Which country has a stronger football team: USA or Canada?

[Basement Cat]

I beg you all to please not let Savant ruin another USA based thread with his BS.

@Wee Baby Seamus - good point on the manager. I forgot to mention that. Herdman definitely gives Canada an advantage vs. Berhalter. I actually wouldn't mind it if the USMNT could poach him as manager, barring a more top-tier one seeing the 2026 cycle as a great opportunity with this pool.

 

[Wee Baby Seamus]

I beg you all to please not let Savant ruin another USA based thread with his BS.

@Wee Baby Seamus - good point on the manager. I forgot to mention that. Herdman definitely gives Canada an advantage vs. Berhalter. I actually wouldn't mind it if the USMNT could poach him as manager, barring a more top-tier one seeing the 2026 cycle as a great opportunity with this pool.

Klinsmann?

 

[WarriorofTime]

OK this Savant guy is clearly a troll at this point. No facts, no analysis, just blindly parroting that USA is terrible and any team they get a result on is terrible with "I WATCH DUH GAMEZ" (clearly not with a very critical eye). Nobody, not me, not FOX, not Alexi Lalas thinks the USA is an elite squad, just one with some talented players, some glaring weaknesses that limit their ceiling.

Yes, the three teams in USA's group were obviously weaker than the three in Canada's group. That is because USA was a Pot 2 team and Canada a Pot 4 team. Pots are determined by FIFA Ranking, which requires years of results in order to determine. Because USA has generally performed better, their FIFA Ranking is quite a bit higher.

This is first grade stuff, imo.

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

What an embarrassing thread.

Let's just say Davies is the best talent in CONCACAF. It means nothing when the rest of your squad is just totally mediocre. Just ask the Norwegian football fans what it means to have the best striker in Europe.

I'm Canadian but the squad was terribly overrated due to individual players picking up options for European clubs. The mindset literally became "oh this guy signed for a European team, therefore he must be good!"

This country still has a long long way to go before being in consideration with Mexico and USA. One WCQ cycle means squat.

Simply put, this team does not make it out of Group B. We put up a combined 2 shots on net in the final 180 minutes of play. This squad was just futile in attacking.

 

[Basement Cat]

Klinsmann?

I'd prefer taking a chance on Herdman than going down that route again.

 

[bluesfan94]

I beg you all to please not let Savant ruin another USA based thread with his BS.

@Wee Baby Seamus - good point on the manager. I forgot to mention that. Herdman definitely gives Canada an advantage vs. Berhalter. I actually wouldn't mind it if the USMNT could poach him as manager, barring a more top-tier one seeing the 2026 cycle as a great opportunity with this pool.

Give me Jesse Marsch

Let's just say Davies is the best talent in CONCACAF. It means nothing when the rest of your squad is just totally mediocre. Just ask the Norwegian football fans what it means to have the best striker in Europe.

To be fair, Norway is young but I could see them making some noise in 2024 with Ryerson, Ostigard, Odegaard, Haaland, Solbakken, Elyounoussi, Larsen, Sorloth, Ajer, and Berge

 

[Savant]

Give me Jesse Marsch

Marsch would be awesome but doubt that he takes the job now. He is still young for an international manager and he can still get good club jobs. Their chance to get him was after he got canned from Red Bull

 

[keonsbitterness]

Right now the only answer can be the country which has been in 8 of the last 9 World Cups, and just got out of its group.

 

[Savant]

OK this Savant guy is clearly a troll at this point. No facts, no analysis, just blindly parroting that USA is terrible and any team they get a result on is terrible with "I WATCH DUH GAMEZ" (clearly not with a very critical eye). Nobody, not me, not FOX, not Alexi Lalas thinks the USA is an elite squad, just one with some talented players, some glaring weaknesses that limit their ceiling.

Yes, the three teams in USA's group were obviously weaker than the three in Canada's group. That is because USA was a Pot 2 team and Canada a Pot 4 team. Pots are determined by FIFA Ranking, which requires years of results in order to determine. Because USA has generally performed better, their FIFA Ranking is quite a bit higher.

This is first grade stuff, imo.

I mean I just think it’s funny how much lack of knowledge you are showing right now to even suggest FIFA rankings are an accurate representation. Keep going - this is great

 

[cgf]

What an embarrassing thread.

Let's just say Davies is the best talent in CONCACAF. It means nothing when the rest of your squad is just totally mediocre. Just ask the Norwegian football fans what it means to have the best striker in Europe.

I'm Canadian but the squad was terribly overrated due to individual players picking up options for European clubs. The mindset literally became "oh this guy signed for a European team, therefore he must be good!"

This country still has a long long way to go before being in consideration with Mexico and USA. One WCQ cycle means squat.

Simply put, this team does not make it out of Group B. We put up a combined 2 shots on net in the final 180 minutes of play. This squad was just futile in attacking.

OT as your point is well taken.

...but to be fair to Norway; they're building a squad around Haaland and he's no longer the only norwegian that walks into any concacaf team. Odegaard & Ajer would be must-start players for Mexico, Canada, and the USA...and Ryerson might be too (I'd play him at LB over Robinson for the US and he'd start at RB for every other concacaf team.

They've got a bunch of solid guys in the next couple of tiers like Berge & Elyounoussi; while their youth teams are still having success even with Erling long having graduated...with very highly rated kids like Nusa & Schjelderup, leading the way.

 

[Pink Mist]

Well considering the last times the two teams went head-to-head, Canada's record against the States is a win and a tie with 3GF and 1GA, I'd say Canada

 

[bluesfan94]

Well considering the last times the two teams went head-to-head, Canada's record against the States is a win and a tie with 3GF and 1GA, I'd say Canada

So you think Saudi Arabia is better than Argentina?

 

[Pink Mist]

So you think Saudi Arabia is better than Argentina?

If they beat them a second time in this tournament, probably

 

[bluesfan94]

If they beat them a second time in this tournament, probably

I guess I didn't realize Canada beat the United States twice.

 

[cgf]

I guess I didn't realize Canada beat the United States twice.

I mean we all know Denmark is better than France, right? Same thing.

 

[bluesfan94]

I mean we all know Denmark is better than France, right? Same thing.

Tunisia as well

 

[cgf]

Tunisia as well

I picked Denmark because they achieved the same 4pts in 2 matches against France in the NL that our visitor is beating their chest about.

 

[Mobiandi]

Both are in serious trouble if they're happy with where they're at right now and going into the future.

Seriously speaking, the United States has been hyping themselves as a future superpower for 20 years and they've actually regressed since 2002

 

[Pink Mist]

I guess I didn't realize Canada beat the United States twice.

In another head to head, I'd take Canada over the USMNT. Your program is in shambles with an awful manager

 

[jj cale]

They both still aren't very good.

Question might be better framed as who is worse.

 

[Live in the Now]

If both are in serious trouble if they're happy with where they're at both at present and into the future

Yeah it's a good thing the US is the youngest team here, and they have a bunch of young CB's who play for good teams to replace the only older players they have.

In another head to head, I'd take Canada over the USMNT. Your program is in shambles with an awful manager

In shambles and still in the tournament. Really clearly not in shambles don't you think. If any other team here finished with 0 points and their fans said this they would get laughed off this forum.

 

[Mobiandi]

Yeah it's a good thing the US is the youngest team here, and they have a bunch of young CB's who play for good teams to replace the only older players they have.

The US has been banking on natural progression to lift them up for two decades meanwhile there is no one here or on the horizon who has come close to replacing Dempsey, Donovan, McBride etc.

Once Mexico gets their feet sorted, they'll easily return to being the kings of Concacaf

 

[Pink Mist]

In shambles and still in the tournament. Really clearly not in shambles don't you think. If any other team here finished with 0 points and their fans said this they would get laughed off this forum.

A tournament where they're in different groups with different qualities of teams... When they most recently played in the same group and against each other, Canada had two convincing performances against the US and were undefeated against them

 

[Duchene2MacKinnon]

The US has been banking on natural progression to lift them up for two decades meanwhile there is no one here or on the horizon who has come close to replacing Dempsey, Donovan, McBride etc.

Once Mexico gets their feet sorted, they'll easily return to being the kings of Concacaf

4 years ago someone on here said numerous times that USA would be better than Argentina in a decade.... love that

 

[Live in the Now]

The US has been banking on natural progression to lift them up for two decades meanwhile there is no one here or on the horizon who has come close to replacing Dempsey, Donovan, McBride etc.

Yeah I thought this for a while but this just isn't true. They won the Gold Cup like those guys did, they won the Nations League like those guys would have, they got to the WC and got a result against a team that was in the finals of the Euros (Portugal was in 2004) just like those guys did.

A tournament where they're in different groups with different qualities of teams... When they most recently played in the same group and against each other, Canada had two convincing performances against the US and were undefeated against them

When the draw was made there were people here who thought Canada would pump Morocco, so please, I don't want to hear that. Also just to be clear Canada beat US once in the qualifiers, not twice. They played in the Nations League twice and Canada won one and lost one. Then they played in the Gold Cup and Canada lost. And then lastly the US won both of those competitions. Maybe win a trophy first before talking like this.