Gregg Berhalter: Former head coach reappointed by United States national team

Gregg Berhalter won more than 40 caps for the United States as a player and had a spell with Crystal Palace from 2001-02

Gregg Berhalter has been reappointed head coach of the United States national team, six months after his contract expired while an investigation into his past conduct was ongoing.

The 49-year-old was four years into the role when he admitted kicking his wife when they were teenagers.

He was investigated by US Soccer, which subsequently found it had "no legal impediment to employing him".

Berhalter will lead the side to the 2026 World Cup, co-hosted by the US.

Berhalter led the US to the last 16 of the World Cup in Qatar last year, where they were beaten by the Netherlands.

The allegation against him was made in December, with his original contract expiring at the end of that month.

He released a statement, co-signed by his wife Rosalind, sharing details of the 1992 incident, adding there was "zero excuse" for his actions.

BJ Callaghan then took over as interim coach and will remain in charge for Sunday's Concacaf Nations League final in Las Vegas and this year's Concacaf Gold Cup tournament, which starts later this month.

The mother of US and Borussia Dortmund midfielder Giovanni Reyna, a former college room-mate and football team-mate of Rosalind, said she reported Berhalter over the 1992 incident on 11 December, 2022.

Berhalter had criticised Reyna for "not meeting expectations" during last year's World Cup and he did not start a match in Qatar.

The former US defender says there is "work to do" to "rebuild" his relationship with Reyna.

"Gio is an important player to this team, he is an extremely talented individual and I have the obligation and the commitment to coach him like I coach every other player," said Berhalter.

"We know that if we can unlock his talents, he's going to be a game-changer for this program. So there's work to do and part of it is working together with [US Soccer Sporting Director Matt Crocker] and trying to build rebuild a relationship that we know will be important moving forward."

Speaking about his reappointment, Berhalter said: "I'm grateful to have the opportunity to build on our achievements at the World Cup and to contribute to this exciting time for soccer in our country. We look forward to continuing our journey together to make our fans and our nation proud."

Crocker, who was appointed as US Soccer's new sporting director to lead the search, said he was won over by Berhalter's "vision" for the side.

"When I started this search, my focus was on finding someone with the right vision to take this program to new heights in 2026," he said.

"Gregg has that vision, as well as the experience and growth mindset on and off the field to move this team forward."

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