Heading into the 1994 FIFA World Cup USA™, there was huge excitement about the global showpiece being staged on American soil for the first time in the tournament's history. There was, however, a sense of trepidation about how well the Stars and Stripes would fare after losing all three matches four years earlier at Italy 1990.
The last time had registered a point at the World Cup was as far back as their historic victory against England at Brazil 1950. That unwanted run looked set to continue in 1994 when Georges Bregy gave Switzerland the lead in the Americans' opening match at the Silverdome in Detroit, Michigan.
Eric Wynalda had other ideas, however. After John Harkes was fouled 30 yards from goal just before half-time, Wynalda struck a wondrous curling free-kick into the top corner to send the fans — both in the stadium and watching at home and bars around the country — into raptures.
That singular goal galvanized a nation and breathed life into the USA's campaign, giving them the confidence to go on and defeat Colombia and, ultimately, seal a place in the knockout stages.
The stage now is set for one of to follow in Wynalda's footsteps against Paraguay at Los Angeles Stadium on Friday.
Ahead of USA's much-anticipated opener, FIFA spoke to Wynalda and fellow USA 1994 legend Marcelo Balboa about the team's long-awaited reunion and importance of setting an early tone at a home World Cup.
Eric Wynalda: That was wonderful. It had come to the point where we realized it had been 30 years since we had been in the same room together, all of us, so that was quite wonderful. It was a chance to talk to the guys and wish them well and let them know that we had their back. It was a great trip.
Marcelo Balboa: It was the first time we had more than seven or eight players together [since 1994] and it was so nice as some of these guys you don't get to catch up with all the time, you don't run into them. So to see some of the guys you haven't seen in 20-something years was just awesome.
Wynalda: We're trying to find the biggest crowd we can play in front of now... back then we were trying to avoid that at all costs! I think there was a growing belief going into the World Cup that maybe we wouldn't be able to handle that. When we played Mexico in the last game before the World Cup in the Rose Bowl and we beat them, I think it changed the direction of a lot of people's thought processes, which was, 'If they can handle that then they can handle anything.' Ninety per cent of the fans at the game were Mexican and were booing us and we came out of there unscathed.
This scenario is very different because these guys have played in big stadiums and they play for big clubs now. They are not in awe of the occasion. They are looking forward to it. We didn't know what to expect... we didn't know how our country would respond to us and we didn't know how we were going to play. When we hit the field, we gave a really good representation of what we're all about and still to this day we're really proud of that.
Balboa: You can't compare. In 1992, we all got together and US Soccer invested in full-time contracts for us to train together for two years. We had seven guys on the field against Colombia that did not have a club team for a year and a half. Now to transition 30 years later, you have guys playing at Juventus, AC Milan and all over the world. We feel good about the foundation we laid in 1994 in introducing the World Cup to the United States.
Wynalda: Paraguay have incurred some injuries so they will have change their game-plan a little bit. Our team is pretty much set. I think we know what we want to do and how we want to do it. We also have the good fortune of playing against Paraguay recently. There are a lot of positives and a lot less uncertainty for us. We're in a good spot.
Balboa: We expect it to be full of American screaming and yelling, pushing this team forward. The expectation is for us to win as I'm sure it is for the Paraguayans. We're expected to win the group.
Wynalda: We joke about it a lot but for most fans who were not necessarily playing attention to soccer on a regular basis until that actual game, it was a 'We don't suck' moment! That people would say to each other, 'We don't suck... these guys are pretty good.' That goal was nothing short of spectacular and it did give us a huge boost of confidence going into the second game against Colombia. For me, a lot of people attribute their inclusion in the soccer industry through that game and that goal. That was their moment when people fell in love with the team or the game and really thought it was something that they could get behind.
Balboa: When we walked into the World Cup in 1994, people were waiting anxiously to see what the USA had because they were the host country and had never hosted it [before]. We didn't do well in 1990 and everyone's eyes were on us to see what this American team could do. Going down 1-0 is a tough hill to climb sometimes and when Wynalda stepped up from that distance, we knew he was going to shoot but we were going after a rebound. Thank god there was no rebound! It was probably the best free-kick I've seen him hit and it was the right time for him to hit it. That point built the confidence up to the most important game in USA history and that's beating Colombia with the players we had compared to the players Colombia had.
Wynalda: I hope it's the first goal of the game and it's not to tie it up or even in the catch-up process. I hope they score the first goal and can build on from there. I think it's imperative that USA score early because the longer they don't, it will wear on them and we were fortunate that we got our first goal in the first half of our first game... and there were a lot of people who didn't believe that that would even happen. That's the moment of contagiousness we need. We need the good vibes to start and push this rock up the hill and eventually get to a point where we're sailing, not rolling anymore.
Balboa: I think that place is going to go crazy. [Los Angeles Stadium] is going to be loud, the fans are going to be cheering across the country at bars and fan fests. More than likely people will throw their beer in the air and celebrate that first goal. It's always tough scoring that first goal and hopefully many more will come.
Sources: FIFA Official
