ESPN.com · Oct 9, 2025
Balogun? Pepi? Predicting the USMNT's 2026 World Cup strikers
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For the past two FIFA World Cup cycles, the starting striker spot for the U.S. men's national team has been a seemingly unsolvable puzzle, with none of the candidates able to grab a firm hold of the spot. It wasn't always this way.
Eric Wynalda and Brian McBride led the U.S. line during the 1990s and 2000s. Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey carried the flag through the 2014 World Cup and slightly beyond, although it's worth noting that Dempsey spent a significant chunk of his international career in a midfield role. The same was true for Landon Donovan.
Since then, the search for a starting central striker has taken on holy grail-like qualities.