Alexi Lalas’ State of the Union Podcast

On this very special edition of State of the Union Presented by Zillow, Alexi Lalas had the chance to dive into the beautiful game through the lens of red, white and blue colored glasses with four guests with an eye to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Up first, Tab Ramos dives into the USA ahead of this summer. Is he worried about Pulisic's slump and how far should we expect the U.S. to advance?

Soccer writer Leander Schaerlaeckens then joins the show to pull back the curtain on the history of U.S. Soccer, including a glaring issue with this current batch of players. His book, "The Long Game: U.S. Men's Soccer and Its Savage, Four-Decade Journey to the Top, or Thereabouts", is out now.

Up next, former Galaxy President and current co-chair for the LA Host Committee for the World Cup, Chris Klein, dives into what fans can expect this summer.

Last, but certainly not least, Host City Executive and CEO of Philadelphia Soccer 2026 Meg Kane dispels any rumors on the tailgate ban and what we can expect with her city as we are under a month from the world's biggest sporting event kicking off.

0:00 Intro1:41: Feeling on U.S. team ahead of World Cup7:12: Ramos on American soccer development13:02: Matt Crocker leaving NOT a “Shock”, who is next?14:33: Pulisic’s slump… concerned?17:30: How far with the USMNT advance this summer?18:17 - Leander Schaerlaeckens joins the show20:45 - How far have we come since The Miracle of 1950?24:10 - Profiling the current stars: Christian Pulisic, Tyler Adams, Jedi Robinson & Co.27:23 - Team America: A forgotten past29:57 - The biggest issue with the current USA stars…33:01 - What does U.S. Soccer need to do to take the next step?35:15 - Chris Klein joins the show36:50 - Biggest issues planning a World Cup39:19 - What can fans expect in LA?39:35 - Expectations for USMNT41:59 - On his time with the Los Angeles Galaxy47:39 - What would MLS Commissioner Klein do to grow the game first?50:34 - Meg Kane joins the show51:19 - What is keeping Meg Kane up at night hosting a World Cup?52:32 - Context on working with FIFA58:45 - Tailgating in Philadelphia61:37 - France vs Germany on the 4th of July?!
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Alexi Lalas and David Mosse are back with a new episode of State of the Union! The show starts with some unfortunate news: Johnny Cardoso is set to undergo surgery and will miss the World Cup. Alexi and Mosse discuss the ramifications of this and who might step up in Johnny’s absence for the USA. Tanner Tessmann also picked up a knock for Lyon but Gio Reyna got back on the scoresheet for Monchengladbach for the first time in over a year. Pulisic wasn’t present for Milan’s latest loss but Sergiño Dest assisted a Ricardo Pepi goal for PSV. Alexi and Mosse touch on Barcelona topping Real Madrid for the La Liga title before heading over to MLS where Lionel Messi made some more history. In #AskAlexi, the question is asked whether the USA should be building their roster around Folarin Balogun instead of Christian Pulisic and in One for the Road, Alexi unveils his USA all-time World Cup starting XI.Presented by Zillow #Zillow

0:00 - Intro2:59 - Johnny Cardoso OUT10:50 - Gio Reyna SCORES12:57 Ricardo Pepi over Flo Balogun?14:40 - Do we Trust, Trusty?19:04 - Arsenal hold on, Barca wins La Liga26:14 Jack McGlynn & Alex Zendejas make the roster?30:27 - Messi with another record33:58 - Matt Turner vs Matt Freese38:47 - #AskAlexi: Folarin Balogun vs Christian Pulisic48:34 - One For The Road: Alexi’s All-time USA World Cup XI
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We are one month out from the greatest show on earth, and we are on a mission to name the top  100 players who are expected to play at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. We polled fifty of our FOX Sports experts, men and women who have played in these games, and produced the moments you'll never forget, to rank the world’s elite. On this episode, Stu Holden, Mo Edu and Alexi Lalas count down players 75 through 51.

0:00 - Intro1:30 - Players 75-71: Is Weston McKennie THE most important US player?4:05 - McKennie vs Pulisic6:27 - Alexis Mac Allister too high?!8:28 - Players 70-66: João Pedro & William Saliba set for massive summers11:38 - Players 65-61: Cody Gakpo is OVERRATED13:14 - Players 60-56: Is Mohamed Salah still elite?18:17 - Players 55-51: Sadio Mané too high?!
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Stu Holden and David Mosse are back with a new episode of State of the Union! In today’s show, Stu and Mosse recap the 2nd leg of the Champions League semis that saw Arsenal and PSG advance to the final at the expense of Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich. Despite falling to Arsenal, Stu says Johnny Cardoso made enough of an impression in the semis to be a LOCK for the USA squad this summer. After, the pair discuss the upcoming Europa League and Conference Leagues semis, La Liga potentially being decided by a Clásico, a plethora of USA players seeking Champions League spots for next season and more. In #AskAlexi, we show off the brand-new FOX Sports World Cup ad that sees the USA topping Brazil in the final, and in One for the Road, Stu shares how you can make $50K just for watching the World Cup this summer.

Presented by Zillow #Zillow

Arsenal beats Atlético in UCL Semi (2:29)PSG advances to UCL final over Bayern (11:33)Europa and Conference League Semis Preview (15:41)El Clásico for La Liga title (21:47)Americans on the hunt for UCL spots (28:18)Can Messi, Miami get back on track? (35:35)Mexican national team drama (41:29)#AskAlexi: FOX Sports' new FIFA World Cup™ ad (46:36)Getting paid $50K to watch soccer?? (52:34)
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Alexi Lalas and David Mosse have a hot off the presses State of the Union episode presented by Zillow. To kick off the show, the duo dives into the red-hot form of Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Pepi before debating Alex Freeman vs Sergiño Dest vs Tim Weah for the right side of the defense this summer. Will Christian Pulisic wake up from his slump in time for the opening match vs Paraguay? Elsewhere, Manchester City was held to a draw against Everton as Arsenal blew past Fulham. Is the EPL title race over?In #AskAlexi, the guys answer your questions on prime Clint Dempsey vs prime Tim Howard for the 2026 roster and who would have a bigger impact. As we wrap the show, we tip the cap to our own Heather O’Reilly and the rest of the 2026 National Soccer Hall of Fame inductees. Presented by Zillow #Zillow

0:00 - Intro1:55 - U.S. Abroad: Balogun & Pepi score yet again3:09 - Dest returns, Freemans shines9:56 - Pulisic goalless streak continues17:56 - Manchester City tumbles against the Toffees20:43 - MLS Recap: Luna, Gozo continue to star, Messi and Co falter32:05 -  #AskAlexi: Howard vs Dempsey for 202640:10 - One For The Road: Congrats HAO, Bob Ley
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