Gregg Berhalter’s time with the U.S men’s national team has come to an end, opening the door to a new regime ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Berhalter was released as head coach on Wednesday, only one week after the USMNT’s early exit from the 2024 Copa America. The Americans were eliminated in the group stage of the tournament, suffering back-to-back defeats to Panama and Uruguay respectively in crucial matches.
Berhalter helped get the program back on track during his first spell as head coach, rebounding from the 2018 World Cup failure to get back to the competition in 2022. A pair of rivalry wins over Mexico in both the CONCACAF Nations League and Gold Cup competitions, gave the new group of USMNT stars their first trophy lifts of their international careers and set the standard for how the Americans should be faring in federation tournaments.
U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker praised Berhalter’s impact during his five years as head coach, but also admitted that recent results didn’t help his cause to stay as head coach heading into the final.
“We’ve got to win. And we didn’t achieve that from our perspective,” Crocker said in a conference call with reporters. “But when I do look at the work and the effort that Gregg has put in and other staff have put into the program over the last five years, I wanted to make sure that I really took my time and was decisive with my decision-making that at the time I felt was right and not being driven by anybody else.
“I think five years is a long time, and there’s been a lot of building blocks that have been put in place,” he added. “It was a very, very young group, originally, and there has been progress made, but now is the time to turn that progress into winning. There’s been progress in the group, but that progress hasn’t translated into enough wins in that tournament, which is pretty critical.”
Berhalter’s exit now opens the door for a new head coach to come into the program, a vital move ahead of the 2026 World Cup on home soil. Former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is the biggest name on the market following his departure from Anfield last May while MLS coaches Steve Cherundolo and Wilfried Nancy (MLS Cup winners in 2022 and 2023 respectively) have also been speculated to be on USSF’s radar.
Klopp, Cherundolo, and Nancy will likely demand more than Berhalter’s salary ($2 million + bonuses in 2022) if they were to take the job as head coach, especially with the excitement of the World Cup only two years away. Figuring out the financials will be a major task for Crocker and the rest of U.S. Soccer this summer, but getting the right coach also remains a high priority.
“I know it’s a really competitive market out there salarywise, and we have to be competitive to get the level of coach that I believe can take the program forward in terms of achieving the results that we need to do on the field,” Crocker added. “But I’m also really conscious that we need to continue to drive for higher standards and equality. But I don’t think that’s going to be a stumbling block in terms of our investment; our national team is a priority. It’s something we’re prepared to invest in and something that we will be investing in.
“I just want to get the best coach possible,” he added. “And whether they’re from the U.S. or elsewhere, they’ve got to fit the profile, which is a serial winning coach, somebody that can continue to develop this potential group of players.”
