2026 World Cup Preview
The Moment is Now
As the guy you know who cares the most about the World Cup, there's a looming specter of negativity and dread at the prospect and build up to and hosting of the World Cup.
Frankly, everyone hates us.
We're actively at war with another country participating in the tournament, although depending on what you believe that war ended months, weeks or days ago, potentially could end any day, or maybe will end days, weeks or months from now. We've refused to guarantee the safety of the players on the Iranian national team, we've refused to rule out using ICE to remove game attendees and the country's least popular President of all time, spent the last year using the hosting of World Cup games as a cudgel against Mayors he didn't like.
These guys don't even like soccer! It's the exact type of guy who would make fun of you for playing soccer! They care so little they put Rudy Giuiliani's son in charge of it!
FIFA, in an act of almost wisdom, attempted to buy off the President by bestowing him with the FIFA Peace Prize, which I'm guessing he won for ending 47 wars, 62 regional conflicts, and 39 conflagrations. But as we all know from children's books, if you give a mouse the FIFA Peace Prize he's going to put it in the empty unable-to-be-filled hole where his soul should be and demand more.
I'm not trying to pop off, but I think it's important context as we move into a month long global event where everyone is going to be watching everything we do. These things have knock on effects. Ticket sales are at an all time low, and yeah, FIFA deserves a big slice of blame pie for pricing the tickets exorbitantly high but no one involved seems to care to want to do anything about it. For all of US Soccer's talk of "changing the way the game is viewed in America," we don't seem very interested in having anyone in America view the games.
All that aside, I find myself brimming with excitement for this World Cup from an on the field perspective. This is, from a purely talent stand point, the best crop of USMNT players we've ever had. Christian Pulisic, Tyler Adams, Sergino Dest, Folarin Balogun, Weston McKennie, Malik Tillman, Antonee Robinson, and Chris Richards all have the ability and potential to be the best at their position in the history of US Men's soccer. Gio Reyna might be the most purely talented soccer player this country has ever produced (more on all these guys below). Mauricio Pochettino is the highest profile, most proven coach the team has ever had (unless you broaden your scope to include Emma Hayes currently coaching the Women's National Team). There's a lot of reasons to be excited about the potential on the field product, so, let's move forward talking about that.
The Group:
Game 1: vs Paraguay (ranked 40th in FIFA Global rankings) June 12th at 9:00 PM EST I don't want to spend a ton of time talking about individual matches but it should be said, that this is an incredibly favorable group. Top 2 teams in each group advance, and 8 of the 3rd place group teams will as well. Not advancing to the out rounds would be an incredible failure, but I genuinely don't think we need to worry about that. Paraguay is a veteran team with some talented, young, attackers, but a thin, aging defense we'll have some joy against. We also beat them in a world cup tune up friendly in November with some of our down roster players. World Cup games are rigid, slow, sloppy affairs, and Paraguay might be able to make themselves compact enough against us that we struggle to score, but I like our odds. Game 2: vs Australia (ranked 27th in FIFA Global rankings) June 19th at 3:00 PM EST Let's all just agree to be normal about the game being on Juneteenth, please. It would be so great if the President wouldn't come down from his throne fashioned from the leftovers of the MMA ring they're building in the East Wing and be all fucking weird about shit. Australia is going to struggle to score goals in this tournament, they don't really have the firepower, so expect this to be a PHYSICAL, knifey-spoony slog through a tough Australian central midfield and defense. This has 1-0 written all over it. Game 3: vs Turkiye (ranked 22nd in FIFA Global rankings) June 25th at 10:00 PM EST This is the real shit right here. Turkiye is a very good team and they've been very strong in their lead up to the World Cup. They've got great players at pretty much every position and some real world class looking youth who are hoping to cash in on a World Cup payday. Watch for Arda Guler and Kenan Yildiz to give our defense fits. The good news here, is a better team is going to want to actually play soccer against us, and we've seen the USMNT over the last 6 years really struggle against teams that want to bunker (like what I expect Australia to do) and play up to the level of world class opposition when they don't. If we win this game, that's how we know we're for real, and the sky (or at least the quarterfinals) is going to be the limit.
The Players: Let's talk about the 26 man roster. While we won't know for sure what the starting lineup is, you can expect it to resemble something like this in possession:
And something like this out of it:
Our strength is going to be getting ball to our guys out wide to progress the ball, and work the ball back inside for dangerous goal scoring chances. Look for whoever plays on the right wing to tuck a little more inside and for Antonee Robinson to run a zillion miles up and down the left as he tries to stay home on defense a little bit more than Sergino (or whoever) on the right.
Let's zoom in a little bit more and look at this player by player.
The Coach:
Mauricio Pochettino - 54, Previously Coached Chelsea, PSG, Tottenham
Non Soccer Coach He's Like: Pete Carroll
There's a great quote that Pochettino gave about a year ago after we got smoked by Turkiye and Switzerland. "The problem here in the USA is that soccer is seen as a nice game to play, but in different countries, it's a game to compete, it's a fight...it's a sport war." I think that really hits the nail on the head of one of the problems we've seen with this class of guys. It's not that they don't care, or that they don't play hard, it's that they don't view these games as a FIGHT. Pochettino brings an expert eye to this world cup cycle, and while he's here for a good time, not a long time, it was a great hire and a real sign of ambition from US Soccer that we don't see very often. Poch's teams love to press, go aggressively seek the ball instead of moving back into your shape on defense, and they fight to play. After going out of his way to play some down ticket players over a list of expected starters, and succeeding, that ethos of hunger and toughness does seem to have osmosis'd into the brains of these guys, and he's discovered a few gems along the way. We have a coach who is good enough to win a world cup, that's a fact.
"The problem here in the USA is that soccer is seen as a nice game to play, but in different countries, it's a game to compete, it's a fight...it's a sport war." - Mauricio Pochettino
The Goalies: Matt Freese - 27, New York City FC (MLS)
Matt Turner - 31, New England Revolution (MLS) on loan from Lyon (French 1st Division)
Chris Brady - 22, Chicago Fire (MLS) I'm going to lump the goalies together here because there's not a lot of interesting things to say about an individual goalie. Under Pochettino, Matt Freese has been the guy. If you look at the MLS shot stopping metrics, Matt Turner has been much better this year. Turner was the starter during the last World Cup and definitely has the pedigree as a former Arsenal keeper, but he's had a rough go of it the last couple of years at the club level and he still isn't very good playing with his feet, an integral part of modern soccer. Freese is better with his feet but he hasn't always provided the same value as a shot stopper. It'll be interesting to see who roles out as the #1 when the Paraguay game kicks off. What I'd prefer to highlight here is where MLS is as a league. You'll notice that all 3 goalies play in MLS which has become, a genuinely good soccer league. It's not a top 5 league in the world but it's definitely fighting to be in that second tier (Portugal, Belgium, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, English 2nd Tier) especially in how deep it is. In fact, 17 teams at the World Cup will feature MLS players on their roster! For a player like Chris Brady, it's allowed a talented, young goalie the opportunity to play every week and grow. Compare that to his contemporary of 4 years ago, Gaga Slonina, who went to Europe and died in a tragic Player on Chelsea's Loan Army accident.
Central Defenders: Chris Richards - 26, Crystal Palace (English Premier League) Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: 2026 Playoffs Jalen Duren, Greg Monroe A hugely talented player, easily the best center back on the roster. Has every tool you could ask for, good speed & quickness, decent passer, strong in the air on both offense and defense, prototypical size, plays at a high level for his club but sometimes all of those things don't all show up together at the same time. He's been prone to some bone headed moments and he can get beat 1v1. When he's on though, he can look like a guy no one's moving past, and against the non-Turkish group stage opponents he should be a wall. Tim Ream - 38, Charlotte FC (MLS)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Philadelphia 76ers PJ Tucker, This Tweet
Last world cup when I wrote a Tim Ream blurb I wrote "one last ride for this old cowboy" and comped him to David Justice in Moneyball. Somehow here we are 4 years later, Tim Ream is the Vegas favorite to start as a left sided center back in the 2026 World Cup. Look, there's going to be a moment when Ream gets left in the dust by some speedy attacker, it's going to happen. All we hope is that moment doesn't impact the tournament too much. His legs seem like they might be just about gone, but the guy can fucking pass out of the back. None of the guys fighting for his spot have proven that they offer the same amount of savvy and distribution to make up for his lack of top line speed, and for that reason I believe that Poch will stay with the devil he knows. Mark McKenzie - 27, Toulouse FC (France) Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Anthony Volpe, CJ Abrams
McKenzie is an excellent sender of the long ball and has had some truly transcendent moments making those passes over the course of his career. He's also known to be goal dangerous, he can shoot pretty well for a center defender. The problem is, the main part of his job IS to be a defender, and he's had some real consistency problems in a USMNT jersey as a defender. If anyone is going to displace Tim Ream, it'll be McKenzie, but if anyone is going to get yoinked off the field never to be seen again after a terrible mistake leads to a goal, it'll also be McKenzie. Auston Trusty - 27, Celtic (Scotland) Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Lakers De'Andre Ayton, an Outside Corner Forced to Play Nickel
There's really only one or two guys on this roster whose inclusions I was surprised by and Auston Trusty is one of them. He's not a great passer, or great with the ball at his feet, he struggles to play on the front foot, but against teams that are going to possess the ball against us as we get into the later rounds of the tournament, he might have a place. He's a big, strong, fast 1 on 1 defender. To me, Trusty is a break glass in case of emergency, Tim Ream is getting smoked by a 21 year old right winger in the round of 16 contingency. His inclusion also makes me feel very strongly that we will play with 3 or 5 in the back or else why would we need so many center backs and tweeners (see next category).
Defensive Tweeners
Joe Scally - 23, Borussia Monchengladbach (German 1st Division)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Alex Smith, Michelle Wie
A tweener is someone I wouldn't consider to be a true central defender but I also wouldn't consider to be a right or left back. Similar to how safeties and middle linebackers in football can be tweeners, Joe Scally, is the epitome of this player. He's a pretty quiet, boring, stay at home right back with decent speed, and physical size. He's an alright defender who makes sense as a potential third centerback in the flexible way our right sided center back moves a little wider when we're in possession. He's been in Germany playing at a pretty high level for a long time, since he was 17, and while a decent player, has never been more than that and doesn't seem to show much to imply he's going to become more than that. I'd be pretty surprised if we actually see Joe, there was rumors that Poch wasn't a huge fan (something to do with a jaunt in a golf cart?) and he's definitely one of the 2 or 3 most surprising inclusions. Alex Freeman - 21, Villareal FC (Spain) Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Jordyn Tyson Poch specifically seems to this this kid is a tweener, and many roster projections show him playing as the right sided center defenders in our fluid back 3/5/3 that's actually a 4, whatever you want to call it. I don't know if this kid's going to be ready for prime time as a central defender but I'm telling you, he's got the goods. A converted winger who spent an extra long time in Orlando City's Academy, he's a rapid 6'2" right back for a really solid Villareal team. He's been on a staggering upward trajectory the last two years and I can't wait to see what happens. Him and Sergino Dest on the right side together makes me a little squeamish from a defensive perspective but it'll be a lot of fun. Miles Robinson - 29, FC Cincinnati (MLS)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Malik Hooker After a few really strong MLS seasons Miles Robinson has had a tough 18 months at Cincinnati. They've been one of the worst defenses in MLS and he hasn't looked like the same guy who turned down deals to go overseas. That said I think he still has a place on this team as a sort of jack of all center back trades master of none. He's big, with high top end speed for a defender of his size, and he's had good moments in a USMNT jersey. Definitely a chance we see him as the right sided center back or as a late game park the bus right wingback. Wide Defenders/Midfielders: Antonee "Jedi" Robinson - 28, Fulham FC (English Premier League) Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: What if DeAaron Fox was 6'6", What If Christian Watson Was Good One of the most important pieces of the team, Antonee Robinson is an excellent left defender. He's a speed freak and an engine, sprinting at incredible speeds up and down the left flank. There's been a few injuries this year, but we're feeling good going into the world cup just a season after he had 10 assists for Fulham in the Premier League. Expect him to use his speed to get back and put out fires on defense, and to overlap Pulisic on offense to get to the endline and put balls into the box. Sergino Dest - 25, PSV Eindhoven (Dutch League) Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Boogie Cousins, White Chocolate Jason Williams
I love Sergino Dest, I feel like when you comp someone to Boogie it's as an insult, and this is not that. Serge is a 1 of 1. He's mercurial, for sure, but he's also an incredible talent, yo-yoing the ball around Defenders, doing Trivelas when you don't need to do Trivelas, and shooting from distance. But sometimes that talent goes the other way and he's showing up to Messi's Barcelona event in a basketball jersey or deciding to remove himself from this CONCACAF game. I love Serge, he's the best. I hope we get some awesome Serge moments in this tournament.
Max Arfsten - 25, Columbus Crew (MLS) Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Brandin Podziemski, Baylor Scheierman
Kind of have to give it up to Poch for identifying and sticking with Arfsten, who he has somehow turned into the back up left wingback for a team that's not really had one for a decade plus. Sort of a late bloomer, Arfsten has had a couple of really good seasons in MLS for some excellent Columbus teams. More of a winger less of a defender, Arfsten thrives as a transition midfielder who wants to score goals on the counter and doesn't really want to defend 1 on 1. In fact, if we see Max isolated deep against a right winger you can expect trouble. Center Midfielders: Tyler Adams - 27, AFC Bournemouth (England)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: The Thompson Twins, Normal Dennis Rodman
A game wrecker in the middle of the pitch. Tyler is a player who impacts games with his defense in the center of the park. A relentless motor and tackler with a high in game IQ, Tyler is the glue that binds. He was the captain of the squad at the 2022 World Cup and will be in captain contingency again. Doesn't offer a ton going forward, but every once in a while his soul seems to leave his body and he makes a play from deep. Not a hugely creative passer, and he's not going to do a guy 1v1, but he's a specialist, you don't want him to be doing that. Expect to see Tyler every game he is available for, Poch is a huge fan and tried to bring him to Chelsea when he was the coach there. Weston McKennie - 27, Juventus (Italy)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Swagged Up Mark DeRosa, What if Taysom Hill Was An All Pro And Also Played Middle Linebacker Sometimes
Weston McKennie has always been a swiss army knife, dating back to his time as a youth international at Schalke. He has played every position on the field except for goalie at some point in his career due to his unique blend of physicality, tenacity on and off the field and technique but what really has shown up during this World Cup cycle is his ability as a playmaker. He's become silky in the final third as a playmaker under new Juventus coach Luciano Spaletti and he's always been a threat off a volley. He's a threat wherever he is. Some people have argued that over the last 12 months he's been our best player. Tanner Tessmann - 24, Lyon (France) Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Earth-199999 Josh Lambo Wait, Tanner Tessmann didn't get called in? We're going to roll with 4 true central midfielders the WHOLE tournament? oooooooooookayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!
Sebastian Berhalter - 25, Vancouver Whitecaps (MLS)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Dillon Brooks in a World of Lebrons Kind of an agitator but really just a defensive midfielder who doesn't care what you feel, and won't hesitate to come back at you. Has been an excellent MLS player for a few years now, and really seems to be favored by Poch for the intensity he brings to every moment he's on the pitch. Has an interesting set of skills including excellent ability on set pieces, always very valuable in tournament settings, but I think it's a legitimate question about whether this is a level above where he can play at right now. He's looked a little bit lost in games against higher level opponents and I don't love him as our only true Tyler Adams replacement.
Cristian Roldan - 30, Seattle Sounders (MLS)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Joe Flacco
I really like Roldan and I think it's correct to include him in the squad, that's not going to be an opinion shared by a specifically online segment of the fanbase, but I think it's backed up by his veteran status and an excellent MLS season. He's played all over the field but settled in as a really high level in MLS central midfielder. I doubt you'll see him much, he's mostly there to be a vet, and be flexible, both Berhalter and Pochettino have agreed this is an important role for him to fill.
Offensive Tweeners:
Malik Tillman - 24, Bayer Leverkusen (Germany) Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Almost Cade Cunningham
Malik might be tied with Sergino as my favorite player to watch in a USMNT jersey. He brings super high level playmaking, and more bite then you expect on defense. He's an extremely smart presser and he has that little extra bit of magic in the final third of the field that the US has historically lacked. Expect to see him on the right side of the field opposite Christian Pulisic. He'll play more underneath than a traditional winger; he'll also track back more. Poch has implied that a couple of guys are under consideration to play as more traditional center midfielders and if any of them can do it, it's Malik, who's the most impactful defender of the offensive tweeners.
Gio Reyna - 23, Borussia Monchengladbach (Germany)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Kerry Wood, Darren McFadden, Brandon Roy, Monica Seles
There's a lot to say about Gio Reyna, and I only have like 4 sentences to write a blurb, so I'm going to miss some stuff. Gio comes from a long line of all time talents, including his father, whose bodies have trouble holding up as professional athletes and in the case of Gio, it seems like he doesn't trust his body. His significant injury history seems to have effected Gio's physicality in a way that alters how he is now able to be used. When he does play, and when he's locked in, however, he might be the most purely talented soccer player the United States has ever produced. Poch has said he considers Gio one of those guys who could deputize as a true center midfielder, but I'd be shocked if Gio was anything more than a super sub we bring on to chase a goal in the last 25 minutes a game.
Timothy Weah - 26, Olympique de Marseille (France)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Lane Hutson, Isaiah Collier
Weah is a tweener in that, he could play as either an offensive or defensive wide player. Timmy has become a rare beast, an assist first winger and sometimes wingback who doesn't score a ton. He's played on both sides of the field and on all 3 lines (forward, midfield, and defense) for Juventus and OM. Not that he can't score goals, it's just that he doesn't as much as you might like. He's got a nasty acceleration gear, he excels at finding his way to the endline and whipping in a grounded pass to a body in the box. I'm not sure what Poch envisions for Timothy, I imagine with this roster he's going to be a sub that you love to see getting off the bench. Brendan Aaronson - 25, Leeds United (England)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Lu Dort's Little Brother
Brendan's not imposing enough physically to be a full on Lou Dort, but he's definitely pesky enough. Coming off a pretty good season with Leeds in the Premier League, The Medford Messi always seemed likely to make the roster, but is definitely one of the last couple of names to expect to see. He's a defensive offensive player, which DOES have value, but it's situational value. You bring him on to run a million miles and bother back lines and deep lying midfielders and hope to force a mistake. Brendan's taken steps this year as a playmaker and goal scorer, but he's never going to be Pulisic or Tillman in the final third.
Strikers and Wingers: Christian Pulisic - 27, AC Milan (Italy)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Marvin Harrison Sr crossed with Randy Orton crossed with Kirk Cousins
A quiet off the field performer and an intense on the field one. Christian Pulisic is miscast as the Captain America of US Soccer, he's just not that kind of guy. A clinical finisher and dangerously quick winger Pulisic clearly doesn't care for the press he gets, but understands it's a part of the gig. Very rarely does someone who's as high level a prospect as Pulisic reach the level he has reached. He has been the best winger in England, and the goal/assist leader in Italy, but he's also had long stretches with a dip in form and significant injuries that have impacted his top end speed. He can be beaten with physicality if the ref's don't protect him and it seems like at times he can get wrapped up in those feelings. But look, you're going to see a lot of Christian Pulisic over the next few weeks, and there IS a reason for it. You can't give the guy an inch in front of goal, he's going to RKO you out of nowhere. By most metrics he's the best American player of all time, and he's truly been special since he debuted with Borussia Dortmund at 17, he's just a -2 Charisma check.
Alejandro Zendejas - 28, Club America (Mexico)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Prime Kyle Lowry A player I'm glad found his way onto the roster. He hadn't played a ton for Poch in the lead up to the world cup squad selection but clearly his form in Liga MX and his unique to the US style intrigued him enough. Zendejas brings a little bit of Mexican soccer style to the team. He's quick and shifty, creative on the ball, he's going to take guys on. There's some real dark arts ability in his game, he's going to draw fouls, he's going to be a pain in the ass in a way that American players typically aren't. A little bit of that extra problem solving and that fuck you I'm scoring mindset is not a bad thing.
Folarin Balogun - 24, AS Monaco (France) Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Emeka Egbuka An awesome all around striker. Potentially the best pure striker we've had in the pool, ever. Balogun has good size, speed, finishing, excellent movement off the ball for a striker his age and even solid hold up play in some moments. I mean he really does do every striker thing well, and I think he's primed for an excellent world cup. A little guilty at times of hauling off and going for goal in a situation where there might be a better wait and see option, but I think Balogun is quite a nice player all around. Ricardo Pepi - 23, PSV Eindhoven (Dutch League)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Young Jamal Crawford, Tyler Boyd An odd body type to match with his style of play, Pepi is a lanky 6'1" finisher who doesn't boast elite speed and doesn't always look like he plays with high level technical ability; if you watch what he does, you'll be surprised at how well he play makes and how lethal he is as a scorer. Guy puts the ball in the net there's no denying it. He's done it at an insane pace for PSV for a few years now, but he's never done it as the A1 Guy, the #1 Boy. At PSV he's often sat behind veteran strikers, and with the USMNT he's often been either left out, like Berhalter did at the 2022 World Cup or behind Balogun like I imagine will happen at this world cup. That said, he'll be an excellent injection of playmaking off the bench, and I'd expect at least one great Pepi moment, he's the real deal as a talent.
Haji Wright - 28, Coventry City (Promoted from English Second Division to English First Division)
Non Soccer Athlete He's Like: Cody Bellinger (Derogatory), Dejounte Murray (Complimentary)
A classic archetype of American soccer player, big, strong, fast, tall as hell. Haji Wright has had a journeyman's career, he's played all over Europe from Germany to Denmark to Turkiye where he had a real breakout to England where he's going to be the main offensive threat to newly promoted Coventry City in the Premier League. Haji has often played out wide on the left and that makes him an interesting puzzle piece if/when we're chasing a goal late. He's going to be a problem against undersized defenseman who aren't able to match his combination of size, speed and technical ability, but he DOES go cold, like, he can go really cold, and he isn't the presser that Balogun, Pepi and Tillman are. Expect to not see much Haji, he's pretty firmly behind Pepi and Balogun and we only play one striker.
Expectations/Closing
People don't write it often, because no one cares, but American Soccer has taken a step up the last decade. Winning a world cup, that's probably off the table. We've got like, maybe 4 guys who'd even make the roster for a France/Spain/Portugal/England/Brazil. But from a roster talent perspective there's real talent here, we've got a great coach we've got some genuinely talented guys at the peak of their powers, there should be optimism. There's sustainable excellence in play, and nothing less than a top 16 finish can be considered a success.
But World Cups are weird, and there teams that have gone far with less talent, and if you're this US squad, and you've played even halves against elite competition in the run up to the tournament (even if it fell apart in the second half), and you've destroyed Mexico so badly in the last 8 years that they've had to rebuild top to bottom multiple times, and you've smoked Senegal, the African champions, you have to be asking, why can't we make a top 8 or a top 4? Why not us?
Additional Resources: Want to go deeper? Want to become a soccer person? Here's a few things I recommend: Podcasts: Total Soccer Show (The Athletic Podcast Network) The Scuffed Soccer Podcast (excellent coverage of both the men's and women's national teams, join the discord server!) Soccer 101 by The TSS guys The Cooligans (a looser look at US Soccer)
Unfiltered Podcast with Landon Donavon & Tim Howard (if you want to hear the old heads prattle on) Blogs/Newsletters: Tactics Free Zone by Matt Doyle (a great newsletter from a veteran MLS writer about both MLS and the USMNT Backheeled (the best place for in depth analysis and tactics) US Soccer Collective (the TRUE sicko shit)
Sports! with Rodger Sherman (not a soccer guy by trade but great event coverage) Forums: Reddit.com/r/USsoccer (a great place to check for clips, highlights, internet opinions) BigSoccer.com - the Original soccer posting forum
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