The embarrassing and disappointing group-stage exit from the 2024 Copa America has left the United States men seemingly rudderless just two years before a pivotal summer of soccer in the country.
Set to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the USMNT took a massive step back this summer with their final opportunity to prove themselves against top nations outside their own confederation.
Now, with precious little time and opportunity to turn things around, U.S. Soccer has a massive decision to make. Do they stick with Gregg Berhalter — who has built the United States into a CONCACAF powerhouse but has fallen short at every attempt to get over the hump and into the upper global echelon? Or, do they go in another direction without a perfect candidate sitting available waiting to be called upon?
The Sporting News has already made the case for moving on from Berhalter, and many respected voices have also come to that conclusion, such as Jeff Carlisle of ESPN and Henry Bushnell of Yahoo. Should that come to pass, here are a few candidates who could be primed to get a call from U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker, as well as a few names who are likely simply out of his reach.
MORE: Why U.S. Soccer should move on from head coach Gregg Berhalter after Copa America disaster
Top candidates for USA head coach if Gregg Berhalter is fired
David Wagner
Maybe the most qualified candidate for the position given his experience, German-born American international David Wagner will certainly get a call if U.S. Soccer end up with a vacancy.
Wagner earned eight USMNT caps during his playing days, and since moving to coaching, has been a relatively successful club manager. After beginning his coaching career with the Borussia Dortmund reserve side, Wagner has enjoyed spells in charge of Huddersfield Town and Norwich City in the top two English leagues, and spent time in charge of German club Schalke between those two.
He has been out of a job since being harshly dismissed by Norwich following their defeat in the Championship playoff semifinal. He’ll be one of the first options for Matt Crocker, who will have to move quickly as Wagner has also been touted as an option for the opening at South Korea.
Hugo Perez
A former U.S. international with 76 caps in his playing days, Hugo Perez began his coaching career in the U.S. Soccer youth setup, leading the Under-15 side from 2012 to 2014 when he abruptly left the coaching ranks. While his departure has always been publicly amicable, there have been unconfirmed rumors for years that he was railroaded by various individuals above him in the hierarchy.
Perez went on to join the coaching ranks of his native El Salvador, where he rose to lead the senior side from 2021 to 2023, being widely praised for his production in a job with very few resources or support.
If Perez was interested in the position — which by his social media posts prior to the Uruguay defeat wishing them well it seems like he would be — U.S. Soccer would be silly not to give him a call.
Im grateful for that the @USMNT has given me throughout my life. Unless im playing against them, I will wish them the best
— Hugo Perez (@HugoPerezDT) July 1, 2024
Wilfried Nancy
The quintessential rising-star candidate, Columbus Crew head coach Wilfried Nancy has been touted by many on social media as a quality potential replacement for Berhalter.
The 47-year-old Frenchman is an MLS lifer when it comes to his coaching career, beginning in 2011 with the Montreal Impact youth setup before being hired to coach the senior team for the 2021 and 2022 seasons. He was then hired by the Crew in 2023, where he has skyrocketed to stardom, winning the MLS Cup in his first season and reaching the CONCACAF Champions League final the year after.
Still, there are significant risks with this direction, most of which revolve around his inexperience. He has been a senior manager at the club level for less than four full seasons, and has never coached or played in the international arena. Additionally, being solely an MLS hire would risk angering the growing subsection of fans who feel that a domestic influence is a negative for both players and coaches.
Jesse Marsch
It’s unavoidable that Jesse Marsch’s name will come up for pretty much every USMNT head coach vacancy for the near future. Having managed in MLS, the Premier League, the Champions League, and now internationally, Marsch is far and away the most experienced American manager not to have been hired in the position before, making him an obvious candidate for the position, and a quality one at that.
However, the timing of this makes it relatively unlikely that Marsch would be either available or interested in the position. The 50-year-old was just hired around two months ago to lead Canada, and now sits in charge of the only one of the CONCACAF big three nations to qualify for the 2024 Copa America knockout stage.
Marsch would be a very strong candidate, but aside from the timing, he has his negatives as well. His run-and-gun high-pressing tactics are still quite untested on the international scene, where simple tactics and defensive structure often reign supreme, and some of his recent comments made while serving as a media personality call into question his personnel decision-making.
Jim Curtin
The Philadelphia Union head coach was mentioned as a candidate during the last USMNT head coaching search after the 2022 World Cup, and at the time he openly stated he would even consider leaving his MLS job for a role as an assistant coach under the hired individual.
Curtin is the second-longest tenured head coach in MLS behind only Peter Vermes of Sporting KC, in his position since 2014. In that time, Curtin has been wildly successful, building one of the most consistent performers in the league year-in, year-out.
However, his stock has plummeted in recent years. The Union sit 12th in the Eastern Conference this season having taken an enormous step back, which has only intensified attention on the most glaring absence of Curtin’s resume — despite all the regular season success with the Union, he has never won an MLS Cup. Curtin’s time with the Union may be coming to an abrupt end sooner than many believed, and it would be difficult to hire a coach with such an aura as the next USMNT boss.
Roberto Martinez
Currently the boss of the Portugal national team, who are alive in the Euro 2024 quarterfinals, Roberto Martinez could be an experienced candidate who would excite the Euro-loving side of the fanbase.
Martinez is as experienced as they come, having managed English clubs Everton, Wigan, and Swansea City at the club level before transitioning to the international stage where he’s led Belgium and Portugal. He is well-versed in American soccer, having served as an ESPN analyst through the 2014 FIFA World Cup and impressing in his brief media stint.
However, there are pitfalls. The 50-year-old Spaniard has been often criticized for his managerial tendencies, both tactically and off the pitch. He failed to spur on the “golden generation” in his time at the helm of Belgium, giving way to fears of a repeat in the same situation with the United States.
With Portugal, he’s been criticized at Euro 2024 in numerous areas, most notably for his over-reliance on over-the-hill veterans like Cristiano Ronaldo and Pepe when there are clearly talented youngsters waiting to contribute. His tactics have also appeared quite aged in recent years, having struggled to adapt with the rapidly changing game.
There’s nobody more battle-tested than Martinez, but critics will have plenty to chew on if he’s selected.
Other potential USMNT head coach candidates
- Steve Cherundolo (LAFC)
- Pellegrino Matarazzo (Stuttgart, Hoffenheim)
- Thierry Henry (Montreal Impact, AS Monaco)
MORE: Read the case for Thierry Henry as USMNT head coach, compiled after the 2022 World Cup
Are Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola realistic options for USMNT?
As much as U.S. fans and media want to trumpet their chances at landing one of the top coaches in the world, neither Jurgen Klopp nor Pep Guardiola are serious candidates for the position.
For both of them, money would likely be the first — and potentially most daunting — roadblock. There isn’t a ton of reporting on Pep Guardiola’s salary at Man City, but the general consensus seems to be that he earns somewhere north of $ 20 million per year on his current contract, which expires in 2025. Jurgen Klopp, meanwhile, reportedly made approximately $ 19 million in his final Liverpool season.
Compare that to what Gregg Berhalter earns, which was $ 2.29 million in 2022 including bonuses and is reportedly similar for his new contract signed in 2023. Even looking at just international soccer, the highest-paid coach at the 2022 World Cup, Hansi Flick of Germany, earned $ 6.5 million, which would require U.S. Soccer to nearly triple Berhalter’s salary, and Klopp or Guardiola would likely want more.
The two sides are, simply, not remotely in the same ballpark, meaning Klopp or Guardiola would have to take an enormous pay cut just to be within a realistic range for the United States, even if U.S. Soccer increased their pay window significantly. Sure, Guardiola has a connection and a love for the United States — heck, he was just in Boston to watch the Celtics win the NBA Championship and apparently has a relationship with coach Joe Mazzulla.
But it’s just not happening. The only way this could come to fruition is if U.S. Soccer gets the financial backing of MLS owners to chip in and finance a massive deal, which Canada managed to pull off in hiring Jesse Marsch. Yet the difference here is that Canada are in truly dire financial straits, while U.S. Soccer has shown no indication of insolvency.
Additionally, this would cause massive equal pay issues when U.S. Soccer just months ago touted USWNT coach Emma Hayes as the world’s highest-paid women’s coach when they gave her the same salary as Berhalter. Paying Klopp or Guardiola an insane amount of money would only complicate that recent achievement.
For Klopp, he left his beloved Liverpool after last season aiming to take at least a year away from football coaching before considering a return. Despite that, he’s still been linked to just about every open position at a top club and international side by simple virtue of his perceived availability.
It seems that Klopp is serious about his sabbatical, and the U.S. aren’t remotely in a position to be the job he breaks that promise for. If nothing else, it would be a slap in the face to Liverpool, a club he has obvious genuine love for, to take up another position so quickly after claiming exhaustion as the reason for his exit.
