16-Year-Old Cavan Sullivan to Play for US Men’s National Team; Christian Pulisic Is Out

After a World Cup on home soil that started with so much anticipation and excitement for the U.S. Men’s National Team (USMNT) but ended in disappointment for the host nation, the United States national team has laid low. It hasn’t competed in any matches since then, but that will change later this month, when the United States resumes play with four matches over 11 days.

A roster is needed for these contests, and it was unveiled on Thursday. With stakes much lower—all four of the upcoming matches are friendlies—the United States will give some new, younger players their first taste of international competition. Thirteen players of the 28 called up for the upcoming matches will be newcomers to the USMNT, and that group is headlined by 16-year-old sensation, Cavan Sullivan.

Sullivan, a native of Philadelphia, plays for his hometown team in Major League Soccer with the Philadelphia Union. He was signed to an MLS contract at 14 years old, becoming the fifth-youngest to ink a deal with the league, and would make his MLS debut at 14 years and 293 days old. That made Sullivan not only the youngest player in MLS history, but he became the youngest athlete to appear in a match of the five major North American sports leagues.

He will now become the second-youngest player to suit up for the United States Men’s National Team, trailing only Freddy Adu, who was just weeks younger.

With Sullivan among so many new players on the team, several well-known vets were left out. Chief among them is Christian Pulisic, who has been the face of U.S. soccer for the last few years. However, his omission was somewhat expected considering his form and injury history.

Pulisic suffered a leg injury in the World Cup that delayed the start of his domestic season with AC Milan in Italy’s Serie A. Milan began play on Aug. 23, but Pulisic didn’t make his season debut until just last week on Sept. 12. He’s played in only two matches since the World Cup ended, in both cases as subs and with both seeing him on the pitch for just 45 minutes.

Another big name, and arguably the best player and breakout star for the USMNT during the World Cup to get omitted, is Folarin Balogun. However, there is still a veteran presence on the squad as five goal scorers from this summer’s World Cup are included on the roster.

USMNT manager, Mauricio Pochettino, was asked about Sullivan getting the call up, in which the first friendly match will take place two days before his 17th birthday.

“He deserved all the praise that he’s getting I think because he’s performing well, he’s playing well, he’s giving assists and scoring goals,” Pochettino said. “He is special because he is 16 years old playing in this level in MLS.”

Major League Soccer had a midseason break to allow many of its players to participate in the World Cup, but since the resumption of play, Sullivan has looked every bit like the star many projected him to be. Since then, he has logged six goals and eight assists, including a goal contribution in each of his last five matches. The Union are also riding a seven-match undefeated streak across all competitions and are 9–2–2 over their last 13 matches. That’s a stark contrast from how Philadelphia started the season, winning in just three of their first 19 matches.

The USMNT will next take the pitch on Sept. 26 versus Peru. The contest will take place in Orlando, followed by a match three days later versus Chile in St. Louis. Then on Oct. 3, the team will face rival Mexico in Glendale, Arizona, with the four-match set concluding on Oct. 6 versus Canada in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

The next competitive match for the squad will come within the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinals in November. The United States will play on Nov. 14 and Nov. 17 against teams to be announced opponents. The 28-man roster for the upcoming four friendlies won’t necessarily be the same as the one for the Nations League matches.

Qualifying for the 2030 FIFA World Cup begins in September 2027 for the CONCACAF region, and it’s never too early to start thinking about that and what the USMNT could look like once it rolls around.

Pochettino recently signed a new contract that will keep him as the USMNT manager through 2030. He was asked about his strategy in constructing the current roster and stressed it’s the start of a new cycle with different immediate goals.

“It’s a completely different approach than it was in the past,” Pochettino stated. “The World Cup is in four years. We need to work with different objectives and goals.”