Maximilian Banks Chooses Germany Over USMNT: Pochettino's Setback
Augsburg’s teenage defender Maximilian Banks has nailed his colours to Germany, shutting the door on a long-running USMNT courtship and handing Mauricio Pochettino his first major dual-national setback.
The 19-year-old has filed a one-time switch to represent Germany at U-21 level, ending years of tug-of-war between the two federations. Born in Honolulu to an American father and German mother, Banks grew up largely in Europe and has long been viewed as one of the most intriguing centre-back prospects available to the United States.
He wore U.S. colours at youth level and climbed high enough up the ladder to earn a senior call-up for friendlies against South Korea and Japan in September 2025. But he never actually stepped on the field for the Stars and Stripes. That absence from the cap sheet has now proved decisive.
For Pochettino, who has invested time and energy into persuading Banks, the conclusion arrived via a direct phone call.
“Yes, he called us. He said, ‘I decide to go for Germany’,” Pochettino said, speaking to CBS Sports.
The Argentine appreciated the clarity but made it clear where the bar now sits for anyone wanting to be part of his project.
“We want players that show commitment but commitment is not 50 per cent. It’s 200 per cent,” he said. “He was honest because every time that we contact[ed] him with the possibility to join us, he said, ‘No, still in doubt. I don’t know if I want to pick USA or Germany,’ and he was honest.”
The honesty didn’t soften the blow, but it did sharpen Pochettino’s message.
Pochettino draws a line on commitment
The USMNT is in the middle of a generational overhaul, with Pochettino determined to build a squad that lives and breathes the shirt. Dual nationals will always be part of the American landscape, but the coach is in no mood for half-measures.
“We want players with no doubt,” he insisted. “We want players that are committed and desperate to play for the badge and play for us, and that is the most important thing.”
He knows the terrain. The U.S. routinely battles major European nations for players with multiple passports. That won’t change. What Pochettino wants to change is the mindset around who actually gets through the door.
“Of course, it’s a thing that we need to deal [with] because we are in a country [where] that happens often but I think that organization is so strong,” he said. “U.S. Soccer is an organization that is [above] any player, any name, any dual national and I think [what] is the most important that the player [has] no doubt when [they] join us, [there’s] no doubt that they want to die for that chance.”
The message was unmistakable: if you hesitate, the U.S. will move on.
From Banks to the Bronx
And Pochettino did just that. With Banks gone, he turned his gaze back to the domestic scene, heading to the New York derby on Friday night with a familiar face for company — former Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.
Inside a charged local rivalry, Red Bull New York edged New York City FC 1-0. For most fans, it was about bragging rights. For Pochettino, it was an open audition.
He watched NYCFC goalkeeper Matt Freese closely. Freese, who started for the U.S. at the World Cup, remains central to the national team’s plans, and every high ball, every save, every decision with the ball at his feet fed into the evaluation.
But the real intrigue came in the form of two teenagers on the RBNY side: Julian Hall and Adri Mehmeti. Neither has a senior cap. Both are highly rated. Both are dual nationals.
In the wake of Banks’ decision, their profiles take on a different weight. These are exactly the types of players U.S. Soccer wants to lock in early, before another federation spots an opening.
The Banks saga underlined the stakes. The next calls Pochettino makes to Hall, Mehmeti, and others like them may help decide how strong — and how committed — the next USMNT generation really is.
