The Athletic is bringing back Tom Bogert, the most prolific newsbreaker in American soccer, as part of an aggressive strategy to build what head of U.S. Soccer Martin Rogers calls “the most dominant roster of talent that American soccer journalism has ever seen” by the time the 2026 World Cup kicks off.

Bogert, who will continue his CBS appearances while rejoining The Athletic, returns as the outlet’s MLS and breaking news reporter. Rogers, who worked alongside Adrian Wojnarowski at Yahoo Sports, sees similar qualities in Bogert’s approach to cultivating sources and breaking stories.

“Tom is without question the most prolific newsbreaker in American soccer history,” Rogers told Awful Announcing. “If a story that relates to MLS isn’t being broken by him, it’s probably not worth breaking. I worked closely with Adrian Wojnarowski at Yahoo and have always been awestruck by the dedication, resourcefulness, and tirelessness needed to operate as a champion of scoops. Whatever that X-Factor is … Tom has it.”

OFFICIAL STATEMENT re: @TheAthletic

I’m back. https://t.co/ELpFTqMUMN

— Tom Bogert (@tombogert) October 14, 2025

“The Athletic is still the big leagues, where the best-of-the-best go; I’m ecstatic to return to the deepest and most talented team of sports journalists and editors in the world; Being here will help me continue to grow as a newsbreaker, writer, and teammate,” Bogert wrote.

The Bogert hire caps a year of strategic roster moves for The Athletic’s soccer department, some of which have involved difficult personnel decisions. Pablo Maurer’s contract wasn’t renewed over the summer, opening the door for The Athletic to hire Henry Bushnell away from Yahoo Sports. Bushnell joined alongside former USMNT player Charlie Davies, who came aboard as an analyst.

Bushnell has quickly made an impact with cutting-edge investigative work on the World Cup ticketing process and a feature co-written with Paul Tenorio examining how USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino doesn’t communicate with players outside of training camps.

Last week, Jeff Rueter became the latest departure, with The Athletic electing not to renew his contract.

The moves reflect Rogers’ stated goal of assembling the seven best writers covering American men’s soccer by the time the World Cup arrives in 2026. The Athletic’s current men’s soccer roster includes Paul Tenorio and Henry Bushnell on the USMNT beat, Adam Crafton covering FIFA and the business side of the sport, Felipe Cardenas as the Latin America specialist, Tom Bogert handling MLS and breaking news, and Charlie Davies providing analysis as a former national team player. Melanie Anzidei contributes to both men’s and women’s coverage.

Rogers acknowledged the process has “required some tough and very painful decisions to be made,” but emphasized the outlet is “very close now to being where we want to be.”

With the World Cup on home soil in less than two years, The Athletic is betting that concentrated investment in top talent will establish it as the go-to destination for American soccer coverage. Whether competitors can match that ambition — or whether The Athletic’s strategy creates the dominant position it’s seeking — will play out as one of the more intriguing storylines in soccer media leading up to 2026.