Advertisement

sportsFC Dallas

Q&A with Stuart Holden and John Strong: What to expect from USMNT, Mexico at Copa America

The Fox Sports duo teams up again for the summer’s Copa America action, which includes a U.S.-Bolivia showdown at AT&T Stadium on Sunday.

Copa America 2024, the 48th edition of the world’s oldest national team tournament, kicked off Thursday in Atlanta with Lionel Messi’s Argentina defeating Canada, 2-0.

Match analyst Stuart Holden and play-by-player announcer John Strong were there to voice the game.

After calling over 300 soccer matches together since joining forces in 2014, the duo pair up again as Fox Sports’ lead broadcast team for Copa America and will call all United States group stage matches.

The U.S. starts its tournament at 5 p.m. Sunday at Arlington’s AT&T Stadium.

Sports Roundup

Get the latest D-FW sports news, analysis, scores and more.

Or with:

The Holden-Strong pairing has voiced some of the biggest tournaments in soccer, including the 2018 and 2022 World Cups and 2021 Copa America, calling more games together than any English-language television duo.

Holden brings international experience, after competing for the United States men’s national team in FIFA World Cup 2010 South Africa and in the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Advertisement

Strong called matches for the MLS Portland Timbers between 2010-14 and was named Oregon Sportscaster of the Year in 2013 by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association.

The renowned pair spoke with The Dallas Morning News on Friday, ahead of USA vs. Bolivia coverage at AT&T Stadium, about expectations for the tournament and the behind-the-scenes of on-air coverage.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Advertisement

What are your expectations for the United States’ performance in Copa America?

Holden: “When I get asked, ‘How good is this team?’ I think they have a good starting lineup. As for the rest of the depth of the team, I am not entirely sure. Even still, I have some question marks about the starting 11 and just how good they are. I think a quarterfinal result is the bare minimum. I would hope that we can get to the semifinal round, but that requires beating Colombia or Brazil.

Head coach Gregg Berhalter wants to change the way American soccer is perceived globally, but to do that, they have to start beating big teams in real competitions. I am not entirely sure that this team is capable of that just yet. I hope they prove differently to all of us.”

Strong: “It really is a matter of how they turn up Sunday against Bolivia, a team they know they are better than on paper. They just have to play that way. Historically, when USA teams have done well, it is because the collective is better than the sum of the parts. That is what the opportunity is for this group. It is very exciting to look at the list of clubs that the players play for and to look at some of the individual seasons they have had, but at the end of the day, that stuff stops mattering once they come together on the field.

“I hope this team has earned people’s trust. Over time, they have risen to the occasion, and I am hopeful and excited that they can do that again. This is the best test they are going to get before the FIFA World Cup 2026. It is also a wonderful opportunity for fans to get excited about this team.”

What are your expectations for Mexico’s performance in Copa America?

Holden: “Right now, Mexico is in a really bad place. The youth national teams are not doing well. The senior national team is getting crushed consistently. They went out in the group stage at World Cup 2022 Qatar. MLS has really closed the gap on Liga MX, on the field and off the field commercially. They are at a point where they are really trying to find their identity and what their identity will be going forward as a footballing nation.

“If Mexico’s head coach Jaime Lozano does not get the team out of the group stage or have a good performance, he will get fired. That is just the reality of where Mexico is right now. They continue to lose to USA in big games. They have not found who is really going to be at the heart of their next generation of players.”

Advertisement

Strong: “Mexico has left behind some of the biggest stars in the last 20 years of Mexican soccer. There is this question of not only are these newer players up to the challenge, but will the fan base, media, and the people in charge accept lower expectations. That is what Jaime Lozano is trying to instill, focusing not on now, but two years from now and building a foundation. In Mexican soccer, there is an expectation to win and to win every time.

“The opener against Jamaica will be a tricky game. That is the whole point of Copa America. It is a big test. Can these newer, younger players rise to the challenge?”

What is the importance of this tournament as a halfway mark to the 2026 World Cup?

Holden: “This is the summer for the United States men’s national team. It will be definitive in terms of how we view this team and their future potential. It is a team that has grown a lot in the two years since the last World Cup, in which they lost in the Round of 16. The big question is: Can they take the next step? That is what we will find out this summer. They get to play against really high-level opponents that they don’t normally always get to play against.”

Advertisement

Strong: “On the field, it is the opportunity to get the best test USA and Mexico are going to get because they do not have to go through World Cup qualifying. The ability to play big-time teams in friendlies is very limited and even if they do, it is still a friendly.

“One could make the argument that when USA plays Uruguay in the group stage and plays in the quarterfinal against Colombia or Brazil, and ideally in a semifinal after that, they will have two, or three, or hopefully four games this summer, which might be there best shot before the World Cup to really grow and improve. What I am hopeful for is that this team can prove to themselves and show the fan base that they have taken a step forward. The way they do that is by winning a quarterfinal, which would probably be against Colombia or Brazil. But if the US men’s team wants to reach the next level, they will have to beat teams like Colombia and Brazil.”

What goes on behind-the-scenes in on-air coverage of Copa America?

Holden: “The cadence of travel, game, travel, game, travel, game, is tough. We are going to do Saturday’s game in Houston between Mexico and Jamaica, then hopping on a plane at 6 a.m. to Dallas for the USA game on Sunday, then hopping on a plane the next day to New Jersey. We are constantly moving as we go, trying to get information and serving the viewer. We are trying to give them insight and access they do not normally have. Hopefully that comes across on-screen.

Advertisement

“The amount of work is substantial, but I love what I do. We are talking about soccer for a job. I was on a flight this morning watching clips from Mexico and Jamaica, making sure my notes are good, but also having an eye on my notes for Sunday on USA and Bolivia. Our families support us and allow us to do this because our wives are back home with our kids. We are basically ghosts for the next month, away and traveling on the road. Those are the sacrifices we all make, but we understood that when we got into this business and would not have it any other way. Doing big international games is what gets my heart beating. I just love it. It is the closest I’ve ever felt to actually stepping on the field and playing as a player.”

Strong: “It is very different from Fox Sports coming in to do coverage of a Cowboys game. We are shoulder-to-shoulder with television broadcasters from all across the region. International sporting events are so different with the amount of media, type of media, and broadcast networks. For the USA vs. Bolivia game, there will be Argentine television, Mexican television and Canadian television.

“But we have the benefit of experience now. This is the third time Holden and I have done Copa America. We have been doing big tournaments since the summer of 2015 with Fox Sports.”

What is unique about broadcasting at AT&T Stadium?

Holden: “I played in that stadium in the Gold Cup in 2013. I have to imagine that many of the current players feel the same way I felt. When you step into a stadium like AT&T, which is truly state of the art and one of the best stadiums in the world, it feels elevated. There is an intensity amongst the players and a certain atmosphere that is created. It will feel like a big game, and it should. The players relish these moments and these opportunities. There was a day when American soccer players did not have the opportunity to play in that kind of stadium.”

Advertisement

Strong: “We have not been there since the 2017 Gold Cup. I am excited to see the real investment in AT&T Stadium recently with its high quality grass and irrigation. I remember from 2017 that it is an incredible building. There is just a scale to the building, which is quite remarkable. It is exciting when soccer gets to be showcased on such a big platform.”

Related Stories
View More

To view subscription options for The News and SportsDay, click here.