If you were wondering, the United States selection is doing much better. The team led by Mauricio Pochettino was difficult to see some time ago in the run-up to a 2026 World Cup co-organized with Canada and Mexico but played entirely in the US from the quarter-finals onwards. However, the Stars and Stripes have recorded four victories in the last three international windows, against Japan (2-0), Australia (2-1), Paraguay (2-1) and Uruguay (5-1).
The Argentinian coach of Team USA even had the luxury of lining up understudies against the Celeste of his mentor Marcelo Bielsa last week. Executives like Weston McKennie, Timothy Weah and Christian Pulisic were not invited to Tampa (Florida). Toulouse defender Mark McKenzie recovered the captain’s armband and OL midfielder Tanner Tessmann opened his account. AS Monaco striker Folarin Balogun came on as a substitute.
The United States is now focused on the draw for World Cup 26 which will take place on Friday December 5 in Washington DC (6 p.m. in France). Team USA is one of the 12 seeds like Mexico and Canada, which allows the host countries (respectively 14th, 15th and 27th in the FIFA world rankings) to avoid all the favorites for the final coronation like Argentina, Spain, the French team, England or even Brazil, Germany and Portugal.
Erling Haaland for Team USA?
Pochettino and his players, however, have the chance of inheriting a group of death. The American selection cannot come up against teams from its confederation (North, Central America and the Caribbean), but can face two European teams and that would be a huge blow. The three home teams (at least in the first round) will have to avoid Croatia, Morocco, Colombia or Senegal in pot 2.
For the Americans, Canadians and Mexicans, drawing Algeria and especially Erling Haaland’s Norway into hat 3 would be a catastrophe. They will be obliged to beat the team in hat 4 in order to finish in the first two of their group or the 8 best thirds. And again, Canada, the USA and Mexico can largely come up against Saudi Arabia, Cape Verde or Ghana…
