World Cup: ‘Why not us?’ — Inside Mauricio Pochettino’s U.S. soccer revolution
DANA POINT, Calif. — Mauricio Pochettino is sitting in his makeshift office at the U.S. World Cup team’s hotel, the French doors opened to a patio overlooking the sun stubbornly dipping over the Pacific.Four lemons sit in a bowl, a practice the 54-year-old Argentine believes absorbs negative energy. An unused surfboard leans in the corner, decorated in ocean-themed designs by the hotel’s executive sous chef, who is also an artist.Down the bluff and in the blue water, surfers are catching the day’s last waves before darkness descends. Even the seagulls seem happy.This isn’t heaven, but it’s just around the corner from it.Pochettino’s 20-month coaching project is also in a state of bliss. His U.S. squad began the World Cup with two impressive victories and clinched first place in Group D with one match to spare. The Americans will play winless Turkiye on Thursday at SoFi Stadium before facing a third-place team in the round of 32 on July 1 in Santa Clara, California.While getting to the quarterfinals for the first time in 24 years would be celebrated, Pochettino has gotten his team to believe in more.Behind his desk, the team motto is plastered on the wall: Why Not U.S.In marker, Pochettino has written quotes and aspirational messages on the wall cover.“Every single quote represents our journey from day one to today,” he told a small gathering of reporters Tuesday evening.They include:“The talent has brought us here, but it is heart, effort and unity that will make us unforgettable.”“Heart turns effort into belief and when everything hurts, heart keeps us fighting together.”“Now is our time!” with the date, time and score of the three-goal victory over Paraguay in the June 12 opener.“Believe, work, compete” is strung together in a circle.“Without one,” Pochettino says, shaking his head, “disaster.”There are more.“Thank you for being more than a team – for being a family.”On a whiteboard, in both English and Spanish, a message reads: “Don’t fear the void; it’s where the soul learns to fly.”A cynic would dismiss them as corny and contrived, but to Pochettino, these quotes epitomize the mindset and attitude that his soaring squad has embraced leading to, and at, the World Cup.Mauricio Pochettino of the United States waves to fans after the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group D match between the USA and Australia on June 19, 2026 at Seattle Stadium in Seattle, Washington.Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesDefying the public’s — if not the team’s — expectations, the Americans have performed with a pirate’s swashbuckling and an artist’s grace. They are playing — gasp! — quality soccer.Thoughts of a deep run in the tournament are no longer fantasy. Few if anyone is calling them a trophy contender, but after decades mostly in the wilderness, the U.S. is finding its way.It was not a smooth process.When he was hired, at a program-record $6 million salary, “we misjudged,” he said. “The situation was worse than we really believed. We were so excited, because we were telling the players from day one, ‘Oh, it's a World Cup! We start to play in one year and a half!’”While the staff was prepared for the World Cup, the program was not.“We receive a big punch. … We say, ‘What the f–k?’ Because we were so excited,” he said.The slow process of creating a fresh culture, identifying the right players and formulating a strategy took time.“When you put the first seed in the soil, you don't see nothing,” he said, “and then you start to grow the tree.”Before the situation could improve, it needed to hit bottom. That occurred in March 2025 at the CONCACAF Nations League’s final four outside Los Angeles, where the U.S. finished fourth out of the four qualified teams.Cameron Carter-Vickers from United States reacts after losing to Canada in the third-place game in the the CONCACAF Nations League at SoFi Stadium.Luiza Moraes/USSF via Getty Images“We expected it,” Pochettino said. “It was more of a plan. It was painful but it was necessary. … It was a good crash.”He then stripped the team down and started building it back up, beginning with a young squad at the CONCACAF Gold Cup that summer. From there, things began to take hold. The U.S. went unbeaten in the last five matches of 2025, all against World Cup-bound teams.“We challenge people, we challenge the organization, we challenge players, we challenge everyone,” he said. “That was the process. Now, it's not a coincidence of what is going on” at the World Cup.Winger Tim Weah said Pochettino introduced “South American grit.”“When you look at teams like Argentina and Paraguay, when you look at Brazil, the Colombias, they always have that edge because of their mentality, and they're just nonstop,” Weah said. “It's something I don't think we had before.”Having changed the team’s mentality, Pochettino began working on the group’s belief in itself and what was possible.In November, referencing South Korea in 2002 and Morocco in 2022 making the World Cup semifinals against all odds, Pochettino asked the players, “Why not us?”“It unified everyone,” Pochettino said Tuesday.Four months later, following back-to-back smackdowns by Belgium and Portugal, the U.S. looked anything like a team prepared for World Cup success. Pochettino, though, wasn’t troubled by the results. “We start to see the progress,” he said.The sparkling performance in the World Cup opener came at the same venue (SoFi Stadium) as the dreary Nations League effort in March 2025. The undercard to the Mexico-Canada semifinal, the U.S. match against Panama (which the Americans lost 1-0) was witnessed by just a few thousand. It was a similarly dreary turnout for the third-place game against Canada (a 2-1 loss).“I didn’t recognize [the stadium for the World Cup opener] because it was empty” the last time he was there, Pochettino said.Huge crowds supporting visiting teams was an eye-opener for Pochettino, a former Argentine World Cup defender accustomed to full support when the national team played at home.A pro-Mexican crowd for the 2025 Gold Cup final against the U.S. in Houston left him “crying in the dressing room because I feel so sad,” he said. “We play in our own country and 70,000 Mexican [fans] are singing.”He was heartened by the enthusiasm of U.S. fans at the final World Cup tuneups against Senegal in Charlotte and Germany in Chicago, followed by the raucous support for the Group D matches in greater Los Angeles and Seattle.“Different vibe, different energy, so engaged with us,” he said. “That was amazing.”Although Pochettino does not live in the U.S. — he has homes in London and Barcelona — he has acquired a greater appreciation for the nation. Last fall, he attended the Ohio State-Texas football game and, after witnessing the deep passion of the fan bases, he wondered, “Why not with us, with soccer?”He loves country music, in particular Lainey Wilson, whom he discovered by watching the TV series “Yellowstone.” He saw Teddy Swims in concert in New York last winter.He enjoys John Denver’s “Country Roads” — the team’s victory song that has players and fans alike singing in unison.“Difficult to follow the lyrics,” he said. “I am learning.”As for Pochettino’s future, his U.S. contract expires after the World Cup. He is sure to receive offers from clubs in Europe, where he made his coaching name with Tottenham Hotspur, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, among others.He said he hasn’t ruled out staying with the U.S. program.“We told the federation we are open,” he said, “but we don’t want to distract when all the energy needs to be with my players.”If he were to stay, he said he’d like to help strengthen the sport’s foundation.“If the American people start to show passion in our sport too, why not be here being part of something that can create a legacy?” he said. “For me, the most important legacy is the connection between the national team and the fans. For me, the legacy is not to win the World Cup. Of course, we want to win, but that [connection] is the legacy we need if one day we want to be very successful and be consistent. Why not be part of that?”
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