The United States World Cup 2026 squad is starting to become a little clearer.
The United States of America will face off against Australia and Ecuador as they look to build towards being World Cup 2026 hosts – the second time in their history they've held the competition.
They will be led by the experienced Mauricio Pochettino who has the unenviable task of galvanising the nation as they welcome the rest of the footballing world.
Tyler Adams will not be part of the preparations in October, however.
The Bournemouth midfielder, who has played almost all of Bournemouth's minutes in the Premier League this season and captained the side in the 2022 World Cup, is a surprise omission, given the fact that he is usually a mainstay.
Antonee Robinson returns after undergoing knee surgery at the end of last season, and Patrick Agyemang also returns after his summer transfer from Charlotte FC to Derby County.
Ateltico Madrid's new boy Johnny Cardoso misses out due to injury, as does Giovanni Reyna. Sergino Dest, who returned from a cruciate ligament injury in March, is also absent.
Squad
United States World Cup 2026 squad: The October selection
- GK: Chris Brady (Chicago Fire)
- GK: Matt Freese (New York City FC)
- GK: Patrick Schulte (Columbus Crew)
- GK: Matt Turner (New England Revolution)
- DF: Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew)
- DF: Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic)
- DF: Alex Freeman (Orlando City)
- DF: Mark McKenzie (Toulouse)
- DF: Tim Ream (Charlotte FC)
- DF: Chris Richards (Crystal Palace)
- DF: Antonee Robinson (Fulham)
- DF: Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati)
- MF: Brenden Aaronson (Leeds)
- MF: Diego Luna (Real Salt Lake)
- MF: Weston McKennie (Juventus)
- MF: Aidan Morris (Middlesbrough)
- MF: Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders)
- MF: James Sands (New York City FC)
- MF: Tanner Tessmann (Lyon)
- MF: Malik Tillman (Bayer Leverkusen)
- FW: Patrick Agyemang (Derby)
- FW: Florian Balogun (Monaco)
- FW: Christian Pulisic (AC Milan)
- FW: Timothy Weah (Marseille)
- FW: Haji Wright (Coventry)
- FW: Alex Zendejas (Club America)
Fixtures and results
October 15: United States vs Australia, Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Colorado, United States of America
October 11: United States vs Ecuador, Q2 Stadium, Texas, United States of America
September 10: United States 2-0 Japan, Lower.com Field, Ohio, United States of America
September 4: United States 0-2 South Korea, Sports Illustrated Stadium, New Jersey, United States
July 7: United States 1-2 Mexico, NRG Stadium, Texas, United States of America
July 3: United States 2-1 Guatemala, Energizer Park, Missouri, United States of America
June 30: United States 2-2 Costa Rica (4-3 pens), U.S. Bank Stadium, Minnesota,United States of America
June 23: United States 2-1 Haiti, AT&T Stadium, Texas, United States of America
June 20: Saudi Arabia 0-1 United States, Q2 Stadium, Texas, United States of America
June 15: United States 5-0 Trinidad and Tobago, PayPal Park, California, United States of America
June 11: United States 0-4 Switzerland, GEODIS Park, Tennessee, United States of America
June 7: United States 1-2 Turkiye, Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field, Connecticut, United States of America
March 23: Canada 2-1 United States, SoFi Stadium, California, United States
March 20: United States 0-1 Panama, SoFi Stadium, California, United States
January 23: United States 3-0 Costa Rica, Inter&Co Stadium, Orlando, United States of America
January 18: United States 3-1 Venezuela, Chase Stadium, Florida, United States of America
Manager
Who is the United States' manager?
Maurico Pochettino's stint in charge of the USMNt has been a mixed bag. They underwent a dip in form in the CONCACAF Nations League where they suffered defeats to Panama and Canada, but enjoyed a good Gold Cup in the summer, losing to Mexico in the final.
Christian Pulisic pulled out of the summer camp and was not included in the Gold Cup squad marking a significant blow for Pochettino as he looked to stamp his authority on the squad, but he was praised for getting the best out of long-term squad members Malik Tillman and Chris Richards.
While not one of the favourites for their co-hosted home tournament, fans will be hoping Pochettino can pull from the spirit of his Tottenham side and perform above their level in the summer.
Star player
Who is the United States' star player?
Christian Pulisic has long carried the United States national team on his back. The attacker broke into Borussia Dortmund's squad at 17 and first captained his national side at just 20.
As long as he stays fit, it's likely he will be a major part of the American team that plays at a home World Cup, and he will shoulder much of the burden.
He has 32 goals in 80 appearances and will be hoping to boost that tally in a huge year for the United States.
Predicted XI
Formation 4-2-3-1
GK: Matt Freese
RB: Alex Freeman
CB: Chris Richards
CB: Tim Ream
LB: Max Arfsten
DM: Tanner Tessmann
DM: Weston McKennie
RW: Brenden Aaronson
AM: Diego Luna
LW: Christian Pulisic
ST: Malik Tillman
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