Mauricio Pochettino to leave USMNT head coach role for Manchester United

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

U.S. Soccer has announced that Mauricio Pochettino will leave his role as head coach of the United States men’s national team to take over as head coach of English Premier League side Manchester United, with the transition beginning after the federation’s current Nations League window. The federation said the change was reported Friday morning and that Pochettino will oversee U.S. matches against Haiti in the Concacaf Nations League on Nov. 14 and Nov. 17, meaning he remains the USMNT head coach for those games.

The announcement places a major coaching shift at the centre of the U.S. program immediately after its next competitive dates. Pochettino, an Argentine coach, was appointed USMNT head coach in September 2024, and U.S. Soccer’s release credited him with compiling a 21W-12L-2D record. The federation also noted that under his leadership the U.S. reached the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup final and advanced to the Round of 16 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup on home soil.

U.S. Soccer said Pochettino had previously signed a new agreement in August to remain in charge through the 2030 World Cup, but that he is now departing his position to accept the Manchester United head coach role. The federation’s statement framed the move as the end of a tenure that included both results and structural changes it said are now part of the day-to-day operation of U.S. Soccer.

U.S. Soccer CEO and secretary general JT Batson publicly acknowledged Pochettino’s impact on the program in the federation’s release. Batson said Pochettino “has left a lasting mark on U.S. Soccer” through leadership, professionalism, commitment to players and “culture,” adding that U.S. Soccer’s pride extends beyond wins. Batson said that during Pochettino’s time, the federation “raised standards,” “strengthened our culture” and “created clearer connections from the youth national teams to the senior team,” describing those changes as “embedded in how we operate.”

Batson’s remarks also addressed what happens next for the national team. According to U.S. Soccer, Batson and U.S. Soccer COO Dan Helfrich, along with the federation’s soccer leadership team, will lead the process to identify the next USMNT head coach. The release said that group includes women’s national team head coach Emma Hayes and assistant sporting director Oguchi Onyewu, who will participate in the search alongside the senior leadership named in the announcement.

The federation also outlined who will lead the program immediately following Pochettino’s departure for the end of the Nations League window. U.S. Soccer said that Steve Cherundolo, who now oversees the U.S. U-23s ahead of the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, will lead the team’s previously scheduled December camp. U.S. Soccer said that camp will feature a primarily MLS-based roster, identifying the short-term focus as the continued development of players in the pathway to the next Olympic cycle.

In a statement carried in the federation’s announcement, Pochettino described the U.S. role as a major personal milestone and thanked players, fans and federation leadership. He said representing the “USA crest” was among the greatest honours of his career and expressed gratitude to the players for their commitment, to fans for their belief, and to the federation for supporting his staff and creating opportunities to affect the culture of soccer in the country. He also added that he and his team would keep supporting the U.S. teams “whenever they step on the field.”

Pochettino’s comments specifically referenced U.S. Soccer leadership with whom he said he worked closely during his tenure. In the release, he thanked Cindy Parlow Cone, JT Batson and Dan Helfrich for partnership and working relationships during their time together. He also said he sees “tremendous talent” in the player pool from youth teams through the senior group, and he reiterated that he will continue supporting U.S. soccer while the organization pursues a new head coach.

While the announcement focused on Pochettino’s next role in England, it also provided a coaching history that places his appointment in context. U.S. Soccer’s release stated that before joining the federation, Pochettino managed clubs including Espanyol, Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea over more than two decades of coaching in Europe.

With the U.S. still scheduled to play Haiti in the Concacaf Nations League on Nov. 14 and 17, the immediate practical impact of the announcement is that Pochettino remains in charge through those matches. After that window, U.S. Soccer said Cherundolo will direct the previously planned December camp, and the federation will shift to a head-coach search led by Batson, Helfrich and the broader soccer leadership team named in the announcement, including Hayes and Onyewu. The federation’s next USMNT coaching appointment will therefore be determined after the Nations League games that Pochettino will oversee under this transition plan.