On Tuesday, reports emerged confirming that 2024 Major League Soccer Manager of the Year Wilfried Nancy would be leaving the Columbus Crew to take the job at storied Celtic FC in Glasgow.
It’s a historic moment in North American soccer history to see a coach with only MLS experience on the senior level make such a leap. It’s also one that needs to happen a lot more often if MLS is to continue climbing up the global soccer hierarchy.
Thirty years into the history of the still-emerging league, the French-born Nancy is by far the exception to the rule when it comes to the trajectory of MLS’ best coaches.
Bob Bradley and Jesse Marsch eventually parlayed their development as MLS managers into European head coaching jobs, but only after considerably more circuitous paths. Others like Bruce Arena, Peter Vermes, Greg Vanney and Jim Curtin didn’t get or take European opportunities. (Theoretically, Vanney and Curtin could still explore if they wanted.)
And others like Tata Martino, Ronny Deila and Dean Smith have tested MLS waters only after building their credibility elsewhere.
Anti-American stereotypes may explain some of why MLS doesn’t seem to develop coaches the way it has begun to develop players. But it’s also true that the MLS experience simply can’t equip managers with the kind of stress test that prepares them for higher visibility European jobs.
The overly forgiving 18-team playoff format gives managers fewer high-leverage games to take charge of over the course of the season. The media corps following many MLS clubs is limited and composed primarily of amateurs who are less critical than professional reporters.
And generally speaking, pressure from fans and the community isn’t as acute either. The supporters who attend every week might call for a coach to be fired. But they’re only a small portion of the people you’re going to run into while running errands around town. In Europe, it can feel like they’re everyone you meet.
These issues also affect players who make the move abroad. But players have their on-field skill to fall back on. For managers, they have to rely on the on-field skill of others.
There’s no obvious short-term solution. Maybe MLS can make its competitive structure more demanding. But turning its clubs into deeply entrenched and scrutinized local institutions is the work of decades, not years.
The good news is Nancy is as qualified as anyone to be the league’s new ambassador. Over three seasons, his Crew teams continuously demonstrated an ability to be greater than the sum of their parts, while playing one of the most innovative systems in the world. This all at a relatively small-market club by MLS standards.
And for all the added pressure of Celtic, for the first time, Nancy will find himself coaching a club that has the clear advantage in talent against most of its domestic rivals.
