Mauricio Pochettino’s aspirations in the United States are deeply rooted in his childhood in Murphy, Santa Fe, Argentina. At the tender age of six in 1978, he cherishes memories of visiting a local club where older members played boules, and a rare color television captivated the children. It was during this formative period that the World Cup left an indelible mark on his imagination.
“I lived in a prefab with my grandmother and my older brother because my parents were off working the land, then at the weekend we would go to the club,” he recalls. “There were three courts and I remember standing there, hanging on to my dad’s pocket, watching the World Cup. The ticker-tape at River [Plate], that image engraved. Passarella, Ardiles, Luque, Bertoni, Kempes, Fillol, Tarantini … my heroes.”
A nostalgic smile appears as he adds, “I lived near Ossie Ardiles in north London and I always told him: ‘You were my idol.’ He says: ‘Bah, you don’t remember that; you were too small. I say: ‘Bloody hell, Ossie!’ Whenever I’m with him I think: ‘Wow, here I am with a world champion. Me, from Murphy, and a world champion.’ That’s for ever.”
Pochettino now stands at the helm of the U.S. men’s national team, with the weight of national expectations on his shoulders as they gear up to co-host the upcoming World Cup. “Well, if you think of it like that,” he confesses, “it’s very hard to sleep at night.”
As he enjoys his morning coffee, Pochettino exudes a charming and lively spirit, appearing unfazed by sleepless nights. “From the day we accepted this challenge, we took that responsibility as motivation, energy,” he explains. “And no one sees the US as a [contender]. But you analyse other World Cups and think: ‘Why not?’ Being hosts can create synergy with the people, a support players feel. Let it give us the freedom to fly. Why not? “Sometimes,”
“you’re in the US tracksuit and people say: ‘What sport do you guys play?’ ‘Soccer.’ ‘Soccer, but what …?’ ‘The US national team.’ ‘Ah.’ ‘We’re preparing [for] the World Cup.’ ‘Oh, OK.’” he chuckles while reflecting on perceptions, “So that they know who we are! Jesús likes to say: ‘We’re masked heroes,’”
When questioned about why he accepted this role, Pochettino shares a knowing grin with his assistant, Jesús Pérez, who is seated next to him. “No, no. Because we like the challenge. “After Chelsea we thought: ‘A World Cup is something we’re missing’. And just then the US appears, other national teams too. This challenge is special, and being hosts is part of that. It was a good moment to get out of our comfort zone. How do you prepare a national team? How do you work with little time, in a demanding country, in a cultural idiosyncrasy that’s different? How do you change things? It’s soccer, not football. If you don’t understand that, you’re going to bash your head against the wall. “You gather the staff, talk, find out how people think culturally, how we can help. We get together, talk. We always said we’re not going to educate, to impose. We’ll bring our experience but we went to create something together that we all feel part of.” he laughs. “Football doesn’t exist like in Argentina,”
He elaborates, “But the feeling [in the US] is much deeper [than it was]. The federation has done a great job unifying MLS, universities, colleges. There are people with big economic capacity who love football, have a passion, want to be a soccer country too. I have players in Europe, MLS is growing. Messi has had an enormous impact. And it’s the Messi who’s world champion. An MLS player says: ‘I play against the best in the world,’ which brings belief. All of that is a process we’re still in. “I don’t think the [resistance] is from other sports [protectionism]; I think it’s more cultural. The first gift an Argentinian gets is a football; here, it’s a baseball bat, a basketball, an oval ball. Changing that’s not today or tomorrow. But there are almost 400 million people, 80 million Latinos, who already have that football DNA, and there’s space [for all sports]. What’s the problem? That people want results now.”
“Pitches are built: ‘Now I want a Messi, a Ronaldo,’”
Pochettino perceives the World Cup as a critical opportunity, not just for the team but for the evolution of the sporting culture at large. He envisions himself as a catalyst for change, crafting a new narrative for soccer in the U.S. through an Argentinian lens. Yet this endeavor is not without its pressures. “It can’t be reduced to investment. What takes time is that emotional relationship, for that kid not to wait until they’re 12 to touch a ball with their feet. You build a soccer school: ‘Now, shoot!’ But football’s not that. “The relationship is built through freedom. I get a ball and my brother, cousin, the friend who’s older, takes it off me. How do I get it back? That’s the game: not roboticised, automated. When that relationship starts, talent appears. Over time, that creates footballing nations: there’s something deeper.” he notes. “There’s something fundamental, a fight we took on when we came. I accept the ‘arrogance’ of Spain, Argentina, England, France … but there’s a confusion that says: ‘I’m the United States of America: I’m No 1, the biggest, best country in the world. I go, fight, win. I get to the moon first. ‘I’m the US’ and, boom, it happens. ‘We’re the best in the world in basketball, hockey, baseball; why wouldn’t we win in football?’ Wait, wait. NBA: where’s that played? The United States. World champions. NFL: world champions. “In soccer you compete against 100 years of history, and that’s beautiful. Argentina, Brazil, England, Spain: they win, it’s life or death. That ‘arrogance’ is exciting and you don’t want to lose it but we need balance. We’ve found a path. We needed the players to believe in us.”
He adds, “We listened, trusted them and they felt that, creating the basis for professional harmony. The players arrive on different flights, they come in with Sam [Zapatka] and Michael [Kammarman], come into the office, sit down, have a chat. No real plan except to get to know them, to talk about everything and nothing. And then we got to work. “Generally, one thing we saw in the [typical] ‘American player’ is that he plays. We said: ‘Boys, playing is one thing; competing is another.’ I’ll explain: in MLS you haven’t won a game, you’re at the bottom, what happens? There’s no relegation so I don’t go up, can’t go down. The [federation] guys say: ‘US sport rewards failure.’ If I lose, what happens? Nothing. The only people who pay are us, the coaches! That comfort’s not good in football and we’ve tried to change that.”
Pochettino believes that the challenges facing soccer in the U.S. arise more from cultural factors than from the protectionism of other sports. “I already was more of a bastard,”
With the abundant resources available in the U.S., questions emerge about the lack of elite players coming through the ranks. “We’ve tried to ‘attack’ people through their intellectual capacity. Any footballer appreciates you not underestimating them. They’re not footballers because they were donkeys at maths, geography or economics. If you respect them, value them, they’re intelligent enough to know they weren’t on the right path. That’s what we homed in on. “But we like to convince through performance [not impose]. And players need to see that their leaders are just. If a player is toxic for a group, a team, the others wouldn’t understand us not attacking that, taking on the toxicity. We didn’t go after anything on a whim but to coexist and compete. It was a message to the group and to those who had created toxicity. And they’re not banished; they’re given the opportunity to be important, to think, change, behave the right way, which creates a positive energy.” Pochettino observes. “there’s probably not as much drama as you guys think”
He elaborates, “I’m the head coach, not a mannequin.”
Pochettino and the U.S. national team face the task of facilitating this evolution, expediting the process through their development while concentrating on the game itself. However, the cultural context influences their methodology. “It’s a general thing. I wouldn’t say one person or two, or three or five. It was broader.”
“Players need to talk on the pitch, not outside; we’re not politicians, we’re only sports people.”
Pochettino understands that cultivating trust with the players is essential. “I take this role with all the responsibility that comes with coaching a team; I don’t represent it at other levels. I represent it through sport which is what I know how to do. “I was in Argentina’s squad in 2002; for five years Argentina had been the best team but when we got there we were tired, had injuries and maybe the emotional weight was too much. There was an economic crisis. We had to win to make people happy, forget their problems: we were saviours of the nation. That had a negative impact on the group.” he confirms, noting that his initial squad leaned heavily on the technical staff, which played a pivotal role in fostering a positive rapport. “which is where I think about protecting them. We all empathise when we see injustice, want a better world, an end to violence, for everyone to have enough to eat. I respect those that leave the system to fight it; but if you’re inside the system, benefit from it. “Any coach can say tickets are expensive. We know. My responsibility preparing a team for the World Cup is how [external issues] affect the dynamic of the group. A job comes with [other] responsibilities that if you don’t accept, step out. If I stay in and speak, there’s hypocrisy, populism, contradiction: I don’t know what to call it. “Football can create affection, love, happiness; it unites, brings people together, opens minds. That’s our responsibility, not to create more conflict, hatred. Of course when there’s injustice it hurts. Everyone sees. How do we effect change? Through football’s values, principles. It’s easy to denounce, separate; harder to unite, construct, rather than distance us [from each other]. “If we position ourselves on the extremes, it becomes impossible to meet. Football isn’t just a sport you play and have fun. I grew up with my dad’s values and football reaffirmed those. Football is empathy, solidarity. As an Argentinian in the US, maybe I can contribute my grain of sand.”
“First, because I believe it,”
When asked if he needed to adopt a stricter approach, he chuckles, “And second because when the biggest representative of a country asks … if I was the president and the coach didn’t reply with the vehemence I expect, didn’t say ‘of course’, I’d kick him out. If the coach wavers: ‘This isn’t my guy, bring another one.’ “I never had an American dream. I didn’t speak English, didn’t understand anything, hadn’t been in the US: I didn’t go until Seattle in 2014 with Tottenham and one game in Washington in 1999 with Argentina. I had an Argentinian dream, then a Spanish dream, an English dream. The American dream is the idea anything is possible and we all have dreams: it doesn’t just belong to America. But why not? In football you can’t be honest: you need to create dreams, believe in the impossible. Because the impossible can be done. In football if you don’t believe: ciao! But if you believe you will have a chance, for sure.”
“However, we prefer to persuade through performance [not impose]. Players must see that their leaders are just. If a player is toxic for the group, the team, the others wouldn’t understand why we wouldn’t address that toxicity. We didn’t act impulsively but aimed to coexist and compete. It was a message to the group and to those who fostered toxicity. They aren’t cast aside; instead, they’re given the chance to be important, to think, change, and behave appropriately, which cultivates positive energy.”
Much discussion arose regarding Christian Pulisic’s absence from the Gold Cup, despite his willingness to participate in two friendlies, which Pochettino turned down, emphasizing the significance of fostering a cohesive group: if you’re in, you’re in. Although the USA captain played down the situation, suggesting “there’s probably not as much drama as you guys think,” Pochettino countered, “I’m the head coach, not a mannequin.” He now mentions, “It’s a general thing. I wouldn’t point to one person or two, or three or five. It was broader.”
Pressure, a familiar experience for Pochettino, also sheds light on his reluctance to engage with the U.S. political landscape, characterized by polarization, ICE raids, and violence. He confronted Tim Weah for criticizing ticket prices, remarking, “Fifa knows why,” and advising his winger: “Players need to communicate on the pitch, not outside; we’re not politicians, we’re simply sportspeople.”
Pochettino displays a hesitance to adopt a political stance beyond mere protection. “I accept this role with all the responsibilities that come with coaching a team; I don’t represent it at other levels. My representation is through sport, which is what I understand.”
He recalls, “I was part of Argentina’s squad in 2002; for five years, Argentina had been the best team, but when we arrived, we were fatigued, injured, and perhaps the emotional burden was excessive. There was an economic crisis. We had to win to bring joy to people, to help them forget their troubles: we were the nation’s saviors. That exerted a detrimental influence on the group.”
The current parallels are striking, as players now face similar pressures, expected to act as patriotic heroes while carrying an unwelcome weight of responsibility.
“Exactly,” he concurs, “which is why I focus on protecting them. We all empathize when we witness injustice, desire a better world, an end to violence, and for everyone to have enough to eat. I respect those who step outside the system to combat it; however, if you’re within the system, benefit from it.”
“Any coach can voice that ticket prices are high. We acknowledge that. My responsibility in preparing a team for the World Cup involves understanding how [external issues] affect the group’s dynamics. A job comes with [other] responsibilities that if you don’t accept, you need to step aside. If I remain and speak out, it leads to hypocrisy, populism, contradiction: I’m not sure how to label it.”
“Football can foster affection, love, happiness; it unites, brings people together, and opens minds. That’s our responsibility—not to exacerbate conflict or hatred. Naturally, when injustice occurs, it stings. Everyone observes. How do we create change? Through the values and principles of football. It’s easy to criticize, to divide; it’s harder to unite, to build, rather than to distance ourselves [from one another].”
“If we position ourselves on extremes, reconciliation becomes impossible. Football isn’t merely a game for enjoyment. I grew up with my father’s values, and football reinforced those. Football embodies empathy, solidarity. As an Argentinian in the U.S., perhaps I can contribute my grain of sand.”
Or perhaps something even greater. When Donald Trump asked Pochettino whether he believed the U.S. could win the World Cup, he confidently replied to the president, “First, because I believe it,” Pochettino asserts. “And second, when the highest representative of a country inquires… if I were the president and the coach didn’t respond with the fervor I expect, didn’t say ‘of course,’ I’d dismiss him. If the coach hesitates: ‘This isn’t my guy, bring in another one.’”
“I never harbored an American dream. I didn’t speak English, didn’t comprehend anything, and hadn’t set foot in the U.S. until Seattle in 2014 with Tottenham and one game in Washington in 1999 with Argentina. I had an Argentinian dream, which transformed into a Spanish dream, then an English dream. The American dream signifies that anything is possible, and we all have dreams: it doesn’t belong solely to America. But why not? In football, you can’t be sincere: you must create dreams, believe in the impossible. Because the impossible can be achieved. In football, if you don’t believe: ciao! But if you believe, you will have a chance, for sure.”
