GOAL sat down with "Gregg's son" to talk about his journey, from nearly quitting the sport to beating Lionel Messi and Inter Miami
There was a point a few years back in which Sebastian Berhalter thought he might just be done with soccer. It seems so out of character for him to admit this, particularly now. Fresh off a performance in which he stared down Lionel Messi and Inter Miami without a worry in the world, the Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder can acknowledge he was staring down the thought of life after the sport.
This was during his year-long spell with Austin FC. After a mini-breakout with the Columbus Crew, he was loaned to Austin. Following an 18-appearance season in 2021, the Texas club declined an option to sign Berhalter.
He was a player without a home, and one without an obvious plan.
At a crossroads, he did what most kids would do: he talked to his dad. in Sebastian's case, however, that just happened to mean talking to a former U.S. men's national team player and coach, and the man who now leads the Chicago Fire. But, in that moment, Gregg Berhalter was none of those things.
In that moment, he was a listener, a sounding board, a father for a son in need.
And that conversation was a seminal moment for what has become a stellar season and revitalized career.
"I remember talking to my dad and being like 'Dude, I don't even know anymore,' " Sebastian says. "He said to me, 'Whatever you do, I'll support you. If this isn't you, then this isn't you.' Him saying that made me realize that I had to get my act together. Let me figure this out. I really wanted to do this.
"That's not to say I wasn't working hard before, but I think it actually calmed me down. I kind of dialed it back and started to realize what I needed. It was all about turning the hardest moment of my career into the most important part of my career."
Berhalter is now playing the best soccer of his life, and playing in the most meaningful games of his life. Handed a lifeline by the Vancouver Whitecaps in 2022, Berhalter has repaid that faith slowly but surely, culminating in a CONCACAF Champions Cup run for the ages. The highlight, of course, was Berhalter running circles around Miami's former Barcelona stars, providing two goals and two assists across the two legs to lead the Whitecaps to the finale.
Having taken a huge leap forward as a player, Berhalter is now helping set a tone for a Whitecaps team that may just be the best in MLS. A CONCACAF Champions Cup final is on the horizon, but more could be on the way. Berhalter spent so much of his life living and dying with the U.S. men's national team's results, especially when his father was the USMNT coach. Could he soon be putting on that shirt for himself?
So much has changed. At one point, Berhalter was wondering if he'd ever make it. Now, it's fair for the rest of us to wonder how far he can go.
- CHICAGO FIRE FC
The beginning
This story isn't about Gregg Berhalter, but you can't acknowledge the son's tale without that of his father.
From the start, Berhalter's life was surrounded by soccer. He was born in London while his Gregg was playing for Crystal Palace. His mother, Rosalind, was a star player in her own right, winning four national titles at the University of North Carolina. Soccer is what the Berhalter family does. From the beginning, it's what he's wanted to do, too.
It didn't take him long to realize, though, that he would be viewed through a different lens, due to his last name. In some cases, it would get him the benefit of the doubt. In others, it would be used against him. As a teenager, the midfielder struggled with that. Now, he realizes the value of it all.
"Being Gregg's son, to have your dad be someone in the sport that you play – not a lot of kids get to have that," he says. "If I'm 'Gregg's son' to people, that's fine. He's had a great career and is a great coach, so if people want to just call me 'Gregg's son' for the rest of my career, that's fine with me because it's something I'm super proud of."
That's a view forged through maturity. The 24-year-old admits it wasn't always so easy.
"Growing up, though, it was tougher," he says. "It gave me a little chip on my shoulder. I felt I always had to prove it double. It made me feel like I had to have that 'dog' in me and not care what anyone else said. I wanted to show I can do it myself. Since turning pro, though, I'm just grateful that I have someone who can give me that feedback. He's someone that I'd much rather have on my side than not have!"
Gregg was careful not to overstep, or overload his son. Soccer was frequently the topic at dinner, as you'd expect at the Berhalter house, and Sebastian says he was fortunate to be surrounded by family who loved the game as much as he did. His father, meanwhile, looked to foster that love by striking the balance that all coaches seek to find.
“There are a lot of fond memories,” Gregg said earlier this year. “My first coaching job was a U10 club team in California when I was playing for the Galaxy. I ended up coaching him in his first experience in club soccer. I remember when he was disobeying, I would make him run laps around the field and he would get so mad at me. We didn’t have a lot of words on the way home from training.
“A really fun memory was at Hammarby. His coach got sick and I ended up coaching his team in this mini-tournament over a weekend and we actually won the tournament. It was a great moment for the team and him personally. It was a fun moment.”
After Hammarby, Berhalter's teenage years were spent in Columbus, where Gregg was then serving as coach of the Crew. Berhalter, as is the case with many teenagers, wasn't out to emulate his father. He was drawn to the team's two star midfielders: Wil Trapp and Federico Higuain.
"Wil just had this composure," Sebastian recalls. "He was like 21 or 22,and was captaining the team. What a good role model. And then Pipa could do anything with the ball. That was something I wanted to add to my game, too. Between those two, I had a good balance of how I wanted to play when I got older."
Berhalter would follow Trapp's path, becoming a homegrown signing for Columbus after spending one year at his parents' alma mater, North Carolina. He made his debut during the MLS is Back tournament in the summer of 2020, making nine appearances en route to an MLS Cup triumph later that season.
It seemed to be a bright start to a long stay in Columbus. Not quite. That tough year in Austin followed. Then came the trade to Vancouver for a less-than-overwhelming $50,000 in General Allocation Money.
It's quite clear now, though, that the Whitecaps got themselves a steal.
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The breakout
The most impressive moments of the Whitecaps' triumph over Inter Miami actually came when they were losing. After a 2-0 first leg win at home, the Whitecaps conceded early in the second leg. For the neutral, it felt like a Miami barrage was coming. This was a team featuring Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba. They surely smelled blood in the water.
The barrage came, but not from Miami. Berhatler assisted Brian White six minutes into the second half. He teed up Pedro Vite two minutes later. In the 71st minute, with Miami all but dead and buried, Berhalter made sure to get one of his own, capping what was almost certainly the best 20-minute stretch of his career so far. The other team had Lionel Messi but, for those 20 minutes, the Whitecaps had Sebastian Berhalter and, somehow, that meant more. And it ended in an 3-1 Vancouver win.
"Going into the games, I knew I could do it," Berhalter said. "It wasn't just about stepping on the field in that moment. It's something that I've always believed in. I don't want to sound arrogant, but I knew that I could have an impact. Playing those guys is cool, but you try not to look at them because Messi is Messi, but you try to take him as any other player. He's just another player on the field. You have to win the ball from him and you can't let him score.
"It's something that I knew I could do, but it's not just two games of proving that to myself. It's been six years of hard work to get to where I can do that."
Berhalter's right: His development is about more than just those two games. He scored against Pumas, too, helping the Whitecaps topple the Mexican giants in the CONCACAF Champions Cup quarterfinals. Between the two Miami legs, he added a goal against Minnesota, too. In each of his two most recent matches, he's added assists, making it four in his last three matches.
Per FBref, Berhalter is in the 94th percentile or better in assists, expected assists and shot-creating actions when compared to midfielders across similar leagues. He's in the 78th percentile in progressive passes and 72nd percentile in passes attempted. He's not just pulling strings, either, as he's also listed as above average in each of the key defensive metrics, too, headlined by an 84th-percentile mark in tackles.
Some credit surely goes to Whitecaps coach Jesper Sorensen, who has turned the team into a juggernaut early in his first season. Under previous coach Vanni Sartini, Berhalter was more of a role player, even playing some games at wingback. Under Sorensen, Berhalter has become a midfield maestro, one key to everything the Whitecaps are doing in the center of the park.
“He’s a guy that’s really good at taking information,” Sorensen said. “My experience is that it’s just not the willingness to learn and adapt to new things. It’s also if you’re actually capable of doing it, and Sebastian is very capable of processing the information he gets and then actually acting upon it. I think he’s a great professional, always in good shape. He always takes very good care of himself.
"On top of that, he’s a guy that’s curious, always wants to learn new stuff, wants to improve himself, so that’s a very good thing.”
Berhalter's success has fans in Vancouver dreaming of continental glory. It also has fans of the USMNT wondering if there could soon be another Berhalter wearing that crest at some point soon.
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USMNT dreams
Berhalter laughs when asked to describe his USMNT fandom.
"It's like the one time in my life that I get to feel like an ultra," he says.
Growing up, with his dad playing for and coaching different clubs, Berhalter understood that his team loyalty could change relatively quickly. Not with the USMNT, though. He was always a fan, even before his father took charge of the program in 2018. In 2022, as Gregg coached the biggest games of his life, the 21-year-old Berhalter was in the stands, on the knife's edge with every touch just like every other American in Qatar.
"Getting to go to that World Cup was special," he says. "Seeing your dad coach and seeing some of the best teams in the world was something I'll never forget. I was just so proud of that group and I'm proud of how everything was handled. It really was such a surreal feeling, being there with my family."
Gregg's time in charge of the USMNT ended last summer after an early Copa America exit. He was succeeded by Mauricio Pochettino, who now faces the difficult task of preparing the U.S. for a 2026 World Cup on home soil. With just more than a year to go before that World Cup kicks off, there isn't much time for experimentation – and there's absolutely zero time to waste.
Still, Pochettino has shown a willingness to give MLS players their chance. Diego Luna has emerged as a potential starter. Brian White, Berhalter's teammate in Vancouver, earned himself a CONCACAF Nations League chance with a January goal. Patrick Agyemang – who scored against Canada in March – Jack McGlynn and Max Arfsten have been involved, too, proving there is no MLS bias for Pochettino.
Having asserted himself as one of MLS' best so far this season, Berhalter has a case to be in that mix, too. It's early, of course, but, on form alone, the 23-year-old midfielder has an argument. Whether it happens is another story.
"I don't think there's a fan that's watched more games than me in the last six years," Berhalter says. "I've watched every single game over the last six years. Being around it, getting to go to the World Cup, yeah, I'm confident I can play there. I think I can do it, but I also have so much appreciation for all of those guys and that team. It would be an honor to play there.
"To me, it's like gravy. If it comes, that's amazing. If not, you still do your thing for your club. The most important thing is doing well and winning games and providing what the team needs. I think I am a confident player and I think can be in there. I think I can help, and I think I can do good things."
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The work ahead
As the moment, the Whitecaps are the best team in MLS. They've amassed 27 points from their 12 MLS matches, losing just once along the way. Care to guess which team beat Vancouver?
On March 22, Gregg and the Chicago Fire took down the Whitecaps, 3-1. With bragging rights on the line in the first Berhalter derby, father got one over on son.
“It’s kind of funny when you’re scouting the opponent and you’re watching the games, and you’re like, ‘Oh that’s a nice little midfielder,’ and it happens to be your son,” the elder Berhalter said. “It’s kind of funny. Sometimes you watch it from a wide angle, you’re seeing all this movement, but then the familiarity of his movement and watching him for so many years stands out.
“I’m definitely proud of him and how he’s progressed in his career and being able to watch closely in the last five years to see what type of player he’s become is really nice. I know it’s down to his hard work and his mindset.”
That's the part of this that Sebastian Berhalter wants everyone to understand: the work to get here has been very hard. Despite his last name, he wasn't handed anything, and his path wasn't easy. There were times when he felt alone and unsure of himself and – even if those moments seem far away now – they were defining.
"It's not just been overnight," he says. "It didn't happen over two games against Miami, you know what I mean? This has been a grind since I was 13 or 14 years old. I looked at myself at 13 and said, 'That's what I want to be when I'm older.' From that moment on, I started working, sometimes a little too much, but the consistency and determination, that's what means the most to me. That's what I'm most proud of.
"It's not an assist or a goal against Miami. For me, I'm proud of the work that I've put in as a person and as a player, because it made me learn a lot about myself."
Sebastian is still learning about himself and, in truth, fans are still learning a lot about him. He's being recognized more as the hype around Vancouver builds. That recognition, as he says, is gravy. The hard work got him here, and it now it has him believing it will take him where he still wants to go.