Why USMNT coaching target Mauricio Pochettino would reportedly still live in Europe as USA soccer manager

Former Premier League manager Mauricio Pochettino will reportedly be based in Europe should he take the U.S. men’s national team job, a role he is now favored to take ahead of the 2026 World Cup on home soil.

Pochettino is expected to remain in Europe, per ESPN, and will not be required to live in the U.S. on a full-time basis. It marks a departure for most head coaches of the U.S. national teams, though U.S. Soccer has also historically hired candidates who have been based in the country for some time. Gregg Berhalter, who was the coach until he was fired in July, was based in Chicago, where U.S. Soccer is currently headquartered. New women’s national team head coach Emma Hayes, meanwhile, will move from her native London to Atlanta to work at the federation’s new offices after winning a gold medal at the Paris Olympics.

At one point, U.S. Soccer required coaches to live and work out of the federation’s offices in Chicago, a policy instilled by former sporting director Earnie Stewart. It is unknown if his successor, Matt Crocker, has continued that policy since taking over the role in April of last year.

The Argentine has lived in Europe since moving to Spain’s Espanyol as a player in 1994, finishing up his playing career in the continent in 2006 and has only ever coached in Europe. He currently has a residence in Barcelona and in London, where he coached both Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea and resided when he was in between jobs from 2022 to 2023.

Pochettino’s reported preference to live in Europe is not simply convenient for him, but arguably also practical. A majority of the USMNT’s players currently play for clubs across the continent, including all but three members of this summer’s Copa America squad. Living on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean would allow for short travel times to see those players in between international matches. This isn’t anything new as Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni, World Cup winner and two-time Copa America champion as manager, resides in Spain. 

U.S. Soccer is looking for Berhalter’s successor after the USMNT crashed out of the Copa America group stages and is reportedly inching closer to hiring Pochettino to lead the team into the 2026 World Cup. Neither party has signed a deal at this time, though, and the hire still needs approval from U.S. Soccer’s board of directors, who are next expected to meet on Aug. 23.

It is currently unclear if Pochettino would be hired in time for the USMNT’s next game, a friendly against Copa America semifinalists Canada on Sept. 7 at Kansas City’s Children’s Mercy Park.