Brad Friedel’s USMNT verdict after World Cup exit: “Brilliant” but “still a long way to go”

Brad Friedel was the starting goalkeeper for the USMNT when they reached the quarterfinals of the 2002 World Cup, the nation’s best performance since finishing third in the inaugural tournament in 1930, when only 13 teams took part.

For much of the 2026 edition, it looked as if Mauricio Pochettino’s United States could at least match that impressive achievement from 24 years ago, only for things to spiral out of control in spectacular fashion in the round of 16.

Despite the nature of their exit, Friedel believes the way the team performed in its opening four games captured the imagination of fans, old and new, and means the World Cup has had a positive impact on a country that is still working out its relationship with soccer.

“Across the tournament as a whole, the US were brilliant,” Friedel said. “If there was any disappointment it would be we lost to Belgium without much fight, but other than that I was very pleased with all the other matches from the US team.

“The number of supporters of the team has definitely increased due to the positive momentum they gathered,” Friedel said. “I would say the World Cup was a success in that regard.”

US soccer has made huge progress since 1994

The former Liverpool player was part of the USMNT roster the last time the World Cup was hosted stateside in 1994, although he did not see any game time. His experience tells him the U.S. has made huge strides forward over the last 32 years.

“If you compare US soccer to where it was in 1994, when they last hosted the World Cup, the level of infrastructure would be 1 out of 10,” he assessed. “Now, more than 30 years later, I would say the infrastructure is closer to a 7 out of 10, and arguably more in certain states. US soccer has everything it needs to be successful, training facilities, coaches, stadiums, and the overall popularity of the sport.”

Friedel does, though, feel there is “still a long way to go” for the United States to compete at the very top level internationally and be in a position to contend for a World Cup.

He echoed the views of longtime teammate Landon Donovan, who recently spoke about the obstacles facing youngsters trying to get into soccer, when explaining the reasons why.

“We don’t have the same soccer culture as the historic European and South American nations,” explained Friedel. “Soccer remains behind the NFL, MLB and NBA in terms of sports that young athletes dream of playing. These sports also have a less expensive entry point compared to soccer.

“And having a large population doesn’t necessarily dictate that you will have a successful soccer team. The same can be said of India, China or Pakistan.”

Why Belgium exposed USMNT’s weaknesses

Ahead of the 2026 World Cup, Pochettino hit the headlines after responding “why not us?” when asked whether his team could win the tournament for the first time on home soil.

Rousing opening victories against Paraguay and Australia, along with a comfortable knockout win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, had many Americans dreaming, but Friedel was not getting carried away.

“I knew that once the US faced an opponent that was better than them, we would struggle, especially an opponent with pace in wide areas, and that’s what we found against Belgium,” he said of the 4-1 round of 16 defeat to the Red Devils.

But how did things go so badly wrong for the World Cup co-hosts, who had been going along so smoothly?

For Friedel, it all came down to how Belgium tailored their tactics to stop the USMNT from doing what they had done so successfully in their earlier games.

“They started Leandro Trossard and Dodi Lukebakio on either flank, both quick players who would blunt the threat of our full-backs, which therefore had a knock-on effect with the service to our own attacking players. Christian Pulisic looked isolated, he gave the ball away 11 times, which shows how much he was struggling. It also meant our midfield was unable to regain possession in high areas to spark a transition.”

The Balogun controversy and its impact

Of course, the buildup to the game was completely dominated by what became known as the “Balogun controversy.”

After being sent off in the previous game against Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Stars and Stripes striker was due to be suspended for the Belgium clash, only to be surprisingly handed a reprieve.

A call from Donald Trump to FIFA president Gianni Infantino may not have influenced the decision, as the latter claims, although one was definitely made.

Friedel’s extensive experience as a player tells him that being at the center of such controversy or criticism can often have a galvanizing effect.

“When I played, I remember before we faced Portugal at the 2002 World Cup, we were heavily criticised by some among the Portuguese media. As a group of players, we knew about those reports, it galvanised us and we won the game 3-2.”

Almost a quarter of a century later, history did not repeat itself against Belgium, although Friedel insists the situation was highly unlikely to have impacted the USMNT roster during the game, even if it may have been playing on Balogun’s mind.

“The Folarin Balogun controversy won’t have affected the US players too much. It clearly affected Balogun as his first action after the final whistle was to speak to the Belgium coach Rudi Garcia, which was clearly pre-planned.

“In the game, Balogun actually performed quite well. He was probably one of a couple of US players that did. Balogun was impeccable in terms of how he conducted himself throughout the game and in its aftermath.”

Friedel’s toughest World Cup opponents

Looking at the World Cup as a whole, Friedel had regularly had sympathy for his fellow goalkeepers, who have had to come up against a number of big-name forwards in red-hot form, most notably Lionel Messi, Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappé and Harry Kane.

But which player would he least like to face as a former goalkeeper?

“Harry Kane and Erling Haaland would be the two toughest forwards to face at this World Cup, simply based on their ability to strike a ball.”

Despite that, neither England nor Norway is the team Friedel would fear the most if he were taking part in the tournament.

“As a team, France would be the toughest to face. In attacking areas, it’s like poetry, they’re a special group of players.

“Michael Olise has added another dimension since joining Bayern Munich from Crystal Palace. And for Olise playing alongside the likes of Ousmane Dembélé, Désiré Doué, Bradley Barcola and of course Kylian Mbappé, it’s superb to watch.

“When opponents lose the ball, within eight seconds the ball can be in the back of your net, and you can’t stop it. It’s not even bad defending. It’s just that France are that good. It’s so fun to watch.”

Brad Friedel was speaking in association with Tonybet. Tonybet’s World Cup Card Collection campaign can see Canadian customers win up to $150,000 CAD.

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