On a chilly day in Fresno, California, a group of friends engages in a soccer match at a nearby park. This gathering has evolved into an annual event for a collective of 10 to 12 players, mainly from the United Soccer League (USL), who train together during the offseason to maintain their fitness for the upcoming year. With a spirit of friendly competition, these training sessions provide a significant boost for those aiming for 2026.
As they kick and chase the ball across the modest public space, many players are pursuing new contracts in the lower leagues, while others aim to stay in shape. However, one notable player present has a different focus.
“Everyone’s basically grinding for something,” stated Max Arfsten of the U.S. men’s national team to ESPN. “For me, it’s trying to make the World Cup.”
With the prestigious tournament just months away, Arfsten’s preparations for 2026 commenced here with his close-knit group in his hometown, where the Columbus Crew fullback was approached by children for photos after his training sessions. Following the conclusion of his MLS season in early November and with the next season starting on February 21, the 24-year-old drew motivation from a familiar source for athletes: the desire to outperform friends.
“Every time you play against the guys from your hometown … you kind of innately want to prove your worth,” Arfsten remarked. “You want to be the top dog in the city that you’re from.”
This drive helped sustain Arfsten’s momentum during a slow period leading up to a crucial 2026. In fact, for those who did not qualify for the playoffs last year, there will be a four-month gap between official MLS matches, as preseason camps are now in full swing. Although the league plans to transition to a more globally synchronized summer-to-spring calendar in 2027, which will shift the offseason to the summer and shorten the winter break, there is currently a noticeable absence of competitive games.
While this break is essential for recovery and regrouping, its timing poses challenges considering that shortly after the start of the MLS 2026 season, the USMNT will have one final international window before head coach Mauricio Pochettino finalizes his World Cup roster. In contrast, the U.S.’s prominent European players will be in the midst of their campaigns, possessing match fitness that their domestically-based counterparts may struggle to match.
As the World Cup approaches, Arfsten is not alone in his additional offseason efforts. In St. Louis, Missouri, Columbus teammate Patrick Schulte has his own group that has helped him maintain his sharpness.
“There’s four or five of my buddies that I grew up playing with or went to college with that all live here or base here in the offseason, we get a good group together,” said the goalkeeper, who, like Arfsten, thrives on a friendly sense of rivalry.
“I don’t want to get scored on by my friends because I won’t hear the end of it,” Schulte joked about his energetic sessions back home. “As a goalkeeper, some of my buddies are forwards. I just want them to know, ‘Hey, if we ever play, you got no chance.’
Schulte and his group regularly trained this offseason at St. Louis Scott Gallagher SC, where the national team goalkeeper honed his skills at a younger age, but similar to Arfsten’s group, they also practiced at local parks. These sessions in St. Louis sometimes attracted up to 30 players, including non-professional academy prospects challenging the 24-year-old, who is vying for a spot on the World Cup roster.
“We have MLS guys, we have guys in the USL, guys in [reserve] MLS Next Pro,” Schulte noted.
In Florida, fellow national team member Alex Freeman spent part of his MLS offseason at Fort Lauderdale’s SAT Soccer, a program that focuses on tailored training regimens for some of the world’s elite players. According to the organization, other players with MLS experience, such as Josef Martínez, Telasco Segovia, Juanjo Purata, and Tadeo Allende, also trained there in preparation for 2026.
“A lot of people in the offseason come to that spot,” Freeman shared with ESPN about Fort Lauderdale. “A lot of guys who come in and text me about trainings, and we’re able to get a little group and be able to just catch up and be able to also train together, and just be able to improve on whatever we need to do.”
Individual training is also crucial. While Freeman — who will leave Orlando City SC to join Villarreal in LaLiga this winter, a source informed ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle — discussed fitness, Arfsten mentioned enhancements in specific areas of his wing-back role: “defending, working on crossing, deep crossing.” Schulte emphasized that he engaged in more sessions than usual during the offseason with a goalkeeper coach he grew up with.
Houston Dynamo and USMNT midfielder Jack McGlynn, who underwent foot surgery in October, focused on a more reflective approach to individual improvement.
“A lot of mental work. I think when you’re injured, you have a lot of time on your own to think and kind of reflect on your season, where you could do better,” McGlynn told ESPN in late 2025. “A lot of watching film back of all of our games and seeing where I can improve, and I know where I can, and I can’t wait to get back on the field, because I know how much better I’m going to be.”
McGlynn has now returned to full fitness. Just a few days ago, and with much still to demonstrate to Pochettino before receiving a call-up, he scored during a preseason match.
Considering that March’s international window will likely serve as the final opportunity for the USMNT before World Cup roster selection, the stark reality for these MLS-based national team aspirants is that they must be ready to perform immediately once the league commences in mid-February.
In the short term, this could present a disadvantage. However, for those MLS players who secure a spot on the World Cup roster, could being in midseason form — as opposed to entering the tournament following a demanding European club campaign — provide an advantage that benefits the USMNT?
“I think you can take it in both kinds of ways,” Freeman stated. “Obviously, you would kind of want to be maybe playing a little more going into January, February … but also it just gives you time to perfect what you need to do.”
“I don’t know. It’s a World Cup, everyone’s going to be the cream of the crop,” Schulte added regarding the potential midseason benefit. “We might be a little more fresh and not have as many games on our legs, but I think at that point in life, with the adrenaline and everything, it’s not going to matter too much.”
For Seattle Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan, a 30-year-old veteran who has emerged as a surprising X-factor for the national team, the influence of MLS players is undeniable.
“European players will be pretty much done with all their games … so that is a very difficult place [for them] to be in,” he told media over the winter. “You’re gonna have to rely on your entire squad, and there is an advantage for us [in MLS] to be able to come in fresh leading into the World Cup, taking full advantage of the offseason now and then ramping up slowly … right when summer hits, you’re halfway through the season and you’re in a good spot.”
If you ask Arfsten, it varies by player, but it likely wouldn’t surprise him if someone from MLS gained a slight edge — however minor — at the World Cup.
“It’s specific to the player. I mean, it just depends on what kind of form you’re in,” remarked the Columbus player. “But I think in terms of mental freshness, yeah, there’s going to be more freshness from us guys.”
Who knows? Perhaps the individual who propels the USMNT forward on the global stage this summer is someone who was playing at your local park last week.
