The USMNT just played its best soccer ever at a World Cup. They made the quarterfinals in 2026, and a lot of people want to give Mauricio Pochettino credit for that. His contract runs out July 19, and U.S. Soccer has already put a new deal on the table. But Pochettino hasn’t said yes yet. So what happens if he walks?
Before we get into who could replace him, let’s talk about why Pochettino worked. This was his first national team job, but he’d managed Tottenham, Chelsea, and PSG. That European experience matters. It’s one thing to coach a club where you buy whoever you want. It’s another to build a national team identity with players you see twice a year.
This World Cup showed a clear split. Young managers like Pochettino and England’s Thomas Tuchel looked great. Older guys like Brazil’s Carlo Ancelotti and the Netherlands’ Ronald Koeman were good until they weren’t. And Marcelo Bielsa with Uruguay was a disaster. The lesson is pretty obvious: U.S. Soccer needs someone young, with recent success at a high level.
What they can’t do is go back to the well with another MLS lifer or a college guy. Gregg Berhalter, Bob Bradley, and Bruce Arena had their runs. The game has changed. So here are five options if Pochettino leaves.
Pep Guardiola
This is the dream hire. Guardiola left Manchester City after a decade and is a free agent at 55. He’s arguably the best manager ever. His possession style would suit the technical players the USMNT has coming through the pipeline.
Why would he come here? Two things. First, he and his family lived in New York for a year between Bayern and City, and he loved it. Second, the big national team jobs are mostly filled. Scaloni is staying with Argentina. Ancelotti is staying with Brazil. Zidane is taking France. Klopp is probably taking Germany. Guardiola won’t coach Spain because of his Catalan politics. The USMNT might actually be the best option available to him.
Pellegrino Matarazzo
He’s from New Jersey. He went to Columbia for applied math. He played and coached in Germany, worked as Julian Nagelsmann’s assistant, and then won the Copa del Rey with Real Sociedad in 2025. He’s the first American coach to win a major trophy in a top European league. At 48, he might prefer to keep climbing the club ladder. But if Guardiola says no, U.S. Soccer should call him immediately.
Julian Nagelsmann
Why hire the assistant when you can hire the guy he learned from? Nagelsmann is only 38, still a wunderkind type. His work at RB Leipzig was excellent, but things went bad at Bayern and then with the German national team. He might just need a fresh start in a totally different environment. Giving a smart coach a second chance after two public failures is very American. It’s what the NFL does all the time.
Steve Cherundolo
We said no Americans, but this is the exception. Cherundolo is coaching the U-23 team for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. He’s got a 57% win rate with LAFC. If he wins gold in L.A., promoting him to the senior team makes sense. Morocco did the exact same thing with Mohamed Ouahbi, who coached the U-20s to a world title and then took over the senior team. The path exists.
Mauricio Pochettino (Again)
A lot can change in four years. The USMNT has two Gold Cups, a Copa America, and the Olympics between now and the 2030 World Cup. If the next guy flames out, and Pochettino leaves his next job or sits out a season, don’t be surprised if U.S. Soccer circles back. He talked to AC Milan before Ruben Amorim got that job. He could easily be available again.
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