'In everything, Americans want to win. It's the culture'

United States manager Mauricio Pochettino talks to Miguel Delaney about how the nation could soon dominate football

- Miguel Delaney

Mauricio Pochettino may now be the most important figure in American soccer, as the country gets ready to stage the biggest World Cup in history, but that hasn’t yet granted him any special status. He still hasn’t got a green card, having taken the job in September 2024. “We are waiting,” he laughs. “The last time, in Los Angeles, we were waiting one hour and a half in the queue!”

He then offers a quick caveat.

“I am not complaining because if I complain, they are going to kill me!”

The statement was in response to whether he feels like a celebrity in a country where that wattage is greater than anywhere else. Pochettino says he hasn’t felt that, but is aware it may change if Donald Trump starts to get attuned to his work. The US president’s son, Barron, is known to be a football fan, and Pochettino has already sensed how a mere mention can bring a different level of interest.

“I was listening to a conversation between our president Donald Trump and [Fifa president] Gianni Infantino. The president asked ‘can we win the World Cup?’ And Gianni said yes. But I was disappointed with his answer. He should say: ‘You need to ask your great coach, Pochettino, because for sure he can give a better opinion!’”

That can also go another way, of course. One critical social media post from Trump could bring a new level of pressure. It would put dealing with Daniel Levy or Chelsea’s ownership group into a different perspective.

“With our president, that likes to put pressure, that is going to be good,” Pochettino said. “Yes, we are ready to deliver.”

It would be similar even if Trump wasn’t president, mind. “We are a host – and then it’s a country where the mentality is about winning. In sport, in everything that Americans are involved in, they want to win. That is the culture.”