Arena quits after US World Cup failure, Gulati stays for now
NEW YORK — Bruce Arena quickly resigned as U.S. coach after the Americans’ failure to qualify for the World Cup. U.S. Soccer Federation President Sunil Gulati is staying around, at least for now.
Arena quit Friday, three days after the ruinous 2-1 loss at 99th-ranked Trinidad and Tobago that ended the Americans’ streak of seven straight World Cup appearances.
“There’s no point in me being around,” Arena said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. “I’m not going to be around for the next cycle. The only thing I regret, obviously, is not having a cycle with the team, because you need more time than 10 months with a team. But I knew that in advance of it, so I’m responsible for it.”
The USSF, which will miss the World Cup for the first time since 1986, said it will announce within 10 days an interim coach for planned exhibition games next month.