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What are the mixed feelings surrounding the 2026 FIFA World Cup?
Welcome back to Morally Abhorrent. And when we created this, this is a little sideshow attraction for the Levitard Show alongside Chris Whittingham. It was to discuss a World Cup that everybody had mixed feelings about in Qatar. and never in my wildest dreams did I think that the title would still play four years later when the United States, Mexico, and Canada would jointly host the next World Cup. This is a World Cup that has left me feeling super conflicted and many in our audience super conflicted because we all thought that this would be going better. And I'm not just talking about the nation at large. I'm talking about the soccer and our global positioning inside of FIFA. And we're going to explore that a little bit here.
And in this first episode, as we reintroduce this concept to you and the greater DLS universe, we're going to have a central focus. I'm going to have a lot of friends, a lot of familiar faces come through the show.
What key players should we watch for in the US Men's National Team?
Chris Whittingham will indeed be back. In fact, he will be in our next episode. But I wanted to start with the USA. We are hosting, after all, this is a pivotal moment in U.S. soccer history, not just for the nation as it develops into a soccer nation, but also as a program. 2026 was supposed to represent huge progress and a legit opportunity to do something outstanding on the men's side. And right now, there is very little reason for hope. So we're going to bring in Tom Bogert of The Athletic. golazo and soccer wise the premier soccer insider to help give us a lay of the land and catch you up on some history tom thank you for doing this thanks for having me i know we talk ad nauseum in private about all the drama surrounding the u.s soccer team you're probably a little bit bored by it so i just want to give people kind of like
The top news items here.
How has the US Men's National Team evolved since the last World Cup?
What happened from the last World Cup to where we are, and why is the U.S. so damn dramatic?
So at the last World Cup, the United States were the youngest squad at that tournament. They did not exceed expectations, but they did not fall below it. The round of 16 and the performances therein was just about what we'd expect. The fan base may have disagreed, and that led to a lot of discontent under head coach Greg Berhalter. But the top line here since 2022 to now? Not enough of the players have developed to quite the level we thought that they might. The poster boy for that, of course, is Gio Reyna. Gio Reyna coming into the 2022 World Cup was viewed as not just like an American wonder kid, like a wonder kid across the world. Like he was one of the best in his age group in Europe as a teenager.
Injuries have slowed him down, and he stagnated completely to the point where he played 500 club minutes at Borussia Mönchengladbach this year after being a peripheral figure for Borussia Dortmund the last few years. Christian Pulisic is still the best player in this team. He had a fantastic first half of the season for AC Milan this year, and then he did not score for club or country in the calendar year of 2026 until the last friendly. So, Mike, I don't know about you. Maybe there's a little bit more optimism after the United States beat Senegal 3-2.
Well, there is a little bit more optimism. And before we get into reason for that optimism, there is a little tea that was spilt over the last few years. A lot of infighting. A lot of people, you mentioned Gio Reyna, might be surprised to see him on this roster.
What drama unfolded between Gio Reyna and the USMNT coaching staff?
There was a lot of infighting, a lot of drama. And for a golden generation that hadn't really accomplished anything, it all got a little excessive eventually. and way too traumatic for U.S. soccer fans' hopes. And I kind of feared that there was no coming back from it. Are these guys ever going to like one another? Because that's always been a big part of the great underdog U.S. men's national teams is they were tight. And you can cite examples like 1998 when they weren't so tight. It could be disastrous. So what's happening here with this team chemistry? Can they survive the drama? If you could give a little bit of background on that drama and help us learn how they pivoted and improved and came together.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What are the mixed feelings surrounding the 2026 FIFA World Cup?
0:02–1:05
2
What key players should we watch for in the US Men's National Team?
1:05–2:08
3
How has the US Men's National Team evolved since the last World Cup?
2:08–3:34
4
What drama unfolded between Gio Reyna and the USMNT coaching staff?
3:34–4:54
5
How has the team chemistry changed ahead of the World Cup?
4:54–6:28
6
What impact does Mauricio Pochettino's coaching style have on the team?
6:28–7:54
7
What challenges does the USMNT face in the group stage?
7:54–9:12
8
Can the US Men's National Team capitalize on their home advantage?
9:12–34:36
Speakers
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