Four years after a deeply damaging World Cup family feud that rocked US soccer, Sebastian Berhalter and Gio Reyna are speaking as teammates again—back in camp together at a new World Cup cycle, looking ready to start side by side.
Down in a makeshift room in the bowels of SoFi Stadium, Sebastian Berhalter talked to a small wall of microphones and camera lenses. A few yards away, Gio Reyna did the same—only his moment felt louder.
It was minutes after the United States’ World Cup opener against Paraguay, a 4-1 win. Both Berhalter and Reyna had come on as substitutes in that match, and both then turned to their own lives, their families, and how much has changed.
Reyna had scored his maiden World Cup goal with a stunning strike using the outside of his boot. And then, as if to underline the new chapter, he announced that his wife, Chloe, is expecting their first child. Berhalter. meanwhile. was reflecting on a different kind of family presence—his father. Gregg—who coached the USMNT at the 2022 World Cup.
Four years on, the tone in that room was deliberate. Berhalter and Reyna were not talking like men revisiting a rupture. They were talking like men who believe their relationship can serve the team.
“[W]e’re two players on the same team trying to do the best we can for our country. ” the 25-year-old Berhalter told the Daily Mail afterwards. “There’s nothing more than that. To be honest, there’s not much between me and him. We are here to make this team better and to win games. I think we’ve been clear on that since day one. He’s my teammate and we’re going to war together.”.
Against Paraguay, Berhalter was among the first to celebrate with Reyna after Reyna’s goal. And if head coach Mauricio Pochettino shuffles his pack against Turkey this week. there is a “good chance” the two could start alongside each other in the US midfield—another public sign of a partnership that once seemed unbreakable.
Their togetherness now carries a weight that goes beyond football.
Sebastian and Gio were once best friends who spoke every day. Their fathers, Gregg and Claudio, played youth soccer together before becoming USMNT teammates at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. Their mothers. Danielle Reyna and Rosalind Berhalter. were roommates. soccer teammates. and described as “best friends” at the University of North Carolina. The Reynas and Berhalters were so close they were described as “practically family.”.
But in 2022, their bond became the center of one of US soccer’s saddest sagas. The dispute involved a World Cup bust-up, allegations of domestic violence, and the rupture of lifelong bonds—an affair that became the subject of an independent investigation, with findings laid bare over 36 pages.
The feud was not distant from the sport. Reyna was nearly sent home from the 2022 World Cup after the USA’s round-of-16 exit against the Netherlands. Gio has admitted that. frustrated by a lack of playing time. he “let my emotions get the best of me.” Gregg Berhalter then gave his version at a leadership summit. saying: “[We] had a player that was clearly not meeting expectations on and off the field. As a staff, we sat together for hours deliberating what we were going to do with this player. We were ready to book a plane ticket home, that’s how extreme it was.”.
Then came the allegation that tore the story apart completely. Gio’s parents told US soccer chiefs that, in 1991, Gregg Berhalter—while a college freshman—had assaulted his now-wife, Rosalind. Claudio Reyna had been best man at their wedding.
Gregg initially claimed he was being blackmailed. He later addressed the incident and admitted that a “heated argument… became physical and I kicked her in the legs.” He also said his “entire family” was “saddened” by the unfolding scandal. The US Soccer Federation hired a law firm to conduct an investigation.
According to Gregg Berhalter’s testimony, Rosalind had spoken to Danielle Reyna “every day for decades.” But their friendship “ended immediately” at the 2022 World Cup.
For Gregg’s job, the timing only intensified the storm. His contract as USMNT head coach expired after the World Cup. Six months later, however, he was rehired. The 52-year-old then reportedly spoke to mediation experts before re-connecting with Gio Reyna for the first time in nearly a year.
By October 2023—less than a year after the World Cup—the midfielder was back in camp with the USMNT. By March 2024. Gio insisted the feud was “not even an issue at all anymore.” And in November 2025. Mauricio Pochettino named both players in a squad for the first time. The manager was aware of the saga but insisted “it’s not important.”.
The people around them are not pretending the past never happened. They’re simply trying to live through it differently.
As this World Cup cycle begins to move, family again matters to the US in a practical way. Many players’ loved ones are staying near the team hotel. and Pochettino has already given his team several days off to unwind along with their friends and family. The idea was comfort and reset—at a moment when awkward reunions and old wounds could have returned at any time.
Instead, Sebastian and Gio could line up alongside each other at SoFi Stadium on Thursday night.
Their Paraguay moment carried another layer of history. Against Paraguay, the Berhalters became only the second father-son duo to represent the US at a World Cup—after the Reynas.
“Obviously, a lot has changed [since 2022] – I’m married now, I have a dog,” Gio said ahead of this tournament. “I [have] matured and grown up in many aspects of my life… everyone is so far removed from [the feud].”
He added: “It’s hard for me to even think about that because I never really do and I’m just at the moment obviously just thinking about this World Cup and what I can do to help the team.”
For four years, this story was defined by fracture. In the aftermath of Reyna’s goal against Paraguay. and with Pochettino’s selection decisions looming before the game against Turkey. it’s being defined by something else: the decision to stand together. and to let football drown out the noise that nearly swallowed them whole.
MISRYOUM Sports News Sebastian Berhalter Gio Reyna USMNT World Cup Paraguay Turkey Mauricio Pochettino Gregg Berhalter Claudio Reyna Chloe Reyna family feud independent investigation
So theyre just cool now? easy fix lol
I stopped following all that drama, but seeing them say unity is kinda nice. Also Gio scoring and then expecting a baby?? like okay storyline for real.
Wait… is this the same Berhalter who got fired or whatever and then it was the World Cup family thing? I swear I heard different versions. Either way Gregg being there again feels kinda awkward if you ask me.
Idk why people act like this is “fixed.” They were family feud, now they’re in camp together, sure. But the article made it sound like the wife being pregnant is part of the unity?? like what does a baby have to do with soccer politics. Also Paraguay 4-1 and Gio coming off the bench… that outside-of-boot goal was sick though, I’ll give him that.