BJ Callaghan: The World Cup is a "life-changing moment"

"Your life can change in one single action, one single game in the World Cup."

BJ Callaghan might not be coaching in the World Cup this time around, but that hasn't lessened his excitement for 2026 in the slightest. The Nashville SC head coach, who served as an assistant coach for the United States in Qatar in 2022 and won the 2023 Concacaf Nations League as the interim head coach, says he can't wait to watch as a fan this summer.

"I started as a fan of the United States men's national team. And I think I'll always end as a fan, somebody who wants to root for for the country to do its best for the game to grow as much as possible," Callaghan told local media via Zoom after Friday's World Cup draw in Washington, DC. "Having known and worked with probably a lot of the players that will represent this team, I root for them personally as much as possible as well. I think if if we do if the United States does well in the World Cup, every one of us involved in soccer in this country will feel the benefit."

More teams means more unpredictability

For the first time ever, this summer's World Cup will feature 48 teams, a significant increase from the traditional 32 teams. While the decision from FIFA has been met with criticism from many, claiming that it dilutes the quality of the tournament, Callaghan thinks it's a positive.

"Where the world is going and how expansive soccer is, it's probably appropriate... if you really want truly the best teams in the in the tournament," he said. "I think over the last 12 years, we've seen some really remarkable countries, historic countries get left out, and you don't want that. You want the best there."

"Secondly, I think when you expand it, it's going to become a little bit more unpredictable," he added. "You know, in the last World Cup, I don't think many people had Morocco going as far as they did. And we're only going to expand that – there may be three or four versions of Morocco. The beauty of the World Cup is you just have to put a couple of games together and you can make a run!"

The draw itself was every bit of a FIFA spectacle, stretched out over more than two hours, with musical performances, a rambling presentation of the first "FIFA Peace Award" to President Donald Trump, and a fever-dream sequence where President Trump, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney each "drew" their respective nations into their groups, a needless process to present already public information. Eventually the draw began after nearly an hour and a half, careening through the process of sorting teams into groups while various dignitaries stumbled over the pronunciation of nations like Curaçao.

"What do I think of the draw? Um, I would probably prefer it to be a little bit quicker and a little bit more focused on the teams and the players," Callaghan laughed. "But, you know, I think it's where we are in the world today. Everything's entertainment."

A life-changing moment for American soccer

For Callaghan, who has spent over two decades working in American soccer, it's impossible not to view this summer's tournament as a watershed opportunity.

"For the American players, there's some life-changing moments. And for us as a country building soccer, we want to inspire that next generation and the generation after that," he said. "You want to see really good performances by our American players. Because these are the heroes that we want the next four or five and six year olds, to go out in the backyard and imagine and do their celebrations. I want to see, instead of watching Ronaldo celebrations by little kids, jumping at the corner flag, I want to see, Christian Palisic and Folarin Balogun and Weston McKennie celebrations. I want to see little kids doing that. And that's the opportunity that we have here."

Initially a strategy analyst with the USMNT under head coach Gregg Berhalter, Callaghan is intimately familiar with the preparation that goes into planning for a World Cup, researching opponents, and developing game plans. That process starts as soon as the draw concludes.

"I would say it's almost immediate," he laughed. "From our experience in 2022 to right now, I would guess a lot of the backroom staff are now starting to build in and fill in the pieces of the process. This is where now you go from being the fan and the spectacle and the anticipation of what the World Cup means to, as coaches and players, your brain immediately flips like into competition mode now.

"You know exactly who you're playing, where you're playing them. Not only that, but you can also start to chart your pathway forward. And a lot of that preparation has to occur before the World Cup, because you're not going to be able to do it in four days after your last group stage match and then figuring out who you're going to play. So you do get into a lot of, not only your group stage, but then the scenario-based planning, for advancing, if you're able to earn that opportunity."

Keep an eye on Group F and Group L

So who's Callaghan most excited to watch?

"That's a good question," he laughed. "I mean, teams that I really enjoy following that maybe aren't let's call it the top top teams, but when you look at Netherlands, Japan, that group with who could be [included from] UEFA Playoff B, that's an interesting group for me."

"I do like the England, and of course, I'm going to look at another Concacaf team, but when you see the England, Croatia, Ghana, Panama group, there's interesting matchups in that. You have different types of teams there, and I think on each given day, one of those teams can kind of maybe knock off maybe what's going to be considered England and Croatia as the two favorites. So those are kind of what I would say immediately jumps out."

There's one team in particular, though, that Callaghan is looking forward to seeing.

"Especially with Japan, I really like watching them play. I don't want to call them a dark horse, because they're still a really good country. But there's somebody that I got my eye on that can maybe, you know, make a run a little bit deeper than people would expect."