US Soccer coaching candidate rules himself out for job in brutal way

Jan 27, 2023; Carson, CA, USA; A USA Soccer logo at a press conference at Dignity Health Sports Park. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

US Soccer is in the hunt for a new coach to replace Gregg Berhalter, and that search does not appear to be going too well. In fact, one potential candidate went out of his way to take a shot at the federation’s leadership in ruling himself out of contention.

Jesse Marsch, currently coaching the Canadian national team, ruled himself out of the Team USA job in a press conference this week. The American-born coach made clear that part of the reason for his lack of interest was because of the people running the US Soccer organization.

“I have no interest in the U.S. job,” Marsch said, via Pablo Maurer of The Athletic. “And to be fair, unless there’s a big shift in the organization, I don’t think I’ll ever have any interest in that job in the future.”

Marsch, an accomplished coach who has worked in Europe as well as the United States, was a candidate for the Team USA job after the 2022 World Cup. At that point, the organization was considering whether to retain Berhalter, which they ultimately did. Marsch has said in the past that he “wasn’t treated very well” during the process, and it seems to have permanently soured him on working with top Team USA leaders.

US Soccer fired Berhalter after his team was eliminated from the group stage at Copa America. Notably, Marsch’s Canadian team made it all the way to the third place game in the same competition. Team USA’s first choice to replace Berhalter appears to have rebuffed them, and with the obvious backup choice in Marsch ruling himself out, it is unclear where they may turn now.