Gregg Berhalter Fired as US Men’s National Team Head Coach

Coach Gregg Berhalter of the United States directs his players during a Copa America match against Uruguay in Kansas City, Mo., on July 1, 2024. Reed Hoffman/AP Photo

The U.S. Men’s National Team will have a new face when the United States co-hosts the 2026 FIFA World Cup, as Gregg Berhalter was fired as head coach.

The United States Soccer Federation (USSF), the governing body of soccer in the U.S., announced the decision Wednesday to move on from Berhalter, whose 74 matches as USMNT coach rank as the fifth highest, while his 44 wins are the third most in team history.

“I want to thank Gregg for his hard work and dedication to U.S. Soccer and our Men’s National Team,” said U.S. Soccer President Cindy Parlow Cone. “We are now focused on working with our Sporting Director Matt Crocker and leveraging his experience at the highest levels of the sport to ensure we find the right person to lead the USMNT into a new era of on-field success.”

Crocker also said the process of finding the next coach has already begun.

Berhalter’s firing comes on the heels of a group stage exit in the 2024 Copa America. Despite the United States hosting the tournament, the USMNT suffered defeats to Panama and Uruguay as it became the Americans’ first time in their five Copa America appearances that they failed to advance out of the group stage.

Additionally, it was the first time a Copa America host failed to advance to the knockout rounds, and it was also the first time in 20 U.S.-hosted global tournaments – which include the Copa, the World Cup and the Gold Cup – in which the USMNT failed to advance past the group stage.

After the firing, Berhalter expressed disappointment in the team’s recent performance but also hope for what’s ahead for the United States Men’s National Team.

“I want to thank the U.S. Soccer Federation for entrusting me to lead this team for the past five years,” Berhalter said. “Representing our country is a tremendous honor and I am proud of the identity we have built on and off the field. It was very gratifying watching this team improve over the years and I remain grateful for the lifetime bonds created with our players, coaches, and staff members.

“The Copa America result is extremely disappointing and I take full responsibility for our performance. Our approach and process was always focused on the 2026 World Cup and I remain confident that this group will be one of the great stories in 2026.”

The 2024 Copa America was key for the U.S. due to it co-hosting the World Cup in 2026, and as a result, being able to skip the World Cup qualification process. Thus, there are no additional qualifying matches for the USMNT to prepare for the World Cup against nations outside of CONCACAF. The only other tournament the team will play between now and the 2026 World Cup will be the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup, which won’t feature top-ranked CONMEBOL teams like Argentina, Brazil or Colombia.

When originally appointed as coach in December 2018, Berhalter became the first former USMNT player to then serve as head coach. The beginning of his tenure saw the U.S. routinely find its way in tournament championship competition as the USMNT was runner-up at the 2019 Gold Cup and then won both the 2021 CONCACAF Nations League and the 2021 Gold Cup.

After a Round of 16 exit at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Berhalter’s contract expired, with the USSF not initially naming his replacement. The team first used assistant Anthony Hudson as the interim coach, before he was then replaced by fellow assistant B.J. Callaghan.

Then in June 2023, Berhalter was rehired as the team’s head coach. In a statement at the time, Crocker said that Berhalter was the person “to take this program to new heights in 2026”, but the coach ended up lasting just over one year in his second stint. He not lasting until the next World Cup means that Bruce Arena will remain as the only USMNT coach in history to lead the team in two World Cups, having done so in 2002 and 2006.

Berhalter leaves the USMNT with a 44-13-17 record, with the 44 victories trailing only his predecessor, Jurgen Klinsmann (55) and Arena (81) for most in team history. Berhalter was dominant against lesser competition, posting a 39-5-10 record against teams ranked outside the top 20 of FIFA World Ranking, but he struggled against tougher teams. Berhalter led the U.S. to just a 5-8-7 record against top-20 teams, with four of those five wins coming against Mexico.

The United States was ranked No. 25 by FIFA when Berhalter took over in Dec. 2018, and he led the squad to a ranking as high as No. 10 in Aug. 2021 after winning the Gold Cup. The team never dipped below No. 16 since then and entered the 2024 Copa America ranked 11th, with the next ranking coming on July 18, after the conclusion of the Copa and 2024 Euros.