The countdown begins. There are just 12 days until U.S. men’s national team manager Mauricio Pochettino makes his final World Cup decision, naming the 26 players who will represent the Stars and Stripes this summer on home soil.

The U.S. is set to announce its official 2026 FIFA World Cup roster on May 26 in New York City, the team’s first-ever live World Cup roster reveal. That squad will take on Senegal and Germany in friendlies at the end of the month for last-minute tune ups, before traveling west to Los Angeles to open World Cup play in Group D against Paraguay on June 12.

Pochettino and his staff have already pinpointed who they believe will give the U.S.…