USMNT to face Panama in CONCACAF Nations League semifinals

11/20/2024 06:49 AM

The U.S. men’s national team’s road to a fourth-consecutive CONCACAF Nations League title will run through rivals Panama.

Panama and the USMNT will meet in the semifinal round of the 2024-25 Nations League on March 20, 2025. The winner of the semifinal tie will meet either Canada or Mexico in the Nations League Final three days later.

SoFi Stadium will host both the semifinal round and final.

Mauricio Pochettino’s squad finished second among the four quarterfinal winners after defeating Jamaica in both legs. The Americans claimed a 1-0 road victory over the Reggae Boyz last Thursday in Kingston before earning a 4-2 second leg win in St. Louis on Monday.

Ricardo Pepi and Christian Pulisic both scored two goals apiece while Tim Weah also found the back of the net.

Panama defeated Costa Rica 3-2 on aggregate after winning 1-0 in San Jose before playing out a 2-2 draw in Panama City.

It will mark the second recent head-to-head meeting between the USMNT and Panama in multiple competitions. Panama defeated the USMNT 2-1 in Copa America group stage play last summer, a match which saw Weah shown a first-half red card in the loss.

Thomas Christiansen’s squad also eliminated the USMNT in the semifinals of the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup before falling to Mexico 1-0 in the tournament final.

The USMNT defeated Panama 2-0 in October friendly play, which was the first match that Pochettino was on the sidelines for.

Anibal Godoy, Adalberto Carrasquilla, Fidel Escobar, and Jose Fajardo are among the leading players for Panama.

The USMNT will be seeking their first trophy of the Pochettino-era.