WHEN Folarin Balogun's mother was heavily pregnant, one of the officials at the airport in New York, refused permission for her to fly back to London. That was how Balogun was born in Brooklyn in the Big Apple and not England. When both the baby and the mother were declared fit for travel, they moved back. Even from a very young age, it was clear that Balogun had something about him.
When he was progressing through the ranks at Arsenal as a youth prospect, he broke several age-group goal-scoring records. He was touted to have a big career ahead of him even when he was just a child. He did feature for the London giants as a teen but Arsenal had several older, experienced strikers ahead of him. The club itself was going through an identity crisis so they decided to move on from one of their own rather quickly. First, he went on loan to Stade de Reims in 2022. There, he excelled as he became the top-scoring Under-21 forward across Europe's top-five leagues. Monaco, who feature in the same league as Reims, acted and signed him from Arsenal on a deal worth north of $35mn.
In the city of stars and in front of some of the biggest (Tom Cruise, Bradley Cooper and Leonardo DiCaprio to name just three), Balogun was central to the USMNT's best-ever 45 minute period in their 96-year World Cup history.
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When a 16-year-old Balogun started featuring in England's national set-up (he played for the country's U17 set-up in 2018), it was assumed that he would commit to England. His parents were settled in London. He had grown up in London. He was wearing the colours of one of England's biggest clubs. But the pathway in front of him wasn't too clear even if the English FA were interested in him.
So, even as the teen made it all the way to the country's U21 set-up, the US never gave hope; at one point, he was simultaneously playing for age-group sides of both countries. The turning point came in 2023 when US federation officials had meetings with him. It also helped that US fans, who saw him at a basketball game, made their feelings clear. That was the catalyst.
"It was a long process," he had told reporters after FIFA had approved his switch to represent the US in senior football. "I was out in Orlando just doing some training (in the break before the start of the 2024 season) and then the (US) squad was also in Orlando as well at camp, and the manager reached out to me, he said that it'd be good for me to come in and have some food and sit down and talk with him. I was with my agent as well, so the timing was good. We spoke about a lot of things and he just explained the vision for US Soccer. In the end, we had a discussion, I went back home, I still had some time to obviously think and take in what he was saying and then I came to my conclusion."
At the World Cup in 2022, he was also drawn by the energy and vigour the squad — the average age made them the second youngest roster in Qatar — had displayed (what was unspoken was also important; while England had Harry Kane, a bonafide great, US didn't have anyone remotely as good at centre forward).
Mauricio Pochettino has a way with squad profiles similar to that of the US team. He's a coach who likes players who are comfortable pressing. Under him, there can be no passengers because that is the energy he demands. That was the exact template he had when he was at Tottenham and they were flying.
US officials had wanted Pochettino to mould the team in his own image but there was a catch. He wouldn't come cheap and the federation couldn't possibly afford him on his terms. So they made a pitch to several billionaires, hedge-fund CEOs. "What the US did have, though, was ambition," the Athletic reported on Saturday. "Plus billionaires and corporations willing to fund it." The gap was met by a few of them to ensure they got Pochettino on board.
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The US have an unparalleled sporting culture. But that culture has come with a few caveats; one of them being men's football. The 2026 World Cup won't change that but their performance against Paraguay will act as a tool in showing kids and young parents the possibilities and the opportunities.
As Balogun bulged the net for the team's second goal in the first half, chants of 'USA USA USA' rained from the terraces of the SoFi Stadium, the world's most expensive arena in terms of cost. It wasn't built for football but on this night of nights, it represented a partisan football stadium at its absolute peak. The place was rocking and the noise bouncing. The US may have won the bid nine years ago but this was the day when they finally embraced the World Cup.
Their attacking patterns were gorgeous and Christian Pulisic, the poster boy of this generation, ran rings before his untimely substitution. Paraguay, expected to be obdurate opponents, found wave after attacking wave hot to handle and crumbled. On the evidence of this performance, they will believe that the sky is the limit.
Friday's result: USA 4 (Bobadilla 7' (OG), Balogun 31', 45+5', Reyna 90+8') Paraguay 1 (Mauricio 73').
