The new head coach of the US men’s national team, Mauricio Pochettino, said he plans to take the team to the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup on home soil, a feat they have not accomplished since 2002.
Pochettino suggested the target is not just his but also shared by US Soccer’s senior players, who have long hoped a statement-making performance on the pitch would herald a new chapter in football growth in the country.
“The truth is that the quarterfinals are the goal,” the head coach said in an episode of the series It’s called football podcast. “They were very clear and I’m very honest with you and I think that was the idea, the challenge. They know it’s going to be hard, but I’m a person and we’re people who really, really believe we can do it. We all think the talented group can perform better and are up for the challenge.”
The USMNT has advanced beyond the World Cup round of 16 only twice, although the first was in the inaugural tournament in 1930, when the knockout rounds began in the semi-finals. The only time the team played in the quarter-finals was in 2002, when they were ousted by Germany in a controversial 1-0 defeat.
It’s an ambitious target for Pochettino and company, but not a surprise at this point. The Argentinian is an unprecedented and high-profile coach for the USMNT, a team largely led by American coaches with experience in local football, but Pochettino’s experience in the Premier League and Ligue 1 saw him become US Soccer’s highest-paid coach . ever. He was equally ambitious in his first press conference since taking the job last week, encouraging the USMNT and those around them to think big.
“We have to believe that we can win, that we can win all your games, that we can win the World Cup,” he said. “Because if not, it will be so difficult to show that and we want players to arrive.” Think big on the first day of training camp and that’s the only way to create this philosophy.”
Pochettino will coach his first USMNT matches next month when the team plays friendlies against Panama and Mexico.