Oh captain, our captain! When the United States Men’s National Team walks out onto the field tomorrow for their match against Mexico, a familiar name will be leading them out. Today, USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino announced that midfielder Tyler Adams has been named the captain of the team moving forward.
The move to a full-time captain comes after Tim Ream’s retirement
from the USMNT after he led the team as captain throughout much of the two years Pochettino has been in charge as head coach. Ream captained the team through the 2026 World Cup. However, Tyler Adams was the full-time captain before that, being handed the armband in 2021 by then-coach Gregg Berhalter. Adams captained the team at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and was largely viewed as the captain after that, though the armband rotated among several players, until the 2024 Copa América. At the 2024 Copa América, Berhalter named Christian Pulisic as the captain.
Despite not having the captain’s armband, Tyler Adams has remained one of the leaders of the team. And, as the team enters a new cycle, Pochettino has awarded Adams the armband to take this team into the next four years, which will include Concacaf Nations League, the Concacaf Gold Cup, potentially the 2028 Copa América, and 2030 World Cup qualifying.
Mauricio Pochettino informed the team at training on Thursday of his decision to make Adams the captain, and Adams graciously accepted the role, saying it didn’t change the fact that leadership has to be a collective attribute.
It is expected that Adams will lead the team onto the field tomorrow night when they face Mexico in a friendly in Phoenix. But moving forward, #4 will be the captain of the team, and the hope is that he can lead them to many trophies in the coming years.
