U.S. Soccer and Bob Bradley agree to contract extension through 2014

U.S. Soccer has agreed to a four-year contract extension with U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Bob Bradley.

Bradley led the U.S. to an undefeated record in group play at the 2010 FIFA World for the first time en route to a first-place group finish for the first time in 80 years. After finishing the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying cycle with more goals than any other team in the world, Bradley will again be at the helm through qualifying and the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

Up next for the U.S. and Bradley is a pair of international friendlies on Oct. 9 against Poland in Chicago and Oct. 12 against Colombia in Chester, Pa. The match will be televised live at 7 p.m. CT on Fox Soccer Channel and Galavision. The second match will be televised live by ESPN2 and Galavision, kicking off at 8 p.m. ET.

Under Bradley’s guidance, the U.S. team captured the respect and imagination of people around the world with their performance in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. After tying group favorites England, the team rallied from a two-goal deficit to draw 2-2 with Slovenia to set up the dramatic third group game against Algeria. The 1-0 victory lifted the U.S. to first place in the group, the USA’s first ever point and victory in the third group game of the tournament, also marking the first time in a group phase of the World Cup that a U.S. team went unbeaten. They also set a U.S. best for most points (5).

The 52-year-old Bradley has compiled a record of 38-21-8 in four years in charge of the U.S. team. By virtue of winning the 2007 Gold Cup, the regional championship of CONCACAF, the United States qualified for their first final of a major FIFA tournament, reaching the championship match of the 2009 Confederations Cup after a 2-0 victory against then top-ranked and current World Cup champions Spain in the semifinal. Despite falling to Brazil in the final, the second-place finish was the best ever for the U.S. Men at a FIFA tournament.

Prior to their run in South Africa, Bradley marshaled the U.S. to a first place finish in CONCACAF qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup ahead of regional rivals Mexico. During the qualifying campaign, the U.S. collected more road wins than any team in the region, scored the most goals (42) of any team in the world, and won a U.S.-record six consecutive matches.

Through 66 games, Bradley has used 93 different players, including 49 that have earned their first cap since he began his MNT career with a 3-1 victory against Denmark on Jan. 20, 2007.

He began his tenure in 2007 the Gold Cup title and then became the first coach to lead the U.S. to three-straight road wins (Oct. 17, 2007 at Switzerland, Nov. 17, 2007 at South Africa and March 26, 2008 at Poland). The Switzerland and Poland wins were the first back-to-back for the U.S. in Europe.

In a 2008 that saw the beginning of the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, the U.S. posted the best scoring and defending marks in a year with more than 10 games, scoring a record 2.14 goals per 90 minutes while allowing just .57 goals per 90 minutes in 2008.

The U.S. clinched the berth to South Africa in 2009, compiling a 6-2-2 record in a 10-game qualifying campaign that bookended the FIFA Confederations Cup and CONCACAF Gold Cup, where Bradley joined Bora Milutinovic as the only U.S. coaches to lead the U.S. to consecutive Gold Cup finals.

THE BRADLEY BREAKDOWN
Record
All-Time: 38-21-8
Qualifying: 13-3-2
Gold Cup: 10-1-1
Goals For: 120
Goals Against: 82
Shutouts: 25

Record vs. …
CONCACAF: 25-5-5, 74 GF, 33 GA
CONMEBOL: 1-7-1, 9 GF, 21 GA
UEFA: 7-8-2, 24 GF, 24 GA
AFC: 2-0-0, 7 GF, 2 GA
CAF: 3-1-0, 6 GF, 2 GA

Record when …
Leading at half: 21-3-2
Losing at half: 3-9-3
Tied at half: 13-9-3

By year …
2007: 12-5-1
2008: 9-3-2
2009: 13-8-3
2010: 4-5-2