Once USMNT boss, Berhalter turns the page to support son

Gregg Berhalter GFX

GOAL spoke with the Chicago Fire boss about his plans for this summer, his connection with the team and his memories of 2022

There is a brief moment where Gregg Berhalter allows himself to wonder. It doesn't last long, but it does happen. When asked to think back on 2022 during an extended conversation about 2026, the "what if" does, for one quick moment, cross his mind.

"It's almost a shame that we were that young," Berhalter tells GOAL about that 2022 team, "because I think the guys really could have done something based on how close that group was."

Much of that group, the one that defined the U.S. men's national team's World Cup in Qatar, is back for a defining summer stateside. A total of 13 players on the USMNT's 26-player World Cup roster are back from 2022. The coach, though, is not. It's Mauricio Pochettino's team now and it has been for 20 months.

For Berhalter, 2026 was always a dream. Now, it could still be a "what if?"

Aside from that brief moment of wonder, though, that isn't how Berhalter thinks about it. There's no jealousy from the USMNT's former head coach. There was a lot of disappointment, but that has dissipated. Mostly, as Berhalter prepares for 2026 in a way far different than the one he planned, the feelings center around joy unlike he's felt before.

For years, Berhalter expected to live the 2026 World Cup as a coach, but now he gets to live it as something better: a father. As he grappled with his own feelings following his USMNT tenure, Berhalter quickly found perspective, and that perspective centered around his son Sebastian's rise to a place that he once cherished more than anything.

In many ways, the younger couldn't have done it without the elder. In many others, he couldn't have done it with him, either. That, Berhalter says, is comforting. That fact is what helped him flip that switch from USMNT coach to the USMNT's biggest fan.

"It was definitely helpful for me," he says of his son's rise. "I think it's because there's this component to it that he is where he is, and he's gotten to where he's gotten to, and it's not because of anything but himself. I think, for me, the conflict could have potentially been that you're taking away from his achievements if it's his father who's selecting him.

A similar conflict unfairly arose when Michael Bradley was one of the key stars of Bob Bradley's USMNT during his time with the team.

"People would say, 'Oh, maybe it's just because he's his dad.' Now, none of that can be said. He wholeheartedly knows that he's earned this 100 percent on his own. That's a great thing, and I'm really proud of him. This journey has now turned us into even bigger supporters, just because you get to watch your son as well."

So what will this summer be like for Berhalter? How does someone like him watch the World Cup? Does he approach this tournament as an ex-player, a former coach, a current coach, a father, or some weird mixture of all of the above?

"when you represent the national team in World Cups, as a player and a coach, you understand just what the program means," he says, "So, for me, it's just cheering on U.S. soccer, cheering on the team so they can do the best they possibly can.

"As a father, it's amazing just to see your son at the World Cup, and to be able to share these experiences with your son. It's such an honor to play in the World Cup, and really for Sebastian to get to know that, to know what it's like, to know what the World Cup is, it really is a special feeling to be able to share that with him."

Berhalter is in for a unique summer, and that fact has already been made quite clear.

Berhalter Brady Chicago Fire

'That's my coach'

Shortly after the members of this year's USMNT squad received the news, a video of Berhalter went viral. In it, he was waiting eagerly to hear news about one specific player. He was attached to that player's journey and wanted nothing more to see that journey rewarded with a chance to represent the country this summer.

Funnily enough, that video didn't center around his son; it centered around Chris Brady, his goalkeeper with the Chicago Fire. When asked about his reaction to the roster, it's actually Brady that Berhalter mentions first, funnily enough.

"Yeah, a lot of different emotions, almost all of them just extremely happy and positive and psyched," Berhalter said. "I think for Chris at our club, you see the work he's put in, and to get to this point is an incredible journey for him."

Brady laughs when told by GOAL that Berhalter actually mentioned him first. Then again, based on his reaction at the facility, the goalkeeper was well aware of how thrilled his coach was.

"I was a little shocked to see his level of excitement, to be honest," Brady said. "Like, he came rushing out of that office and was just super hyped for me. I was really appreciative. Like, man, that's my coach who's that excited for me, and it just shows like how much he believes in me. It shows how much he believes in his players, and I really appreciate that. I appreciate being a part of a squad that has a coach like that."

That's not to say Berhalter didn't have plenty to say about his son's journey. While he's had a front-row seat to Brady's for the last year and a half, he's been the guiding force in his son's for the last 25. In 2002, a one-year-old Sebastian was in the stands as his dad played at the World Cup. In 2022, he was in the crowd to watch his dad coach at that level.

Now, it's the younger Berhalter's turn.

"These last weeks leading up to the roster announcement, the players, they start to get stressed," Berhalter says, as someone who has been through that waiting period on both sides. "They start to focus on other things. For Sebastian and for Chris, it was just to focus on playing the best you can, and then no matter what happens, you can be proud of it.

"It was really about just, 'Hey, how are you going to keep getting better, Sebastian? What do you want to keep working on? What areas of your game can you improve?' He always comes up with something, because he's so focused on improvement and getting better."

That focus is what got Sebastian Berhalter to this level, not his last name or his father's place as coach. That's the fact that Berhalter is most eager to drive home when talking about this whole experience.

United States v Senegal - International Friendly

Sebastian's rise

It didn't take long for Berhalter to start wondering about what was possible. He, like the rest of the world, watched on as his son blossomed in MLS, emerging as a breakout star in the early months of the 2025 season. Shortly after that, Berhalter began to wonder if it could all come together in time for the World Cup. His initial thoughts were simple: if Sebastian is given the chance, it just might.

"I think, after he got his first opportunity in the Gold Cup," Berhalter says when asked when he started to believe. "It's really about not focusing on that, but focusing on 'how do you get better?' If you can do that, the rest will take care of itself."

"Just seeing his development," he adds, "Seeing how hard he's worked over these last 15 years to get to this point? That's been amazing."

For the younger Berhalter, there is a funny coincidence to all of this. It was shortly after his father left Columbus for a U.S. job that he started to emerge with the Crew. Now, less than a year after Gregg Berhalter’s USMNT tenure ended, Sebastian has found his own moment on the international stage. In both cases, one Berhalter’s next chapter helped make room for another’s rise.

"I know if I got a call from my dad, I would have to earn it double as any other player," Sebastian Berhalter said. "Whatever anyone wanted to say, it didn't matter to me, because I know the type of person he is, and he would never just call me in just to call me in. I had to earn it, and I didn't deserve it at any point yet. For me, it's that there was no feeling of what other people said; it was just that I wanted to know that, if I had a call up, it would be deserved."

Now, the midfielder is playing alongside players he has always grown up with. He described Tyler Adams as his idol, particularly after hearing his dad's stories about working with him. He started alongside Adams this past weekend against Senegal.

It's metaphorical, in a way. There are still so many holdovers from the Berhalter era, but also a new generation of players headlined by, quite ironically, a new Berhalter. Many players in this current group are quick to point out how the foundation was laid last cycle and how that foundation remains strong even now.

Berhalter McKennie World Cup 2022

Bonds of 2022

Over the last two years, GOAL spoke with a majority of the USMNT's 2022 World Cup squad. For many of the players, the moments that define their memories of Qatar didn't come on the field; they came just about everywhere else that they were able to be together. Hotels, training, buses, the players' lounge - you name it. That's where bonds were built.

That, Berhalter says, was by design. For years, he preached the importance of brotherhood and togetherness. The World Cup was a moment for that particular group to have that reinforced as they prepared for the biggest games of their lives.

"We were very intentional about how we set up the environment," he says. "We knew exactly where the players' rooms were placed, the lighting in the lobby, the lighting in the players' hallways, the beds, everything. We were so intentional about the lounge. We had architects planning the lounge for a year before the World Cup. We were so intentional.

"Then to hear the players walked away from it having such an amazing experience, it makes it all worth it. That's the reason why you do stuff like that. What I would say is that you can have all the lounges and all the other details, but if you don't have the right group of players, you're in trouble. That was the right group of players. It was one of the closest groups I've ever worked with."

That group has changed over the years. Players have come in and out. Some have become husbands or fathers. Everyone has changed, and Berhalter has loved watching that change, both from up close and from afar.

"That's the great thing about coaching: you get to see that evolution of people, of human beings, not just as players, you know? You get to see the progress as a player, but also as humans, and it's rewarding, it's gratifying," Berhalter explains. "I always thought that there is a tremendous honor in representing your country, but I didn't want to make it only that. I wanted them to play for something more than that. I wanted them to play for each other in a deep way. I wanted them to play because they cared so much for the person next to them."

That connection, Berhalter believes, became one of the group’s defining traits - and one that will matter even more as a home World Cup approaches.

"It's a difficult stage to get to as a group because you have self-interests involved, but the guys definitely got there, and then I think that, as you see this World Cup approaching, now it's about them taking that to the next level, but also having the home support and having a World Cup on your home soil is just amazing."

Houston Dynamo FC v Chicago Fire FC

Watching the World Cup

The way Sebastian Berhalter tells it, he was the USMNT's biggest fan in 2022. So much so that he would tell himself he was an "extension" of the team. The moment that World Cup ended, his fanhood changed, largely because he wanted to stop being a fan and become something more.

Now, in 2026, his father will find himself in those stands. He'll feel like a fan, and he'll surely feel like something of an extension of this group, too. He's played a part in so many careers for this group. He's played a part in so many lives.

So, when the games start, you'll be able to spot Berhalter in the stands once again. In 2002, 2006, and 2022, that Berhalter was Sebastian. This time, it's Gregg's turn.

"For sure on the 12th, I'm gonna be there supporting the team [against Paraguay]," he says. "Then I'm going to really do my best to get to as many games as I can."

He'll see what that looks like. He has other duties, too, of course. There's work to be done with the Fire as part of a busy summer, and plenty of that work will have to be done well ahead of their July 16 return against, coincidentally, his son's team, the Vancouver Whitecaps.

For now, though, the eyes of the world are on the World Cup. Berhalter, like many, can't wait for it to start, just like everyone else. He doesn't know what will happen next and, if life has taught him anything, it's that things can change at a moment's notice. There is one thing that, as a coach, former player and father, he can say with confidence.

"One thing I know about this group," he says, "Is that they'll be ready."

Berhalter is, too. The World Cup is set to begin, and it's one that is guaranteed to change his life in a way that no one could have expected.