Mauricio Pochettino, the coach of the U.S. men's national soccer team, has signed a new contract to stay on with the team through the 2030 FIFA World Cup, U.S. Soccer announced Monday.
"Mauricio and his staff believe in the future of soccer in the United States and our new project allows us to build on progress of the USMNT and the momentum of U.S. Soccer," JT Batson, the CEO of U.S. Soccer, said in a statement.
Pochettino was hired in 2024 to right the ship after the men's team stumbled in a crucial tournament in the run-up to this summer's World Cup. No coach of the U.S. men's team had ever had a resume as stacked as Pochettino's, who has led some of Europe's most well-known clubs, including Tottenham Hotspur, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea.
His original contract only bound him to the U.S. through this summer's World Cup, in which the men's team exited in the Round of 16 after a disappointing 4-1 loss to Belgium.
Before that loss, though, the team's performance had been a resounding success. Its three wins, over Paraguay, Australia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, were the most the U.S. men had ever won in a World Cup. Tens of thousands of fans packed into the stands to watch each game, and millions more Americans tuned in on TV — including a combined average of 50.1 million who watched the Round of 16 defeat between broadcasts on Fox and Telemundo, which made the loss the most-watched soccer broadcast in American history.
"Working together with U.S. Soccer over the past two years, it has become clear to us that there is tremendous potential to make the Men's National Team program even stronger," said Pochettino. "The passion we experienced from the fans throughout the World Cup only strengthened our belief in what is possible here. We are excited by the opportunity to bring all our experience and knowledge to even more areas of U.S. Soccer while helping strengthen the pathways for players, coaches and teams across the Federation."
Pochettino's new contract runs through the 2030 World Cup, which is set to take place mostly in Spain, Portugal and Morocco. Before then, the U.S. men's team will take part in multiple major international tournaments, including next year's CONCACAF Nations League and CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Pochettino and his staff will also "advise and support U.S. Soccer on the broader development of the full National Team pathway, youth soccer, coaching education, professional league collaboration and other technical facets across the soccer community," the organization said.
Copyright 2026 NPR
