Matt Crocker leaves U.S. Soccer for Saudi Arabia job ahead of World Cup

 In the short-term, Crocker's role will be filled by assistant sporting director Oguchi Onyewu, head of women's development Tracey Kevins, and COO Dan Helfrich while the federation begins a search for his successor.

Halfrich will guide sporting operations while working alongside CEO and Secretary General JT Batson and President Cindy Parlow Cone to assess the next steps. U.S. Men's National Team coach Mauricio Pochettino and U.S. Women's manager Emma Hayes, meanwhile, will also work with that group to continue building the established sporting structure while Crocker transitions out of the federation.

Crocker originally signed on with U.S. Soccer in 2023 and was part of three major coaching hires: Hayes, Pochettino and Gregg Berhalter. After originally taking over for Earnie Stewart post-2022 World Cup, Crocker's first order of business was to appoint a USMNT coach, and he turned back towards Berhalter for a second cycle despite the controversial fallout from Qatar. Berhalter was in charge through the 2024 Copa America and, after a group stage exit at that tournament, the federation took a huge swing to bring in Pochettino ahead of the World Cup.

On the women's side, Crocker also took a big swing to hire Hayes, who immediately led the team to Olympic gold. Under Hayes, the USWNT has re-established themselves as a powerhouse in the women's game and will be among the favorites at the 2027 World Cup.

In addition, he played a key role in establishing U.S. Soccer's new Arthur M. Blank U.S. Soccer National Training Center outside of Atlanta and helped develop the U.S. Way sporting vision while redefining the player pathway.

The Welshman will now join a Saudi Arabian federation gearing up for their own World Cup, as they're set to host the 2034 tournament.

"It has been a privilege to be part of U.S. Soccer during such an important period for the sport in this country,” Crocker said. “I’m grateful for the people I’ve had the opportunity to work with across the Federation, from our coaches and players to our technical and administrative staff. I’m proud of what’s been built together and confident the team in place will continue to move the game forward and drive success on and off the field.”

Added Batson: “Over the past several years, U.S. Soccer has grown significantly across every part of our sporting organization, and we thank Matt for the role he played in that progress. Matt helped guide important steps across our sporting organization, and we’re grateful for his contributions. We’re confident in our strategy, leadership team, coaches, and technical staff. We will continue building the right structure for the future, and we’re well-positioned to make the decisions needed in the short, medium, and long term.”

Crocker's exit will have minimal impact on the USMNT's World Cup preparations, which are largely complete ahead of the upcoming tournament. The team's roster is set to be announced on May 26 before the team trains at the new facility in Atlanta ahead of the tournament.