Christian Pulisic, 27, appeared for the United States in their final group match at the 2026 World Cup on June 25 after recovering from a calf injury sustained in training days before the June 12 game against Paraguay [1, 2, 3]. He was substituted at halftime against Paraguay after the injury worsened during the first half and missed the June 16 win over Australia due to the calf discomfort [1, 4, 2, 3].
After more than a week of individual rehabilitation, Pulisic resumed full team training on June 22, appearing without a calf sleeve and in cleats [1, 2, 3]. He said on June 23, “I'm feeling good. I joined with the team in the last few days, so I'm feeling good, feeling positive, and hopefully I'll be able to play a part tomorrow” [1]. Later he added, “Yeah, I would say so. I would say definitely yesterday I felt very close, and I would say 100%” [5].
Coach and medical staff planned to manage his playing time in the June 25 match against Turkey, as Pulisic was not expected to play the full 90 minutes [3, 5]. The USA fielded nine changes to their starting lineup from the Australia game, with Pulisic on the bench [6, 7]. Turkey also made seven lineup changes from their previous match, but had already been eliminated from tournament progression [6, 7].
Pulisic entered the match in the 58th minute with the score tied 2-2 and provided an energetic performance in the USA’s eventual 3-2 defeat [8, 9]. Midfielder Weston McKennie praised Pulisic, saying, “He’s a special player ... he can come in and be that player to create something out of thin air. It was good to see him back on the pitch and hopefully see him again in San Francisco” [8].
The United States secured first place in Group D following earlier wins over Paraguay and Australia [1, 6, 7]. Their next match is the Round of 32 knockout against Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 1 in Santa Clara, California [8, 9].
