With upcoming friendlies against the U.S. and Mexico, the 50-year-old Canada coach is aiming to build on recent success
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The expression "working miracles" is oft-used cliche in sports. But in Jesse Marsch's case, it might be apt.
To put it mildly, Canada Soccer was on the verge of financial collapse prior to the former Leeds, RB Leipzig and Red Bull Salzburg's arrival as coach in May 2024.
The organization was operating on deficits for three-straight years, $4 million in 2022, $3 million in 2023 and a projected $4 million this year. Canada's financial turmoil escalated to the point that the men's national team boycotted a scheduled exhibition in Vancouver against Panama in June 2022 and the women's national team threatened to do the same at the SheBelievesCup prior to Canada threatening legal action.
Due to Canada's ongoing financial struggles, MLS's Canadian teams (Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto), along with private donors, had to collaborate to meet the financial commitment required to hire Marsch ahead of the 2024 Copa America.
So far, it appears to be money well spent.
Despite having less than a month to prepare for the Copa America, Marsch galvanized a team that wasn't expected to get past the group stage and stunned the competition by taking it all the way to the semifinals. Now, ahead of two friendlies against the U.S. (Marsch's nation of birth) and Mexico (a long-time rival of the U.S.) the 50-year-old is aiming to build on that success.
"Off the backside of Copa America and those performances, this is a perfect fixture list for us. If we want to be able to make progress and feel good about what we've done, then we've got to be able to continue to test ourselves," Marsch told GOAL. "Clearly US and Mexico, over the last 25 years, have been the gold standard for the support is in the region…I think now there's growing expectations within the team about what these games can look like. So it'll be a big test for us, but we're really excited."
In a wide-ranging interview with GOAL, Marsch discussed going up against the U.S. for the first time as a national team manager, the reported hiring of Mauricio Pochettino for the USMNT coaching role, what his time in Europe meant to him, and what Canada needs to do to continue to grow as a program.
AFPAn emotional matchup against the U.S.
Marsch acknowledged that the "friendly" against the U.S. this Saturday in Kansas City isn't a run-of-the mill encounter for him.
"I'll be juiced on match day," Marsch said. "I know a lot of players on the team [the U.S.]…I'll be excited and I know our team will be too. This is big, for us as a country. We respect the U.S. a lot but we're excited to test ourselves now."
Representing America with pride as both a player and manager has always been a priority for Marsch. The Racine, Wisconsin native earned two caps with the U.S. senior national team, played 13 years in MLS, and served as an assistant coach under Bob Bradley during his tenure with U.S. Soccer.
Marsch had long been linked to the head coach position, but withdrew from consideration in 2023, openly criticizing U.S. Soccer’s selection process. The pleasantries about U.S. Soccer fade when Marsch discusses the team's current coaching search.
Marsch admitted that the extended process to replace the fired Gregg Berhalter – it was reported more than three weeks ago that Mauricio Pochettino had agreed to take the USMNT role, but there still has been no official announcement – is a bit perplexing from the outside looking in.
"It's been strange, right?" Marsch asked before adding, "I don't think I've ever seen an appointment in world football, club or national team, where the speculation has been so deep, but the information about what's actually happened has been such a mystery.
"I've checked almost every day over the past month, like "OK is he going to be the head coach [or not]?' Because I'm trying to prepare a team [to face the U.S.] and not knowing what to expect. So, it's been strange."
Marsch has actually coached against Pochettino in Europe. His RB Leipzig side faced Pochettino's star-studded Paris Saint-Germain in the 2021-22 Champions League group stage. Pochettino bested Marsch in their first encounter, 3-2, and the two sides drew 2-2 in the second match. Marsch assessed Pochettino's traits as a manager based on those encounters.
"I don't think he has a real style, other than he's pragmatic in the way he coaches his teams to try to get the most out of his player personnel," Marsch explained.
He added, "He's someone who really tries to invest in his top players to get the best out of them. So, if he were to take over the U.S. team, then a big part of what he would do is trying to maximize the potential of guys like [Christian] Pulisic, [Tyler] Adams and [Weston] McKennie — those types of players. Which I think could be a good recipe for success for them."
U.S. Soccer announced this week that Mikey Varas will coach the team on an interim basis for the team's upcoming friendlies against Canada and New Zealand. Pochettino is reportedly working through an unpaid wages resolution with Premier League club Chelsea FC.
Advertisement(C)GettyImagesNavigating controversial drones situation
Canadian pride in its national team was at an all-time high after its unprecedented run to the Copa semis. It quickly dissipated at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
Prior to the women's soccer tournament kicking off, the Canadian women's soccer team were found to be spying on New Zealand through drones piloted by two assistant coaches.
The punishment that followed was swift and severe. Two assistants were sent home. Canada's women coach Beverly Priestman was barred from coaching for a year after initially volunteering to step away for Canada's match against New Zealand. The team also suffered a six-point deduction and currently faces an ongoing investigation. It also opened the doors to other suspected uses of drones by Canada, with previous men's team manager John Herdman being implicated in the matter.
Canada's CEO Kevin Blue claimed that Marsch had no involvement in the scandal, saying the American-born coach learned about the scandal after the fact. Marsch declined to dive too deeply into details due to the ongoing investigation, but he insisted where he stood on the issue.
"All I know is," Marsch said, before pausing. "I value the work, I value and respect opponents and I try to create a process that helps us be the best that we can be and use all the information we can to understand what the opponent is doing without crossing the lines, right?"
Marsch did also acknowledge that the practice is more pervasive that most would imagine.
"There are levels of things [like this] happening in the sport," he said. "When we played in the Champions League, you go to the [opposing] stadium the night before… You know that pretty much the cameras are going to be on and probably someone from the [opposing] technical staff is watching training, right?"
Still, he understands the reputational damage caused to Canada Soccer by the scandal.
"I know that the country has been disappointed," Marsch said. "We're going to find a way to still get through this the right way and make sure we continue to push our program the right way."
AFPLessons learned in Europe
Prior to joining Canada in 2024, Marsch became a trailblazer for American coaches in Europe — setting several milestones through a nearly five-year run with RB Salzburg (first as an assistant then manager), RB Leipzig and Leeds United.
In 2019, Marsch became the first American manager to coach in the UEFA Champions League with Salzburg. Over two years, he won consecutive Austrian Bundesliga titles and Austrian Cups, with a 68.09% win rate. He also coached rising stars, including Erling Haaland, who scored 28 goals in 22 appearances under him.
Marsch was then promoted to manage RB Leipzig, becoming the first American-born manager in the Bundesliga, replacing Julian Nagelsmann. However, after a challenging period marked by key player departures, Marsch and Leipzig parted ways. Marsch's last stop in Europe would be at Leeds, where he was the third American coach in the Premier League. Despite keeping Leeds in the English top flight, a turbulent second season would see his time at Elland Road come to a end.
Marsch believes the highs and lows of his experience in Europe, ultimately shaped him and helped him prepare for his current role with Canada.
"I think the progression of how it went was good for me, right? Like, going as an assistant, then going to Salzburg, then going to Leipzig, then going to Leeds. People will always argue was I successful [in Europe]? Was I not? Whatever, I don't care," Marsch said. "But I certainly was able to to develop myself and my understanding of what the game at the highest level is, and needs to be, and add it to who I am.
"And now it's nice. I have a group that is really hungry to learn from a lot of these things, and I think we're going to together build an incredible, rewarding experience, and one that I hope that the country of Canada is able to appreciate in 2026 [at the World Cup]."
Getty Images SportFinding, developing and pushing talent
This is Marsch's first turn as an international manager after spending 13 years in the club level. The adjustment, despite his early success with Canada, hasn't been always easy. Marsch, who is known for his energetic approach and focus on preparation, admits the lengthy spells away from training his squad took some getting used to.
"When you're together, it's like all in, all the time you're in concentration, and then when you're away, you're away," he said.
What does push Marsch, when there aren't international games at hand, is the chance to help elevate and build new foundations for soccer in Canada. He says he's fallen in love with the multiculturalism of the country and has spent the summer attending youth tournaments and Canadian Premier League matches to learn more about the competition.
The country has always had potential, producing elite players such as Owen Hargreaves, Alphonso Davies among others. The country's lack of strong soccer infrastructure has seen players, including Hargreaves, refuse to play for the country though. And there are numerous talents that have slipped through the cracks and players who aren't identified as professional-caliber talent until their 20s.
One talent Marsch pointed to is former Rapids center defender Moise Bombito, who the manager believes has elite potential. Bombito, was under the radar, bounced around various levels, from USL League Two to the University of New Hampshire to gain playing time and develop. It took another season and a half in MLS for Bombito to finally get recognition for his talent at 24, eventually earning a move to Ligue 1 with OGC Nice.
"Everybody believes that there is a lot of untapped talent, and that we can do a better job of connecting the dots," Marsch said.
Marsch believes things are getting better for Canada infrastructure-wise, and he firmly believes his experience in Europe has promoted buy-in from the national pool of players. He is excited about the future of this group and the possibilities that the 2026 World Cup could present, especially with the tournament to be held in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
"I've taken all those experiences [from Europe] and and created a new set of standards and demands for what I think this team can become," Marsch said. "I think that's the reason why we performed well in Copa America, right? They adapted. They learned. They could see that the information I'm giving them was helpful, and they were intelligent enough to and good enough and talented enough to apply it in all the right ways.
"So it gives me big hope for the future of what we're doing here."