America’s early departure from the 2026 World Cup raised a question that arises every four years: What would it take to produce a global soccer superpower in the United States? This time around, most of the answers appear to lie in retooling the so-called “pay-for-play” system that is largely a U.S. phenomenon. The majority of youth soccer organizations in America stay in business by developing players for a fee, then keeping them in the program for as long as their family is willing to pay. Leaders in U.S. soccer hope to leverage that and add elements of a well-developed club system that reaches into the grassroots in places like Argentina where Lionel Messi and company play Spain on Sunday for the country's fourth World Cup title.