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The U.S. men's national team is firing on all cylinders and primed for the 2026 World Cup.
The co-host nation played its final pre-tournament tune-up against European heavyweights and genuine title contenders Germany on Saturday in Chicago, Ill., falling 2–1. Despite the defeat, the USMNT flashed moments of quality and demonstrated the capacity to compete with a technically superior side—the only two elements a nation requires, along with a dash of fortune, to make a run at global glory.
The capacity crowd of over 63,000 at Soldier Field could sense the USMNT's eagerness to get the summer's tournament underway, with tensions even boiling over into a confrontation with German players at the final whistle, resulting in several heated exchanges and pushing.
Beyond the pre-World Cup nerves, the Stars and Stripes will head into soccer's biggest stage with a degree of confidence in under a week, buoyed by Saturday's performance and last week's win over No. 14 ranked Senegal.
Here are Sports Illustrated's three key takeaways from the match against Germany.
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A Slow Start for the USMNT
It was a game of two distinct halves in the opening period of the international friendly. From the opening whistle, the USMNT was caught off guard by Germany's tempo and explosive movement off the ball, arriving second to every challenge and pushed back on their heels as the European giants repeatedly bore down on goal. It took just three minutes for German forward Kai Havertz to make his mark, heading home from a free kick, the Arsenal star simply overpowering U.S. center back Miles Robinson in the air.
Havertz nearly doubled the lead just three minutes later, slipping the ball past goalkeeper Matt Freese from close range, only for the effort to be ruled out and the goal disallowed. With 70% possession and a third legitimate chance on goal for Germany within the opening 10 minutes, it looked set to be a long and difficult afternoon for American supporters.
The U.S. responded admirably, however, emerging as an entirely different side after the 15-minute mark. The squad adapted to Germany's tempo and quickly grew comfortable with the reduced time on the ball before German pressure closed in. The Stars and Stripes began imposing themselves on the German side in a spell that culminated in Antonee "Jedi" Robinson's stunning strike in the 37th minute, seemingly channeling "the force" to fire the ball first-time past goalkeeper Oliver Baumann from the edge of the box. Robinson marked the equalizer with a back handspring into a back flip, sending the red, white and blue faithful into delirium.
The U.S. closed out the half with equal possession and five total shots compared to Germany's four.
U.S. soccer icon Christian Pulisic was instrumental in the team's revival, with Saturday's display building on the personal resurgence he had begun against Senegal. Through the first 20 minutes of the opening half, Pulisic was effectively neutralized on the left flank, every passing lane to him firmly closed off. The winger soon adapted his positioning, drifting considerably more central to link up with the midfielders and even Sergiño Dest on the opposite side. It was Pulisic's combination play with Dest in particular that produced the corner kick from which Robinson scored. In the final three minutes of the half, Pulisic generated three shot attempts that each resulted in corner kicks, giving the U.S. a head of steam going into the interval.
While the U.S. regrouped effectively to better handle the crafty Germans, the Americans must be prepared for that level of pace and clinical technical quality from the very first whistle, particularly this summer on soccer's grandest stage against the planet's elite players. The recognition and adjustment cannot come only after goals have already been conceded. By that point, it is frequently too late to recover. If the USMNT are to make a deep run on home soil this summer, they will almost certainly encounter powerhouses that match—or surpass—Germany's speed of play.
Need to Improve Aerial Threat
The USMNT need to sharpen up in aerial duels. The most glaring illustration of the team's weakness in this area—no pun intended—was the emphatic header Havertz scored in the opening minutes, the 6'4" striker getting the better of the 6'2" Miles Robinson.
The USMNT were second best in the air throughout the entire match, a crucial dimension of the game the team will need to dominate this summer if they are to make any meaningful impact at the World Cup. The opening half hour saw the U.S. repeatedly outjumped, with Germany winning seven aerial duels to just one for the Americans. By halftime, it was Germany's eight to the USMNT's four, and by the final whistle, the tally stood at 12 to six.
A significant contributor to the host's aerial struggles was the absence of center back Chris Richards. The 26-year-old defensive cornerstone is one of the Stars and Stripes' most potent aerial weapons, both from set pieces and in open play. He has been sidelined with an ankle injury since mid-May, though is expected to return in time for the World Cup opener against Paraguay on June 12.
Insight Into Pochettino's Formation, Key Starters
Manager Mauricio Pochettino has been highly experimental with the USMNT since taking charge of the team in 2024, all with this summer's tournament firmly in mind. The Argentine tactician was equally experimental on Saturday, handing 21 players time on the field.
Nevertheless, certain aspects of his thinking became more apparent, particularly regarding his preferred formation and who he envisions in the starting eleven.
Pochettino deployed a 3-4-2-1 formation for the majority of Saturday's match, following the similar 3-4-3 setup he used the previous Sunday against Senegal. It is clear that he believes the U.S. performs at its best with three defenders at the back, a system that also brought the squad success last fall, when they went unbeaten through the October and November international windows with three victories and one draw.
The manager had briefly trialed a four-back system during the March international window, but heavy defeats to both Belgium and Portugal appeared to persuade him to revert to the three-back setup—an arrangement he is likely to stick with this summer, given the tournament begins in under a week and there are no further opportunities for low-stakes experimentation.
It also became apparent that Pochettino was leaning toward a three-back system when he announced his official 26-man roster on May 26, naming a notable five center backs on the final list. In a three-back formation, all three defenders can be center backs, hence the need for a larger pool of them on the squad.
Saturday's match also suggested that Matt Freese will be the starting goalkeeper at the World Cup, playing the full 90 minutes against Germany—the tougher of the week's two friendlies. Matt Turner and Chris Brady shared duties in goal against Senegal. Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Pepi look set to be Pochettino's preferred striking options this summer, as third-choice striker Haji Wright failed to feature in either friendly despite being fit.
Pochettino also appears to retain faith in captain Tim Ream as a starting center back despite a shaky outing from the 38-year-old last week. Ream did more to justify that confidence against Germany, sitting deeper rather than attempting to engage in the attack, which is not his strongest attribute.