USA at the 2026 FIFA World Cup: Squad, Manager, Fixtures & Tournament History

The USA are heading to the FIFA World Cup™ for the twelfth time — and this time, they are bringing it home. As co-hosts of the FIFA World Cup 2026™ alongside Canada and Mexico, the Stars and Stripes carry both the organisational ambitions of a nation ready to showcase itself and the competitive hunger of a team determined to make the most of the moment.

They have been here before as hosts. In 1994, the USA staged a World Cup that brought the global game to a new audience and remains a landmark event in American sporting history. Now, under a new coach and with a squad built around one of the most talented generations the country has produced, the goal is to go further than any American team has gone since the semi-final run of 1930.

The Coach: Mauricio Pochettino

Pochettino was appointed USA head coach in September 2024, succeeding Gregg Berhalter. The former Argentina international brings elite-level experience from across European football — transformative spells at Southampton, Tottenham, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea have established him as one of the game's most respected and innovative coaches. His challenge now is to channel that experience into a team playing on the grandest stage imaginable, in front of their own supporters, for the first time.

USA's 2026 World Cup Fixtures & Group

12 June: USA v Paraguay – Los Angeles Stadium

19 June: USA v Australia – Seattle Stadium

25 June: Kosovo/Romania/Slovakia/Türkiye v USA – Los Angeles Stadium

How USA Qualified

The USA were confirmed as participants by virtue of being named co-hosts of the tournament alongside Canada and Mexico — the second time they have reached the World Cup as hosts, having previously staged the 1994 edition where they reached the round of 16 before a narrow 1-0 defeat to eventual champions Brazil.

USA's World Cup Record

Confederation: Concacaf

Best Finish: Semi-finals (1930)

Last Appearance: Qatar 2022 (Round of 16)

First Appearance: Uruguay 1930 (Semi-finals)

Total Appearances: 12 (1930, 1934, 1950, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2022, 2026)

Current run of successive qualifications: 2

Hosted the World Cup: 1994, 2026

Overall Record: P37 W9 D8 L20 F40 A66

USA's Best World Cup: Uruguay 1930

The Stars and Stripes' finest World Cup campaign came at the very first edition of the tournament. Among the select group of 13 nations who assembled in Montevideo in 1930, the USA topped their three-team group with 3-0 victories over both Paraguay and Belgium — the second of those featuring Bert Patenaude's hat-trick, the first in World Cup history — before reaching the semi-finals, where Argentina proved too strong in a 6-1 defeat. A stunning achievement that still stands as the high-water mark of American football at the global stage.

USA's Last World Cup: Qatar 2022

Drawn into a testing group alongside England, IR Iran and Wales at Qatar 2022, the USA navigated it with composure — draws with Wales and England bookending a crucial 1-0 win over Iran, Christian Pulisic providing the decisive moment, to secure second place unbeaten. The round of 16 brought the Netherlands and a 3-1 defeat that ended their tournament, but the group-stage performance offered genuine grounds for optimism heading into a home World Cup.

USA's First World Cup: Uruguay 1930

The USA were among the founding nations of the World Cup, part of the 13-team gathering in Montevideo in 1930. Their debut was also their finest — back-to-back 3-0 wins over Belgium and Paraguay carried them to the semi-finals before Argentina ended their run. It remains the only time the USA have reached the last four of a World Cup.

USA's All-Time World Cup Top Scorer

Landon Donovan holds the record as the USA's leading World Cup scorer with five goals across three tournaments. He struck twice at Korea/Japan 2002 — including the second goal in a famous 2-0 win over Mexico in the round of 16 — before adding three more at South Africa 2010 across group-stage matches against Slovenia and Algeria and a round of 16 defeat to Ghana. His 12 appearances at three World Cups also make him the USA's most-capped player at the tournament.

USA's Most Capped World Cup Player

Donovan's 12 appearances across the 2002, 2006 and 2010 tournaments set a record that has yet to be matched. He played all five matches as the Stars and Stripes reached the quarter-finals in Korea/Japan 2002, added three group-stage appearances in Germany in 2006, and featured four times in South Africa in 2010.

USA's Most Memorable World Cup Moments

Two goalkeeping performances — separated by 64 years and an ocean — define the bookends of USA's World Cup story.

The first belongs to Frank Borghi. At Brazil 1950, in front of an expectant crowd in Belo Horizonte, the USA faced an England side making their World Cup debut and widely considered among the favourites for the trophy. The American squad was made up largely of part-time players. None of that mattered when Joe Gaetjens headed home shortly before half-time, and Borghi kept England at bay for the full 90 minutes in one of the greatest upsets in World Cup history. England would not recover. The USA would not return to the World Cup until 1990.

The second belongs to Tim Howard. At Brazil 2014, in the round of 16 against Belgium, Howard produced a performance of almost superhuman quality — 16 saves, a record for a single World Cup match — that kept the Red Devils at bay deep into extra time before a 2-1 defeat finally ended the American run. The performance earned presidential praise, a moment of genuine cultural reach, and a place in the history books that no scoreline could diminish.