In a surprising turn of events, the U.S. Soccer Federation announced on Wednesday the dismissal of Gregg Berhalter as the head coach of the U.S. Men’s National Team. The decision comes in the wake of the team’s unexpected early exit from the ongoing Copa America tournament.
As the host nation, expectations were high for the USA to perform strongly in Group C. However, losses to Panama and Uruguay in the group stages saw the team finish without progression to the knockout phase—a first in their five Copa America appearances.
Matt Crocker, the U.S. Soccer Sporting Director, spearheaded a comprehensive 10-day review before reaching the decision to relieve Berhalter of his duties. The review process included consultations with President Cindy Parlow Cone, CEO J.T. Batson, Vice President of Sporting Oguchi Onyewu, and members of the board of directors.
“I want to thank Gregg for his hard work and dedication to U.S. Soccer and our Men’s National Team,” said Cone in an official statement. “We are now focused on working with our Sporting Director Matt Crocker and leveraging his experience at the highest levels of the sport to ensure we find the right person to lead the USMNT into a new era of on-field success.”
Berhalter expressed his sentiments in a personal statement: “The Copa America result is extremely disappointing and I take full responsibility for our performance. Our approach and process was always focused on the 2026 World Cup and I remain confident that this group will be one of the great stories in 2026.”
Berhalter’s tenure with the national team spanned two periods between December 2018 and July 2024, with an eight-month hiatus from December 2022 to August 2023. Under his leadership, the team secured 44 wins out of 74 matches, alongside 13 draws and 17 losses. Notably, the team reached the Round of 16 at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar in 2022 before being eliminated by the Netherlands.
The United States is set to co-host the FIFA World Cup in 2026 alongside Canada and Mexico, amplifying the importance of finding a new head coach who can steer the team to success on home soil.
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USA coach Gregg Berhalter fired after early Copa America exit
cgtn.com
