Emma Hayes, the most successful manager in the history of Chelsea Women, is set to take over the reins of the US women’s national team next year. The move will make her the world’s highest-paid women’s soccer coach, as well as the first British woman to lead the USWNT. Here is a look at her remarkable career and what she brings to the American team.
A trophy-laden spell at Chelsea
Hayes joined Chelsea in 2012, when the club was still an amateur outfit. She transformed them into a professional and dominant force in the Women’s Super League, winning six league titles, four FA Cups, three League Cups and two Community Shields. She also led them to two UEFA Women’s Champions League finals, becoming the first female coach to do so.
Under Hayes, Chelsea became the first English team to win the quadruple in 2020-21, sweeping all domestic trophies and the Champions League. She also developed some of the best players in the world, such as Fran Kirby, Sam Kerr, Pernille Harder and Ji So-yun. She was named The Best FIFA Women’s Coach in 2021, and was awarded an MBE for her services to football.
Hayes is widely regarded as one of the most innovative and influential coaches in the game, with a keen eye for tactics, recruitment and player development. She is also a vocal advocate for women’s soccer, equality and social justice.
A historic deal with the USWNT
Hayes will leave Chelsea at the end of the current season, which will finish in May 2024, to pursue a new challenge with the USWNT. She will replace Vlatko Andonovski, who was sacked after the team’s disappointing exit in the round of 16 at the 2023 Women’s World Cup.
Hayes has agreed to a long-term contract with the US Soccer Federation, which will reportedly make her the highest-paid coach in women’s soccer history. According to The Athletic, her salary will be close to or equal to that of the US men’s coach Gregg Berhalter, who earns around $1.6 million per year. This would be a landmark moment in the fight for equal pay in soccer, as well as a recognition of Hayes’ achievements and abilities.
Hayes will take charge of the USWNT in June 2024, ahead of the Paris Olympics, where the team will aim to reclaim the gold medal they lost in Tokyo. She will inherit a talented but aging squad, which will need to undergo a transition and rejuvenation. She will also face high expectations and pressure, as the USWNT is the most successful and popular women’s soccer team in the world.
A British pioneer in women’s soccer
Hayes was born in Camden, London, in 1976. She grew up playing soccer with her brothers and friends, but faced discrimination and sexism as a girl. She pursued her passion for the game by studying sports science at Liverpool John Moores University, and later coaching at various clubs in England and the United States.
She became the first British woman to coach a professional women’s soccer team in the US, when she joined the Chicago Red Stars in 2008. She also worked as an assistant coach for the Arsenal Ladies and the Long Island Lady Riders, and as a technical director for the New Jersey Wildcats and Iona College.
Hayes has been a trailblazer for women in soccer, breaking barriers and stereotypes along the way. She is the first British woman to coach in the Champions League final, the first British woman to coach the USWNT, and the first woman to coach a men’s team in a FIFA-sanctioned match, when she led Chelsea’s under-16 boys in 2019.
Hayes has also been an inspiration and mentor for many young female coaches, such as Casey Stoney, Gemma Davies and Carla Ward. She has often spoken about the challenges and opportunities for women in soccer, and the need for more diversity and representation in the sport.
Hayes is not only a successful coach, but also a proud mother of twins, who were born in 2018. She has balanced her personal and professional life with grace and determination, showing that women can have it all in soccer and beyond.
