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The United States will be one of the three hosts of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and the men’s team is hoping that will lead to an easier path out of the group stage this time around.
Team USA will face Paraguay, Australia and one of the four teams in UEFA Path C, which includes Turkey, Slovakia, Kosovo and Romania.
American soccer legend Landon Donovan told Pakinomist Digital that he expected the Americans to easily make it out of the group stage and into the knockout round.
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Landon Donovan of the United States against Costa Rica during the FIFA World Cup Qualifying match at Estadio Nacional on September 6, 2013 in San Jose, Costa Rica. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
“The prerequisite for all of us is to get out of the group stage, and actually I think we should win our group. I think that’s a realistic goal for this team,” Donovan said. “This team has the ability to beat any team in the world. I really do. It doesn’t mean we’re going to be better than all the teams we play in the World Cup, but we have the ability to beat any team. The challenge so far is that this team hasn’t shown they can do it yet, but we all know they’re capable.”
Donovan, whose book “Landon: A Memoir” is to be released this week, said the U.S. will have important friendlies against top teams that should show how far the team has come since the last World Cup.
Belgium, Portugal, Senegal and Germany are all set on the American schedule before the Americans play Paraguay on June 12 to begin the World Cup.
“The beauty of having a World Cup on home soil is that when you gain momentum, it becomes exponentially more with every step you take,” Donovan added. “So if you get out of the group and win the group, now the whole country is behind you. I’ve seen it every single World Cup since 2002. You win the next game and you win the next game, next thing you know, you can find yourself in a quarter-final or semi-final and then anything can happen.”
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US coach Gregg Berhalter with Weston McKennie during training. (Reuters/Ibraheem Al Omari)
The U.S. World Cup roster will likely include names the average soccer fan has already heard of — Christian Pulisic, Tim Ream, Weston McKennie and Matt Turner.
Donovan said fans should keep a closer eye on McKennie this time around. McKennie is in his sixth season with Serie A’s Juventus. He has four goals and four assists in 29 games this season.
“The player who is playing better than anyone right now for their club team on our national team is Weston McKennie,” Donovan said. “He plays for Juventus in Italy and he’s literally been their best player for 15 games in a row – and it’s a top five team in that country. It’s a big league. So I think if Weston continues that form into the World Cup, he can absolutely explode on the scene here and really make a name for himself.”
Donovan played 157 games for the US men’s soccer team, just seven games shy of Cobi Jones’ all-time record. He is also in first place with Clint Dempsey for 57 goals for the national team.
He recalled to Pakinomist Digital what it meant to him to play for Team USA.
USA’s Landon Donovan celebrates victory at the 2010 World Championships. (EMPICS Sport – PA Images via Getty Images)
“Everything,” he said simply. “I grew up a big sports fan, and for me, I couldn’t watch soccer on TV because we didn’t have cable TV. We were too poor to afford it. But I wanted to watch the Olympics, and I loved seeing people in obscure sports representing their country and especially the people representing our country. And I just love that about sports. There’s nothing, I mean, there’s nothing that’s completely different duty outside of military duty.
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“I always compare national team games to college football. Like the rivalry people feel and the pride they feel, but you throw national pride on top of that and you just can’t compare it to anything else. The pride as a player when you have a coat of arms and you see the flag come out and you hear the national anthem and you realize what you’re playing for is incomparable.”
