The 26: Projecting the USA’s World Cup Roster And Starters For Opening Match

As much as modern World Cup squads are typically constructed using a forensic examination of data points collected over a four-year cycle combined with the gut feelings of experienced national team coaches and their staffs, the United States’ roster for the 2026 FIFA World Cup was always going to be different. USA boss Mauricio Pochettino was hired less than two years ago. For much of his tenure, he has been, for various reasons, without whom many would consider some of America’s most essential players, including forward Christian Pulisic, midfielder Weston McKennie, midfielder Tyler Adams, and wing back Antonee “Jedi” Robinson. Out of necessity, Pochettino scoured the fringes of the U.S. player pool, unearthing and/or handing opportunities to the likes of winger Max Arfsten, midfielder Sebastian Berhalter, right back Alex Freeman and goalkeeper Matt Freese. The former Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea manager brought in a whopping figure of 70-plus players during his first 18 months on the job. Now, he must settle on his final 26-player roster before it is officially unveiled in two weeks on May 26. And then, exactly one month from Tuesday, Pochettino will announce his lineup for the Stars and Stripes’ June 12 World Cup opener against Paraguay in Los Angeles. Here’s my latest USA roster projection for the 2026 FIFA World Cup: Nobody could’ve foreseen Freeman or Freese, who were uncapped this time last year, emerging as projected World Cup starters when Pochettino took over. Things change quickly. And with the tournament almost here, the coach could favor roster candidates who are in top form with their clubs right now over several of those he summoned for the national team’s most recent camp in March. For every team, there’s almost always at least one roster surprise. Timing is everything when the main event finally arrives. Who will make the full squad? Let’s break the full roster down: STRIKERS Starter: Folarin BalogunBackups: Ricardo Pepi, Haji Wright Just missed out: Josh Sargent, Patrick Agyemang (injured) The ruptured Achilles tendon that Agyemang suffered on April 6 playing for Derby County made Pochettino’s decision for him; it’s possible he would’ve also picked Pepi and Wright as Balogun’s World Cup understudies even if the 6-foot-4 Agyemang had been available. Now there’s seemingly no doubt, though Pochettino’s sparing use of Pepi is notable. Despite being healthy, the rangy striker from El Paso, Texas, went unused in two of the USA’s four most recent games, logging just 34 minutes off the bench. Yet he’s heading into the World Cup in top form. On May 10, Pepi bagged his 18th goal of the season for PSV Eindhoven. The 23-year-old has started the last four games for the Dutch champions, scoring in each. ATTACKING MIDFIELDERS Starters: Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie Backups: Brenden Aaronson, Diego Luna, Gio Reyna, Malik Tillman Just missed out: Jack McGlynn, Alex Zendejas This is assuming Pulisic isn’t hurt, of course. The country’s most celebrated attacker missed AC Milan’s loss to Atalanta on May 10 with a glute injury. The ailment isn’t considered serious, however. More concerning is the 27-year-old player’s 19-game goalless streak for club and country dating to Dec. 28, 2025. Fortunately, McKennie is showing no signs of wear as the World Cup approaches. The Juventus live-wire man in the middle, who’s also 27, started his 30th match of the Serie A campaign in 1-0 win over Lecce on May 10. Aaronson has made 28 starts for Leeds United, which secured another season in the Premier League. Luna scored for Real Salt Lake on May 9. As did Reyna, who finally chalked up his first tally of the 2025-26 season for Germany’s Borussia Mönchengladbach. Here’s where things get interesting. Pochettino’s assistant coach Jesús Pérez was in Los Angeles on May 10 watching McGlynn against LAFC. The Houston Dynamo man promptly scored a banger — a strike similar to his missile last year in an exhibition loss to Türkiye, which will also be the Americans’ final World Cup group stage opponent. McGlynn added a second well-taken goal later in the contest. Last year, someone I trust told me that Pochettino “loves” McGlynn. The New York native from Queens apparently (and literally) still has a shot. If he makes it, it wouldn’t be the first time a Houston midfielder has reached the World Cup on the strength of his magical left foot: see Brad Davis in 2014. But who goes out if McGlynn sneaks on? This is a zero-sum exercise. If current form matters, it could be Tillman, who has played just 70 total minutes for Bayer Leverkusen since March 21. Reyna has 88 minutes during the same span and was included in the last two camps when he was featuring even less frequently for his club. Zendejas probably feels like he’s making a better World Cup case than either Tillman or Reyna. Wearing the captain’s armband for Club América on May 10, Zendejas scored twice and added an assist against Pumas in Mexico’s Liga MX quarterfinals. While McGlynn and Zendejas still feel like World Cup long shots, I also wouldn’t be shocked if one of them is the surprise pick this cycle. HOLDING MIDFIELDERS Starters: Tyler Adams, Tanner Tessmann Backups: Sebastian Berhalter, Cristian Roldan, Aidan MorrisJust missed out: Johnny Cardoso (injured), Yunus Musah, James Sands (injured) Adams is near the height of his powers. On May 10, Pochettino was in attendance at London’s Craven Cottage to watch the heart-and-soul destroyer help Bournemouth beat Fulham and extend its unbeaten streak in the Premier League to 16 games. Adams played the final 47 minutes for the visitors. While Adams is one of the first names on Pochettino’s lineup sheet, the spot next to him is more uncertain than ever. Cardoso has been officially ruled out of the World Cup after Atlético Madrid confirmed on May 11 he’ll have surgery on his ankle. Tessmann is also hurt, though The Athletic reported that the muscle strain that ruled him out of Lyon’s final two games of the Ligue 1 season isn’t expected to impact his World Cup availability. The obvious winner here is Morris, who suddenly goes from the roster bubble to seriously contending for a starting spot versus Paraguay. First, Morris will try to vault Middlesbrough into the Premier League in the second-tier playoff decider against Southampton on May 12. WING BACKS Starters: Sergiño Dest, Antonee “Jedi” Robinson Backups: Max Arfsten, Tim Weah Just missed out: Joe Scally, John Tolkin A week after returning from the hamstring problem he suffered in March, Dest made his first start since the layoff, going 65 minutes in PSV’s 4-1 win over Go Ahead Eagles on May 10. That’s great news for a USA team that needs all the attacking help it can get. Pochettino saw Jedi go the distance against Bournemouth, which is also great news. Robinson also played 90 in a May 2 loss to Premier League-leading Arsenal Injury forced Weah to miss his club match on May 10. But as with Pulisic and Tessmann, it’s not serious, with L’Équipe reporting that Weah could return for Marseille’s May 17 season finale with Rennes. Natural lefty Arfsten has three goals and five assists in his last eight MLS games for the Columbus Crew. Scally has a strong case, especially given his experience playing multiple defensive roles with Borussia Mönchengladbach. He’s probably the next choice if anyone else goes down. CENTER BACKS Starters: Chris Richards, Tim Ream, Alex FreemanBackups: Mark McKenzie, Auston TrustyJust missed out: Miles Robinson After missing three games with a tight groin, Ream returned to Charlotte’s lineup on May 9. That means Pochettino’s preferred captain should be fully match fit when the USA’s pre-World Cup training camp opens in Fayetteville, Georgia on May 27. Freeman’s late-season emergence with La Liga power Villarreal is also a huge boost, increasing the chances of Pochettino opting for a three-man central defense with him on the right, Ream on the left and Richards anchoring the middle. McKenzie has been a consistent call-up ever since Pochettino arrived. He made his 27th start this term for French club Toulouse in a 2-1 win over a Tessmann-less Lyon on May 10. As for Trusty, his timing couldn’t be better. While he’s been playing regularly and well for Celtic in Scotland, Robinson has just returned from the injury that had sidelined him for four of FC Cincinnati’s previous five MLS matches. GOALKEEPERS Starter: Matt FreeseBackups: Matt Turner, Chris Brady Just missed out: Roman Celentano, Jonathan Klinsmann, (injured), Diego Kochen, Patrick Schulte The conventional wisdom is that Freese, Poch’s starter in 13 of the Americans’ last 15 games dating to last summer and superb despite a 2-0 loss to Portugal on March 31, will keep his place and man the U.S. goal on June 12. U.S. assistant Miguel D’Agostino watched the Harvard grad post his second clean sheet of the 2026 MLS campaign on NYCFC’s 3-0 victory over Columbus on May 10. Still, Turner is doing everything possible to outmaneuver Freese and reclaim the job that was his at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar; with a 79.4 save percentage for the New England Revolution as of May 11, the veteran backstop has been the best American keeper by far this season in MLS.