The 2024-25 season for USMNT players in Europe and Mexico is easy to highlight by the trophy count. USMNT players in the Netherlands and Scotland won league titles and lifted trophies in Scotland, England, and Italy. Adding to the list of accomplishments was a USMNT player in the starting lineup for a confederation club championship, and that’s where we start the roundup.
Real Betis in the UEFA Conference League
Johnny Cardoso’s Real Betis may have lost the 2024-25 UEFA Conference League final 4-1 to Chelsea, but that doesn’t downplay the work it took for the La Liga club to make it to a continental final. Real Betis ultimately finished 6th in La Liga, qualifying for the Europa League while working through a Conference League schedule that started with the play-off round on August 22. Real Betis finished 15th in the league phase, advancing to the kickout phase play-offs that added two more games to their Conference League schedule. Beating Gent 3-1 on aggregate to advance to the round of 16 they dominated their second-leg at Vitoria de Guimaraes to advance 6-2. Real Betis beat Jagiellonia Bialystok 3-1 on aggregate in the quarterfinals, advancing to the final with a 4-3 aggregate won over Fiorentina.
The work Real Betis put in has helped raise Cardoso’s profile, linking him with moves to bigger clubs. As the only USMNT player to appear in a European club final in 2024-25, Cardoso was a key part of Real Betis’s success.
PSV takes the Eredivisie title late in the season
Four USMNT players saw time with PSV in 2024-25, with Malik Tillman, Richy Ledezma, Ricardo Pepi, and Sergino Dest helping to keep the club near the top of the table in the Netherlands. When leaders Ajax slipped late in the season, PSV was there to take advantage and move past them into 1st-place. The Eredivisie winners lift a shield, not a trophy, and that was PSV’s players after taking over the top spot with a game remaining and holding onto it with a 3-1 final day win at Sparta Rotterdam. PSV finished the season on a seven-game winning streak, with Tillman scoring twice in the May 14 home game against Heracles when they passed Ajax in the standings and again in the season finale.
Celtic continues to dominate the Scottish Premiership
Cameron Carter-Vickers and Auston Trusty lifted the league title and the League Cup with Celtic, meaning that Carter-Vickers has now won four consecutive Scottish Premiership titles with Celtic. Across all competitions including the Champions League, Carter-Vickers appeared in 44 games with Trusty seeing action in 37. Celtic advanced to the final of the Scottish Cup as well, losing on penalties.
Two USMNT players lift the FA Cup
Chris Richards and Matt Turner’s Crystal Palace beat Manchester United at Wembley on May 17 to win the first major trophy in that club’s history, celebrating on the field with the American flag. That was a highlight moment for USMNT players abroad, with both Americans contributing to the cup run. Turner was in goal for the initial three games and Richards played in all six.
Club America comes close in the Clausura
USMNT player Alex Zendejas has three league titles with Club America and came close to adding another in the 2025 Clausura. After finishing 2nd in the regular season, Club America advanced past 7th-seed Pachuca in the quarterfinals and on the higher-seed tiebreaker against 3rd-seed Cruz Azul in the semifinals. After drawing 0-0 at home in he final series, Club America lost 2-0 at Toluca. That stopped a four-peat by Club America, underlining how dominant the team has been in the Liga MX playoffs.
Pulisic’s standout performances at AC Milan
Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah’s AC Milan won the Supercoppa Italia and advanced to the final of the Coppa Italia, providing balance to an 8th-place finish in Serie A and didn’t qualify for the European competitions. It’s worth the reminder that AC Milan beat Juventus and Inter Milan to win the Supercoppa and advanced past Inter to the Coppa Italia final. Pulisic played in 50 games across all competitions and scored 17 goals, the best individual statistics for any USMNT player abroad this season. Musah played in 40 games.
3rd-place in a big 5 league
Europe’s big five of the Premier League, Serie A, La Liga, the Bundesliga, and Ligue 1 had two clubs with USMNT players finish in 3rd-place, Folarin Balogun’s Monaco in France and Timmy Chandler’s Eintracht in Germany. Those were the best finishes for USMNT players in those elite leagues.
USMNT players qualifying for European competitions in 2025-26
| Player | Club | Competition |
|---|---|---|
| McKennie, Weston | Juventus | Champions League |
| Weah, Tim | Juventus | Champions League |
| Balogun, Folarin | Monaco | Champions League |
| Aaronson, Paxten | Eintracht | Champions League |
| Chandler, Timmy | Eintracht | Champions League |
| Reyna, Gio | Borussia Dortmund | Champions League |
| Dest, Sergino | PSV | Champions League |
| Ledezma, Richy | PSV | Champions League |
| Tillman, Malik | PSV | Champions League |
| Pepi, Ricardo | PSV | Champions League |
| Carter-Vickers, Cameron | Celtic | Champions League* |
| Auston Trusty | Celtic | Champions League* |
| Cardoso, Johnny | Real Betis | Europa League |
| Richards, Chris | Crystal Palace | Europa League |
| Tessmann, Tanner | Lyon | Europa League |
| Turner, Matt | Nottingham Forest | Conference League |
| Maloney, Lenny | Mainz | Conference League |
| Bello, George | LASK | Conference League* |
