For the duration of Gregg Berhalter’s tenure as United States men’s national team coach, the captaincy has been a revolving door, with the U.S. instead employing a leadership council featuring multiple players and an armband that has made the rounds. But for the World Cup, a captain must be picked, and Berhalter has made his choice—with the help of his players.
Midfield star Tyler Adams will don the armband for the U.S. in Qatar, Berhalter announced on Sunday on the eve of the Americans’ opener against Wales. Adams makes for a fine choice, a clear leader on this young team both on and off the field and one who has shown no hesitancy to be a vocal presence when needed. While Christian Pulisic has so often been given the hand-me-down “Captain America” moniker overseas (he has, to be fair, worn the armband on occasion), it’s Adams who will technically take that title in 2022 instead.
“We're proud to announce Tyler's the captain for the World Cup,” Berhalter said Sunday. “He leads by his actions and his words, so we're proud to have him as a captain.”
Berhalter’s decision was aided by his team, with a player vote—starting at the September camp and involving around 35 players total—guiding the final call.
“Tyler's the guy that's just mature beyond his years and you notice it from from the minute you start talking to him,” Berhalter continued. “And, you know, I can go on and on about his, you know, the strengths of Tyler but I think the other thing about him is is humility, and he's a guy that the teammates know exactly what they're gonna get from them. They know that he's gonna go out on the field and compete, they know that he's gonna be thinking about the game. They know that he's gonna be into the details of the game, you know, not just a competitor. He's also a strategist. And I think that helps the group because you know, he calms people down. And he's the guy that people get behind.”
Adams, the New York Red Bulls product and Wappingers Falls, N.Y., native, joins an esteemed group of individuals to represent the U.S. as captain on the world’s stage in the modern era. At Brazil 2014, that honor fell to Clint Dempsey, while in South Africa in 2010, it was Carlos Bocanegra. In 2006 (Germany) and 2002 (Japan/South Korea), Claudio Reyna—Gio Reyna’s father—had the distinction of being dubbed “Captain America,” truly earning it by carrying out two terms. In 1998 (France), it was Thomas Dooley who led the way, while on home soil in 1994, it was goalkeeper Tony Meola. Mike Windischmann had the honor of being captain in Italy in 1990, when the U.S. ended 40 years of international futility and returned to the World Cup stage.
At 23, Adams will be the youngest of the bunch. Dempsey and Bocanegra were both 31, while Claudio Reyna was 32 and 28 in his two stints. Dooley was 36, while Meola (25) and Windischmann (24) were the only ones close to the youthful Adams, who presently is a regular starter for Leeds United in the Premier League. Adams has previously captained the U.S. nine times, the first of which was a 4–0 win over Costa Rica in June 2021. He has 32 caps and one goal, which came in a September 2018 friendly win over Mexico.
“It's a huge honor for me, obviously, to be named captain of this team,” Adams said. “Obviously a very young team but a lot of credit to my teammates because anyone throughout our leadership council can wear that armband and represent us with pride and represent us in the right way. ... We've established that we all lead in different ways so that anyone can represent us on any given day and represent us well.”
