After four consecutive seasons without a playoff appearance, DC United will soon dribble under new leadership. The Major League Soccer team has hired Troy Lesesne as its new head coach, replacing English legend Wayne Rooney, who parted ways with the club in October. Here are five things to know about the man who will be patrolling the sidelines at Audi Field next season.
This isn’t his first head coaching gig.
Although he is one the league’s younger head coaches at just 40, Lesesne already has some experience under his belt. Last year, he took over the reins for the New York Red Bulls midway through the season, when the team was in last place. Lesesne was able to lead them to a playoff appearance plus a wild-card round victory over Charlotte. However, the Red Bulls still parted ways with Lesesne at the end of the season.
His first victory as a head coach was against DC United.
After a moribund 1-4-6 start to the 2023 season, the New York Red Bulls tapped then-assistant coach Lesesne on May 8 to lead the team out of a rut. It was a trial by fire: The team’s next game was on May 9 against Eastern Conference rivals DC United. Under Lesesne’s guidance, New York would go on to win 1-0, knocking DC’s team out of the US Open Cup. But no hard feelings, right?
He’s worked his magic on previous programs.
When USL Championship team New Mexico United kicked off their inaugural season in 2019, they needed a sporting director and a head coach. (USL Championship is the league a rung below MLS on the US soccer hierarchy). Although Lesesne had never previously held either job, the team tapped him to do both. It was an unorthodox move, but it paid off: In New Mexico United’s first season, they eliminated the MLS’s Colorado Rapids and FC Dallas from the US Open Cup en route to a quarterfinal appearance. It was an impressive feat for any USL team—especially one that didn’t exist a year beforehand.
Juggling is kind of his thing.
Acting as both New Mexico United’s coach and sporting director wasn’t the first time Lesesne kept multiple balls in the air—figuratively and literally. During his time at the College of Charleston, where he worked towards his master’s degree in communications and served as the men’s soccer assistant coach, Lesesne organized an event where players juggled balls to raise more than $1,000 for a local charity.
He pronounces his name “le-sane.”
Hey, we were wondering, too.
