Gold Cup Preview: The U.S. Men’s National Team kicks off campaign for eighth trophy
The United States opens group play June 15 against Trinidad and Tobago in San Jose, California
The 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup starts this weekend, and the United States Men’s National Team’s path to an eighth Gold Cup title kicks off Sunday, June 15 in San Jose, California against Trinidad and Tobago. The USMNT will continue their group stage with back-to-back matches in Texas against Saudi Arabia on Thursday, June 19 and Haiti on Sunday, June 22.
Head coach Mauricio Pochettino released his 26-player roster last week, and it includes a mix of familiar faces and young talent. Miles Robinson, the hero for the United States in the 2021 Gold Cup final victory over Mexico, appears alongside other stalwart defenders such as Walker Zimmerman, Tim Ream and goalkeeper Matt Turner. Their experience will lead a group that is the third youngest to start the Gold Cup for the United States.
The USMNT looks to continue its command in the biennial tournament that has crowned the U.S. continental champions seven out of 17 times. Historically, the United States has dominated the group stage, totaling a 40-1-5 record and winning their group in 16 out of 17 Gold Cups, including the most recent competition in 2023.
Here's a look at the upcoming group stage schedule for the United States and the opponents:
Trinidad and Tobago
FIFA World Ranking: No. 100
The United States has dominated the series against Trinidad and Tobago, winning 17 of 18 meetings on American soil. The most recent matchup between the two sides came November 2023 in the Concacaf Nations League tournament. At Port of Spain, the capital city of Trinidad and Tobago, the Americans played more than 50 minutes down to 10 men, and Trinidad and Tobago took advantage to record a 2-1 win. Playing in the States – which the Gold Cup primarily does — gives the USMNT a huge advantage, outscoring the Caribbean nation 41-0 over the last 12.
With a win Sunday, the United States could equal its longest home winning streak against any opponent, tying with Ecuador, which the U.S. has beaten 16 consecutive times.
Kickoff: Sunday, June 15, 2025 – 6:00 p.m. ET at PayPal Park (San Jose, Calif.)
Saudi Arabia
FIFA World Ranking: No. 58
The United States has only faced Saudi Arabia once in the past five years, a scoreless draw in an international friendly in September 2022. Before then, Saudi Arabia appeared in the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar where it most notably shocked the soccer world and defeated Argentina early in the group stage, handing the eventual and current reigning World Cup champions their only loss of the tournament.
Saudi Arabia enters the Gold Cup still alive in qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, earning a result in three of their last four AFC qualifying matches. This is the highest-ranked opponent the United States will face in the group stage.
Kickoff: Thursday, June 19, 2025 – 9:15 p.m. ET at Q2 Stadium (Austin, Texas)
Haiti
FIFA World Ranking: No. 83
The United States has a longstanding history playing against Haiti, and the series dates all the way back to 1941 when the USSF was known as the U.S. Football Association. While Haiti owned the first half of the all-time series, the United States has been the far better team over the past several decades and has not lost to Haiti since 1973. The two nations have met four times in Gold Cup action, and the USA has never lost, earning three wins and one draw.
Kickoff: Sunday, June 22, 2025 – 7:00 p.m. ET at AT&T Stadium (Arlington, Texas)
The rest of the field
The Gold Cup quarterfinals will be held June 28-June 29 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. and U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. The semifinals take place July 2 at Energizer Park in St. Louis and Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
Sixteen teams will look to make it to Houston, Texas where the final will be played at NRG Stadium on July 6. Among those in contention are defending champions Mexico in Group A. The United States and Mexico have dominated the tournament, and the two countries have combined to win 16 out of 17 times. Mexico won the last time around in 2023, beating a Panama side that outlasted the United States in penalty kicks in the semis. The Americans won the Gold Cup prior in 2021, swiping the trophy from Mexico thanks to Robinson’s epic game-winning header in extra time.
- Group A: Mexico, Costa Rica, Suriname, Dominican Republic
- Group B: Canada, Honduras, El Salvador, Curaçao
- Group C: Panama, Jamaica, Guatemala, Guadeloupe