Why Christian Pulisic Isn’t Playing for USMNT at Gold Cup

The U.S. men’s national team will be without its captain Christian Pulisic at the 2025 Gold Cup.

Pulisic made the controversial decision to take a step back from the USMNT this summer to prioritize his rest and recovery after a gruelling 2024–25 campaign. The 26-year-old recorded 50 appearances for AC Milan and logged over 3,500 minutes.

U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker revealed the organization and Pulisic “made the collective decision” to give the forward a break from the pitch so he could be “fully prepared to perform at the highest level” next season and at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

“I wanna be part of the team always,” Pulisic said in an interview with CBS Sports Golazo Network. “But to be honest towards the second half and towards the end of the season, my body just started talking to me—and my mind—and I started to think what’s gonna be best for me leading into next year and going into the World Cup.

“Was that to play eight more games and then get no rest at all—go straight into preseason and then grind another year and go straight into the World Cup? That’s not what I felt best for my body.”

Pulisic, therefore, was left off Mauricio Pochettino’s Gold Cup roster, along with many of the Stars and Stripes' biggest superstars. Yunus Musah, Folarin Balogun, Antonee Robinson and Sergiño Dest are all sitting out of the competition due to injury or personal reasons while Weston McKennie, Tim Weah and Gio Reyna are representing their respective clubs in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.

The notable absences drew harsh criticism from Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey. The two USMNT legends questioned the players’ pride and commitment to the national team, which Pulisic did not take lightly.

“You can talk about my performances, whatever you want, but to question my commitment, especially to the national team, in my opinion that’s way out of line. But you know how it is. People forget really quickly,” Pulisic said.

The USMNT, who is in the middle of a four-game losing streak, will hope to get back to winning ways against Trinidad and Tobago in its first match of the 2025 Gold Cup. It will be difficult to mount a title-worthy campaign, though, without Pulisic.