'Twenty-four seven, that's what's on my mind' - USMNT star Tim Weah on 2022 dreams, 2024 nightmares and hoping his next World Cup moment is one worth loving

It took 36 minutes for Weah's dream to come true and, for 10 or so seconds after that, he got to relish it. After scoring against Wales in the first half of his first World Cup game, Weah ran into the corner, arms outstretched and slid right through on his knees. Teammates quickly enveloped him as he smiled ear-to-ear. Everything was right in the world of American soccer.

That moment didn't just last a few seconds for Weah, though. It's one that had played in his head his entire life leading up to it, and it's one that's been replayed over and over in the three-and-a-half years since. At just 22 years old, he did something he'd been imagining for as long as he could remember. For almost everyone else, that imagined moment stays that way. For Weah, it was actually real.

"Leading up to that World Cup, I dreamt of scoring," he says. "Years were passing by, and I literally always dreamt of that one moment at a World Cup, how it would feel, how I would celebrate. For it to become a reality, it was - man, it was amazing. It's something you worked for your whole life. Just playing in the World Cup alone was a dream come true, but scoring? It was an amazing feeling."

The gravity of the moment didn't really hit Weah until after the game. Most athletes say that they avoid social media, and Weah wouldn't disagree. That night, though, he had to take a look. He had to know if others were feeling the same way he was.

"Just seeing the reactions online, because obviously we were Twitter searching online," he says, "But seeing the fans back home when I scored or when Christian [Pulisic] scored, it was amazing, man, just to see the impact that we have and the representation that we have in our country."

Weah's goal is one of those signature moments for American fans, one that the casuals and diehards will always look back on. The USMNT announced that they were back on the world stage after the 2018 World Cup absence. It was the official arrival of a young U.S. group, including Weah, that wanted to, in their own words, change how American soccer is seen forever.

That path, though, hasn't been straightforward. It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows after his goal, and it was Weah who was front and center for what might just have been the USMNT's most difficult moment on that path.

Now, nearly two years after the fact, Weah feels comfortable talking about it, and it can be boiled down to one simple concept: he messed up. He knew it then, and he knew it now. It happens, even to the quiet ones.

Just 18 minutes into the USMNT's Copa America group stage clash with Panama, Weah was sent off with a straight red card. One brief moment of frustration and one swing of the arm was all it took to derail a tournament that was meant to be the USMNT's big World Cup precursor. After a VAR review, Weah was sent to the locker room. His day was over, but the damage had been done. The U.S., ultimately, crashed out of the group stage of that tournament, ending Gregg Berhalter's time as U.S. manager and ushering in the new Mauricio Pochettino era the U.S. is currently in.

Weah, unsurprisingly, was saddled with much of the blame. The U.S. still had chances to recover - they even took the lead against Panama minutes after the red card - but couldn’t hold on. A result against Uruguay in the next match might have changed everything, yet they offered little in a 1-0 loss. The opportunities were there. The USMNT just didn’t take them.

Outside the locker room, though, the fallout centered on Weah. Social media turned quickly. The same fans who once celebrated him were now tearing him down. Some of that criticism was fair - even he’d admit that. But some of it went further, questioning his character. He made a mistake. That’s all it was.

In the years since, he's been eager to shed those labels and, in the years since, he's worked hard to make sure that they couldn't define him.

"You feel the f***-up in that moment, obviously, but that's what happens in football. You have emotional moments, and things happen. I never let anything from the outside bother me because I know that people don't know me and don't know my character. People were speaking on that present moment, which is completely fine," he says. "They have their opinions, and I completely understand that. For me, it was just about me letting my team down and coming back from that and making sure we got back to a place where we could compete at the highest level, fight together, and keep our brotherhood going."

Time has given Weah distance from that moment - and perspective.

"When s*** hits the fan, everyone goes against you, no matter who you are. It's one of those things where you just have to lie low. When you do well, everyone loves you, and in those moments, you have to be humble and keep that energy to yourself, too. I really just think you need to share your energy with the people who love you most," he says.

In hindsight, that approach shaped how he moved on from Copa America.

"The Copa America was a moment, and it passed. It's in the past now, and we're focusing on doing something in 2026. I've grown from that and, hopefully, we can have more positive moments in the future," he says.

Weah's right: he's changed. Particularly in his line of work, life tends to shift pretty quickly. In the past few months, he's joined a new club in Marseille, played some new positions on the pitch, and found a new lease on life. The Weah of 2026 is already different than the one of 2025, and he's glad to see it.

Weah is loving life in Marseille and, in his eyes, there's plenty to love. He's played 36 matches in all competitions, scoring three and setting up four more in front of one of the wildest crowds French soccer can offer. Every weekend is a rollercoaster, and Weah is enjoying the ride.

"The fans do not play," he says with a laugh. "The city does not play about this team. Every game is 100 percent. Having that there and then also creating that environment for ourselves with the national team, it's beneficial in every way. I'm enjoying life. I've basically started every game in Marseille, so I couldn't be enjoying my football any more."

Throughout the year, Weah has felt himself changing. Positionally, he's played a little bit of everywhere, and that versatility could end up being massive for the USMNT at the World Cup. He was once a traditional winger; now he's someone who can play all over the field and make a difference no matter what position a coach needs him in.

He's felt the change more mentally, though. The game is slowing down for him, and the decision-making is getting better. It's the type of improvement that comes with experience, and at 26, Weah has plenty now.

"Back in 2022, I was definitely a kid just finding out the ropes in football. It was still a first time for everything," he says. "That World Cup was my first major tournament. Positionally, I've grown so much since then. I was a winger and an attacker for the most part. Now, I've been able to play a little of of center back in a back three, a wing back, right back. It's just getting that experience. I'm able to adapt, really, and play anywhere and do anything.

"I feel like I have a calmer presence on the field, too. I don't rush a lot of things. There's more of a thought process now, and things are more thought out."

He's not a kid anymore. His USMNT teammates aren't either. There's something fun about that fact for Weah, particularly when he really thinks about how far they've all come.

Weah admits it: he misses Weston McKennie. The two spent much of Weah’s two-year spell at Juventus together. He is still under contract with the Italian club but now in France on loan, and it’s been weird not seeing him every day.

Reconnecting with McKennie is just one example of the joy Weah feels when he comes back to camp. For Weah, every single USMNT call-up is something of a reunion. There's a throwback feel to it, almost. For that one week, he gets to stay in a hotel and play soccer with his friends. To Weah, there's nothing better.

"I love seeing all of my guys here," he says. "Wes and I had a close relationship, and we still do, but I used to go over to his house all the time. Us being brothers and being on the same team was a beautiful experience. We really love each other, and that relationship will continue for years to come, even after we're playing.

"Finding all my brothers back at camp, it's always a blessing. We have these really tight-knit relationships. I've known some of these guys since we were children. Me and Tyler [Adams] used to be rivals [as teenagers], and then he recruited me to come to Red Bulls. Tyler was the same then as he was now. Tyler was a brute. We've literally grown up together."

It's not just about playing with the guys he grew up with, though. Weah relishes the bonds formed throughout these last few years, too. In particular, he treasures the ones developed in Qatar. Those moments at the hotel, on the training field, in the locker room - he values them just as much as he does his signature goal.

"It was just this experience that drew us all closer together," he says. "We were all really close already, but having that period of time to connect and meet everyone's family, share our lives together, that was amazing. It's something I'll never forget: that emotion and that love that we had for each other and the game. It's one of those memories that, even when you're old and gray, you'll remember those moments."

This summer is a chance to create more, of course. Weah knows the significance of this tournament.

"We want to have little kids look up to us and be proud of us and themselves, too," he says. "It's something we can all look forward to in this coming World Cup, too. It's on home soil, so we're representing not just ourselves and our family, but the whole United States and all of the children who dream to be where we are.

"It's a beautiful thing to have and be at the forefront of."