AS THE Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) builds up to hosting a World Cup on the North American continent in 2026, followers of English football may recognise some of the names coaching in the region.

Mauricio Pochettino became the latest figure with connections to the English leagues to join the World Cup preparations in Concacaf, taking on the considerable task of ensuring the United States are at least competitive in the 2026 tournament they will co-host alongside Canada and Mexico.

One of the more intriguing moves is Jamaica’s recent appointment of former Middlesbrough and England manager Steve McLaren, who rose to prominence as a coach at Manchester United under Alex Ferguson after a successful stint with Derby.

The recent international break saw McLaren’s first games as head coach of the team nicknamed the Reggae Boyz, as he also acclimatised to some of the local lingo in typical fashion.

Before the World Cup qualifiers resume in June, there are Concacaf Nations League matches to contend with.

It was in this competition that Jamaica only managed to draw 0-0 with Cuba in Kingston in McLaren’s first game in charge.

It was a game they would be expected to win, and they created more than enough chances to do so, but just couldn’t find the net.

Cuba’s goalkeeper, Raiko Arozarena, who plays his club football in the US second tier for USL Championship side Las Vegas Lights, put in an outstanding display to keep Jamaica at bay even once Cuba had gone down to 10 men.

To go with Jamaica’s wastefulness in front of goal, Cuba might also be better than expected in this group as they managed to draw their next game 1-1 with Nicaragua, though they should have won.

Cuba were 1-0 up from the 42nd minute, but Nicaragua equalised in the seventh minute of stoppage time at the end of the game.

McLaren’s first win as Jamaica's head coach did come in this international break, though, in what will be their most difficult fixture of this Nations League group.

The two games against Honduras will be the toughest tests, and the raucous atmosphere at the Estadio Nacional Chelato Ucles in the Honduran capital city of Tegucigalpa on Tuesday night made things even more uncomfortable.

Honduras had opened their Nations League campaign with a convincing 4-0 defeat of Trinidad and Tobago — a statement win that sent a message to the rest of the teams in Group B.

Jamaica took the lead in Tegucigalpa through a Denil Maldonado own goal, but David Ruiz of Inter Miami levelled the scores. West Ham striker Michail Antonio eventually secured the win for Jamaica, scoring from the penalty spot.

“In the game against Cuba, we had a lot of opportunities we didn’t take,” Antonio said following the win in Honduras.

“Today we scored and managed to get the win. Obviously, we want to finish top of the table.

“Given all the chances we missed in the first half, we are happy to get the win.”

Teams that progress from the Nations League group stage will go on to face one of Mexico, Canada, Panama, or the United States — the top four seeded teams who get a bye to the quarter-finals which take place in the November international break.

The knockout stages of this tournament throw up the possibility of a meeting between McLaren’s Jamaica and Pochettino’s United States after the Argentinian was announced as the new head coach of the 2026 World Cup co-hosts last week.

Before then, Jamaica need to navigate this tricky group stage. In the October international break, they travel to Nicaragua before facing Honduras again, this time at home.

“I always knew this country had unbelievable potential and talent,” McLaren said on taking the Jamaica job.

“I was a technical expert for Fifa for two years working on the ecosystem which analysed every country in the world. I analysed about 20, of which Jamaica were one.

“After doing the analysis and the report three years ago, Jamaica has always been in the back of my mind because it was the one country in which the potential and the talent is here.”

Another familiar name now coaching in the region is Jesse Marsch, the former Leeds United coach who has Canada currently looking like the strongest of the World Cup host nations.

Pochettino’s job will be to make sure the United States overtake Canada to reach that status going into the World Cup, but he has his work cut out.

During this international break, the US men’s team, under interim coach Mikey Varas, lost to Canada on home soil for the first time since 1957 and could only draw with New Zealand.

Once World Cup qualifying resumes next year, other familiar English football names that can be spotted coaching in the region include former QPR midfielder Mikele Leigertwood at Antigua and Barbuda, ex-Leeds midfielder Lee Bowyer at Montserrat, ex-Wigan defender Emmerson Boyce with Barbados, former Ipswich forward Chris Kiwomya at the British Virgin Islands, and Stern John, who played for several English clubs, now coaching Saint Lucia.

From the nations on the continent that will host the World Cup, to the island nations in the Caribbean looking to qualify against the odds, there is plenty to look out for in the region and plenty of links to English football.