We are exactly 50 days out from the start of the World Cup, when Mexico and South Africa will kick things off at the glorious Azteca in Mexico City, and a little over three weeks until official rosters are announced. But in the meantime, there’s plenty to dig into on the national teams, fan experiences, travel, and much, much more:

🇺🇲 Have the USMNT found Pochettino’s successor already? A legendary coach that could replace the Argentine for the 2030 cycle emerges.

🇸🇦 Another managerial change, with a 2022 World Cup cult hero axed from his head coaching position with very little time to spare.

🎟️ Controversy continues over N.J. Transit’s ticket pricing, with FIFA and the state’s governor at odds over how funding should be issued.

ii. Rog sat down with the USMNT and Bournemouth’s Tyler Adams recently for another excellent episode of “The Captain.” The two discussed the Cherries’ statement win at the Emirates and questions about both the future of the Premier League and the U.S national team. Tyler was captivating and candid as ever, check that out here. 🦅

iii. And now, a few fantastic recent goals (or almost goals) you might’ve missed:

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 The USMNT’s Haji Wright just keeps scoring. He’s now up to 17 on the season for Coventry, who’ve already clinched promotion to the Premier League next year.

🇪🇸 Suddenly, Atlético Madrid’s Julián Alvarez is getting very, very hot. Good for Argentina fans this summer, bad for the rest of the football world.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Lastly, OK this one didn’t go in, but man oh MAN would it have been the third jewel for Brighton’s Kaoru Mitoma’s worldie crown if it had. What a player.

Cheers,
Jacob Schneider, Tommy Stewart & Max Bonem

P.S. The meetup we never knew we needed: Vincent Kompany 🤝 the Vatican national team.

Another National Team Fires Its Head Coach 😮

Saudi Arabia has sacked manager Herve Renard with just under two months before the start of the World Cup. Renard led Saudi football for roughly six years, with a one-year stint leading France’s women’s national team between his two spells in the Middle East. He is set to be replaced by Georgios Donis, a former Greek international who has been coaching in the Saudi Pro League with Al-Khaleej since 2021. Saudi Arabia opens their tournament this summer against Uruguay on June 15 in Miami.

More: Never forget Renard's heroic halftime speech in 2022 that sparked Saudi Arabia's upset over Argentina. 

An American Sporting Tradition Introduced 🎙️

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has confirmed that there will be a first-ever halftime show during the World Cup final this summer. The show will be curated by Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, but the artist(s) performing have yet to be named. Previous World Cup halftimes have run around 15 minutes, meaning this summer’s edition will be - at a minimum - 25 minutes long. Infantino claims several artists will perform in what will be the “biggest show in the world.”

Stadium Workers Threaten Strike, Infantino to Send Plea to Trump ✍️

A formal complaint has been filed with the National Labor Relations Board against FIFA and Kroenke Sports & Entertainment. The union complaint accuses both parties of failing to restrict ICE’s access to SoFi Stadium ahead of the World Cup. We mentioned last week that UNITE HERE Local 11, the union that represents 2,000 stadium staff members, is threatening to strike over ICE’s participation in the World Cup as a “key part” of the security team, per President Trump. Senior members of FIFA management, including Infantino, have reportedly now discussed directly asking the president for a full moratorium on ICE raids during the competition.

KC Gets Ready to “Swing, Swing” 🎉

Who doesn’t love the smell of nostalgia and barbecue in the morning? More than a decade after releasing their last album, The All-American Rejects are back and co-headlining this summer’s FIFA Fan Fest in Kansas City, aka the “Soccer Capital of America.” The midwestern hotbed is set to host six matches at Arrowhead Stadium during the competition, and will attempt to entertain visitors before and after the games with a slate of well-known performers, including fellow headliners Flo Rida, The Chainsmokers and Tech N9ne (remember him?), along with more than 40 other acts.

So. Much. Train. News. 🚆

Who knew that train ticket prices would become the hottest topic of the World Cup with less than two months before kickoff? But hey, here we are. In the latest news, New Jersey Transit officials have confirmed that round-trip ticket fares to and from MetLife Stadium in New York City are priced at $150 for the World Cup, which is nearly 12 times the normal $12.90 fare. Also, on-site parking will not be available for most attendees, meaning roughly 40,000 fans are expected to use public transportation to attend matches. Additional shuttle buses with a capacity of 10,000 persons will be available for $80 round-trip from midtown Manhattan, while nearby parking spots at American Dream Mall, of which there are 5,000, are selling for $225 a pop. Read more about N.J. Gov. Mikie Sherrill and FIFA’s ongoing war of words over who is to blame for the high prices here.

Meanwhile, Philadelphia has announced that fans will receive free travel leaving from matches this summer, while tickets to the games will remain $2.90. Any journey on the B (Broad Street Line) train network, from halftime up until two hours after full-time, will be covered from NRG Station - which is close to Lincoln Financial Field near the end of the B Line. Seattle and Houston have also both followed suit, sharing that there will be no price adjustments to their public transportation either. 

More: In positive host city news, tailgating is set to be allowed at Lincoln Financial Field in Philly – despite being banned at both MetLife and Gillette Stadiums.

With more than a month until the team’s next friendly, there’s still plenty to talk about with the U.S. Men. Here are some of the biggest stories from the past week:

🤔 Mauricio Pochettino’s contract is up after the World Cup, and a potential replacement for the Argentine on the touchline could be none other than Pep Guardiola.

🔥 One USMNT player who is in incredible form right now is striker Flo Balogun, who has scored in 10-straight games for Monaco.

📈 Midfielder Weston McKennie bagged an assist for Juventus as they beat Bologna 2-0 on Sunday, bringing his domestic season-total to 10 goal contributions, one shy of Christian Pulisic’s 11 with AC Milan.

🤫 Brenden Aaronson, who is having a career year with Leeds United, has put to bed rumors of members of the USMNT "not caring,” sharing the March camp was what the group needed ahead of the competition.

❤️ Goalkeeper Jonathan Klinsmann was stretchered off the pitch for Cesena in Serie B with a broken neck in a 2-0 loss to Palermo. He has been ruled out of the World Cup.

More: And on top of everything, USMNT tickets this summer aren’t exactly selling the way FIFA imagined. Perhaps they can take a lesson from Coachella and ask Justin Bieber to put hit boots back on.

For many national teams, kits are a symbol of their aspirations for the World Cup. But sometimes, the brightness of the jerseys outshines the squad's performances themselves. We revisited our favorite football shirts from WC history that did just that.

USA 1994: There’s a reason these legendary denim kits have been reproduced for decades; they weren’t only iconic to soccer fans in America, but basically to the entire world. The stars and stripes, the sash, denim blue and to tie it all together, a home World Cup. Now, if only they wouldn’t have lost to Romania in the group stage – then they wouldn’t have had to play eventual champions Brazil in the round of 16.

Jamaica 1998: Jamaica’s inaugural World Cup appearance at France ‘98 may have ended in the first round, but their bold yellow kit, featuring a geometric remix of their own flag and a collar that would make Elvis blush, lives forever. As well as the contemporary homages to it, its legacy is sealed by the sporadic sightings of dudes in East London and Brooklyn with flat whites and dad caps wearing it on the reg.

Italy 2002: No football team has ever looked as objectively beautiful as Italy’s 2002 squad of Adonises. Maldini, Totti and Cannavaro could have owned Milan fashion week in their mockingly tight, mini-turtle-necked shirts that were cleaner than Roman Reigns’ teeth, which must have made host nation South Korea’s shocking second-round victory over them even sweeter.

Nigeria 2018: Drip. Pure, utter, drip. Dubbed the “holy grail” of modern football shirts, the strip featured slick shades of green, black and white in a tribute to Nigeria’s 1994 kit. This jersey broke and smashed barriers, selling out worldwide upon release with Nike unable to keep up with demand. We also saw Nigeria wear it just ONCE after they were bounced in the group stage. Oof.

Spain 2022: Over the past two decades, Spain has entered every tournament as one of its favorites, but at Qatar 2022, Luis Enrique’s squad of tiki-taka magicians were sent home early by a rampant Morocco in the last 16. We doubt it’s any consolation, but draped in a V-necked royal red shirt with navy blue and soft yellow trimming, they looked damn fine in defeat.

Re-designing footballs to reduce head injuries? We’re in.

Infantino: Iran will “for sure” play in the World Cup.

More than 4,000 counterfeit football kits were seized in the UK this week in the biggest pre-World Cup raid to date.

Very interesting stuff here. World Cup A to Z: The fabulous history of soccer names, places and moments.

A new Netflix show about the Mexico ‘86 World Cup arrives in June.

Hm, could VAR reverse this decision too? Championship clubs reject bringing in VAR next season.

The latest song in FIFA’s World Cup album has dropped. Listen if you dare.

Italy would also like a piece of the Pep Guardiola pie, it seems.

Lastly, this is just really cool and we thought you’d enjoy it.

This week’s question: Only one World Cup team has ever issued a sleeveless kit for the competition. What nation and year was it?

Email us with your answers for a chance to win a much-coveted MiB patch!

Congratulations to Zach Kelly, who was the first person to correctly answer last week that during the opening ceremony of the 1994 World Cup, Diana Ross sang at Chicago’s Soldier Field. Zach, send us your address and we’ll get you a patch!

👋 We’ll see you again tomorrow morning. In the meantime, keep sending your stories and questions to [email protected].

🙌 If you’re enjoying this newsletter, we’d love an assist. Forward this email or share this URL with a friend, family member, or fellow football fan.

📧 First time with us? Sign up here to get the next edition sent straight to your inbox, and be sure to check out our other newsletters too.