USMNT to Face Jamaica in Friendly on December 13 in Ft. Lauderdale

The USMNT's schedule to close out the year now has a date circled in red. U.S. Soccer confirmed that the men's national team will play a friendly against Jamaica on December 13 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, at Inter Miami's stadium, with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m.

It's no ordinary opponent. The United States and Jamaica haven't met since that 4-2 quarterfinal in the 2024 Concacaf Nations League, a match the U.S. put away in the first half with goals from Christian Pulisic (AC Milan) and Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven). Now it's time for a rematch, though this time without points on the line.

Before getting to that matchup, the USMNT has business to handle: on November 14 and 17 the team will play the Nations League quarterfinals against Haiti. For that series, the squad is expected to have Pulisic, Weston McKennie (Juventus) and Folarin Balogun (AS Monaco) available.

What stands out about the announcement is the change in format. Instead of the traditional January camp, U.S. Soccer opted to move that window to December, with the idea of opening up space for MLS players to get minutes and a chance to make an impression ahead of the next cycle.

Mauricio Pochettino himself explained the thinking behind the move:

While we continue to build the group, this is a great opportunity to work with a lot of MLS players and potentially see some new faces. Jamaica is the type of team we could face in upcoming tournaments, including World Cup qualifying, so it's a great opportunity and experience for these players. Of course, we love playing in Ft. Lauderdale and having the support of the incredible fans in the area.Mauricio Pochettino

The January camp, even without its usual spot on the calendar this time, has recent history backing this bet on domestic league players. Seven players who were part of the 2026 World Cup roster either made their debut or earned their second cap in a January match: captain Tyler Adams, forwards Brenden Aaronson and Alejandro Zendejas, midfielder Cristian Roldan, defenders Max Arfsten and Tim Ream, and goalkeeper Matt Turner.

The list of names to emerge from those camps also includes five members of the exclusive 100-cap club with the national team: Jozy Altidore, DaMarcus Beasley, Carlos Bocanegra, Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan. And the pipeline keeps producing: during this fall's perfect run of 4 wins in 4 matches, nine MLS players made their senior debut.

Looking ahead to 2027, the calendar is already stacking up: Nations League finals, the Concacaf Gold Cup and the start of qualifying for the 2030 World Cup. Against Jamaica, the head-to-head record clearly favors the United States, with a mark of 22 wins, 3 losses and 10 draws, plus a record of 7 wins, 1 loss and 2 draws in unofficial matches.