Who is the new USWNT coach? Emma Hayes leaves WSL side Chelsea

Chelsea FC have announced that Emma Hayes OBE, manager of the hugely successful Chelsea Women’s team, will leave the club at the end of the current season.

Reports suggest that she will be confirmed as the new head coach of the United States’ Women’s National Team in the coming days. She may cover both jobs until the end of the WSL season in May 2024.

Hayes has been in charge of the Women’s Super League side since 2012 and has brought incredible success to West London. During more than a decade with the club she has won the WSL Manager of the Season award six times.

In a statement announcing her departure, Chelsea’s co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley described Hayes as “one of the biggest drivers of change in women’s football”.

“Given everything she has contributed to Chelsea in over a decade with the club, and the legacy she leaves behind, we would never stand in her way when she felt it was the right time to pursue a new challenge.”

Who is Emma Hayes?

The news of Hayes’ impending departure was broken by her current club on Saturday night, just hours after she led the team to a resounding 6-0 win over Aston Villa. Chelsea now sit three points clear at the top of WSL.

She has led Chelsea to six WSL titles during her time at the club, including a run of four consecutive championships. Hayes has also picked up five FA Cups and two League Cups.

Chelsea also got to the brink of continental success in 2021, when they reached the Champions League final in Gothenburg. They were beaten by a Barcelona side hailed as one of the strongest in the History of the women’s Game.

If Hayes is confirmed as the new USWNT head coach that will see her return to the country where she began her career in professional soccer. Her first coaching role came with the Long Island Lady Riders in 2001 and she also managed Iona Gaels before returning to England to take up a coaching role at Arsenal. She spent two years with Chicago Red Stars, before embarking on her historic spell with Chelsea.

Hayes had been linked with the USWNT job since the team’s disappointing exit from the 2023 World Cup, but news of her Chelsea exit appears to have confirmed the appointment.

Chelsea’s statement added: “There will be plenty of time to celebrate Emma’s many achievements at the club and to give her the farewell she deserves, but for now, as she always has been, Emma will be solely focused on making this season as successful as possible for Chelsea.”