Women in Coaching

Wow! Check This Out - More Women's Job Changes Than Men's

2008-08-05T14:41:00.000-07:00

NCAA Division I Men's & Women's Coaching Moves
Tuesday, Aug 5, 2008 10:30 AM ET

MARSHALL HAS NAMED Kevin Long as interim head coach of the Thundering Herd women's program following the resignation of Chris Kane, who resigned to accept a position at a private academy in Georgia. For all the coaching moves ...

NCAA DIVISION I MEN
COLLEGE ... OLD COACH ... NEW COACH
APPALACHIAN STATE Paul Stahlschmidt ... Shaun Pendleton (Lynn coach)
CENTENARY Eric Mayo ... David Orr (Texas Longhorns director of coaching)
DUKE John Rennie ... John Kerr Jr. (Harvard coach)
HARVARD John Kerr Jr. (Duke coach) ... Jamie Clark (Notre Dame assistant)
MERCER Tom Melville (Savannah College of Art & Design) ... Brad Ruzzo (Bradley assistant)
SIENA Charlie Curto ... Gareth Elliott (Rhode Island assistant)
SMU Schellas Hyndman (FC Dallas coach) ... Tim McClements (SMU assistant)
VILLANOVA Larry Sullivan ... Tom Carlin (Villanova assistant)
WOFFORD Matt Kern ... Ralph Polson (College of Charleston assistant)

NCAA DIVISION I WOMEN
COLLEGE ... OLD COACH ... NEW COACH
AKRON Catherine Byrne ... Chris Pfau (Evansville coach)
ALABAMA Don Staley ... Todd Bramble (Clemson coach)
AMERICAN Michael Brady (Duke men's assistant) ... David Bucciero (Boston U. associate)
ARKANSAS-LITTLE ROCK Greg Hess ... Freddy Delgado (Louisiana-Monroe assistant)
BALL STATE Michelle Salmon (Cincinnati coach) ... Michael Lovett (Virginia Tech assistant)
BAYLOR George Van Linder ... Marci Miller Jobson (Northern Illinois coach)
BINGHAMTON Jeff Leightman (San Jose State coach) ... Sarah McClellan (Binghamton assistant)
BUFFALO Jean-A Tassy ... Michael Thomas (Denver assistant)
CANISIUS Meagan Dougherty ... Jim Wendling (Urbana head coach)
CINCINNATI Meridy Glenn ... Michelle Salmon (Ball State coach)
CLEMSON Todd Bramble (Alabama coach) ... Hershey Strosberg (Virginia assistant)
DELAWARE STATE Matthew Okoh ... Nitan Soni (Temple men's assistant)
DRAKE Corbin Stone ... Lindsey Horner (Drake assistant)
ELON Chris Webb ... Chris Neal (UNC Wilmington assistant)
EVANSVILLE Chris Pfau (Akron coach) ... Krista McKendree (Evansville assistant)
GREEN BAY Quinn Ross ... Trevor Warren (Northern Iowa assistant)
IOWA STATE Rebecca Hornbacher ... Wendy Dillinger (Washington Univ. coach)
JACKSONVILLE Chris Kouns ... Brian Copham (Jacksonville assistant)
LAMAR Matthew Dillon ... Dewi Hardman
LIBERTY James Price ... Jessica Celi (Charlotte Lady Eagles assistant)
LOYOLA (MD.) John Byford ... Katherine Remy Vettori
MARSHALL Chris Kane ... Kevin Long (Rider coach)
MICHIGAN Debbie Rademacher ... Greg Ryan
NEVADA Antoinette Marjanovic-interim ... Jaime Frias (Stephen F. Austin coach)
NJIT Alyssa Radu (UMBC coach) ... Kevin Leacock (NJIT assistant)
NORTH DAKOTA Brock Thompson ... Kristen Gay (North Dakota assistant coach)
NORTHERN ILLINOIS Marci Miller Jobson (Baylor coach) ... Carrie Barker (Wisconsin assistant)
NORTHERN IOWA Kathy Kakoyianni-Bering ... Jennifer Plante (Northern Iowa assistant)
OKLAHOMA Randy Evans ... Nicole Nelson (Texas assistant)
ORAL ROBERTS Kyle Cussen (Tulsa coach) ... Ryan Bush (Oral Roberts men's assistant)
OREGON STATE Steve Fennah ... Linus Rhode (Oregon State associate)
PORTLAND STATE Tim Bennett ... Laura Schott (Portland assistant)
RIDER Kevin Long ... Drayson Hounsome (C.W. Post coach)
SAM HOUSTON STATE Marcia Oliviera (South Dakota) ... Tom Brown (Angelo State head coach)
SAN JOSE STATE Dave Siracusa ... Jeff Leightman (Binghamton head coach)
SOUTH CAROLINA STATE Amy Olson ... Glad Bugariu (Belmont Abbey coach)
SOUTH DAKOTA Becky Heiberger ... Marcia Oliviera (South Dakota)
STEPHEN F. AUSTIN Jaime Frias (Nevada coach) ... George Van Linder (Baylor coach)
SYRACUSE Patrick Farmer ... Phil Wheddon (U.S. national team goalie coach)
TENNESSEE TECH Carrie Proost .. Becky Fletcher (Auburn assistant)
TROY STATE Diana Niland ... Chris Bentley (Troy assistant)
TULSA Rena Richardson ... Kyle Cussen (Oral Roberts coach)
UMBC Tara Koleski ... Alyssa Radu (NJIT coach)
VALPARAISO Stephen Anthony ... John Marovich (Valparaiso assistant)
VERMONT Kerry Dziczkaniec ... Kwame Lloyd (Christopher Newport coach)
VILLANOVA Ann Clifton ... John Byford (Loyola, Md., coach)
WISCONSIN-GREEN BAY Quinn Ross ... Trevor Warren (Northern Iowa assistant)
WYOMING Anne Moore ... Danny Sanchez (Metro State coach)

Links: Emma Hayes Announced Head Coach of the Chicago Red Stars

2008-06-18T10:54:00.001-07:00

Soccer Science Blog
http://www.amandavandervort.com/blog/2008/05/top-5-reasons-emma-hayes-is-perfect-choice-for-chicago/

Chicago Sun-Times
www.suntimes.com/sports/soccer/953150,CST-SPT-womsoc16.article

Chicago Tribune:
http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/soccer/fire/cs-080515-emma-hayes-chicago-womens-soccer-club,1,4050515.story

Daily Southtown
http://www.southtownstar.com/sports/953290,051608sptshorts.article

Yahoo Sports
http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news?slug=ap-chicagowomen-coach&prov=ap&type=lgns

The Daily Herald
http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=191433#comment

Soccer America
http://www.socceramerica.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Articles.showArticleHomePage&art_aid=26556

WQAD News
http://www.wqad.com/Global/story.asp?S=8330265

US Soccer Players
http://ussoccerplayers.typepad.com/ussoccerplayers/2008/05/chicago-wps-get.html

The Dane's Head
http://thedaneshead.org/show/137906/Hayes-to-coach-new-Chicago-women's-soccer-team-(AP)

Women's Pro Soccer
http://www.womensprosoccer.com/newsitem_ektid2726.aspx

Chicagoland Soccer News

http://www.chicagolandsoccernews.com/article.php?article_id=4282

Big Apple Soccer
http://www.bigapplesoccer.com/article.php?article_id=14023

Chicago Tribune
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/wire/chi-ap-soc-chicagowomen-coa,0,7531368.story

KWQC News
http://www.kwqc.com/Global/story.asp?S=8330265&nav=menu83_4

USA Today
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/soccer/2008-05-15-1159995210_x.htm

Fair Game Magazine
http://www.shekicks.net/news/index.php?&newsmode=FULL&nid=5051

Beau Dure's USA Today blog
http://www.usatoday.com/community/profile.htm?UID=1e704431d89e7993&plckController=PersonaBlog&plckScript=personaScript&plckElementId=personaDest&plckPersonaPage=BlogViewPost&plckPostId=Blog%3a1e704431d89e7993Post%3a315f049a-a5ca-4a90-9a4e-bf64323dbde5

Women's Sports Nation (Talkshoe.com)
http://www.womenssportsnation.com/2008/05/head-coach-named-for-chicagos-wps-team.html

Big Soccer Forum
http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=693773

Bester News
http://www.besternews.com/sports/soccer/

AOL News
http://news.aol.com/story/_a/hayes-to-coach-new-chicago-womens-soccer/n20080515182609990001?ecid=RSS0001

International Herald Tribune
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/05/15/sports/SOC-Chicago-Women-Coach.php

MSN FoxSports
http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/story/8144304/Hayes-to-coach-new-Chicago-women's-soccer-team?CMP=OTC-K9B140813162&ATT=176

Chicago Examiner
http://www.examiner.com/a-1393587~Hayes_to_coach_new_Chicago_women_s_soccer_team.html

Soccer Scene USA Blog
http://soccersceneusa.blogspot.com/2008_05_01_archive.html#6266195830871046668

Women's Soccer USA Blog
http://womenssoccerusa.blogspot.com/

The Daily Journal
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SOC_CHICAGO_WOMEN_COACH_ILOL-?SITE=ILKAN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-05-15-18-10-57

Netscape News
http://webcenters.netscape.compuserve.com/sports/story.jsp?idq=/ff/story/0030/20080515/1732662676.htm

Arsenal News
http://www.arsenalnews.net/comments/45091/arsenal_coach_to_lead_chicagos_womens_pro_soccer_team/

Arsenal News 2
http://www.arsenal.com/article.asp?article=491546&lid=NewsHeadline⊂=Hayes+announces+departure+from+Club&sublid=NewsHeadline&Title=Hayes+announces+departure+from+Club&f=rss

Sports Illustrated
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/soccer/wires/05/15/2050.ap.na.spt.soc.women.chicago.coach.0186/index.html

Be Recruited
http://news.berecruited.com/2008/05/15/hayes-to-coach-new-chicago-womens-soccer-team-ap/

ESPN SoccerNet
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=535635&cc=5901

WTHITV
http://www.wthitv.com/Global/story.asp?S=8330265&nav=menu593_4

Article: Julie Foudy, You Are ESPN’s Weakest Link, Goodbye!

2008-06-18T10:51:00.000-07:00

From EPLTalk.com.

At the start of the Euro 2008 tournament, ESPN pundits were asked who was going to be their star of the tournament. Pundit Julie Foudy picked Thierry Henry. Her choice showed how clueless she is about the sport...

Read more, and comment here.

Lady Vols suspend soccer coach for season opener

2008-04-11T16:36:00.000-07:00

The University of Tennessee has fined women's soccer coach Angela Kelly and suspended her for one game for using an ineligible athlete in an indoor tournament in February.

Kelly was fined $500 and suspended from the first regular-season game of the fall 2008 season.

For the full article, click here.

Elisabeth Loisel Let Go From Chinese National Team

2008-03-25T16:39:00.000-07:00

From this page.

BEIJING (AFP) - China's Football Association has decided to end bitter infighting on the women's national team by firing French coach Elisabeth Loisel, reports said Thursday.

Football association leaders met in Beijing earlier this week and decided to fire Loisel, 44, less than five months after giving her the task of leading the team to a silver medal at this summer's Beijing Olympics, the reports said.

An association official declined to confirm the reports to AFP but said that an announcement would be made in the coming days.

Sina.com, a popular news website, said the decision brought to an end the darkest period in the history of Chinese women's football, marked by poor results and public disputes between the coach and team officials.

Loisel has endured a fractious relationship with players and officials during her five months in the job, with problems coming to a head after China finished ninth in the recent Algarve Cup in Portugal.

The coach went on vacation in France following the Portuguese tournament and had been expected to report back here for team duty next week.

The association will have to pay Loisel about 800,000 yuan (113,000 dollars) in compensation for ending her contract early, according to the Beijing News, which quoted an official as saying "we would rather pay the money than have her back."

Loisel took over in October 2007 after her predecessor, Swedish coach Marika Domanski-Lyfors, abruptly quit after a poor run in the women's World Cup last year and amid reports of disputes with association bureaucrats.

Loisel, the former French national coach, blamed her problems in China on the team's general manager Zhang Jianqiang whom she accused of sabotaging her work.

China is now searching for their fifth women's football coach since the Athens Olympics less than four years ago.

According to media reports, the association now plans to appoint a Chinese coach.

NSCAA Women's Committee Algarve Cup Symposium

2008-03-17T12:16:00.001-07:00

Due to the wonderful generosity of one of our members, the NSCAA Women's Committee was able to sponsor Erin Lycan's trip to our Algarve Cup Symposium. Former US national team coach, April Heinrichs, and US national team psychologist, Dr. Colleen Hacker, presented to the group. Pia Sunhage appears to have stopped by as well.

We're looking forward to the full details, but until Erin puts together her write-up, here are a few pictures she took!

(There's Erin in the middle with April and Colleen.)

Janet Rayfield's Illini defeat Mexico

2008-03-11T15:57:00.000-07:00

Peter Wilt, Chicago WPS Prez, blogs about the game here.

"The Chicago WPS staff - Marcia McDermott, Alyse LaHue and i - saw an action packed women's soccer game between the University of Illinois and the Mexico National Team at the beautiful Loyola Soccer Park. Here's the punch line: the match was last night!"

Patraw whistle blower complaint dismissed

2008-03-10T21:47:00.000-07:00

Click here for the entire article.

Nevada State Personnel Commission Administrative Hearing Officer Bill Kockenmeister has dismissed the Whistle Blower complaint filed by former Nevada women's soccer coach Terri Patraw.

The lawsuit that Patraw has filed against the school and several of its officials is still pending. Patraw was effectively fired by the school before the start soccer season last fall.

"It appears to the undersigned administrative hearing officer, based on a review of the extensive written record and the demeanor of the numerous witnesses, that Petitioner (Patraw) was terminated because of the reasons discussed by Ms. Groth," said Kockenmiester in releasing his decision. "That is, that Petitioner consistently failed to follow the directions of her supervisors, (associate athletic director) Ms. (Cindy) Fox and (athletic director) Ms. (Cary) Groth, that Ms. Groth lost confidence in Petitioner after the anonymous emails were sent, and that Petitioner's constant threats of resignation and complaints about her salary had a negative impact on the athletics department."

"We expected this decision based on the facts," Groth said. "We are pleased with the decision and we will continue to focus our energies on moving our program forward with integrity."

A post by Tonya Antonucci on her blog

2008-03-10T14:41:00.000-07:00

From: http://www.womensprosoccer.com/blogs_ektid1110.aspx

Kindred spirits in soccer, fans of the beautiful game…

Welcome to the first installment of the Women’s Professional Soccer Commissioner’s blog, where you can expect to hear everything you read in the press releases repeated in my flowery words. Okay, not so much…

Instead, let’s get real and set a tone early that I’ll endeavor to take you up the elevator to the board room, inside the locker room, and put your toes on the sidelines to bring you closer to the story behind the story. I’ll share insights into the inner workings of our new league that the average fan (you) would actually find quite compelling. Or at least entertaining.
All with the goal of not losing my job in the process, of course.

So first and foremost, so that the topics covered in this blog are truly interesting as we birth this league with a due date of April 2009…what is on your mind about Women’s Professional Soccer?

What do you really want to know about the new league? What do you need to see, hear or believe in to become the biggest, most passionate, rabid fan of WPS or a WPS team that you can be? Or alternatively the biggest naysayer. Hey, I’ll take those too, as long as you’re talking about us.

Because just like Uncle Sam says, we need you.

Maybe you thought WUSA was great, maybe you didn’t. Or you didn’t even know that much about it to care. But this time around, pay attention. And if you believe, don’t be shy. Show your true colors.

And not to be too cheesy, but in each of these installments you’ll see a real customer promise, from us to you, the fan:
WPS will earn your respect with hard work on and off the pitch, dazzling feats of athleticism and fitness and gutsy competition every game, and old-school sports entertainment by amazing women with heart--who simply love the game and their fans.
We’re WPS and our journey has begun. So send in those questions and get on our train. Not because we deserve it, but because you the fan do.

Pia Sunhage from the Algarve Cup

2008-03-10T10:16:00.001-07:00

The United States defeated Italy 2-0 this weekend. Head Coach Pia Sundhage said, "We played under pressure and that's a good feeling. They were a little stressed about that and that was a good feeling to deal with," Sundhage said. "At halftime we talked about knocking it around even a little bit more even though they were putting us under pressure. I think they tried at least and next game, they will do even better."

Elizabeth Loisel - China women's football coach facing axe

2008-02-13T10:43:00.000-08:00

BEIJING (AFP) — China's new women's football coach is already facing the axe after repeated clashes with officials, including a furious row over a hotpot dinner, state media reported Wednesday.
Frenchwoman Elisabeth Loisel, who was appointed in October, is likely to be sacked if the "Steel Roses" disappoint at next week's East Asian Cup, reports said.
"She is walking on a knife-edge," Titan Sports Weekly said. "Her only chance will be to win the East Asian Cup."
Loisel is apparently locked in a feud with Chinese team management with her ability and training methods also coming under fire in domestic media.

Click here for more.

Women's Pro League Unveils Plans

2008-02-01T10:29:00.000-08:00

By Paul Kennedy, Soccer America

After more than three years of work on the startup, a new women's pro league moved one step closer to reality with Thursday's announcement that it will be called Women's Professional Soccer (WPS).

"Today's a day for celebration," said Tanya Antonucci, the WPS commissioner who has overseen the project since being talked into it at a gathering of Stanford soccer alumni -- she played for the Cardinal in the mid-1980s -- shortly after she left Yahoo!, where she served as general manager of its World Cup partnership with FIFA.

Without teams (until last year), coaches or general managers (in most cases) and players (still to assembled after the Olympics), it's been hard for Antonucci to sell the new league, which will begin play in April 2009, but that job got easier Thursday with the unveiling of its new logo, showcasing a silhouette of Mia Hamm, and its website, www.womensprosoccer.com. WPS is also visible this weekend at the NSCAA Convention in Baltimore, where it will hold a Town Hall meeting on Saturday moderated by USA Today columnist Christine Brennan (Baltimore Convention Center, Room 338).

TEAMS. The league previously announced plans for franchises in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New Jersey/New York, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C. Still to be determined is the home for an eighth team. WPS's preference is that team be based on the West Coast, with San Diego, San Jose, Vancouver and the San Francisco Bay Area among the possibilities. Coaches have been hired in Boston (Tony DiCicco) and Washington (Jim Gabarra). Executives on board include Boston Breakers General Manager Joe Cummings, who is serving as senior consulting chief operating officer, and Chicago President and CEO Peter Wilt, who is WPS Marketing Committee Chairman. Both are former MLS executives. WPS's Los Angeles team is owned by AEG, owner of MLS's Los Angeles Galaxy. Each team in an MLS markets is expected to have strategic partnership with the MLS club in that market, whether that's a stadium deal to share revenues or an arms-length agreement.

BUDGETS. Projected team budgets range from $1.9 million to $2.8 million, depending on the market and revenue opportunities. The league hopes to conclude an agreement with the US Women's National Soccer Team Players' Association so national team stars (preparing for the 2008 Olympics) can begin work on promoting the league soon.

PLAYERS. No draft or allocation of players is expected to take place until the Beijing Olympics end in August. Antonucci acknowledged that managing expectations for the new women's league hasn't been easy -- particularly in light of the spectacular collapse of the WUSA in 2003, on the eve of the Women's World Cup. With no dominant foreign league able to sway international women's stars -- the strongest league is Sweden's Damallsvenskan -- WPS will be attractive to many foreign players. Before re-signing with Swedish club Umea for 2008, Brazilian superstar Marta was rumored to be interested in signing with Los Angeles. A maximum of 25 percent of the players on a WPS team can be foreigners, according to U.S. Soccer Division I women's soccer guidelines. No decision has yet been made on minimum and maximum salaries.

NSCAA Women's Committee at the Convention

2008-02-01T10:06:00.000-08:00

"I wanted to share with you that I had such a valuable experience at the convention this year. I think the women's committee has done such an excellent job putting together field and lecture sessions, along with the social and breakfast. It's all very exciting to see and be a part of. The lecture on the "Female Coach: Balance and Longevity" was also an extremely motivating and encouraging session." Steph Mead, University of Vermont Interim Coach

NCAA Division I Coaching Changes

2008-01-31T15:40:00.001-08:00

NCAA DIVISION I WOMEN
COLLEGE ... OLD COACH ... NEW COACH
AKRON Catherine Byrne ... Chris Pfau (Evansville coach)
ALABAMA Don Staley ... Todd Bramble (Clemson coach)
BALL STATE Michelle Salmon (Cincinnati coach) ... TBA
BAYLOR George Van Linder ... Marci Miller Jobson (Northern Illinois coach)
BUFFALO Jean-A Tassy ... Michael Thomas (Denver assistant)
CANISIUS Meagan Dougherty ... TBA
CINCINNATI Meridy Glenn ... Michelle Salmon (Ball State coach)
CLEMSON Todd Bramble (Alabama coach) ... Hershey Strosberg (Virginia assistant)
ELON Chris Webb ... Chris Neal (UNC Wilmington assistant)
EVANSVILLE Chris Pfau (Akron coach) ... TBA
GREEN BAY Quinn Ross ... Trevor Warren (Northern Iowa assistant)
IOWA STATE Rebecca Hornbacher ... Wendy Dillinger (Washington Univ. coach)
JACKSONVILLE Chris Kouns ... Brian Copham (Jacksonville assistant)
LAMAR Matthew Dillon ... TBA
MICHIGAN Debbie Rademacher ... TBA
NEVADA Antoinette Marjanovic-interim ... Jaime Frias (Stephen F. Austin coach)
NORTHERN ILLINOIS Marci Miller Jobson (Baylor coach) ... Carrie Barker (Wisconsin assistant)
OKLAHOMA Randy Evans ... Nicole Nelson (Texas assistant)
ORAL ROBERTS Kyle Cussen (Tulsa coach) ... TBA
SAN JOSE STATE Dave Siracusa ... TBA
SYRACUSE Patrick Farmer ... TBA
TENNESSEE TECH Carrie Proost .. Becky Fletcher (Auburn assistant)
TROY STATE Diana Niland ... Chris Bentley (Troy assistant)
TULSA Rena Richardson ... Kyle Cussen (Oral Roberts coach)
UMBC Tara Koleski ... TBA
VALPARAISO Stephen Anthony ... John Marovich (Valparaiso assistant)
VERMONT Kerry Dziczkaniec ... TBA
VILLANOVA Ann Clifton ... TBA
WYOMING Anne Moore ... Danny Sanchez (Metro State coach)

Women's Soccer USA: Soccer Rehab

2008-01-30T19:01:00.000-08:00

Women's Soccer USA: Soccer Rehab

Franz Beckenbauer hands World Cup keys to Steffi Jones

2008-01-29T15:18:00.000-08:00

The Organising Committee (OC) of the German Football Association (DFB) for the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup opened today, 25 January 2008, its headquarters in Frankfurt, and officially kicked off preparations for the 2011 showpiece.

Franz Beckenbauer, the president of the 2006 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee, whose team earned worldwide plaudits for staging a state-of-the-art event, attended the symbolic ceremony and handed over the headquarters’ key to Steffi Jones, President of the 2011 World Cup OC. “This key should not only enable you to open the doors of your headquarters but also to receive all kind of support both in Germany and abroad”, said the “Kaiser”, who added: “As in 2006, the 2011 World Cup has to be the result of teamwork. Only by joining forces the event will be a success”.

Touched by Beckenbauer’s words, Steffi Jones commented: “I’m thankful for having this support from Franz Beckenbauer”. Jones, a member of the German team that won the 2003 World Cup, highlighted the role of Dr. Theo Zwanziger, the DFB President, who is a fervent promoter and fan of women’s football. “Like our President, I would like to achieve a lot through our OC for the benefit of women’s football, and even beyond the World Cup”.

Source

Ellis named to national team

2008-01-29T15:15:00.000-08:00

UCLA women's soccer coach Jillian Ellis has been named as an assistant coach for the U.S. Women's National team. Here is what Daily News staffer Ramona Shelburne wrote about it:

UCLA women's soccer coach Jillian Ellis has been named as an assistant coach for the U.S. Women's National team.
Ellis, who had been coaching the under-20 national team, had interviewed for the head coaching job this fall, before Pia Sundhage was hired.

She will remain as the head coach at UCLA and said she will not miss any of the Bruins season.

``I'm really fired up about it. I think it's a fantastic opportunity,'' Ellis said. ``I'm really excited to work with her and be in an environment where I can continue to learn. ''

Ellis said that Sundhage originally offered her a position when they met to discuss some of the younger players Ellis had coached on the Under-20 team, that Sundhage was considering for the national team. The two have crossed paths over the years, but didn't know each other well recently.

Ellis will begin her new position on February 1 and stay through at least the 2008 Olympics, provided the U.S. qualifies in April. Tony DiCicco, who coached the U.S. National Team from 1994-99, will replace her as coach of the Under-20 team.

Source

McDermott hired as GM for Chicago's pro women's soccer team

2008-01-11T13:07:00.001-08:00

First Published: 1/8/2008 11:55 AM

Marcia McDermott has been hired as the first general manager of Chicago's new professional women's soccer team, club President and CEO Peter Wilt announced today.

McDermott, who served as the first coach of the WUSA's Carolina Courage and started the women's soccer program at Northwestern University as its first head coach in 1994 will be involved in another women's soccer start up with the 2009 launch of Chicago's first professional women's soccer team.

"I am excited to be returning to Chicago and to professional women's soccer. This league is a critical piece in the development of our sport and I am particularly thrilled to be working for such an ambitious and impressive organization. I look forward to working hard to help create an entertaining and successful professional soccer franchise," McDermott said.

As a player, McDermott captured three NCAA titles at the University of North Carolina including 1986 when she was named an NCAA All-American and served as a team captain. She wore the United States national team colors seven times and has the fifth best strike rate among US players with seven or more caps.

To read more, click here.

Penn State's Walsh to Serve on U.S. Women's National Team Staff

2008-01-11T13:04:00.001-08:00

Sundhage adds Walsh, team heads to Four Nations Tournament

Jan. 9, 2008

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State bench boss Erica Walsh has been tapped by U.S. Women's National Team head coach Pia Sundhage as a part time assistant with the U.S. team and will head to China this week for the Four Nations Tournament in Foshan. Former U.S Under-17 head coach Walsh has been active among the coaching ranks both at the Division I level as well as with the Youth National Team program for nearly a decade including a stint an assistant for the USA at the 2004 FIFA U-19 Women's World Cup in Thailand.

Click here for more.

NCAA DIVISION I WOMEN COACHING CHANGES

2008-01-10T13:56:00.001-08:00

COLLEGE ... OLD COACH ... NEW COACH
ALABAMA Don Staley ... Todd Bramble (Clemson coach)
BALL STATE Michelle Salmon (Cincinnati coach) ... TBA
BAYLOR George Van Linder ... Marci Miller Jobson (Northern Illinois coach)
BUFFALO Jean-A Tassy ... TBA
CINCINNATI Meridy Glenn ... Michelle Salmon (Ball State coach)
CLEMSON Todd Bramble (Alabama coach) ... TBA
ELON Chris Webb ... Chris Neal (UNC Wilmington assistant)
GREEN BAY Quinn Ross ... TBA
IOWA STATE Rebecca Hornbacher ... TBA
JACKSONVILLE Chris Kouns ... TBA
LAMAR Matthew Dillon ... TBA
MICHIGAN Debbie Rademacher ... TBA
NORTHERN ILLINOIS Marci Miller Jobson (Baylor coach) ... TBA
OKLAHOMA Randy Evans ... Nicole Nelson (Texas assistant)
SAN JOSE STATE Dave Siracusa ... TBA
TENNESSEE TECH Carrie Proost .. TBA
TROY STATE Diana Niland ... TBA
TULSA Rena Richardson ... TBA
VERMONT Kerry Dziczkaniec ... TBA
VILLANOVA Ann Clifton ... TBA
WYOMING Anne Moore ... Danny Sanchez (Metro State coach)

Texas assistant Nelson lands Oklahoma women's job

2008-01-10T13:55:00.001-08:00

Thursday, Jan 10, 2008 4:45 PM ET
TEXAS ASSISTANT NICOLE Nelson has crossed the Red River to become the new head soccer coach at Oklahoma.

Nelson had impressive three-year run as the head coach at Stephen F. Austin (2002-04) and successful stints as an assistant coach at Baylor (2005) and Texas (2006-07).

"I am excited to return home to the state of Oklahoma to coach," said Nelson, who attended Mustang High School and graduated from Oklahoma City University. "Having grown up playing and coaching in this state it is with tremendous pride that I accept this position. I am grateful for the opportunities that I had at Texas, Baylor and Stephen F. Austin, as they prepared me for the work that lies ahead here at Oklahoma. What I have learned working for the University of Texas and more specifically Chris Petrucelli, has been invaluable."

The Longhorns won back-to-back Big 12 championships in 2006 and 2007 and made consecutive appearances in the NCAA Sweet 16 during Nelson's tenure.

FIFA increases women's soccer financial allocation

2007-12-26T13:07:00.001-08:00

Of the USD 250,000 that FIFA allocates to each association annually under the Financial Assistance Programme, the percentage the associations must use to promote women's football was increased from 10% to 15%. See website at www.fifa.com (bottom of article).

Julie Foudy adds a coaches component to her Leadership Academy

2007-12-26T13:05:00.001-08:00

We are very excited to offer an interactive coaching experience for coaches who are bringing their team to the Julie Foudy Sports Leadership Academy (JFSLA) or are looking to enhance their coaching knowledge of team building, leadership, player development, and sports psychology. These concepts will be introduced in a positive, interactive environment that also weaves in much of our successful JFSLA curriculum.

Click here for more information.

Asia leads in promoting women's game: Blatter

2007-12-26T13:03:00.000-08:00

FIFA President Sepp Blatter speaks during a press conference in Tokyo on Saturday.

TOKYO: Asia is leading the way in promoting the women's game in the "macho" world of football with many taking up senior positions in the sport, FIFA president Sepp Blatter said Saturday.

He lauded the Asian Football Confederation for being the first nation to elect many women -- four -- to its executive committee.

"This is a remarkable achievement for a confederation that had some problems at the beginning in the development of women's football and now they are the forerunners," Blatter said. "I congratulate them."

The AFC elected one woman as its vice president and three others as members of the executive committee.
The 71-year-old Swiss also welcomed the wider development of the women's game.

"Our sport has been and still is sport for men and boys. I'd say it's a macho sport," he said. "But in the past 15 years, women's sport has remarkably developed in all continents. Even in Iran and Saudi Arabia, women's football is in." -AFP

Number of female coaches in women's sports shrinks to all-time low

2007-12-17T11:19:00.000-08:00

Officials in athletics say there is no one simple reason, but most add that sexism is part of it.

By Ken Fowler, Special to The Times

December 2, 2007

For the entire article, click here.

UCLA women's soccer Coach Jillian Ellis, whose No. 1-ranked Bruins defeated No. 3 Portland in double overtime Friday to advance to the NCAA semifinals, doesn't have far to go to understand how far female coaches have come 35 years after Title IX became law.

It's at her desk.

"I have young women that come into my office and I have them point-blank ask me, 'Will you coach me differently than a male?' " said Ellis, who in 1984 enrolled at William and Mary amid the Title IX sports boom. "It's frustrating. . . . They've never been coached by a woman in their lives."

Title IX, passed into law with the bold notion that gender equity could be attained in schools, including sports, somehow has not provided a sustaining boost for female coaches at the college level.

According to the latest available statistics, the percentage of women coaching women at the college level is shrinking.

And while the number of female coaches has increased slightly since 1972, it is mostly because the number of women's teams has nearly tripled, to about 8,700.

Dig deeper, as researchers R. Vivian Acosta and Linda Jean Carpenter have, and the percentage of female head coaches of women's teams falls from more than 90% in 1972, as Title IX became law, to an all-time low of about 42% in 2006. Indeed, according to NCAA statistics, which are based on a 74.2% response rate from its 1,054 schools, the number is only about 40%.

In soccer, the sport that has enjoyed perhaps the greatest growth at the college level since Title IX, only about 37% of the coaches are women.

"Even today, athletic directors are not willing to go the extra mile to really recruit quality female coaches," said Acosta, professor emerita at New York's Brooklyn College.

"The old boys club?" she asked. "That's alive and well."

Former U.S. National Team Player Marci Miller Jobson To Lead Baylor Women's Soccer Program

2007-12-12T19:38:00.000-08:00

For the entire article, please click here.
Dec. 6, 2007

WACO, Texas -- Former U.S. National Team player Marci Miller Jobson, who has spent the past three years steadily rebuilding Northern Illinois' women's soccer fortunes, has been selected to lead the Baylor women's soccer program, Baylor Director of Athletics Ian McCaw announced today.

"We are very excited about having Marci lead our soccer program," McCaw said. "She is deeply committed to Baylor's mission and will be a great ambassador for Baylor soccer. Marci's professional and U.S. National team experience will afford her great credibility in working with our student-athletes and in the recruiting process.

"Marci enjoyed great success in turning around the Northern Illinois program while she competed as a professional player and member of the U.S. National Team. We are looking forward to her devoting her full-time energies to building a championship program at Baylor."

While splitting time between the U.S. National Team and her Northern Illinois head coaching responsibilities the last three seasons, Jobson led the Huskies to a pair of Mid-American Conference Tournament (MAC) appearances and improved the program's win total each year.

More NCAA Division 1 Female Coaches Leaving

2007-12-04T08:00:00.000-08:00

COLLEGE ... OLD COACH ... NEW COACH

CINCINNATI Meridy Glenn ... TBA job posting
IOWA STATE Rebecca Hornbacher ... TBA
MICHIGAN Debbie Rademacher ... TBA job posting
TROY STATE Diana Niland ... TBA
TULSA Rena Richardson ... TBA job posting
VERMONT Kerry Dziczkaniec ... TBA job posting
WYOMING Anne Moore ...TBA

Hornbacher steps down at Iowa State

2007-12-04T07:57:00.000-08:00

Tuesday, Dec 4, 2007 8:00 AM ET
Rebecca Hornbacher, the winningest women's coach in Iowa State history, has resigned after six seasons.

She led the Cyclones to 45 wins and the program's only trip to the NCAA tournament in 2005. Iowa State finished with an 8-7-4 record and a berth in the 2007 Big 12 Conference tournament, where it fell to top-seed Texas A&M in a shootout.

"I am getting married this spring so it's an appropriate time to make a lifestyle change and turn the page on my personal story," Hornbacher said. "I will be moving to Omaha to be closer to my family and to start my future with my fiancé."

Overdue League Update Part 2

2007-11-28T11:24:00.001-08:00

By Gaye Bryan, Fair Game Magazine

Part Two from my interview with league commissioner Tonya Antonucci, continuing with the decision to launch in 2009 discussion …

That’s the best long-term plan. Get this right. Don’t do it fast, but get it right and be in a position where we can come off the heels of a World Cup and come off the heels of an Olympics. It’s more exposure for all the athletes and more time for planning and development and then we launch. That was the decision and I think most people are feeling pretty good about it.

We’ve heard from some people within MLS saying, “We understand what you had to do. If you recall, we had to delay our launch one year.” There are all kinds of data points that historically lean towards this decision. You know, look how much time had lapsed between the NASL collapsing and the launch of MLS.
You really do want to take the long view and make sure that again, you’re not rushing, and then you’ve got a short-term solution but it might go away again. We’re only going to get this second bite at the apple at least in this country. That’s something that the owners, the marketers, WSII, we all felt that we get a second bite at this apple. Let’s make sure that we’re not handicapping ourselves.

I assume that the league offices will be out in the Bay Area with you?

We haven’t determined the final location of the league office. Temporarily, at a minimum, we are running the offices out of the Bay Area with me here and then we’ll make a decision on that later, probably after the New Year. There are really no other front-runners at this point. The issue is that we want to manage costs and be efficient so one of the options is, in the early years if possible share our league office including physical space and some staff with one of our franchise owners to keep the costs down. We have seven markets at a minimum for 2009 so you can hypothesis where we might wind up, but really, it’s going to come down to how do we manage costs and how do we kind of buckle down through the early years. That’s going to impact the final decision.

Have you made any hires yet?

I’m in the process of starting to evaluate some candidates in the short term. I’ve identified someone who I’m working on as an administrative, project manager type person to help me stand up the office. I don’t have an announcement yet, but I will have more announcements in the near future. Some of our executive level hires will be phased in the coming months. Once we launch our league website, that will be a great platform to share with folks and also to do recruiting. We’d love to hear who’s out there that would like to be part of our management team. We’re just beginning all that process now.

For the rest of the article, visit Fair Game Magazine.

Swedish interview with New US National Team Coach Pia Sundhage

2007-11-27T08:32:00.000-08:00

In a video feature, SVT looks at Pia Sundhage's move from east to west as she transitions from an assistant coach position with China to being the USA's head coach. The video includes a few clips from Sundhage's playing days. Click here for the video, but be forewarned.... it's in Swedish.

Overdue League Update

2007-11-27T08:24:00.000-08:00

By Gayle Bryan at Fair Game Magazine

WSII made the official announcement that a women’s professional soccer league was set to launch in 2009 on September 4th. I played telephone tag with WSII CEO (and new league commissioner) Tonya Antonucci for a few days before leaving for China and the World Cup on the 8th. I continued my quest to get the scoop on the new league while I was in China and after several more rounds of tag we finally connected a couple weeks into my trip. Of course about that time, the U.S. lost to Brazil, all hell broke loose and this informative interview with Antonucci got shelved.

So, better late than never, I bring you this league update. The interview was long (I have the phone bill from China to prove it), so I will break it up into a few pieces and post it over the next week. Today’s section focuses on the initial funding of the league and what played into the decision to postpone until 2009.

Can you give me the status of where things stand with the launch?

The good news is that the league has now been physically formed and the investors have put in a sizeable financial contribution; sizable six figures each as of the time of the announcement and there’s another capital infusion coming at the end of the year that’s even larger, which all goes toward standing up the league and preparing the league for the launch in 2009.

For the entire article, visit Fair Game online.

The National Soccer Coaches Association of America Convention

2007-11-26T11:35:00.000-08:00

Women in Coaching -- Chronological Schedule

Thursday, January 17th

4pm-5:15pm in CCExhibit Hall C/D
Emma Hayes presents, "Diagonal Lines: Getting Between to Get Behind."

Emma Hayes is the Assistant Coach and Academy Director at Arsenal Ladies Football Club in London, England.

9:30pm in S-Loch Raven
The Social for Coaches of Female Athletes

Friday, January 18th

9am-10:45am in CC307-10
Jitka Klimkova presents, "Women's Soccer in the Czech Republic."

Jitka Klimkova is the Head Coach for the Czech Republic U17 Girls National Team.

10:30-11:45am in CC318-19
Charlotte Moran and Sue Ryan present, "Highlights of the USYouth Soccer Girls' ODP"

Charlotte Moran in the Executive Director of EPYSA and Sue Ryan is the Head Coach of SUNY Stony Brook University Women's Soccer

12noon-1:15m in CC Exhibit Hall A/B
Lisa Cole presents, "NSCAA Goalkeeper Diploma: Goalkeeper Handling 1.

Lisa Cole is a member of the NSCAA Academy Staff

12noon-1:15pm in CC 307-10
Emma Hayes presents, "Global Growth of the Women's Game and Reflections on the Women's World Cup."

Emma Hayes is the Assistant Coach and Academy Director at Arsenal Ladies Football Club in London, England.

12:30pm-1:45pm in CC318-19
Tracy Ducar presents, "Goalkeeper Analysis - Women's World Cup 2007."

Tracy Ducar is a member of the NSCAA Goalkeeper Institute Staff

1:30-2:45pm in CC327-28
Exhibitors Showcase: "Julie Foudy on Leadership and Team Building."

Saturday, January 19th

8am in S-Chesapeake
NSCAA/adidas Women's Soccer Breakfast

11am-12:15am in CCExhibit Hall A/B
Laurie Pells presents, "Making the Breakaway Save, NSCAA Goalkeeping Diploma."

Laurie Pells is on the NSCAA Academy Staff

1pm-2:15pm in CC Exhiit Hall C/D
Jitka Klimkova presents, "Czech Republic: Functional and Progressive Training; Width."

Jitka Klimkova is the Head Coach for the Czech Republic U17 Girls National Team.

2:30-3:45pm in CC318-19
Nora McGuire White presents, "Success Strategies for the Female Soccer Coach: Winning the Game of Balance and Longevity."

Nora McGuire White is a member of the NSCAA Academy Staff.

3pm in CC340
NSCAA Women's Soccer Committee Open Meeting for Coaches of Girls Youth, High School and College Coaches of Women

6pm in CCExhibit Hall A/B
The Walt Chyzowych 4-A-Side Tournament

Wave of coaching openings

2007-11-21T06:35:00.000-08:00

by Paul Kennedy, Wednesday, Nov 21, 2007 9:00 AM ET

Please visit Soccer America Online for complete article.

THE WOMEN'S REGULAR SEASON ENDED only 10 days ago, but there's been an unprecedented wave of jobs open up at major programs. Alabama, Michigan and Oklahoma are just a few of the Division I women's programs looking for new coaches. In order of longevity, here are the [female] coaches who have resigned ...

DEBBIE RADEMACHER (Michigan-14 seasons). Rademacher, the only coach in Wolverine history, also stepped down after 14 seasons. She compiled a 160-108-37 and led the Wolverines to two Big Ten tournament championships. UM also made nine NCAA tournament appearances, making it to the Elite Eight in 2002 and the Sweet 16 in 2003. But in 2007, Michigan was only 3-9-6. "It has been 14 great years at Michigan for me," Rademacher said. "But I've decided -- with a new baby and another young son -- to focus on being at home with my family." As a player, Rademacher (née Belkin) was a member of the Soccer America all-century team at UMass and played on the 1991 U.S. Women's World Championship team.

ANN MOORE (Wyoming-9 seasons). Moore, the Cowgirls coach for nine seasons, also expressed a desire to spend more time with her family (husband Curt and two young sons). During her tenure, she posted a 63-91-17 record. This past season, Wyoming was 9-10-0 overall and 4-3-0 in the Mountain West, tying for third place. Associate head coach Kim Whisenant will manage the UW program in the interim until a new head coach is named.

KERRY DZICZKANIEC (Vermont-4 seasons). Dziczkaniec has announced her resignation after four years at the helm of the Catamounts program. She compiled a record of 25-42-6. This season, Vermont had one of the youngest teams in the America East with 15 freshmen on the squad and posted an overall record of 3-14-1.

RENA RICHARDSON (Tulsa-4 seasons). Richardson also served as head coach for four seasons and posted a 26-44-9 overall record, including a 3-14-2 mark this season. "I want to spend time with my family," Richardson said. "My kids are growing up and I don't want to miss it. It was a hard decision, but I think it is best."

Jonathan Feldman Interviews Pia Sundhage

2007-11-15T14:04:00.000-08:00

For the complete article, please visit: Greenpitch Magazine online.

Q: How happy are you with this move?
A: I am very, very happy and very excited. It is a unique moment for many of us in many respects. I feel that, and I like that feeling. For the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team, it’s about this team and together I think we will create the environment that brings out the best performance in each other. We have to work as a team and show that we are the best again. In order to be successful, you need passion, inspiration, and like to be challenged. I know that I have a passion for the game. I will inspire the players and the coaching staff and I love the challenge. That’s why I love to be here, again, it is a great chance for me, a great opportunity and I will do my very, very best.

Q: Tell me about your impressions of player development in the U.S.A.
A: First of all, I have to come to the country and field a team. My experience in Sweden is that it’s very important that you look through from the young players, and first of all the grassroots, where you need to make it fun so that you come back to play soccer. That’s the most important thing. Then, of course, if you look at the programs for youth players it is important. We have seen that in Sweden and if you start something and you have a message that will influence the whole program and that will make the full team a great team. Development is very important in order to be successful in the long term.

Q: You were an assistant with China this past summer. Some would say that this is too much of a jump for you.
A: That’s another experience and I would say I learned most about communication. I don’t speak Chinese and in order to reach the players I improved my body language. That’s something I will bring to this job and make sure it is good body language. I breathe the Chinese soccer style and that is good to know when we meet them.

Gulati Speaks About Hiring a Woman

2007-11-14T14:56:00.000-08:00

“In an ideal world, if everything was equal, I’d prefer to have a woman be our National Team coach," Gulati said. "If everything was equal, I’d prefer to have someone who was fit for the U.S. game for 30 years. But rarely are things always equal and so, in that case, we picked absolutely the best person in that Pia has both played the game and coached the game at a high level and has been very successful at it, which is more important than gender. That we’ve been able to hire a woman to lead the program is a big plus.”

More U.S. articles on Sundhage's hiring

2007-11-14T09:41:00.000-08:00

Steven Goff at the Washington Post

Mark Zeigler at the San Diego Union-Tribune

Grahame L. Jones at the Los Angeles Times

Michael Lewis at BigAppleSoccer.com

Jere Longman at the New York Times

Pete Grathoff at the Kansas City Star

Debbie Arrington at the Sacramento Bee

Kristing Lilly speaks about the decision to hire Pia Sundhage

2007-11-14T09:32:00.000-08:00

To view the full article, visit the Fair Game Magazine Blog.

Q: Kristine, having played for her, what do you think she brings to the job?

A: The main thing she brings is she loves the game of soccer. Any way she can make an impact on it she will. Being this coach now, she’s going to add her passion for the game, her tactical awareness, and her experience on and off the field. She has experience coaching against us. She coached in the WUSA. She’s just going to bring so many different dimensions and newness. We’ve never had someone outside of our system so that’s something that’s exciting.

Pia Sundhage Named Head Coach of the U.S. Women's National Team

2007-11-13T13:38:00.001-08:00

For the entire article, visit www.ussoccer.com .

Long-Time Club and International Coach, and One of World's Legendary Players, Becomes Sixth Head Coach in U.S. History; Former Swedish International and WUSA Head Coach Will Lead USA into Olympic Qualifying

CHICAGO (November 13, 2007) – Pia Sundhage has been named the new head coach of the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team, it was announced today by U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati. Sundhage, 47, brings an extensive and impressive resume to the position as both a player and coach, most recently as an assistant for the Chinese National Team during the 2007 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Gender Balance Needed for Women's Coaches

2007-11-13T10:18:00.000-08:00

By Christine Brennan, USA TODAY

Click here to see the entire article at usatoday.com.

There's an opening for a head coach on the most famous women's national team in U.S. sports. The goalkeeper stayed; the coach left, which is just as it should be. But now, the nation's soccer team has no coach less than 10 months before the start of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

The names of five initial candidates have surfaced as replacements for Greg Ryan, the man who made the mistake of benching Hope Solo and triggering a figure-skating-style soap opera in the beautiful game. Three of these candidates are men. Two are women.

Who among us gives a second thought to the fact that 60% of the known candidates for the most visible coaching job in women's sports are not women?

Men coaching women? Happens all the time, from peewee soccer and T-Ball to the NCAA finals. In fact, it's happening even more than it used to. In 1972, the year Title IX was enacted, more than 90% of the head coaches of intercollegiate women's teams in all sports were women, according to the Women's Sports Foundation. In 2006, that number plummeted to 42.4%. In collegiate women's soccer, specifically, it's now just under 30%, down from 33% in 1997.

Some would say the statistics don't matter, that the best person, male or female, should get the job. I had always held that opinion — until I saw the stunning decline in the number of women getting these jobs, and realized it's more complicated than that.

About Pia Sundhage

2007-11-13T10:02:00.001-08:00

Written January 30, 2001

Women's Soccer World© -March/April 1997 Edition©
Pia Sundhage - A unique Career in Sweden and the World

by Rainer Hennes

The number is a magical 146. It is the number of international playing appearances Pia Sundhage has made as a member of the Swedish National Team, giving her the most caps of any woman in soccer. In 1975, at the age of 15, she played in her first international game: an 0-0 tie against Finland. In the 1996 Olympics she played in her last one: a 3-1 victory over Denmark at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida.

Unfortunately for Pia this result did not enable Sweden to reach the semi-finals and a medal game. So Pia had no chance to play her 147th and 148th games which would have given her the record for the most caps for both women and men. This record is still held by Majed Abdullah from Saudi Arabia, who resigned after World Cup '94 in the U.S.

Pia's extraordinary career started at the age of six in the youth team of Ulrichshamn, which is a small town located about 70 miles east of Gothenburg. After recognizing that the small Ulrichshamn team could not satisfy her dreams of playing at the top level she moved to KIK Falkoping.

During the early '80's Pia had a very successful time with teams like Jitex BK from Gothenburg and Oesters Vaexjoe. After finishing school, she held a variety of jobs - from working in a car wash to being a secretary - while the women's international soccer scene started to develop in Europe. The first European Championship started in 1982. Sweden and England qualified for the finals in 1984. By then Pia had already become an important national player and celebrated her first big personal success when she scored in the 1-0 away victory over England. Unfortunately, Sweden lost the return game at home by the same result. No goals were scored by the teams in extra time so a penalty shoot-out was required to decide the entire Championship. Today Pia's comments recalling that situation sound really cool: "I took the last shot. We won the final. It was a marvelous success."

Pia's name has become synonymous with women's soccer in Sweden, and she has received many awards at both the national and international levels. With time Pia's role evolved from forward to mid-fielder and finally to sweeper. She was captain of the National Team for many years. "I think the World Cup 1991 in China and the 1996 Olympics last summer have been milestones in our sport," she says. But the 37-year-old "legend" is also proud of the '95 World Cup, which was hosted by her home country.

Pia is the Swedish record holder in scoring for her National Team with 71 goals, and she will probably retain this position for some time since the next closest scorer Lena Videkull (70 goals) recently retired from international competition. Soccer remains fun for Pia in spite of the hard physical work necessary to stay at the top level. "To be a good player one must always love soccer," she says.

She found that a strong relationship between soccer and music helped her create her own personal sports philosophy. "Soccer and music belong together. You need a certain rhythm and feeling for both." Her favorites in music are well known rock-legends Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Eric Clapton. She also likes Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon and Mark Knopfer from Dire Straits. People who suggest that Pia could have been a professional guitar player are correct. She is a really good one! Many at the closing official banquet after the 1989 European Championship tournament in Germany will not forget the time after dinner when the Swedish team climbed onto the stage and Pia asked for a guitar "to get a real rock'n'roll party going." The mostly elderly officials could not believe their eyes. The same thing happened two years later at the next European Championship closing celebration in Denmark. The difference this time was that UEFA's President, Lennart Johansson (also from Sweden), joined in on piano, and his UEFA colleagues did at least tap their fingers and feet in time to the music.

Most of her career Pia spent playing for Swedish club teams, except for one year in the '80's when she played in Italy for the professional team Lazio Rome. Although she never felt comfortable there, she says: "I am glad that I did not miss that experience. It was an important part of my life."

During the '90's Pia started to combine playing and coaching and last year she was player and coach of Hammarby IF, Stockholm, where she has lived for several years. She holds the Swedish highest level coaching degree and the Swedish Federation appointed her coach of the U-16 girls' National Team, a position she held for several years. After announcing her retirement from playing internationally following the 1996 Olympics, she was named as Head Coach of the U-20 National Team and the Assistant Coach of the Women's National Team under Head Coach Marika Domanski-Lyfors.

Pia Sundhage
Born: Sweden, Feb.13, 1960

International Caps: 146 (from 1975-1996)
European Championships: Gold 1984
Silver 1987
Bronze 1989
Silver 1995
World Championships: Bronze 1991
National level: League Champion 1979, '81, '84, '89
Cup winner 1981, '84, '94, '95
Former teams: Jitex BK Gothenburg
Hammarby IF Stockholm
SS Lazio Rome (Italy)
Oesters Vaexjoe
KIK Falkoping
IfK Ulrichshamn (6 years old)
Current club team: Hammarby IF Stockholm (as a player/coach 1992-present)

Head Coach: Under-16 National Team (1990-96)
Under-20 National Team (1996-present)

Assistant Coach: Women's National Team (1996-present)

FIFA Ambassadors Program

2007-11-12T12:04:00.001-08:00

From www.fifa.com

For the first time in its history, FIFA has appointed the following former women players and coaches as ambassadors for women's football, in recognition of their services to football:

AKERS MICHELLE (USA)
AKIDE MERCY (NIGERIA)
BURTINI SILVANA (CANADA)
FOUDY JULIE (USA)
HAMM MIA (USA)
KIOKA FUTABA (JAPAN)
LIU AILING (CHINA PR)
MORACE CAROLINA (ITALY)
MURRAY JULIE (AUSTRALIA)
NEID SILVIA (GERMANY)
SISSI (BRAZIL)
STOERE HEIDI (NORWAY)
SUN WEN CHINA PR)
SUNDHAGE PIA (SWEDEN)
WIEGMANN BETTINA (GERMANY)

Women's Coaching News from Around the World

2007-11-12T11:47:00.000-08:00

GERMANY - Former defender Steffi Jones has been named the president of Germany's organizing committee for the 2011 World Cup.

ENGLAND - Head coach Hope Powell has named the roster for England's EURO 2009 Qualifier against Spain on Nov. 25. Also, England's World Cup squad met with Sports Minister Gerry Sutcliffe, who congratulated the players on their run to the quarterfinals in China.

KUALA LUMPUR - FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter today praised Asian teams for their performances in the recently-concluded FIFA Women’s World Cup saying the teams have the abilities to pull off surprises in the future. Talking at a media roundtable at the AFC House, Blatter said: “I am happy with the development of women’s football in this continent. Though, none of the Asian teams succeeded to make it to the last four of the recently-concluded FIFA Women’s World Cup in China, their performances won many hearts.” He picked up DPR Korea women’s team for special admiration saying, “Their attitude matches Brazil and I think they can beat any of the top teams in the world.” He also applauded AFC’s move to hold separate women’s awards function saying this will give a boost to development of women’s game in Asia. “I think the idea of organising a separate event for women will help in the development process.” “FIFA is giving the best player and fair play award of the year. But here in the AFC Women’s Awards, which takes place for the first time this evening, there are more awards for referees, young players and coaches.” He also gave a message for all women in football saying, “All for football, football for all.” Blatter, who also attended the AFC Women’s Committee meeting, said: “Today I realized that lot of activities have been organised for women in Asia. We also hope to see a club competition soon.” Regarding different formats of FIFA World Cup qualifiers across the confederations, the FIFA chief said: “One can’t compare one confederation with another because the number of teams varies in each continent. Asia has a home-and-away format for the lower-ranked teams but they also organise tournaments like the AFC Challenge Cup to give these teams more exposure at the international level and improve their standard.”

NSCAA Coaching Education Trip to Holland, Day 1

2007-11-09T12:50:00.001-08:00

By Nora Maguire White, NSCAA National Academy Staff Coach

October 29-November 5, 2007

November 29. Began at 5:30 am. Up to type up my three boys schedule’s for the week- soccer practice, guitar lessons, where to pick up the Halloween costumes and who to call for trick-or-treating; directions to each so that my mother-in-law and husband would know what to do for the week and how to get there. Boys to school, off to Costco so dinners would be lined up for the week, and back to the house to pack in time for my husband to drive me to the airport at noon.

November 30. Arrived in Amsterdam at 5:55 am. NSCAA collegue Theresa Echtermeyer and I are greeted at the airport by John, from the KNVB, who is accompanying us throughout the week. After breakfast we had a nap and then off to watch Head Coach Vera Pauw train the Dutch Women’s National Team in preparation for their match against World Cup Champion Germany on Thursday.

Theresa and I spoke with Vera briefly before the session and she noted that 23 players had been invited in to prepare for the match so they could spend time training 11v11. The players had watched film from Germany’s most recent match the previous day and the session was geared to replicate some of Germany’s tendencies for the first team to train against and to focus on areas they felt might be successful against the world champions.

To read more about Nora's trip to Holland, visit her page: http://noramaguire-white.blogspot.com/

Blatter wants more women running 'macro' soccer

2007-10-30T12:00:00.001-07:00

Written by: AFP

FIFA President Sepp Blatter addresses the 70th anniversary celebrations of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) in New Delhi, April 2007. Blatter has hailed the advances made by women in HANGZHOU, China (AFP) - FIFA president Sepp Blatter Thursday hailed the advances made by women in "macho" football, and said he wanted to see more females in the corridors of power.

"It's been a great spectacle of women's football here," he said on the sidelines of the women's World Cup.

"Generally speaking, it is a big improvement by all the teams from four years ago in the United States.

"There has been an improvement in the speed of the games. Also, importantly, though not by all the teams, there has been an improvement in tactics. "All in all, compared to 2003, women's football has moved to a new level, but not in all continents. It is now our duty to develop women's football everywhere."

The World Cup has seen average crowds of 38,000 fans, which Blatter said was hugely encouraging. Now he wants to see more women's professional leagues and more women in senior positions in FIFA, the world governing body, and national federations.

"Football is a macho organisation and this is not correct because football is for all," he said.

"I want to give women more positions inside FIFA, although when it comes to the FIFA Executive Committee it is not easy because they are elected by national federations.

"At the moment, the only chance for a women to be elected by FIFA to the Executive Committee is to challenge the president, and that's me."

Canadian Soccer Assocation Promoting Female Coaches

2007-10-30T10:50:00.001-07:00

In 2002, the CSA approved a National Initiative in Developing Women Coaches and have committed to establishing a structure that creates opportunities for women in coaching at all levels.

The CSA, with the support of CAC’s Women in Coaching program, took full advantage of hosting the FIFA U-19 Women’s World Championships to launch its commitment to the development of women’s coaching. During the championships, 17 women coaches from nine provinces and one territory participated in a four-day symposium which combined the development of practical coaching skills and the creation of a network of Canadian women soccer coaches.

For the first time, a large group of Canadian women soccer coaches were exposed to top-level international competition and given the opportunity and support to enhance their game analysis skills among a group of peers. By weaving an international competition into a structured learning environment, this group of coaches was given the opportunity to work within the formal network of international high-level coaches.

Combining a high profile international competition and a professional development symposium for women coaches served as a stepping stone in an active effort to encourage and develop women in coaching and mentoring positions.