INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Folarin Balogun could have played soccer for any one of three countries.
He chose the United States, and it paid off with a splashy World Cup debut on home soil.
The 24-year-old striker scored two goals as the Americans opened with a 4-1 victory over Paraguay on Friday night in front of a rabid and star-studded red, white and blue-clad sold-out crowd of 70,492 at SoFi Stadium, the home of the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers and Rams.
“I visualized my debut in the World Cup scoring, but the reality did surpass that,” Balogun said. “A very dreamy night.”
With retired England captain David Beckham looking on, Balogun became the first U.S. player to score multiple goals in a World Cup game since 1930. Back then, Bert Patenaude scored all of the goals as the U.S. beat Paraguay 3-0, the first hat trick in World Cup history.