Christian Pulisic is no stranger to pressure.
He put the USMNT on his back as a teenager during the failed 2018 qualifying cycle, played in and won a German Cup final at 18, took on the burden of a $70 million price tag at Chelsea, played in and won a Champions League final there and has continued to handle the strain of being the national team's game-changer in the final third with incredible consistency, like Landon Donovan before him but without the emergence of a Clint Dempsey to work with.
But nothing from his past will serve as anecdotal wisdom in Qatar as he undergoes the singular experience of 330 million Americans (the vast majority of them four-year fans) turning to their token soccer buddies on Nov. 21 when the USMNT opens against Wales and asking, "So, which one of these fellas is any good?"
"Pulisic, right there in the number 10," the Soccer Fan will say.
The vast majority of those 330 million will then find him on the screen and immediately expect a recreation of Maradona's "Goal of the Century." Now that's pressure.
In a new 60-second spot promoting Volkswagen's 2022 electric SUV, the ID.4, Pulisic takes on the demands of all, including Clint Dempsey, Brett Goldstein (Ted Lasso) and Martin Tyler.
Christian Pulisic Volkswagen Commercial
VW of America signed a three-year deal to represent U.S. Soccer back in 2019, and Pulisic signed on later as Brand Ambassador. The first car Pulisic ever drove while playing for Borussia Dortmund earlier in his career was actually a VW Polo.
The commercial, "Diamonds," debuts Saturday, Aug. 6, with the start of the 2022-23 English Premier League season. It's going to be aired across ESPN, Bleacher Report, FOX, NBC, CBS, FuboTV, TBS, HBO Max, Hulu and Peacock — as well as the Emmy Awards, "The Tonight Show," "Late Night with Seth Meyers" and "20/20" — so get ready to see a lot of it.
