The U.S. team has appeared in eleven FIFA World Cups, including the first in 1930, where they reached the semifinals; their third-place finish, which was later awarded through overall tournament records, the best result ever by a team from outside UEFA and CONMEBOL. They returned in 1934 and 1950, defeating England1–0 in the latter, but did not qualify again until 1990. As host in 1994, the U.S. received an automatic berth and lost to Brazil in the round of sixteen. They qualified for the next five World Cups (seven consecutive appearances (1990–2014), a feat shared with only seven other nations),[7] becoming one of the tournament's regular competitors and often advancing to the knockout stage. The U.S. reached the quarterfinals in 2002, and controversially lost to Germany. In the 2009 Confederations Cup, the Americans eliminated top-ranked Spain in the semifinals before losing to Brazil in the final, the team's only appearance in the final of a major intercontinental tournament.
The U.S. also competes in continental tournaments, including the CONCACAF Gold Cup, CONCACAF Nations League and Copa América. The U.S. has won seven Gold Cups, three Nations League titles, and finished fourth in two Copa América editions in 1995 and 2016. The team's head coach is Gregg Berhalter, who was re-appointed in June 2023.[8]