US hopes to give fans reason to revel when it faces Australia in Seattle, with or without Pulisic

SEATTLE (AP) — Cristian Roldan is familiar with how loud Lumen Field can get.

The U.S. midfielder has played for the Seattle Sounders since 2015, getting plenty of love from fans in this soccer-crazed Pacific Northwest city.

With the Americans coming off a 4-1 victory over Paraguay in their World Cup opener in Southern California, Roldan is expecting a charged atmosphere on Friday when the Americans face Australia at the home of the NFL's Seattle Seahawks.

“I fully expect this crowd to be extremely loud. And, they’re going to energize our group,” Roldan said. “This is one of the loudest stadiums in the world when you think about Seahawks games or Sounders games.

“Just seeing the Belgium game against Egypt and how the atmosphere was there, I fully expect the city of Seattle to come out and show out, and I think the guys are going to feel that type of energy.”

The Americans want to reward their supporters and justify the wave of momentum that is building around the team.

“What excites me is that the entire world, the entire nation is behind us,” Roldan said. “I think that they enjoyed watching us play, and at the end of the day what we want to do is inspire and motivate the next generation. ... We have to build off it, and that’s the truth. We can’t just talk about it: We have to show out against Australia.”

The Americans' excitement is somewhat tempered by concerns about their biggest star. Christian Pulisic trained apart from his teammates on Thursday for the fourth straight day because of his left calf injury, and coach Mauricio Pochettino said his availability was still up in the air as of Thursday night.

The Socceroos also pose a significant challenge. In October, the U.S. earned a hard-fought 2-1 victory against a physical Australia side in a friendly that Pochettino said was anything but.

Pochettino wants his team to match Australia's intensity.

“I think we need to play on the edge of the line,” Pochettino said, “with not crossing the lines of the rules.”

Australia center back Harry Souttar anticipates the U.S. will try to start fast, much as it did against Paraguay. Coach Tony Popovic's scrappy squad opened with a 2-0 victory over Turkey on Saturday.

“We want to earn our respect,” Popovic said. “We know that by our performances, we can put Australian football on the world map. And, that’s what we aim to do. We started off well against Turkey. Now, we want to back it up.”

AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/fifa-world-cup

Australia's Harry Souttar center, challenges for the ball with Turkey's Muhammed Kerem Akturkoglu, during the World Cup Group D soccer match between Australia and Turkey in Vancouver, Canada, Saturday, June 13, 2026. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)

Australia's Tony Popovic, second left and Australia's Alessandro Circati celebrate following the World Cup Group D soccer match between Australia and Turkey in Vancouver, Canada, Saturday, June 13, 2026. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

United States' Christian Pulisic (10) runs with the ball during the World Cup Group D soccer match between the United States and Paraguay in Inglewood, Calif., near Los Angeles, Friday, June 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)

United States head coach Mauricio Pochettino takes part in a training session ahead of the team's World Cup Group D soccer match against Australia in Seattle, Thursday, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

United States' Sergino Dest, left, controls a ball next to Paraguay's Omar Alderete during the World Cup Group D soccer match in Inglewood, Calif., near Los Angeles, Friday, June 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

This is the sun's time to shine: Sunday is the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.

Sunday is the solstice, marking the start of astronomical summer north of the equator. It’s the opposite in the Southern Hemisphere, where it is the shortest day of the year and winter will start.

The word “solstice” comes from the Latin words “sol,” for sun, and “stitium,” which can mean “pause” or “stop.” The summer solstice is the end of the sun’s annual march higher in the sky, when it makes its longest, highest arc. The bad news for sun lovers: It then starts retreating and days will get a little shorter every day until late December.

People have marked solstices for eons with festivals and monuments, including Sweden's midsummer eve celebrations and Stonehenge, which was designed to align with the sun’s paths at the solstices.

Here’s what to know about the Earth’s orbit.

As the Earth travels around the sun, it does so at an angle, making the sun’s warmth and light fall unequally on the northern and southern halves of the planet for most of the year.

The solstices mark the times when the Earth is tipped most extremely either toward or away from the sun. This means the hemispheres are getting very different amounts of sunlight, and days and nights are at their most unequal.

At the Northern Hemisphere’s summer solstice, the Earth’s upper half is leaning toward the sun, creating the longest day and shortest night of the year. The summer solstice falls between June 20 and 22. This year it’s June 21.

The opposite happens at the Northern Hemisphere winter solstice: the Earth’s upper half leans the furthest away from the sun, leading to the shortest day and longest night of the year. The winter solstice falls between Dec. 20 and 23.

During the equinox, the Earth’s tilt is neither toward the sun nor away from the sun, so both the northern and southern hemispheres get an equal amount of sunlight. The sun rises almost exactly due east and it sets almost exactly due west.

The word equinox comes from two Latin words meaning equal and night. That’s because on the equinox, day and night last almost the same amount of time — though one may get a few extra minutes, depending on where you are on the planet.

The Northern Hemisphere’s fall — or autumnal — equinox can land between Sept. 21 and 24, depending on the year. Its spring — or vernal — equinox can land between March 19 and 21. The exact time of the equinox is the moment the sun is directly overhead at the equator.

These are just two different ways to carve up the year.

While astronomical seasons depend on how the Earth moves around the sun, meteorological seasons are defined by the weather. Meteorologists break down the year into three-month seasons based on annual temperature cycles. By that calendar, spring starts on March 1, summer on June 1, fall on Sept. 1 and winter on Dec. 1.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

FILE - Kansas City Royals second baseman Michael Massey (19) and shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., right, return to the dugout during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros, Friday, June 12, 2026, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)

FILE - Soccer fans sit on a bench overlooking Lumen Field stadium at sunset during the 2026 World Cup in Seattle, Saturday, June 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez, File)

FILE - Revelers gather at the ancient stone circle Stonehenge to celebrate the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, near Salisbury, England, Wednesday, June 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)