It wasn’t the most enthralling match ever played, and – with outrageous ticket prices curbing attendance to just over 50% capacity – certainly wasn’t the most impressive crowd ever assembled at Q2 Stadium.
But the United States Men’s National Team improved its record in Austin to 6-0-0 with a 1-0 win over Saudi Arabia in the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup group stage Thursday night.
Unlike in the Stars and Stripes’ 5-0 demolition of Trinidad and Tobago in the tournament’s opening match, offense was much more difficult to come by against the Saudis. The U.S. snatched its lone goal off a set piece in the 63rd minute. Crystal Palace defender Chris Richards connected on the simple finish, but this goal was much more about the pass, and the pass-er.
GOOOAAAL FOR THE @USMNT! 🇺🇸
Chris Richards scores off the set piece! 👏 pic.twitter.com/tvQbB6DBkq
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 20, 2025
Day-one Austin FC fans may remember an undersized, babyfaced midfielder with a certain former U.S. national teamer and coach for a father, finding his footing as a professional in the Verde and Black. And no, it’s not Owen Wolff.
That would be Sebastian Berhalter.
Berhalter, 24, son of former USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter, is in the middle of a breakout season with Western Conference leaders Vancouver Whitecaps, with four goals and six assists across all competitions – headlined by a man-of-the-match performance against Lionel Messi and Inter Miami in the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup in which he either scored or assisted on all three of his team’s goals in a 3-1 victory.
He’s continued his terrific form into his first call-up with the national team, and logged his first international goal contribution in a stadium he briefly called home during the early stages of his MLS career.
Berhalter joined Austin FC in the first weeks of the club’s inaugural season in 2021, on loan from the Columbus Crew. He was just 19, entering his first full (non-COVID-shorted) season as a professional.
His impact was marginal, mostly contributing as a substitute in 18 appearances. He finished the season without a goal or an assist. Written into the one-year loan contract was a clause giving Austin FC the option to purchase Berhalter’s rights permanently, for an undisclosed fee. The club declined to do so.
That offseason, the Crew transferred Berhalter to Vancouver in exchange for $50,000, plus additional bonuses based on performance. Practically nothing. He’s gradually developed in British Columbia ever since.
Given the brevity of, and unceremonious end to, Berhalter’s time in Austin, you might assume he looks back on that time with something in between apathy and disgust. Which couldn’t be farther from the truth.
“[It was] probably the most important part of my career,” Berhalter said. “I don’t think I was in my best spot in that moment. And, you know, for me, it was a really big learning lesson.”
Prior to joining Austin, Berhalter spent his rookie season mostly watching from the sidelines as Columbus, the club his father coached for five seasons before taking the U.S. job, won MLS Cup in a pandemic-era closed environment. He was in a bubble, both literally and figuratively.
Austin was different. An expansion team with a first-time head coach in Josh Wolff (granted, someone Berhalter knew well from Wolff’s time as Columbus assistant) in a market Berhalter wasn’t familiar with.
“I felt vulnerable. And you know, I had a lot to learn, and kind of reset,” Berhalter said.
Austin’s decision not to trigger Berhalter’s purchase option, though understandable at the time, now looks foolish in retrospect. Then again, it no doubt saved the young pro from an absolute nightmare situation that would have arisen one year later, when then-Austin FC sporting director Claudio Reyna engaged in a shameful public feud with the Berhalter family in the aftermath of the 2022 World Cup.
Fortunately for Sebastian, he was well settled north of the border by that point.
“I had a chance in Vancouver. You know, they took a chance on me, and I’m forever thankful for that. [But] Austin was a good moment to learn, a good moment to self reflect. And you know, now it’s paying off,” he said.
Now, Berhalter – the first current or former ATXFC player to suit up for the USMNT – can set his sights on establishing his place among a crowded American midfield. The national team is currently without presumptive starters Weston McKennie and Yunus Musah. With everyone available, Berhalter is almost certainly still on the outside looking in with regards to the 2026 World Cup roster.
But Berhalter is making fast progress in some very important areas. He’s obviously got a believer in USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino. And he’s fast earning the respect of his more established U.S. teammates.
“I’m proud of him,” Richards said following Thursday’s match. “I think being a coach’s son can be really difficult. And I think he’s proved everybody wrong and then some. I think he fully deserves the flowers [he’s] getting right now, and hopefully it continues.”
The win over Saudi Arabia clinched a spot in the Gold Cup knockout stage for the U.S., meaning Berhalter will potentially get an even bigger stage to prove his mettle as the squad aims for a momentum-building trophy less than 12 months from hosting the 2026 World Cup.
This article appears in June 20 • 2025.
