USMNT’s First Post-World Cup Opponents

The U.S. men’s national team is set to return to the pitch for the first time since the 2026 World Cup this fall with four friendlies, taking on Peru, Chile, Mexico and Canada on home soil to kickstart the 2030 World Cup cycle.

With manager Mauricio Pochettino on a new four-year deal bringing him through the 2030 tournament, the next era fully opens for the USMNT. While wins will be important, a focus will likely be on expanding the player pool and identifying talents who could emerge as key players through the next quadrennial.

Despite plenty of calls from supporters, the USMNT will not play any away matches in the four-game September and October window, unable to test themselves in less-than-comfortable conditions. This factor could impact their away spells in bigger upcoming tournaments. As such, the USMNT will go a full two-year spell since playing on the road and have only three away games since the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Here, Sports Illustrated ranks the team’s four upcoming opponents, as Pochettino’s men tune up before November’s competitive Concacaf Nations League quarterfinals.

4. Peru

Erick Noriega is one of the younger players entering his prime in Peru’s squad. | Chris Arjoon/Icon Sportswire/Getty Images

Location: Orlando, Florida
Date: Sept. 26, 2026

Peru isn’t the greatest of opponents at the moment. Despite playing to a rather impressive 3–1 loss to Spain ahead of the World Cup, it hasn’t shown much positivity in the last several years. It relies on a mixed squad across generations, with the veteran presence of Pedro Gallese holding things down at the back and younger talents Fabio Gruber and Erick Noriega just starting to enter their prime.

Although La Blanquirroja finished above Chile in World Cup qualifying and made the final of the Copa América in 2019, their pathway forward and evolution into the next era is cloudier than their fellow South Americans, with even the top talents not rivaling what the U.S. could see against more intense opponents at the 2028 Copa América.

3. Mexico

Mexico striker Raul Jimenez — Raúl Jiménez will help usher in Mexico’s younger talents in the twilight of his career. | Raquel Cunha / Reuters

Location: Glendale, Arizona
Date: Oct. 3, 2026

The USMNT has plenty of experience against Mexico, especially on home soil, making the opportunity to play against El Tri less enticing given how often the two teams have faced each other. Pochettino’s USMNT has played its southern neighbors twice, falling both times in the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup final, as well as in his second match in charge in Oct. 2024.

While taking on a team that pushed England to the brink in the round of 16 at the World Cup will provide a challenge, it isn’t a game where the USMNT is likely to find out anything new—and could end up in a significant loss, should El Tri experience a new-coach bump under Rafa Márquez. Pochettino could also opt for more inexperienced talents, leaving the door open for Mexico to pounce.

Losing to a bitter rival is never good, even in a friendly.

2. Chile

Darío Osorio could be in for a breakout season in Denmark. | Phil Walter/Getty Images

Location: St. Louis, Missouri
Date: Sept. 29, 2026

Like Peru, Chile is in the midst of a generational shift. Yet, there are remnants of more positive past eras still hanging around, all while young talents continue to integrate as the team moves on from a last-place finish in 2026 World Cup qualifying.

Chile won the Copa América in 2015 and 2016 and have fallen significantly since then, but put up some impressive results in 2025, including commanding wins against World Cup darlings DR Congo and Cape Verde ahead of the tournament, as well as a competitive 2–1 loss to Portugal.

Should manager Nicolás Córdova opt for a similar squad to the one that beat DR Congo in the team’s last match, the USMNT should find itself up against a tenacious and skilled squad with seven of the starting lineup under 26 years old, compared to a more veteran Peruvian squad.

1. Canada

Alphonso Davies, Jesse Marsch — Alphonso Davies (left) could make a more substantial return for Canada, and Jesse Marsch (right) will bring his passion against the USMNT. | Eric Verhoeven/Soccrates/Getty Images

Location: St. Paul, Minnesota
Date: Oct. 6, 2026

The parallels between the two northernmost World Cup co-hosts are impressive. Both teams are coming into the fall with the same managers signed to new four-year deals, and have lofty hopes of making significant runs at upcoming tournaments.

Both are also facing the challenge of growing with the group that brought a modicum of success to the World Cup round of 16, while dealing with how best to integrate injury-ridden superstars Alphonso Davies and Christian Pulisic. At the same time, the battle for Concacaf’s best striker stands as a near-two-horse race between Folarin Balogun after his impressive and controversial summer and Jonathan David, who had a challenging first year with Juventus and an underwhelming World Cup.

With both teams integrating new talents and seeing key players make transfers this summer, it should present an enticing affair on the pitch. Plus, the Jesse Marsch factor, the revived sporting rivalry between the two after the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympic hockey tournaments and the political tensions, will make for a must-see test for both sides.

Historically, the USMNT holds the edge, winning 17 of those matches while Canada has come up victorious 13 times. Yet, Canada has dominated as of late, winning three of the last six matchups and holding the USMNT to a draw in two of those contests.

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