Landon Donovan talks all things USMNT ahead of World Cup
Landon Donovan joins the Sports Seriously Soccer Podcast to talk about his expecttions for the USMNT and tells us about his partnership with FanDuel.
Sports Seriously
Clint Dempsey has never been one for ceilings. Tell Dempsey he can’t do something, and he’ll break through – going from East Texas to the Premier League and ending his career as the joint top scorer for the U.S. men’s national team along the way.
But he knows about floors.
So, perhaps it was no surprise that Dempsey was clear on what failure would be for the U.S. at the 2026 World Cup but refused to put a limit on the team’s potential success.
“Failure is not getting out of the group, especially in the way that the format is now,” Dempsey told USA TODAY Sports. “If you’re not getting out of the group stage now, that’s definitely a failure, right? You’ve had teams that have gotten to the Round 16 before. Two of the three World Cups cycles I was a part of, that’s what we got to.
“I’d like to see them get further, obviously, get into a quarters or a semis. That would just be amazing, but I’m not going to put a ceiling on what they can do. But I will say that if you don’t get out of the group, that’s definitely going to be a failure.”
Dempsey isn’t expecting the U.S. to fall on the floor. He’s rooting for the opposite. But after the U.S. failed to win its Concacaf Nations League semifinal against Panama and when the Americans fell in the Gold Cup final to Mexico, Dempsey offered open critique.
His position as arguably the greatest American player to play the sport puts extra weight behind what he says, especially when it filters down to the current generation of players, many of whom grew up idolizing Dempsey. Whether he has a microphone in his hand or he’s catching up with a former teammate, he is characteristically candid, but that’s the same way the press talked about him as a player when he was in London – and even with the Seattle Sounders.
“Wherever you are, where the game is cared about, you’re going to be under a microscope and people are going to talk about it, right? If you’re on the better teams, it’s even talked about more,” he said. “When I was in England and playing with Fulham and Tottenham, you better believe I was being criticized and critiqued and judged. That’s what comes with the job. That’s what comes with the money that you’re being paid to do.
“I try to shoot people straight. I remember what it was like to be in the locker room, but at the same time, I still have what it’s like to be a fan and want these guys to accomplish as much as they possibly can. It’s not one of those things where my agenda is to go out there and get click bait. I want to see them win, and I want to talk about good things that are going on. But when things are not going well, I got to shoot you straight too, right?”
This generation of players mostly became professional players in a totally different way than Dempsey did, famously being driven hours from his hometown of Nacogdoches to Dallas to participate in the Texans youth system. After going to college at Furman and starting his pro career with the New England Revolution, Dempsey didn’t move to Europe until he was in his mid-20s.
While most of the current USMNT went pro at a much younger age than Dempsey and many of his counterparts, the 43-year-old still would like to see his generation of recent ex-pros be more involved in the U.S. Soccer and MLS setups than they are, feeling there is wisdom to be offered that isn’t currently being passed down.
“Do I feel like a lot of former players are welcome back to be around the national team or with an MLS or professional team? I don’t know about all that,” Dempsey said. “I don’t feel like there’s a lot of former players I played with that have gotten a lot of opportunities, if I’m being honest. That’s just how I feel.
“I know you could point to different players here and there that, you know, played MLS and are coaches now. But I still feel like there’s a lot of other players that could have helped out that haven’t been called upon.”
Dempsey likely isn’t talking about himself. Reserved off the field during his playing days – though prone to putting out rap songs – he was coaxed into giving TV a try.
The comfort with his broadcast colleagues, including Pete Radovich, CBS’ Vice President of Production and Senior Creative Director who launched the network’s soccer coverage, opened the door for something even more personal. Dempsey is the subject of a four-part documentary series called, “You Don’t Know Where I’m From, Dawg,” which is out on Paramount+.
“Being able to be myself, feeling like I’m in a locker room again, you kind of gain trust and confidence and take a little bit more risk than you normally would take,” he said. “Doing the documentary was one of those things that, yeah, you got to share a lot and you got to be raw and kind of show your life to people and they’re going to take it how they’re going to take it. But, for me it was just trusting Pete, Alex (Loschiavo, producer), everybody with CBS through this process that they would do right by me. But at the same time, tell the true story.”
The true story is now on display. If it weren’t, Dempsey would tell you – just like he’ll say if the U.S. doesn’t live up to its potential this summer or he’ll praise the players who were able to raise their ceiling higher than ever.
