STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Today we find out who the U.S. men's national soccer team will take on at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Michel has been anxious to know. The draw for the tournament is later today at the Kennedy Center here in Washington. NPR's Becky Sullivan reports.
BECKY SULLIVAN, BYLINE: Next year's World Cup will be the biggest edition of the event ever held. It's expanding from 32 teams to 48, with games held next summer at 16 stadiums across the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Herculez Gomez played for the U.S. national team in the 2010 World Cup and now hosts a "Men In Blazers" soccer podcast called "Vamos." He says it's a huge opportunity for the Americans.
HERCULEZ GOMEZ: It's on home soil, first time since 1994. You're going to have lots of fan support. If you ever had a chance in your very young sporting history to do something of worth, it would be at a home World Cup.
SULLIVAN: Today, a draw will sort the teams into 12 sets of four for the crucial group stage. Everyone in each group will play each other, with the top two teams moving onto a knockout round. So there's a lot on the line with the draw. No team wants to end up in what fans call the group of death.
GOMEZ: You don't want to be one of these heroes who's like, give me the best. That's not how it works. Even the best don't want the best at the World Cup.
SULLIVAN: Gomez is one of many who have some renewed optimism around the U.S. after the team's success this fall. In a run that began in September, the team went unbeaten in five straight matches against opponents ranked in the world's Top 40 teams, including a 5-1 rout of No. 16 Uruguay last month. Here's U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino after that game.
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MAURICIO POCHETTINO: Of course, the World Cup is going to be different. But I think we need to prepare ourselves to be there and to really believe in our chance.
SULLIVAN: The expansion of the tournament to 48 teams means it will be easier than ever to emerge from the group to reach the knockout stage. More groups means the world's best teams will be more spread out. Plus, the new format means many third-place finishers will move on, too. But Pochettino says merely advancing to the round of 32 is too modest a goal for the U.S.
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POCHETTINO: We are very ambitious, and we want to win. We want to challenge all the teams.
SULLIVAN: President Trump will be at the Kennedy Center today along with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. And huge sports celebs like Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky and Shaquille O'Neal will all play a role, too. The complete group stage schedule, including which teams will play where, will be released on Saturday.
Becky Sullivan, NPR News, Washington.
(SOUNDBITE OF THE WESTERLIES' "SARO") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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