Former New York Red Bulls head coach Troy Lesesne is reportedly expected to become D.C United’s next boss.
Lesesne trades one of the longest standing Major League Soccer franchises in the Eastern Conference for another after his contract was not renewed by the Red Bulls this offseason, per The Athletic.
The American capital’s professional soccer team turns to Lesesne after it parted ways with England legend Wayne Rooney in October.
Rooney took a managerial job in England’s second tier with Birmingham City less than a week after his D.C. United exit. He was sacked from that gig after 15 games and left the Blues in 20th place, near relegation.
Lesesne’s time as a head coach has been less turbulent than Rooney’s, taking the Red Bulls helm in May and helping the team to a playoff appearance.
Troy Lesesne will try to bring success to D.C. United, who haven’t won MLS Cup since 2004
Wayne Rooney’s time as D.C. United and Birmingham City’s head coach both didn’t go well
Lesesne was elevated to New York’s head coach position from team assistant after Gerhard Struber left the team.
After a 10-9-4 record leading the Red Bulls, the team opted to hire Sandro Schwarz instead of retain Lesesne.
Former D.C. United head coach Bruce Arena was reportedly not one of the finalists to be the team’s next manager.
The other finalists were Dome Torrent and Hugo Perez, per The Athletic.
Rooney is an elite English player of this century, but his managerial skills haven’t been as good
D.C. United are one of the MLS’ founding clubs, winning three of the first four MLS Cups.
The franchise hasn’t won a title since 2004 and hasn’t made the postseason since 2019, however.
The squad does lack star power, with former longtime Premier League striker Christian Benteke and former United States men’s national team defender Steve Birnbaum being the two biggest names to jump out.
