Tony Meola
Former United States goalkeeper speaking to BBC Persian

We were making it up on the fly it seemed like. Now we are so much more established. We have players playing all round the world, we have an incredible league and have facilities the world is using right now. Those were a pipe dream a few years ago now we are a football nation.

There were probably no expectations in 1994, but there are expectations with this group, which changes the game.

I don't think we get to where we now without the Major League Soccer. We have the best training facilities in the world. If you cant get better with what we have here, you are never going to get better. Things we just dreamed about years ago.

Ellen White
Former England striker on BBC One

Christian Pulisic is carrying the whole countries hopes and I think if they are able to get him ticking, him on the ball, if he feels confident.

If you can get him crossing the ball, can he get an assist? He hadn't scored for a couple of years but then scored in a friendly recently.

He looks like he is starting to build a bit of momentum. He knows what it's like in a World Cup and he knows how to score goals.

National anthem time.

Sue Smith
Former Leeds and England forward on BBC Radio 5 Live

It is amazing. They will be favourites for this match and can cope with any side. But Paraguay will be a tough test and the pressure is on the United States.

Ashley Williams
Former Wales defender on BBC One

If things click with Mauricio Pochettino and with a strong starting 11, I think United States can go far in this tournament on home. They will be looking at this group and thinking they should top it.

In countries like Brazil, France or England, you play football straightaway when you are a kid and you want to win every Saturday. But in the US, football looks like a hobby. It's an extra thing after you've played basketball or other sports.

That's why they have paid him that money - to come in and change the culture. He has looked at the women's team and said we need to replicate that.

Here come the teams. We're almost there. Thanks for staying up with us.

Gary Rose
BBC Sport at Los Angeles Stadium

There can be no surprises that the USA has put on a show for their opening ceremony. An Olympic-style competing countries flag ceremony, Katy Perry, various celebs in attendance.

Will this put additional pressure on the home team? The hopes and expectations are certainly high.

Big spectacle on the pitch now. Both nations' flags are out. The fans inside the ground are chanting U-S-A.

Tom McCoy
BBC Sport journalist

All of Paraguay’s group games kick off in the early hours of the morning in the UK and anyone tuning in should probably keep a caffeinated drink handy.

La Albirroja netted just 0.78 goals per game in qualifying, the joint-lowest average of any side to reach the finals. They also failed to score in half of their 18 matches.

It was rarely pretty but, after missing three World Cups, few fans cared. Paraguay have long embraced an underdog mentality and pride themselves on their 'garra guarani' - a fierce fighting spirit.

Head coach Gustavo Alfaro urged them to rediscover that "DNA" when he took charge two years ago. So far, his players have delivered.

Jeff Carlisle
ESPN Writer on BBC Radio 5 Live

I remember when the draw came out in December and amongst my colleagues there seemed to be a 'this is a very doable draw'.

Paraguay matches up pretty well to the US. They're very tough defensively and that was their calling card during the World Cup qualifying, and they're very adaptive on the counter-attack and that's an area the US have not looked strong.

I think this is a tricky encounter and I think the US is going to have to be on top of their game.

One benefit for the Americans, is they played Paraguay in a friendly last November, and they have a good sense of what the team is about. So, I think they know what they're getting into. It is a matter of executing it on the day.

Tom McCoy
BBC Sport journalist

Paraguay missed out on the World Cup in 2014, 2018 and 2022 and their hopes of reaching this tournament looked bleak after they scored just once in their opening six qualifiers. But Gustavo Alfaro's appointment as head coach in 2024 galvanised them and they lost just one of their remaining 12 matches.

Their style is unashamedly pragmatic – defend deep and counter-attack. They averaged 37% possession in qualifying, the lowest figure in South America, and hit a higher proportion of passes long than any of their continental rivals.

Paraguay also recorded the highest ‘direct speed’ – a measure of how quickly the ball moves towards the opposition goal-line – of any Conmebol side, while their average number of passes per possession sequence was the lowest.

It was not necessarily long-ball football, but the emphasis was certainly on playing vertically rather than slow, intricate build-up.

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Katie Perry is singing now. I wonder if they'll make her take a penalty...

Gary Rose
BBC Sport at Los Angeles Stadium

Image source, BBC Sport

There’s always a bit of glitz and glamour to be found in Los Angeles and a few hours before kick-off today England legend David Beckham received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Beckham has a long association with LA, a city he called his home during his speech today, after playing for LA Galaxy from 2007-2012.

His friend and actor Tom Cruise was there to make a speech as well, describing Beckham’s life story as like a Hollywood movie.

Image source, BBC Sport

Tom McCoy
BBC Sport journalist

The USA hired former Tottenham, Paris St-Germain and Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino as their head coach in the wake of a disappointing group-stage exit at the 2024 Copa America, which they hosted.

He is reportedly the highest-paid coach in the team’s history, with the US Soccer Federation able to meet his salary thanks to a “significant” donation from billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin.

Pochettino’s contract expires after this tournament, so what would constitute a successful return on that investment? At the very least, the US need to improve on their patchy recent World Cup record.

Although the Americans reached the semi-finals at the inaugural tournament in 1930, beating Paraguay along the way, victories have been hard to come by since then. In the subsequent 96 years they have won more than one game at a World Cup only once, beating Portugal and Mexico in 2002 before losing to Germany in the quarter-finals.

Ashley Williams
Former Wales defender on BBC One

There is always pressure when you are the host country.

But United States have brought in head coach Mauricio Pochettino with this tournament in mind after failing to deliver in past World Cups. They have also got a set of players you expect to go far in this tournament. So the expectation will be massive.

Back to the pitch and there's a mini flag parade which has been started by Ted Lasso star Jason Sudeikis.

Tom McCoy
BBC Sport journalist

This will be the first of 78 World Cup matches to be played in the USA, which will host three-quarters of this summer’s games.

Football has grown steadily in popularity since the country last staged the tournament in 1994. A study commissioned by The Economist last year found that football ranked third when Americans were asked to name their favourite sport, marginally ahead of more traditional pursuits such as baseball and ice hockey.

Even so, with only 10% of respondents preferring ‘the beautiful game’, it still trails well behind basketball on 17% and American football on 36%.

Closing that gap won’t happen overnight but success for US national team over the next few weeks could certainly help.

Thirty-two years. If I've done my maths right that was the last time a Men's World Cup match was played in the United States...