Dave Kasper is an American retired

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player and the

sporting director A sporting director, or director of sport, is an executive management position in a sports club. The role is well known as a manager role for European football clubs, which are sometime also "sports clubs", offering many types of sports. The sport ...

for

D.C. United D.C. United is a professional soccer club based in Washington, D.C. that competes in the Eastern Conference of Major League Soccer, the top tier of American soccer. Domestically, the club has won four MLS Cups (league championships), four Suppo ...

Player

Kasper grew up in the Pittsburgh area playing for

Pittsburgh Beadling Pittsburgh Beadling is an amateur American soccer team founded in 1898 in the Pittsburgh suburb of Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania. It won the 1954 National Amateur Cup. It claims to be the oldest continuously operating soccer club in the United S ...

. He graduated from

Chartiers Valley High School Chartiers Valley High School is a public school that was established in 1959 and is physically located in Collier Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. The school's post-office address is Bridgeville, PA however. The school ...

. He attended the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

, playing for the Terrapins soccer team from 1983 to 1987. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in marketing. In 1988, the

Los Angeles Lazers The Los Angeles Lazers were an indoor soccer team that played in the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) from 1982 to 1989. History Jerry Buss, the owner of California Sports, the parent company of the Los Angeles Lakers, Kings and Strings of Tea ...

selected Kasper in the Major Indoor Soccer League draft, but did not sign him. He turned professional that year with the

Milwaukee Wave The Milwaukee Wave is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1984, they have been the oldest continuously operating professional soccer team in the United States and are seven-time league champions, m ...

of the

American Indoor Soccer Association American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

. He spent two seasons with the Wave. In 1994, Kasper signed with the expansion

Pittsburgh Stingers The Pittsburgh Stingers are a defunct indoor soccer team that played in the Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) for two seasons from 1994 to 1995. Year-by-year Players * Bob Lilley (1994) * P.J. Johns (1995) * David Moxom (1995) * Doug Pe ...

of the

Continental Indoor Soccer League The Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) was a professional indoor soccer league that played from 1993 to 1997. History In the summer of 1989 Dr Jerry Buss, the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers and California Sports, told his executive Vice Pre ...

. The Stingers released him on June 29, 1995.

Coach

Kasper coached the

Upper St. Clair High School Upper St. Clair High School (USCHS) is a public secondary school in Upper St. Clair Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania and the sole high school within Upper St. Clair School District, the township's namesake ...

boys team. He also coached the

Sewickley Academy Sewickley Academy is a private, independent, coeducation, college-preparatory academy located in Sewickley, Pennsylvania in the United States. The Academy educates 594 students, from pre-kindergarten to twelfth grade. It is a member of the Nation ...

soccer team from 1991 to 1994, compiling a 38–17–3 record. He also coached the Beadling U-17 team. In April 1994,

Duquesne University Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit ( or ; Duquesne University or Duquesne) is a private Catholic research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded by members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, Duquesne first opened as the Pittsbu ...

hired him as the school's first soccer coach. However, the team did not play its first season until 1995. He had a 15–31–7 record over three seasons.

Executive

On March 16, 1998, Kasper became the vice-president and general manager of the

Pittsburgh Riverhounds Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC is an American professional soccer team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1999 and beginning play in 1999, the club plays in the Eastern Conference of the USL Championship, the second tier of the American so ...

. In January 2001, Kasper became the director of business development for the

New England Revolution The New England Revolution is an American professional soccer club based in the Greater Boston area that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), in the Eastern Conference of the league. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having compet ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

. On December 20, 2001,

hired Kasper as the team's technical director. He remained in that position until September 20, 2007, when he became D.C. United's general manager. Kasper remained the club's general manager until April 14, 2021, when he was promoted to

, while Lucy Rushton was named general manager.

References

External links

D.C. United profile
Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People from Bridgeville, Pennsylvania Soccer players from Pennsylvania American Indoor Soccer Association players American soccer coaches American soccer players Continental Indoor Soccer League players D.C. United Major League Soccer executives Maryland Terrapins men's soccer players Milwaukee Wave players Pittsburgh Beadling players Pittsburgh Stingers players Duquesne Dukes men's soccer coaches Association football forwards Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC New England Revolution non-playing staff D.C. United non-playing staff Association football midfielders {{US-footy-midfielder-stub