Arena: U.S. can think about winning World Cup in 2026
The United States can reasonably expect to win the World Cup by 2026, according to men's national team head coach Bruce Arena.
Three days after U.S. Soccer, in conjunction with the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) and Canadian Soccer Association, announced a joint bid to host the 2026 World Cup, Arena claimed his country has a better chance to challenge the game's elite in the next decade than it did in 1994, the last time it hosted the tournament.
"In 1994, I think the U.S. was looked at as this emerging frontier in the game, and FIFA wanted to bring the U.S. into the world's game. In 2026, we're going to be fully emerged into the game and a big player. I think 2026 will be the time where we're going to start talking about winning a World Cup," Arena told reporters Thursday, according to ESPN FC's Doug McIntyre.
"It wasn't going to be in 1994, it wasn't going to be in 2010. But 2026 could be our time."
The 65-year-old was hired in November just to get the U.S. out of a mess and into Russia for the 2018 showpiece. Losses to Mexico and Costa Rica in the opening matches of CONCACAF's final stage of qualifying threatened to eliminate the Americans and forced the firing of Jurgen Klinsmann.
Arena, in his second stint in charge of the United States, brought some stability and achieved a ship-righting 6-0 win over Honduras and a 1-1 draw at Panama. That provides a temporary reprieve, if not the kind of groundbreaking results that define a program.
But the former LA Galaxy tactician expects Major League Soccer will continue to evolve, especially as league-wide attendance and expansion franchises continue growing.
"Nine more years in our league, nine more years of players developing all over the world and then playing a World Cup in our country - I think that we're going to be positioned to be a big player in 2026," Arena added.
Currently, only four United States internationals play abroad, with Borussia Dortmund's 18-year-old sensation Christian Pulisic leading the newest generation of American soccer players.