Tim Ream is aiming for a spot on the USMNT roster for the 2026 World Cup after completing his return to MLS with Charlotte FC.
Ream ended his nine-year association with Premier League team Fulham earlier this month and moved to Charlotte on a free transfer.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, the 36-year-old explained that his decision to return to the United States was for family reasons, but that he still has ambitions to represent his country at the World Cup in two summers.
“I don’t think there’s any reason why I shouldn’t be considered,” he said. “I understand that playing is an important part of it. I’m not going to take myself out of the running just because people want me to or think I’m too old. I don’t see the point in that.”
Ream, who has now made 61 international appearances for the USA, represented his country at the Copa America earlier this summer.
Head coach Gregg Berhalter was fired after the tournament and Ream says he has no preference as to who should replace him.
“I don’t care. For me, whoever is there, you have to perform, work hard, put your head down and do the things you don’t necessarily want to do every day,” he said.
“Whether it’s someone with pedigree, an American or someone from Mars, you still have to perform, train hard every day and prove yourself to your club and national team.”
Ream left MLS 12 years ago to join Bolton Wanderers after playing for the New York Red Bulls and Chicago Fire, and he believes the US league has made great strides during his years in England.
“It’s so much further along than it was when I was here,” he said. “When you look at it now, where it was, it’s incredible. That’s one of the reasons I felt comfortable and ready to go back, because it’s at such a much higher level now.”
Ream joined Fulham in 2015 and has made 312 appearances for the west London club. Last season he became the first Fulham player in 26 years to surpass 300 game times.
He admitted that it was difficult for him to leave the club, describing it as “emotional”, especially because Fulham wanted him to stay.
“The day after the season ended, I sat down with Marco (Silva) and we had a good chat,” Ream said. “They wanted me to stay. They tried to push me to stay and really think about it. But it’s not that when I set my mind to something, I go through with it, it’s that I really think things through.”
“We had thought this step through thoroughly. It was the right thing for us personally and as a family. It was time to move on.”
(John Todd/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)
