Mauricio Pochettino Hire Backed By Griffin, Donors For 2026 — Usa Coach Soccer
usa coach soccer changed course in 2024 when U.S. Soccer landed Mauricio Pochettino on a deal worth several million dollars annually. The hire for the 2026 World Cup only happened after billionaire and corporate support bridged a budget gap the federation could not clear on its own.
U.S. Soccer said the Pochettino package was supported in significant part by a philanthropic leadership gift from Kenneth C. Griffin, the founder and CEO of Citadel. Additional support came from Scott Goodwin and several commercial partners.
Copa América Pressure In Kansas City
The move came after the U.S. men’s national team crashed out of Copa América in June and July 2024. Fans chanted for Gregg Berhalter to be fired after that exit at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, and U.S. Soccer fired him while searching for a successor later in 2024.
That search landed on a coach with a salary level the federation had not usually been able to offer. Berhalter was hired in 2018 and re-signed in 2023, making around $1.7 million per year including bonuses, while Jürgen Klinsmann had made more than $3 million by the end of his second contract from 2011 to 2016. U.S. Soccer knew in 2024 that it would need an unprecedented financial outlay to lure a big-name coach with a lengthy résumé.
Cindy Parlow Cone On The Funding
Cindy Parlow Cone said the hire would not have happened without the donors unless Pochettino was willing to work for much less. Her answer was blunt: “absolutely,” then, “well, unless [Pochettino] was willing to work for much less.”
Pochettino has described the rebuild as a ground-up job, saying he and the staff had “identified problems … destroy(ed) the things that we needed to destroy, and start(ed) to build the house from the ground up.” The 54-year-old has now spent 20 months in charge, and the funding behind his deal shows how far U.S. Soccer went to buy time, expertise and credibility before the 2026 World Cup.
