USA! USA! USA! Announcement of the USMNT Roster for the 2022 FIFA World Cup

By: Kirk Jackson

The U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Gregg Berhalter, has selected the 26 players that will represent the United States at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, set for Nov. 20-Dec. 18 in Qatar.

Making their return to soccer’s biggest stage for the first time in eight years, the USMNT will kick off its World Cup campaign against Wales on Monday, Nov. 21 at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan.

They continue the action, facing one of the tournament favorites England on Friday, Nov. 25 at Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor and finish group stage against IR Iran on Tuesday, Nov. 29 at Al Thumama Stadium in Doha.

The United States is in Group B, along with Wales, IR Iran and England. Group B arguably is the tournament’s strongest overall group in Qatar, with the four nations holding an average rank of 15.

The United States has the distinction of the youngest nation to qualify for Qatar 2022, after doing so this past spring. 25 of the 26 players selected, are participating in their first World Cup will aim to make their debuts on the global stage.

“We are excited to take this group to compete in the 2022 FIFA World Cup,” Berhalter said. “Final roster decisions are always difficult, and we appreciate everyone’s contributions who helped us get to this point.”

“We believe we have a talented group, a strong team spirit, and one that is ready to compete. We are extremely proud and honored to represent the United States and appreciate all the amazing support from our fans as we head to Qatar.”

U.S. MEN’S NATIONAL TEAM – 2022 FIFA WORLD CUP ROSTER BY POSITION (CLUB/COUNTRY; CAPS/GOALS; HOMETOWN)

Goalkeepers (3): Ethan Horvath (Luton Town/ENG; 8/0; Highlands Ranch, Colo.), Sean Johnson (New York City FC; 10/0; Lilburn, Ga.), Matt Turner (Arsenal/ENG; 20/0; Park Ridge, N.J.)

Defenders (9): Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic/SCO; 11/0; Southend-on-Sea, England), Sergiño Dest (AC Milan/ITA; 19/2; Almere, Netherlands), Aaron Long (New York Red Bulls; 29/3; Oak Hills, Calif.), Shaq Moore (Nashville SC; 15/1; Powder Springs, Ga.), Tim Ream (Fulham/ENG; 46/1; St. Louis, Mo.), Antonee Robinson (Fulham/ENG; 29/2; Liverpool, England), Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER; 3/0; Lake Grove, N.Y.), DeAndre Yedlin (Inter Miami CF; 75/0; Seattle, Wash.), Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC; 33/3; Lawrenceville, Ga.)

Midfielders (7): Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United/ENG; 24/6; Medford, N.J.), Kellyn Acosta (LAFC; 53/2; Plano, Texas), Tyler Adams (Leeds United/ENG; 32/1; Wappingers Falls, N.Y.), Luca de la Torre (Celta Vigo/ESP; 12/0; San Diego, Calif.), Weston McKennie (Juventus/ITA; 37/9; Little Elm, Texas), Yunus Musah (Valencia/ESP; 19/0; London, England), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders FC; 32/0; Pico Rivera, Calif.)

Forwards (7): Jesús Ferreira (FC Dallas; 15/7; McKinney, Texas), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders; 49/11; Mercer Island, Wash.), Christian Pulisic (Chelsea/ENG; 52/21; Hershey, Pa.), Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund/GER; 14/4; Bedford, N.Y.), Josh Sargent (Norwich City/ENG; 20/5; O’Fallon, Mo.), Tim Weah (Lille/FRA; 25/3; Rosedale, N.Y.), Haji Wright (Antalyaspor/TUR; 3/1; Los Angeles, Calif.)

The 26-player squad is the USMNT’s second-youngest World Cup roster with an average age of roughly 25 years of age.

Additional Notes:

The roster will not become official until it is submitted to FIFA. The deadline for all teams to submit their final squads is Nov. 14. Once the list is submitted, injured players can be replaced on the roster until 24 hours before the USA’s opening match against Wales.

A total of 21 of 26 players contributed to the USA’s World Cup qualifying campaign from Sept. 2021-March 2022. Christian Pulisic led the USMNT in scoring during the Octagonal, scoring five goals across the 14 games of qualifying.

Defender DeAndre Yedlin is the only World Cup participant on the squad, having made his World Cup debut as a 20-year-old at Brazil 2014.

After Yedlin’s 75 caps, the most experienced players on the roster are Kellyn Acosta (53), Christian Pulisic (52), Jordan Morris (49) and Tim Ream (46).

Berhalter will become the first man to represent the USA at the World Cup as both a player and a coach after playing for the USMNT at the 2002 and 2006 tournaments.

The 2022 World Cup, the first to be held in the Middle East, features 32 nations divided into eight groups of four teams and will be the last tournament played with the 32-team format.

After group play from Nov. 21-29, the top two finishers in each group will advance to the knockout stage of the competition from Dec. 3-18.

All 64 matches of the tournament will be played in eight state-of-the-art stadiums in Qatar, with all venues within an hour drive of the capital of Doha.

Let the games begin.