Four years ago, Ricardo Pepi hung up on Gregg Berhalter after being told he would not be part of the USMNT’s 2022 World Cup squad.
This time, the message came in a very different way. Pepi was in the car with his father when he learned he had made Mauricio Pochettino’s 26-player United States roster for the 2026 World Cup.
For Pepi, Mark McKenzie and Malik Tillman, the call brings a different ending to the disappointment of 2022. For Chris Richards and Miles Robinson, it offers the World Cup chance that injuries denied them four years ago.
Ricardo Pepi gets the World Cup message he waited four years to hear
Pepi’s omission from the 2022 squad became one of the main storylines around the USMNT in Qatar.
The striker later admitted he hung up on Berhalter after being told he had not made the roster.
That moment has stuck because it showed how much the decision hurt. It is also part of what makes his return to the World Cup squad feel significant.
A reported detail from his 2026 call underlines the contrast. Pepi was in the car with his father when the message came through this time.
One call ended in frustration before Qatar. The next brought confirmation for a home World Cup.
Mark McKenzie and Malik Tillman complete their own USMNT returns
Pepi is not the only player whose 2026 selection comes with a 2022 backstory.
McKenzie and Tillman were also left out four years ago. Both are now part of Pochettino’s squad.
McKenzie adds another defensive option after working his way back into the national-team picture.
Tillman brings another attacking midfield profile to a squad that will carry major expectation into the tournament.
Their paths are different from Pepi’s, but the theme is the same. A missed tournament in 2022 has become a roster place in 2026.
Chris Richards and Miles Robinson finally get the chance injury took away
Richards and Robinson sit in a different category.
Their 2022 disappointment was not only about selection. It was about availability at the wrong time.
Richards missed the Qatar tournament through injury, while Robinson had already been ruled out after a torn Achilles. Those absences were reported before the 2022 squad was named.
Now both defenders are included in the 2026 squad.
World Cup opportunities are never guaranteed to come around again. For Richards and Robinson, this one has been a long time coming.
The USMNT roster carries more than names
The United States will open against Paraguay on June 12 in Inglewood, before facing Australia and Turkey in Group D.
That schedule will shape the next part of the story. But for Pepi, McKenzie, Tillman, Richards and Robinson, making the squad already means something important.
This is not just a list of 26 players. It is a reminder that World Cup disappointment can take different forms, and that four years can completely change the meaning of the next call.
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