Cristian Roldan has officially been named to the United States men’s national team World Cup 2026 roster. Roldan was one of 26 players to make the squad, which was unveiled on Tuesday at a made-for-TV event at The Rooftop at Pier 17 in New York City’s historic South Street Seaport. The list exactly mirrors the one that was leaked and first reported by The Guardian on Friday. Roldan will wear the No. 15 jersey.
“Cristian represents everything you want in a player and teammate,” Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer said in a team statement. “He’s selfless, competitive, dependable and always willing to do whatever the team needs to win. Over the years, he’s proven himself at every level of the game and this call-up is a reflection of the work he’s put in throughout his career. Nobody deserves this opportunity more, and all of us at the club are excited to watch him represent our city and country at the World Cup.”
Although Roldan is one of 12 holdovers from the 2022 World Cup roster, he is the only one who was an active MLS player for both of them. This also marks the first time a Seattle Sounders player has made two World Cup rosters while playing for the team.
It’s all quite an accomplishment for someone who didn’t play for an elite youth academy and was lightly recruited out of high school despite being named the Gatorade Player of the Year. Roldan briefly contemplated not playing college soccer before going to the University of Washington, where he would star for two years. He was eventually taken in the first round of the 2015 MLS SuperDraft by the Sounders, where he has now made more than 400 appearances across all competitions, the only outfield player to accomplish that feat in the club’s 52-year history.
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U.S. MEN’S NATIONAL TEAM - FIFA WORLD CUP 2026 ROSTER BY POSITION
(CLUB/COUNTRY; CAPS/GOALS; HOMETOWN)
GOALKEEPERS (3): Chris Brady (Chicago Fire; 0/0; Naperville, Ill.), Matt Freese (New York City FC; 14/0; Wayne, Pa.), Matt Turner (New England Revolution; 53/0; Park Ridge, N.J.)
DEFENDERS (10): Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew; 18/1; Fresno, Calif.), Sergiño Dest (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 37/2; Almere, Netherlands), Alex Freeman (Villarreal/ESP; 15/2; Plantation, Fla.), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse/FRA; 27/0; Bear, Del.), Tim Ream (Charlotte FC; 80/1; St. Louis, Mo.), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace/ENG; 36/3; Birmingham, Ala.), Antonee Robinson (Fulham/ENG; 52/4; Liverpool, England), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati; 38/3; Arlington, Mass.), Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER; 24/0; Lake Grove, N.Y.), Auston Trusty (Celtic/SCO; 6/0; Media, Pa.)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Tyler Adams (AFC Bournemouth/ENG; 52/2; Wappingers Falls, N.Y.), Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver Whitecaps; 11/1; Columbus, Ohio), Weston McKennie (Juventus/ITA; 64/12; Little Elm, Texas), Gio Reyna (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER; 36/9; Bedford, N.Y.), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders; 45/0; Pico Rivera, Calif.), Malik Tillman (Bayer Leverkusen/GER; 28/3; Fürth, Germany)
FORWARDS (7): Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United/ENG; 57/9; Medford, N.J.), Folarin Balogun (Monaco/FRA; 25/8; London, England), Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 35/13; El Paso, Texas), Christian Pulisic (AC Milan/ITA; 84/32; Hershey, Pa.), Tim Weah (Olympique Marseille/FRA; 49/7; Rosedale, N.Y.), Haji Wright (Coventry City/ENG; 20/7; Los Angeles, Calif.). Alejandro Zendejas (Club América/MEX; 13/2; El Paso, Texas)
