For the USMNT, being in the World Cup on July 4 is a special honor
“It’s double-special because it’s during the World Cup, and triple-special because it’s here in the U.S.," captain Tim Ream said. He called the team "a true representation of what America is."
SEATTLE — The players of the U.S. men’s World Cup squad came together from 13 states and homes in four nations abroad. The club teams they represent span 10 leagues around the world’s game.
They are not the same, in many ways. But they are American, and that never feels more true than on the Fourth of July.
This time, it isn’t just the nation’s Independence Day. It’s the first one since 1994 in which the U.S. men are active in a World Cup. And like that one, it happens to be on their own soil.
“It is special,” centerback and team captain Tim Ream said. “It’s double-special because it’s during the World Cup, and triple-special because it’s here in the U.S.”
The St. Louis native then made a point of highlighting his belief that the team’s diversity is a strength.
“We’ve said this: With all our different backgrounds, where we all have grown up, it’s a true representation of what America is,” he said. “It’s a melting pot of personalities, of characters, and, like I said, it’s a perfect representation of what the U.S. is and what it’s about.”
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Ream has even seen manager Mauricio Pochettino, a fiercely proud Argentina native, embrace the national spirit.
“He’s obviously taken to the culture, and at the same time, has added his bit of culture to us as well,” Ream said, which makes Pochettino the latest of many Argentines to do that in this country. From players and coaches to broadcasters like Telemundo’s famed Andrés Cantor, the country has a long history of sharing its passion — and immigrants — with the U.S.
“As he said after the first here in Seattle [the U.S.’s group stage win over Australia], he felt something with ‘Country Roads’ being played and blasted through the stadium [postgame],” Ream said. “The group is such a melting pot [with] staff, players, and, again, it’s just an incredible representation of who we are as people. But, yeah, he definitely won’t let us forget that he’s still Argentine at the end of the day.”
Ream has lived the holiday in multiple ways, too. When he played in England from 2012 to 2024, he spent some Fourths over there instead of over here. Then the now-38-year-old returned to MLS to join Charlotte FC, where he’s now in his third season.
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“It’s a little bit different celebrating here than over there,” he said. “A lot of people [in England] don’t actually know why we celebrate the Fourth, which is crazy to me because they were a big part of why we celebrate.”
That line drew a round of hearty laughs, even from the English media who’ve been following the U.S. team during the World Cup.
“The memories for me are just the typical standard: barbecue, enjoy time with family all day, fireworks in the evening, and just celebrating, obviously, what it means to have freedom, to have independence,” Ream said. “It doesn’t have to be this big extravagant thing, but just acknowledging why we are a country, and how we became a country, and how we became independent is enough for any of us.”
There wasn’t going to be much extravagance for the team as it worked through the holiday. But there would be time in the evening to gather with friends and family and watch Seattle’s big fireworks show from a rooftop downtown.
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Then they’ll be back at it, trying to give the nation one more festival in Monday’s round of 16 game against Belgium (8 p.m., Fox29, Telemundo).
“We are, as we all continue to say, very aware of the impact that we’re having around the country, the impact we’re having on generations of people and fans and supporters,” Ream said. “Aware, but it’s not something that is at the forefront of our thinking at the minute. It’s more the game, and what we have to do to continue to move on.”
In this World Cup, underdogs are stealing the spotlight, the U.S. men are on a roll, and Philadelphia has not only welcomed the world but has given visitors a crash course on just how real the curse of the Rocky Statue can be.
Join Jonathan Tannenwald, the Inquirer's soccer writer, and host Lisa Carlin, analyst for CBS Sports Golazo, as they dissect the matches, the moments, and more as Philly has its moment in soccer's brightest spotlight. Watch our latest episode right here.
Watch previous episodes:
Episode 1: The Wait is Over!
Episode 2: Groups, Goals, and Glory
Episode 3: Electric Action in Philly
Episode 4: The Knockout Rounds Begin!
