U.S. Soccer turns page to its future with opening of national training center

Blank added that before the national training center opened, U.S. Soccer “had an office but not a home. “It’s like having a house with no kitchen.” Parlow Cone told reporters that during her international career, the squad rarely interacted with other national teams.

“We were kind of in a bubble,” she said. “No matter who you are, what level you’re at in our game, you are welcome here and you should feel at home. You should feel like we’re wrapping our arms around you and bringing you in, but also feel the sense of awe and the sense of respect for those that came before you.”

Global architecture firm Gensler handled the design of the national training center. Andrew Jacobs, the company’s principal and design director told The Athletic that the biggest challenge was the speed with which the facility was expected to be finished.

“We had to draw fast,” he said. “We had to redraw and redraw and redraw to get the aesthetics right, to get the programming right. We went through multiple iterations for this exterior look to try to land on that right timeless approach.” Jacobs said that the NTC was designed to look more like a large sporting venue, similar to London’s Wimbledon, than a traditional training center for a professional club.

“We created a real sense of place that it feels like it’s kind of always been here even though it’s the first day,” Jacobs said. But that’s not the aspect of the project that he’s most proud of. “It was really designed for the differently abled teams,” said Jacobs in reference to the national teams that make up U.S. Soccer’s disability organizations.

“Nobody had really ever asked them before,” Jacobs continued. “We were able to facilitate that in an athletics venue. That’s why I’ve taken to talking about ‘differently abled’ rather than ‘disabled.’ Designing for the differently abled in an athletics venue kind of runs counter to common sense.”

With just over a month before the U.S. co-hosts the 2026 World Cup, in which the U.S. men’s national team hopes to inspire a nation, Thursday was a glimpse into the future of how the sport in this country will be supported long after the final whistle blows on July 19 at MetLife Stadium, the site of the tournament final.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side is not expected to play that day, but a foundation has been set to help the next generation of the USMNT succeed at the international level. If the U.S. men reach the same heights as the senior women’s team, one would finally be able to say that the Americans are a true, comprehensive global soccer power. The U.S. women are four-time World Cup champions, having dominated the sport without the infrastructure and support of a national training center. Hayes spoke about the female-first design philosophy that is prevalent throughout the NTC. She revealed that she had input early on certain design aspects that were “absolutely necessary” rather than nice-to-haves.

“There are things like nursing rooms for mothers,” Hayes said. “There are considerations like sleep pods and things like that that I think will be important for our recovery. But what JT (Batson) and I have had the conversation about is let’s really think about how we lean into the female lens and build it out rather than have a facility that’s overbuilt and we don’t have a chance to grow into it. So I’m excited about that part.”

Hayes said that the national team has felt “transient” without a NTC. “We’re a bit of a traveling circus,” she joked. “I know how critical it is that for people to excel and to accelerate, the feeling of belonging is significant. Leaning into what got us here will not get us to the next place.”

The NTC was billed as another reason why Atlanta has become increasingly soccer-centric. Yet, the facility is nearly a 40-minute drive from the city. Less than a mile before arriving at the sparkling new property, one passes a large red barn and roaming horses. It’s more country than cosmopolitan. And that’s perfectly fine for Hayes.

“The thing I like the most about it is we’re still going to work on what we do, and you want peace and quiet while you do that,” she said. “And regardless of the size and magnitude of this place, it’s vast, especially outside, and it’s really quiet and calming.”

But what about her dream for the facility?

“My dream would be to have a female leadership academy here, even within our coach education,” Hayes said. “I very much hope that within 10 years we’ve redesigned the system for women from coach education to the delivery of coaching our players through that lens.”

Shortly before Blank, Batson and Parlow Cone cut the ceremonial red ribbon, Hayes put in perspective what the day truly meant and the impact the NTC will have moving forward.

“The rest of the world will talk about the U.S. in profound ways,” she said, “because delivering on a vision of this magnitude takes extraordinary people.”

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

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