The United States have a difficult road ahead if they wish to reach deep into the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup, with Group A runners-up Costa Rica first on the slate.
To lift the trophy this summer, the USMNT will likely have to beat the three best sides in their confederation. Victory against the 54th-ranked Ticos in Sunday's quarterfinal from Minnesota could potentially be followed by a semifinal meeting with Canada followed by a potential final against Mexico.
While that sounds daunting for a U.S. squad comprised largely of fringe national team players, it also represents a great opportunity for Mauricio Pochettino's side to prove its value to the federation long-term and gain valuable preparation for next summer's World Cup on home soil.
Despite a pair of embarrassing defeats in the pre-tournament friendlies against European opposition, the United States emerged from the group stage as one of just two teams in the field to win all three of their matches alongside Group C winners Panama.
Costa Rica, meanwhile, finished second in their four-team stack, level on points with winners Mexico and only behind by a slim one-goal differential margin. They had a knack for late-game heroics, needing last-gasp winners against both Suriname (103rd minute) and Dominican Republic (85th minute) before a nervy 0-0 draw with Mexico to close it out.
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USA vs. Costa Rica starting lineups, team news
Mauricio Pochettino has a few decisions to make for his lineup moving into the Gold Cup knockout stage. The most high-profile question comes at goalkeeper, where he must decide whether to stick with Matt Freese after his glaring error against Haiti, or go back to Matt Turner, who has also not been convincing in recent appearances.
Pochettino could sit Tyler Adams from the start, given his early yellow card against Haiti puts him at risk of an accumulation suspension with another. Given yellows are wiped after the quarterfinals, avoiding the risk of a second in this match could be important.
Johnny Cardoso has picked up an ankle injury and does not make the squad, while Haji Wright's Gold Cup is over after an Achilles injury.
The U.S. are without injured regulars Sergino Dest, Antonee Robinson, Ricardo Pepi, and Folarin Balogun for this tournament, while Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, and Gio Reyna are unavailable as they are participating in the Club World Cup. Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah requested to have the summer off and are not with the side.
USA starting XI (4-3-3, right to left): Freese (GK) — Freeman, Richards, Ream, Arfsten — Berhalter, Adams, de la Torre — Tillman, Agyemang, Luna.
USA subs: Turner (GK), Tolkin, M. Robinson, Harriel, McKenzie, Zimmerman, McGlynn, P. Aaronson, B. Aaronson, Sullivan, Downs, White.
Injured: Cardoso (ankle), Wright (Achilles), Pepi (knee), Steffen (knee), Dest (fitness/knee), A. Robinson (knee), Balogun (ankle).
Suspended: None.
On a yellow card: Adams, Luna, Berhalter.
Full USA squad
Goalkeepers: Chris Brady, Matt Freese, Matt Turner.
Defenders: Max Arfsten, Alex Freeman, Nathan Harriel, Mark McKenzie, Tim Ream, Chris Richards, Miles Robinson, John Tolkin, Walker Zimmerman.
Midfielders: Brenden Aaronson, Paxten Aaronson, Tyler Adams, Sebastian Berhalter, Johnny Cardoso, Luca de la Torre, Diego Luna, Jack McGlynn, Quinn Sullivan, Malik Tillman.
Forwards: Patrick Agyemang, Damion Downs, Brian White, Haji Wright.
MORE: Full schedule, results, highlights, recaps for all USMNT games in 2025
Costa Rica captain Keylor Navas is still going strong at 38 years old, now with Newell's Old Boys in Argentina and readying for his 118th international cap.
His squad is depleted somewhat as multiple players have triggered yellow card suspensions with two bookings across the group stage. Defender Joseph Mora and the side's top Gold Cup scorer Manfred Ugalde are the two who will sit out this match, while six other players would see themselves out of a potential semifinal with another booking across the coming 90 minutes.
Head coach Miguel Herrera made the decision to leave cap centurion Joel Campbell off his Gold Cup roster, as the 32-year-old has not been a consistent performer for Costa Rican giants Alajuelense since returning in January from a loan spell in Brazil.
Costa Rica starting XI (5-3-2, right to left): Lezcano (GK), Sequeira (GK), van der Putten, Villalobos, Myrie, Faerron, Brenes, C. Nunez, Rojas, Zamora.
Injured: Aguilera (undisclosed), Vargas (muscle).
Suspended: Mora (yellow cards), Ugalde (yellow cards).
On a yellow card: Galo, C. Mora, Calvo, Alcocer, Vargas, Martinez.
Full Costa Rica squad
Goalkeepers: Alexandre Lezcano, Keylor Navas, Patrick Sequeira.
Defenders: Francisco Calvo, Fernan Faerron, Alexis Gamboa, Ariel Lassiter, Jeyland Mitchell, Joseph Mora, Kenay Myrie, Santiago van der Putten, Juan Pablo Vargas, Guillermo Villalobos.
Midfielders: Brandon Aguilera, Alejandro Bran, Jefferson Brenes, Orlando Galo, Carlos Mora, Cristopher Nunez.
Forwards: Josimar Alcocer, Warren Madrigal, Alonso Martinez, Andy Rojas, Manfred Ugalde, Kenneth Vargas, Alvaro Zamora.
USA vs. Costa Rica score prediction
This will be an overtly physical match, as Costa Rica proved throughout the group stage they are not shy from drawing the referee's ire. The U.S. will have to be ready for a dogfight, but they should be up to the task.
While this squad is hardly the more talented group of regulars at Mauricio Pochettino's disposal, they have proved they can compete with CONCACAF opposition and should manage to have the moxie to emerge with a semifinal spot, even if it requires a late winner or penalty shootout.
One goal may be enough to come away with the goods.
Prediction: USA 1-0 Costa Rica
How to watch USA vs. Costa Rica: Live stream, TV channel
The entirety of the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup will be broadcast by Fox Sports, with this USMNT knockout stage match given network priority.
While many Gold Cup matches can be found on FS1, this game will be available to watch in the United States on FOX network channel. All games across the Fox family of channels will be available to stream on Fubo, which is offering a free trial for new users.
In Canada, this match will be televised on OneSoccer as well as TSN3 and TSN5, all of which can be found streaming on Fubo Canada.