Christian Pulisic was taken off at the start of the second half of the United States' World Cup opener against Paraguay on Friday, June 12, when Sebastian Berhalter came on as his replacement at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.
The substitution came with the U.S. leading 3-0. The FOX broadcast said Pulisic motioned to his family that he was OK, and there was no obvious injury visible before the break; still, Pulisic did not return to the pitch. He remained on the bench by the end of the match.
Pulisic had been involved in the opening sequence of the scoring, slipping a pass to Weston McKennie that ultimately produced an own goal off Paraguay. The forward, who plays his club soccer for AC Milan in Italy, left the field while the U.S. carried a comfortable lead and Berhalter took his place for the second half.
For context, Pulisic is a senior figure for the USMNT: he made his national-team debut as a 17-year-old in 2016, scored at the 2022 World Cup and ranks fourth in U.S. history with 20 assists. This match was the United States' first game of the 2026 World Cup, and any midgame removal of a regular starter carries immediate tournament implications.
The clearly awkward detail is that broadcast coverage registered no clear injury before halftime even as the player was replaced at the break. That gap — no visible problem, then a substitution — leaves open whether the move was precautionary, tactical, or prompted by something unseen in the locker room.
U.S. Soccer said manager Mauricio Pochettino would address Pulisic's substitution after the match; that postgame briefing is now the primary route to resolving the uncertainty. Pulisic finishing the match on the bench and motioning to family that he was OK are small signals, but they do not substitute for a medical update or a manager’s explanation about selection and fitness.
What comes next is straightforward: Pochettino’s comments after the final whistle should clarify whether the move was a preplanned tactical change, a precaution tied to a minor concern, or the start of a more lasting absence. The timing matters — this was the U.S. opener — and the answer will influence squad choices for the next group-stage fixtures.
