U.S. Soccer is set to hire Vlatko Andonovoski as the next head coach of the United States women’s national team. An unveiling in New York City is reportedly scheduled for early next week.
The Reign FC coach will succeed Jill Ellis, who left the position this month after winning back-to-back World Cups with the team. Since Ellis announced her decision in July, Andonovski was considered the top choice for the role given his familiarity with the national team pool through National Women’s Soccer League. A more serious link to the job came earlier this month, when the BBC’s Jo Currie reported that Andonovski was set to take the role.
Per Sports Illustrated‘s Grant Wahl, U.S. Soccer plans to announce Andonovoski as the new coach Monday. Sources tell Pro Soccer USA that Andonovski has yet to put a pen to paper, but it is expected to be done by Friday once the finer details are ironed out so Andonovski can be announced Monday.
Andonovski was reportedly the preferred choice among current USWNT players. With the Reign, Andonovski has coached 2019 World Cup winners Megan Rapinoe and Allie Long, while his years coaching both the Reign and the now-defunct FC Kansas City give him familiarity with the U.S. player pool. Still, Andonovoski’s hire presents some risk, as it would be his first at the international level.
The coaching search was led by the team’s newly appointed general manager, Kate Markgraf. In August, she said she preferred to hire a woman for the role, “but in the end, it will come down to the best candidate regardless of gender.”
Immediately, he will be tasked qualifying and then competing at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. The U.S. did not medal at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, but remains the frontrunner for the gold medal in 2020 after the World Cup victory this year.
Caitlin Murray contributed to this report.