World Cup 2026 live updates: US locks up Group D top seed; knockout game set in Santa Clara

Tens of thousands of soccer fans packed downtown San Jose this week as World Cup watch parties at San Pedro Square drew massive crowds for both Mexico and the United States.

Tens of thousands of soccer fans packed downtown San Jose this week as World Cup watch parties at San Pedro Square drew massive crowds for both Mexico and the United States.

An estimated 30,000 fans attended a watch party Thursday night as Mexico clinched a spot in the Round of 32. Thousands more gathered Friday to watch the U.S. men's national team secure its place in the knockout stage.

San Pedro Square has become a focal point for World Cup celebrations in the South Bay, with fans from across the globe coming together to watch matches on large screens.

Organizers said the goal was to create a community space for fans to enjoy the tournament together, though turnout has surpassed expectations.

San Jose Earthquakes midfielder Niko Tsakiris, who grew up in nearby Saratoga, said the atmosphere reflects the region's passion for soccer.

"To grow up in the bay, to have an event like this at a tournament like this here, here in the States and to have games here in Santa Clara and right in our backyard, it's amazing," Tsakiris said. "It's amazing. And for me, selfishly, growing up, you always watched the World Cup and following the World Cup and just how people are rallying around here in the Bay has been really special to see."

Attendance at the watch parties has continued to grow with each match, surpassing 100,000 combined visitors over the course of the week. Local businesses have seen a surge in activity, with food and drinks - particularly alcohol - selling out daily.

For now, fans in the South Bay continue to celebrate as the World Cup brings record crowds and a global atmosphere to downtown San Jose.

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.

The parent company of Sam Adams said its Boston Taproom ran out of the brand's flagship Boston Lager over the weekend because Scotland soccer fans in Boston for the 2026 World Cup drank four times as much as the bar usually sells.

Boston Beer Co. said in a news release that from Thursday to Sunday, the Tartan Army -- Scotland's supporters organization -- drank four times what the company normally stocks during a typical four-day holiday stretch like the Fourth of July, adding that it had to schedule an emergency delivery of beer Saturday morning and are adding extra deliveries this week to make sure it has enough.

"We've never seen anything like it," Billy DeCain of the Sam Adams Boston Taproom told NBC Boston.

"The White Bull Tavern, there was no beer," Scottish fan Dave Orr told NBC. "The Scottish fans just drank the place dry and all they had was Bud Light."

"Pretty much everything. We ran out of everything," Paul Morris of The White Bull Tavern said. "Tennent's being number one.

"The fans have been unbelievable. They're great -- fun, drinking, partying -- having a great time."

Boston has been taken over by Scotland fans the past few days, as they've traveled over the Atlantic to witness their men's soccer team play in its first World Cup in 28 years.

In a news release, Boston Beer Co. said, "There are 20 beers on tap there, including many you can only get at the taproom, but they were basically only drinking Boston Lager. We're adding extra deliveries this week to make sure we have enough."

Noelle Somers, chief operating officer at Hennessy's Bar, told The Boston Globe that the sales "tripled St. Patrick's Day."

"We've been here for over 30 years, and we've never seen anything like it," she told the Boston Globe.

On Saturday night, the fans watched Scotland defeat Haiti 1-0 at Gillette Stadium.

And after navigating the packed trains and traffic jams, the party continued long into the morning across Boston's many bars. Then, just under 24 hours after Scotland's win on the pitch, the Boston Red Sox put on "Scotland Day" at Fenway Park.

The Tartan Army led a fan march from Evans Way Park to the ballpark. It was led by a cohort of folks playing bagpipes as they brought a touch of Scotland to New England.

A conservative estimate saw at least 5,000 fans take part -- but judging by eye in Fenway Park, thousands more made the trip to watch the Red Sox play the Texas Rangers.

Scotland next play against Morocco on Friday at Gillette Stadium.

The eight teams playing World Cup matches on Thursday are taking part in an International Day for Countering Hate Speech commemoration, with a pre-match exchange of pennants denouncing such language.

Captains involved in the Czechia-South Africa, Mexico-South Korea, Switzerland-Bosnia-Herzegovina and Canada-Qatar matches will have pennants reading "We Play Together. We Stand Against Hate" with the wording in English on one side and the teams' native language on the other.

FIFA says it has deleted more than 30 million abusive posts and comments since its social media protection service was created before the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

FIFA says it deleted nearly 400,000 negative or abusive posts in the first few days of this World Cup - more than it did in the entirety of the 2022 event.

Other stadium activations involving that message are planned during Thursday's matches.