Tim Ream on USMNT journey: “Something special is happening with this team”

With two wins from their opening two games of the 2026 World Cup, the USMNT has made a historic start on home soil. The mood is high in the camp and team captain Tim Ream knows that those good vibes are being felt right across the country.

The 38-year-old defender was selected by head coach Mauricio Pochettino to lead the United States this summer. Ream may be a veteran in this team but even he has been taken aback by the sense of optimism that now surrounds the national team, admitting that the immense highs of each victory make it difficult to switch off after games.

“It’s been really difficult to disconnect because of all the excitement around the games. We’re under no illusion of the reactions that are happening around the country,” Ream told AS USA. “I think it makes it feel more special. It makes it feel like something special is really happening with the team, and the connection with the fans and the country.”

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The USMNT will round off their group stage schedule against Türkiye on Thursday, safe in the knowledge that they have already wrapped up top spot in Group D. On the field, Pochettino’s team have been near-perfect but the off-field environment has certainly played a part in the success.

USMNT sync to the rhythm of the club game

Much has been made about what is different about the 2026 World Cup. The expansion to 48 teams has added extra games and stretched the tournament to six weeks, far longer than any previous edition. But in some regards, those changes have shifted soccer’s great international competition closer to the more familiar structures of the club game.

With the elongated schedule giving most teams a full week between fixtures, Ream explained that it now follows the “cadence” of club soccer, with more time for rest and relaxation between games.

“The way the cadence has worked, we have the recovery day, and then we have an off day, and we get to spend it with family,” Ream said. “You see it in the guys, they’re able to disconnect a lot better. Spending time with family and getting away from the hustle and bustle of the morning routine, training, meetings...”

That greater sense of relaxation has not come by accident. Pochettino and his staff have made an effort to make players feel as comfortable as possible, with regular family barbecues giving the team the chance to unwind and enjoy their time together. Social spaces have been introduced to encourage player mixing, with one dedicated TV lounge for watching shows and following live games and another that Ream describes as a “cozier and homier” vibe.

The team has been together since the World Cup roster announcement on May 24, which is nearly a full two months before the tournament ends with the final on July 19. With so long to (hopefully) spend in each other’s company, ensuring that players, coaches and staff feel happy and relaxed will be essential heading into the high-pressure knockout rounds.

“I could have shed a tear”

Playing a home World Cup is something that very few players get to experience, a honor that eludes even the most illustrious careers. Tim Ream and the rest of the US team are living out that dream this summer and the response to victories over Paraguay and Australia has been immense, with World Cup fever sweeping the nation like never before.

The post-game celebrations have been stunning, but it is the pre-game rendition of the national anthem that struck a chord with Ream. Even with more than 80 international caps to his name, the renditions of The Star-Spangled Banner before kick-off have nearly moved the steely defensive veteran to tears.

“I’ve got goosebumps actually thinking about it,” Ream said, reflecting on hearing the anthem this summer. “Listen, in LA, I could have shed a tear. Seattle, I could have shed a tear. And I was like, ‘Maybe I’m the only one, I’m old, I’m sentimental, you know? [But] leaving both of those places I heard guys say that it’s moving them, it’s making them feel a certain way."

“It’s everything that we’ve been discussing, everything that Mauricio has tried to instill, how important it is to represent the country and the badge and your nation. I’ve maintained for a long time that this - playing for the national team - is the place we all should want to be all the time.”

Last Friday’s victory over Australia - the one which secured a place in the knockout round - had the feeling of a potential watershed moment in the history of US soccer. After the full-time whistle players strolled around the field in Seattle, serenaded by supporters with a rendition of ‘Take Me Home, Country Roads’ by John Denver. It spoke of a nation that was fully embracing this moment in soccer’s global spotlight and, perhaps, even starting to believe.

Why not US?

The wave of momentum that the US is currently riding has build swiftly over the last month, from the win over Senegal in the first warm-up game. But many point back to November 2025 for the start of that shift, when Pochettino set out a challenge to his team. During an impassioned speech in a team meeting, Pochettino had asked his team ‘Why not us?’ and those words have stuck.

It’s a question that burns even brighter now, after the team cruised to two group stage wins for the first time since 1930. A victory over already-eliminated Türkiye on Thursday would make it nine points from a possible nine and give the US real momentum heading into the knockout rounds. Ream said he has noticed a shift in players’ outlook in recent weeks, a growing sense that they could do something truly historic.

“The conversations that we’re having behind the scenes are about who we are playing, or could be playing in the [Round of] 32, and then the Round of 16. It starts with Mauricio and his staff saying, ‘Why not us? Why can’t we be the ones to win it?’”

“They believe in us, and now we believe in us. And when you believe in something, and you share it, and you put it out into the universe, things happen. They really do happen.

“We truly believe that we can go on and win this thing. We truly believe that we can make an incredible run, and we believe in each other. I think that’s the biggest thing. No matter who’s playing, we believe in each other, wholeheartedly.”

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