On Tuesday, Mauricio Pochettino, the former manager of Tottenham and Chelsea, was appointed as the new head coach of the U.S. men’s national soccer team, stepping in for Gregg Berhalter just 21 months before the U.S. hosts the 2026 World Cup.
The 52-year-old Argentine becomes the 10th coach for the U.S. team in the past 14 years and the first foreign-born coach since Jurgen Klinsmann, who held the position from 2011 to 2016. Throughout his career, Pochettino has managed several clubs, including Espanyol in Spain (2009-2012), Southampton (2013-2014), Tottenham (2014-2019), and Chelsea (2023-2024), as well as Paris Saint-Germain in France (2021-2022), where he won a Ligue 1 title.
In a statement from the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF), Pochettino shared, “It’s about the journey that this team and this country are on. The energy, the passion, and the hunger to achieve something truly historic here — those are the things that inspired me.”
Pochettino’s hiring came after an extensive five-hour meeting in Barcelona with USSF CEO JT Batson and sporting director Matt Crocker. They had been in discussions since mid-August. Notable is that Crocker was Southampton’s academy director when Pochettino began his journey there.
While the specifics of Pochettino’s contract have not been disclosed, USSF confirmed that he will guide the team through the World Cup.
“Mauricio is a serial winner with a deep passion for player development and an impressive ability to build strong and competitive teams,” Crocker remarked. “I am certain that he is the right person to unlock the vast potential within our talented roster.”
Pochettino is expected to arrive in the U.S. on Wednesday, just two days before a press conference in New York. He will be in charge of the upcoming friendly matches against Panama on October 12 in Austin, Texas, and then against Mexico three days later. After these friendlies, he will lead the team in his first competitive games during the two-leg CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal in November.
Former U.S. goalkeeper Kasey Keller, now an analyst for ESPN, humorously noted the high expectations, saying, “It’s not as if Pochettino has Jose Mourinho’s track record, but he has definitely had success, especially at clubs like Southampton and Tottenham, where resources were relatively limited.”
Keller added, “He understands how to maximize the potential of a group that may have certain limitations. We need to remember that we are not yet on the level of teams like France, Brazil, Germany, or Argentina.”
Pochettino comes into this role with high hopes from USSF management and fans who believe that the current player pool can achieve better results than a No. 16 world ranking.
Berhalter was let go on July 10 after the U.S. was eliminated in the first round of the Copa America. He had been hired in December 2018 but was allowed to leave after the team’s 3-1 defeat by the Netherlands in the 2022 World Cup’s second round. Berhalter was briefly rehired in June 2023, but his tenure ended in September.
The specific details of Pochettino’s salary have not been released. His hiring was made possible through a leadership gift from Kenneth C. Griffin, the CEO of Citadel, and his charitable organization, Griffin Catalyst, with additional support from Scott Goodwin, the managing partner of Diameter Capital Partners, along with USSF commercial partners.
In the interim, Mikey Varas, who was an assistant to Berhalter, coached the team during two friendlies, including a 2-1 loss to Canada and a 1-1 draw against New Zealand.
As a co-host in the 2026 World Cup, the U.S. will be a seeded team, meaning it is unlikely to face any teams ranked in the top nine during the first round, thanks to the tournament’s expansion to 48 teams. If they secure top position in their group, they could avoid strong opponents in the new round of 32. The U.S. has not reached the World Cup quarterfinals since 2002.
Pochettino will likely only have eight one-week training sessions with the full player roster before gathering ahead of the World Cup. The team has notable weaknesses in the goalkeeper and central defense positions and has struggled with on-field discipline.
“I see a group of players filled with talent and potential, and together, we will create something special that the entire nation can be proud of,” Pochettino expressed.
Pochettino was a central defender in his playing days, representing Newell’s Old Boys in Argentina before playing for Espanyol, PSG, and Bordeaux in Europe from the late 1980s until 2006. He earned 20 caps for Argentina, participating in the 1999 Copa América and the 2002 World Cup, where a foul he committed on Michael Owen led to a penalty kick scored by David Beckham in Argentina’s loss to England.
After he stopped playing, Pochettino began his coaching career within the Espanyol system, becoming the first-team coach in January 2009. He successfully kept the team from being relegated, but he was dismissed in November 2012 while they were last in the standings and was hired by Southampton shortly after.
In May 2014, he moved to Tottenham, where the team reached the finals of the League Cup in 2015 (losing to Chelsea) and the Champions League final in 2019 (losing to Liverpool). He was let go in November 2019 due to the team’s poor performance.
Pochettino was brought on by PSG in January 2021. Although PSG finished second in the league and lost to Manchester City in the Champions League semifinals, they also won the French Cup by defeating Monaco. During his tenure, PSG won the Ligue 1 title in 2022 with four matches remaining, but they were eliminated by Real Madrid in the Champions League round of 16.
He departed PSG after the 2022-2023 season, before being hired by Chelsea in June 2023 after a disappointing 12th place finish for the club. Chelsea lost the League Cup final to Liverpool and finished sixth in the Premier League, missing out on Champions League qualification. Pochettino left the club just two days after their final match.
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