News: Bruce Arena says the United States will be in a position to win the World Cup by 2026

I think what Bruce is forgetting is that it's one thing to have the resources available to win, it's quite another to free oneself from all the petty corruptions that get in the way of employing those resources to the max. A midfield of Nagbe, Jones and Bradley isn't going anywhere in Russia 2018. Just look at the problems we've had getting a winning midfield together. We've had 3 years.

These problems are always there and it is a matter of national character that solves them. Germany showed they had it as has Italy on numerous occasions. We will not be winning anything in 2026 because we will still be learning that lesson: The $ is King but he has no trophy in his case.

 

Can you elaborate on the national character Germany and Italy had. Im not sure I understand.

 

I think we will have the potential to get to the finals but Im not sure we will have anybody competent enough to guide the ship. Ussoccer and MLS could place unnecessary obstacles on accident too.

 

Fun speculation, but it is easy to make predictions that won't be proved wrong for 9 years.

 

I think what you're forgetting is all the groundwork laid by one Jurgen Klinsmann.

 

It certainly boosts our chances a lot to have the World Cup in our own country.

France had no shortage of talent, but at the same time the two World Cups previous to the one they were victorious in on their own home soil, they didn't even qualify for, and the next they finished near last place.

And for the one South Korea hosted, they finished in 4th place. We are better than them. In fact we drew with them that year while they got a ton of calls, and probably would have played them in the semis if we don't get screwed against Germany.

Pulisic, for one, will be in his prime then. EPB has the tools to be around that level, helping out on the other end of the field. Perez, Wright, and Carleton could be difference making creators and scorers. Horvath in net. Roldan will be 30-31 still, and a 2-way player. McKennie has promise as another one. Miazga, Zimmerman, Glad, Robinson, etc.; as cb options. FB's never get much hype. But guys like Rosenberry, Farfan, Fossey, etc.; may get it done. Some of these guys will fade, but others will emerge, especially as MLS academies mature. 9 years is quite a long time in football. It has potential.

Buoyed by home fans, we may have as good of a chance at that point as anyone. It's not like making the suggestion in a normal year. Of course the knee-jerk response from a lot of people is to say he's crazy, regardless of circumstance or time.

 

KIinsmann was lesson 1, Arena will be lesson 2......we're just getting started.

 

I'd like to have what some of Arena's smoking, because I can't see the US winning the World Cup for at least half a century or more.

It's taken many soccer-made countries that long to win 1 World Cup.

 

I don't think something like that can be done in one post.

 

To win a World Cup you need great players and a great coach, we never had any of the 2, hoping after Pulisic, we have better players in all positions.


A good start should be bringing a coach with a Libertadores or Champions League winning record, not another Klinsmann.

 

Bruce is a little too cautious. We should contend in 2022.

 

Not only "soccer-mad" countries, but countries where the soccer developmental blueprint takes priority over any other sport.
Here we go again, back to 1999 when the infamous "Project 2010" was launched by the U.S. Soccer Federation with the grandiose hopes of winning the WC by 2010! And how did that go?
I find it a bit arrogant of Arena (and some US fans) to assume that a current crop of young players is going to produce the necessary magic to achieve this and dismissing other countries that are already ahead of the curve in the talent and scouting area, unless we forget that Klinsmann so desperately had to pry German-born players with US blood to patch up the NT due to lack of talent this side of the Atlantic.
According to the latest FIFA rankings (I know I know), the USA is # 23, that means that there are at least 10-15 countries who could make a legitimate claim to win the World Cup by that time, and with valid reasons. Is Arena assuming that those other countries are going to sit still and stop developing their own talent?

 

Ya, damn him for being positive and having hope. Hell ya we can win the '26 Cup, that's not me being arrogant, its me being a fan and Bruce being a coach. If you already know from the start that you or your team has no chance, then whats the point of trying?

 

I think he's right.

 

A great coach can win the World Cup with the players we have, is not going to be pretty, we would have to park the bus and score ugly rebound goals but it can be done, anything is possible in sports, very little chances but it can be done.

That being said, to be able to win the World Cup dictating the game and dominating teams, that will take at least another 30-40 years, you still don't see our parks packed with kids playing pick up soccer, the average sports fan doesn't know what MLS is, we have fans that think our players making it to second division is a good thing...

It takes time, a lot of work and making smart choices to be a powerhouse but little by little we are getting there.

 

I certainly like this statement a lot more than JK saying that expecting us to make the tournament every year and make it out of our group most years is unreasonable.

 

Our lower divisions are terrible as well.

 

I agree with Arena. Being at home is going to enable us to do really well. And the evolution of our game in 10 years is also going to be big.

I think people that project this to take decades are being a little too linear. There's not one way to do things in soccer. We don't have to take the route that Germany or Spain took to WC glory. We have different advantages (and disadvantages) than they did/do.

Things change much faster than most people imagine.

One other note - there is really no such thing as a dynasty in international soccer. Yes, some teams are historically strong, but there are rarely teams that perform with the same level of consistency across say even 3 world cups. Germany in 2014 was dominant... Germany in 2010 was not (although they were still very good). In 2014 Brazil was crushed and it was called a national embarrassment... but in reality it was their highest finish in the WC since 2002! I think the US is a good team historically that is trending upward, and they are going to be the home team... seems like a situation where they could do really well.

 

That's because the wc is every 4 years, the Brazil of Pele and Garrincha, the one with Ronaldo and Roanaldinho, the Spain of Ramos and Iniesta, those were def dinastíes, if the wc was every year, they would have won 3 or 4.

 

I find it a little arrogant that we can't even argue the U.S. would have a realistic shot....in 9 years as a program in our infancy compared to others....on our own homefield which is proven to be a big built-in advantage.

Also kind of arrogant that you think we HAD to rely on outside help. That was an effort started under Bradley, to put us on par with many other top countries in the world in this department, and then made extreme under Klinsmann because he had similar prejudice against the American-developed player as you. Only 2 should start right now (Brooks, Johnson), and 3 max on the roster.

Using our current ranking is going to be deceptive when we're just getting out from under a manager that was tactically inept, had a misfit plan for our circumstances, alienated players, and as aforementioned was oppressively negative (in spite of sporting a phony smile). To get a clearer sense of who we are right now, we have to get comfortably removed from his era, then see where we stand. Right now we're actually 32nd in Elo ratings. But I see no reason we can't be as high as 14th on ability, and be ranked anywhere from that point to 20th, as of this current day and time. Here are those teams: Poland, Croatia, Switzerland, Peru, Netherlands, Ecuador, Turkey. The only one with clearly more ability is Netherlands, and they are going in the tank right now. Club affiliations are a poor indicator when many of those teams are in Europe, have local scouting, and rules to keep players in our country out, and Jurgen's antagonism toward MLS meant those players by and large would stay in MLS.

We may just have to climb 5 spots in 9 years in reality, to enter Mexico and England territory. Then being buoyed by home fans, unlike everybody else, would make us a contender. There's nothing really magical about that, and a current crop of promising players does exist. Not all of them or near it need to pan out to achieve this ranking and others can emerge in that long stretch of 9 years as well. That's a pretty realistic perspective, not a pie in the sky one.

 

We can beat anybody any day, we did it to Spain before when they were number 1.

What we are really looking at is at a dominant team, that will take a while my friend, at least 30 years, we cannot have a dominant team with second division players in the roster and with weak lower divisions, MLS have to do a better marketing job as well.

The day you see parks all over the country every afternoon packed with kids playing pick up soccer, that is when we should demand a world championship. MLS clubs also have to dominate ccccl and move onto Copa Libertadores.

 

It's possible that the US could have a top-tier NT talent-wise by that time -- but that more or less gets you to where Belgium is now. I think Belgium is still a ways from winning a World Cup. Sooooo many stars have to align to make this possible. That said, playing at home will be a huge boost.

 

We have no idea. The players that cup currently are between the ages of 10 and 24. Most of today's young hotshots will be close to over the hill. So it's full blown conjecture.

 

Belgium has never accomplished anything, in the other hand, we have a mixture of cultures that have done it before.

Interesting that Mexico won its first World Cup in u17, their best player was Do Santos, his father was a world champion with Brazil...