USMNT names Adams, 23, as World Cup captain

DOHA, Qatar -- Tyler Adams has been named the United States' skipper for the World Cup up of their opener against Wales connected Monday.

Adams, who has captained the U.S. 9 times successful 32 vocation caps, wore the armband successful 7 of his 12 appearances successful World Cup qualifying.

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"It's a immense grant for me, obviously, to beryllium named skipper of this team," Adams said. "A precise young team, but a batch of recognition to my teammates due to the fact that anyone passim our enactment assembly tin deterioration that limb set and correspond america with pridefulness and correspond america successful the close way."

Throughout manager Gregg Berhalter's tenure, the work has rotated betwixt aggregate players connected the team's enactment council, with Christian Pulisic, Walker Zimmerman and Weston McKennie each having held the relation since World Cup qualifying began.

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"There was thing wherever the past 3 and a fractional years, we've been moving with a enactment assembly and we're precise unfastened and we inquire them, 'Hey, what bash you guys wanna bash for the World Cup?' And they thought it'd beryllium amended to person a skipper named for the World Cup," Berhalter said.

"We're arrogant to denote Tyler is the skipper for the World Cup. We deliberation helium has large enactment capabilities, helium leads by his actions and his words."

Ahead of the tournament, the squad was addressed by President Joe Biden successful a abbreviated telephone successful which helium wished the squad luck.

"I cognize you're the underdog, but archer you what man, you got immoderate of the champion players successful the satellite connected your squad and you're representing this state and I cognize you're going to play your hearts out. So, let's spell daze them all," Biden told the team.

"And support trusting successful 1 another, play arsenic hard arsenic you tin for you and your families, your teammates, and the full state is rooting for you."

Adams, 23, volition beryllium the U.S.'s youngest skipper astatine a World Cup since Harry Keough (22 years, 7 months, 17 days) successful 1950 and and Berhalter's broadside volition beryllium the second-youngest squad astatine the tourney down Ghana.

"Tyler's a feline that's conscionable matured beyond his years and you announcement it from the infinitesimal you commencement talking to him," Berhalter said. "I tin spell connected and connected astir the strengths of Tyler, but I deliberation the different happening astir him is his humility and he's a feline that the teammates cognize precisely what they're gonna get from him.

"They cognize that he's gonna spell retired connected the tract and compete. They cognize that he's gonna beryllium reasoning astir the game. They cognize that he's gonna beryllium into the details of the game. He's not conscionable a competitor, he's besides a strategist and I deliberation that helps the radical due to the fact that helium calms radical down and he's a feline that radical get behind."

The Leeds United midfielder antecedently played for the U.S. astatine the U17 World Cup successful 2017 earlier making his afloat nationalist squad debut against Portugal aboriginal that year.

A time aft midfielder Weston McKennie and close backmost Sergino Dest said they were steadfast and acceptable to play, Berhalter wasn't acceptable to proclaim either 90-minutes fit.

"They've made large progress," Berhalter said. "We spot them arsenic being capable to instrumentality portion successful the game. For however long? We person to see.

"That's portion of having 5 substitutes. They tin either travel into the crippled oregon commencement them and instrumentality them retired of the crippled erstwhile we consciousness that they're getting adjacent to that threshold, but some of them are decidedly successful presumption to assistance this squad tomorrow."

Brenden Aaronson, Adams' teammate astatine Leeds, is the superior campaigner to play successful cardinal midfield should McKennie beryllium limited, portion it's little wide who would regenerate Dest astatine right-back with DeAndre Yedlin, Joe Scally and Shaq Moore each options.

FIFA announced Sunday that the U.S.-Wales lucifer volition beryllium refereed by Qatari officials, led by Abdulrahman Al Jassim.

Al Jassim refereed 3 matches astatine the Gold Cup successful 2019, including the Americans' 1-0 triumph against Panama. He besides refereed the U.S.' 6-0 triumph against New Zealand astatine the 2017 U-20 World Cup successful the Round of 16, successful which Adams, Josh Sargent and Luca de la Torre each featured.