After the U.S. women’s national team suffered their earliest exit ever from the World Cup, Vlatko Andonovski is out as the team’s head coach, according to Nancy Armour at USA Today.
Andonovski was hired in late 2019 to succeed Jill Ellis, who had guided the USWNT to back-to-back World Cup championships in 2015 and 2019. Under Andonovski – who previously had only coached at the club level before taking over the top job in U.S. women’s soccer – the Americans finished third at the 2021 Olympics and were eliminated in the Round of 16 at the 2023 World Cup, falling in a grueling penalty shootout against Sweden. In the previous eight World Cups, the U.S. had never finished short of the semifinals.
The USWNT looked beatable at the end of the group stage, as they finished it with one win, two draws and just four goals scored. The Americans were publicly criticized – often unfairly – for their shortcomings.
It seems that Andonovski – who had a record of 51-5-9 as USWNT coach – is taking the blame. And now that he’s out, speculation begins as to who the next USWNT coach will be going forward as the 2024 Olympics approach.
Here’s a few names that could be considered.
Twila Kilgore
According to The Athletic and ESPN, Twila Kilgore will be the team’s interim head coach as a search takes place and could be on the sidelines when the Americans face South Africa for a pair of friendlies in September. Kilgore joined Andonovski’s staff as an assistant in February 2022. She has spent several seasons coaching U.S. youth national teams and was an assistant for the NWSL’s Houston Dash before joining Andonovski’s staff. Before the Dash, she coached in college at UC-Davis and Pepperdine.
It’s probably unlikely that Kilgore will get the job full-time, but if she impresses as an interim, she could gain momentum.
Laura Harvey
Laura Harvey interviewed for this job in 2019 but didn’t get it, and then went on to serve under Andonovski as the U-20 head coach where she led the young American women to a CONCACAF Championship in 2020. Harvey is a three-time NWSL Coach of the Year and also led Arsenal to multiple championships. She has previously publicly expressed her desire for the job and will likely be a top candidate this time around.
However, despite her accomplishments, those opposed to a Harvey hire could argue that she’s too similar to Andonovski in her coaching philosophy and style.
Laura Harvey has just made her first public comments on the #USA's exit from the #FIFAWWC.
Including on her knowing she'll be in the headlines as a candidate to succeed Vlatko Andonovski as #USWNT manager:#BeyondGreatness pic.twitter.com/J9248CUAtQ
— Jonathan Tannenwald (@thegoalkeeper) August 7, 2023
Tony Gustavsson
Gustavsson is currently the head coach of Australia and just guided the Matildas to their best-ever World Cup finish as they reached the semifinals on their home soil. But before he took over Australia, Gustavsson was the top assistant for Ellis as the U.S. women won World Cups in 2015 and 2019. He knows this team well and he just proved his bonafides as a head coach on the world’s biggest stage.
Hervé Renard
This would very much be an outside-the-box hire. Before taking the reins of France’s women’s team this year, he was largely a men’s coach. But the fact is that Renard has been a successful coach no matter the country, club or gender. He led both the Zambia men and the Ivory Coast men to championships in the Africa Cup of Nations. He also served as head coach for the men’s teams in Morocco and Saudi Arabia, helping both qualify for World Cups during his tenure. He was hired to lead the French women just six months before this World Cup and guided the team to the quarterfinals.
Renard has shown a knack for getting the most out of his talent, a willingness to take risks, and the ability to win at a high level.
Sarina Wiegman
This would be the biggest swing the USWNT brass can take, considering Wiegman is about to coach in the World Cup final, having guided England there for the first time ever. Like Renard, Wiegman has won everywhere she’s been. As a player, she won an NCAA title with the North Carolina Tar Heels, and then won two Dutch championships at Ter Leede. She then coached Tar Leede and ADO Den Haag to league championships before guiding the Netherlands to a UEFA championship in 2017 and a runner-up finish in the 2019 World Cup.
As the coach of England, Wiegman’s team once enjoyed a 30-game win streak and is now on the cusp of bringing home its first World Cup. Her contract with England runs through 2025, so it might take a big bag to get her to join the Americans.
