The United States Men’s National Soccer Team has never had a more Latino identity than the one it will present at the 2026 World Cup. It’s not just about the players on the roster, but also a coaching staff led by Mauricio Pochettino and supported by Argentine assistants. The contrast is impossible to ignore. Part of the team that will try to restore the United States’ global relevance in soccer represents the very communities that, in recent years, have been targeted by rhetoric from the country’s highest political circles.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup 2026 will be hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada, a continental symbol that contrasts sharply with the political and social climate that has defined much of the past decade in the U.S. Donald Trump built a significant part of his political platform around opposition to Latin American immigration, including controversial statements made during his 2015 campaign.

“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists."

Today, however, players like Alejandro Zendejas and Ricardo Pepi, both with Mexican heritage, are part of the national team setup.

A team built on Latino roots

While that rhetoric gained traction in U.S. politics, soccer in the country has moved in the opposite direction. The national team has increasingly been shaped by children of immigrants, dual-national players, and footballers born in Latin America. The trend is not new, but it has now reached its peak.

Decades ago, pioneers such as Tab Ramos, born in Uruguay, represented the U.S. in the 1990, 1994, and 1998 World Cups. Marcelo Balboa, the son of Argentine parents, also became a defensive cornerstone of that era. Others followed, including Fernando Clavijo (Uruguay), Hugo Pérez (El Salvador), and Claudio Reyna, who has Argentine and Puerto Rican roots.

Over time, Latino presence continued to grow. Pablo Mastroeni was born in Mendoza, Argentina. Herculez Gomez is the son of Mexican parents. José Francisco Torres built much of his career in Mexico, while Alejandro Bedoya comes from a Colombian football family.

“Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?”

Trump said this at a private conference inside the White House in 2018; The Washington Post revealed the quote. A year later, during a public speech, Trump said: “Why don’t they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime-infested places from which they came?”

A generation that reflects a different America

The 2022 squad had already shown strong Latino influence, with players like Cristian Roldán, son of a Guatemalan father and Salvadoran mother, Giovanni Reyna, who carries Argentine heritage, and Jesús Ferreira, born in Colombia and son of former professional David Ferreira.

But the 2026 generation pushes that identity even further. Reyna remains one of the team’s central figures. Pepi, born in Texas, comes from a Mexican family originally from Ciudad Juárez. Zendejas himself was born in Ciudad Juárez before moving to Texas with his parents. Roldán remains part of the structure, while the coaching staff adds another Latino imprint through Pochettino, Miguel D’Agostino, and Sebastiano Pochettino, all Argentine.

The contrast is striking. The most Latino-influenced U.S. national team in history is emerging at a time defined by anti-immigration rhetoric from the White House. Once again, soccer reflects a reality that differs from political discourse. While some voices attempt to build cultural walls, the team that will represent the United States on the global stage has been shaped by migration, blended identities, and Latino heritage.

“It is a very sad thing for our country. It’s poisoning the blood of our country,” Trump said in 2023, echoing the words of Adolf Hitler. “It’s so bad, and people are coming in with disease. People are coming in with, with every possible thing that you can have,” he said.

He forgot to mention that these same “people” possess enough talent to represent the country they love. The U.S. soccer team has never been so Latino, and in the Trump era, the message takes on a different meaning.

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