In one fell swoop Thursday morning, U.S. Soccer announced a reset for its men's national team program. That's what Earnie Stewart's departure as sporting director represents. Stewart, a former U.S. international, accepted a similar role to return to the Netherlands with PSV Eindhoven, leaving U.S. Soccer with a void atop its technical operation.
Whether that's a good or bad thing can ultimately only be judged in time, but what it means in the short term is that the men's national team -- already without a permanent head coach -- will enter its most consequential World Cup cycle of all time without a firm direction for the foreseeable future.