What was long unthinkable for US national team fans became stunning, devastating reality on Tuesday night, as the United States were eliminated from 2018 World Cup qualifying thanks to the confluence of three results on the final day of the CONCACAF Hexagonal round.
The USMNT’s 2-1 loss at Trinidad & Tobago left them at the mercy of results elsewhere. And when both Panama and Honduras won their home games vs. Costa Rica and Mexico, respectively, it saw the two Central American nations leapfrog the US into third and fourth place in the Hex standings, while the US were left in fifth place, forced to watch Russia 2018 from home.
It marks the first time the US have failed to qualify for the World Cup since 1986.
