Former Sunderland midfielder part of US Soccer scandal and alleged blackmail attempt

It's all getting a bit crazy within US Soccer right now, and a former Sunderland man is at the heart of it.

Former Sunderland midfielder Claudio Reyna is embroiled in a bizarre US Soccer scandal about his son that features blackmail allegations.

This week, US head coach Gregg Berhalter went public over physically abusing his wife Rosalind 31 years ago in 1991.

“Now is the time for me to publicly share some personal information which a third party has used against my family and me,” he said on his Twitter account.

“During the World Cup, an individual contacted US 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 US Soccer.

“One night, while out drinking at a local bar, Rosalind and I had a heated argument that continued outside. It became physical and I kicked her in the legs.

“There are zero excuses for my actions that night; it was a shameful moment and one that I regret to this day.”

As it turns out, the ‘individual’ contacting US Soccer was Claudio Reyna’s wife, Danielle, who was incensed about Berhalter saying Gio Reyna would not be used much in the World Cup due to what he believed was a lack of effort in training.

For context, at the heart of this is a family feud. Claudio Reyna and Gregg Berhalter were teammates at youth level and international level for the USMNT. Meanwhile, Danielle Reyna played alongside Rosalind Berhalter at the University of North Carolina and their friendship developed further when their husbands played together for the US.

The two women were actually due to travel to Qatar together, but they cancelled those plans due to what they described as a ‘flare-up.’

It is now clear that the argument was over Gregg Berhalter’s treatment of Gio Reyna at the World Cup. Danielle has admitted it was her who informed US Soccer sporting director Earnie Stewart about the coach’s past incident with his wife, but denied it was a blackmail attempt to try to strongarm him into giving her son more involvement at the World Cup.

“To set the record straight, I did call Earnie Stewart on December 11, just after the news broke that Gregg had made negative statements about my son Gio at a leadership conference,” she said in a 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.

“As part of that conversation, I told Earnie that I thought it was especially unfair that Gio, who had apologized for acting immaturely about his playing time, was still being dragged through the mud when Gregg had asked for and received forgiveness for doing something so much worse at the same age.

“Without going into detail, the statements from yesterday significantly minimize the abuse on the night in question. Rosalind Berhalter was my roommate, teammate and best friend, and I supported her through the trauma that followed.

Danielle and Claudio Reyna during their playing days (1998)

“It took a long time for me to forgive and accept Gregg afterward, 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.

“At the time I called Earnie, many people were trashing Gio on social media due to Gregg's comments, and I didn't know when or if this would stop.

“I just wanted Earnie to help make sure that there would be no further unwarranted attacks on my son. I thought our conversation would remain in confidence, and it didn't occur to me at the time that anything I said could lead to an investigation.

“I'm not criticizing Earnie here. I very much commend the recent efforts by US Soccer to address abuse of women players, and I understand now he had an obligation to investigate what I shared.

“But I want to be very clear that I did not ask for Gregg to be fired, I did not make any threats, and I don't know anything about any blackmail attempts, nor have I ever had any discussions about anyone else on Gregg's staff— I don't know any of the other coaches.

“I did not communicate with anyone in US Soccer about this matter before December 11, and no one else in my family has made any statements to US Soccer regarding Gregg's past at all.

“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.”

Claudio Reyna, meanwhile, has also distanced himself from any allegations of blackmail but says he supports his wife’s actions and he too had spoken to Earnie Stewart about the treatment of his son by Berhalter.

Reyna played 28 times for Sunderland in an injury-plagued three-year spell on Wearside – during which Gio was born in Sunderland – and is currently the sporting director of MLS side Austin FC.

“I support my wife, Danielle, and her statement. I too was upset by Gregg's comments about Gio after the US was out of the World Cup, and I also appealed to Earnie Stewart on December 11 asking him to prevent any additional comments.

“While in Qatar, I shared my frustrations about my son's World Cup experience with a number of close friends, Earnie and Brian McBride among them.

“However, at no time did I ever threaten anyone, nor would I ever do so.”

US Soccer meanwhile, have launched an investigation into Berhalter’s abuse, although they have also said they are taking a very dim view of the behaviour of the Reyna family as well.

“Upon learning of the allegation against US Men's National Team head coach Gregg Berhalter on Dec. 11, 2022, US Soccer immediately hired Alston & Bird LLP to conduct an independent investigation into the matter,” a US Soccer statement read.

“Through this process, US Soccer has learned about potential inappropriate behaviour towards multiple members of our staff by individuals outside of our organization.

“We take such behaviour seriously and have expanded our investigation to include those allegations.

“We appreciate Gregg and Rosalind coming forward to speak openly about this incident. Consistent with our commitment to transparency, we will share the results of the investigation publicly when it is complete. US Soccer condemns violence of any kind and takes such allegations very seriously.

“Last month, US Soccer launched a full technical review of our Men's National Team Program. With the review and investigation ongoing, US Soccer will announce who will lead the January Men's National Team camp in the coming days. We look forward to building off the performance in Qatar and preparing for the journey towards 2026.”