Mauricio Pochettino emphasizes that U.S. men’s national soccer players should aim to achieve the same level of success as their female counterparts. He believes that the women’s team’s remarkable accomplishments serve as a benchmark for excellence.
“We are here because we want to win,” he stated during a 48-minute introductory press conference after finalizing a contract that extends through the 2026 World Cup. “We are winners. Competing is fundamentally different from merely playing. We have many examples around us that we need to emulate.”
Despite the U.S. men’s team not reaching the World Cup quarterfinals since 2002 and lacking a championship title, the American women have triumphed with four World Cup victories and five Olympic gold medals.
“We need to believe that we can win, that we can win every match, that we can win the World Cup,” he asserted, highlighting the importance of a winning mindset.
At 52 years old, Pochettino is stepping into the role of a national team coach for the first time, becoming the 10th coach for the U.S. in the last 14 years and the first foreign-born manager since Jürgen Klinsmann from 2011 to 2016. He takes over from Gregg Berhalter, who was dismissed shortly after the U.S. was knocked out in the Copa América.
Emma Hayes, who transitioned from managing Chelsea to becoming the U.S. women’s coach this year, played a significant role in bringing Pochettino on board.
“I didn’t need to ask,” he recalled. “She provided all the details.”
Hayes led her first practice session on May 28 and guided the team to an Olympic gold medal just 74 days later.
Dressed in a dark jacket and a white dress shirt without a tie, Pochettino was accompanied by U.S. Soccer Federation President Cindy Parlow Cone, CEO JT Batson, and sporting director Matt Crocker, who had a prior connection with Pochettino from their time at Southampton.
“I joked with Poch that it only took Emma two months to win an Olympic gold medal, so I’m curious about what he will accomplish in two months,” Cone remarked. “We aim to prepare ourselves to win every game.”
Conversations regarding Pochettino’s hiring began in Barcelona in July.
“We spent considerable time with him,” Cone shared, “being open and honest about the various aspects of U.S. soccer, so he would understand what he was stepping into, the challenges he would face, and the opportunities available. Emma was instrumental in this process.”
“We have very talented players,” he noted. “Of course, confidence was a bit low after the Copa América. We need to demonstrate that we can function as a cohesive unit on the field.”
Pochettino arrived in the U.S. on Wednesday, just a day after his appointment, and enjoyed dinner at a sushi restaurant with key figures in American soccer on Thursday night. He plans to visit Atlanta next week with USSF officials to look for housing near the new office and training facility being built in Fayetteville, Georgia.
His press conference, held on Friday the 13th, took place in a Warner Bros. Discovery screening room at 30 Hudson Yards, only eight blocks from Berhalter’s introduction at Glasshouse Chelsea on December 4, 2018.
Pochettino’s managerial career includes stints at Espanyol in Spain (2009-12), Southampton (2013-14), Tottenham (2014-19), Chelsea (2023-24), and Paris Saint-Germain in France (2021-22), where he left after securing a French league title.
With 637 days remaining until the Americans’ World Cup opener in Inglewood, California, on June 12, 2026, Pochettino’s initial matches will be friendlies against Panama on October 12 in Austin, Texas, and a game in Mexico three days later. His first competitive outings will occur in a two-leg CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal in November.
Pochettino will likely have access to his full roster for just eight one-week training periods before the team assembles for the World Cup. The Americans face challenges in the goalkeeper and central defense positions and have struggled with maintaining discipline on the pitch.
He is bringing his trusted coaching staff, including assistant coaches Jesús Pérez and Miguel d’Agostino, along with goalkeeper coach Toni Jiménez.
USSF officials revealed that they could only afford Pochettino’s salary with financial support from hedge fund and asset management executives.
“Unless he was willing to accept a significantly lower salary,” Cone added.
