Gregg Berhalter has rehired as coach for the American men

The United States soccer team announced on Friday that it was re-hiring Gregg Berhalter as head coach ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

The move capped off a whirlwind few months for Berhalter, 49, who led the US men’s team to the round of 16 at the World Cup in Qatar but had failed to renew his contract in the aftermath of the tournament.

Instead, the U.S. Soccer Federation announced it had launched an independent investigation into his behavior following allegations from the parents of one of the players that Berhalter physically abused his wife, Rosalind, three decades ago, when they were dating as college students. The Berhalters, who remain married, reconciled shortly after the incident and have spoken openly about it following the allegations this year.

The investigation was sparked by information from the parents of United States forward Gio Reyna, who went to American football with details of the incident. Gio Reyna’s mother, Danielle, was a North Carolina teammate of Rosalind Berhalter at the time, and his father, Claudio, had played with Gregg Berhalter on the national team.

Although the families had been good friends for years, the Reynas only complained to our football after they became upset about their son’s playing time in the World Cup. The Reynas later confirmed that they had gone to the Federation with information about the decades-old incident between Berhalter and his wife.

They had become upset after hearing Berhalter’s public comments about an unnamed player at the World Cup who “clearly failed to live up to expectations on and off the pitch” and whom staff were considering sending home. Gio Reyna later revealed in an Instagram apology that he was the player in question.

The investigation, which concluded in March, cleared Berhalter of any wrongdoing — meaning he had not falsely withheld information from the organization — and opened a path for him to be rehired. However, it was unclear at the time if that would happen.

In recent days, key players in the men’s team, including star forward Christian Pulisic, had suggested they support Berhalter’s return.

“I think he did a great job,” Pulisic told reporters van Berhalter after a 3-0 victory over Mexico on Thursday night. “I’m glad we can just pick up where we left off,” he added, in comments suggesting the team had prior knowledge of Friday’s announcement that Berhalter had been rehired.

Berhalter, who was first hired by the national team in 2019, returns to the team with a record of 37-11-12 as head coach.