The United States Soccer Federation announced Tuesday that its sporting director Matt Crocker is leaving the U.S. to pursue an international role in soccer, just months before the FIFA World Cup.

The organization said its Chief Operating Officer Dan Helfrich will provide executive oversight and support across the federation’s sporting operations to ensure continuity. 

The federation did not specify where Crocker will be moving, but sources told ESPN that the former director is taking on a similar role in Saudi Arabia.

“Over the past several years, U.S. Soccer has grown significantly across every part of our sporting organization, and we thank Matt for the role he played in that progress,” US Soccer CEO JT Batson said in a statement. “Matt helped guide important steps across our sporting organization, and we’re grateful for his contributions. 

"We’re confident in our strategy, leadership team, coaches, and technical staff," he added. "We will continue building the right structure for the future, and we’re well positioned to make the decisions needed in the short, medium, and long term.” 

The federation said preparations for the 2026 World Cup continue under head coach Mauricio Pochettino and will not be impacted by the transition to new sporting director leadership.

The World Cup games are set to kick off on June 11 in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Mexico will hold the first match in Mexico City against South Africa. The U.S. will hold its first match in Los Angeles on June 12 against Paraguay.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.