The USA Announced Its 2026 World Cup Roster. Now What?: ‘It’s All Hands On Deck’

It’s official: The United States has revealed its 26-man roster ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. From veteran captain Tim Ream to first-time forward Folarin Balogun, the United States is seeking the ultimate trophy on soccer’s biggest stage, and they’ll compete for it on their home soil alongside co-hosts Mexico and Canada. Ream, who’s back for his second World Cup, will benefit the newcomers with his experience, but more importantly, he will set the foundation for what the U.S. is hoping will be a historic run at the tournament. “I’m just another cog in the machine,” Ream said during FOX’s broadcast of the roster announcement in New York on Tuesday. “I try to help these guys as much as I can. Drawing on the experience that we had in 2022 is going to be important. We have a group that knows what’s important and knows what’s needed.” The U.S. will have its first training session on Wednesday, ahead of its friendlies against Senegal and Germany later this mont, and just over two weeks in advance of its World Cup opener on June 12 against Paraguay. “It’s all hands on deck,” Ream said. “We’re going after it from the very first session. You have to treat every session as if it’s the most important. We need to make sure that we’re ready to go on June 12 and that starts tomorrow.” In addition to first-time call-ups like defender Chris Richards and midfielder Sebastian Berhalter, this World Cup also marks U.S. men’s national team head coach Mauricio Pochettino’s first time leading the United States at the tournament. While Pochettino has enjoyed success with some of the best clubs in Europe, he has yet to win any hardware with the U.S. since taking over in September 2024. When asked how this roster can find that success this summer, midfielder Tyler Adams — one of the team captains at the 2022 World Cup — said Pochettino’s mentality, as well as their 2022 World Cup experience, will pave the way. “I think we’ve had the ambition from day one since Mauricio has come into the team of what exactly we need to do to accomplish that,” Adams said on the broadcast. “We have experiences, ups and downs, throughout the past 18 months of learning. “The experience we gained in 2022 is something we’re going to have to lean on in order to go further than any team has gone, but I know that we have the teams and players to do that.” In the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the United States successfully escaped a tough group with England, Wales and Iran. Even after an impressive 0-0 tie against England, it eventually fell 3-1 to the Netherlands in the Round of 16. Among the returning players is veteran forward Tim Weah, who is expected to feature alongside Christian Pulisic and Balogun in Pochettino’s attack. Weah was a vital piece of the United States’ attack in 2022, when he scored the historic goal against Wales that helped lift USA out of the group stage. Weah noted that the team is hopeful this time around, despite their early exit in 2022. “I think we left with a little bit of hurt last time,” Weah told FOX Sports’ Jenny Taft on stage. “Coming into this World Cup, we’re hoping for great stuff. We’ve dreamt about this moment our whole entire lives, and I’m happy to be here with my brothers.” 2026 FIFA World Cup: How To Watch The 2026 FIFA World Cup will run from June 11–July 19, 2026. Spread across three countries, the tournament will culminate with the final on July 19 at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. All 104 tournament matches will air live across FOX (70) and FS1 (34) with every match streaming live and on-demand within both the FOX One and the FOX Sports app. A record 40 matches, more than one-third of the tournament, will air in prime time across FOX (21) and FS1 (19). The opening match on June 11 between Mexico and South Africa (3 p.m. ET) will stream for free on Tubi, as well as the USA’s opening match against Paraguay on June 12 (9 p.m. ET).