On Friday, May 23 at 1 p.m. ET, a U.S. men’s national team administrator created a WhatsApp group chat. In that chat, he added 26 players.
Then he sent a video from USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino to all 26 — the group that the coach had selected to make up his 2026 World Cup roster.
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The video was short but meaningful.
“Guys, if you’re watching this video, it’s because you are in,” Pochettino said.
“I am so excited to communicate that you are going to be on the roster for World Cup 2026, in the World Cup that we are going to host. Enjoy guys and see you in New York.”
All 26 players responded with videos of their own, which U.S. Soccer also featured in its social media post.
Four days after Pochettino sent his video, the USMNT officially named its 26-player World Cup roster during an event in New York City.
Pochettino has come under some criticism for his method of informing players of their World Cup roster status.
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The Argentine chose to send an email to those who missed out, rather than calling them. He defended his methods during a press conference after naming his roster on Tuesday.
“When I was a player, when I didn’t make the roster I didn’t want my coach to call me,” Pochettino said. “The players who didn’t make the roster, they don’t want to hear me say I apologize.”
He added: “I understand the player — they didn’t make the roster, they didn’t want to hear me, to say, I apologize. I care. Do you know why I care? Because during two weeks, I didn’t sleep and today, I still cannot enjoy the 26 guys in front of me because I am thinking about the players that are out.”
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The U.S. men’s national team World Cup roster is out, for real this time. Three days after the team’s squad was fully leaked, USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino officially revealed his 26-man roster for the 2026 tournament on Tuesday, May 26. The release confirmed the leak was, in fact, accurate, as the 26 names matched the 26 The Guardian first reported over the weekend. The names didn’t feature too many surprises, though there were still one or two decisions that could be characterized as head-scratching. “We are confident this is the best group of 26 players to help us achieve success at the World Cup,” Pochettino said. See who made the team:
Christian Pulisic, attacking midfielder/winger
(Kevin C. Cox, Getty Images)
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Watch Mauricio Pochettino video for USMNT World Cup roster
