Atlanta not represented on the 2026 USMNT World Cup roster. Who could be next?

The U.S. men’s national team roster for the 2026 FIFA World Cup is set.

And no one is representing Atlanta in this cycle.

USMNT manager Mauricio Pochettino announced his 26-player roster on Tuesday for the first World Cup hosted in North America since 1994.

It’s no easy feat to receive the ultimate call-up. Just four players from Georgia have cracked the elusive USMNT roster in history. Three of those came in the 2022 World Cup. However, Walker Zimmerman, Sean Johnson and Shaq Moore, who donned the U.S. crest in the last tournament, have fallen out of the player pool in recent years largely because of age.

Now, Atlanta looks to its future.

“2030 [World Cup] could certainly be an opportunity,” Georgia Soccer executive director Jim Walker said of Atlanta’s next generation of stars. “You’re gonna see some of these players aging out, and that’s gonna open up doorways for these younger kids to get involved in the game.”

So, who could be next?

Look no further than the Atlanta United Academy. The youth program, which launched a year before the club’s inaugural season in 2017, has already started to bear its fruit. Two United homegrowns, Luke Brennan and Cooper Sanchez, were named to the 2025 U-20 FIFA World Cup roster last fall.

“The academy helped a lot,” Brennan said on participating in the youth World Cup. “ … They push us and make us ready. It’s a very, very competitive academy, so just being there and getting us ready is huge.”

Peachtree Citynative Cole Campbell joined his former United Academy players at the U-20 World Cup in Chile. Campbell, currently in the Bundesliga, is just one of the club’s academy players to earn a spot playing in European leagues. Caleb Wiley is another. The left back from Morningside transferred to Chelsea in 2024, just before he represented the U.S. at the Paris Olympics.

While injury has sidelined Wiley recently, Brennan and Sanchez have heavily contributed to United. Brennan has mostly picked up minutes off the bench, and Sanchez — at just 18 years old — has been a bright spot for United through its bumpy start to the 2026 season. Sanchez was born in Seattle, but after living a nomadic childhood, he calls Atlanta home and lists his hometown as Holly Springs.

Of the aforementioned young stars, all under 22, only Wiley has earned a USMNT cap. So, when discussing the highest echelon in soccer — the World Cup — one must obviously pump the brakes. However, it’s worth noting that 44 players who have competed in the U-20 World Cup went on to make a World Cup roster.

USMNT legendary goalkeeper Tim Howard is one of those players.

Howard recently led a youth soccer camp in Marietta as a part of a series held across the country in the lead-up to the summer’s global tournament, in a joint effort with FIFA World Cup sponsor Hyundai. Howard chose to participate in two locations — Atlanta, and his home state of New Jersey.

“Atlanta is a hotbed for soccer,” Howard told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “America doesn’t have a lot of special soccer places, respectfully, and Atlanta is one of those.”

While the next World Cup-bound player from Atlanta could be someone already at the U.S. Soccer youth level, it could also be someone who’s not on anyone’s radar.

Georgia Soccer, a U.S. Soccer Federation member organization, is bracing for a significant uptick in participation after this summer’s World Cup, where Atlanta will host eight matches. To capitalize on that growth, a “fractured landscape” must be repaired.

Announced to member organizations in early 2026, U.S. Soccer is undergoing a transformation to bring youth soccer competitors under one umbrella, including organizations like U.S. Youth, U.S. Club, American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO), Olympic Development Program (ODP) and United States Specialty Sports Organization (USSSA).

“I think that right now, we are on the precipice of a significant change in the soccer landscape,” Alexander said. “ … Ultimately, U.S. soccer is looking at it, saying it’s stupid for all of us to have separate player cards; they should all be housed by the federation.”

Alexander noted that the “future state program” is an opt-in choice for the state association level, but he said he’s read the tea leaves and that opting out would be a mistake. He is hopeful the initiative will lead to a more streamlined process of identifying talent versus development.

“There might be five million players that are playing with U.S. Youth, U.S. Club. That’s great. I guarantee you there’s another two, three, or four million that are not registered,” Alexander said. “I guarantee you one of those players is a Messi, is a Ronaldo, is a player of that caliber, and we’re not finding him.”

It’s all about creating a stronger pipeline. Alexander said the program is still in its infancy and finding its footing. There are still a lot of question marks ahead of the upcoming World Cup. Regardless of how it unfolds, it’s clear that Georgia will carry an advantage. With the recently opened National Training Center in Fayetteville, there is an expanded level of accessibility simply for players to attend youth national team camps.