Austin FC didn’t take long to fill their head coaching vacancy.
Nico Estevez has been hired by the Western Conference club and will officially begin in the role following the November FIFA Window. Estevez, 44, has continued as an assistant coach with the U.S. men’s national team under Mauricio Pochettino.
“We’d like to thank Nico for all his contributions to the program,” U.S. Soccer Sporting Director Matt Crocker said. “He’s a fantastic coach and an even better person. We wish him continued success.”
Estévez last served as a head coach with fellow MLS side FC Dallas, leading them to the playoffs in 2022 and 2023. He registered a 35-32-30 record with FC Dallas during that span.
He also coached in his native Spain with Huracan Valencia, Valencia B, and Valencia’s first team. Estevez’s most famous victory was a 1-0 La Liga victory against European powerhouse Real Madrid.
“Austin is a vibrant city with fantastic music, food, culture, and most importantly, a fanbase that is incredibly passionate about soccer and Austin FC,” said Estévez. “That passion was one of the main reasons why coming to Austin was so exciting to me, and I’m looking forward to growing the team on the field while getting to know our supporters on a personal level. I want to thank Rodolfo and the entire Club for this opportunity.”
Austin FC’s 2025 preseason will officially begin on January 11. The club failed to make the playoffs in 2024, which led to Josh Wolff’s firing as head coach.
estevez with a barely over .500 record at an in state rival doesn’t seem like an emphatic move for a team with 1 playoff season.
austin needs to clear out its attacking DPs and start over. that’ll have more to do with whether they improve or not. it’s an ok enough defense with a lousy offense. get some goals and even around zero GD and they’ll be playoff competitive.
Velasco and Pomykal missed all or most of the season. Ferreira and Illarramendi missed big parts of the early season. Nico took the blame for that. Missing 4 of your best 5 is hard on any team. I do agree though kind of a strange hire. You replace Wolff with a manager with a similar style. Continuity is great but if they aren’t going to up the roster I don’t see much improvement. Of course as a Crew fan, I don’t trust Precourt to do anything right.
JR
“You replace Wolff with a manager with a similar style. Continuity is great but if they aren’t going to up the roster I don’t see much improvement. ”
Sometimes that means the ownership believes in the project but not in Wolff anymore. Or maybe he doesn’t believe in them. They want the same coach just one with a different personality.
As for upping the roster we don’t know yet what they will or will not do in that regard. There is still time.
V: you are right we don’t know but we do have some history. The Crew were not big spenders when Precourt owned them and after a bit of a splash year 1, Austin hasn’t spent much. When Nico had all his weapons healthy at FCD he did pretty well. Unfortunately he rarely got Arriola, Ferreira, Pomykal, and Velasco on the field at the same time. Now Nico is taking over a team without a proven academy and with a history of being cheap. I believe Driussi has one year left and Bakari could be better with a full season but a lot of age on that roster and a need for another DP.