Cole Campbell has spent the last two years rerouting his football career, and now that path has led him to a US men's national team call-up. The 20-year-old forward, Elversberg's record signing this season after joining the Bundesliga newcomer from Borussia Dortmund in July, has been named to his first senior camp under head coach Mauricio Pochettino.
Just days before the official call-up, Campbell said the news would be \"a dream come true.\" He got his wish. \"Since Day 1 of switching, the support and the atmosphere around the federation has been amazing,\" Campbell told reporters this week. \"The coaches that I've had, the people that I've had the honor of working with, have been great. The support and the trust that I've felt from the federation has been great.\"
Born in Houston, Campbell switched his international allegiance from Iceland to the United States two years ago, a decision he says he made with the encouragement of former Icelandic-American forward Aron Johannsson. \"I grew up in the U.S., so it's an honor to represent my country,\" he said. \"I'm very happy that I made the step to change from Iceland to the U.S. I will not have any second thoughts or speak about different things, because that's what I want. I want to play for my country.\"
The call-up comes as Pochettino uses his first camp since the World Cup to reshape the squad. The 28-player roster includes eight teenagers and 12 newcomers, and it leaves out several World Cup veterans, including Christian Pulisic and Folarin Balogun.
A family steeped in the game
Football runs through Campbell's family. His mother, Rakel Karvelsson, is a former Iceland international who won two national championships at the University of North Carolina, played for Iceland's Breidablik, and spent a season with the Philadelphia Charge in the Women's United Soccer Association. \"My mom knows so much about football,\" Campbell said, laughing. \"She tells me sometimes, 'Hey, you can do this' (and) also gives me another side. Having a mom that played football, it's great. I can also train with her.\"
His father Lance, a former college soccer player, used to drive an hour each way so a young Cole could train with Atlanta United's academy after the family moved to Peachtree City, Georgia, in 2015. Campbell also spent time in Iceland, where at 15 he became the second-youngest player in FH's history to debut in the top division.
Leaving Dortmund for playing time
Campbell signed with Dortmund in 2022 and worked through the club's youth and reserve sides before making his senior debut in 2024, collecting seven competitive appearances across the Bundesliga, the Champions League and the DFB-Pokal. He spent the second half of last season on loan at Hoffenheim before deciding to look for a permanent move.
\"I needed to get minutes for my career, to play a lot more and play a bigger role than what I had at Dortmund,\" Campbell said. \"The move for me was very important. Now I'm getting minutes, which is the most important for me to develop and to become the best player that I can be. The step in my career was the right one, and I'm happy that I came here.\"
Campbell signed a four-year contract with Elversberg through June 2030, and German outlet Kicker reported the club paid a record $7 million to Dortmund to sign him. \"Obviously, there's pressure that comes with it,\" he said. \"But, on the other side, there's also a lot of trust from them to believe in me. Since I've been here, I've felt very good. Everyone in the club is supporting each other. The pressure I put on myself to perform was already there.\"
Settling in at the Bundesliga's smallest club town
Elversberg plays out of Spiesen-Elversberg, a town of about 13,000 people that Campbell notes is the smallest to ever host a Bundesliga club. He says it's the kind of place where people recognize him on the street and wish him luck before matches. The club opened the season with two straight wins before losing 2-1 to Bayern Munich last week, a game in which they were level for 11 minutes after equalizing until Harry Kane scored the winner in the 72nd minute.
Campbell scored his first Bundesliga goal in the season-opening win over Bayer Leverkusen and has become a regular starter for the newly promoted side. \"Coming up in the Bundesliga as a new team, no one really expects anything from us. I think the expectation was actually quite the opposite of what we've already shown,\" he said. \"We didn't get the result that we wanted [against Bayern], but we still, as a team, played well. It was an amazing experience and something we can take and try to learn from and see what we can improve.\"
Leaning on faith through a difficult stretch
Campbell, who once listed the Ballon d'Or and the World Cup among his career goals, has had to adjust his expectations at times over the last two years when playing time wasn't guaranteed. He says his faith has helped him through it. \"The things that I learned in these 22 months is something that I would not have learned if things would have happened differently,\" he said. \"The character development that I've had in these two years, my relationship with God has gotten stronger, and my mindset has changed. In the end, I can speak about the frustrations or whatever in the moment, but, without this, then my character wouldn't change. ... Everything happened the way it was supposed to.\"
That mindset also shapes how he handles comparisons to fellow Dortmund alumni like Pulisic and Gio Reyna, who Campbell describes as a good friend even though he has yet to meet Pulisic. \"Being compared to great players is always a good thing,\" he said. \"But, for me, I'm not really focused on the comparison. You know what I believe in? Comparison is the thief of joy. I'm only focused on my career, my path.\"
