Jesse Marsch, now head coach of Canada, said that when he was assistant coach for the US Men’s National Team in 2010-11, he sometimes had to beg players to sing the national anthem before matches. Marsch contrasted this with Canadian players who “belt it out to the top of their lungs because they want to show the country how proud they are to be here” [1, 2, 3].
Clint Dempsey, joint all-time leading scorer for the USMNT with 57 goals, strongly disputed Marsch’s claim. The 2010 World Cup player said it was always an honor for him to represent the US and criticized Marsch for the suggestion. “He really said that? Man, I can’t take this guy too seriously,” Dempsey said on-air before Canada’s World Cup opener on June 12, which ended in a 1-1 draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina [1, 3].
Dempsey added, “I’m someone who’s bled for this country. I broke my nose playing for this country. I’ve come back from two heart procedures and played for this country. I’m not going to take advice from someone who switched to the other side and is singing another country’s national anthem. And as my boy [Thierry Henry] would say, stay in your own lane. It looks like he’s in a dang moped, so worry about your own team.” [1]
Marsch was considered a frontrunner for the USMNT head coach job after the 2022 World Cup but was passed over in favor of Gregg Berhalter. Marsch has said he felt poorly treated by US Soccer during the hiring process [1, 2, 3].
Canada’s 2026 World Cup group included matches against Bosnia and Herzegovina (June 12), Qatar (June 18), and Switzerland (June 24). The US opened their tournament June 12 with a match against Paraguay in Los Angeles [1, 2, 3].
The debate over national anthem passion highlights tensions with Marsch now coaching a rival national team. Dempsey’s remarks mark the latest public disagreement between former teammates and colleagues in the lead-up to World Cup matches.
