A second-half stoppage time goal from Cecilio Waterman earned Panama a 1-0 win over the United States in the semifinals of the Concacaf Nations League on Thursday at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
With the game looking as if it were headed to extra time, Waterman hit a low shot from just outside the penalty area that beat U.S. keeper Matt Turner and sent the Panama bench into a wild celebration. Waterman's shot was the only one Panama had on goal in the match.
The loss means the United States will not play in the final Sunday and will see its dominance of the competition -- the Americans have won the only three editions of the Nations League -- come to an end.
The Americans had lost two of their past three games against Panama coming into the match, including a 2-1 defeat in the group stage of the 2024 Copa América that saw the host U.S. fail to reach the knockout round.
After a slow start to the match, the U.S. started to gain some traction in the attacking third near the 20th minute, with Josh Sargent hitting the post from close range and Weston McKennie sending a header from a Timothy Weah cross right at Panama keeper Orlando Mosquera.
Sargent had the ball in the back of the net minutes later after the ball fell for him in the center of the area, but Weah was flagged for offside in the buildup and the goal was ruled out.
After the break, both sides continued to struggle to find any kind of sustained attack and U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino brought on Jack McGlynn and Patrick Agyemang in the 68th minute to try to find a winner in regulation.
Agyemang, who impressed in two games during the January window, came up short with a pair of chances, one denied on a solid save from Mosquera and one the Charlotte striker scuffed over the bar at the near post.
Though the U.S. leads the all-time series with Panama 18-4-7, since the 2015 Gold Cup, the Americans have a 3-3-5 mark in competitive matches vs. Los Canaleros, including the 2-1 loss in the Copa that eventually led to coach Gregg Berhalter being fired.
Berhalter's replacement, Pochettino, won his USMNT debut 2-0 in a friendly against Panama on Oct. 12.
The Nations League and this summer's Concacaf Gold Cup were the Americans' last chances for a trophy before the 2026 World Cup in North America.
Panama will face the winner of Thursday's late game between Canada and Mexico in the final Sunday, and the U.S. will play the loser in the third-place match.
Information from Reuters was used in this report.