Why is the USMNT playing meaningless friendlies ri...
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- U.S. Men's National Team scheduled friendlies vs Senegal (May 31) and Germany (June 6) before the 2026 World Cup.
- Allstate Continental Clasico (U.S. Soccer vs Senegal) will be broadcast under U.S. Soccer’s English TV rights deal worth roughly $25 million.
- FIFA limits player release windows, leaving only two international windows in 2026 before the World Cup for national teams to assemble.
- U.S. Soccer relies on revenue from pre‑World Cup friendlies to fund senior, youth, and staff programs.
- Folarin Balogun finished his Monaco season on May 17, leaving about four weeks before the World Cup opener, highlighting the fitness role of the friendlies.
Why it matters: U.S. Soccer pockets roughly $25 million from the English TV rights for the Senegal friendly, bolstering its budget for senior and youth teams, while clubs risk losing key players to injury before the World Cup.
Ask SkimNews
