Football
Jeff Carlisle, U.S. soccer correspondent 5y

USSF hires Jason Kreis to take charge of U.S. Under-23s

The U.S. Soccer Federation has named Jason Kreis to be the manager of the U.S. Under-23 national team.

The appointment means Kreis will oversee the team's qualification effort for the 2020 Olympic games in Tokyo.

"Jason's qualities and experience made him stand out as the best candidate to lead our U23 men's national team in this important cycle towards the 2020 Olympics," said men's national team general manager Earnie Stewart.

"The U23s are a meaningful part of our program, and Jason is an experienced head coach with significant success both in league and CONCACAF competitions. His knowledge of the player pool is impressive, and we are confident in his ability to implement the style of play we are building with the senior MNT and throughout our national teams. We appreciate the willingness of Inter Miami CF to allow us the opportunity to take advantage of Jason's abilities to guide this group."

Kreis, 46, recently joined the technical staff of MLS expansion side Inter Miami FC. He will continue in that role in addition to his new duties with the U23s.

Kreis had three stints as a manager with MLS clubs. He spent parts of seven seasons with Real Salt Lake, leading RSL to an MLS Cup triumph in 2009, becoming the youngest head coach in MLS history to do so. All told, he led RSL to six consecutive postseason appearances, as well as a run to the 2013 MLS Cup final. He also spent one season in charge of New York City FC, and parts of three seasons managing Orlando City FC.

"It's a tremendous opportunity," Kreis said. "It's an opportunity to be a part of a new system under the leadership of Gregg Berhalter and Earnie Stewart leading the national team the way that they are. It's an opportunity to work with the country's brightest young stars, and it's an opportunity to represent your country. In my opinion, that's the highest honor of all."

Kreis will lead the U23s at its training camp this week in San Pedro del Pinatar, Spain. The U23s are slated to take on Egypt on March 22 and the Netherlands on March 24.

The camp marks the beginning of a long journey to the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, with Kreis aiming to guide the USA to qualification for its first men's Olympic football tournament since 2008.

U.S. U-23 MNT Roster by Position (Club; Hometown):

GOALKEEPERS: Jonathan Klinsmann (Hertha BSC/GER; Newport Beach, Calif.), JT Marcinkowski (San Jose Earthquakes; Alamo, Calif.)

DEFENDERS: Julian Araujo (LA Galaxy; Lompac, Calif.), Cameron Carter-Vickers (Swansea City/WAL; Southend-on-Sea, England), Marco Farfan (Portland Timbers; Portland, Ore.), Jack Maher (Indiana; Caseyville, Ill.), Matthew Olosunde (Manchester United/ENG; Trenton, N.J.), Donovan Pines (D.C. United; Clarksville, Md.), Lucas Pos (FC Lausanne-Sport/SUI; Irvine, Calif.), Antonee Robinson (Wigan Athletic/ENG; Milton Keyes, England), Miles Robinson (Atlanta United FC; Arlington, Mass.)

MIDFIELDERS: Derrick Jones (Philadelphia Union; Philadelphia, Penn.), Cameron Lindley (Orlando City SC; Carmel, Ind.), Djordje Mihailovic (Chicago Fire; Lemont, Ill.), Keaton Parks (New York City FC; Plano, Texas), Eryk Williamson (Portland Timbers; Alexandria, Va.), Jackson Yueill (San Jose Earthquakes; St. Paul, Minn.)

FORWARDS: Jeremy Ebobisse (Portland Timbers; Bethesda, Md.), Josh Perez (LAFC; La Habra, Calif.), Emmanuel Sabbi (Hobro IK/DEN; Columbus, Ohio), Josh Sargent (Werder Bremen/GER; O'Fallon, MO), Tim Weah (Celtic FC/SCO; Rosedale, N.Y.), Haji Wright (Schalke/GER; Los Angeles, Calif.)

^ Back to Top ^