Gio Reyna USA soccer scandal, explained: Revisiting 2022 World Cup controversy with Gregg Berhalter

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The 2026 FIFA World Cup represents a redemption of sorts for Gio Reyna, whose late goal in the opening victory against Panama put the U.S. up 4-1 and sealed an emphatic victory for the co-hosts in Los Angeles.

Four years ago, Reyna's mysterious lack of minutes at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar would set off a wild chain of events that nearly led to the dismissal of head coach Gregg Berhalter and seemingly fractured the close relationship between player and manager that had been cultivated between the two families for decades.

The months-long saga remains one of the most dramatic off-field incidents in USMNT history, and while the effects of the situation have almost entirely been wiped clean, the memory of those wild few weeks remains strong.

The Sporting News explains what happened between Reyna, his family, and that of Berhalter in the aftermath of the 2022 World Cup.

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What happened to Gio Reyna at the 2022 World Cup?

As the USMNT prepared for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, it was believed by much of the fanbase that 20-year-old Gio Reyna would be a spark plug for the national team. His goal and assist against Mexico in the CONCACAF Nations League final a year prior had electrified the U.S. soccer community and put him on an upward trajectory.

The son of former USMNT great Claudio Reyna, Gio was playing well for German giants Borussia Dortmund and seemed to be the next great young American soccer star.

So when he logged just 52 total minutes across four U.S. matches at the 2022 World Cup, including two occasions of being an unused substitute, many U.S. fans questioned the decision by head coach Gregg Berhalter to leave him largely on the bench.

Once the tournament was over, with the U.S. dumped out of the tournament in the Round of 16 at the hands of the Netherlands, Berhalter went public with his handling of the situation, and it started a snowball effect that would rock U.S. Soccer for the next few months.

While speaking at the HOW Institute for Society's Summit on Moral Leadership in New York after the World Cup,  Berhalter stated that an unnamed player was nearly sent home from the tournament for failing to give complete effort in training. He mentioned that the player was called out in front of his teammates, and then was asked to apologize, which he did, allowing him to remain with the squad in Qatar.

While Berhalter did not mention Gio Reyna's name specifically, public speculation immediately went to the 20-year-old. As the fanbase ran wild with the story, Reyna had little choice but to confirm he was the subject of the comments in an Instagram post shortly after.

Reyna revealed in the post that he was told by Berhalter before the tournament that he would have a limited role, and he expressed frustration with Berhalter's public airing of a situation he expected to "remain private."

On January 5, Gregg Berhalter did a leadership conference with the Harvard Business School where he addressed the situation. In it, he expressed regret for discussing the Gio Reyna situation from the World Cup. His comments appear to suggest that his intention was not to call out a player for poor performance, but instead to show an example of a situation where a player struggled, was called out by leadership, and redeemed himself. Once the story gained traction publicly, the redemption part was buried.

"If I had to do it all over again I wouldn't have told that story," Berhalter said. "It brought too much attention to an overall shining example of team culture and teamwork. That would be something I'd go back and change for sure."

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Gregg Berhalter investigated by U.S. Soccer for domestic violence

On January 3, U.S. Soccer and Gregg Berhalter each released a separate statement regarding a domestic violence incident from 1991 between Berhalter and his current wife Rosalind.

U.S. Soccer's statement revealed that an investigation had been opened into an allegation of domestic violence brought to the federation's attention. The statement confirmed that a law firm was retained to conduct the investigation.

The statement made mention that the federation also "learned about potential inappropriate behavior towards multiple members of our staff by individuals outside of our organization."

Berhalter's statement, released at the same time as the one from U.S. Soccer, revealed the details of the incident, which occurred prior to their marriage when the pair were dating as students at the University of North Carolina. His statement revealed that while out at a bar, Berhalter kicked Rosalind during an argument.

Berhalter stated that the authorities were never involved, and the two put the incident behind them when they married in 1997. 

In the statement, Berhalter called Rosalind his "soulmate" and stated there are "zero excuses for my actions that night; it was a shameful moment and one that I regret to this day." He says he sought counseling following the incident and that it led to seven months of no contact between the two.

"I am sharing this story after 31 years because it's important to understand it was an event that shaped me, but doesn't define me."

Like U.S. Soccer's release, Berhalter's statement also mentioned that "an individual contacted U.S. Soccer, saying that they had information about me that would 'take me down' — an apparent effort to leverage something very personal from long ago to bring about the end of my relationship with U.S. Soccer."

Danielle Reyna reports Berhalter domestic violence incident

The day after the release of U.S. Soccer's and Gregg Berhalter's statements about the domestic violence incident, Fox Soccer and ESPN both reported that the previously unnamed individual who contacted U.S. Soccer about it was Danielle Reyna, wife of Claudio Reyna and mother of U.S. star Gio Reyna.

The Berhalter and Reyna families had been close for decades, going all the way back to their time in college. Danielle Reyna was a teammate of Rosalind Berhalter when the two played soccer at UNC. Claudio Reyna also played with Gregg Berhalter on the U.S. men's national team beginning in the 1990s.

In statements released to Fox Soccer and The Athletic, Danielle Reyna confirmed she flagged the domestic violence incident from decades prior with U.S. Soccer, stating that Berhalter's treatment of their son Gio during and after the World Cup was the impetus for her decision to contact the federation.

“To set the record straight, I did call [U.S. Soccer sporting director] Earnie Stewart on December 11, just after the news broke that Gregg had made negative statements about my son Gio at a leadership conference,” Danielle Reyna said in the statement. “I have known Earnie for years and consider him to be a close friend. I wanted to let him know that I was absolutely outraged and devastated that Gio had been put in such a terrible position, and that I felt very personally betrayed by the actions of someone my family had considered a friend for decades."

Claudio Reyna followed up by supporting his wife in a separate statement, saying, "I too was upset by Gregg's comments about Gio after the U.S. was out of the World Cup, and I also appealed to Earnie Stewart on December 11 asking him to prevent any additional comments."

The two women were close enough during their collegiate days that they were roommates, and Danielle Reyna in her statement even claimed that Rosalind was her "best friend." Danielle said that she "supported her [Rosalind] in the trauma that followed" the domestic violence incident involving Gregg Berhalter in 1991.

"It took a long time for me to forgive and accept Gregg afterward," Danielle Reyna's statement said, "but I worked hard to give him grace, and ultimately made both of them and their kids a huge part of my family’s life.

"I would have wanted and expected him to give the same grace to Gio. This is why the current situation is so very hurtful and hard."

However, both Danielle and Claudio Reyna denied issuing any threats prior to reporting the incident. Danielle Reyna specified that she didn't "know anything about any blackmail attempts." And Claudio Reyna indicated in his statement that "at no time did I ever threaten anyone, nor would I ever do so."

Despite that, ESPN cited sources in reporting that Claudio Reyna, currently serving as the sporting director of MLS club Austin FC, "threatened to share allegations about Berhalter's past, but Reyna has denied those allegations."

Danielle did express regret that the incident went public: "I’m sorry that this information became public, and I regret that I played a role in something that could reopen wounds from the past," her statement read.

Gregg Berhalter re-hired by U.S. Soccer after investigation

On December 22 following the conclusion of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Gregg Berhalter's contract as USMNT head coach expired. It left U.S. Soccer to decide whether to retain his services or move on and look for a new boss.

Upon being contacted by Danielle Reyna about the domestic violence incident, U.S. Soccer opened an investigation, which begun in early January and lasted six months. With new sporting director Matt Crocker installed near the head of the federation, Berhalter was eventually re-hired as head coach on June 16, 2023, having been cleared of the domestic violence situation.

He remained in charge for one year, but was fired upon the disappointing conclusion of the 2024 Copa America, when the U.S. was eliminated in the group stage despite hosting the tournament.

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