Brian McBride won't return as USMNT GM

U.S. Soccer sporting director Earnie Stewart told the organization's board of directors on Thursday that Brian McBride won't return as USMNT general manager, a source confirmed to Yahoo Sports.

The news of McBride's departure was first reported by ESPN.

As GM, McBride worked in conjunction with head coach Gregg Berhalter on the day-to-day management of the program, but his exact role was murky and exclusively off-the-field, behind-the-scenes.

Berhalter's future, meanwhile, remains uncertain — he is out of contract, and under investigation for an early-1990s domestic violence incident involving him and his now-wife.

Berhalter has said he would "like to continue" in his role, and U.S. Soccer sporting director Earnie Stewart said two weeks ago that he remains a candidate. But the domestic violence revelation, coupled with the friction between Berhalter and the family of Gio Reyna, has made him a significantly less attractive candidate.

McBride was hired in early 2020 after Stewart, the USMNT's first-ever GM in 2018, was elevated into a new sporting director role. Upon hiring McBride, Stewart said the McBride would be responsible for the hiring and firing of USMNT coaches.

Ever since the USMNT was ousted from the 2022 World Cup, however, Stewart has been the one leading the review of Berhalter and the entire USMNT program, McBride included. And Stewart is the one who will make a decision on the head coaching position as the team looks ahead to a 2026 World Cup on home soil.

U.S. Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone said Thursday during the board's open session that the investigation into Berhalter "should be completed in the coming weeks" — at which point Stewart will be able to proceed with that decision.

When Stewart later informed the board of McBride's ouster during "executive session," a source said, he did not go into further detail on Berhalter's status or the review of the program.

Stewart signed a contract extension last year that will keep him atop U.S. Soccer's sporting department through 2026.