2024 Olympics draw: USMNT to face France, New Zealand, playoff winner

The USMNT will face the tournament host to kick off the Olympics on July 24

The U.S. men’s under-23 national team has been matched up with host country France, New Zealand and the winner of an Asian-African playoff following Wednesday’s 2024 Olympic draw.

The USMNT was drawn into Group A, and will face France in the tournament opener on July 24 at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille. 

The U.S. will then face New Zealand at the same venue on July 27, before closing out group play on July 30 at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in Saint-Étienne.

The U.S. men will participate in the Olympics for the first time since the 2008 competition in Beijing. Before qualifying through the 2022 Concacaf U-20 Championship, the U.S. had fallen short three Olympics in a row.

The men’s tournament will see 16 teams separated into four groups of four, with the top two finishers in each group advancing to the quarterfinal stage.

So far, 12 teams have qualified. Three Asian teams will qualify through the AFC U-23 Asian Cup, which takes place from April 15 to May 3. The final spot will come from an intercontinental playoff between an Asian team and Guinea, the fourth place team from the 2023 U-23 Africa Cup of Nations.

Men’s soccer at the Olympics is an under-23 event (players born on or after January 1, 2000), with every team eligible to select three overage players.

2024 Olympics men’s soccer draw

Group A

  • France
  • USA
  • AFC-CAF playoff winner
  • New Zealand

Group B

  • Argentina
  • Morocco
  • AFC 3
  • Ukraine

Group C

  • AFC 2
  • Spain
  • Egypt
  • Dominican Republic

Group D

  • AFC 1
  • Paraguay
  • Mali
  • Israel

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NFL star and former MLS defender Aubrey pays visit to USMNT camp

Brandon Aubrey, a former MLS draft pick who led the NFL in scoring last season, stopped by USMNT camp this week

The U.S. men’s national team had a special guest at Tuesday’s practice, a familiar face for fans in Dallas.

The USMNT invited Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey to a training session ahead of Thursday’s Concacaf Nations League semifinal showdown with Jamaica at AT&T Stadium.

Aubrey, 29, emerged as one of the best kickers in the NFL last season, but his professional sports career actually started in soccer.

Aubrey was a defender at Notre Dame from 2013-2016, scoring 15 goals and earning first-team All-ACC recognition with the Fighting Irish. He was drafted by Toronto FC in the first round of the 2017 MLS SuperDraft.

The defender spent his first season on loan to Toronto’s second team (a USL squad at the time), then he spent one year with Bethlehem Steel FC (another USL team that formerly served as a Philadelphia Union affiliate). After 47 appearances in the USL, Aubrey was out of soccer by 2019.

Aubrey started working as a software engineer. While watching an NFL game in 2019, Aubrey and his wife looked on as a kicker missed an attempt.

“You could do that,” she told him.

So he did.

Aubrey hired a kicking coach and he worked in his garage during the pandemic. After three years of training, he finally got an opportunity with the Birmingham Stallions (then of the USFL, a league that has since merged with the XFL to form the UFL).

In his first season as a professional kicker, Aubrey made the All-USFL first-team and he won back-to-back championships with the Stallions. After going 32-of-37 on field goal attempts in the spring league, Aubrey was invited to Cowboys training camp last summer.

Aubrey ended up winning Dallas’ starting kicker job and he went on to go 36-of-38 on field goal attempts in 2023, leading the NFL with 157 points. He quickly established himself as one of the best kickers in the NFL and made the Pro Bowl in his first season.

Aubrey is following in the footsteps of Josh Lambo, who switched from soccer to American football and went on to have a seven-year career as a kicker in the NFL. If his first season is any indication of what’s to come, Aubrey is well on his way to surpassing Lambo’s feats.

The winner of the USA-Jamacia match on Thursday will advance to face the winner of the Mexico-Panama clash in the Concacaf Nations League final at the Cowboys’ stadium on Sunday night.

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USMNT star Weston McKennie signs with Puma

McKennie joins USMNT teammates Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah with the brand

Puma has announced the signing of U.S. men’s national team star Weston McKennie.

The Juventus midfielder joins his international teammates Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah as representatives of the apparel giant.

McKennie said he has already been wearing Puma’s Future boots for several months prior to signing on with the company.

“I am excited to join Puma, a brand that has consistently pushed innovation in the sport for more than 60 years to ensure athletes have the best products to perform their best. I have been playing in the Future boot for the last several months already and feel confident that I will reach new levels alongside Puma,” McKennie said in a press release.

“I also look forward to joining my fellow USMNT teammates, and friends, Christian and Yunus as we prepare for the 2024 Copa América,” he added. “Off the pitch, Puma’s ability to merge culture and sports is something I want to explore further.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/C4vRH6PKO-o/?hl=en&img_index=1

“We are thrilled to welcome Weston McKennie as the latest soccer athlete to join the Puma family,” added Allison Giorgio, vice president of marketing at Puma North America.

“Weston’s versatility and exceptional skills on the pitch have earned him incredible wins throughout his career. We are excited to support Weston on the pitch and work together to continue to grow the sport in North America while simultaneously supporting his personal passions and causes off the pitch.”

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Already shorthanded, Jamaica sees Antonio withdraw ahead of USMNT clash

If Jamaica is to spring an upset over the USMNT, it will have to do so the hard way

If Jamaica is to spring an upset over the U.S. men’s national team on Thursday night, it will have to do so the hard way.

Already missing a host of key players for the Concacaf Nations League semifinal, the Reggae Boyz will now also be without star forward Michail Antonio.

West Ham said on Tuesday that Antonio had withdrawn from the Jamaica squad, declining to provide a reason. The 33-year-old was originally named to Jamaica’s roster for the Nations League finals, and scored on Sunday in West Ham’s 1-1 draw with Aston Villa.

Antonio joins a growing list of players who won’t be available on Thursday when Jamaica faces the USMNT at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Leon Bailey and Trivante Stewart were both not selected for the roster after missing curfew at Jamaica’s most recent camp. Center backs Ethan Pinnock and Amari’i Bell also weren’t called up due to injury, while Demarai Gray and Shamar Nicholson are on the roster but will be suspended against the U.S. due to card accumulation.

The USMNT is aiming for its third consecutive Nations League title, while Jamaica is making its first semifinal appearance in the competition.

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Musah full of praise for Pulisic’s goalscoring — and his Italian

Musah said Pulisic has been Milan’s best attacking player this season

Yunus Musah has been highly impressed with Christian Pulisic’s accomplishments with AC Milan this season, both on and off the field.

In his debut campaign with the Rossoneri, Pulisic has already reached a career high in goals with 12. The U.S. national team star entered the international break on a streak of four games in a row with a goal.

Musah, who is also in his first AC Milan season, wasn’t just impressed with his teammate’s displays on the pitch, but also his vastly improving Italian skills.

Speaking to reporters from USMNT camp ahead of Thursday’s Nations League semifinal against Jamaica, Musah said Pulisic has been Milan’s best attacking player in 2023-24 so far.

“I’m really really happy with the way I see Christian playing at the moment,” the midfielder said. “He’s scoring a lot of goals, affecting the play a lot in our team.

“I’d say he’s been our best attacking player this season at Milan, so I’m really happy for him. He’s doing so well. I see he’s enjoying it as well and possibly having one of his best seasons. So yeah, I’m really happy to see a fellow American do such a thing.”

Musah speaks fluent Italian, having lived in Italy for several years during his childhood. The 21-year-old helped Pulisic transition to life in a new country and a new language upon their arrival in Milan but lately, Musah said Pulisic is showing he doesn’t need quite as much help in the language department.

“Whenever I could help with the language I did, and he’s learning as well,” Musah said. “And as as you can see, he’s happy there, he’s enjoying himself, thriving. So I’m happy for him.”

The midfielder added: “He’s working really hard on his Italian and he’s managed to learn quite a bit. He really understands the manager now and [his] teammates.”

Musah also spoke about his own campaign thus far, having made the move from Valencia over the summer. After starting regularly for Milan over the first half of the season, Musah has been a bench option in recent months with Ismaël Bennacer, Yacine Adli and Tijjani Reijnders all battling for minutes in center midfield.

“I’m really happy with how the season’s been going at such a big team like this,” Musah said. “I’ve managed to play a lot of games at the beginning, in the Champions League against some top teams like PSG.”

He added: “We have a lot of talented players in the middle, so there’s a lot of competition. We can all start, so it’s hard for the manager to choose who plays. I’m just ready whenever it’s my time.”

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Adams provides fitness update ahead of USMNT Nations League matches

The USMNT captain isn’t in camp just to provide a locker room presence.

Tyler Adams may have only played a couple times over the past year, but he’s not at U.S. men’s national team camp just to provide a locker room presence.

After two hamstring surgeries knocked him out for nearly a full year, Adams has been named to a USMNT roster for the first time since the 2022 World Cup.

The midfielder has joined up with the USMNT ahead of Thursday’s Concacaf Nations League semifinal against Jamaica. The winner of that match will face the winner of Mexico’s semifinal against Panama in Sunday’s final, while the two losers will meet Sunday in the third-place game.

Adams made his first Bournemouth appearance since September last week, coming on in the 71st minute of a 4-3 comeback win over Luton Town.

Some have questioned the wisdom of bringing Adams into USMNT camp with such limited recent game action, but in a call with the media on Monday, the 25-year-old insisted he’s ready to play some significant minutes.

“I played a bit in a [Bournemouth] reserve game, so I got a few minutes there. I had been training for a good amount of time, doing a lot of fitness,” Adams said. “But I felt really good in the [Luton] game. I think I ended up playing — with like 12 minutes of extra time or something — close to 30 minutes and came out of that in a good position.

“I was talking to Gregg [Berhalter, USMNT coach] all along and we were deciding whether I would just come into camp and be around the guys and continue my fitness and training, or if I felt I could play a role in an active roster.

“If anybody asked me, of course I want to play a role and be on the active roster. So I think for these games, I’m still probably minute-capped maybe a little bit. It’s not you know, come flying out of the gates, but I know I can contribute 45 to 60 minutes.”

Adams said that despite a lengthy period of rehab that had to start all over again after his second surgery in October, he always believed he would be back with the USMNT.

“There was never a doubt in my mind that the moment would come,” he said. “Anyone that knows me knows that I do a lot of my work behind the scenes. I go about my business in the right way. I’ve been continuously working nonstop in the past months to make sure that this time would come.

“I’m not sure if anyone thought it would come this soon, but I was continuously just pushing myself and making sure that I was hitting objectives in a smart way. Not rushing the process, making sure I was hitting all my benchmarks, and now here I am.”

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USMNT calls Aaronson, Wright up for Nations League as injury replacements

Snubbed no more, Aaronson and Wright will get their shot at the Nations League

The U.S. men’s national team has had to make a pair of changes, with Gregg Berhalter adding Brenden Aaronson and Haji Wright to his squad for the Concacaf Nations League.

The duo will join up with the USMNT after Luca de la Torre and Josh Sargent had to withdraw from the team with injuries ahead of Thursday’s semifinal against Jamaica in Arlington, Texas.

De la Torre was forced to withdraw with what U.S. Soccer called a quadriceps strain, while Sargent — whose superb recent form earned him his first call-up since 2022 — will miss out due to ankle irritation.

The recall comes at a critical time for Aaronson. The New Jersey native said he is enduring “the toughest year of my life” on Saturday, shortly after what was arguably his best single-game performance with Union Berlin. Aaronson scored the winner in a 2-1 victory over Werder Bremen, just two minutes after notching his first assist of the year.

Wright, meanwhile, is flying high. The USMNT recall comes a day after the Coventry City striker notched a stunning stoppage-time winner to send the Sky Blues through to the FA Cup semifinals. The Californian has eight goals in Coventry’s last 10 matches.

Despite the injury news, Berhalter had a series of options to sort through, particularly in replacing Sargent. Brandon Vazquez has been thriving since completing a winter transfer to Monterrey, while Jordan Pefok has started 10 straight for Borussia Mönchengladbach. If a wide attacker had been preferred, the list of players vying for a spot would have to include Kevin Paredes, Cade Cowell, Alex Zendejas, and Griffin Yow.

If Berhalter had concerns about the balance of his squad going too attack-heavy, Gianluca Busio, and Aidan Morris could have all been in the mix as well. Another option, Lennard Maloney, remains out for Heidenheim with a knock.

Updated USMNT Nations League finals roster

Goalkeepers (3): 22-Drake Callender (Inter Miami; 0/0), 18-Ethan Horvath (Cardiff City; 9/0), 1-Matt Turner (Nottingham Forest; 37/0)

Defenders (8): 2-Sergino Dest (PSV; 32/2), 23-Kristoffer Lund (Palermo; 3/0), 16-Mark McKenzie (Genk; 13/0), 13-Tim Ream (Fulham; 55/1), 3-Chris Richards (Crystal Palace; 14/1), 5-Antonee Robinson (Fulham; 39/4), 12-Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati; 28/3), 19-Joe Scally (Borussia Monchengladbach; 8/0)

Midfielders (5): 4-Tyler Adams (Bournemouth; 36/1), 15-Johnny Cardoso (Real Betis; 9/0), 8-Weston McKennie (Juventus/ITA; 49/11), 6-Yunus Musah (AC Milan; 33/0), 7-Gio Reyna (Nottingham Forest; 24/7)

Forwards (7): 11-Brenden Aaronson (Union Berlin/GER; 38/8), 20-Folarin Balogun (Monaco; 8/3), 17-Malik Tillman (PSV; 8/0), 9-Ricardo Pepi (PSV; 22/10), 10-Christian Pulisic (AC Milan; 64/28), 21-Tim Weah (Juventus; 35/5), 14-Haji Wright (Coventry City/ENG; 7/2)

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Brenden Aaronson: It’s been the toughest year of my life

Aaronson was reflective after a man-of-the-match performance for Union Berlin

Brenden Aaronson turned in a man-of-the-match display for Union Berlin on Saturday but after the game, his mood was more reflective than ecstatic.

Aaronson was hugely influential in his side’s 2-1 win over Werder Bremen, playing a big role in Yorbe Vertessen’s opener before scoring himself just two minutes later.

The 23-year-old’s performance came on the heels of a major blow. Just days earlier, Gregg Berhalter omitted Aaronson from the U.S. men’s national team roster for this month’s Nations League finals. On Sunday, Berhalter would end up recalling the Union Berlin man after injuries to Luca de la Torre and Josh Sargent.

Aaronson has struggled to assert himself at the club level for some time. After a hot start with Leeds last season, his form fell off in the second half of the campaign. The attacker was loaned out to Union for the 2023-24 season after Leeds was relegated, but has found life in the Bundesliga difficult as well.

Saturday’s goal was just the second of the season for Aaronson, who has started only eight of his 30 total appearances for Union. After one of his best performances in some time, the New Jersey native admitted that things haven’t been easy for him of late.

“It’s been the toughest year of my life,” Aaronson told reporters. “Going from Leeds and then not playing much here, it’s mentally a battle all the time, staying confident.”

Even amid a downturn in form at the club level, Aaronson had been consistently called into the USMNT before last week’s roster was released. Berhalter said he called the attacker after leaving him out of the squad, offering some words of encouragement.

“The message for him was, ‘I know this hurts. I know it’s a setback, but use it,” the coach said. “Use it to make you stronger, and to keep going and to keep fighting your way through through the obstacles that you have to overcome right now.’ It was a good conversation.”

Aaronson has now scored two goals in his last five games, as he continues to find more freedom under coach Nenad Bjelica.

“The opponent put a lot of pressure on our sixes with their sixes,” Bjelica said after the game on Saturday. “This left Brenden free in some situations. With Brenden and Yorbe, we wanted to field players who could do something in the smallest of spaces.”

Aaronson added: “I felt very comfortable in this position between the lines. It was about finding the free spaces. It just felt really good to me.”

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USMNT captain Adams returns for Bournemouth after six months out

Adams’ return is a massive boost for the USMNT ahead of the Concacaf Nations League matches later this month

After six months on the sidelines, Tyler Adams is back.

The midfielder came on for Bournemouth in the 71st minute against Luton Town on Wednesday, marking his first appearance since September.

Bournemouth would go on to cap a miraculous comeback, as Antoine Semenyo claimed a brace to give the hosts — who trailed 3-0 at halftime — a stunning 4-3 win.

Barely two hours after Adams was named to a USMNT roster for the first time since the 2022 World Cup, the New York native returned from a hamstring injury that has required two surgeries.

The first came in March 2023, ending his season and playing a major factor in Leeds’ eventual relegation. The second came seven months later, shortly after Adams made a 20-minute Cherries debut that essentially set him right back to square one.

Bournemouth and the USMNT both had to be pleased to see him come on when he replaced Adam Smith in what was a wild match. Adams unsurprisingly stepped into a central midfield role for Andoni Iraola, who had his team see the game out in a 5-2-3 formation.

Shortly before that match kicked off, USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter addressed reporters, discussing what had to happen for Adams to be in the 23-player Nations League squad.

“This decision was basically the output of months of communication with his club to track where he’s at, to see the levels that he’s performing at in training, the loads that he’s doing in training,” explained Berhalter. “Finally, a conversation with [Iraola] two days ago, and really hearing from the coach where he thinks Tyler’s at.”

Per Berhalter, Iraola gave a glowing review of Adams’ progress, which in turn sealed the deal from the USMNT’s perspective.

“He couldn’t say enough good things about [Adams],” said Berhalter. “He’s actually ready to play minutes [Wednesday] in the Premier League. So, we’ll see how that ends up, potentially 30 minutes, 15 minutes, who knows?

“But certainly, they think at the club that he has enough to play up to 45 minutes for us. So once we heard that, we jumped at that idea, because he means so much to the team, both on and off the field. It’d be nice to get him back. His last time with the national team was at the World Cup, so he’s been missed for a while. It’ll be nice to get him back into this group.”

Berhalter made sure to keep the door open for Adams as long as he could, naming him to the team’s 60-player preliminary roster for the upcoming Nations League semifinal against Jamaica (March 21), which will be followed by a contest — either a final or a third-place game —against Mexico or Panama on March 24.

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Juventus took McKennie’s locker and parking spot away last summer, Berhalter says

Juventus wanted the USMNT midfielder out, but he worked his way back into the club’s good graces

Juventus really seemed to want Weston McKennie out last summer.

After the midfielder returned from an ill-fated loan at Leeds, he got a rather frosty welcome back to the Serie A giants.

Juventus reportedly told McKennie that he wasn’t in the club’s plans for the 2023-24 season. The American midfielder himself has said “I came back and I felt like nobody really cared.”

But that level of dismissal went one step further apparently. According to U.S. men’s national team head coach Gregg Berhalter, McKennie didn’t even have a place to park or change in Turin when he arrived for preseason.

“Weston was in a situation where he went back to Juventus after the summer and he didn’t have a locker and he didn’t have a parking spot,” Berhalter said on a conference call Wednesday after naming his Nations League roster.

But as we all know now, things turned around quickly for McKennie. First he earned his way into manager Max Allegri’s plans for the season, then he became a regular starter. Now, as the season enters its final months, McKennie is one of the first names on the teamsheet and reportedly nearing a contract extension.

Berhalter was full of praise for the 25-year-old, who is now second in the Serie A assist charts after a two-assist performance over the weekend.

“Most players would say ‘OK, I’m done. I’m leaving this club. It’s not for me,'” Berhalter said.

“And Weston said, ‘I’m going to dig and I’m going to prove that I belong.’ And he’s done not only that, but he’s proven to be one of the best players of Juventus this year and one of the top midfielders in all Serie A.

“So it shows his mentality, shows his growth as a person. And it shows that he’s able to take these obstacles and continue on and keep performing. And I think that’s a mark of a really good player.”

McKennie and Juventus have one more game before the international break, as they face Genoa on Sunday. The midfielder will then travel to Texas to meet up with his USMNT teammates ahead of a Nations League semifinal against Jamaica on Thursday.

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