On Friday, the 55 players on the United States preliminary roster for a World Cup got an email. For 26 of them, their dreams came true. Their status on the final USMNT roster for this summer’s World Cup on home soil was confirmed.For the rest? Heartbreak.All over the world, club games continued this weekend, including in MLS, which staged its final set of matches before a six-week break for the World Cup. And with the tournament being in such close proximity, it’s impossible not to view the weekend’s slate outside of the World Cup lens. It’s not like the league was shying away from it. Players donned the flags of their nationality (or nationalities in some cases) front and center on their kits, while player numbers on the back were filled with the flags of the 48 nations competing at the World Cup.As it relates to the U.S., that means focus shifted to the players headed to Tuesday’s official roster announcement in Manhattan and those who narrowly missed out. One of the biggest surprise omissions was Real Salt Lake attacking midfielder Diego Luna. He was informed that he is not on the final roster, as first reported by The Athletic. Neither is teammate Zavier Gozo, the 19-year-old who made a strong, late push for the roster but fell just short.“I hurt for the guys,” Real Salt Lake head coach and two-time U.S. World Cup veteran Pablo Mastroeni told the media Saturday. “Disappointed for them, hurt for them.”Friday afternoon, after training and finding out its two stars missed the U.S. roster, RSL flew for a road game against Minnesota United.Gozo impressed again, assisting on a goal in the 1-1 draw. Luna did not travel, which, according to sources briefed on the situation, was predetermined. The club was managing his load after he battled a muscle injury earlier this year. Sources insist Luna did not miss the U.S. roster due to his injury.Nevertheless, Luna’s absence is notable given his importance to the group under Mauricio Pochettino. He played in 17 of the USMNT’s 18 games in 2025 and, while missing some time this season, has played more minutes since March 1 than the likes of Gio Reyna and Malik Tillman, who are part of the final group.Real Salt Lake star Diego Luna has been informed that he will not be part of the USMNT’s World Cup team (Aaron Baker / Imagn Images)“It’s an interesting decision,” Mastroeni said. “In 2025, the national team really leaned on him both as an attacking player and a mentality piece. Pochettino referenced his ability to fight. I just think at the World Cup, where you need difference makers, a guy who is going to come into a game where the stage is never going to be too big.”Like Luna, FC Cincinnati center back Miles Robinson was also left out of his team’s game so as not to risk his summer availability. Conversely, he did make the USMNT roster, sources say.Most players who were also informed they made the roster did play, and, crucially, avoided injury. That included veteran center back Tim Ream, who went 90 minutes for Charlotte FC and marshaled a clean-sheet effort in a win over Matt Turner’s New England Revolution. All three U.S. goalkeepers — Matt Freese, Turner, Chris Brady — played, though Freese’s inability to keep out a near-post header on Nashville’s opener against NYCFC adds to an uneven league showing so far for the presumed U.S. starter.Further up the field, Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder Sebastian Berhalter was excellent in a 4-2 win over San Diego FC, which has his team just a point off the Supporters’ Shield pace set by Nashville at the World Cup break.