Greatest American XI

The idea behind this post is finding the strongest American XI regardless of gender. The struggle is finding the balance between the wildly successful women’s team, who didn’t always face the strongest of competition, and the mercurial men’s team, who hasn’t always received the strongest of athletes compared to the women and has faced stronger competition. If I was basing this just on statistics, it would be an all-female lineup without any other consideration. Some of our most famous females: Hamm, Wambach, Lilly, etc. have straight video game tally of stats, but those stats were racked up against women’s national teams that did not have the same funding and backing as the same country’s men’s teams. So with that in mind, here goes my Best American XI:

Goalie: This was a struggle between Tim Howard and Brianna Scurry. Alyssa Naeher also made the conversation for two World Cup titles and an Olympic Gold in 2024 that saw her absolutely stand on her head vs. Brazil. The battle between Scurry and Howard was not an easy decision. Scurry has two Olympic Gold Medals to her name, and one World Cup, where she was one of the stars in the infamous PK shootout vs. China in 1999 at the Rose Bowl. Her 173 appearances are second most all-time for female goalies and in 2017 she became the first female goalie and first African-American woman elected to the National Soccer Hall of Fame. I was not, and will not, mess around with Hope Solo and her off the field incidents.
The men’s debate centered around Kasey Keller, Brad Friedel, and Tim Howard. Complete transparency here: I grew up with Tim Howard in net, therefore I am biased, but not without reason! Howard is the most capped American men’s goalie of all-time at 121 appearances.
I’ll keep it short and sweet, Tim Howard is the greatest American goalie for me. I know he doesn’t have the accolades of our female keepers, but I do believe he is the best pure shot stopper our nation has ever produced. His 16 saves against Belgium at the 2014 World Cup is still a record, and inspired the title “Secretary of Defense.” He also helped pave the way for American men in Europe with a stint with Manchester United and a long stay with Everton.
Choice: Tim Howard

Left-Back: Oh, the position the U.S. Men wished did not exist. The U.S. Men trying to find a suitable left-back is like me trying to do trigonometry (I have a history degree for reference). The Men have been so desperate for left-backs at times that they have deputized starting Champions League wingers at left-back (Jurgen Klinsman did this with Fabian Johnson). The men’s options come down to current player Antonee Robinson, who plays for Fulham in England, has 50 caps to his name, and was the most recent U.S. Male Soccer Player of the Year, and DaMarcus Beasley, a left-winger turned left-back with 126 caps to his name and is the only U.S. Man to appear at 4 World Cups. Beasley, just for the longevity, wins the heads up between those two.
The decision here is who is the Greatest Female Left-Back of all-time. This comes down to Crystal Dunn and Brandi Chastain. The problem is that neither is a true full-time left-back. Dunn began her career, one that has seen 155 U.S. appearances, as a left-side attacker before switching to left-back. Chastain played all over the field in her 192 appearances, but was most commonly at left-back. The choice for me is Brandi Chastain. She was elected to the USWNT All-Time Best XI in 2013 and scored arguably the most iconic goal in U.S. Soccer history with the winning penalty in the 1999 World Cup Final
Choice: Brandi Chastain

CenterBacks: The discussion on the women’s side was downright brutal with the wealth of talent here. You have Becky Sauerbrunn, Carla Overbeck, Christie Rampone, etc. For my money, it is hard to beat the pairing of Christie Rampone and Becky Sauerbrunn. Rampone is the third-most capped player all-time with 311 and won two World Cups and three Olympic Golds. Sauerbrunn, with 219 caps, has two World Cups and an Olympic Gold to her name. Sauerbrunn and Overbeck share the exact same accolades, but I gave the edge to Sauerbrunn for having 49 more caps.
The men have a quality selection with the likes of Carlos Bocanegra, Eddie Pope, Alexi Lalas, and others. Bocanegra was a longtime Captain for the Men with 110 caps to his name and played internationally in England, France, Spain, and Scotland. Pope is long considered one of the most naturally talented CB’s in Men’s team history and started every game he suited up for the U.S. Men, including playing a key role in the surprise 2002 World Cup Run.
The choice here was a no brainer for Sauerbrunn and Rampone, sorry fellas.
Choice: Becky Sauerbrunn and Christie Rampone

Right-Back: Joy Fawcett vs. Steve Cherundolo/DeAndre Yedlin. Fawcett has 241 appearances to her name, a World Cup and an Olympic Gold, a place in the All-Time Women’s Best XI, and scored the most goals for a defender in women’s team history at 27. Good luck Steve and DeAndre!
Cherundolo has 87 caps to his name, two World Cup teams, and over 370 appearances for Hannover 96 in Germany. Yedlin burst on the scene in 2014 as the new hope at Right back as a more attacking option and would go on to appear at two World Cups, but also move throughout the formation as both a Right Back and midfielder.
This was again an easy decision.
Choice: Joy Fawcett

Central Midfield: This was another brutal decision position between the men and the women. The women boast Michelle Akers, Julie Foudy, and Julie Ertz among others. Michelle Akers is without a doubt one of the greatest female soccer players of all-time. Akers began life as a forward, and actually scored the first goal in team history in 1985. In 1991, she made the transition from forward to central midfield to lessen the physical toll on her body. She only racked up 155 appearances, but in those appearances won two World Cups, one Olympic Gold (played with a torn MCL), 107 goals, and one of only two women to make the FIFA 100 list.
Julie Foudy was in some form a Captain for the U.S. Women from 1991-2004. She appeared 274 times for the U.S. Women and scored 45 times. She is a two-time World Cup Winner and two-time Olympic Gold Medalist and the first American and first woman to win FIFA’s Fair Play Award.
For the men, the two best are Michael Bradley and Claudio Reyna. Bradley, forever scorned for being the son of coach Bob Bradley, established his own legacy with 151 caps to his name and appearing at two World Cups. Reyna helped lead the resurgence of the men’s team in the 2000’s, especially as a key member of the 2002 World Cup team’s deep run where he was named to the “Team of the Tournament.”
Choice: Michelle Akers and Julie Foudy

Attacking Midfielder: The women once again have a fight on their hands between Mia Hamm, Kristine Lilly, and Carli Lloyd among others. Mia Hamm makes this lineup without question. I named her my greatest American soccer player of all-time and with 158 goals and 147 assists (all-time women’s leader) she was a shoo-in for a spot. Kristine Lilly and Carli Lloyd could track me down and assault me for not including them in the lineup, and they would be justified. Lilly is the most capped player in soccer history regardless of gender at 354 and in those games provided 130 goals and 106 assists. Lloyd is second in caps at 316, third in goals at 134, and 64 assists, while winning two Olympic Gold Medals and two World Cups.
For the men it boiled down to Christian Pulisic. He is already top 5 in goals scored for the Men at 33 in only 76 appearances while also compiling 18 assists and being the driving force behind a pseudo-golden generation of the USMNT. He has become a very clutch player popping up in big games and exerting his influence, especially against teams like Mexico. He has also been the face of this soccer generation, driving interest in the U.S. team for the younger markets while also pairing with Weston McKennie and others to change the dynamic of Americans playing overseas. Pulisic has starred for Borussia Dortmund, Chelsea, and AC Milan and helped change the landscape from U.S. fans being ecstatic to a player being loaned overseas to wondering what European giants U.S. starters will feature for next.
Choice: Mia Hamm and Christian Pulisic

Forwards: The female nominees are two of the best ever: Abby Wambach and Alex Morgan. Abby Wambach won two Olympic Golds, one World Cup title, and until January 2020, her 184 international goals were a record for both genders. Wambach also scored one of the biggest goals in US Soccer history at the 2011 World Cup as she headed in a 122′ minute cross from Megan Rapinoe to equalize vs. Brazil to send the game to penalty kicks. Alex Morgan was unquestionably the face of the most recent generation of female soccer. The two-time World Cup winner bagged 123 goals during her career. I give the edge to Wambach for not just scoring more goals, but also for notching 20 more assists (73-53).
For the men, striker has been an odd position. There are cult heroes like Brian McBride and his bloody nose, Concacaf destroyers like Jozy Altidore, and people I wish had never been born like Chris Wondolowski (he knows what he did). With that in mind, I am nominating Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey here. Before Pulisic, these two were the face of U.S. Soccer, and it is perfectly appropriate that they are the joint leading scorers at 57 each. Donovan is the leading assists man in team history with 58, which if #2 and #3 combined they still wouldn’t reach. He also scored one of the biggest and most symbolic goals in U.S. history with his stoppage time winner vs. Algeria at the 2010 World Cup. Dempsey had 16 less appearances than Donovan, scored at three World Cups, and had one of the most successful club careers before this current generation: scoring 50 goals at Fulham before a big transfer to Tottenham. Donovan gets the nod for his assists and the Golden Goal helping the U.S. escape the group at the 2010 World Cup.
Choices: Abby Wambach and Landon Donovan

So there it is. Howard, Chastain, Sauerbrunn, Rampone, Fawcett, Akers, Foudy, Hamm, Pulisic, Donovan, and Wambach.
Bench: Scurry, Bocanegra, Cherundolo, Bradley, Lilly, Lloyd, Dempsey
I have tried my best to be fair to each gender’s representatives while dealing with the intellectual battles brought on by one of the most successful teams in international history, the U.S. Women, and one of the most frustrating teams, the U.S. Men. This post was about balance: balancing the astronomical stats of some of our pioneering Women who played against lesser talent vs. the Men who had stronger schedules. You have to balance the U.S. Women getting some of the best female athletes while the men might arguably get third or fourth tier athletes. But you also have to balance the investments and resources advantages the Men have had, especially in terms of pay and club careers, over the Women.
What I have here is my fairest representation of U.S. Soccer’s best players, a healthy dose of the Women with the U.S. Men’s greatest ever sneaking in. If you disagree, let me know who should have been in instead, or if I missed a player completely from debate!!