Omid Namazi ( fa, امید نمازی; born December 8, 1964) 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 ...

defender who is currently an assistant coach and the director of scouting for

USL Championship The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...

club

Hartford Athletic Hartford Athletic is an American professional soccer team based in Hartford, Connecticut. The club was founded in 2018 and started play in the USL Championship in 2019. It is the only pro soccer team in Connecticut. History On June 8, 2021, Ha ...

. Namazi played professionally in the American Soccer League,

American Professional Soccer League The American Professional Soccer League (APSL) was a professional men's soccer league with teams from the United States and later Canada. It was formed in 1990 by the merger of the third American Soccer League with the Western Soccer League. It ...

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 ...

USISL United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues currently organized are the ...

and National Professional Soccer League where he was the 2001 Defender of the Year and he played for

United States national futsal team The United States national futsal team represents the United States at international competitions. It is governed by the United States Soccer Federation and affiliated with CONCACAF. The U.S. Futsal Federation was founded in 1981 and the first ...

. He is a two-time Coach of the Year in the Major Indoor Soccer League and coached in the

Women's United Soccer Association The Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) was the world's first Women's association football, women's soccer league in which all the players were paid as professionals. Founded in February 2000 in sports, 2000, the league began its first se ...

. As assistant coach of Iran, he led the team to qualification to the

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...

and the

2015 AFC Asian Cup The 2015 AFC Asian Cup was the 16th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It was held in Australia from 9 to 31 January 2015. The tournament was ...

Early life

Namazi was born in

Provo, Utah Provo ( ) is the fourth-largest city in Utah, United States. It is south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the largest city and county seat of Utah County and is home to Brigham Young University (BYU). Provo lies between the ...

, when his father, Mehdi Namazi, was attending

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

to study for a master's degree. The family returned to Iran where Namazi grew up in Tehran. When he was eighteen, his father moved the family back to the United States after the

Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...

. They settled in Washington, D.C. metro area of

Herndon, Virginia Herndon is a town in Fairfax County, Virginia, in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area of the United States. The population was 23,292 at the 2010 census. In 2020, the population was estimated to be 24,532, which makes it the largest of three i ...

. Namazi attended

West Virginia University West Virginia University (WVU) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Beckley, Potomac State College ...

where he played on the men's soccer team from 1984 to 1987. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in exercise philosophy.

Playing career

In 1988, Namazi turned professional with the

Washington Diplomats The Washington Diplomats were an American soccer club representing Washington, D.C. Throughout their playing existence, the club played their home games at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium and indoor home matches at the neighboring D.C. Arm ...

of the American Soccer League. He spent two seasons with the Dips. Namazi played a handful of games with the

Hershey Impact The Hershey Impact was an indoor soccer club based in Hershey, Pennsylvania that competed in the National Professional Soccer League. The team played its home games at the Hersheypark Arena Hersheypark Arena (originally Hershey Sports Arena) ...

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, p ...

during the 1989–1990 season before being released on January 13, 1990. In 1990, he moved to the

Maryland Bays The Maryland Bays were an inaugural franchise of the third incarnation of the American Soccer League in 1988.They were based in Catonsville, Maryland, and played their games at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County. The team joined the Ameri ...

of the

. The Bays won the league championships that season. He played the 1991 season in Maryland before moving to the

Fort Lauderdale Strikers Fort Lauderdale Strikers may refer to: *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983), member of North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983 *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994), member of American Soccer League from 1988 to 1989 and American Profes ...

for the 1992 season. Namazi played for

Reading F.C. Reading Football Club ( ) is a professional football club based in Reading, Berkshire, England. The team play in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. The club is managed by Paul Ince. Reading are nicknamed ...

during the winter of 1992–1993. In April 1993, he signed with the

Los Angeles Salsa The Los Angeles Salsa was an American soccer team based in Los Angeles that played in the American Professional Soccer League (APSL) and the USISL Pro League. The club played on the campus of California State University, Fullerton at Titan Stad ...

of the APSL and played two seasons with them. In December 1994, he signed with the

Baltimore Spirit The Baltimore Blast is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The team is a part of the Major Arena Soccer League. The team has won 10 championships since it was founded in 1980. Beginning with ...

of the National Professional Soccer League. In 1995, he was selected as Second Team All Rookie. In April 1995, the

Seattle SeaDogs The Seattle SeaDogs are a defunct indoor soccer team that played in the Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) from 1995 to 1997. They won the last CISL championship in 1997. History In 1995, the Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) awarded a ...

selected Namadi in 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 ...

draft, but he declined to sign with them. In 1996, he moved outdoors with the

Delaware Wizards The Delaware Wizards were a professional soccer club based in Wilmington and New Castle, Delaware. The team played their first game in 1993 and their last in 2000. They played in the USISL. They were considered DC United's farm team but ended ...

of the

. He played with the MetroStars of

on loan from the Spirit on July 4, 1996. In June 1996, the

Philadelphia KiXX The Philadelphia KiXX was a professional indoor soccer team based in Philadelphia, USA. The team competed as an NPSL expansion franchise and then played in the Major Indoor Soccer League. History The team's original owner was Ed Tepper, also pr ...

selected Namazi in the NPSL expansion draft. In 1997, he was the

Defender of the Year with the

New Jersey Stallions The New Jersey Stallions were an American soccer team, founded in 1996, which competed in various divisions of the United Soccer Leagues until 2004, after which the team left the league and the franchise was terminated. The club originally star ...

. In August 1997, he joined the

Carolina Dynamo North Carolina Fusion U-23, formerly known as Carolina Dynamo, is an American soccer team based in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1993, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The ...

late in the season. In 1998, he played for the Staten Island Vipers. Namazi continued to play for the KiXX until he left four games into the 2002–2003 season. He was the 2001 NPSL Defender of the Year and won the 2002 MISL championship with the KiXX. In 2001, he played four games for the

South Jersey Barons South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

of the

. In December 2003, the Cleveland Force traded Steve Klein to the KiXX in exchange for the rights to Namazi. He played for the Force until 2005. In 2002 and 2003, Namazi played for the

Managerial career

In March 1999, the

fired

Dave MacWilliams Dave MacWilliams (last name also spelled McWilliams) (born May 20, 1957, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a retired American soccer forward and head coach who played professionally in the North American Soccer League and Major Indoor Soccer L ...

. Namazi, on injured reserve after knee surgery, served as interim head coach. His success led to a permanent contract in July 1999. In 2001, Namazi took the KiXX to the MISL championship series where the team fell to 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 ...

. In 2002, the KiXX won the championship, defeating the Wave. Four games into the 2002–2003 season, Namazi left the KiXX to become head coach of the

San Diego Spirit The San Diego Spirit was a professional soccer team that played in the Women's United Soccer Association. The team played at Torero Stadium on the campus of the University of San Diego in San Diego, California. The team began play in 2001. The l ...

. He took the Spirit to the semifinals of the WUSA playoffs, the only season the Spirit made the playoffs. The WUSA collapsed at the end of the season and Namazi returned to playing for the Cleveland Force in October 2003. In March 2004, the Force named Namazi as interim head coach, making him the permanent head coach a month later. He took the Force to the 2005 MISL championship series, losing to the Milwaukee Wave. The Force collapsed during the off season. On September 21, 2005, Namazi became the head coach of the St. Louis Steamers. He took the Steamers to the championship series where they lost to the Baltimore Spirit. The Steamers folded during the off-season and Namazi moved to California to coach youth soccer for a year. He returned to coaching indoor soccer in September 2007 with the

New Jersey Ironmen The New Jersey Ironmen were an American indoor soccer team. They originally joined the Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008), Major Indoor Soccer League for the 2007–08 season. When the MISL ceased operations a year later, they joined the Xt ...

. On June 3, 2010, Namazi was named head coach of the

Chicago Red Stars The Chicago Red Stars are a professional women's soccer club based in Bridgeview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. A founding member of the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) league, they have played in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) sin ...

in the

Women's Professional Soccer Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) was the top-level professional women's soccer league in the United States. It began play on March 29, 2009. The league was composed of seven teams for its first two seasons and fielded six teams for the 2011 sea ...

, replacing Emma Hayes. In December 2010, Namazi was named as an assistant coach to the

Iran Pro League The Persian Gulf Pro League ( fa, لیگ برتر خلیج فارس, ''Lig-e Bartar-e Xalij-e Fârs''), formerly known as the Iran Pro League ( fa, links=no, لیگ برتر ایران, ''Lig-e bartar-e Irân''), is the highest division of profe ...

club

Steel Azin F.C. Steel Azin Football Club ( fa, باشگاه فوتبال استيل آذین, ''Bashgah-e Futbal-e Estil Âzin'') was an Iranian football club based in Tehran, Iran. The club was owned by Hossein Hedayati, owner of Steel Azin Iranian Holding Co ...

On April 28, 2011, he became assistant coach of the Iranian national team alongside

Carlos Queiroz Carlos Manuel Brito Leal de Queiroz (; born 1 March 1953) is a Portuguese football coach who currently is the head coach of the Iran national team. He has served as the manager of his native Portugal's national team, the United Arab Emirates, ...

and goalkeeping coach

Dan Gaspar Daniel Gaspar (born August 27, 1955, in South Glastonbury, Connecticut) is a Portuguese-American football and goalkeeping coach who was an assistant coach for Carlos Queiroz's Iran team. He is a long-time assistant and consultant to Queiroz w ...

. On June 18, 2013, Iran qualified for the

, before qualifying for the

months later. On March 26, 2014, Namazi became the assistant coach of the

United States women's national soccer team The United States women's national soccer team (USWNT) represents the United States in international women's Association football, soccer. The team is the most successful in international women's soccer, winning four FIFA Women's World Cup, Wom ...

. Later in the year, he became the assistant coach to

Tab Ramos Tabaré "Tab" Ramos Ricciardi (born September 21, 1966) is an American former soccer player and current head coach of Hartford Athletic in the USL Championship. Over his thirteen-year professional career, Ramos played as a midfielder in Spain, ...

with the

United States men's national under-20 soccer team The United States U-20 men's national soccer team is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation. The highest level of competition in which the team competes is the FIFA U-20 World Cup, which is held every two years. The United States' b ...

. In January 2016, Namazi was appointed as the new head coach for the

United States men's national under-18 soccer team The United States U-18 men's national soccer team is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation. The U.S. under-18 men's national team serves as a transition for players between the under-17 and the under-20 national teams. Though the ...

. He won the 2017 CONCACAF U-20 Championship as assistant coach of the US team with

and

Brad Friedel Bradley Howard Friedel (born May 18, 1971) is an American professional soccer coach and former player who played as a goalkeeper. Friedel played 84 games for the United States national team between 1992 and 2005, and represented his country at ...

. In May 2018, Namazi became head coach of

Persian Gulf Pro League The Persian Gulf Pro League ( fa, لیگ برتر خلیج فارس, ''Lig-e Bartar-e Xalij-e Fârs''), formerly known as the Iran Pro League ( fa, links=no, لیگ برتر ایران, ''Lig-e bartar-e Irân''), is the highest division of profe ...

side Zob Ahan with signing a one-year deal. However, he and the club agreed to part ways only six months into the appointment. Namazi then joined the technical staff of the United States U20 national team under manager

. In the beginning of April 2019, Namazi was also hired at the Danish club

FC Helsingør FC Helsingør is a Danish football club from Helsingør. The club plays in the Danish 1st Division, having been promoted after winning the Danish 2nd Division The 2nd Division ( da, Danmarksturneringens 2. division or Herre-DM 2. division) i ...

. He was responsible for all scouting in North America. On April 22, FC Helsingør sacked their manager, and the club announced that Namazi would take charge as a caretaker for the rest of the season. On June 8, 2019, he agreed to continue as manager for the club for the upcoming season. However, Namazi expressed regret two weeks later and announced that he would not continue with the Danish club and would move back to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. On September 2, 2022, Namazi joined

of the

as an assistant coach and director of scouting. The move reunites Namazi with recently appointed manager

, who Namazi had previously coached with while on the staff of the

and the

Houston Dynamo Houston Dynamo FC (formerly officially, but still commonly, called the Houston Dynamo) is an American professional soccer club based in Houston. The Dynamo compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Establi ...

Managerial statistics

References

External links

US men's U-20 coaching staff

MetroStars profile

Baltimore Spirit/Blast stats

Omid Namazi
on

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Namazi, Omid 1964 births Living people American soccer coaches American soccer players American Indoor Soccer Association players American Professional Soccer League players American Soccer League (1988–89) players Baltimore Spirit players North Carolina Fusion U23 players Reading F.C. players American people of Iranian descent Cleveland Force (2002–2005 MISL) players Delaware Wizards players Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994) players Hershey Impact players Houston Dynamo FC non-playing staff Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008) coaches Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008) players Major League Soccer players Maryland Bays players New York Red Bulls players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) coaches National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players Ocean City Nor'easters players Philadelphia KiXX players Staten Island Vipers players USISL players Washington Diplomats (1988–1990) players West Virginia Mountaineers men's soccer players Sportspeople of Iranian descent Association football defenders American men's futsal players New Jersey Ironmen players St. Louis Steamers (2003–2006 MISL) players FC Helsingør managers American expatriate soccer coaches Chicago Red Stars coaches Women's United Soccer Association coaches Persian Gulf Pro League managers Women's Professional Soccer coaches Hartford Athletic coaches USL Championship coaches