The 2026 World Cup Draw took place last Friday, and the United States Men’s National Team finally learned who they would face in the group stage next summer. We discuss it on Episode 166.

Paraguay, Australia, and the winner of UEFA Playoff C (Türkiye, Slovakia, Romania, or Kosovo) will be the USMNT’s opponents in Group D next summer. We take a look at the rest of the groups and how they were drawn out, and we of course touch a little bit on the circus that was the World Cup Draw. It took 85 minutes for the world to see the first non-host team drawn, but on this episode we reveal the groups much quicker than that!

After the break, we touch on some comments from Tyler Adams, Chris Richards, Tim Ream, and head coach Mauricio Pochettino about the USMNT’s draw, how drawing teams they’ve seen recently in Paraguay and Australia affects preparation, and if they are focused solely on the group stage or allowed themselves to think beyond that on potential pathways. It’s great to get their take on the draw and the work they have to make the roster when it’s announced in May.

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