• Result is largest margin at any age level of a World Cup

• DiMaria is first to score six at Fifa finals since Haaland

• Tournament is in year two of expanded 24-team field

The United States began their U-17 Women’s World Cup campaign on Monday with a record-setting 17-0 win over Samoa the biggest win at any age level in World Cup history.

The result surpassed the previous record for margin at an 11-a-side World Cup, a 16-0 win by Morocco against New Caledonia in the 2025 U-17 men’s World Cup. Ten players scored for the US, and forward Maddie DiMaria led with six goals in Salé, Morocco.

“I wasn’t aware [we were breaking a record], but I’m super proud of this group and it’s nice that they have something like that behind their name,” US coach Ciara Crinion told Fifa’s website.

DiMaria, a 17-year-old high-schooler from St Louis who is committed to play in college at North Carolina, scored her first goal 63 minutes into the match. It was the most goals by a US player ever in any match and the most by any player in a Women’s World Cup match at any level.

She is the first player to net six goals in a single match at a Fifa finals since Erling Haaland scored nine at the U-20 men’s World Cup in 2019.

“That means everything; he’s an inspiration,” DiMaria said of Haaland. “To be the next player behind that is just such an honor. I’m super blessed to have all those girls finding me in the right places.”

The US led 9-0 by half-time on Monday and finished the match with 58 shots. Carolina Reyna, the younger sister of USMNT midfielder Gio Reyna, and 15-year-old Loradana Paletta each scored twice. Samoa goalkeeper Susahna Peacock made 13 saves.

Samoa appeared in their first U-17 Women’s World Cup last year. Fifa expanded the field from 16 to 24 teams beginning in 2025 and is staging both the men’s and women’s U-17 World Cups annually through 2029 in an effort to prioritize youth development. Samoa are one of seven teams to make their U-17 Women’s World Cup debuts in the past two years, and expanded fields with countries at varying levels of development can make for lopsided score lines.

The result brought back memories of the 13-0 win by the senior US team over Thailand at the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France. Alex Morgan scored five goals for the US in that game, after which critics accused the Americans of running up the score. The 2019 tournament was the first played with an expanded field of 24 teams.

“The way we respect our opponent is we don’t take it lightly,” US midfielder Julie Ertz said after that 2019 match. “We take any opponent we have very seriously. We prepare the same way. We have our scouting reports. We train with intensity. And that’s how we show we’re not going to take any opponent lightly.”

The US play their next group-stage game Thursday against Kenya, who lost their opener 3-0 to China. The Americans have never won the tournament; they reached the final in the inaugural editions in 2008 and have only reached one semi-finals since, in 2024. North Korea are the reigning champions.