Luis Robles thinks about it all the time. The former New York Red Bulls goalkeeper, who tallied 281 appearances in MLS, as well as a handful for his country, is constantly pondering MLS’s place in the global football hierarchy. In some ways, he has to – not least because he leads MLS’s youth soccer efforts in the United States. 

But even outside of his workplace, it is something he ponders.

What is the relative strength of Major League Soccer these days? Can it pip some of Europe’s best? Does it lie just outside the global elite? That conversation has long simmered just below the surface, and crops up seemingly every time a new USMNT roster is released. Each squad is picked apart, and the presence of MLS talent – or lack thereof – dominating the dialogue. 

Yet this time, the conversation has intensified. Sure, the headline for the USMNT’s upcoming friendlies against South Korea and Japan is the return of Christian Pulisic after a summer of chaos and controversy. The AC Milan star represents the best of Americans Abroad making an impact in the top leagues in Europe. 

Yet the subtext of the roster is also curious. Mauricio Pochettino went all in on MLS, justifying his decision to select 13 domestic players to his roster for a pair of upcoming friendlies – 10 months from the 2026 World Cup – by claiming that America’s top flight might be better than some European setups.

“We need to give MLS the value because competing there, I think the players can show that they can perform in the national team,” Pochettino said after announcing the current roster. “I think it’s not necessary to move to from MLS to Europe, because sometimes the MLS – under my assessment – maybe is more competitive than some leagues in Europe. We have some players competing in different leagues that maybe are not so competitive, or in every single week compete in the same way that you compete in the MLS every single week.”

And thus the debate has reappeared. Some big names in European leagues have been left at home. This is the most MLS-heavy squad Pochettino has selected during non-January camps, just 10 months before a World Cup. And it might just suggest that something is changing as the United States ponders its domestic league’s position in the world.

Yet what, exactly, that means is hard to define amid a divided landscape.

“It may be better for the individual to go to a European setup. You cannot have a blanket statement,” former USMNT star and current Apple TV analyst Taylor Twellman told GOAL.