Sources: Next USMNT coach unlikely to be American candidate

Only 11 men have been the head coach of the United States men’s national team since the modern era of the program began way back in 1989, when the U.S. broke a four-decade World Cup drought by qualifying for the following year’s tournament in Italy.

Of those 11, just two — Bora Milutinović and Jürgen Klinsmann — were not American citizens.

There has long been a belief inside the halls of the U.S. Soccer Federation’s headquarters in Chicago that the USMNT ought to be led by a native or, at the very least, someone with close ties to the country, a person familiar with the domestic club scene or who “understands the mentality of the American player.”

This conventional wisdom is supported by the fact that no foreign coach has ever won a World Cup, men’s or women’s, in 31 tries all-time.

That’s probably one of the reasons Gregg Berhalter was chosen to rebuild the USMNT program after Klinsmann’s disastrous second cycle, when he and his replacement, Bruce Arena, failed to reach the 2018 World Cup, the country’s first miss in 28 years. It’s at least part of why Jesse Marsch was a finalist for the job before Berhalter was rehired in June 2023 for a second World Cup cycle.

It’s absolutely why Steve Cherundolo, Jim Curtin, Pellegrino Matarazzo, Hugo Perez, David Wagner and other U.S. passport-holders were immediately floated (both here and elsewhere) as obvious potential successors to Berhalter even before he was fired last week on the heels of the USMNT becoming the first Copa América host not to survive the competition’s group phase.

[RELATED: USMNT coaching rumors tracker: Latest buzz on who USA will hire]

In an ideal world, the USSF would love to have an American leading the home team when the World Cup returns to this country in less than two years. The national team coach’s main job is to win soccer games, sure. But he’s also expected to help sell a still-skeptical mainstream American public on the idea that the U.S. can truly compete against the best in the planet’s most popular sport.

But faced with the sobering reality that there are no U.S. coaches who are habitual winners at the highest level and available right now — if there are any at all — U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker has instead set its sights on attracting the most accomplished international manager possible, multiple sources told FOX Soccer this week.

Crocker, a Welshman who spent his entire professional career in the U.K. before assuming his current position last August, conceded as much when he spoke to a handful of national reporters shortly after Berhalter was dismissed.

“I just want to get the best coach possible that can help the team win,” Crocker said. “Whether they’re from the U.S. or elsewhere, they’ve got to fit the profile, which is a serial winning coach.”

That’s exactly what Crocker got when he successfully lured Emma Hayes from England to take over the U.S. women’s national team last fall. The intention to shoot for the stars on the men’s side became clear when multiple outlets in England reported that former Liverpool boss Jürgen Klopp was approached by U.S. Soccer before the German made it clear that he still plans to spend at least a year away from the sidelines.

Other marquee names have been linked with the USMNT’s vacant position since, though none come close to boasting a similar trophy haul to Hayes’ or Klopp’s. Per the Washington Post, representatives of Spain’s European Championship-winning manager Luis de la Fuente directly informed Crocker that their client is interested. CBS reported that former Champions League-winner Rafael Benítez had thrown his hat in the ring, too. Benítez most recently led Celta Vigo in Spain’s La Liga, where he coached USMNT midfielder Luca de la Torre.

Former Tottenham, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino is a candidate, according to Olé in his native Argentina and The Telegraph in London. Pochettino won Ligue 1 and the French Cup during his 18 months at PSG and briefly overlapped with Crocker at Premier League club Southampton in 2013. 

Then there’s Gareth Southgate, the ex-England manager who has long been admired within U.S. Soccer. Southgate worked closely with Crocker at England’s Football Association and just became available after leaving the Three Lions following back-to-back appearances in the Euro final. Still, the feeling is that Pochettino and Southgate would prefer to return to the Prem.   

[RELATED: Is Gareth Southgate a viable candidate for the USMNT coaching vacancy?]

Southgate has also never won anything as a manager. Neither has Patrick Vieira, who is suddenly free after parting ways on Thursday with France’s Strasbourg. Could someone out-of-the-box, like former Republic of Ireland midfielder Lee Carsley, be considered? Probably not: while Carsley is adept at developing young players, having led England’s U-21s to the European title last year, U.S. Soccer would surely prefer to make a much larger splash ahead of the 2026 World Cup. Domestic-based options like LAFC’s Cherundolo or the Columbus Crew’s French coach Wilfried Nancy, the two most recent MLS Cup champions, are now considered long shots for the same reason. 

It remains to be seen if any of the European-based names above ultimately land the U.S. job. But these are the types of coaches apparently being prioritized by Crocker, who sources told FOX Sports is overseas this week meeting with potential candidates. That in itself is a major departure from recent USMNT precedent.

Doug McIntyre is a soccer writer for FOX Sports who has covered the United States men’s and women’s national teams at FIFA World Cups on five continents. Follow him at @ByDougMcIntyre.

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