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After firing manager Gregg Berhalter on Wednesday, the United States men’s national team reportedly “identified” former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp as a “top target” in its coaching search, according to Miguel Delaney of The Independent.
Delaney added that “initial contact” was made with Klopp, though The Athletic’s David Ornstein later reported Klopp “has rebuffed the approach to become USA head coach.”
“Initial contact was made with Klopp regarding the possibility of leading the USMNT, but he reiterated that he would like a break from football,” Ornstein wrote. “Despite that, interest remains from US Soccer in making the 57-year-old their next head coach.”
The U.S. is set to co-host the 2026 World Cup with Canada and Mexico and needs a strong presence to help the team recover from its disappointing group-stage exit in this year’s Copa America.
Klopp had served as manager of Liverpool since 2015 before announcing in January he would be stepping down at the end of this year’s Premier League season. During his tenure, he brought the club unprecedented success.
The 57-year-old delivered Liverpool its first Premier League title after amassing a club-record 99 points in the 2019-20 season. He guided Liverpool to a UEFA Champions League title in 2019 and UCL finals appearances in 2018 and 2022. Liverpool won the UEFA Super Cup and its first FIFA Club World Cup during the 2019-20 campaign, helping Klopp earn back-to-back FIFA Coach of the Year awards in 2019 and 2020.
When he announced his departure from Liverpool, Klopp admitted that he was “running out of energy” and needed to take a break from management. However, the challenge of leading USMNT back to prominence could be intriguing for him and would be less time-consuming than managing a club.
As ESPN’s Ryan O’Hanlon explained: “Klopp has also talked about feeling burnt out from the constant pressure of day-to-day training and club management. Managing the USMNT would scratch the management itch while not requiring him to train every day and live and die with multiple kicks of the ball, multiple times of the week.”