Almost two years ago, U.S. Soccer CEO JT Batson stood outside the W Hotel in Barcelona, Spain, alongside then federation sporting director Matt Crocker, and realized that signing Mauricio Pochettino as the next U.S. men’s national team manager — a dream hire if there ever was one — was in reach. With Monday’s announcement that Pochettino has signed on with the USSF for another four years, the vibe is almost completely different. There also will be new challenges.

The relationship between federation and coach is more established now. The two sides have gotten to know each other in the ensuing months through some lows as well as highs. The federation made it clear even before the FIFA World Cup that they wanted Pochettino back. Pochettino and his staff took a wait-and-see approach. After all, nothing can change perceptions like a World Cup.

For the USMNT, that was evident within the tournament itself. The group stage delivered euphoria. The round-of-16 match against Belgium delivered a humbling 4-1 defeat. But each side saw enough potential in the other to want to continue. It was less a courtship with bottles of champagne — or in Pochettino’s case, red wine — and more a reaffirming of common goals.

“This was a steady, collaborative back and forth over the course of weeks exchanging ideas, not a ‘U.S. Soccer makes offer, waits for answer’ situation,” said one source with knowledge of the talks, requesting anonymity to candidly discuss the negotiations. “Hence, no dramatic moments or beverages or obstacles.”

Another source added, “The publicity is perfect. Sponsors are happy.”

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So are the donors. Just as he did in 2024, Ken Griffin is the lead philanthropic funder supporting Pochettino’s appointment with U.S. Soccer, this time through to the 2030 World Cup. Griffin said in a statement that he was “thrilled” at Pochettino’s return. Scott Goodwin, Adam Freede and several commercial partners are also contributing.

That Pochettino wanted to stay counts as something of a surprise. His oft-stated appreciation for the club game in general, and the Premier League in particular, gave the impression that he was as good as gone once the World Cup ended. But the USSF sees in Pochettino a manager who can not only take the program to the next level — that of competing with the world’s best — but also help with other areas of the federation, from design elements of the ever-expanding national training center to the overall pathway for young players.

For Pochettino, there is also something to be said for being wanted, rather than always looking for the next stop. There is alignment between the manager and his bosses. Given Pochettino’s experiences with the likes of Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, he knows this isn’t always the case. The foundation is set. The feeling on both sides is that now is the time to build upon it.

“They really believed in us before the start of the World Cup; that’s another positive for us — it’s important that they saw value in us,” Pochettino said on Monday during a roundtable with reporters. “I really believe that it is an exciting situation and moment for soccer in the USA after 18, 19 months of working on the objective that was only the World Cup.

“Now to start in a fresh way, with different approach, trying to create a different philosophy, a different idea of what we need to do — to have the possibility to start from zero.”

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Will Pochettino leave USMNT before 2030?

Is Pochettino’s re-signing a good idea, though? There were certainly enough uneven results, including the heavy defeat to Belgium, to make it less of a slam dunk that one might think. But he succeeded in establishing a level of accountability that was missing in the USMNT setup, and he utilized a high-pressing style in the wins over Paraguay and Australia that showed what’s possible. That impression, and the public’s response to those results, carried the day.

The bigger question is whether Pochettino will hang around for all four years. A second cycle hasn’t been kind to U.S. managers in the past, for a variety of reasons, the biggest being that the message gets stale. The lure of a Big Job™ overseas might prove too great a temptation; maybe not today, but in a few years. Pochettino knows the status of the coaching staff — himself included — is fluid.

“Four years’ time is a really long period. You never know what can happen in soccer,” Pochettino said. “Today, people really love you, but in X time, maybe that feeling can change. That’s why … every time that we sign a contract is to go to the last day of the contract. We signed the contract because we really believe that we are going there for four years.

“Because if not, it’s bad. We always [said], ‘If we don’t believe in that process, if we don’t believe in that journey, why [would] we sign [a four-year deal]?’ Only to be sure that we are going to receive a salary on the end of the month? That is not nice. It’s not in the way that we think.

“But in life, nothing is sure. Less in life, but it’s less in football.”

Pochettino’s aforementioned “start from zero” approach will be key to his sticking around. This will allow him to maintain the level of accountability that was established over the past 22 months. And unlike the 2026 cycle, the Argentine will have the luxury of more time. That will allow him to bring in the next generation of players. There is an obvious lack of depth in the center of defense as well as at goalkeeper. You can never have too many options in attack either.

“I think now, after our experience, we need to provide every one of the players that were with us in the World Cup or were in the last process — and the new generation, new young players or player that maybe are mature — they have the possibility to be in that process,” Pochettino said. “They need to feel that if they perform, they can have the possibility to join us. The important thing is … that we [have] time now with four years ahead.”

There will still be lessons to learn during this cycle. While the path to World Cup qualification will be easier for Pochettino than his predecessors given the field now comprises 48 teams, away dates in places such as Costa Rica, Honduras and Panama won’t be easy. Pochettino knows there is a gap between his side and the likes of Belgium. He feels it can be bridged with more time, although it will take some doing, as well as growth within the player pool.

“Well, I think what we learned is that we can compete. That we have the quality and we have the talent,” he said. “And I think that we are intelligent and we have the possibility to reunite and unite all the areas. And when that sport grows and grows and grows and be one of the important sports in America like is in the rest of the world, I think the potential is there.”

Pochettino will have four years to make his case.