He had 3 lands. Folarin Balogun picked USA and scored twice on his World Cup debut
There is a version of Folarin Balogun’s life in which he spent his Friday night watching this FIFA World Cup from his sofa in London. He grew up there, joined Arsenal’s academy aged eight, represented England under-21s and spent 15 years at the Hale End dreaming of a first-team debut. England was always an option. Nigeria, where his parents are from, was another. Instead, he chose the country of his birth, committed to the United States three years ago and Friday night at SoFi Stadium scored twice in a 4-1 demolition of Paraguay to announce himself as the face of the home World Cup.
“I visualized my debut scoring,” he said afterwards.
“But reality got the better of it. A very dreamy night.”
What makes the story richer is the circuitous route. Balogun left Arsenal in 2023 after making just 10 senior appearances, ousted by Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah, and signed for Monaco for €30m after a loan spell at Reims where he scored 21 league goals. It was this form that first sparked serious American interest in France. He attended a USMNT training camp in Florida in the spring of 2023, was aggressively courted by US Soccer, and formally committed in May of that year after FIFA approved a one-time association change.
“The United States really wanted me,” he said at the time, “and it suited my development.” Meanwhile, Nigeria did not qualify for this tournament. England arrived in North America without him.
Three years later, Balogun went into Friday’s opener with nine goals in 27 games and the weight of the national striker problem on his shoulders. He dropped it with ease. The U.S. took the lead through a Damin Bobadillo own goal before Balogun doubled it on the half-hour when he headed in from Pulisic’s feed from close range. Then, deep into first-half stoppage time, he collected a through ball, shook off a defender and curled a venomous finish into the top left corner. It was the kind of goal that didn’t require context to appreciate, though context gave it considerable charge to those who knew it.
He became the first American to score multiple World Cup goals in one game since Bert Patenaude’s hat trick against the same opponents in the inaugural tournament in Uruguay in 1930.
Christian Pulisic, who limped off at half-time with calf concerns, had no shortage of admiration.
“The kid is crazy,” he said. “He’s deadly right now. We’re really lucky to have him.”
“Everyone will be looking at the goals, but the way he fights against these centre-backs, holds the ball, gets fouls – I really like that,” he added.
Somewhere in the crowd of 70,000, Balogun’s relatives from London set out. He said he could almost see them, although the sea of red, white and blue made it difficult.
“I had to sort through a lot of tickets,” he admitted, “but I’m happy to do it. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Balogun then asked how he intended to spend the evening. he smiled. “I think I’ll just watch Netflix,” he said. The country that chose him, or rather the one he chose, will spend the weekend talking about a lot more.
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Issued by:
Akshay Ramesh
Published on:
13 Jun 2026 15:40 IST