Steve Cherundolo will take over the U.S. Under-23 team until the 2028 Olympics

Former U.S. defenseman and Los Angeles FC coach Steve Cherundolo was hired Thursday by the U.S. Soccer Federation to lead the U.S. men’s under-23 team through the 2028 Olympics.

It was not clear whether the 47-year-old from San Diego would be a candidate to become interim coach of the national team if there was no new deal between the USSF and Mauricio Pochettino, whose contract expires this summer. The national team can play four friendly matches in the FIFA international window from September 21 to October 3.

Cherundolo played 87 games for the US from 1999 to 2012 and was part of three World Cup squads. He played fifteen seasons for Hannover until 2014 and played 415 games in the Bundesliga, the most by an American.

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He coached the second-tier Las Vegas Lights in 2021 and LAFC from 2022-25, winning an MLS title in his first season and the US Open Cup in 2024. He left LA after 2025 to move back to Germany.

Cherundolo was inducted into the U.S. National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2021.

FIFA limits the men’s Olympic teams to players under the age of 23 who must be born on or after January 1, 2005, with each of the twelve teams allowed three wild card players above the age limit.

Games will be played in Columbus, Ohio; Nashville, Tenn.; New York; Pasadena, California; St. Louis; San Diego; and San Jose, California. The US automatically gets a berth as host.

Published on July 9, 2026