One year on from the Catastrophe in Couva, the darkest day in the history of the U.S. men’s national team, and there’s still no coach in place. In the grand scheme, does it make a difference? Would a new coach in charge of friendlies in September, October, and November change the trajectory of a World Cup qualifying cycle that is still a year away? Probably not.



It’s easy to complain that the position is still vacant, but the reason a coach has not yet been hired is at least understandable. In the months that followed the loss to Trinidad, the federation elected a new president, won the 2026 World Cup bid, and hired a new general manager. Each required time and resources to accomplish.



Work backward. It would have been misguided to make a coaching hire before Earnie Stewart joined as general manager. It would have been nice if the USSF had hired Stewart earlier, but if they had to choose between prioritizing that or putting in the work that led to...