Not even a historic World Cup group stage victory could satisfy Dave Portnoy, who remained thoroughly unimpressed by the USMNT. According to Dave, the real test for the soccer team begins now, as they face Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32, and they should be judged solely on knockouts instead of the expanded ‘Mickey Mouse’ group stages.

The entire conversation around the USMNT began to change after a last-gasp 3-2 defeat to Turkey. A heavily rotated team went toe-to-toe to almost snatch a point, but the 98th-minute winner from Turkey denied them. With the knockouts now beginning, Portnoy, the founder of Barstool Sports, discussed his true feelings with T-Bob Hebert.

“I’m rooting for them. I backed them at 35/1. I am from the state of Missouri. They should be here. This is the beginning of most of the tournament. So if they lose in this game, it’s same old USA. You may have to then retract all the glazing that you’ve bestowed upon them for basically going no further than any team in the history of the United States,” he reminded the world rather sceptically.

Portnoy reminded everyone that the USMNT was placed in a favorable group, and he wasn’t surprised by them winning it. Noting how they have to start their journey from the round of 32 now due to an expanded 48-team World Cup, he didn’t mince his words at the tournament as well.

When T-Bob Hebert intervened and told Portnoy that he only judges the team on their gameplay, not on the results achieved, Portnoy already had an analogy ready to counter Hebert.

“In an expanded Mickey Mouse style. I’m just saying, a lot of people are not overly familiar…and they think we’re having the greatest, deepest run we’ve ever had at the World Cup, but the reality of the situation is they expanded the tournament, and this essentially is the beginning of every other World Cup.”

Portnoy recently had a couple of suggestions regarding the future of the game, like increasing the net sizes, that were brushed apart by fans. Although not a massive soccer fan, Portnoy keeps backing the USMNT regularly.

The Bosnia and Herzegovina game will test the character of this USMNT squad in multiple ways, and it can not come soon enough.

The USMNT’s atrocious knockout record

The USMNT’s best ever World cup finish in fact came at the inaugural FIFA World Cup in 1930, when they reached the semifinals. Given the tournament did not have a third place playoff, FIFA later retrospectively ranked the United States third based on their result. That still remains, the nation’s highest ever finish at the World Cup.

Having participated in eleven editions since their debut in 1930, they only made it to the knockouts five times. The USMNT managed to win only one game across those five attempts. The first round happened in 1934, back when the tournament was a single elimination comeptition starting from the round of 16.

Sixty years later, in 1994, they hosted the tournament and made it to the round of 16, only to lose to eventual champions Brazil. The quarterfinal run during the 2002 World Cup was their best-ever run in the group and knockout era. A famous 2-0 victory against CONCACAF rival Mexico in the round remains their only triumph in the knockouts to date.

Despite dominating stretches of play and creating multiple chances, the USMNT fell short against Germany, falling to a 1-0 defeat in the last eight. Further round-of-16 defeats followed in 2010, 2014, and 2022, as many soccer fans believed they couldn’t crack knockout football.

But as Hebert believes, the class of 26 has won back-to-back matches at the World Cup for the first time since 1930. Coached by Mauricio Pochettino, the young squad possesses incredible firepower and is led by “Captain America” Christian Pulisic. By winning their group, they have given hope to a new generation of stars in the country.

However, the squad fell short of Gold Cup glory in 2025, and Portnoy refused to sing their praises until they find results in the knockouts and prove him wrong. They have five chances to create history and prove their doubters wrong.