PHOENIX, Ariz. (Nov. 18, 2025) - The U.S. Power Soccer National Team won its third straight American Powerchair Football Confederation (APFC) America’s Cup championship, defeating Argentina 1-0 in the tournament final on Wednesday at Ability360. Earlier in the day, the USA defeated Brazil 1-0 in the semifinal to earn one of APFC’s three places at the 2026 Fédération Internationale de Powerchair Football Association (FIPFA) Powerchair Football World Cup in Argentina. The USA has qualified for all five editions of the World Cup since it began in 2007.
Despite outshooting Brazil 20-3, the U.S. had a tough time with the South American side in Wednesday’s semifinal and ultimately utilized a dramatic penalty kick from Riley Johnson in second half stoppage time to earn the 1-0 victory to qualify for the 2026 World Cup and advance to Wednesday afternoon’s final.
Argentina also gave the USA difficult moments in the final, but the Power NT utilized Pete Winslow’s connection with Johnson on an 18th minute free kick to ride to a 1-0 victory and its third APFC America’s Cup title.
Below are full recaps of both matches from Wednesday.
RILEY JOHNSON’S STOPPAGE TIME PENALTY KICK LIFTS USA TO 1-0 SEMIFINAL WIN AGAINST BRAZIL AND 2026 WORLD CUP BERTH
Facing Brazil for the second time in less than 24 hours, Wednesday’s semifinal proved a much tighter affair that Tuesday’s group stage finale that the USA won 6-0. With a World Cup berth at stake, Brazil made things difficult for the U.S., but captain Riley Johnson scored the game’s only goal, powering home a penalty kick in the first minute of second-half stoppage time to book the USA’s place in Wednesday’s final and the 2026 FIPFA Powerchair Football World Cup in Argentina.
The Power NT came close in the fourth minute. David Dowling started the play on the left, swinging it back to the point for Johnson, who moved the ball to the left wing for Lexi Heer. She touched across the box, looking for Dowling, but he was just behind the play and it rolled out for a goal kick.
Another close chance came in the 11th minute when Dowling’s kick-in from the left was initially saved by Brazil goalkeeper Pedro Henriquez. Johnson was there on the rebound and pushed the follow-up attempt off the left post and out for a goal kick.
The USA had two more close calls just before halftime. In the 19th minute, substitute Pete Winslow played the ball back to Johnson, who found Heer crashing at the left post. The U.S. attacker came glanced a shot towards goal, but Lucas Dutra was there to save it off the line. In the 20th minute, a Winslow corner kick from the right found Heer crashing at the near post, but she powered her effort off the upright and Brazil held on to keep things 0-0 going into the break.
Brazil continued to make things hard in the second half. In the 27th minute, Johnson swung his free kick from the center to Jordan Dickey, who glanced an effort from the left that was saved off the line by Henriquez.
In the 32nd minute, Winslow’s kick-in from the right found Johnson in the box, but his effort was turned away by Brazil captain Lucas Dutra. In the 37th minute, an excellent passing combination between Michael Rayton, Johnson and Dickey saw Dickey’s first-time attempt pushed off the goal line again. A minute later, a passing combination between Johnson and Dickey saw Johnson’s effort saved.
With regular time nearly finished, Johnson made one last effort in the 40th minute, driving toward goal on the right. As he did, Lucas Dutra left the court to avoid a potential two-on-one infraction, causing an automatic yellow card and penalty kick. The Brazil captain had already received one caution earlier in the half and was sent off the court.
With ice in his veins, Johnson lined up the spot kick and swung his effort just inside the right post, beating Pedro Henrique in the first minute of second-half stoppage time. The USA thwarted Brazil’s full press and the referee blew the final whistle, confirming the team’s place in Wednesday’s final and next year’s World Cup.
Match: U.S. Power Soccer National Team vs. Brazil
Date: November 19, 2025
Competition: 2025 APFC America’s Cup – Semifinal
Venue: Ability360; Phoenix, Arizona
Kickoff: 10:30 a.m. MT (12:30 p.m. ET)
Attendance: 589
| Scoring Summary | 1 | 2 | F |
| USA | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| BRA | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| USA – Riley Johnson (penalty kick) | 40+1st minute |
Lineups:
USA: 3-Jordan Dickey 5-Lexi Heer 10-David Dowling 22-Riley Johnson (Capt.)
Substitutes: 2-Nathan Mayer, 6-Michael Rayton, 9-Pete Winslow
Did not play: 13-Ryan Connolly
Head coach: Tracy Mayer
BRA: 1-Pedro Henrique; 4-Lucas Dutra (Capt.), 5-Daniel Vizeu, 7-Bernardo Borges
Substitutes: 17-Calista, 8-Gomes, 10-Nascimento
Head coach: David Xavier
Stats Summary: USA / BRA
Shots: 20 / 3
Saves: 3 / 14
Corner Kicks: 2 / 1
Fouls: 6 / 5
| Misconduct Summary | |
| BRA - Lucas Dutra (Caution) | 26th minute |
| BRA - Lucas Dutra (Caution) | 40 |
| BRA - Lucas Dutra (Ejection) | 40 |
RILEY JOHNSON AND PETE WINSLOW COMBINE TO GIVE USA 1-0 WIN OVER ARGENTINA IN AMERICA’S CUP FINAL
For the first time at the 2025 America’s Cup, the USA did not completely dominate its opponent from the first whistle, as Argentina was able to maintain possession in the U.S. end for different stretches of the first half. And like many finals, fewer chances were to be had, but there were plenty of good passing sequences in the early going.
After nervy moments for both sides for much of the first half, the U.S. jumped ahead in the 18th minute when a two-on-one violation was called against Argentina, setting up a free kick at the top of the box. The Power NT leaned on its set-piece master Pete Winslow, who delivered a powerful spin kick that deflected off Riley Johnson and split two Argentina defenders on the goal line to give the USA a 1-0 lead.
The U.S. nearly grabbed a second just before the break, when Winslow’s free kick from midfield sneaked through the Argentina defense and clanged off the right post. Johnson followed up and tried to stuff the ball over the line, but the South American side was able to hold off the danger and made it into halftime down a goal.
Argentina pushed the attack early in the second half with Johnson repelling a dangerous shot at the left post just two minutes in. Back the other way in the 28th minute, Johnson penetrated through mid-court and went one-on-one with goalkeeper Heber Lopez but was unable to get a shot off.
In the 33rd minute, Johnson broke free once again, threading through the Argentina box trying to bundle the ball over the line, but Lopez was able to come through at the left post to keep it at 1-0.
With the lead in hand, the U.S. did well to take time off the clock, holding possession in the Argentina end for large stretches of the closing minutes before the referee blew for full time to confirm the USA as 2025 APFC America’s Cup champions.
Match: U.S. Power Soccer National Team vs. Argentina
Competition: 2025 APFC America’s Cup – Final
Venue: Ability360; Phoenix, Arizona
Kickoff: 3 p.m. MT (5 p.m. ET)
Attendance: 653
| Scoring Summary | 1 | 2 | F |
| USA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| ARG | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| USA – Riley Johnson (Pete Winslow) | 18th minute |
Lineups:
USA: 3-Jordan Dickey (Capt.); 5-Lexi Heer, 6-Michael Rayton, 22-Riley Johnson
Substitutes: 9-Pete Winslow, 10-David Dowling, 2-Nathan Mayer
Did not play: 13-Ryan Connolly
Head coach: Tracy Mayer
ARG: 7-Heber Lopez; 10-Valentino Zegerelli (Capt.), 13-Khaleb Manzur, 17-Santiago Arocena
Substitutes: 8-Juan Bautista D’Angelo, 11-Loernzo Lipari, 18-Pablo Ochoa, 23-Nicholas Quikuen
Head coach: Sebastian Tisera
Stats Summary: USA / ARG
Shots:7 / 5
Saves: 0 / 5
Corner Kicks: 0 / 0
Fouls: 8 / 7
Misconduct Summary:
None
MATCHDAY FOUR ADDITIONAL NOTES
ABOUT POWERCHAIR SOCCER
Power Soccer is the first competitive team sport developed specifically for power wheelchair users and has been played internationally since 2006. In 2022, the U.S. Power Soccer National Team joined U.S. Soccer’s Extended National Teams program, becoming one of nine fully-funded national teams in alternative disciplines of the sport. The U.S. won the 2007 and 2011 FIPFA Powerchair Football World Cups and have claimed the APFC America’s Cup title on three occasions, in 2014, 2019 and 2025.
The U.S. Power Soccer National Team features male and female athletes with disabilities that include quadriplegia, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, and cerebral palsy, among others. The game is played in a gymnasium on a regulation basketball court with four players who attack, defend, and spin-kick a 13-inch soccer ball in a skilled and challenging game similar to mainstream soccer.
For more information on the sport or to inquire about athlete eligibility, please contact U.S. Soccer's Extended National Teams Department via email at extendednt@ussoccer.org.
ABOUT THE U.S. WAY
The U.S. Way is a shared philosophy, a strategy and a practical toolkit to enable excellence at every level of the game and for us to win. The U.S. Way is intended to work in partnership between the club and National Team environment to cultivate the next generation of talent with three areas of focus: World Class Development Pathways and Environments, including scaled Talent Identification, expanded Youth National Team programming and accelerated development and foundation building across the Extended National Teams; Shared and Scaled Infrastructure, highlighted by the Arthur M. Blank U.S. Soccer National Training Center, U.S. Way digital platform and unified youth calendar; and Professional Development for the Entire Ecosystem, featuring formal courses, technical and administrative staff community building, leadership development, and best practice resource sharing. For more information, visit ussoccer.com/ourvision/us-way.