USA draws England in World Cup: USMNT set up for historical Group B matchup for Black Friday

Kyle Bonn

USA draws England in World Cup: USMNT set up for historical Group B matchup for Black Friday image

U.S. fans willed it to happen, so it did. As the 2022 World Cup draw progressed, United States was pulled into Group B and will match up against England, with the two teams set for a highly anticipated clash on Black Friday.

Also in the group are Iran and the UEFA playoff Path A winner, yet to be decided with Wales, Scotland, and Ukraine all still in the mix.

The United States and England have a rich history of meeting in the World Cup, and the two nations are developing a healthy rivalry.

The two teams met in 1950 and resulted in a 1-0 U.S. win, considered one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history. England entered that tournament as one of the world's unquestioned giants of the game, while the U.S. was a minnow in comparison. The result knocked England out of the 1950 World Cup in the group stage.

They met again in 2010, with England looking for revenge, but a famous Robert Green mistake at the back allowed the U.S. to manage a 1-1 draw. Ultimately both teams escaped from the group stage, but it allowed the U.S. to win Group C with England finishing in second.

MORE: Full 2022 World Cup Group B primer

USA reaction to drawing England

All the players and coaches available to speak after the World Cup draw made it clear they were excited by the matchup.

“It was great to get England, that match is always going to get a lot of attention because of England and its fans, that’s very exciting," said U.S. head coach Gregg Berhalter, a sentiment which was echoed by the players.

Christian Pulisic, who plays for Premier League club Chelsea and has a number of teammates who are regulars for the England national team, said he's excited, adding he's already heard from teammates about the matchup.

“I’m really excited, I think it’s a great draw," Pulisic said. "It’s funny, first call I get is from [Chelsea teammate] Mason [Mount] and we were talking about the game."

Berhalter mentioned that he has a relationship with England head coach Gareth Southgate, and one of his first phone calls after being hired as U.S. head coach in 2018 was to the England boss.

“Gareth was the first person I reached out to outside of former U.S. coaches [when hired]," Berhalter said, "because I saw a lot of similarities between the team that he took over and the team that we took over." He continued to praise the England boss, saying their situations were similar when taking over due to the presence of a deep youth talent pool and a need to build a cohesive team culture.

“I consider him an excellent coach and have a lot of respect for him," Berhalter said.

Finally, Berhalter was excited by the familiarity with the team, both amongst the squad and the fanbase. "Most Americans are familiar with England’s squad, and that puts a target on their backs. I think it’s a positive draw. It’s not taking anything away from their quality, but I think that does help that we’re very familiar with them."

USA vs. England match history

The two teams have matched up 11 times in their history, with nine friendlies alongside the two World Cup appearances.

The United States has won just two of those games and drawn another, with eight losses to go with it.

Date Competition Result
June 28, 1950 1950 World Cup USA 1-0
June 8, 1953 International Friendly England 6-3
May 28, 1959 International Friendly England 8-1
May 27, 1964 International Friendly England 10-0
June 16, 1985 International Friendly England 5-0
June 9, 1993 International Friendly USA 2-0
August 7, 1994 International Friendly England 2-0
May 28, 2005 International Friendly England 2-1
May 28, 2008 International Friendly England 2-0
June 12, 2010 2010 World Cup Draw 1-1
November 15, 2018 International Friendly England 3-0
November 25, 2022 2022 World Cup ??

USA 2022 World Cup draw

Along with England and the United States, Group B features AFC participant Iran plus the winner of the UEFA playoff Path A, postponed due to the hostilities in Ukraine.

Wales is through to the Path A finals, where it awaits the winner of either Scotland or Ukraine in the semifinal. Wales, ranked 18 in the latest FIFA rankings, would be an incredibly difficult Pot 4 pull for the rest of the Group B participants, but would provide added flair to the matchups.

MORE: Full 2022 FIFA World Cup match schedule

World Cup Group B table & fixtures

Team PTS GP W L D GF GA GD
B1: England 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B2: Iran 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B3: USA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B4: WAL/UKR/SCO* 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

* = Winner of European playoff (Wales vs. Ukraine/Scotland)

Group B match schedule

Date Match Time (ET) Stadium
Mon, Nov. 21 England vs. Iran 8 a.m. Khalifa Int'l Stadium
Mon, Nov. 21 USA vs. WAL/UKR/SCO 2 p.m. Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium
Fri, Nov. 25 WAL/UKR/SCO vs. Iran 5 a.m. Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium
Fri, Nov. 25 England vs. USA 2 p.m. Al Bayt Stadium
Tues, Nov. 29 WAL/UKR/SCO vs. England 2 p.m. Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium
Tues, Nov. 29 Iran vs. USA 2 p.m. Al Thumama Stadium

England

Having reached the semifinals of the 2018 World Cup and then the final of Euro 2020 — only to lose painfully on penalties to Italy — England will be determined to go one better in Qatar and finally win their first major trophy since 1966. 

Gareth Southgate has some very exciting young players at his disposal — not least the likes of Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham and Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka — combined with a handful of experienced stars, who now possess significant tournament experience. It’s now a question of whether they can get over the line.

Southgate will hope that Manchester United defender Harry Maguire can recapture his best form ahead of the tournament, while there will inevitably again be much scrutiny on Harry Kane, who will likely have the chance to become his country’s leading all-time goalscorer.

  • Current FIFA world ranking: No. 5 (March 2022)
  • Regional ranking: 3rd (UEFA)
  • World Cup titles: 1
  • World Cup appearances (last): 15 (Russia 2018)
  • How qualified: UEFA Group I winners 8W-0L-2D
  • Overall record (all competitions & friendlies):
    • 2022: 2W-0L-0D (Goals: 5 scored / 1 conceded)
    • 2021: 15W-0L-4D (Goals: 52 scored / 5 conceded)
  • Coach: Gareth Southgate (England) since September, 2016
  • Star players: Harry Kane (Tottenham / England), Declan Rice (West Ham / England), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City / England)

USA

The U.S. will be joining the party at World Cup 2022, following a 5-1 rout of Panama that proved decisive in the bid for a place on the plane to Qatar. This will be the 11th time that USMNT have featured on the global stage, with the best result coming via a semifinal run at the inaugural tournament in 1930. 

Without question, Gregg Berhalter’s side has enough young talent to have a chance of getting out of the group, and should excite supporters on the way, as they plot a potential deep World Cup run.

Chelsea’s Christian Pulisic will be expected to play the main role, while Gio Reyna will provide a creative spark between the midfield and attack. The U.S. will be a real threat going forward for teams to worry about, given their 21 goals scored in qualification.

  • Current FIFA world ranking: No. 15 (March 2022)
  • Regional ranking: 2nd (CONCACAF)
  • World Cup titles: —
  • World Cup appearances : 10 (Brazil 2014)
  • How qualified: (CONCACAF qualifying third place: 7W-3L-4D)
  • Overall record (all competitions & friendlies):
    • 2022: 3W-2L-1D (Goals: 9 scored / 5 conceded)
    • 2021: 17W-2L-3D (Goals: 45 scored / 12 conceded)
  • Coach: Gregg Berhalter (USA) since December, 2018
  • Star players: Christian Pulisic (Chelsea / England), Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund / Germany), Weston McKennie (Juventus / Italy)

Iran

Iran will appear at a third straight World Cup finals later this year, with the No.1 ranked national team in the AFC region capable of making a mark at the tournament. 

Dragan Skocic’s side qualified for the 2022 showpiece in emphatic style, winning eight, drawing one and losing one of the last qualification round fixtures. That was enough for Iran to finish top of their group, as they edged out South Korea, who also qualified as runners-up.

Porto forward Mehdi Taremi, Feyenoord creator Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Bayer Leverkusen threat Sardar Azmoun make Iran a strong attacking unit, with Skocic’s team netting 15 times in 10 final-round qualifying matches, having already scored 10 times in a single match against Cambodia in an earlier phase.

  • Current FIFA world ranking: No. 21 (March 2022)
  • Regional ranking: 1st (AFC)
  • World Cup titles:
  • World Cup appearances (last): 6 (Russia 2018)
  • How qualified: AFC Third Round Group A winners: 8W-L1-D1
  • Overall record (all competitions & friendlies):
    • 2022: 3W-1L-0D (Goals: 4 scored / 2 conceded)
    • 2021: 10W-0L-1D (Goals: 31 scored / 3 conceded)
  • Coach: Dragan Skocic (Croatia) since February, 2020
  • Star players: Sardar Azmoun (Bayer Leverkusen / Germany), Alireza Jahanbakhsh (Feyenoord / Netherlands), Mehdi Taremi (Porto / Portugal)

Wales / Scotland / Ukraine

Events away from the pitch mean that the outcome of who will qualify for the 2022 World Cup out of Wales, Scotland and Ukraine is yet to be determined. Wales are due to face the winners of Scotland vs. Ukraine in the last UEFA playoff final, however, the tie between Scotland and Ukraine has been indefinitely postponed due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. It has not yet been confirmed when that fixture will be settled. 

Wales will look to qualify for a first World Cup finals since 1958, when they reached the quarterfinals of the competition. Being a relatively small nation, they have punched well above their weight in recent years, even managing to get to the semifinals of Euro 2016 before losing to eventual champions Portugal. Gareth Bale and Daniel James will be crucial to any World Cup hopes.

  • Current FIFA world ranking: No. 18 (March 2022)
  • Regional ranking: 12th (UEFA)
  • World Cup appearances (last): 1 (Sweden 1958)
  • Overall record (all competitions & friendlies):
    • 2022: 1W-0L-1D (Goals: 3 scored / 2 conceded)
    • 2021: 6W-4L-6D (Goals: 18 scored / 18 conceded)
  • Coach: Robert Page (Wales) since April, 2021
  • Star players: Gareth Bale (Real Madrid / Spain), Daniel James (Leeds United / England), Kieffer Moore (Bournemouth / England)

Scotland’s ambitions of the World Cup have been revived once again, as they seek to be part of a first finals since 1998. Currently on an eight-match unbeaten run, the Tartan Army will believe that they can negotiate tough ties against Ukraine and then Wales to book their ticket to Qatar. Captain Andrew Robertson, of Liverpool, and Southampton forward Che Adams will be ones to watch should they indeed qualify.

  • Current FIFA world ranking: No. 39 (March 2022)
  • Regional ranking: 20th (UEFA)
  • World Cup appearances (last): 8 (France 1998)
  • Overall record (all competitions & friendlies):
    • 2022: 0W-0L-2D (Goals: 3 scored / 3 conceded)
    • 2021: 8W-3L-4D (Goals: 21 scored / 14 conceded)
  • Coach: Steve Clarke (Scotland) since May, 2019
  • Star players: Andrew Robertson (Liverpool / England), Che Adams (Southampton / England), Kieran Tierney (Arsenal / England)

Football has rightly taken a back seat in Ukraine due to the ongoing invasion by Russian forces. Nevertheless, the Eastern Europeans will hope that they still have the chance to compete for their place in Qatar. Premier League men Andriy Yarmolenko (West Ham) and Oleksandr Zinchenko (Manchester City) will be expected to lead their challenge.

  • Current FIFA world ranking: No. 27 (March 2022)
  • Regional ranking: 16th (UEFA)
  • World Cup appearances (last): 1 (Germany 2006)
  • Overall record (all competitions & friendlies):
    • 2022: 0W-0L-0D (Goals: 0 scored / 0 conceded)
    • 2021: 6W-3L-9D (Goals: 25 scored / 21 conceded)
  • Coach: Oleksandr Petrakov (Ukraine) since August, 2021
  • Star players: Andriy Yarmolenko (West Ham / England), Oleksandr Zinchenko (Manchester City / England), Roman Yaremchuk (Benfica / Portugal)

Kyle Bonn

Kyle Bonn Photo

Kyle Bonn, is a Syracuse University broadcast journalism graduate with over a decade of experience covering soccer globally. Kyle specializes in soccer tactics and betting, with a degree in data analytics. Kyle also does TV broadcasts for Wake Forest soccer, and has had previous stops with NBC Soccer and IMG College. When not covering the game, he has long enjoyed loyalty to the New York Giants, Yankees, and Fulham. Kyle enjoys playing racquetball and video games when not watching or covering sports.