Gregg Berhalter was fired as coach of the United States men’s national team just days after the team was eliminated from the group stage of the Copa America.
Berhalter’s second stint as national team coach ended after just 14 games with consecutive losses to Panama and Uruguay in the Copa America.
Fan calls for the 50-year-old coach to be fired reached a fever pitch in the days following his shameful departure, and U.S. Soccer officials have now pulled the trigger.
The decision, first reported by Fox Sports and later confirmed by the team, will trigger a major rebuild just two years after the United States hosts the World Cup in 2026, along with Mexico and Canada.
Last week, DailyMail.com columnist Tim Howard argued that the US should hire former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp as their next manager.
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The U.S. Soccer Federation said in a statement Wednesday evening that the decision is “effective immediately.”
“We want to thank Greg for his hard work and dedication to U.S. Soccer and the men’s national team,” U.S. Soccer President Cindy Parlow Cone said. “We are now focused on working with Athletic Director Matt Crocker to find the right person to leverage his experience at the highest level of the sport to lead the U.S. Men’s National Team into a new era of on-field success.”
In a statement sent to Mail Sports, Berhalter responded to the news of his firing, saying, “I want to thank the United States Soccer Federation for entrusting me with leading this team for the past five years. It has been a great honor to represent my country and I am proud of the identity we have built on and off the field.”
“It has been extremely satisfying to watch this team grow over the years and I am grateful for the lifelong bonds I have made with players, coaches and staff.”
“The result in the Copa America is very disappointing and we take full responsibility for our performance. Our approach and process are always focused on the 2026 World Cup and we are convinced that this team will be one of the great stories of 2026.”
During his first stint as head coach of the U.S. national team, which ran from December 2018 to December 2022, Berhalter won 61% of his 60 games, but that percentage dropped to 50% during his second stint, which lasted just 11 months.
Berhalter’s contract expires at the end of the 2022 World Cup and he has been embroiled in an off-pitch scandal involving former teammate Claudio Reyna.
Berhalter criticized Reina’s son, Gio, who was a member of the U.S. World Cup team, which led his mother, Daniel, to report a 1992 domestic violence incident between Berhalter and his then-girlfriend, now-wife, to U.S. Soccer officials.
That sparked a lengthy investigation that led to Berhalter being sidelined for six months before officially returning to take over as manager for a second time.
Several U.S. soccer legends called for Berhalter to be replaced last week after the team failed to advance out of the Copa America group stage.
After the game, Clint Dempsey said in an interview with FOX Sports, “I’m speechless. I’m so disappointed … We’re rooting for them and we want them to do well… but how far have we come since 2022?
“We qualified for the World Cup, we got through the group stage but how far have we progressed? We haven’t progressed at all and that’s the most frustrating thing.”
“We are a golden generation and we seem to be squandering it. 2026 is coming up and we will never get this opportunity again. We had it in 1994 and we will have it here, but we don’t know when we’ll get there again.”
Alongside him, Alexis Lalas also spoke out, slamming coach Berhalter after yet another poor showing.
“If this is the best, it’s not good enough,” the former United States midfielder said. “It’s not good enough for Gregg Berhalter… We can’t embarrass ourselves and we can’t go into the summer of 2026 with a team that hasn’t progressed, evolved and improved.”
“If Gregg Berhalter were here, he’d say, ‘But you don’t know what’s going on inside.’ I don’t care what’s going on inside. I don’t care about the situation, I don’t care how much the players love you.”