Former Tottenham and Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino was hired Tuesday to succeed Gregg Berhalter as U.S. men’s national team coach, 21 months before the Americans host the 2026 World Cup.
A 52-year-old Argentine, Pochettino became the 10th U.S. coach in 14 years and its first foreign-born leader since Jurgen Klinsmann from 2011-16. Pochettino has coached Espanyol in Spain (2009-12), Southampton (2013-14), Tottenham (2014-19) and Chelsea (2023-24) in England and Paris Saint-Germain in France (2021-22), leaving after winning a Ligue 1 title.
“It’s about the journey that this team and this country are on,” Pochettino said in a statement released by the USSF. “The energy, the passion, and the hunger to achieve something truly historic here — those are the things that inspired me.”
Pochettino had been in negotiations since mid-August. Matt Crocker, the USSF’s sporting director in charge of the search, was Southampton’s academy director when Pochettino started at that club. While the contract length wasn't specified, the USSF said Pochettino will lead the team at the World Cup.
“Mauricio is a serial winner with a deep passion for player development and a proven ability to build cohesive and competitive teams,” Crocker said in a statement. “His track record speaks for itself, and I am confident that he is the right choice to harness the immense potential within our talented squad."
Pochettino was to be introduced at a news conference in New York on Friday and take over for friendlies against Panama on Oct. 12 at Austin, Texas, and at Mexico three days later. The next competitive matches are a two-leg CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal in November.
“Mauricio is a world-class coach with a proven track record of developing players and achieving success at the highest levels,” USSF President Cindy Parlow Cone said in a statement. “His passion for the game, his innovative approach to coaching, and his ability to inspire and connect with players make him the perfect fit for this role.”
He arrives with high expectations from a USSF management and fan base that both believe the player pool is capable of far more than its No. 16 world ranking.
Berhalter was fired on July 10, a week after the Americans were eliminated in the first round of the Copa America. He was hired in December 2018, was allowed to leave when his contract expired following a 3-1 loss to the Netherlands in the second round of the 2022 World Cup, then was rehired in June 2023 to return in September.
Pochettino's salary was not announced. The USSF said his hiring was supported by a leadership gift from Kenneth C. Griffin, the CEO of the hedge fund Citadel, and his philanthropic entity Griffin Catalyst; with additional support from Scott Goodwin, managing partner of the asset management firm Diameter Capital Partners, and USSF commercial partners.
Mikey Varas, a Berhalter assistant, coached the team for Saturday's 2-1 defeat to Canada in an exhibition and headed the Americans for Tuesday night's game against New Zealand.
At the World Cup, the U.S. will be a seeded team as a co-host, which means it likely won't have any nations ranked among the top nine in its first-round group in a tournament expanded to 48 teams. If the Americans win the group, they probably would not face a top-level opponent in the new round of 32. The U.S. has not reached the quarterfinals since 2002.
Pochettino is likely to have his full player pool available for just eight one-week training periods before the team gathers in the weeks ahead of the Americans’ World Cup opener on June 12, 2026.
He inherits a group led by Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams, who have thrived with European clubs. But goalkeepers Matt Turner and Ethan Horvath and midfielder Gio Reyna have failed to gain playing time with first-tier teams, and Chris Richards — at England's Crystal Palace — was the only central defender in his 20s playing regularly with a top-league European club before Mark McKenzie joined Toulouse last month.
Berhalter minimized Major League Soccer players, not using any during the Copa America.
On-field discipline has been a problem, with defender Sergiño Dest getting two red cards in the past 13 months, and McKennie and winger Tim Weah receiving one each.
“I see a group of players full of talent and potential, and together, we’re going to build something special that the whole nation can be proud of,” Pochettino said.
Pochettino was a central defender who played for Newell’s Old Boys in Argentina and Espanyol, PSG and Bordeaux in Europe from the late 1980s until 2006. He made 20 appearances for Argentina, playing at the 1999 Copa América and the 2002 World Cup, where his foul of Michael Owen led to David Beckham’s penalty kick in Argentina’s 1-0 group-stage loss.
After retiring as a player, he became a coach in Espanyol’s system, took over as first-team coach in January 2009 and helped the team avoid relegation. Pochettino was fired in November 2012 with the team in last place and was hired two months later by English club Southampton.
Pochettino moved in May 2014 to Tottenham, which reached the final of the 2015 League Cup, losing to Chelsea, and the 2019 Champions League, losing to Liverpool. He was fired in November 2019 with Spurs in 14th place and replaced by Jose Mourinho.
PSG hired Pochettino in January 2021. The team finished second in the league and lost to Manchester City in the Champions League semifinals but won the French Cup, beating Monaco 2-0 in the final. Led by Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, PSG clinched the 2022 Ligue 1 title with four games to spare but lost to Real Madrid in the Champions League round of 16.
Pochettino left PSG at the end of the 2022-23 season, then was hired by Chelsea in June 2023 after the club finished 12th. Chelsea lost the League Cup final to Liverpool and finished sixth in the Premier League, missing out on the Champions League. Pochettino left two days after the final match.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Ronald Blum, The Associated Press