The CONCACAF Nation League’s champions are in blistering form, with several players in the form of their lives right now. Jesus Ferreira scored his second hat-trick for the USMNT last night, but which USMNT player has the most hat-tricks? Food for thought.
The USMNT has a rich history of producing great homegrown players who are as much as technical as they are talented. The team has participated in eleven FIFA World Cups, most recently the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. This was their first World Cup appearance since the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
The USMNT is unbeaten in its last eight games in all competitions, winning five and drawing three. The most recent win came against St. Kitts and Nevis in a 6-0 thrashing. It was the second time the team won by a margin of six goals this year after beating Grenada 7-1 three months ago.
Jesus Ferreira Scores Three in CONCACAF Gold Cup
Jesus Ferreira put three at the back of St. Kitts and Nevis’ net in the group stage match of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. This extends the USMNT’s unbeaten streak to eight games. Dorde Mihailovic opened the scoring in the 12th minute before Bryan Reynolds doubled the team’s lead two minutes later.
Jesus Ferreira then went on a rampage, scoring three of the next four goals for the USMNT. He scored in the game’s 16th, 25th, and 50th minutes before Mihailovic grabbed his second on the night in the 79th minute. It was a dominant performance for the United States, which had drawn with Jamaica in the tournament’s opening match.
Ferreira’s hat-trick was his second for the USMNT. His first coincidentally came in June 2022 when he scored four goals against Nevada in the CONCACAF Nations League.
Who Scored the Most Hattricks for the USMNT
Landon Donovan currently holds the record for the most hat-tricks scored for the USMNT with three. He got his first against Cuba in 2003 at the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup. His second came against Ecuador in a friendly match in 2007 before setting a record with another hat-trick in 2012 against Scotland.
Jozy Altidore, Clint Dempsey, and the 22-year-old Jesus Ferreira all have two hat-tricks to their names, cementing their place in the history of the USMNT.
Jesus Ferreira, at 22, has enough time to break Landon Donovan’s record and set a new one. He’ll have the chance to have another go at it when the USMNT turns out against Trinidad and Tobago in the final group stage fixture of the CONCACAF Gold Cup on July 3rd.
Who Holds the Record for Most Hattricks in International Football
Cristiano Ronaldo has scored ten hat-tricks for his native Portugal, the most by any player for their country on the international stage. He became the first player ever to reach ten hat-tricks in international football when he put three past Luxembourg in 2021.
His fiercest rival in football follows him closely with nine, level with Sven Rydell of Sweden, who played between 1924 and 1932. Poul Nielsen of Denmark and Ali Daei of Iran have eight hat-tricks.
The other name on the list is the late Pele of Brazil. The 3-time World Cup winner, who died shortly after the 2022 World Cup, has seven hat-tricks to his name in international football.
