World Cup 2026: FC Dallas Matchday 1 Roundup
The final two groups wrapped up their first matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Wednesday.
Let’s run down the list of all the FC Dallas players and alumni involved in their nation’s first game.
Chris Richards, Weston McKennie, Ricardo Pepi, and Alex Zendejas // USA
It only took until the second day of the tournament to get some FC Dallas alumni in action, with four of the USMNT’s 26 players spending time with FC Dallas. Richards and McKennie both started and went the full 90 minutes against Paraguay in the huge 4-1 win. Both players were excellent, with McKennie creating 3 chances and Richards completing all 84 of his passes. Ricardo Pepi came off the bench to replace Folarin Balogun to see out the last 20ish minutes, while Alex Zendejas was an unused substitute.
Richards and McKennie will almost certainly start Friday’s big match against Australia, while Pepi and Zendejas will likely look to see more time off the bench.
Deedson // Haiti
The first current FC Dallas player to see the field at the World Cup was the seldom-used Deedson, who got the start for Haiti in their dramatic opening game against Scotland. Deedson played 61 minutes, completed 3 dribbles, and won more than half of his duels. He didn’t end up on the scoresheet, but he was a positive attacking threat (up against Scotland’s Andy Robertson, by the way) and put in his defensive work. Frankly, he showed a lot of what we’d love to see more of here with Dallas, and if he could show that level in Frisco, he’d be due a lot more playing time than he’s seen.
Next up for Haiti is an extremely tough matchup against Brazil. With how much pressure they may be under, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Deedson used as a super sub in this one, but regardless, he’ll almost certainly feature at some point against Brazil.
Herman Johansson // Sweden
Next up was Herman Johansson’s Sweden, who, of course, are making Toyota Stadium their home base for their time in the World Cup. They started their World Cup with a massive 5-1 shellacking of Tunisia that was so brutal that Tunisia’s manager was fired shortly after the final whistle. Frankly, this was probably Johansson’s best chance at minutes, and he, unfortunately, did not see the field.
Sweden are up against The Netherlands next. Johansson is a big physical presence, so perhaps he’ll see some surprise minutes to combat the Dutch height, but it doesn’t seem likely that the big Swede will see much time for Sweden this summer.
Petar Musa // Croatia
This is the one we were all waiting for, though, right? It took until the final day of the first round of games, and Dallas fans were overjoyed to see Musa penciled in to start in Croatia’s blockbuster opener against England. That moment alone instantly became one of the biggest in club history. For his part in the game itself, Musa started well but struggled a bit to find the game. He may have been at least partly at fault for England’s second goal. Although Croatia was hanging around in the game, Musa was mostly relegated to pressuring defenders and midfielders (and Harry Kane dropping between the centerbacks) and battling for headers and second balls, which he did admirably.
But then, in stoppage time of the first half, Croatia chipped a ball over the England back line to find Croatian legend Ivan Perisic’s run in the box.
Instead of going for the goal, Perisic pulled off a very crafty backward header to find a wide-open Musa, who probably felt like the ball was never going to drop to him, before he smashed it past Jordan Pickford to level the score at 2-2 just before the second half. Musa was immediately overwhelmed with emotions, creating one of the more memorable images of the first round of games.
Unfortunately, Croatia couldn’t hold the result, conceding very early in the second half before Musa was subbed off in the 66th minute.
Despite that disappointment, it was an overwhelmingly positive day for FCD’s highest-paid player and surely the pinnacle of his career to date.
Next up for Croatia is a big game against Panama that is essentially a must-win. With his goal and general solid play, it would be surprising not to see Musa pick up another start next Tuesday in Toronto.
Let’s hope he can create another magical moment for himself, his nation, and his fans for club and country.
Who are you most excited to see on matchday 2 for their respective teams?
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