According to the Canadian Press on Monday, Canada Soccer has named Jesse Marsch of Racine, Wisconsin as the new head coach of the men’s national team. He becomes the first American to ever coach Team Canada. This is the first time in Marsch’s career he is the head coach for a national team for any country.
Marsch does have international coaching experience as an assistant. He was with his native country of the United States in 2010 and 2011. At the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, Marsch worked under Bob Bradley, who was the head coach of Toronto FC for three years from 2021 to 2023. At the World Cup from 14 years ago the United States won Group C after defeating Algeria 1-0, and tying England 1-1 and Slovenia 2-2. The United States then made the medal round, but lost to Ghana 2-1 in the round of 16.
It should be noted that Marsch has experience coaching in Canada before. He was the head coach of the Montreal Impact in Major League Soccer in 2011 and 2012. Marsch also coached the New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer from 2015 to 2018, Red Bull Salzburg in Austria from 2019 to 2021, RB Leipzig in Germany in 2022, and Leeds United in England in 2022 and 2023. While with the Red Bull, Marsch was the MLS Coach of the Year in 2015. New York had the best regular season record that season at 18 wins, 10 losses and six ties for 60 points.
In 36 games coaching the Impact, Marsch had a record of 12 wins, 17 losses, and seven draws. As a player, Marsch was a midfielder for 14 seasons in Major League Soccer from 1996 to 2o09. He was with DC United from 1996 to 1997, Chicago Fire from 1998 to 2005, and Chivas USA from 2006 to 2009. In 321 MLS appearances, Marsch scored 31 goals. He also had two appearances with the United States National Team.
