The 2026 World Cup will be like a box of Neapolitan ice cream- three distinct colors and flavors all side by side with one another. The United States of America will be co-hosting along with Canada and Mexico, but make no mistake about it, the USA is the true host nation. So it’s very unfortunate that the United States Men’s National Team, or USMNT, is in such a bad place right now.
The USMNT had a disastrous summer, with most of their top players skipping out on international duty.
As a result, chances for the entire team (more importantly the core nucleus) to all play together, are now minimal. That’s too bad because the 2026 World Cup will be a perfect showcase for the USMNT, as they’ll have home field advantage. As pointed out in RG, “11 of the 16 host cities are within America’s borders.” It’s really an American World Cup, first and foremost, as next summer our nation will once again become the focal point of world football.
We say once again, because this summer saw the United States host the FIFA Club World Cup, a tournament featuring 32 different teams from across all six of the FIFA confederations.
Huge money club Chelsea beat reigning Champions League title holders PSG at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
It led to the most awkward trophy lift in history, and that trophy was a replica. The largest venue in the NYC metro area will host the 2026 World Cup Final as well. In the Club World Cup. America hosted it by itself, in 11 different cities.
So with the “U,S and A” as Borat would say, now taking center stage, the time is right for the USMNT to reach their peak.
Unfortunately, the Stars and Stripes are currently in a low cycle, during this period wedged in between the two premier global tournaments. The USMNT summer produced a series of disastrous results, culminating with the Gold Cup Final loss to arch-rival Mexico.
Yes, the U.S. were playing a team of their reserves, backups and youth, but Mexico’s program is also in a bad place right now, and that defeat was simply unacceptable.
Now is the time to carpe diem and really put some separation between yourselves and your most bitter of rivals. Not to mention all the infighting between USMNT players, past and present. That drama has already been covered, and honestly, you would need an entire separate article to cover it all.
Bottom line, Christian Pulisic, Capt. America, the face of the program, did absolutely nothing to win over the hearts and minds of Stars and Stripes supporters.
And I say that as someone who believes Pulisic deserved a rest this summer.
And of course, anything is Alexi Lalas says, can be immediately discredited, because it’s Alexi Lalas who’s saying it. Between his egregious history of bad takes and horribly backwards world views, the less we pay attention to Lalas, the better off we’ll all be.
It’s a mess of dysfunction to be sure, and Americans are all tired of the pointless drama. So many blown opportunities here- hosting two big tournaments, Mexico being down, a roster that is supposedly comprised of a USMNT “golden generation” (is there a more painfully shopworn cliche in football/soccer/futbol than this hackneyed term?) and of course, the manager.
I’m a big believer in Mauricio Pochettino, as I think his CV speaks for itself. Poch was worth the money, but it’s hard to gauge whether he’s done a good job or not so far.
He kind of inherited a messy situation.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter