In 2014, Dempsey was named as captain of the 23-man United States squad ahead of the FIFA World Cup. On June 16, he scored against Ghana 29 seconds into the group play match. It was the fastest goal in American World Cup history, and fifth fastest goal in all-time World Cup history. With this goal, Dempsey also became the first American player to score in three consecutive World Cups. Dempsey went on to suffer a broken nose midway through the first half as the United States defeated Ghana 2–1. In the following match against Portugal, Dempsey notched his fourth World Cup goal in a 2–2 draw. This goal drew Dempsey level with Bert Patenaude as the second-highest goalscoring American in the World Cup, one behind Landon Donovan.