The United States secured a place in the Round of 16 of the FIFA World Cup with a hard-fought 2-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday, despite goalscorer Folarin Balogun being sent off in the second half.

The win marks the co-hosts’ first World Cup knockout-stage victory in nearly 25 years and only the second in the country’s history. The result sets up a last-16 clash against Belgium in Seattle next week.

Balogun gave the United States the breakthrough just before half-time, finishing clinically to send the home crowd in California into celebration. The match attracted huge national attention, with an estimated 30 million Americans expected to be watching the encounter.

However, the striker’s night took a dramatic turn after the break when he was shown a red card following a VAR review. Officials ruled that Balogun’s challenge on Bosnia defender Tarik Muharemovic warranted a dismissal, forcing the hosts to finish the match with ten men.

Bosnia started brightly and looked threatening in the opening stages. Veteran captain Edin Dzeko used his experience to hold up a long pass before setting up Ermedin Demirovic, whose early effort was comfortably saved by American goalkeeper Matt Freese.

Despite Bosnia’s promising start, the United States gradually took control of the game, dominating possession and creating the better opportunities. They added a second goal to seal victory and book their place in the knockout stages.