USA vs Serbia live stream, TV channel, and lineups for USMNT friendly at BMO Stadium

The U.S. men's national team begins its road towards the 2026 FIFA World Cup with its traditional January camp taking place during a time of uncertainty with the permanent head coach still undecided.

A friendly against Serbia, to be followed just days later by another against South American side Colombia, will be the USMNT's first matches after the run to the Round of 16 of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

With the games falling outside a FIFA international window and most of the U.S. starters busy playing important roles for their European-based clubs, it gives the USMNT a chance to hand the up-and-comers an opportunity to prove they belong.

LIVE BLOG: Follow with highlights, commentary, more as USA takes on Serbia

That team is led by assistant coach Anthony Hudson, who takes temporary charge while U.S. Soccer reviews the status of World Cup head coach Gregg Berhalter. The USMNT boss since December 2018, Berhalter is both out of contract after the World Cup and under investigation following the revelation of an incident of domestic violence that occurred over 30 years ago.

Amidst all that turmoil, a young and inexperienced U.S. squad will get a chance to gain valuable international minutes as the push towards a massive World Cup cycle begins in earnest.

MORE: Gregg Berhalter & Claudio Reyna saga explained as USMNT head coach is investigated

USA vs Serbia live stream, TV channel

• Date: Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2023
• Time: 10 p.m. ET
• TV channel (Spanish): Universo
• Streaming (English): HBO Max
• Streaming (Spanish): fuboTV, Peacock, Telemundo App

The USA vs. Serbia international friendly will be available to watch in English on HBO Max, the first USMNT match following the exclusive rights deal with Turner Sports, which runs through 2030.

The match is also available in Spanish on Universo, which is streamed via fuboTV. The stream can also be accessed by subscribers to NBC streaming platform Peacock.

Just a few days later, the U.S. will take on Colombia from Dignity Health Sports Park, the home of LAFC's rival the LA Galaxy. That match will be shown in English on TNT, as Turner Sports will air select games on its cable properties throughout the year.

Good morning from sunny Carson ☀️ pic.twitter.com/QpMjHhEvej

— U.S. Men's National Soccer Team (@USMNT) January 24, 2023

USA vs Serbia lineups, team news

Fans would be excited to see young midfielder Paxten Aaronson in action, but the way Hudson spoke about him in the pre-match press conference, it would appear his time has not quite yet come, and he's not yet in the lineup. Instead, the more experienced Paxton Pomykal gets a look in the attacking midfield role, ahead of Aidan Morris and Alan Sonora.

Up front, this will be a chance for Brandon Vazquez to impress, a moment he's been waiting quite a while for, overlooked for the World Cup roster despite his great goalscoring form in MLS last season. Matthew Hoppe will need to wait a bit to see his name called at the striker position.

Walker Zimmerman starts and captains the side as the only veteran in the lineup. Exciting young goalkeeper Gaga Slonina, who chose the U.S. over Poland and recently made a big move to Chelsea, gets the start in goal.

USA confirmed starting lineup (4-3-3): Slonina (GK) — Gressel, Zimmerman, Neal, Gomez — A. Morris, Pomykal, Sonora — Zendejas, Vazquez, Cowell.

Our first lineup of 2023. 🇺🇸

Full Lineup Notes » https://t.co/6r5zmn6qsp pic.twitter.com/KqXpxoGmEK

— U.S. Men's National Soccer Team (@USMNT) January 26, 2023

There are very few options for Serbia head coach Dragan Stojkovic with a roster of just 17 players.

MLS fans will recognize the presence of Dejan Joveljic who was exceptional for the LA Galaxy through the middle of last season, scoring 11 goals, with nine of those coming between late May and late August. He is the most-capped player on the Serbian roster with two appearances.

27-year-old Velko Simic captains the side on his first cap, which isn't something you see terribly often. A player to watch off the bench is 21-year-old rising star Marko Ivezic, serving as captain of Serbian side Vozdovac and playing key minutes at defensive midfield this season.

Serbia confirmed starting lineup (4-5-1): D. Petrovic (GK) — N. Petrovic, Veselinovic, Stojic, Mijailovic — Illic, Topic, Lucic, Simic, Petkovic — Joveljic.

✈️ 𝗟𝗢𝗦 𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗦 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/d5niZTWKg0

— Fudbalski savez Srbije | FA of Serbia (@FSSrbije) January 22, 2023

USA vs Serbia roster, squad

Because this match does not fall during a designated FIFA international window, clubs do not have to release players for international duty.

Therefore, both teams have deployed a fringe roster that does not feature many star players on either side, with European-based players mostly absent.

USA squad vs. Serbia, Colombia

The U.S. squad for this match is incredibly young with a sprinkle of established veterans like Walker Zimmerman, Paul Arriola, and Kellyn Acosta alongside recognizable names Sean Johnson and Aaron Long. But besides those mainstays, there is a host of young talent fans will be excited to watch take the field.

Highly touted Gabriel "Gaga" Slonina, who just moved to Chelsea at 18 years old, is part of the squad and should get a look. Fellow teenager Paxten Aaronson, the younger brother of Leeds United and USMNT star Brenden Aaronson, is also on the roster after recently moving to German side Eintracht Frankfurt.

There is also plenty of talk surrounding forward Alejandro Zendejas, who accepted this call-up from the United States as he looks to make a decision on whether to represent the USA or Mexico. Appearing in these two friendlies would not cap-tie Zendejas to the United States, as only competitive fixtures can serve such a purpose, but a positive camp experience would go a long way in swaying his decision away from the southern neighbors. Having represented the United States at the youth level, Zendejas would need to complete a one-time switch to Mexico in order to be eligible to play for El Tri.

"Me siento orgulloso. Es un honor estar aquí y no todos tienen la suerte y la oportunidad de estar aquí."

"I feel proud. It’s an honor to be here and not everyone has the luck and opportunity to be here" - @AlexZendejas8

— U.S. Men's National Soccer Team (@USMNT) January 24, 2023

Serbia squad vs. USA

With the European league season in full swing, Serbia had few options for players to call in given that nearly all of their regulars are in the middle of their club season.

Only three total players on the entire roster have earned a prior senior international cap, and nobody has more than two caps to their name.

A host of players are from mid-table Serbian Superliga clubs Vozdovac, TSC Backa Topola, Cukaricki, and Vojvodina who are all significantly behind the top two clubs Red Star Belgrade and Partizan Belgrade in the title fight. A few players are also based in North America, which allowed for their availability in this match, as it takes place outside a normal FIFA international window.

Below is the full released roster for Serbia in the January, 2023 match against the United States.