No, the US team is ranked 16th in the world by FIFA. Would FDR have gotten all excited to watch Jessi Owens come in 16th at the 1936 Munich Olympics? How about Micheal Phelps going into the records book that way?
USA vs. England: The Showdown for the Future of American Soccer
The blueprint for the U.S. in this World Cup mirrors the plan that made England one of the favorites
U.S. players line up for a team photo ahead of the match against Wales. BUDA
By Andrew Beaton and Jonathan Clegg, WSJ
Nov. 23, 2022 1:41 pm ET
DOHA, Qatar—From the moment the U.S. learned its draw in this World Cup nearly eight months ago, there was immediate and breathless hype focused on a single game scheduled for the day after Thanksgiving. On Black Friday, the Americans would get to test themselves against one of the top soccer nations in the world, a team that just happens to be the model for how the U.S. dreams of playing.
Now the U.S. is finally set to play England for the third time in World Cup history. And the stakes for what may be the most heated clash since Bunker Hill are as high as anyone could have imagined: a spot in the knockout round, the prospect of national humiliation for England, and the Americans’ best chance in years to measure their progress on the global stage.
England took a young squad to the last World Cup and has emerged as one of the favorites at this one through a physical, high-octane style that few teams can handle. It turns out that it’s precisely what its next opponent aspires to be.
What unfolded in the U.S. and England’s opening games here only made this showdown more critical—both for the Americans’ chances of making it to the knockout rounds and their hopes of for a deep run in 2026. On Monday, the U.S. drew 1-1 against Wales after looking brilliant in the first half and lost in the desert for most of the second.
The performance did little to answer a central question: had the Americans legitimately improved since missing the 2018 World Cup? England, meanwhile, made clear that it could wallop inferior competition while barely breaking a sweat. The Three Lions crushed Iran 6
Should the U.S. go the way of Iran on Friday, it would likely mean an early exit and grim prospects for joining the world’s elite anytime soon. But if the Americans can stick with England—and squeak out a point or even three—they can extend their hotel stays in Doha and begin plotting a future as bona fide contenders when they host this tournament four years from now.
“You’re getting to play England. You get to play one of the teams that we think is a favorite of this tournament,” U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter said. “There’s not going to be many tired players come Friday.”
England wasn’t always a favorite at tournaments like this. Not so long ago, the England national team was a flamboyant catastrophe that would arrive at World Cups with high expectations, only to flame out in spectacular fashion. The only thing coming home in the last half-century was the English team—usually sometime before the knockout stage.
But how England has transformed its fortunes offers a blueprint for a U.S. soccer team also looking to transition from national embarrassments into World Cup contenders. Following England’s dismal showing at Euro 2016, the national team rebuilt around a core of young players and a strategy predicated on physicality, athleticism, and a laser focus on set pieces.
By the 2018 World Cup, England’s squad was the second-youngest at the tournament and it staged a shocking run to the semifinals. Yet even as they advanced to the final four, England knew the real horizon was the tournament four years later. The goal in Russia was merely to win a knockout game. Every major decision the England coaching staff has made since has been taken with one eye on 2022.
The Americans are now taking the same approach in Qatar. In qualifying, they were the youngest team to make it here. Most of their starters will still be under 30 four years from now. Just like England in 2018, this team was crafted to reach this World Cup, and peak during the next one.
“We want to build a ton of momentum going to 2026,” Berhalter said before the tournament, “but it all starts now.”
The same qualities that underpinned England’s rebuild are also where the U.S. excels—relatively speaking. When the Americans dominated the first half of the Wales game, they utterly outmuscled their Welsh counterparts. They have the physical stature to be dangerous from set pieces. And their brightest prospects are increasingly coming of age in the most high-intensity battleground in professional soccer.
One of the odd ingredients that transforms the makeup of a national team is that much of the formula relies on which leagues its players inhabit week after week. And the biggest step toward the Brit-ification of the U.S. team is the same one that has led generations of young Americans to develop Anglophile sensibilities: some trans-Atlantic study abroad.
The current squad features eight players now based in England, including six in the Premier League. Christian Pulisic, at Chelsea, is the biggest name and the best-paid American player since moving from Borussia Dortmund in 2019. While he has struggled to establish himself as a starter in West London, he remains the most creative player in attack for the U.S., which he showed when setting up the team’s lone goal of the tournament so far.
The Leeds United duo of Brenden Aaronson and Tyler Adams, who effectively patrolled midfield against Wales, have been far more productive for their club than Pulisic. Norwich City’s Josh Sargent, who started the U.S. opener, has also shined of late and is currently tied for the scoring lead in the English second tier.
Even 35-year-old defender Tim Ream, the rare old guy to make the trek to Qatar for the U.S., got here because of his success in London. Berhalter explained before the World Cup that it wasn’t a hard call including him on the roster because of his performance playing for Fulham.
“He’s in the Premier League, and he’s a top performer for his team,” Berhalter said of Ream. “It’s really hard to ignore stuff like that.”
But the Americans don’t want to become too English. Just ask any Three Lions fan.
Raised on World Cup heartbreak, England hasn’t won a major tournament in 56 years.
Write to Andrew Beaton at andrew.beaton@wsj.com and Jonathan Clegg at Jonathan.Clegg@wsj.com
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