• Batson says US federation will ‘take a break’

• Pochettino’s future remains unresolved

• Sporting director role unfilled after Crocker exit

The US men’s national team leaves the World Cup with some considerable gaps in their organizational chart. Mauricio Pochettino’s future is undetermined as his contract – funded in part by billionaire donors – ends with the conclusion of this tournament. In April, Matt Crocker resigned from his role as sporting director to take a similar position with Saudi Arabia.

Despite these crucial positions being open, there may not be resolutions for some time.

• Former Arsenal boss calls out US pay-to-play model

• Wenger says academy setups are vital for growth

Arsène Wenger, Fifa’s head of global football development, has said that while the US faced numerous structural obstacles to becoming a real soccer power, many of those obstacles are being addressed by leadership at the US Soccer Federation and Major League Soccer.

Speaking Thursday in a roundtable with US Soccer chief executive JT Batson and chief operating officer Dan Helfrich, Wenger heaped praise on the federation for its new $250m headquarters in Fayetteville, Georgia, saying “I feel it’s important for every footballer, somewhere, to feel you’re at home.”

The league is back in play after a six-week pause for the World Cup. We spotlight seven players to watch after their stints with their national teams

The 2026 MLS season resumes Thursday, cleverly holding its return on the days between the World Cup semi-finals and third-place game. Fans of any of the league’s 30 teams will be trying to recall the state of affairs after a six-week pause, with more than half of the regular season still to be played and the Leagues Cup further congesting the schedule.

The league was curiously absent from the World Cup, only cited during the broadcasts viewed by millions if a commentator named an involved player’s club and whose reach largely depended on the in-market efforts of its franchises. And yet, through the quarter-finals, MLS ranked sixth in total minutes by its players, the highest of any league outside Europe’s big five. Twenty-two of MLS’s 30 clubs had at least one man make a tournament squad.

After a fun World Cup with a dismal end, the US enters the 2030 cycle with numerous avenues to rebuild the squad

After an exciting home World Cup run ended with a disappointing thud in the last 16, there are massive questions lingering around the US men’s national team program. Mauricio Pochettino’s contract is up and US Soccer has made an extension offer, but both parties are taking some time. Matt Crocker’s abrupt exit as sporting director to take a similar job with Saudi Arabia before the World Cup begs more queries about the direction of the sport in this country. And while most of the 2026 squad’s core still projects to contend for 2030, four years is a long time.

From now, each year offers a major tournament. This is what the US should hope to clarify at every step of the way.

With the World Cup down to eight teams, our writers assess who’s left, identify the biggest remaining threats to France and make calls on who will lift the trophy

Lionel Messi. As he proved in thrilling style against Egypt, Argentina’s No 10 still has magic in his boots even at the age of 39. While his penalty record of four from eight attempts is much worse than you’d expect, he is clinical when it matters most. EA

For much of the star’s career, this tournament has been held as a high-water mark. Instead much of the USMNT’s success came without his involvement

There was a quiver in Christian Pulisic’s voice as he answered the final question posed to him at the 2026 World Cup.

On its face, the question was straightforward: how did the overall experience of this tournament meet his expectations? The subtext was overwhelming. For eight years, this World Cup co-hosted by the United States has been viewed as the potential high-water mark of his career and those of his teammates. Every machination of American soccer has operated with signposts displaying “2026” in bold.

Has the success of the US men’s team – and hosting the World Cup – finally made Americans fall in love with football? With Guardian US soccer correspondent Jeff Rueter

For decades, the US has been unmoved by the charms of the beautiful game. As Guardian US soccer correspondent Jeff Rueter, a boyhood fan of the sport, explains, football in America was a ‘ramshackle’ affair – unloved, boring, a little alien.

But, Helen Pidd hears, things are beginning to change. The US men’s national team is thriving in the World Cup they are hosting, and Americans are being won over by travelling football teams and fans, from the Scots in Boston to Algerians in Kansas

• Rudi Garcia likens decision to April Fools’ Day joke

• Belgian FA says it will investigate all potential options

• USMNT reaction to Fifa flip: ‘Thought it was AI at first’

As a Fifa media officer read aloud the statement confirming the governing body’s shock reversal of US striker Folarin Balogun’s suspension on Sunday, Belgium coach Rudi Garcia and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois put their poker faces to work. Garcia stared straight down the aisle of the press conference room at Seattle Stadium. Courtois’s eyes fluttered about, perhaps masking some rolls as he faced a press pack eager to make sense of an unexpected World Cup twist.

Balogun’s reinstatement came across as a joke to the Belgian boss, though he hardly seemed ready for a laugh.

The sides meet Monday for a World Cup quarter-final spot, and the USMNT’s main goal threat is able to play after a shock reversal. Here’s what to know

After a few days of preparing for the World Cup’s last 16 without their top scorer, the United States were dealt a surprise Sunday when Fifa rescinded Folarin Balogun’s red-card suspension for Monday’s match against Belgium.

Belgium’s own preparations have now been scuppered as they go from planning to face an alternative – likely either Ricardo Pepi or Haji Wright – to trying to contain one of the World Cup’s most in-form forwards.

• Striker’s one-match ban will not be increased

• Balogun says yellow card would have been fair

• Pepi and Wright among options against Belgium

Folarin Balogun fielded questions on the morning of his 25th birthday, though the cards being discussed weren’t filled with kind notes and two-dollar bills.

Per Fifa rules, the striker was unable to speak to the media following the United States’ World Cup last-32 triumph over Bosnia and Herzegovina, where he opened the scoring in a commanding 2-0 win but was sent off after receiving a red card in the second half.