April 7 – United States Soccer Federation Chief Executive JT Batson has set the target for the organisation’s flagship assets – positioning both the men’s and women’s national teams as “favourite teams” across the entire US sports landscape.
Speaking ahead of an important summer on US soil anchored by the FIFA World Cup 2026, Batson outlined ambitions that tie the national teams’ competitive success to broader participation and commercial growth.
Speaking to the Guardian, he said: “We want our men’s and women’s national teams to be America’s teams. We want them to be the most followed, and to be the favourite teams of Americans.”
The data points to a platform already in place. The USWNT currently sit 14th in YouGov’s popularity rankings, while the men trail in 43rd – though both have been higher in the past, particularly following major tournament success and high-profile coaching appointments such as Mauricio Pochettino and Emma Hayes.
Batson sees the coming cycle as a window to shift those positions more permanently.
“We have an opportunity with this summer, the Women’s World Cup next year, the LA Olympics [in 2028] and then the 2031 World Cup to really propel the men’s and women’s national teams to be the top teams in America in any sport,” he said.
Commercially, the trajectory looks good: a crowd of 72,297 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium for USMNT’s friendly clash against Portugal delivered a record matchday revenue while the opening of a $250m national training centre and partnerships with brands such as Nike, Coca-Cola and Bank of America have helped push projected revenues to $300m this year.
“We have ambitions to grow quickly, at scale, and want soccer to be the number one played sport in every community in this country,” Batson added. “To do that it has to be accessible. We want soccer to be in every school, to put soccer within reach of every kid in America who wants to go and play.”
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at [email protected]