USA and Guatemala meet in Gold Cup Semifinals | OneFootball

MIAMI — The 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup Semifinals pits the United States and Guatemala on Wednesday at Energizer Park in St. Louis, Missouri, USA.

The United States has advanced to the Semifinals of the tournament in all but one edition, making its 17th appearance overall and 13th consecutive. Guatemala returns to the Semifinals for the second time, last reaching the stage in the 1996 edition.

USA seeks return to Gold Cup mountaintop

The U.S. came back to draw 2-2 against Costa Rica, winning 4-3 on penalties, to win in the Quarterfinals. Diego Luna and Max Arfsten struck the goals to equalize on each occasion, with Arfsten also providing the assist on Luna’s goal.

Malik Tillman provided the assist on the second match-tying goal. Tillman leads the current squad with three goals in the 2025 edition.

Matt Freese made three saves in the penalty shoot-out before Damion Downs converted the winning penalty.

The result kept the USA undefeated after going 3-0-0 in the Group Stage. The seven-time winners will seek to reach the Final for the 13th occasion and first under current manager Mauricio Pochettino.

Guatemala with eyes on its first Final

Guatemala earned a 1-1 draw against Canada, prevailing 6-5 on penalties, to advance past the Quarterfinals for the first time since the 1996 edition. Rubio Rubin scored in the second half to provide the match-tying goal and leads the team with two goals in the current edition.

Oscar Santis was also exceptional with four shots, two on target, and the match-tying assist, on top of the opening conversion for his team in the shoot-out, to be named to the Quarterfinals Best XI.

Los Chapines improved to two unbeaten after going 2-0-1 in the Group Stage. The Central American nation will seek to advance to the championship match for the first time ever under the tutelage of manager Luis Fernando Tena.

UNITED STATES vs GUATEMALA

Head-to-Head Record

The United States and Guatemala have faced each other 27 times in their history.The U.S. holds the edge with 16 wins, 5 losses, and 6 draws, scoring 47 goals and conceding 19.

Guatemala has only managed one victory in the last 23 meetings, during which the U.S. recorded 16 wins.

Largest Margin of Victory in the Series

The matches with the largest winning margins between both teams:

·       USA 6-0 GUA – July 5, 2013, international friendly in San Diego, CA

·       USA 4-0 GUA – February 19, 2006, international friendly in Frisco, TX

·       USA 4-0 GUA – July 3, 2015, international friendly in Nashville, TN

·       USA 4-0 GUA – 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers (Concacaf) in Columbus, OH

·       GUA 4-0 USA – October 14, 1984, international friendly in Guatemala City

Guatemala’s Last Win – 9 Years Ago

Guatemala’s most recent victory came on March 25, 2016, in a Concacaf qualifier for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.At the Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores in Guatemala City, Rafael Morales and Carlos “Pescadito” Ruiz scored the goals in a 2-0 win.

Gold Cup – First-Ever Semifinal Meeting

The United States and Guatemala have faced off three times in the Gold Cup, all during the group stage or third-place match.The U.S. won all three encounters without conceding a goal.

Only Direct Elimination Match – 1996

The only previous knockout-stage clash came in the third-place match of the 1996 Gold Cup, played on January 21 at the Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles.The United States earned a 3-0 victory with goals from Eric Wynalda, Jeff Agoos, and Jovan Kirovski.

United States in Gold Cup Semifinals

This will be the 17th Gold Cup semifinal for the United States.Record: P-16 | W-11 | D-2 | L-3 | GF-23 | GA-10Top scorers in semifinals:

·       Landon Donovan (3 goals)

·       Christian Pulisic (2 goals)

·       Clint Dempsey (2 goals)

Semifinal appearances (16):1991, 1993, 1996, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023

Eliminations (4):

·       1996: 0-1 vs Brazil (own goal by Marcelo Balboa)

·       2003: 1-2 vs Brazil (goals: Kaká, Diego Ribas / Carlos Bocanegra)

·       2015: 1-2 vs Jamaica (Michael Bradley / Darren Mattocks, Giles Barnes)

·       2023: 1-1 vs Panama (Jesús Ferreira / Iván Anderson), lost 4-5 on penalties

Qualified to the Final (12 times):1991 vs Mexico (2-0)1993 vs Costa Rica (1-0)1998 vs Brazil (1-0)2002 vs Canada (0-0, 4-2 on penalties)2005 vs Honduras (2-1)2007 vs Canada (2-1)2009 vs Honduras (2-0)2011 vs Panama (1-0)2013 vs Honduras (3-1)2017 vs Costa Rica (2-0)2019 vs Jamaica (3-1)2021 vs Qatar (1-0)

Guatemala Returns to the Semifinals After 29 Years

Guatemala will play in the Gold Cup semifinals for the second time in its history.The last time was in 1996, when they lost 0-1 to Mexico on a goal scored by Cuauhtémoc Blanco.