The Big Lead

Bruce Arena, former USMNT head coach, lands in the most unlikely MLS role

By Joe Lago

Jul 26, 2023; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Revolution head coach Bruce Arena claps on the sideline during the second half against Club Atletico de San Luis at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images
Jul 26, 2023; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Revolution head coach Bruce Arena claps on the sideline during the second half against Club Atletico de San Luis at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images / Eric Canha-Imagn Images
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Bruce Arena led the United States men's national team to the quarterfinals of the 2002 World Cup and won the most Major Soccer League championships of any head coach with five MLS Cup titles.

That's why it was surprising when the 73-year-old Arena was linked with the San Jose Earthquakes, a once-proud MLS club that's been mired in mediocrity under owner John Fisher and his frugal ways.

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For Arena, it would be quite the roster rebuild in San Jose. And it would be quite the coup for Fisher's Earthquakes to land the services of a proven MLS head coach with such a glittering resume.

On Thursday, the rumors became reality when the Earthquakes announced the hiring of Arena as their new sporting director and head coach.

“I am extremely excited for the opportunity to come to San Jose,” Arena said in the team's press release. “I coached my first ever professional game at Spartan Stadium in 1996 — the first game in MLS history — and my first international game with the U.S. in 1998 was in San Jose as well.

"The Earthquakes and Northern California have a proud soccer tradition. There’s a lot of potential with the club, and I am looking forward to working with everyone here to unlock that potential and get back to winning ways.”

Arena arrives in the Bay Area after a controversial departure in New England. In July of 2023, he resigned after an MLS investigation confirmed allegations of "insensitive and inappropriate remarks," and the league announced Arena would have to submit a petition to commissioner Don Garber in order to join another MLS team.

Earthquakes fans remain reluctant on believing Arena can turn around the franchise. They became so fed up with Fisher, who also owns the MLB team formerly known as the Oakland Athletics, that they adopted the A's fans' chant of "Sell the team!"

“Bruce is the most accomplished coach in American soccer history, and we are thrilled to bring him to San Jose,” Fisher said. "With an unsurpassed track record at all levels of soccer in our country that includes numerous MLS Cups and Supporters’ Shields, he’s the ideal choice to lead the Earthquakes.

"We know he will help get the club back to the level that San Jose and the Bay Area deserve, winning games and competing for championships.”

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