Crocker quits U.S. Soccer role to join Saudi federation

U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker is leaving his position with immediate effect, with the federation confirming on April 14 that the 51-year-old will depart to “pursue another opportunity in international soccer”.The Welsh executive is expected to take up a senior sporting role with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation, according to multiple reports, although U.S. Soccer did not name his next employer and financial terms were not disclosed.Crocker said: “It has been a privilege to be part of U.S. Soccer during such an important period for the sport in this country. I’m grateful for the people I’ve had the opportunity to work with across the Federation, from our coaches and players to our technical and administrative staff. "I’m proud of what’s been built together and confident the team in place will continue to move the game forward and drive success on and off the field.”U.S. Soccer’s immediate focus is continuity across its sporting department, with chief operating officer Dan Helfrich taking interim oversight in partnership with assistant sporting director Oguchi Onyewu and women’s youth national team director Tracey Kevins.U.S. Soccer said Helfrich will “provide executive oversight and support across the Federation’s sporting operations” and work closely with Onyewu, Kevins and the wider sporting leadership team “to ensure continuity”.The departure lands at a sensitive moment in the federation’s operational calendar, coming shortly before the opening of its new national training centre in Fayette County, Georgia, which is scheduled to open May 7.Crocker had recently been publicly associated with the facility’s launch and the federation’s long-term technical direction, including messaging around coaching education and player development that was expected to be amplified around the World Cup period.Speaking at the site on March 29, Crocker said: “We want to create an environment [here] where the community, the whole of football, soccer, comes together.”U.S. Soccer hired Crocker in 2023 as its second sporting director, positioning the role as the federation’s top technical post with oversight across national teams and responsibility for its wider sporting vision.His early tenure was defined by high-profile coaching appointments and searches across the senior national teams, including involvement in the re-hiring of Gregg Berhalter as USMNT head coach, the recruitment of Emma Hayes to lead the USWNT, and the process that ended with Mauricio Pochettino taking charge of the men’s programme.Crocker also became a central figure in U.S. Soccer’s attempt to align youth development pathways and influence a fragmented ecosystem that sits largely outside the federation’s direct control.He said in one recent interview: “It’s a bigger beast than I ever expected. It’s so complex. It’s so political.“It’s taken us a while for people within the system – important people who make decisions about the game – to start to believe and trust U.S. Soccer; [to trust] that we have the right people, that we’re building a robust plan that involves collaboration and working together. … Maybe I underestimated how long that would take to begin to build that trust.”He added: “I’m frustrated. I’m frustrated at the speed of change. But you can definitely see and feel, I believe, positive [indications] about how U.S. Soccer is perceived and its ideas about working together with the whole system.”The federation has sought to separate Crocker’s exit from immediate tournament operations, given Pochettino’s staff lead day-to-day preparations and match planning.Crocker has previously been explicit about the division of responsibilities between his strategic remit and the coaching staff’s competitive focus.He said: “That’s the Mauricio decision. My job is not to tell or dictate or get involved in those tactics. … Mine is very much the broad lens of everything, whereas Mauricio’s is laser-focused.“Those guys have done all the planning. The planning’s done. You’ve gotta let it take shape. And hopefully, I’m not needed. I think the only time I’ll be needed is if things aren’t going too well.”Beyond the World Cup, the change could carry greater strategic implications, particularly around succession planning and the post-2026 technical reset that often follows a tournament cycle.Pochettino’s current deal runs until after the World Cup, and Crocker’s departure removes a senior technical decision-maker who would typically play a leading role in any renewal discussions or a future head coach search.Financially, Crocker was among U.S. Soccer’s highest-paid non-coaching executives, with reported base compensation of US$658,787 and US$179,100 in bonuses and incentives in the tax year ending March 31, 2025, alongside a US$152,905 relocation payment.U.S. Soccer said Crocker will work to support a transition, while the federation considers whether to appoint a direct successor or restructure its sporting department ahead of the next competitive cycle.