The men’s U.S. Soccer team finally has a new coach, and the hire happened in a way that mimics coaching transactions in college football.
Mauricio Pochettino was named the new head coach of the USMNT after months in which he was rumored as the frontrunner for the job.
The press release announcing the hire included an interesting footnote, declaring that it was “supported in significant part by a philanthropic leadership gift” by billionaire hedge funder Ken Griffin, the founder and CEO of Citadel.
The latest estimate at the Bloomberg Billionaire Index pegs Griffin as the 34th wealthiest person in the world with a net worth of $41.8 billion.
The exact amount Griffin donated to support the coaching hire was undisclosed, and the press release also cited Diameter co-founder and managing partner Scott Goodwin, as well as “several” corporations as underwriting Pochettino’s hire.
It is common in college athletics for university boosters to underwrite the hirings — and firing buyouts — of head coaches, but this is new territory at least in the U.S. for it to happen to bring in a head coach for international competition.
Griffin previously donated $5 million to the U.S. Soccer Federation for youth soccer fields in the Miami area.
Pochettino, 52, was Chelsea’s manager from 2023-24 and managed Paris Saint-Germain and Tottenham Hotspur prior to that.
He succeeds Gregg Berhalter, who was fired in July after a disappointing Copa America performance.
“The decision to join U.S. Soccer wasn’t just about football for me; it’s about the journey that this team and this country are on,” Pochettino said in a statement.
“The energy, the passion, and the hunger to achieve something truly historic here — those are the things that inspired me. The opportunity to lead the U.S. Men’s National Team, in front of fans who are just as passionate as the players, is something I couldn’t pass up. I see a group of players full of talent and potential, and together, we’re going to build something special that the whole nation can be proud of.”