HEADHUNTED

Emma Hayes agrees to take USA job after announcing shock Chelsea resignation

Tom Garry
Sat, 4 November 2023 

Emma Hayes will take charge of the most successful international team in women's football history - Getty Images/Morgan Harlow

Emma Hayes, the most successful manager in Women’s Super League history, has agreed to become the United States head coach after announcing her shock decision to leave Chelsea.

Hayes, who has won an incredible six titles and five FA Cups, announced that she will leave Chelsea at the end of the season after 11 years at the helm.

US Soccer also wants Hayes to bring her assistant manager at Chelsea, New Jersey-born Denise Reddy, with her as a No 2 with the US, which would deal a secondary blow to Chelsea as many see her as a strong contender to succeed Hayes.

Hayes’s departure from Chelsea was officially announced by the club shortly after full-time at Aston Villa, where her side had just won 6-0 to go top of the WSL.

The Chelsea players learnt of the news that Hayes is leaving whilst in the dressing room following Saturday’s emphatic victory. The news is said to have stunned players and many non-football staff too, with Hayes being a hugely popular figure at the club.

A statement from Chelsea, issued shortly after the victory over Villa, read: “Chelsea FC can today confirm that highly decorated Chelsea Women’s manager Emma Hayes OBE will depart the club at the end of the season to pursue a new opportunity outside of the WSL and club football.”

Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly and co-controlling owner Behdad Eghbali said: “Emma’s contribution to Chelsea cannot be understated. She has been a pioneer in women’s football and is hugely respected within the game. We look forward to continuing to work together over the coming months.”

Co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley added: “Emma has been one of the biggest drivers of change in women’s football. Her achievements at Chelsea are unrivalled and will live in the club’s history forever.

“Given everything she has contributed to Chelsea in over a decade with the club, and the legacy she leaves behind, we would never stand in her way when she felt it was the right time to pursue a new challenge.

“We are pleased that she will remain with the club for the remainder of the season to give us the time to identify her successor.

“There will be plenty of time to celebrate Emma’s many achievements at the club and to give her the farewell she deserves, but for now, as she always has been, Emma will be solely focused on making this season as successful as possible for Chelsea.”

Hayes raises aloft the Women's FA Cup in 2021, one of 14 major trophies she won with Chelsea - Getty Images/Marc Atkins

Hayes is by far the longest-serving manager in the Women’s Super League, having been in charge of Chelsea since 2012, and the 47-year-old’s decision to leave west London is a seismic moment in the English women’s professional game.

She has won a record six Women’s Super League titles, including the past four in a row, and her side have been champions of England seven times when including 2017’s shorter, transitional WSL Spring Series title, won when the division was shifting from a summer calendar to its current winter season.

All of the 14 major trophies that have been lifted by Chelsea in their women’s club history have been won during Hayes’s tenure, plus the Community Shield in 2020. Their reign of dominance started with a league and FA Cup double in 2015, and she also took the club to the 2021 Women’s Champions League final.

Hayes has previously worked in America, coaching Long Island Lady Riders, Iona College and Chicago Red Stars prior to moving to Chelsea, and she has worked in the United States as a pundit for American television, such as during the 2022 Euros.

The US have been searching for a new head coach since August, when Vlatko Andonovski stepped down from the role following his side’s exit at the last-16 stage of the World Cup. The defending champions were beaten on penalties by Sweden.

They are the most successful international side in the women’s game to date, having lifted the World Cup a record four times.