Matt Crocker has left his position as sporting director of the United States Soccer Federation. He will reportedly take on a similar role with Saudi Arabia’s soccer federation.
His departure, announced two months before the Men’s World Cup starts in the U.S., surprised many in the soccer community.
U.S. Soccer stated that Dan Helfrich, the new chief operating officer, will oversee sporting operations while working with assistant sporting director Oguchi Onyewu and Tracey Kevins, who heads women’s youth team development, during the transition period.
Crocker’s exit directly affects the men’s program preparing for the World Cup. He also managed all sporting operations under the federation, including hiring Emma Hayes as the head coach of the U.S. women’s national team in late 2023. Hayes, who started full-time in 2024, led the team to an Olympic gold medal in her tenth match.
Crocker expressed gratitude for his time with U.S. Soccer, highlighting the significance of this period for the sport.
U.S. Soccer CEO JT Batson noted that Crocker guided several important initiatives and thanked him for his contributions.
Helfrich, Batson, and U.S. Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone will collaborate on the next steps.
The contract of the U.S. men’s national team head coach will end this summer after the World Cup.
The U.S. women’s team, under Hayes, will begin their World Cup campaign in just over a year.
In 2026, the U.S. will co-host the Men’s World Cup with Mexico and Canada. Notably, Saudi Arabia, which Crocker will join, is also in the tournament and could potentially face the U.S. team in the knockout stages.
The U.S. is set to be the main host for the 2031 Women’s World Cup, and its bid, alongside Mexico, Costa Rica, and Jamaica, has no opposition. However, FIFA has delayed the expected approval for the bid from a Congress meeting in Vancouver this month to later in 2026.
This news follows ongoing discussions involving the White House and President Donald Trump regarding government guarantees, amid growing dissatisfaction from host cities about the tournament’s financial structure, as seen in Foxborough, Mass.
Reports indicate that Trump wants FIFA to implement a transgender policy, linking this to the delay in the 2031 Women’s World Cup bid approval.
The International Olympic Committee recently instituted a policy preventing transgender athletes from competing in women’s events.