Who is Emma Hayes? What to know of USWNT coach at 2024 Paris Olympics

Story by

Story by
Who is Emma Hayes? What to know of USWNT coach at 2024 Paris Olympics

Craig Meyer, USA TODAY NETWORK · USA TODAY Sports

Thu, Jul 25, 2024 ·

7 min read

About Our Ads

For much of its existence, the United States women's national soccer team has been a source of national pride, an entity around which much of the country has rallied as it chased championships against the best competition from around the globe.

Unlike their languishing counterparts on the men's team, the American women have excelled on the international stage. Since 1991, the USWNT has won four Women's World Cups and four Olympic gold medals, both of which are the most of any country.

2024 PARIS OLYMPICS: Follow USA TODAY's complete coverage here

The team's run in the 1999 Women's World Cup , capped off by Brandi Chastain's iconic penalty kick in front of a record-90,185 fans packed inside the Rose Bowl, was a seminal moment in American sports history and a catalyst for the sport as a whole, inspiring millions of young girls nationally to play soccer. The Americans' World Cup titles in 2015 and 2019 captivated and engaged much of the country, with the U.S. reestablishing itself as the sport's premier outfit.

Entering the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, and coming off an underwhelming showing at the 2023 Women's World Cup , the USWNT finds itself in a transitional period, with many of the most familiar faces from past World Cups and Olympics no longer on the roster.

Those changes don't just end with the players, either. Here's what you need to know about the USWNT coach as the team gears up for the 2024 Paris Olympics:

Who is Emma Hayes? What to know of USWNT coach

The USWNT coach is Emma Hayes, who was hired in November 2023 and officially assumed the role in May.

"This is a huge honor to be given the opportunity to coach the most incredible team in world football history," Hayes said in a statement after she was formally hired . "The feelings and connection I have for this team and for this country run deep. I've dreamed about coaching the USA for a long time so to get this opportunity is a dream come true. I know there is work to do to achieve our goals of winning consistently at the highest levels."

Hayes took over the USWNT after a decorated 13-season run leading Chelsea in England 's Women's Super League, a time in which the club became the dominant force in the league. While in that position, Hayes led Chelsea to seven WSL championships — including each of the past five — and five FA Cups. The club also logged a runner-up finish in the UEFA Women's Champions League in 2021.

Given those achievements by her teams, Hayes was named the WSL Manager of the Season six times and was the FIFA Best Women's Football Coach in 2021.

Hayes transformed Chelsea in her time there. When she was hired in 2012, Chelsea was still a part-time professional club, one that had most recently finished in the bottom third of the WSL standings. By her second full season at the helm, in 2014, she led Chelsea to a second-place finish in the WSL.

"(Hayes) built everything at Chelsea — from having the kit washed to having food, to having our own building, to having our own training and pitches," Katie Chapman , who played for Hayes at several stops in her coaching career, said to The Guardian in 2021 . "Now, it's an absolute professional setup but everything's been a fight over the years to do that. She's always looking at how she can help everybody else."

Hayes takes over for Vlatko Andonovski, who stepped down last August after the USWNT lost in the Round of 16 of the 2023 World Cup — the worst showing by the Americans in program history. Twila Kilgore, who remains an assistant with the USWNT, served as the interim coach following Andonovski's resignation and Hayes' arrival after Chelsea's 2023-24 season.

Heading into July, Hayes had coached the USWNT for two friendlies, both against South Korea — a 4-0 victory on June 1 and a 3-0 win on June 4.

REQUIRED READING: Paris Olympics 2024: Full men and women's soccer schedule for Summer Games

Emma Hayes on Alex Morgan

Beyond those results, she has already made her mark. Hayes helped select the 18-player roster that will be traveling to Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics, one that most notably didn't include Alex Morgan, who had been a fixture of the USWNT since earning her first cap in March 2010.

"Having a roster that could adapt is essential," Hayes said in a call with reporters in June . "We have a tight turnaround between games, so of course having players on the roster that could play more than one position mattered with squad depth. But I also think that there are players on the roster in the forward areas that are performing well and the decision to take those players was one that we certainly deliberated over.

"But I think it's a balanced roster. I've considered all the factors that we're going to need throughout the Olympics, and [the roster is] one that I'm really happy with."

Emma Hayes salary

Hayes is widely regarded as one of the best managers in the game today and, with the USWNT, she'll be compensated as such, having agreed to a deal that made her the highest-paid coach in women's soccer. She makes $1.6 million per year, according to Yahoo Sports , a salary that put her in line with U.S. men's national team coach Gregg Berhalter.

REQQUIRED READING: Paris Olympics 2024 schedule: Complete time, dates for each event at Summer Games

Emma Hayes coaching career

A London native, Hayes grew up playing for Arsenal 's academy as a midfielder before an ankle injury ended her career.

Shortly after graduating from Liverpool Hope University College, she moved to the United States, where she quickly found her way into coaching, first at Major League Soccer camps and then as the head coach of the Long Island Lady Riders in the USL W-League. From there, she moved on to Iona College before heading back to England to serve as an assistant coach for the Arsenal women and taking over as the head coach of the Chicago Red Stars of the now-defunct Women's Professional Soccer league.

After being fired by the Red Stars in 2010, she returned home and worked for her father's company, Covent Garden FX, a currency exchange, before the opportunity with Chelsea came open.

Here's a stop-by-stop look at Hayes' coaching career:

2002: Long Island Lady Riders, head coach
2003-05: Iona, head coach
2006-08: Arsenal, assistant coach
2008-10: Chicago Red Stars, head coach
2012-24: Chelsea, head coach
2024-present: USWNT, head coach

Emma Hayes record

Over her head-coaching career, Hayes has amassed a record of 303 wins, 111 losses and 54 draws.

The bulk of that work came at Chelsea, where she went 261-64-42 over her 13 seasons, a win percentage of 0.711. At Iona, her lone college head-coaching gig, she went 22-29-6, but that mark is largely marred by her 3-13-2 record in her first season after she inherited a two-win team. She went 19-16-4 in her final two seasons with the Gaels.

The only true blemish on her resume is her stint with the Red Stars, with whom she went 6-14-6.

Emma Hayes age

Hayes, born on Oct. 18, 1976, is 47 years old.

USWNT coaches

Hayes is the 12th different person to lead the USWNT since its inception in 1985. Every coach since 1986 has finished their tenure with a winning record, with nine of those coaches winning at least 80% of their matches.

Here's a look at the history of USWNT coaches, including the years they coached and their record:

1985: Mike Ryan (0-3-1)
1986-94: Anson Dorrance (65-22-5)
1994-99: Tony DiCicco (105-8-8)
2000: Lauren Gregg (2-0-1)
2000-04: April Heinrichs (87-17-20)
2005-07: Greg Ryan (45-1-9)
2008-12: Pia Sundhage (91-6-10)
2012: Jill Ellis* (5-0-2)
2012-14: Tom Sermanni (18-2-4)
2014-19: Jill Ellis (101-7-17)
2019-23: Vlatko Andonovski (51-5-9)
2023-24: Twila Kilgore* (10-1-3)
2024-present: Emma Hayes (2-0-0)

* Interim coach

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who is Emma Hayes? US women's soccer coach in 2024 Olympics

Mobilize your Website

View Site in Mobile | Classic

Share by: