Following an embarrassing and disappointing exit from the group stage of the 2024 Copa America, the U.S. national team appears to be lost its rudder just two years before a pivotal summer for soccer in the country.
The U.S. men’s national team, scheduled to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup, suffered a major setback this summer in its final opportunity to prove itself against a powerhouse other than its own nation.
Now, with precious little time and opportunity to turn things around, U.S. Soccer is faced with a crucial decision: Stick with Gregg Berhalter, who built the U.S. into a CONCACAF powerhouse but has failed in every attempt to break through that barrier and join the top teams in the world, or go in a different direction with no perfect candidate waiting to be called upon?
Sporting News has already argued that Berhalter should be fired, and many other prominent commentators, including ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle and Yahoo’s Henry Bushnell, have come to that conclusion. If that were to happen, we’ve listed a few names of candidates who could get a call from U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker, as well as some who are probably out of his reach.
Read more: Why the U.S. Soccer Federation should fire coach Gregg Berhalter after disastrous Copa America defeat
Leading candidate to become U.S. national team coach if Gregg Berhalter is fired
David Wagner
German-born U.S. international player David Wagner is perhaps the best candidate for the position given his experience and would certainly be called up if a vacancy were to occur with U.S. Soccer.
Wagner was capped eight times by the United States national team during his playing career and has enjoyed a relatively successful career as a club manager since moving into coaching, beginning his career with Borussia Dortmund’s reserve team before going on to manage English top two clubs Huddersfield Town and Norwich City, with a stint at German club Schalke in between.
He has been out of work since being harshly sacked by Norwich after their Championship play-off semi-final defeat and he will be one of Matt Crocker’s first-choice options.
Hugo Perez
Hugo Pérez, a former U.S. national team coach who won 76 caps during his playing career, began his coaching career in the youth division of U.S. Soccer, managing the under-15 team from 2012 to 2014, before suddenly stepping down as coach. While his departure was always publicly amicable, unconfirmed rumors had circulated for years that he had been treated unfairly by various individuals higher up in the hierarchy.
Pérez then joined the coaching staff of his native El Salvador, where he managed the first team from 2021 to 2023 and was widely praised for his performance with little resources or support.
If Perez was interested in the position, and it seems like he would be, based on his social media posts wishing the team victory before the loss to Uruguay, the U.S. Soccer Federation would be foolish not to give him a call.
I am grateful for that USA What they’ve given me throughout my life. As long as I’m not playing against them, I wish them the best of luck.
— Hugo Perez (@HugoPerezDT) July 1, 2024
Wilfried Nancy
Columbus Crew head coach Wilfried Nancy, a quintessential rising star candidate, has been hailed by many on social media as a likely replacement for Berhalter.
The 47-year-old Frenchman began his coaching career in MLS in 2011 with the Montreal Impact youth team before being hired as coach of the senior team for the 2021 and 2022 seasons. He was then hired by the Crew in 2023 and rose to stardom, winning the MLS Cup in his first year and reaching the CONCACAF Champions League final the following year.
Still, there are significant risks to this approach, most of which have to do with his inexperience — he’s spent less than four seasons as a senior manager at club level and has never played or coached on the international stage — and, moreover, an MLS-only hire risks angering a growing number of fans who believe that domestic influence is a negative for both players and coaches.
Jesse Marsh
It’s inevitable that Jesse Marsh’s name will come up for almost every vacant U.S. men’s national team managerial position in the near future. Having managed in MLS, the Premier League, the Champions League and now on the international stage, Marsh is by far the most experienced American manager to ever hold the job, making him the obvious candidate for the position – and a good one at that.
But the timing makes the position highly unlikely, and one that Marsh has no interest in. The 50-year-old was only hired just over two months ago to coach Canada, the only one of CONCACAF’s big three that will play in the knockout stages of the 2024 Copa America.
Marsh is a very strong candidate, but he has flaws beyond just his timing: His run-and-gun, high-pressing tactics have yet to be fully tested on the international stage, where simpler tactics and defensive structures often prevail, and some of his recent comments while operating as a media personality have called into question his personnel decisions.
Jim Curtin
The Philadelphia Union head coach was mentioned as a candidate during the last U.S. men’s national team head coaching search after the 2022 World Cup, and publicly stated at the time that he would consider leaving his MLS job to work as an assistant coach under whoever was hired.
Curtin is the second-longest-tenured head coach in MLS behind Sporting KC’s Peter Vermes, who has held the position since 2014. During that time, Curtin has been highly successful, developing one of the league’s most consistent teams year after year.
But his reputation has plummeted in recent years. The Union took a major step back this season, sitting 12th in the Eastern Conference, which only draws attention to the most glaring omission in Curtin’s resume: despite his regular-season success with the Union, he has never won an MLS Cup. Curtin’s time with the Union may end abruptly sooner than many thought, and a coach with that kind of aura would be tough to hire as the next USMNT manager.
Thierry Henry
Sporting News recommended Thierry Henry for the U.S. men’s national team coach position during the last vacancy after the 2022 World Cup, but little has changed regarding his candidacy since then.
While Henry may not have much experience as a head coach, in his time as a commentator for CBS Sports, the 46-year-old Frenchman has proven time and time again that he is not only one of the best players in the game’s history, but also one of its brightest minds.
Like many of the aforementioned, Henry’s biggest flaw is his lack of experience. The stresses of the COVID-19 pandemic caused him to resign as manager of the Montreal Impact before any visible progress could be made, and his brief stint as manager of AS Monaco was a complete failure. But since then, he has experience with some of Europe’s top international teams and knows the tactics inside out. Henry would be a capable but risky hire. While such a sacrifice would be more palatable in the lead-up to the World Cup, being hired in this manner so close to a key tournament may be hard for U.S. soccer to stomach.
Are Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola realistic options for the USMNT?
While U.S. fans and media are eager to hype the possibility of landing one of the world’s best managers, neither Jurgen Klopp nor Pep Guardiola are serious candidates for the position.
Money will be the first and perhaps most difficult hurdle for both sides. There haven’t been many reports on Pep Guardiola’s salary at Manchester City, but the general consensus seems to be that he makes more than $20 million per year under his current contract, which expires in 2025. Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp reportedly made around $19 million in his final season at Liverpool.
Compare that to Gregg Berhalter’s salary, who is reportedly making $2.29 million in 2022 with bonuses, and will make the same amount on his new contract in 2023. Looking just at international soccer, the highest-paid coach at the 2022 World Cup, Germany’s Hansi Flick, makes $6.5 million, and the U.S. Soccer Federation would demand nearly three times Berhalter’s salary, with Klopp and/or Guardiola likely asking for even more.
The positions of the two sides are not exactly the same, which means that even if the US Soccer Association were to give them a substantial salary increase, Klopp and Guardiola would have to accept a significant pay cut to stay within realistic bounds for the US. Of course, Guardiola has a connection and love for the US. In fact, he was in Boston to watch the Celtics win the NBA championship and apparently has a close relationship with coach Joe Mazzulla.
That hasn’t happened. The only way this could happen is if U.S. Soccer gets financial backing from MLS owners to cover a huge deal, which Canada did by hiring Jesse Marsh. But the difference here is that Canada is in truly dire financial straits, while U.S. Soccer is showing no signs of bankruptcy.
Furthermore, this would raise major equal pay issues, as a few months ago the US Soccer Association paid US Women’s National Team coach Emma Hayes the same salary as Berhalter, touting her as the highest-paid women’s coach in the world. Paying Klopp or Guardiola exorbitant amounts would only further complicate this recent achievement.
Klopp left his beloved Liverpool at the end of last season and intended to take at least a year off from football coaching before considering a return, and yet he finds his name in the running for almost every vacant post at a top club or country, simply because he is perceived to be available.
While Klopp seems to be seriously considering a break, the United States is hardly a place where he would be willing to break that promise. At the very least, taking up a new position so quickly after citing fatigue as the reason for his departure would be an insult to Liverpool, a club he clearly loves dearly.