U.S. Soccer turns World Cup buzz into a bigger bet
After the USMNT’s record TV audience, federation leaders are pitching a long plan built around youth soccer, the Olympics and donors.
By Deshawn Carter · Sports Writer
4 min read
More than 50 million people watched the U.S. men’s national team lose 4-1 to Belgium in the World Cup round of 16, CBS Sports reported, giving U.S. Soccer a record domestic audience and a fresh sales pitch.
Ten days after that exit, federation chief executive J.T. Batson and chief operating officer Dan Helfrich outlined the next push at U.S. Soccer’s new national training center in Fayetteville, Georgia. Their message: the World Cup run should feed into a longer stretch that includes the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and the 2031 Women’s World Cup.
Batson told CBS Sports that the 2026 World Cup had changed the path of soccer in the United States from the federation’s view. He compared the moment to the mid-to-late 1990s, when the 1994 men’s World Cup, the 1996 Olympics and the 1999 Women’s World Cup helped lift the sport’s profile.
The federation’s targets are plain enough: keep the women’s program competing for World Cups and push the men’s team closer to that level. Batson said the task is to put U.S. Soccer in the best position to do both.
Big jobs still need names
U.S. Soccer now has about 600 employees and is looking to add more, CBS Sports reported. Two of the most visible questions sit at the top of the sporting operation: the sporting director role and the USMNT head coach job.
Mauricio Pochettino, who coached the men’s team at the World Cup, remains in talks with the federation, according to Batson. CBS Sports reported that U.S. Soccer moved before the tournament to keep him, but there is no public timeline for a final decision.
The sporting director post has been open since Matt Crocker left in April. Helfrich currently has the final say, while figures including Oguchi Onyewu, Barry Pauwels, Tracey Kevins and women’s national team coach Emma Hayes are part of discussions on short-term choices and future structure, Helfrich told CBS Sports.
One major appointment is already done. Steve Cherundolo, the former U.S. international and ex-LAFC coach, will lead the American men at the 2028 Olympics. Batson said Pochettino played an important part in that hire.
The men’s Olympic tournament is for under-23 players, while the women’s competition uses senior teams. Helfrich said U.S. Soccer is treating the men’s event in Los Angeles as a priority, both as a chance to win a medal and as preparation for players who could later reach a senior World Cup.
Youth soccer gets the spotlight again
The broader plan centers on making youth soccer easier to access and better connected. CBS Sports reported that U.S. Soccer wants more opportunities for young players, with leaders repeatedly stressing alignment across leagues, clubs and other groups.
The federation is pointing to its $250 million national training center as part of that effort. The facility has hosted U-20 women’s teams from the United States, England and Colombia ahead of the World Cup in Poland this fall, and it has also held coaching education courses.
Arsene Wenger, FIFA’s chief of global football development and the former Arsenal manager, has worked with U.S. Soccer for years. Wenger told CBS Sports that American soccer must build technical skill early, saying players need foot skills developed from ages five, six and seven.
U.S. Soccer has also announced a plan to give every school in Atlanta access to soccer, with hopes of expanding similar efforts to other major cities. Helfrich said the federation is not trying to make the existing system cheaper, but to create a new one that sharply cuts travel demands, which he identified as a major barrier for families.
Donors and governments may be part of the bill
Batson told CBS Sports that affordable does not mean free. Philanthropy has already played a role in the federation’s work, with donors contributing to Pochettino’s salary and to the national training center.
Local government may also be asked to help. Batson pointed to public money already spent on basketball hoops, parks, schools and high school football, arguing that similar civic support could help soccer development.
The federation has no finished blueprint yet. Its leaders are betting that the attention from the World Cup, the Olympics on home soil and another Women’s World Cup can turn this summer’s surge into a longer American soccer boom.
This story draws on original reporting from CBS Sports.