- Jürgen Klopp has had a glittering soccer managing career and left Liverpool after last season, claiming he needed a break from the game.
- The United States men’s national soccer team fired Gregg Berhalter on July 10 after the team failed to make it out of the group stage at the Copa América.
- The USMNT approached Klopp about their job vacancy, but he declined, so the search continues with David Wagner, Steve Cherundolo, Hugo Perez, and Wilfried Nancy next in line in the odds.
The United States men’s national team struggled while hosting the 2024 Copa América. While they were grouped with Uruguay, the USMNT had been tipped to beat Panama and Bolivia to the second qualification spot.
However, the team crashed out in the group stage after losing games to Panama and Uruguay. That led to the firing of Gregg Berhalter. The former Columbus Crew manager led the team from December 2018 to December 2022, and then again from August 2023 to July 10, 2024.
The search has begun for Berhalter’s replacement, and the USMNT brass reached out Jurgen Klopp, former Liverpool, Borussia Dortmund, and Mainz head coach. However, they were rebuffed on their advances, and now their hunt continues.
Klopp’s Resume Put Him at the Top of the USMNT Job Search
Jürgen Klopp is one of the best managers of the modern game. The German is a considerable proponent of the Gegenpressing style, in which teams aim to press and win the ball back as soon as they lose it. This style helped Klopp win the German Bundesliga twice with Borussia Dortmund, who were also runners-up in the Champions League in 2013.
Klopp’s teams have a tendency to take down other big teams in their league. His Dortmund sides were the only non-Bayern Munich winners in Germany from 2010 to this season, when Bayer Leverkusen went undefeated to take the title. In England, Klopp’s Liverpool are the only team to win the Premier League, outside of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, since Chelsea won in 2017.
Klopp then moved to Liverpool, where he won the Champions League in 2019, and was runner-up in 2018 and 2022. He also led Liverpool to the Premier League title in 2020 for their first English top-flight championship since 1990. Klopp had a massive hand in returning Liverpool to their perch at the top of the English game.
However, Klopp announced in January that he would be leaving Liverpool after the season, claiming that he was low on energy and needed a break. That didn’t stop the USMNT from reaching out to Klopp to see if he was interested in taking over the job.
David Ornstein of The Athletic reports that Klopp has officially taken his name out of the running for the USMNT head-coaching job. T
he USMNT would like to fill this job quickly, as the United States is co-hosting the 2026 World Cup with Canada and Mexico. Klopp would have been an incredible hire for the United States, as he would be for any team in the world. However, the German is sticking to his promise to take a break.
Wagner, Cherundolo, Perez, Nancy, Marsch Next for the USMNT Job?
One of the best sports betting sites out there, BetUS, are favoring Klopp’s next job will be to take over the German national team. The country just lost in the quarterfinals of Euro 2024, which they are hosting.
Head coach Julian Nagelsmann had the team playing fantastic soccer, and they lost in extra time to an impressive Spain team that will take on England in Sunday’s final. Still, if Klopp expressed interest in the German job, there is a good chance he would get it.
As for the USMNT, BetUS has David Wagner at the top of the list. He managed Norwich City, a team from the English Championship, but he was let go in May 2024. Wagner is very close with Klopp, as the two played together at German club Mainz, and Wagner was the best man at Klopp’s wedding. The two also managed together at Borussia Dortmund II.
Next in line are Steve Cherundolo, the current manager at MLS side Los Angeles FC, former El Salvador head coach Hugo Perez, and Columbus Crew manager Wilfried Nancy. Jesse Marsch is an interesting inclusion on the list, as he is the head coach of the Canadian national team.
Marsch was reportedly in talks to take over the USMNT in 2022, but he claims he wasn’t “treated very well” during the process. Meanwhile, the American, who also coached at Red Bull Leipzig and Leeds United, just took Canada to the Copa América semifinals, where they lost to world champions Argentina.
Whoever the USMNT decides to hire, they’ll definitely reflect on their opportunity to get Jürgen Klopp. It would have been a gigantic boost for American soccer.
