LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The 2026 FIFA World Cup is officially underway, and Southern California gets to see a piece of the action during the supersized tournament.
The U.S. will host 78 matches, eight of which will take place at Inglewood's SoFi Stadium. The venue will be known as Los Angeles Stadium for the duration of the tournament.
We're bringing you live updates and everything you need to know.
If you don't have the opportunity to attend one of the World Cup matches at SoFi Stadium, there are still plenty of ways to take part.
We've compiled a list of Southern California watch parties, official fan festivals and things to know before the tournament gets underway.
The United States has punched its ticket to the knockout round of the 2026 World Cup after beating Australia 2-0 in front of a raucous crowd in Seattle on Friday.
This is the first time since 1930 that the US has won back-to-back matches at the World Cup.
U.S. star Christian Pulisic will miss Friday's World Cup match against Australia because of a calf injury and was replaced in the starting lineup by Ricardo Pepi.
United States coach Mauricio Pochettino made the announcement during an interview with Fox about 90 minutes before the kickoff at Lumen Field in Seattle.
The move is a setback for a U.S. team that defeated Paraguay 4-1 in its opener on June 12 and with a win would clinch advancement to the round of 32.
Pulisic left the game at halftime after helping create the opening goal by splitting a pair of defenders before passing to Weston McKennie, then setting up Folarin Balogun for the second goal.
Pochettino said the 27-year-old attacker was kicked in the back of his left calf during a training session ahead of the game and felt tightness during the match.
Pulisic trained on his own in the leadup to the game against Australia.
Pulisic has 33 goals in 87 international appearances.
Pepi was the only addition to the U.S. starting lineup.
With the Americans coming off a 4-1 victory over Paraguay in their World Cup opener in Southern California, U.S. midfielder Cristian Roldan is expecting a charged atmosphere on Friday when the Americans face Australia at the home of the NFL's Seattle Seahawks.
"I fully expect this crowd to be extremely loud. And, they're going to energize our group," Roldan said. "This is one of the loudest stadiums in the world when you think about Seahawks games or Sounders games.
"Just seeing the Belgium game against Egypt and how the atmosphere was there, I fully expect the city of Seattle to come out and show out, and I think the guys are going to feel that type of energy."
The Americans want to reward their supporters and justify the wave of momentum that is building around the team.
"What excites me is that the entire world, the entire nation is behind us," Roldan said. "I think that they enjoyed watching us play, and at the end of the day what we want to do is inspire and motivate the next generation. ... We have to build off it, and that's the truth. We can't just talk about it: We have to show out against Australia."
A massive World Cup celebration in Koreatown ended with fights, shots fired and a citywide tactical alert. A UPS truck was even overtaken.
Thousands of people packed watch parties for Mexico's 1-0 win over South Korea, but as the night went on, police say things got out of control.
A man was found shot in the leg after police responded to a shots-fired call at a World Cup watch party in Koreatown.
The Los Angeles Police Department received a call around 6:40 p.m. of someone shooting a gun in the air in the 800 block of Irolo Street.
When officers arrived, they found a man shot in the leg. He was taken to a hospital in unknown condition.
One person was taken into custody, according to police.
Further details weren't immediately released, and no other injuries were reported.
Thousands of people spilled onto Olympic Boulevard and bars filled to capacity. Police eventually shot down part of the street and formed a skirmish line to control the crowd.
By 9 p.m., about an hour after the match ended, LAPD had issued a citywide tactical alert, which was canceled at about 10:30 p.m.
Mexico beat South Korea 1-0 in their World Cup second group stage match.
A goal from Luis Romo in the 50th minute of the game put Mexico in the knockout stage of the tournament. Mexico is the first country to reach the knockouts.
A terrible mistake by Kim Seung-gyu, who tried to claim the ball in his box but got stuck on Lee Gi-hyuk. The ball fell right to Romo, who poked it into the back of the net and gave Mexico the lead.
Son Heung-min put in a shift in the opening 45 minutes, but he couldn't find a way through Edson Álvarez and Mexico's defense in the opening 45 minutes.
Mexico's goalkeeper Raúl Rangel stopped a point-blank header and a shot in the immediate aftermath from South Korea.
Mexico's first two games in the knockouts will take place in Mexico City. A major advantage for El Tri as they look to go on a run.
ESPN contributed to this report.
