The South American Team Leads the Series With a 3-4-2 (WDL) Record
The soccer rivalry between the United States and Uruguay spans a century, featuring nine meetings that tell the story of American soccer's evolution against one of South América's most decorated teams. Their first encounter took place during the 1924 Olympics Round of 16 in Paris, where Uruguay defeated the Americans 3-0 en route to claiming the tournament title.
The two nations wouldn't meet again for 62 years, finally reconvening at the 1986 Miami Cup in a 1-1 draw featuring Bruce Murray's goal for the U.S. The series continued sporadically through the 1990s. Peter Vermes scored the winner in a 1-0 American victory in 1991, while Uruguay responded with a 1-0 Copa América group stage win in 1993. A 1995 friendly ended 2-2 after being abandoned in the 84th minute due to severe rain, with John Kerr and Earnie Stewart finding the net for the U.S.
The Americans' most memorable victory came on May 12, 2002, just before the World Cup, when Tony Sanneh and DaMarcus Beasley scored in a 2-1 triumph. More recent meetings have been tighter affairs: Jordan Morris earned a 1-1 draw in 2019, followed by a scoreless stalemate in 2022.
The most painful encounter occurred on July 1, 2024, at the Copa América in Kansas City. Uruguay's Mathías Olivera scored in the 66th minute—a goal that stood after a lengthy VAR review despite American protests about offside. The 1-0 defeat, combined with Panama's simultaneous victory over Bolivia, eliminated the U.S. from the group stage of a tournament hosted on home soil for the first time in program history.
That loss also cost Gregg Berhalter his job and marked a low point for American soccer. The U.S., playing without suspended winger Tim Weah and losing striker Folarin Balogun to injury, struggled to create chances against Uruguay's organized defense. The embarrassing exit raised serious questions about the program's readiness for the 2026 World Cup.
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