US Beats Paraguay faces Uruguay Tues 7 pm on TNT/Max
Welcome back Player of the Match – Gio Reyna. Wow – how this guy struggles at his clubs baffles me – he is truly one of our most talented US players. He was the best player on the field – and short of Pulisic – I am not sure anyone makes a much of a difference for us as Gio does. He simply does things – other players can’t do. Why he doesn’t do this for his clubs – I don’t know. But for the US he simply has to be on the field. He’s why the US was able to handlle Paraguay 2-1 on the day. US Highlights
I thought the back 3 was solid at times – honestly mainly in allowing our attack to possess the ball and stay in attack much more than normal – the US with 65% possession is just not sometime I am used to seeing against Central American competition. Lets see if that holds up against the best team we have played in Uruguay. I don’t think it will as that 3 man back line looked suspect to me plenty of times last time out. I am hoping Trusty with get a run along along the back line to see if he can slide into the mix with Ream and Richards in the long term. I still am not sure Ream should be starting though he should be in the mix. I thought both Roldan and Berhalter looked fine at the 6 slot and Tessman also was solid. Hopefully Aidan Morris will get the nod this go round. Again I picked a tie or loss in our first match so don’t listen to me — but I don’t see how we pull out the win here without so many stars missing if Uruguay plays its starters which I think it will. 1-2 perhaps 2-3 seems like a reasonable count by games end. 1-2 would look better for us defensively of course. I suspect Freese in the net again with the same outside backs to start. Hopefully Pepi will get a run up front along with Haji on one win and of course Gio at the 10 again.
DETAILED ROSTER BY POSITION (Club/Country; Caps/Goals)
GOALKEEPERS (4): Roman Celentano (FC Cincinnati; 0/0), Matt Freese (New York City FC; 11/0), Jonathan Klinsmann (Cesena/ITA; 0/0), Patrick Schulte (Columbus Crew; 3/0)
DEFENDERS (9): Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew; 14/1), Sergiño Dest (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 35/2), Alex Freeman (Orlando City; 11/0), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse FC/FRA; 24/0), Tim Ream (Charlotte FC; 78/1), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati; 37/3), Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER; 21/0), John Tolkin (Holstein Kiel/GER; 4/0), Auston Trusty (Celtic/SCO; 4/0)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver Whitecaps/CAN; 7/0), Aidan Morris (Middlesbrough/ENG; 11/0), Gio Reyna (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER; 32/8), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders; 41/0), Tanner Tessmann (Olympique Lyon/FRA; 10/0), Timmy Tillman (1/0; LAFC)
FORWARDS (5): Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United/ENG; 54/9), Folarin Balogun (AS Monaco/FRA; 27/7), Diego Luna (Real Salt Lake; 16/3), Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 33/13), Haji Wright (Coventry City/ENG; 19/7
Washington Spirit vs NY/NJ Gothem – NWSL Championship Saturday on CBS 8 pm
The Washington spirit found a way to get past a bunch of injuries – including to the best player in the League – Trinity Rodman – and a interim coach in Adrian Gonzalez won at home 1-0 over the Portland Thorns (highlights) to advance to the Finals. On the other side American International Jadyn Shaw – scored a stoppage time to beat defending champions Orlando Pride and Marta on the road Sunday highlights . The final in San Jose will start Saturday at 8 pm on CBS. Washington vs Gothem Preview
US Men
Poch prepares U.S. to ‘suffer’ against ‘hero’ Bielsa
Reyna takes advantage of opportunity in return, as USMNT continues unbeaten run
USMNT player ratings: Reyna impresses with 9/10 in return
Pochettino hails Reyna’s impact on USMNT return
Reyna scores on return to USMNT lineup in win over Paraguay
Heath, Wondolowski elected to U.S. Soccer HOF
World
Germany, Netherlands clinch WC spots on last day
Benzema: Mbappé has to step up in big games
Tuchel tells Bellingham: ‘Accept, respect’ decisions
GAMES ON TV
Tues, Nov 18
2:45 pm FS2 Belgium vs Liechhtenstein WCQ
4 pm ?? Canada vs Venezuela
7 pm TNT, Max USA Men vs Uruguay Tampa, FL
8:30 pm Univision Mexico vs Paraguay
Weds, Nov 19
12:45 pm ESPN+ Juventus vs OL Lyonnes (Heaps) Women’s UCL
12:45 pm CBSSN Wolfsburg vs Man United Women’s (GK Joyce) UCL
3 pm CBSSN Arsenal vs Real Madrid Women’s UCL
Thurs, Nov 20
12:45 pm CBSSN Twente vs Atletico Madrid Women’s UCL
3 pm CBSSN PSG vs Bayern Munich Women’s UCL
3 pm ESPN+ Chelsea vs Barcelona Women’s UCL
Sat, Nov 22
7:30 am USA Burnley vs Chelsea
9:30 am ESPN+ Heidenheim vs Mgladbach (Reyna & Scally)
9:30 am ESPN+ Bayern Munich vs Freiburg
9:30 am ESPN+ Wolfsburg vs Bayer Leverkusen (Tilman)
10 am USA Bournmouth (Adams) vs West Ham United
10 am Peacock Wolverhampton vs Crystal Palace (Richards)
10 am Pk Liverpool vs Nottingham Forest
10:15 AM ESPN+ Barcelona vs Athletic Club
12 noon Para+ Juventus (McKinny) vs Fiorentina
12:30 pm NBC New Castle vs Man United
8 pm CBS NWSL CHAMPIONSHIP Washington Spirit (Rodman) vs Gothem (Lavell, Shaw)
9:30 pm Apple TV Vancouver vs LAFC MLS Playoffs
Friday
- Mainz vs Hoffenheim, 2:30p on ESPN DTC, ESPN Select, FuboTV: Lennard Maloney and Mainz host Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga.
- Nice vs Marseille, 2:45p on beIN Sports USA, beIN Sports en Español, FuboTV, Sling TV, Fanatiz: Tim Weah and OM visit OGC Nice in Ligue 1.
- Standard Liège vs Zulte Waregem, 2:45p: Marlon Fossey and Standard host Zulte Waregem in Belgium’s top tier.
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Reyna impresses in return, as USMNT continues unbeaten run
Jeff CarlisleNov 16, 2025, 05:29 AM ET
CHESTER, Pennsylvania — It had been 503 days since Gio Reyna last started a game for the U.S. men’s national team. It had been 602 days since he last scored for the USMNT. On a chilly night outside of Philadelphia, the U.S. attacker ended both streaks in a 2-1 friendly win with Paraguay.It was a performance that marked a major step forward for Reyna in his chance to secure a spot in his second consecutive World Cup squad. It’s a goal that seemed incongruous heading into the match, given Reyna has logged only 147 minutes with club side Borussia Mönchengladbach all season.But U.S. manager Mauricio Pochettino told Reyna at training on Friday that he would be in the starting lineup, and it didn’t take the midfielder long to make his mark in this match.
– USMNT player ratings: Reyna impresses with 9/10 in return
– How the USMNT combats jet lag: Fly kits, supplements, sleep masks
– How Roldan went from USMNT afterthought to Pochettino favorite
In the fourth minute, a goalmouth scramble following a U.S. corner saw the ball fall to Max Arfsten, and his cross was nodded home by Reyna. The U.S. midfielder was also involved in the sequence that led to the U.S. side’s game-winning goal in the 75th minute, when his centering feed was deflected into the path of Folarin Balogun, allowing the AS Monaco forward to slot home.The USMNT’s initial tally in the match was the ninth of Reyna’s international career, putting him one ahead of his father Claudio on the USMNT’s all-time scoring list and giving the younger Reyna a bit of familial bragging rights.”Honestly, I had no idea,” Reyna said about passing his father.”I didn’t even know how many goals I had to be honest, so I was just happy to score, happy to be back. I sent a few texts teasing him after the game, but he was happy for me, so it’s nice.”Reyna did have a few blips on the night. His failure to close down Paraguay defender Júnior Alonso was the first domino to fall in the buildup to Paraguay’s 10th-minute equalizer by Alex Arce. (Defenders Tim Ream and Miles Robinson needed to drop quicker and deeper on the play as well.)Yet those were rare for Reyna on the night. He was busy throughout, spraying passes and connecting with teammates. The 75 minutes he logged were his longest in a match since he went 77 minutes for Borussia Dortmund against TSG Hoffenheim on Dec. 15, 2024.Reyna’s lack of minutes with Gladbach have been due to a few factors. A thigh injury slowed his progress, and he has also been trying to get acclimated to a new club. And while Reyna has long been a player who didn’t need to have everything clicking at the club level to excel for the national team, he credited the support of Gladbach’s staff for helping him deliver Saturday night’s impressive performance. He said he’s back up to 85% of full fitness and expects that to improve.”Obviously, I had a little injury that I was still recovering from the last few weeks, but they’ve been fantastic with building me up to full fitness and slowly getting there as you can see that tonight,” he said about his club.”But yeah, I definitely expect when I get back to definitely start more matches, but they’ve been great. So I think it’s a lot of credit to them too and how they’ve sort of pushed me and believed in me and sort of set me back to be prepared to play on this stage.”He added about his time at Gladbach, “I feel really, really good, feel valued, feel important, feel ready to go. So obviously, when you feel better mentally, you can definitely play better on the field too.”To be clear, Reyna hasn’t banished all of the doubts surrounding his position with the team going forward.Think for a second what had to happen for Reyna just to get on the field for this match. Weston McKennie, Christian Pulisic, Malik Tillman, Timothy Weah and Alejandro Zendejas — players who have featured in an attacking role in the past, or could in the future — all missed the match because of either injury or, in the case of McKennie, the desire of Pochettino to leave McKennie back in Italy as he tries to impress new Juventus manager Luciano Spalletti.When those players return, Reyna will need to find a way to prove to Pochettino that he still deserves to be on the field.There’s also the rather significant fact that Reyna has yet to really crack the Gladbach lineup consistently. Staying healthy is part of the trick to remaining in the lineup, and Reyna hasn’t shown for some time that he can do that. The performance against Paraguay alone can’t be looked at as a breakthrough. It has to be followed by another, and another, and another.Reyna realizes this. The clock to the World Cup is ticking with just 208 days to go. But he was presented with a rare opportunity to impress, and he took it. Pochettino certainly took notice.[Reyna] confirmed that he’s a player that needs to improve because he needs to play more in his club,” Pochettino said.”But we can see today that he was great — scored and assisted — in the way that always showed the capacity to read the game and find the free space in between the lines. I think [he] was a nightmare for Paraguay and I think he did a very good job.”Reyna wasn’t the only player to take advantage. In fact, the rest of this U.S. side, one that was missing enough players to almost field a separate starting lineup, did as well. In the first half, the match settled into the kind of physical contest that was reminiscent of last year’s 1-0 Copa America loss to Uruguay, one that ultimately eliminated the U.S. from the tournament.In that match, La Celeste slowly ground the U.S. into dust with some ferocious physical play. On this occasion, it was the U.S. who applied the pressure, both physical and technical, by pressing Paraguay bit by bit until La Albirroja finally wilted.Tanner Tessmann and Brenden Aaronson were instrumental in tilting the field more in the USMNT’s favor. On the game winner, it was that relentless pressing, in this case by substitute Diego Luna, that saw the ball initially pop free to Balogun, who played the ball through to Reyna. The goal soon followed, capping off a night for Balogun that saw him absorb some heavy challenges only to produce in a critical moment.
For Ream, the key to how the U.S. finishes matches can be traced back to how it starts them.”I think it starts from being aggressive from the first whistle, and kind of in a way just laying a marker and having the other team understand that we’re here to fight, we’re here to play, we’re here to win a game and we’re not going to treat it as a friendly either,” Ream said.That was evident in stoppage time when Paraguay’s Gustavo Gómez and U.S. defender Alex Freeman grappled for the ball on what was whistled as a U.S. throw-in, sparking a bench-clearing melee. Incredibly, just one red card to Paraguay’s Omar Alderete, who didn’t even play in the game, was issued. But it was another example of how this U.S. team isn’t backing down from anyone.”There were a few cheap shots thrown from their end to be honest,” said U.S. keeper Matt Freese.”But it’s part of being a team, and we’re going to be standing up for each other no matter the moment, no matter the end of the game, beginning of the game, in the middle of the game on the sideline like that. That’s what it means to be a team, and I don’t think I’ve ever moved that quickly getting in there.”The U.S., unbeaten in its past four matches, continues to ride a wave of momentum. With each passing game, there is more cohesion and an increased understanding of what Pochettino wants. The U.S. manager has succeeded in making the U.S. players comfortable with being uncomfortable, and that isn’t about to change.”Big credit, but that is not enough,” Pochettino said.”We are happy. We need to keep going because we need to improve, improve, improve, and arrive to the World Cup in our best, in our peak. And that shows that it’s not about the name, it’s about the team, it’s about the collective, it’s about the idea of the altogether.”Uruguay, a team with its own ethos of physicality and grit, combined with ability (it had a 0-0 draw against Mexico on the same night), is up next on Tuesday. Reyna in particular feels ready to go and will be keen to prove he’s back for good.
USMNT players who proved the most – and have more to prove – after beating Paraguay
Kyle Ross / Imagn ImagesBy Paul Tenorio
Nov. 15, 2025Updated Nov. 16, 2025CHESTER, Pa. — The signs of the progression of Mauricio Pochettino’s national team have manifested not just in the results — and after Saturday’s 2-1 win over Paraguay, that’s now four straight unbeaten, all against World Cup-qualified teams, if you’re counting — but also in how the team is playing.The U.S. has looked increasingly confident on the field. A team that felt for months like it lacked an identity now has a distinct personality. The Americans aren’t rigid in how they play, but the ideas of the system are consistent and effective. They are aggressive in how they press and how they attack. There is a demand not to shrink away, no matter the opponent.It starts from being aggressive from the first whistle,” Tim Ream, who captained the U.S. once again Saturday, said. “And kind of, in a way, just laying a marker and having the other team understand that we’re here to fight, we’re here to play, we’re here to win a game.”Comfort begets confidence. Confidence begets more comfort. Over the last three windows that has been the ebb and flow of this national team. After the win over Paraguay, another game in which the U.S. looked calm, composed and in control, the talk around the national team was about thinking less.They know who they are.“We were talking now in the dressing room with the players, how they started to feel the football that we want to apply on the pitch,” Pochettino said.What is most impressive about it all is that the team that played on Saturday is not at all the same as the team that played last month in Denver. Four players in the starting lineup against Paraguay — Gio Reyna, Sergiño Dest, Joe Scally and Brenden Aaronson — had not started in any of the previous three games. Pochettino started 24 different players across the last four games.Still, the comfort in the system has sustained. That’s a testament to the progress of the whole, he said.
“It always takes time to implement, to set the principles,” Pochettino said. “And then our experience always happen: in Espanyol, in Southampton, in Tottenham, in Paris Saint-Germain and in Chelsea. Always with time we can apply the ideas, the philosophy, the culture that we want to implement. It always takes time … and decisions, strong decisions. Sometimes people cannot understand why we decide something, or we take some decision, but that is our duty.”And in Saturday’s friendly, with players like Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, Chris Richards, Tim Weah, Malik Tillman, Antonee Robinson and Tyler Adams absent, several others had a chance to make an impression.
Gio Reyna enjoyed a successful return to the U.S. men’s national team in Saturday’s friendly vs. ParaguayVincent Carchietta / Getty Images
The big winner
The most prominent, of course, was Reyna. The 23-year-old midfielder scored in the fourth minute and showed his quality on the ball in several key moments over the game. Reyna was more active off the ball, though he was late to press on Paraguay’s lone goal. Still, Reyna certainly made an argument for future inclusion in this squad.
“I think he did a very good job,” Pochettino said. “I’m so happy with him. He showed why he started and confirmed he is a player that needs to improve, because he needs to play more in his club, but we can see today he was great. … Always the capacity to read the game and find the free space in between the lines. I think it was a nightmare for Paraguay.”
Tuesday against Uruguay – if he features again – will present a different challenge for Reyna, who said after the game he was about 85 percent fit. Pochettino has said that he will value players who show they have the fitness and ability to play several games in a short amount of time. Reyna, obviously, has had injury issues over the past several seasons, and playing time at Borussia Monchengladbach has been spotty. Tuesday will be an important test to show he can play a role in games a few days apart.
“I feel like I can play again,” Reyna said. “I’m going to do everything I can to be ready to play (however) many minutes required. But I haven’t even thought about that yet.”
USMNT defender Joe Scally is back in camp for the first time since last MarchDrew Hallowell / Getty Images
A mixed bag out wide
Scally and Dest both had positives and negatives in their respective performances. Scally came into this game with more to prove, especially considering that his skillset and versatility make him a strong fit for the hybrid fullback-right center back role in Pochettino’s system.The U.S. plays a back four, but builds out of a back three with two central midfielders. Scally fits well to stay in that back three in possession. While he was exposed with the speed of Miguel Almirón on the U.S. goal, the Atlanta United winger was sprung by a gorgeous long ball and took the ball beautifully to play a one-time cross. No doubt, Pochettino will see value in Scally at a position where he has been searching for consistency beyond Tim Ream and Miles Robinson.
Dest, meanwhile, thrives in a more attacking role. He pushed forward effectively against Paraguay and adds a dynamism on the right side that, combined with Reyna and Balogun, kept the opponent off balance.
A need to show more
Aaronson, meanwhile, tried to show he can be an effective option in central midfield. He brings such incredibly different qualities than his counterparts at the position. The U.S. has started players like Pulisic, Reyna, Tillman and Diego Luna in attacking midfield – all players who want to get in the half spaces and get on the ball. But Aaronson’s aggressiveness and ability to press could bring a different look off the bench in certain scenarios at the World Cup.
His performance was solid against Paraguay, but Aaronson has plenty more to gain if he gets minutes against Uruguay. He needs to show he can also create goals and be dangerous in and around the box.
Ricardo Pepi scuffs a great chance to score vs. ParaguayOmar Vega / Getty Images
The same is true for Ricardo Pepi, who came into the game as a substitute for his first U.S. appearance since last November. Pochettino said this week that Pepi was behind the other strikers simply because he’s been away from the team and working back from injury for so long, but he felt it was important to bring him in.
When the PSV striker missed a golden opportunity in the second half, though, it felt like a bigger miss to show Pochettino why he was a top-three forward in the pool, and thus a World Cup striker. That’s the type of role Pepi will likely need to master at the World Cup – the ability to come off the bench and deliver in the clutch moments. Pepi, typically a very effective super sub, will look for another chance to find that goal on Tuesday.
Many of the players spoke this week about how little time there was left to make an impression and win a job. The intensity in camp is increasing as the competition gets more real. Tuesday’s friendly in Florida will give the Americans perhaps their toughest test of the last three windows — probably the best team they will have seen since a South Korea side that is the last to beat them.or the players here, the audition continues.“You can see today all the players that were on the pitch, how they show their quality, the capacity to play (entertaining) football,” Pochettino said. “I think we created chances. We were better. It’s very competitive and difficult to beat (us). Big credit. But that is not enough. We are happy. We need to keep going. Because we need to improve, improve, improve, and arrive to the World Cup in our best, in our peak.”
By Paul Tenorio Senior Writer, MLS
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Alex Freeman details USMNT’s fight vs. Paraguay and the battle scars that prove a point
Alex Freeman and Gustavo Gomez got into a fight near the end of USA vs. Paraguay. Drew Hallowell / Getty Images
Nov. 17, 2025Updated 1:37 pm EST
TAMPA, Fla. — Alex Freeman, two days after being bloodied in a melee near the end of the U.S. men’s national team’s win over Paraguay, said that his dad, former NFL receiver Antonio Freeman, was “proud I stood my ground.”
“You know him, he loves the [scuffle] stuff,” Freeman said with a smile.
The two spoke after the game. Alex said Antonio was also “happy I kept my head, didn’t do anything stupid to get a red [card].”
The fight kicked off when Freeman and Paraguay’s Gustavo Gómez both attempted to grab a ball that had gone out of play for a throw-in.
“Obviously it was our throw-in,” Freeman recalled, “so I was just going to grab the ball. And then he grabbed it at the same time. And … he kinda had me in a headlock, and I didn’t think that was fair.
“And then it just turned into a whole thing. It was next to their bench, so obviously they had the numbers.”
Freeman’s U.S. teammate, Sebastian Berhalter, instantly sprinted over to the scene and tried to get at Gómez. “It just shows that he’s got my back, and I got his,” Freeman said.
“I was very happy with the way we supported each other,” U.S. goalkeeper Matt Freese said after the match. “There were a few cheap shots thrown from their end, to be honest. But that’s part of being a team, we’ll be sticking up for each other no matter the moment.”
At first, Freeman didn’t realize the scuffle had turned into a massive scrum, with dozens of players and staff from both sides involved. Then, suddenly, “everybody was surrounding me, I was kinda getting jabbed everywhere,” he recounted. “So, I tried to get out of there as soon as possible.”
He escaped to the side, away from the U.S. bench. A Paraguayan player dragged him to the ground. Another, Diego Gómez, almost appeared to kick him, then restrained him as that portion of the melee cooled off.
USMNT players did not back down from a scuffle vs. Paraguay at the end of their friendly.Vincent Carchietta / Getty Images
Meanwhile, U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino, who’d rushed to the scene, fell into a miniature camera well with Berhalter. Paraguay coach Gustavo Alfaro recognized and helped Pochettino to his feet. Pochettino later lamented that the situation was “very, very dangerous” before striking a bit of a different tone on Monday.
“We all feel now very proud about the way that we acted and behaved. Alex was defending and caring about the ball,” Pochettino said. “That showed character, and that we care. I really was happy when that happened. Because I think when the aggression is coming from the other side, we need to defend [ourselves].”
Pochettino “always tells us to fight, fight, fight,” U.S. wingback Max Arfsten said postgame. “I think we embody that.”
Freeman said that any bad blood stayed “on the field” and didn’t linger afterward. He did, though, come out of the scrum with what appeared to be a bloody lip. He also told The Athletic on Monday that he had a wound on the back of his neck, potentially from the initial headlock. He also rolled up the sleeve of his jacket to reveal a (now-closed) cut on the inside of his wrist.
But he was smiling as he displayed the scars. He was also smiling as he looked ahead to Tuesday’s game against Uruguay. He remembers watching the last U.S.-Uruguay game, at the 2024 Copa América, when the U.S. struggled to match Uruguay’s physicality. “It was very scrappy,” Freeman said.
Now, after his first game against a South American opponent, he feels like he’s “lived it. And obviously I’ve started one [fight].”
Which, he said, is “good. It’s good that we have that before the World Cup, have that scrappiness, and be able to see what we’re made of.”
“We’re not scared of anything, as a U.S. team. If it was a problem in the past, it’s definitely not a problem now.”
The USMNT is making progress. The fans it hoped to attract haven’t (yet) noticed.
Mark Smith / ISI Photos / USSF / Getty Images
By Henry Bushnell Nov. 17, 2025 7:00 am EST
TAMPA — It was 10 months ago that JT Batson sat onstage at the United Soccer Coaches convention and laid out his ambitious vision for U.S. men’s national team games ahead of the 2026 World Cup. “We want to play in the biggest stadiums possible, in front of the most people possible, full stop,” Batson, U.S. Soccer’s CEO, said. “Our national team events should be huge events,” he continued. “They should be parties, they should be celebrations of soccer, and they should be something that everybody looks forward to.” In many other countries, they are all of that. With the men’s World Cup coming here, the thinking went, and buzz presumably building, USMNT matches could pack NFL stadiums. They could, at least temporarily, be marquee occasions. But it hasn’t happened. At least not yet. The USMNT’s second-to-last game of 2025, against Paraguay on Saturday outside Philadelphia, failed to fill the 18,500-seat Subaru Park (despite the best efforts of thousands of exuberant Paraguay fans). Instead, it seemingly prompted Mauricio Pochettino, the USMNT’s Argentine coach, to make yet another plea for supporters.“We need our fans [to] follow and support the national team. And we need to build that relationship,” Pochettino said, tangentially, at his post-match news conference. “Our fans need to be fans of USA men’s national team, and to follow our crest, our flag, our colors. That is the most important.“In Argentina, Argentina is more important than any name. In Brazil, the same. In England, the same. In Spain, the same,” he continued. “In every single country, in Paraguay, it’s the same. … Who is the hero? The team. The team need to be their hero.”
Mauricio Pochettino has urged fans to get behind his USMNT, but the response at friendlies has been mixed.John Dorton / ISI Photos / USSF / Getty Images
Why hasn’t this happened in the U.S.? The reasons are deep, complicated and debatable. Many of them are broad, cultural, long-standing and irreversible, far beyond Pochettino’s scope. Soccer’s development, of course, was delayed and backwards here in the States compared to other countries. U.S. national team games became expensive and overly commercialized before they became unmissable events that the average sports fan — or even the average soccer fan — felt a connection to.The hope was that a looming World Cup would fuel connection. Excitement and patriotism would bring people in as the tournament approached. U.S. Soccer’s goal, from a business and sporting perspective, was to replicate World Cup environments in the two dozen games it organized between the 2022 and 2026 World Cups.“Ideally, we’re playing a high-profile opponent in big stadiums, because that’s what the World Cup’s gonna be,” then-coach Gregg Berhalter said in February 2024. “That’s our ideal. That’s our No. 1 filter. How do we play the best possible opponent in the biggest possible stadium?”But they simply haven’t done that. In 2025, their games at NFL stadiums have been either full of Mexico fans or more than half empty. Their friendlies have all been at MLS grounds or, in one case, a 36,000-seat college football stadium.They haven’t done it, in part, because the best possible opponents haven’t been available. European and South American giants were often competing in the UEFA Nations League or World Cup qualifiers while U.S. Soccer was searching for opponents to fill the vacuum created by automatic qualification.And the games that were organized haven’t gone to NFL stadiums because the USMNT, on its own and without much to play for until 2026, hasn’t inspired the excitement necessary to fill those stadiums — or even come close.In 2023, the program was on the rise. In 2024, over three Copa América games, it drew 162,478 fans to NFL stadiums. But the Americans crashed out of that tournament, and momentum stalled. Arguably, it reversed and became disillusionment. U.S. Soccer’s hiring of Pochettino caught the attention of soccer fans, but it didn’t change the popular narrative. It didn’t make the team more likable. It didn’t bring many new fans in.Then, after the U.S. lost to Panama and Canada in March, and after a B-plus squad met relatively low expectations at the Gold Cup this summer, apathy seemed to set in.
Mauricio Pochettino salutes U.S. fans after playing Panama at Austin FC’s Q2 Stadium in his first match as U.S. manager in October 2024John Dorton / ISI Photos / USSF / Getty Images
Over the past two months, the USMNT has begun to inspire some optimism. With three wins and a draw in its last four games, all against 2026 World Cup participants, the outlook has improved. This was the context for Pochettino’s Saturday plea. “We are happy. We need to keep going,” he said. “Because we need to improve, improve, improve, and arrive to the World Cup in our peak.” And the fans, he argued, could be a part of that.“If we are capable [of attracting] our fans, and [they] support us, I think we can create a very good building between the fans and us, and arrive to the World Cup very, very strong,” Pochettino said. “Because our players need the support of the fans. They need the energy from the fans. And that is an important thing, that is my message to our fans — keep pushing, believe in the national team.”The hope is that the tide of support begins to rise in March, when the U.S. will play Portugal and likely Belgium — as long as Belgium beats Liechtenstein on Tuesday to qualify for the World Cup and avoid a European playoff.
There will then be two friendlies in late May and early June, sendoff games before the USMNT sets up its World Cup camp at the University of California, Irvine, an hour southeast of Los Angeles. By then, surely, NFL stadiums will fill. But for now, there are only friendlies between depleted squads, with no stakes or World Cup implications, just as there has been for the better part of the past three years. So, the buzz remains muted. Tuesday’s match against Uruguay here at Raymond James Stadium, the first USMNT friendly at an NFL stadium since June of 2024, will probably bring more of the same. Upper-deck tickets are not being sold, according to Ticketmaster, and although there are advertisements at Tampa International Airport and elsewhere around town, plenty of lower-bowl tickets remain available.
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By Henry Bushnell Senior Writer, U.S. Soccer
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Madrid struggled last time out against Liverpool (Oli Scarff/AFP via Getty Images)
Barcelona thrashed Bayern on Matchday three (David Ramos/Getty Images)
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Netherlands celebrates scoring the opening goal against the U.S. (Maurice Van Steen / Getty Images)
The U.S. celebrates Williams’ go-ahead goal. (Brad Smith / Getty Images)
Alyssa Naeher clears the ball during the international friendly match against the Netherlands (Pau Barrena / Getty Images)
Alyssa Naeher leads the huddle during USWNT training at ADO Den Haag Stadium. (Brad Smith / Getty Images)
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Lloyd is the first player to score a hat trick in a Women’s World Cup final. (Christopher Morris / Getty Images)
Lloyd’s comments have long divided the U.S. fanbase, and at time players. (Ira L. Black – Corbis / Getty Images)
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