The United States men look to continue building towards the 2026 FIFA World Cup as they host Japan in an international friendly from Columbus on Tuesday evening.
Japan, ranked 17th in the world, are the next opportunity for Mauricio Pochettino to turn around the USMNT’s recent struggles against quality opponents. Under Pochettino, the U.S. men have suffered seven straight defeats to opponents ranked 30th or higher by FIFA, the latest a 2-0 loss to South Korea over the weekend.
In a fiery prematch press conference yesterday, Pochettino defended his decision to call in fringe players for the second straight international window while leaving many of the first-teamers at home, saying the need to work through the depth chart is greater than winning games, even if it “compromises results” in the process.
On the field, this has presented difficulties, as the U.S. has not kept a clean sheet in five straight matches, dating back to a 1-0 win over Saudi Arabia in the group stage of the CONCACAF Gold Cup this past summer.
Japan, meanwhile, have done well to qualify for the 2026 World Cup already, having finished atop their AFC qualification group despite a recent defeat to Australia back in June. They played to a drab 0-0 draw with Mexico over the weekend and will be looking for improvement in the attack tonight.
The Sporting News is following the USA vs. Japan match live, providing score updates, commentary, and analysis.
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USA vs. Japan score
| Score (Pregame) | Goal scorers | |
| USA | – | – |
| Japan | – | – |
Location: Lower.com Field (Columbus, OH)
Keep track of every game and every goal via SN’s live Premier League scoreboard
Starting lineups (predicted):
USA (4-2-3-1, right to left): Klinsmann (GK) — Dest, Banks, Richards, Arfsten — De la Torre, Roldan — Zendejas, Luna, Weah — Balogun.
Japan (3-4-3, right to left): Suzuki (GK) — Watanabe, Itakura, Seko — Ito, Endo, Sugawara, Mitoma — Kubo, Ogawa, Maeda
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USA vs. Japan live updates, highlights from international friendly
1 hour 15 mins to kick: The U.S. is already looking further into the future of their World Cup preparation, with reports today that they are searching for friendly opponents in March. The Athletic reported that they are in discussions with both Belgium and Portugal for the March international break, while French publication L’Equipe reported that France are also an option for the United States and other 2026 World Cup co-hosts.
1 hour 30 mins to kick: There has been some buzz that the USMNT may play with a three center-back system tonight, which Mauricio Pochettino did not deny in his presser yesterday. We will find out soon whether that comes to pass.
Do you think @stuholden will get his wish of the @USMNT starting in a back three tonight? 🇺🇸👇 pic.twitter.com/bGxNjRt0VN
— Alexi Lalas’ State of the Union Podcast (@SOTUWithAlexi) September 9, 2025
1 hour 45 mins to kick: The U.S. men under Mauricio Pochettino have one win and seven defeats in eight games under Mauricio Pochettino against top-30 ranked international sides. Despite claiming that friendlies matter just as much as competitive games during his introductory presser, Pochettino made it clear ahead of this match that he did not feel the same way any longer.
Pochettino said he believes filling out the depth chart is more important than winning friendlies. “We need to provide time to players who maybe have no experience,” he said yesterday. “And maybe we can struggle and make mistakes and compromise the result. Of course I want to win, but also we need to think of the process.”
We’ll see how that process plays out tonight.
2 hours to kickoff: Mauricio Pochettino took the stand yesterday as he does the day before every match, but this time felt different. The USMNT head coach was on the offensive from the start, and took each question as an opportunity to spin the narrative back to his attack on recent criticism.
“If people want to talk bullshit, they can talk bullshit.”
Ahead of the #USMNT friendly vs. Japan tomorrow, Mauricio Pochettino fought back hard against recent criticism.
Tension was palpable. The vibes are uneasy. There’s a World Cup around the corner.https://t.co/nSEsRMRIO6
— Kyle Bonn (@the_bonnfire) September 8, 2025
USA vs. Japan kick off time
This international friendly match kicks off from Lower.com Field on Tuesday, September 9 at 7:30 p.m. local time in Columbus, Ohio. Here’s how that time translates across some of the major territories around the globe:
| Date | Kickoff time | |
| USA/Canada | Tue, Sep. 9 | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| USA/Canada | Tue, Sep. 9 | 4:30 p.m. PT |
| UK | Wed, Sep. 10 | 12:30 a.m. BST |
| Australia | Wed, Sep. 10 | 9:30 a.m. AEST |
| India | Wed, Sep. 10 | 4:30 a.m. IST |
USA vs. Japan lineups, team news
Just like he did over the summer, Pochettino has called in a squad largely consisting of fringe players. He seemed to indicate speaking to the media that this was the last opportunity for these individuals to make an impression before the first-choice regulars return to the fold. It’s likely that he makes significant changes from the South Korea defeat to this game, and he hinted as much in his fiery pre-match press conference.
Christian Pulisic is back with the USMNT after his controversial absence over the summer and played the full 90 minutes against South Korea, while Folarin Balogun is also back in the mix after missing significant time last season due to injury and poor form. Josh Sargent had another chance to show his national-team credentials amidst another hot start to the season with Norwich City, but he came up empty in 62 minutes in last week’s defeat. Cristian Roldan was a late addition to the roster, while Sean Zawadzki pulled out of camp after suffering a knee injury in training.
Injury absences include Antonee Robinson, who has only just returned from offseason knee surgery. Patrick Agyemang has yet to make his debut for Derby County due to a hernia, while Malik Tillman was left off as he’s only just made his Bayer Leverkusen debut due to a calf issue, and Ricardo Pepi has only seen one substitute appearance after returning from a knee injury. Pochettino will be wary of overusing Sergino Dest and Balogun, both of whom are only just back from long-term injuries of their own.
USA projected starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Klinsmann (GK) — Dest, Banks, Richards, Arfsten — De la Torre, Roldan — Zendejas, Luna, Weah — Balogun.
USA subs: (Lineups released one hour prior to kickoff)
Japan have brought a full-strength squad to the United States for their pair of September friendlies, with European-based stars Wataru Endo, Takefusa Kubo, Kaoru Mitoma, Daichi Kamada, Daizen Maeda, and Takumi Minamino in tow.
Bayern Munich defender Hiroki Ito has been missing since March due to a fractured foot, while domestic-based midfielder Koki Kumasaka is still recovering from a torn ACL. Defender Tomoya Ando was called in but withdrew from the squad due to injury.
With both sides likely to rotate due to the quick turnaround, the likes of Daizen Maeda, Junya Ito, and Yukinari Sugawara could come in after coming off the bench against Mexico.
Japan projected starting lineup (3-4-3): Suzuki (GK) — Watanabe, Itakura, Seko — Ito, Endo, Sugawara, Mitoma — Kubo, Ogawa, Maeda
Japan subs: (Lineups released one hour prior to kickoff)
USA vs. Japan live stream, TV channel
Here is how to watch the match across the United States:
