MARIETTA, Ga. (AP) — Mauricio Pochettino told American soccer players they can achieve what almost no one thinks is possible: win the World Cup.
“Why not us? Why not us? Why not us?" he said Friday. “We need to really believe that we can be there. We need to dream.”
Ahead of friendlies against Belgium on Saturday and Portugal on Tuesday, Pochettino publicly repeated a message he delivered directly to players when they reported to camp this week.
“Dreams,”
he added, “inspire reality.”
The U.S. hasn't reached the World Cup semifinals since the initial tournament in 1930 and hasn't advanced to the quarterfinals since 2002. Since then, the Americans were knocked out in the round of 16 in 2010, 2014 and 2022, were eliminated in the group stage in 2006 and failed to qualify in 2018.
Only eight nations have won a World Cup: Brazil (five titles), Germany and Italy (four each), Argentina (three), France and Uruguay (two apiece), and England and Spain (one each).
Pochettino, a former Argentina national team defender who replaced Gregg Berhalter as U.S. coach in late 2024, cited American mentality as cause for optimism.
“I hear another day a press conference from some coaching staff in another national team and (they) say, `OK, if we say we are going to win, we are showing too much arrogance,'" he explained. “If we say, well, it is going to be difficult to win. It’s negative. It’s not optimistic. It's creating negative things. What I am saying: I am here because I believe that we can win and what I can tell to the people is really believe.”
At the World Cup, the 15th-ranked U.S. opens against No. 41 Paraguay on June 12 at Inglewood, California, faces 27th-ranked Australia one week later at Seattle and closes the group stage against No. 23 Turkey or No. 78 Kosovo in Inglewood on June 25. As co-hosts, the U.S., Mexico and Canada are seeded and avoid facing top nations in the first round.
With the expansion of the World Cup to 48 nations from 32, the top two teams in each of 12 groups advance to a new round of 32 along with the best eight third-place teams.
The last time third-place teams reached the knockout round was the also the last time the United States hosted the World Cup, a 24-team tournament in 1994. And the Americans advanced as one of them, but then lost to eventual champion Brazil in the round of 16.
“We need to send the right energy and good emotion to the people, for the people to really believe in us and to support us, for sure,” Pochettino said.
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