The legendary group delivered an emphatic performance alongside Carrie Underwood — but some fans weren’t impressed. Continue reading…Country Music News – Taste of Country
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With only four road-course races this year — and one of those being a street course — performance from the Watkins Glen race Sunday isn’t a great predictor of how a team is doing overall. But momentum, arguably, in racing is real. And so it should mean something. Here are my power rankings going into the All-Star race this weekend at Dover. I won’t update the power rankings after the All-Star race since it’s an exhibition. The next update will come after Charlotte. Dropped out: William Byron (Last Week: 10) On the verge: Christopher Bell, Alex Bowman, William Byron, Austin Dillon, Ryan Preece, Daniel Suarez 10. Austin Cindric (Last Week: Not Ranked)Team Penske No. 2 Ford Cindric started third and finished ninth at Watkins Glen for his fourth top 10 in his last seven races. After starting the year with three finishes worse than 25th, he has had eight consecutive top-20 finishes and sits 15th in the standings. 9. Carson Hocevar (Last Week: 6)Spire Motorsports No. 77 Chevrolet Not much was expected from Hocevar at Watkins Glen, so it was a bit of a surprise he qualified 11th. He tangled with Josh Berry on the final lap at Watkins Glen and finished 28th. 8. Kyle Larson (Last Week: 5)Hendrick Motorsports No. 5 Chevrolet Larson was the best Hendrick driver at Watkins Glen. But that didn’t mean he had a good day. He finished 23rd. 7. Chris Buescher (Last Week: 4)RFK Racing No. 17 Ford Buescher had a mildly disappointing 12th-place finish at Watkins Glen, a place where he out-dueled Shane van Gisbergen just two years ago. But he still has five consecutive finishes of 13th or better. 6. Ryan Blaney (Last Week: 7)Team Penske No. 12 Ford Blaney started seventh and finished 11th at Watkins Glen. Not a great day but a good enough day to salvage some points and move on to next week. 5. Chase Briscoe (Last Week: 9)Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota Briscoe said he felt like he was second in class, as he finished fourth at Watkins Glen. He didn’t necessarily have the speed of the leaders but made the most out of his day and his strategy. 4. Ty Gibbs (Last Week: 8)Joe Gibbs Racing No. 54 Toyota Gibbs had hoped he had the winning strategy by pitting with 39 laps to go and trying to save a little bit of fuel on the way to the finish. But there was no holding off Shane van Gisbergen and Michael McDowell, who were coming on fresh tires with no need to save fuel. Gibbs settled for third with 17 laps led. 3. Chase Elliott (Last Week: 3)Hendrick Motorsports No. 9 Chevrolet Elliott, coming off the win at Texas, was not strong and then tried some strategy to earn stage points and couldn’t even do that, as some of those who flipped the first stage still were able to beat him to the line. That strategy meant poor track position the rest of the day (where he already was running) and he placed 24th. 2. Denny Hamlin (Last Week: 2)Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 Toyota Hamlin started 16th and finished 20th on a day when he seemed a little off on a road course where he typically also is a little bit off the pace of the leaders. He’s probably glad there’s no road course in the Chase this year. 1. Tyler Reddick (Last Week: 1)23XI Racing No. 45 Toyota Reddick is having a championship-type season as he started 15th but ran strong enough to finish fifth. It was his eighth top five in the 12 races so far this year. No wonder he leads the standings by 129 points over Hamlin.Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
Pearl Creek Elementary School is seen on June 3, 2025. The Fairbanks North Star Borough School District decided to close the school at the end of the academic year. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Members of the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District school board say the district will take the state to court in a dispute around its authority to approve and establish new charter schools.
The district is challenging the Alaska State Board of Education for its approval of a new charter school after the locally elected board unanimously denied the application. The Fairbanks board cited a wide array of problems with the charter proposal, as well as millions in costs to reopen a school it closed last year to address a severe budget deficit.
But the group behind the charter school, Pearl Creek STEAM, appealed to the state, and the governor-appointed State Board of Education approved the new charter school on April 29, saying the application was sufficient.
While the appeal process for new charter schools is in state statute, officials with the district had concerns about the state’s process and whether the state should be overriding local control to create new charter schools.
The state approval would overrule the local board’s denial of a new charter school — requiring the district to approve the charter and establish the school in less than four months, to open in August.
The state approval of a charter school over objections by a local district is highly unusual, said Lisa Parady, executive director of the Alaska Council of School Administrators.
“It is my understanding that it’s the first time the state board has imposed a charter school on a district,” she said by email on Monday. “I’m not aware of any court case that has occurred in the past eight years at least on a denial or overturning of a charter school decision.”
The board announced at a May 4 meeting it plans to appeal the decision in state court.
New charter school under dispute
Charter schools are tuition-free schools that are publicly funded but independently run based on a “charter” contract that allows for alternative educational offerings from traditional district schools. In Alaska, there are currently 32 charter schools.
The group behind the school, Pearl Creek STEAM — focused on science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics — say there has been an interest in the focus for decades, and it has a wide base of family and community support for establishing the school.
The new charter school proposes serving roughly 350 students from kindergarten through sixth grade.
The Fairbanks school board members unanimously voted in October to reject the application for a new charter school at the former Pearl Creek Elementary School, which was one of three schools closed last year due to address a roughly $16 million dollar deficit.
In a 52-page written decision, board members raised a wide range of concerns including with the applicant — known as an Academic Policy Committee — and its plans for facilities, student instruction, transportation, school meals, the budget and others. “It appears likely not just that the APC’s vision may not be implemented, but that the proposed school could fail entirely,” they wrote.
Bobby Burgess, president of the Fairbanks school board, said in an interview Thursday that the board’s opinion hasn’t changed.
“We highlighted several legal errors, parts of the application that we believe did not follow state law, as well as technical errors, and that included problems with the math and the budget,” he said.
Opening the new charter school would also cost the district an estimated $2.8 million.
But in a 15-page written decision the state Board of Education in April found the charter application was in compliance. The decision affirmed Education Commissioner Deena Bishop’s review and approval of the application in January, after the group behind the charter school appealed to the state.
Burgess said the district is appealing the state’s approval in court, arguing the state board did not thoroughly evaluate the application and made a decision in executive session without a public vote. He said instead the board issued the approval, seeming to rubber stamp the application as complete, rather than evaluate on its merits.
“If there was something written in every section, then, in their opinion, that constitutes an application that is worth that should be approved regardless of whether the contents actually make sense, or regardless of any flaws that might be in the contents,” he said. “So that’s ultimately what guided our decision was that we believe that their decision was made in error.”
Charter proponents say proposal is sound
The group behind Pearl Creek STEAM has rejected the local school board’s evaluation as incomplete and not based on law or “substantial evidence.”
Jennifer Redmond, a parent and treasurer of Pearl Creek STEAM, said in an interview Friday she and the school’s supporters are disappointed with the district’s decision to take the issue to state court.
“We had worked really hard, and had multiple reviews of the application that was a sound, legal and strong application for a charter school. And we had a lot of families that had already applied to the school, and were looking forward to opening it in the fall,” she said.
Redmond said the group has developed robust plans for a STEAM-based curriculum, instruction and facilities plan at the former Pearl Creek school site. She said they planned to work with the district and within the district-wide system for services like school nutrition and transportation. Redmond pointed to declining enrollment as a major issue for Fairbanks, and noted roughly 20% of the applicants for the new school would transfer from homeschool or private schools, adding students to the district.
Redmond said since the state’s approval of their appeal, they saw a surge in interest and student applications. She said they’ve received roughly 325 student applicants for 352 places.
“While I understand that we’re also talking about local control, local control is also for parents, teachers and community members to come together and put together a charter school that’s been enshrined in state law to create innovation in the public school system,” she said.
Redmond said the group is prepared to defend their application in court, but would rather work with the district to move forward in establishing the new school in the fall.
“We’re also always prepared to collaborate at any point, to sit in a room and discuss this and really come to an understanding,” she said.
Questions of cost to open charter, after school closures
Burgess, with the Fairbanks school board, said the district is concerned about the cost of opening the new school on such a short timeline, and sees the potential financial impacts district-wide.
“The costs to the district are significant,” he said. “It would require significantly scaling back the investments that we were able to make in this year’s recommended budget, which included things like behavioral support, aides in elementary school, music programs districtwide for elementary school and ELP — Extended Learning Program — teachers for elementary, and then just, of course, the reduction in class sizes.”
Redmond, with the Pearl Creek STEAM school, said the district has the budget to fund the new school, and sees the enrollment of new students as a boost to the district, as well as providing new educational opportunities to Fairbanks students.
Redmond cited the school district’s $2.6 million budget surplus this year. The district achieved the surplus after it closed three elementary schools to address a $16 million budget shortfall last year.
But Redmond said the district drafted the budget, knowing the appeal could be approved.
“They knew there were going to be possible changes coming forth, one of which would be this charter school,” she said. “They had plenty of time to plan for this possibility.”
District to appeal the state’s approval decision in court
Burgess said the district has yet to file the appeal in state court, and expects the process of establishing the school will be put on hold as the court case progresses.
As of Monday, the appeal had not yet been filed in state court.
Education Commissioner Deena Bishop said in a statement Friday the department was aware of the legal challenge, but had not yet received formal notice of an appeal. Bishop defended the state’s approval of the application.
“Alaska law requires that a charter denial be supported by substantial evidence and grounded in statute and regulation. The decision was based on the governing legal requirements and the administrative record before it,” she wrote.
Bishop said the state will defend the decision through the appeal process in court.
“The Department is charged with following the laws set forth by the Legislature and will abide accordingly, to any requirement of participation in due process if and when presented with such,” she wrote.
Burgess said the board recognizes the state’s authority and the legal system of checks and balances in reviewing charter school applications.
But Burgess said the Fairbanks board has had dozens of emails from supporters and officials in other districts, recognizing the larger issue of the state’s decision as potentially setting a precedent for the governor-appointed state board overruling locally elected school boards.
“Essentially, what they’re saying is that any group that turns in a charter application and puts in something relevant in every box in that application deserves a charter school, regardless of the flaws in the application or the effects to a district and its overall operations and finances,” he said. “That’s a precedent that is worth fighting.”
Burgess said the board recognizes the process is difficult for the community, amid several consecutive years of budget cuts and changes across the district.
“It’s tough. We understand that there’s a number of people who have been working on that charter, who are hoping that their kids can go there and you know, and the closure of the school in the first place, of course, caused a lot of stress and pain for people in this community,” Burgess said. “But we also have the greater the district as a whole is our responsibility, and we have to keep that in mind.”
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Move over Jane Fonda and Suzanne Somers! This popular celebrity will always be the ultimate health and fitness icon of the 1980s. Here’s why.
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The Haines Borough Assembly meeting on May 12 will include the first reading of the FY27 budget. The Chilkat Valley News’ Will Steinfeld and KHNS’ Melinda Munson sat down to talk about the budget process.
Melinda Munson: The budget process has started, and it will make its first appearance at the assembly meeting. Can you walk us through that process?
Will Steinfeld: Where we’re at right now is this is the first official chance for residents to weigh in on the borough’s budget plan for the upcoming year. The whole budget has to go through by June 15. But before that happens, there’s all these public hearings. There’s going to be at least two, maybe a third. And there’s likely going to be a whole bunch of amendments to the budget by assembly members that will change what the plan is going forward.
I think what the Assembly is really looking for here is the optimal mix of services for residents, given the money that the borough is taking in. And that’s a hard question to answer … What is that optimal mix of services? So, I think when people weigh in and come to assembly meetings and tell assembly members what they want to see from their government, I think that at least has some role to play in what the final budget plan is.
So last year, the school ended up getting more money than was typical. And after a lot of citizen comment, the pool got more money than was originally budgeted. Nonprofits did not get any money. What are the things that we’re watching for in this year’s budget discussions?
One thing I’ve heard in recent weeks is Borough Manager Alekka Fullerton has encouraged assembly members to hey, if you think there are changes you want to propose to this budget, try and make them early. Make them at this first public hearing, instead of waiting right till the end. In that way, residents have time to see what these changes are, hear the debate and then tell assembly members what they think.
And the Haines Economic Development Corporation is on the agenda. What is the HEDC, exactly, and what will they be talking about?
Haines Economic Development Corporation – they recently dissolved. They had been doing economic development work – a lot of studies and research about the local economy, providing data. They’re back now. They’ve reorganized their board, and they’re supposed to get money from the borough to continue doing work, at least similar to what they’ve been doing.
Last assembly meeting, a kind of broad range of assembly members seemed hesitant about giving them more money. Or outright have said, you know, I don’t think we should give them more money until we figure out what’s going on with all nonprofits.
The one update for this week is the mayor has come out and said he is going to veto any cuts to HEDC funding. The mayor has that power to veto legislation. His rationale for that is, he says the borough has a special tax that they levy that’s supposed to go toward economic development. And right now, HEDC is the avenue we have to spend it. And the mayor says if we’re going to tax citizens, we owe it to them. We have responsibility to them to spend it in the way that we promise. So that’s his reasoning.
There’s a new tour permit on Tuesday’s agenda for a boat tour. Give us some details about that.
This is one that got a lot of public input, outcry, maybe you could call it, last time it was heard. AMG owner Sean Gaffney is coming to the Assembly to ask for a new permit for a boat tour that would go into Lutak Inlet. Residents around Lutak last time expressed a lot of worry about noise, disturbance to wildlife and themselves, their neighborhood. And the Assembly approved part of Gaffney’s proposal, but for this Lutak Inlet portion said, please resubmit and come back to us.
So Gaffney is back this week. He has written up a whole number of kind of conditions, or stipulations he would have on these tours that seem like they’re aimed at addressing the concerns that have come up. So talking about limiting the frequency of these boat trips, the distance the boats would be from shore, trying to talk about boat speed and reducing noise. We’ll see if that lands with residents, and which side the Assembly decides to come down on.”
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As the biggest-ever edition of the global showcase, the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the first tournament hosted by three countries — the United States, Mexico and Canada — with 48 teams competing across 16 host cities. Here’s what you need to know about the tournament: 2026 FIFA World Cup: How To Watch The World Cup will run from June 11–July 19, 2026. Spread across three countries, the tournament will culminate with the final on July 19 at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. All 104 tournament matches will air live across FOX (70) and FS1 (34) with every match streaming live and on-demand within both the FOX One and the FOX Sports app. A record 40 matches, more than one-third of the tournament, will air in prime time across FOX (21) and FS1 (19). The opening match on June 11 between Mexico and South Africa (3 p.m. ET) will stream for free on Tubi, as well as the USA’s opening match against Paraguay on June 12 (9 p.m. ET). [WHEN AND WHERE: Full Schedule for 2026 FIFA World Cup] Who Is Hosting The 2026 FIFA World Cup? For the first time ever, there will be three countries hosting the World Cup — the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Only once in the tournament’s history have there been co-hosts, with the 2002 edition being held in South Korea and Japan. Eleven cities will be hosting the tournament in the U.S. including Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, Seattle and the San Francisco Bay Area. Canadian cities, Toronto and Vancouver, will also host games with three Mexican cities — Monterrey, Guadalajara and Mexico City — also included. For 2026, the majority of the 104 matches will be held in the U.S., with 78 games spread across 11 cities. Canada (two cities) and Mexico (three cities) will have 13 matches each. Where Is The 2026 World Cup Final Being Played? The 2026 World Cup final will be played at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The venue, which opened in 2010 and is also known as MetLife Stadium, is the home of two NFL teams — the New York Giants and New York Jets. The 2026 World Cup final will take place on Sunday, July 19 at 3 p.m. ET. What Is The USA’s Schedule For The 2026 World Cup? Christian Pulisic and the United States now know their path to glory in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final after learning their group stage opponents, which stadiums they will play at and the times for the games. Which Teams Have Qualified For The 2026 World Cup? The list of the 48 teams, separated into 12 groups, is as follows:Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
It’s starting to feel real. In less than a month, fans from around the globe will be tuning in and filling up iconic stadiums for the most popular sporting event in the world: the 2026 FIFA World Cup. And a lot will happen between now and June 11. Rosters will be finalized. Teams will begin to assemble for their final tune-up matches. Fans will start to plan out their days and circle which games and star players they’ll follow along through it all. To get you started, here are five key storylines to get you set with just 30 days to go before the world hangs on to every goal and moment. Who Can Win The 2026 World Cup? Just eight nations — Brazil (five times), Germany (four), Italy (four), Argentina (three), France (two), Uruguay (two), Spain and England (once each) — have ever lifted the FIFA World Cup on the men’s side. Will a ninth be crowned on July 19? For all the pomp and circumstance leading up to the biggest World Cup of all time, it will quickly be forgotten as the action gets underway across three countries and 16 cities as the 48 participating teams embark on a marathon group stage. Upsets will happen. But the business end of the 39-day tournament promises to feature many of the usual suspects: France is FIFA’s top-ranked team and the bookies’ co-favorite to win it all, along with reigning European champions Spain. Argentina, the current World Cup holder and South American champion, will defend the title it narrowly won over France in Qatar in 2022. Brazil is overdue; the record five-time World Cup winner last won in 2002 and has never gone more than 24 years between titles. Interestingly enough, it hoisted the trophy the last time the U.S. held the final in 1994. England is looking for its first major men’s trophy since claiming its lone World Cup exactly 60 years ago this summer. The Three Lions have the third-best odds. After that, who knows? Portugal is stacked, but is it capable of becoming the first new World Cup winner since Spain finally scaled the mountain in 2010? Same goes for Belgium, whose so-called golden generation has one last chance to redeem itself after not even reaching the 2022 knockout round. Or how about the Netherlands, a three-time runner-up that lost to Argentina on penalties four years ago in the quarterfinals? We won’t have to wait much longer to find out. USA, Canada And Mexico: How Far Can The World Cup Host Countries Go? There’s no question about it: Playing at home helps. There’s a reason that, for decades, no World Cup host nation had failed to survive the first round (South Africa and Qatar missed out in 2010 and ’22, respectively). At the Stade de France just outside of Paris in 1998, Les Bleus won the first of their two World Cups. Four years later in 2002, South Korea reached the semis as co-hosts, losing 1-0 to Germany in Seoul. And back in 1994, a hosting American team just hoping to avoid embarrassment shocked the world by beating Colombia before being eliminated by eventual champs Brazil in the knockouts by the same razor-thin margin. Expectations are far higher for the current U.S. squad. After missing the 2018 event, a new generation led by Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams qualified for Qatar and reached the round of 16. Now, on home soil, the bar is higher. The USA’s 2002 quarterfinal run was almost a quarter-century ago now. Is this squad good enough to emulate it? Fellow co-hosts Canada and Mexico have goals of their own. While the Canadians have never won a World Cup game, reaching the knockouts is a must. Mexico will host World Cup games for a record third time, with the iconic 1970 and 1986 editions also held south of the U.S. border. Mexico hasn’t reached the quarters since the latter; losing in the round of 16 seven straight times between 1994 and 2018. Returning to the last eight is the clear goal. Still, simply advancing would be an improvement, as El Tri didn’t make it out of its group in 2022. Lionel Messi And Cristiano Ronaldo’s Last Dance … Although he still hasn’t officially confirmed his participation for Argentina, Lionel Messi — who’ll turn 39 during the World Cup group stage — will surely captain the Albiceletse if he’s healthy. Cristiano Ronaldo definitely will lead Portugal; even at 41, he remains a key player for coach Roberto Martinez. For both living legends, there is a lot at stake this summer. Messi was supposed to retire from the international game after 2022, then changed his mind after willing his country to its first World Cup win since 1986 and cementing his status as the global game’s GOAT. No way he wants to sully that image with a dud of a showing in the country where he now plays his club ball as the face of Inter Miami. The stakes for Ronaldo are even higher. As the international men’s soccer’s all-time scoring and appearance leader, the World Cup trophy is all that’s missing from CR7’s otherworldly résumé. Clinching it wouldn’t just equal the feat Messi pulled off four years ago. It would also deliver Portugal its first title — and return Ronaldo to the GOAT conversation for decades to come. … And Welcome to Erling Haaland And Lamine Yamal If the 2026 World Cup represents a swan song for Messi and Ronaldo, consider it a launching pad for two of soccer’s burgeoning megastars. [FIFA WORLD CUP: Full World Cup Game-by-Game Schedule] Yamal is already being compared to Messi, for obvious reasons: The 18-year-old is also a graduate of Barcelona’s famed La Masia development academy and a slick-dribbling left-footed attacker. And while this will be the Spaniard’s maiden World Cup, he helped La Roja win UEFA Euro 2024 before his 17th birthday by scoring a crucial and spectacular semifinal goal. A hamstring injury in April has kept him out of action for Barcelona, but he is expected to be back at some point this summer on the big stage. At 25, Haaland is no kid. The Premier League and Champions League winner with Manchester City has been scoring at will at the highest level for years; in 49 appearances for his native Norway since his 2019 debut, the striker has an astonishing 55 goals. Like Yamal, this is also Haaland’s first World Cup. If the two newcomers are at their electric best this summer, don’t be surprised if both Haaland and Yamal are household names in America by August. Debut Squads and Long-Absent Teams Back on Biggest Stage The 16-team expansion of the 2026 World Cup was always going to spawn Cinderella stories. Last October, the tiny West African archipelago of Cape Verde — population 525,000 — became the smallest nation ever to reach a men’s World Cup. The record stood for a month, when the Caribbean island of Curaçao (pop. 155,000) qualified in November. Jordan and Uzbekistan will also join the party for the first time this summer. Haiti and Congo DR return for the first time since 1974. Iraq is back after 40 years. Scotland, Norway and Austria have waited 28 years. Türkiye, who will join the U.S. in Group D, is capable of sticking around late into the competition despite not qualifying since 2002 — when it went all the way to the semifinals. 2026 FIFA World Cup: How To Watch The World Cup will run from June 11–July 19, 2026. Spread across three countries, the tournament will culminate with the final on July 19 at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. All 104 tournament matches will air live across FOX (70) and FS1 (34) with every match streaming live and on-demand within both the FOX One and the FOX Sports apps. A record 40 matches, more than one-third of the tournament, will air in prime time across FOX (21) and FS1 (19). The opening match on June 11 between Mexico and South Africa (3 p.m. ET) will stream for free on Tubi, as well as the USA’s opening match against Paraguay on June 12 (9 p.m. ET).Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
As much as modern World Cup squads are typically constructed using a forensic examination of data points collected over a four-year cycle combined with the gut feelings of experienced national team coaches and their staffs, the United States’ roster for the 2026 FIFA World Cup was always going to be different. USA boss Mauricio Pochettino was hired less than two years ago. For much of his tenure, he has been, for various reasons, without whom many would consider some of America’s most essential players, including forward Christian Pulisic, midfielder Weston McKennie, midfielder Tyler Adams, and wing back Antonee “Jedi” Robinson. Out of necessity, Pochettino scoured the fringes of the U.S. player pool, unearthing and/or handing opportunities to the likes of winger Max Arfsten, midfielder Sebastian Berhalter, right back Alex Freeman and goalkeeper Matt Freese. The former Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea manager brought in a whopping figure of 70-plus players during his first 18 months on the job. Now, he must settle on his final 26-player roster before it is officially unveiled in two weeks on May 26. And then, exactly one month from Tuesday, Pochettino will announce his lineup for the Stars and Stripes’ June 12 World Cup opener against Paraguay in Los Angeles. Here’s my latest USA roster projection for the 2026 FIFA World Cup: Nobody could’ve foreseen Freeman or Freese, who were uncapped this time last year, emerging as projected World Cup starters when Pochettino took over. Things change quickly. And with the tournament almost here, the coach could favor roster candidates who are in top form with their clubs right now over several of those he summoned for the national team’s most recent camp in March. For every team, there’s almost always at least one roster surprise. Timing is everything when the main event finally arrives. Who will make the full squad? Let’s break the full roster down: STRIKERS Starter: Folarin BalogunBackups: Ricardo Pepi, Haji Wright Just missed out: Josh Sargent, Patrick Agyemang (injured) The ruptured Achilles tendon that Agyemang suffered on April 6 playing for Derby County made Pochettino’s decision for him; it’s possible he would’ve also picked Pepi and Wright as Balogun’s World Cup understudies even if the 6-foot-4 Agyemang had been available. Now there’s seemingly no doubt, though Pochettino’s sparing use of Pepi is notable. Despite being healthy, the rangy striker from El Paso, Texas, went unused in two of the USA’s four most recent games, logging just 34 minutes off the bench. Yet he’s heading into the World Cup in top form. On May 10, Pepi bagged his 18th goal of the season for PSV Eindhoven. The 23-year-old has started the last four games for the Dutch champions, scoring in each. ATTACKING MIDFIELDERS Starters: Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie Backups: Brenden Aaronson, Diego Luna, Gio Reyna, Malik Tillman Just missed out: Jack McGlynn, Alex Zendejas This is assuming Pulisic isn’t hurt, of course. The country’s most celebrated attacker missed AC Milan’s loss to Atalanta on May 10 with a glute injury. The ailment isn’t considered serious, however. More concerning is the 27-year-old player’s 19-game goalless streak for club and country dating to Dec. 28, 2025. Fortunately, McKennie is showing no signs of wear as the World Cup approaches. The Juventus live-wire man in the middle, who’s also 27, started his 30th match of the Serie A campaign in 1-0 win over Lecce on May 10. Aaronson has made 28 starts for Leeds United, which secured another season in the Premier League. Luna scored for Real Salt Lake on May 9. As did Reyna, who finally chalked up his first tally of the 2025-26 season for Germany’s Borussia Mönchengladbach. Here’s where things get interesting. Pochettino’s assistant coach Jesús Pérez was in Los Angeles on May 10 watching McGlynn against LAFC. The Houston Dynamo man promptly scored a banger — a strike similar to his missile last year in an exhibition loss to Türkiye, which will also be the Americans’ final World Cup group stage opponent. McGlynn added a second well-taken goal later in the contest. Last year, someone I trust told me that Pochettino “loves” McGlynn. The New York native from Queens apparently (and literally) still has a shot. If he makes it, it wouldn’t be the first time a Houston midfielder has reached the World Cup on the strength of his magical left foot: see Brad Davis in 2014. But who goes out if McGlynn sneaks on? This is a zero-sum exercise. If current form matters, it could be Tillman, who has played just 70 total minutes for Bayer Leverkusen since March 21. Reyna has 88 minutes during the same span and was included in the last two camps when he was featuring even less frequently for his club. Zendejas probably feels like he’s making a better World Cup case than either Tillman or Reyna. Wearing the captain’s armband for Club América on May 10, Zendejas scored twice and added an assist against Pumas in Mexico’s Liga MX quarterfinals. While McGlynn and Zendejas still feel like World Cup long shots, I also wouldn’t be shocked if one of them is the surprise pick this cycle. HOLDING MIDFIELDERS Starters: Tyler Adams, Tanner Tessmann Backups: Sebastian Berhalter, Cristian Roldan, Aidan MorrisJust missed out: Johnny Cardoso (injured), Yunus Musah, James Sands (injured) Adams is near the height of his powers. On May 10, Pochettino was in attendance at London’s Craven Cottage to watch the heart-and-soul destroyer help Bournemouth beat Fulham and extend its unbeaten streak in the Premier League to 16 games. Adams played the final 47 minutes for the visitors. While Adams is one of the first names on Pochettino’s lineup sheet, the spot next to him is more uncertain than ever. Cardoso has been officially ruled out of the World Cup after Atlético Madrid confirmed on May 11 he’ll have surgery on his ankle. Tessmann is also hurt, though The Athletic reported that the muscle strain that ruled him out of Lyon’s final two games of the Ligue 1 season isn’t expected to impact his World Cup availability. The obvious winner here is Morris, who suddenly goes from the roster bubble to seriously contending for a starting spot versus Paraguay. First, Morris will try to vault Middlesbrough into the Premier League in the second-tier playoff decider against Southampton on May 12. WING BACKS Starters: Sergiño Dest, Antonee “Jedi” Robinson Backups: Max Arfsten, Tim Weah Just missed out: Joe Scally, John Tolkin A week after returning from the hamstring problem he suffered in March, Dest made his first start since the layoff, going 65 minutes in PSV’s 4-1 win over Go Ahead Eagles on May 10. That’s great news for a USA team that needs all the attacking help it can get. Pochettino saw Jedi go the distance against Bournemouth, which is also great news. Robinson also played 90 in a May 2 loss to Premier League-leading Arsenal Injury forced Weah to miss his club match on May 10. But as with Pulisic and Tessmann, it’s not serious, with L’Équipe reporting that Weah could return for Marseille’s May 17 season finale with Rennes. Natural lefty Arfsten has three goals and five assists in his last eight MLS games for the Columbus Crew. Scally has a strong case, especially given his experience playing multiple defensive roles with Borussia Mönchengladbach. He’s probably the next choice if anyone else goes down. CENTER BACKS Starters: Chris Richards, Tim Ream, Alex FreemanBackups: Mark McKenzie, Auston TrustyJust missed out: Miles Robinson After missing three games with a tight groin, Ream returned to Charlotte’s lineup on May 9. That means Pochettino’s preferred captain should be fully match fit when the USA’s pre-World Cup training camp opens in Fayetteville, Georgia on May 27. Freeman’s late-season emergence with La Liga power Villarreal is also a huge boost, increasing the chances of Pochettino opting for a three-man central defense with him on the right, Ream on the left and Richards anchoring the middle. McKenzie has been a consistent call-up ever since Pochettino arrived. He made his 27th start this term for French club Toulouse in a 2-1 win over a Tessmann-less Lyon on May 10. As for Trusty, his timing couldn’t be better. While he’s been playing regularly and well for Celtic in Scotland, Robinson has just returned from the injury that had sidelined him for four of FC Cincinnati’s previous five MLS matches. GOALKEEPERS Starter: Matt FreeseBackups: Matt Turner, Chris Brady Just missed out: Roman Celentano, Jonathan Klinsmann, (injured), Diego Kochen, Patrick Schulte The conventional wisdom is that Freese, Poch’s starter in 13 of the Americans’ last 15 games dating to last summer and superb despite a 2-0 loss to Portugal on March 31, will keep his place and man the U.S. goal on June 12. U.S. assistant Miguel D’Agostino watched the Harvard grad post his second clean sheet of the 2026 MLS campaign on NYCFC’s 3-0 victory over Columbus on May 10. Still, Turner is doing everything possible to outmaneuver Freese and reclaim the job that was his at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar; with a 79.4 save percentage for the New England Revolution as of May 11, the veteran backstop has been the best American keeper by far this season in MLS.Latest Sports News from FOX Sports