USMNT: The legacy of Gregg Berhalter

And it’s done. The USSF dismissed Gregg Berhalter; it was long in the making and for some fans and pundits, long overdue. Berhalter became the USMNT manager under dubious circumstances, a manager with little on his CV save for one MLS Cup appearance with the Columbus Crew, a final which he lost, and a brother who worked within US Soccer. Gregg Berhalter was seen as an “MLS agenda” hire as a result of nepotism.

On paper, Gregg Berhalter should have been a reasonable hire for the US position, a former US international who established a very good career in Europe playing in the Netherlands, England, and Germany before arriving to end his career in MLS. On the USMNT as a player, history might have made Gregg Berhalter one of the most important players in the program’s history; it was his almost-goal against Germany in the USMNT’s 2002 World Cup quarterfinal match that was called off. To this day, no one knows why—whether it was a US goal or a German handball. The end result was the USMNT’s elimination after providing Americans with the country’s best World Cup performance in the modern era.

Known for his obsessive tactical approach to the game and his work in sports psychology, Gregg Berhalter reportedly wowed US Soccer with his vision for the program. When the 50-year-old was named as manager of the USMNT, it was met with universal disapproval by fans and pundits, and his tag as a “nepo” hire loomed large in his six years in charge.

US Soccer Set Gregg Berhalter Up to Fail

If Gregg Berhalter was what the program believed him to be, it might have been wise to shield him from the backlash. On paper, he was just getting his feet wet with the Columbus Crew, making an MLS Cup final after a below-average stint with Hammarby in Sweden where he posted an 18-11-17 record.

With the Crew, Berhalter also was a mixed bag of 74-70-49, making the playoffs in four of his five seasons, being runner-up in 2015. In his last season, 2018, he made it to the quarterfinals.

Had Berhalter been hired as an assistant and molded by a more experienced coach, maybe for the 2026 cycle he could have taken over the team and embarked on a more polished project of making the USMNT a more attractive side than the bunker and counter-attacking team the program was known for.

What Did Gregg Berhalter Get Right?

While many would argue that Gregg Berhalter got nothing right, that is far from the truth. Berhalter was able to take a program that had hit rock bottom after failing to qualify for the 2018 World Cup and lift it up on the backs of a group of young players all in their early 20s with a few European seasons under their belts to be the core of the team.

Though flawed in tactics and in-game management, Berhalter empowered Christian Pulisic, Tim Weah, Tyler Adams, and Weston McKennie to be leaders on the team. Although questions have arisen about whether some of the players were or are up to that challenge.

While World Cup qualifying was rocky in Concacaf, especially considering his inexperienced side in the 2022 cycle, Berhalter’s team played the best three games of his six years at the 2022 World Cup, going 1-0-2 in the group, defeating Iran and drawing England and Wales.

At times, the USMNT showed fluid movement and nice combination play, but once the team played a more polished and experienced side like the Netherlands, it was all she wrote—the Dutch made short work of the USMNT in a 3-1 win in the round of 16. All in all, it was about as good as a World Cup as one could ask from a nation that four years earlier was sliding down a hole, fast.

Off the field, Berhalter and his team were able to convince various dual nationals to join the program, Antonee Robinson, Yunus Musah, Folarin Balogun, and Sergiño Dest being his best catches, many of whom had represented the US at the youth level but had viable options to play for other, more established countries.

He also got lucky as Johnny Cardoso and his family took it upon themselves to inform US Soccer of their existence. To his credit, Berhalter brought Cardoso into the fold, given the federation’s notoriously poor history at even engaging dual nationals playing in South America.

While many of the dual nationals were also in their early 20s, a critique can be made that it has become US Soccer’s crutch to just find dual nationals to fill the void left behind by a program that is struggling to produce high-level talent at the MLS and US territory level.

What Did Gregg Berhalter Do Wrong?

Gregg Berhalter never was able to read the room, at times in his press conferences over explaining every decision he made, from leaving Ricardo Pepi off of the World Cup roster to going into detail as to why John Brooks was not called in.

His biggest failure was the whole situation with Gio Reyna post-World Cup, exposing one of his most talented players, which eventually would end in personal issues from Gregg Berhalter’s past being exposed and also tarnishing the reputation of another USMNT legend Claudio Reyna in exposing the “soccer parent” aspect of US Soccer.

On the field, Berhalter’s US team never lived up to expectations of a team that played fancy and fluid soccer. Often being exposed by more talented teams, and having enormous difficulties winning on the road against Concacaf level opposition.

Gregg Berhalter’s in-game management was also questionable, often having many of his game plans blow up in his face, and many times needing come-from-behind wins in key matches.

After the 2022 World Cup, one could say Gregg Berhalter’s stock was high, reaching the round of 16, holding England to a draw and looking good doing it, and having won two Concacaf continental titles, and owning Mexico, the manager could have walked into the sunset as a manager who put US Soccer, while flawed at times, back on the map.

Instead, Gregg Berhalter stayed on after a ridiculous coaching search conducted by the federation to land back at Berhalter almost six months after he left the program. His second stint was vastly underwhelming, winning seven games, losing six, and drawing just one.

Berhalter’s record against top 20 teams not named Mexico was abysmal, with highlights being draws against England, Uruguay, and Brazil being considered “milestones”.

The Gregg Berhalter Era

Time will eventually put Gregg Berhalter in his place as a manager who was under qualified to coach the USMNT at the time he was hired and who helped the team punch above their weight at the 2022 World Cup.

Not being able to get the most out of a generation of US players playing in some of the top leagues in the world, but also having to manage those young players while many of them were non-factors at those clubs at times.

It was not a perfect road for Gregg Berhalter, but he still managed to win three championships with the USMNT, making him, along with Bruce Arena, as the program’s all-time winningest manager when it comes to titles.

Gregg Berhalter’s era can best be described as “getting back on track”, but when fans, media, and even the players themselves began to demand the team play to a much higher standard, Gregg Berhalter came up way too short.