USMNT January camp: Is 'Camp Cupcake' really benefitting anyone anymore?

Detractors won't admit it, but for nearly three decades, the annual January camp has been the moment some of the USMNT's most important players got their start. The camp dates back to the late 1990s, and since that time, a total of 30 players have gone on to make a World Cup squad after earning their first or second cap in a January friendly. That list includes nine players from the 2022 World Cup squad, headlined by Tyler Adams, Matt Turner and Tim Ream, all starters in Qatar.

Additionally, legends such as Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, DaMarcus Beasley and Carlos Bocanegra kickstarted their ground-breaking careers with a January appearance.

In some years, it's been more than a 'Camp Cupcake'. The January camp has sometimes bled into World Cup qualifiers, with the U.S. sometimes using a friendly to find their legs before the competitive matches. More recently, though, the camp has largely been there for MLS-based players to get a headstart on their preseason fitness as the best American players the league has to offer have gathered for a week-long training camp designed to help them overcome a long, slow offseason.

The camp has undergone some changes in location and organization, but from a USMNT perspective, the purpose has remained consistent: Find, develop and give experience to rising USMNT stars while building some fitness along the way.

It's no secret that over the last decade or so, we've seen some massive changes in the U.S. soccer player pool. At one point, a good chunk of America's top talent was playing in Europe, but after the 2014 World Cup, a whole bunch recognisable names returned home. Now, as we march toward the 2026 World Cup, more American players are thriving in Europe than ever before, with top USMNT stars playing for the likes of Juventus, AC Milan, Monaco and, at least for now, Borussia Dortmund.

As things stand, you could make a pretty good argument that every starter in a best-case USMNT XI would currently be playing in Europe. You could argue that most backups would be, too. Save for a few cases, almost all of the USMNT's top contributors are currently playing abroad, with only a few young stars and proven veterans still playing stateside.

Because of that, the January camp has lost a bit of luster. Pulisic isn't joining up in January in the same way that, say, Donovan did. Rising stars like Kevin Paredes or Paxten Aaronson aren't getting experience in these games because they're too busy trying to get minutes in the Bundesliga. The tone has totally shifted because, when it comes to the modern USMNT, almost every player of importance is committed to their club during the wintertime.

So where does that leave us? With a 'Camp Cupcake' that earns that nickname a little bit more each year, and with a gathering that now gets a different sort of focus.

It was a bit harsh, but it did capture the thoughts of plenty of the USMNT fanbase. Speaking on Futbol Americas, USMNT legend Kasey Keller didn't mince words when discussing the merits of the January camp.

“I understood it a little bit more back in the day when MLS had an almost four-month break and there were a lot more players on the national team playing in MLS,” Keller began. “I think really over the last 10 years, it’s almost been a disservice to actually call it a national team camp, because it’s really not the national team. It’s an opportunity for some players to get in front of the national team coach. It’s just a training camp for younger fringe players who might someday come into the national team camp. So I don’t really take a lot of merit into it.”

Keller went on to reveal that he'd been told that several coaches had, in fact, wanted to get rid of the camp altogether. “I know multiple coaches at different times have tried to get rid of the [January] national team camp,” he continued. "I know there are some TV contract stipulations where they need to have a couple of games to call it a national team game, but to me, it’s not a national team camp. It’s just a squad get-together before an MLS season.”

As a long-time USMNT star, you can see where Keller is coming from. Playing for the USMNT puts you into a select, small fraternity of players to have represented the country at the highest level. Handing out caps cheapens it a bit, taking some of the shine out of what it means to put on a USMNT shirt.

That's one side of it, though. The other is the human side. The players who are selected surely see it as a national team camp and certainly treat it as such. Even if it's just this one time, they get to see their name on a USMNT shirt, hear the national anthem before an international game and, if they're lucky, step on the field to represent the U.S.

Squads like this give us stories like Bernard Kamungo, who went from a refugee camp in Tanzania all the way to the USMNT; they give us stories like Brian White, a late bloomer who earned his chance to put on this shirt after scoring plenty of goals in MLS; they give us stories like Patrick Schulte, who went from MLS Next Pro to a USMNT camp seemingly in the blink of an eye.

Much like with anything else, there are two sides to this argument, and it's easy to see both. Even so, little harm is done in giving deserving and motivated players a chance to live the moment they've dreamed of. Not every player can play in a World Cup. For some, January camp will be the best it gets. And those players will surely feel like they played for the national team, even if some out there don't.

There's no need to mince words here: the USMNT's loss to Slovenia didn't inspire confidence. There's a chance that, down the line, we look back at it as an important moment for one or two future USMNT stars, but on the day, there wasn't too much to be excited about.

A total of 11 players were handed their first senior caps in San Antonio as Gregg Berhalter put a heavy emphasis on youth. With the Olympics looming, this year's camp was something of a senior team and Under-23s team hybrid as Berhalter and Olympic coach Marko Mitrovic worked in tandem with the team.

"I think this is a great opportunity to learn, and if you think about 11 guys got their debut tonight, five of the guys who started are Olympic-age eligible," Berhalter said. "So this is going to be a great learning experience for this group, and I'm really happy with the opportunity to do this camp and think we definitely got something out of it looking forward."

The Olympic aspect of it is obviously a big one, as the U.S. is placing a big focus on what happens in Paris this summer after missing the last few tournaments. However, there is that one looming, overarching question: How many of these guys can actually play with the full USMNT?

The answer is probably not many. Most likely don't have an upside that is high enough to challenge the USMNT's elite. Some could get close, but with players like Pulisic, Reyna, McKennie and Adams all not yet even in their primes, it would take a huge effort to even compete with them over the next five or six years. There are a few players that could contribute to the USMNT this cycle in certain positions, namely goalkeeper and left-back, but by and large, cracking a Copa America or World Cup roster will be pretty tough for most of these players.

Most knew that going in, and the result certainly didn't help matters. Facing off with a Slovenia team that brought a similarly weak squad, the U.S. never quite got going and couldn't find the goal needed to seal a result. It was, overall, something of a letdown.

That's not to say it was a total waste of time. Some performances did inspire hope that there are some talented youngsters in the pipeline.

No player was brighter than the youngest in the squad, Esmir Bajraktarevic, who stepped right into the spotlight and thrived. The 18-year-old New England Revolution winger was totally unafraid of the moment, showing confidence and poise to make one heck of a first USMNT impression.

Diego Luna, too, showed what he was about, offering a glimpse into the creativity and flair that made him so fun to watch with the U.S. U20s. Jack McGlynn, too, showed well, while Aidan Morris, a two-time MLS Cup winner at just 22 years old, put in his best performance of his five USMNT caps so far.

Two left-backs positioned themselves to make a late push toward a Copa America berth, with John Tolkin and DeJuan Jones showing positive signs with their performances. Tolkin seems likely for the Olympics, but both he and Jones will have their eye on that backup left-back spot behind Antonee Robinson.

Regardless of all the debates, the January camp doesn't seem to be going anywhere. 'Camp Cupcake' is here to stay, but this year's edition may have offered a glimpse into what it'll look like going forward.

Many would have liked to see the U.S. lean even more into the U23 aspect of the camp as several players who could be key at the Olympics didn't get as many minutes as fans would have hoped. Tolkin and Duncan Maguire, for example, could have probably used starts over Jones and White, both of whom are too old for the Olympics unless the U.S. uses an overage spot on them.

Perhaps that's the way forward, though. Maybe this becomes a camp where U23 players on the fringes can get introduced to Berhalter and the USMNT system. That's largely what the U.S. went for this camp, leaving several of the team's more veteran MLS stars at home. That experience could be worthwhile and would almost certainly be a bit more helpful than calling up older MLS players with no real chance of beating out the USMNT's true stars.

The good news for the detractors is that those stars will be back soon. The U.S. is set to play their Nations League semifinal against Jamaica in March, with the aim to claim a third consecutive title a few days later against either Mexico or Panama. And then this summer, the big one comes to the U.S. as the Copa America rolls into town, giving the USMNT their best opportunity to face legitimate teams in competitive games ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

That World Cup will be here before you know it, and the odds are that only a few of these recent January camp call-ups will be in contention for a spot. Much can change in a few years, though. Before that, the USMNT will focus on a busy summer, with their 2024 calendar now truly underway after the conclusion of this year-opening camp.

“Looking forward, it’s competition time,” Berhalter said. “We have trophies on the line this summer with Copa America and this spring with Nations League, and we’re looking forward to getting the entire group together and trying to win our third consecutive Nations League and then have a great showing in Copa America, so it’s an exciting six months of soccer coming up for the USMNT."