Christian Pulisic And The USMNT Are Becoming Extremely Unlikable At Worst Time Possible
The USMNT have somehow become more unlikable than ever ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
The hype and excitement for the U.S. men's national soccer team should be at an all-time high at the moment. The keyword there is ‘should.’
There has never been a more talented USMNT roster with a squad filled with players competing for some of the biggest clubs on the planet. The USMNT has also never employed a more accomplished manager than Mauricio Pochettino, who was hired in September of last year.
Those two facts, not opinions, should have American soccer fans counting down the days until the start of the 2026 World Cup, which will be hosted in North America with 78 of the 104 matches set to be played on U.S. soil.
It is not an exaggeration to say that next year's World Cup is the biggest, most important soccer event in the history of United States soccer.
The largest soccer event in the country's history, coinciding with the USMNT never being more talented, is a nice luxury. It's exactly what the federation was meant to build ahead of 2026. Outside of a disastrous performance when the tournament begins in June, it's a scenario that's seemingly impossible to mess up.
But when there is a chance, even a slim one, to disappoint, the USMNT is going to find a way to do so.
The USMNT continues to disappoint. (Photo by Manuel Velasquez Figueroa/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)
What's surprising about this situation, however, is that it's captain Christian Pulisic delivering self-inflicting wounds and making the USMNT far easier to hate than to like.
Pulisic opted out of competing for the USMNT during the Gold Cup earlier this summer, choosing to take the time to recover from a lengthy club season with AC Milan. Other big-name regulars on the USMNT skipped the competition as well, but when you wear the captain's band and happen to be the biggest star in U.S. soccer history, you get scrutinized a bit more.
Pulisic, however, is not taking that scrutiny well. Instead of acting like a thick-skinned leader who has hoisted a Champions League trophy and many more in his still-young career, he's decided to bitch and moan about the outside noise in his self-titled documentary series.
In the most recent episode, Pulisic and U.S. teammate Tim Weah aimed at the media and the USMNT players who came before them. Pulisic's father also jumps in on the trash talk in what is a 59-second clip of pure cringe.
Weah pointing out that the national teams before them haven't won anything as if his generation has done something remotely impressive on the world stage is mindboggling.
In another clip, Pulisic mocked the media for reporting and speculating about him opting out of competing in the Gold Cup. Again, this is the captain of the USMNT we're talking about.
Pulisic has an arrogance about him, just like the vast majority of other superstar athletes around the world, and on the club level, he has earned the right to display it when sitting in front of a camera. When we're talking about Pulisic in the context of the USMNT, however, that arrogance should be reserved for inside the white lines and motivating a team that has never been relevant on the world stage.
Every American sports fan should want to embrace this USMNT ahead of the World Cup, but instead of anticipation and excitement building, it's dread and disinterest that are building.