Zinedine Zidane has turned down an offer from the United States Soccer Federation to take over as the team’s head coach. United States men’s national teamsources have told ESPN.
Zidane, through his agent Alain Migliaccio, was asked if he was interested in replacing Gregg Berhalter on the US bench, but the Frenchman politely declined.
– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (US)
The 1998 World Cup winner, who turned 50 last June, has been without a club since the end of his second term. Real Madrid in the summer of 2021, but he has his eye on France work at a given time.
With Saturday’s announcement that Didier Deschamps extends contract with France until 2026Zidane will have to wait a few more years and could get a job in the meantime.
But it won’t happen with the US team, nor with the national teams of Brazil or Portugalwho are also very interested in the three-time Champions League winner.
Berhalter’s contract as USMNT coach expires on December 31, with the federation Announcement this week that assistant coach Anthony Hudson will be in charge of the friendlies against Serbia on January 25 in Los Angeles and against Colombia three days later in Carson, California.
As well as conducting a review of the USMNT program after the 2022 World Cup, US Soccer conducted an investigation into a domestic violence case from 1991 involving Berhalter and his current wife, Rosalind.
Berhalter make a third statement revealed that he dumped his longtime partner during an argument while they were dating.
Danielle Reyna, mother of the USMNT . player Gio Reynasaid on Wednesday that she disclosed the incident to US Soccerwho hired Alston and Bird LLP to conduct an independent investigation into the matter.
– Berhalter-Reyna rift explained: What it means for US football
US Soccer athletic director Earnie Stewart, speaking at a press conference this week, allowed the possibility that Berhalter could be rehired as a coach following the conclusion of an external law firm’s investigation and internal review. US Soccer’s own series of men’s programming.
Speaking on Thursday, Berhalter, who led the USMNT to the round of 16 Netherlands in Qatar, said he still wants to continue working as a coach.
“It’s about being able to take the next step and the next step is to do something that no US team has done yet, which is to get to the semi-finals and see what happens from there,” he said at the exit. appeared as a guest on “The New World of Work,” a streaming program produced by the Harvard Business Review.
“So there are a lot of big challenges involved,” says Berhalter. “Of course, I want to continue my role.”
The United States will co-host the 2026 World Cup, along with Canada and Mexico.
