The United States men’s soccer team announced Friday that it was rehiring Gregg Berhalter as its head coach for the run-up to the 2026 World Cup.
The move capped several whirlwind months for Berhalter, 49, who led the American men’s team to the round of 16 at the World Cup in Qatar but did not have his contract renewed in the aftermath of the tournament.
Gregg Berhalter has been chosen to lead the #USMNT to the 2026 FIFA World Cup » https://t.co/ObcP1tCbvH pic.twitter.com/c85nwVS9to
Instead, the U.S. Soccer Federation announced that it had started an independent investigation into his conduct after accusations from the parents of one of his players that Berhalter had physically abused his wife, Rosalind, in an incident three decades ago, when they were dating as college students. The Berhalters, who remain married, reconciled shortly after the incident and have talked openly about it after the accusations this year.
The investigation was sparked by information from the parents of the United States forward Gio Reyna, who went to U.S. Soccer with details of the incident. Gio Reyna’s mother, Danielle, had been a teammate of Rosalind Berhalter at North Carolina at the time, and his father, Claudio, had played with Gregg Berhalter on the national team.
Although the families had been close friends for years, the Reynas only complained to U.S. Soccer after they became upset about their son’s playing time during the World Cup. The Reynas later confirmed that they had gone to the federation with information about the decades-old incident between Berhalter and his wife.
They had become upset after hearing Berhalter’s public comments about an unnamed player at the World Cup who “was clearly not meeting expectations on and off the field” and who the staff considered sending home. Gio Reyna later revealed in an Instagram apology that he was the player in question.
The investigation, which concluded in March, cleared Berhalter of any wrongdoing — meaning he did not improperly withhold information from the organization — and opened a path for him to be rehired. It was unclear at that time, though, if that would happen.
In recent days, key players on the men’s team, including the star forward Christian Pulisic, had suggested they supported Berhalter’s return.
“I think he’s done a great job,” Pulisic told reporters of Berhalter after a 3-0 victory over Mexico on Thursday night. “I’m glad we can just pick up where we left off,” he added, in comments that suggested the team had prior knowledge of Friday’s announcement that Berhalter had been rehired.
Berhalter, who was first hired by the national team in 2019, returns to the team with a 37-11-12 record as head coach.
Andrew Keh is a sports reporter in New York. He was previously an international correspondent based in Berlin and has reported from more than 25 countries. @andrewkeh
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