desperation,' though — a word Pochettino has used — that is socially ingrained elsewhere but not here. And it's reinforced, if not mandated, by fans. Fans who demand everything by giving everything. Fans who buzz around a stadium at 10 a.m., then fill it at 6 p.m., and stand for 90 minutes, and chant: 'Sí se puede!' Yes we can! Advertisement 'I think the fans gave to you, to Guatemala, an unbelievable energy,' Pochettino said. USMNT's Diego Luna celebrates a goal in front of a majority of Guatemala fans Wednesday in St. Louis. (Photo by Bill Barrett/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images) (Bill Barrett/ISI Photos/USSF via Getty Images) Veteran defender Tim Ream agreed: 'It spurred them on to push and fight.' 'That is football,' Pochettino said, and then he repeated the line twice more. 'That is football. That is football.' That 'connection between the fans and the team,' he said, 'that is the connection that we [would] like to see in the World Cup. That connection that makes you fly.' In his time atop the USMNT, instead, he has seen several half-empty stadiums. And even when full, the environments are relatively laid-back, inorganic or tame. The apathy surrounding the team has likely opened his eyes, and sometimes seems difficult for him to fathom. Advertisement What he hadn't yet experienced, though, until Wednesday, was a true road game at home. 'It was like [playing] in Guatemala,' Pochettino said. 'It was an atmosphere that we didn't expect,' he added. And it clearly had an impact on the game. 'You can't understate what a partisan crowd can do to young minds, guys who haven't experienced it,' Ream said. 'Sometimes, the pressure comes, the fans feel like they're on top of you, the noise is deafening, and you kinda lose it a little bit.' As a few players pointed out, Pochettino should have expected it. It's a reality in the United States, where there are millions of people with ties to soccer-mad countries in Latin America. Advertisement 'We're a country full of immigrants. It was kind of expected for tonight,' defender Chris Richards said. 'It's beautiful to see how much respect they have, but also how much support they have.' When told that Pochettino was surprised, Richards said: 'I think Mauricio kinda being a little bit newer to the U.S., I think he wasn't quite ready for it.' Ream indicated that some younger players were taken aback, too. He and others called it an ideal 'learning experience' for Sunday's final against Mexico in Houston. 'This game tonight would be like a little brother to the U.S.-Mexico game,' Richards said. They'll go into Sunday better equipped, mentally. Advertisement Pochettino, though, wasn't thinking about how his team would handle that atmosphere. He was dreaming of replicating Guatemala's passion, and its impact on players, in the team that he coaches. 'If you see the big teams or countries [play games], it's not playing,' Pochettino said. 'Today, do you think that was a sport, two teams playing, and doing a spectacle? No. You play for something more. You play for emotion. You play [to], be happy, be sad.' That is what he wants here. It's a dynamic, of course, that takes decades to develop, and might never develop in a nation of unmatched wealth and unparalleled opportunity in other sports and fields. But how can it start? 'I think winning helps. But I also think guys like [midfielder] Diego Luna help. I also think guys like [midfielder] Malik Tillman help,' Ream said. And 'fighting and togetherness' help. 'Doing that fosters that connection with the fans — with the diehards, with the casuals, with everybody. And as long as we continue to do that, that culture grows. The feelings grow. And the connections grow.'
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
🔥 The 3️⃣ key players in the Mexico v Honduras semi-final
The Gold Cup is nearing its end, and tonight, the Mexico - Honduras match, for a spot in the competition's final, left us with three stars who shone on the field with their performance and even set records. Raúl Jiménez Raúl Jiménez gave Mexico the victory against Honduras and secured their place in the Gold Cup final. Additionally, the Mexican forward scored the national team's 1000th goal in official competitions. MVP of the match! Gilberto Mora At 16 years old, Gilberto Mora made history tonight. The player assisted Raúl Jiménez in the Aztec team's victory and also became the youngest assist provider in Gold Cup history. Edrick Menjívar The Honduran goalkeeper became the hero of the night, as his incredible saves stopped Mexico's attack and prevented a more lopsided defeat on the scoreboard. Advertisement This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here. 📸 PATRICK T. FALLON - AFP or licensors
