Current State Of The Coaching Carousel In MLS
The 2024 MLS season is still churning on as we are rounding out the Round 1 matchups for the MLS Cup Playoffs. However, for 17 clubs the off-season has begun. With that, clubs around MLS are figuring out their head coaching situations as well. Currently within Major League Soccer there are four head coaching opportunities; Atlanta United FC, FC Dallas, Philadelphia Union, and St. Louis City SC. In recent weeks we’ve seen Austin FC fill their head coaching vacancy with former FC Dallas head coach Nico Estevez, Bruce Arena fill the San Jose Earthquakes vacancy, and Gregg Berhalter be hired as the Chicago Fire’s next manager.
With open opportunities around MLS, there are also a few other clubs to keep eyes on with recent reports floating around. NYCFC manager Nick Cushing has been reported to return back to Europe after this season to take over as the Arsenal Women’s Manager. Columbus Crew manager Wilfried Nancy has been making waves around U.S. soccer in recent years and interest from overseas is HEAVY! So with the cases of NYCFC and Columbus out there, there is a chance there are six MLS jobs open pretty soon.
Who are the top manager options out there right now, especially with top names like Berhalter and Arena off the table? Well we can look at the most MLS head coaches firing list in recent seasons; Jim Curtin, Josh Wolff, Luchi Gonzalez, Robin Fraser, Gio Savarese, Gonzalo Pineda, and Gary Smith. Out of these, I feel like Jim Curtin is the best option. Curtin is a 2x MLS Coach of the Year and did so much with such little spend over his roughly 10 years in Philadelphia. You can also look over at the other American managers who’d be coming into MLS from outside of MLS; Bob Bradley, David Wagner, and Hugo Perez. The big name here is obviously Bob Bradley… who yes I know, does have an MLS background. But, if you’re a big spending club like Atlanta United, how do you not look at one of the most successful MLS managers of all time? David Wagner would be a fun option as a former USMNT player. Wagner brings with him experience managing in the English Premier League, German Bundesliga, English Championship, and Swiss Super League that has to be attractive to MLS front offices. I consider Hugo Perez as more of a “lowkey” hire option, but not a bad option at all! Perez is a former USMNT player who completely turned around the El Salvador National Team and FA in recent years. Perez pushed for better within the entire FA and was loved by his players there. I’d also like to show some love to the USL to MLS manager chain here; Mark Briggs and John Harkes. Harkes has had long term success within the entirety of USL; both with FC Cincinnati and Greenville Triumph. Briggs has maybe been one of the most consistent coaches within USL as he has developed and made Sacramento Republic one of the best clubs in the league.
In an ideal and perfect world for each club and manager… here is what I’d love to see for each opening/potential opening:
Atlanta United FC: Jim Curtin (and hire Chris Henderson under Garth Lagerway)
FC Dallas: Bob Bradley
Philadelphia Union: Mark Briggs
St. Louis City SC: David Wagner
Potentially Columbus Crew SC: Gio Savarese
Potentially New York City FC: Hugo Perez
