American soccer legend Michael Bradley has been named the new head coach of Red Bull New York, a long-awaited move that was made official on Monday.
The 38-year-old, who began his professional career with the New York MLS franchise, reunited with the organization in 2025 to take over as head coach of Red Bull’s second team, leading it to an MLS NEXT Pro championship.
“I am excited for the opportunity to be Head Coach of the club that I started my professional career with and also in the state that I call home,” Bradley said. “I’m looking forward to getting to work alongside everyone here and do my part to help this club achieve the success our fans deserve.”
This, however, is Bradley’s first real head-coaching gig, which suggests just how high New York believes his ceiling to be. The New Jersey native joined his father, former US national team coach Bob Bradley, on the staff of Norwegian club Stabæk Fotball as an assistant. He was then a guest assistant with the Canadian national team over the summer before joining New York’s academy ranks.
He is expected to institute a more aggressive brand of offensive soccer with Red Bull, likely in the form of a 4-3-3 lineup. While head of sport Julian de Guzman has begun tweaking the roster, specifically with the trades of Peter Stroud and Scottish international Lewis Morgan, significant attacking signings are expected to be made in the coming days.
New York is coming off a 10th-place finish in the Eastern Conference, resulting in its first postseason-less campaign in 16 years. It resulted in the dismissal of head coach Sandro Schwarz, despite leading the Red Bulls on a Cinderella run to the 2024 MLS Cup Final, which they lost to the Los Angeles Galaxy.
Previous head of sport, Jochen Schneider, departed the team to be home with his family in Europe — the firing of Schwarz being his final move.
The hiring of Bradley provides de Guzman with a high-profile, well-respected name to build a new program with. The former American midfielder is one of the most decorated talents in the country’s soccer history. A former captain, his 151 caps with the Stars and Stripes rank third in team history, which included appearances at the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cups.
“Michael had an exceptional playing career and has demonstrated a bright future in coaching, especially after leading our Red Bull New York II to the MLS NEXT Pro Cup this past season,” de Guzman said. “He leads with calm confidence and has a great way of connecting with people. We are excited for Michael to bring his philosophy to our first team and continue to lead our club towards success.”
At the club level, he was sold by New York to Heerenveen of the Dutch Eredivisie in 2006, making him the youngest MLS player ever at the time to be sold. In 2008, he broke the record for most goals scored by an American in a European first division with 18.
From the Netherlands, he moved to Borussia Mönchengladbach in the German Bundesliga, with subsequent loans to Aston Villa in the English Premier League and Chievo in Italy’s Serie A. He also spent two seasons with Italian giants Roma before finishing his career with Toronto FC in MLS.
